Chapter 2

Oliver went rigid.

The others immediately started egging him on.

"Sabrina, you're savage! Making your lapdog lick booze off the floor? That's hilarious!"

"I bet 1,000 dollars Oliver won't do it! Even he can't be that desperate!"

"I'll bet 2,000 dollars he does! That guy has no shame!"

Sabrina watched Oliver with a smirk, waiting for him to finally lose his temper.

But after freezing for just a second, he looked up at her and smiled again. "I'll do it."

He actually dropped to one knee.

Sabrina stared at him in surprise. Around them, her friends squealed with excitement and whipped out their phones to record the whole thing.

Just then, the door to the private room burst open.

Someone rushed in, looking panicked. "Guys, we're screwed! The vice principal's here with a bunch of teachers! Anyone they catch is getting expelled!"

Everyone panicked and rushed for the exit, no longer interested in watching Oliver make a fool of himself.

Within seconds, only Oliver and Sabrina remained.

She looked down at him, her expression colder than ever. "Oliver, are you even a man?"

She turned and walked out without another word. Oliver stayed crouched on the floor, not moving an inch.

Then, his phone rang. It was Sabrina's mother, Phoebe Landon.

"Oliver, I heard Sabrina went to a bar again! The SATs are only two weeks away! Are you going to get her to study or not?"

Oliver's face went pale.

He and Sabrina had once lived in completely different worlds.

He was a straight-A student from a poor family, while she was a wealthy heiress who had never wanted for anything. Their paths would never have crossed if not for her mother.

Six months ago, Phoebe had approached him with an offer. She would pay for him to study abroad, but in return, he had to make sure Sabrina got into college.

From that day on, Oliver had followed Sabrina everywhere.

Whenever she got hurt, he worried more than anyone else. Whenever she skipped class, he tried everything he could to talk her into going back. Whenever she started dating another guy, he practically lost his mind.

Everyone thought he was hopelessly in love with her. In reality, he was just doing what he'd been paid to do.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "There's still time. I'll figure something out."

"You'd better," Phoebe said coldly. "And don't forget. Your stepfather gets out of jail in two weeks."

Oliver gripped his phone so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

She gave a cold laugh. "If you want to get your mother out of that house before he comes back, you'd better do your job. There are only 25 days left until the exams. You've got a pretty face, so make good use of it."

With that, she hung up.

Oliver looked up and caught his reflection in the nearby window. He was still on his knees, his face deathly pale.

Sabrina's words echoed in his head. "Oliver, are you even a man?"

He lowered his head with a bitter smile.

He knew how pathetic he looked and how little dignity he had left. But he would rather humiliate himself a thousand times than stand by and watch his father abuse his mother to death.

If keeping her safe meant throwing away his pride, so be it.

…

Sabrina didn't come to school for the next few days.

On the third day, Oliver finally got a text from her. It read, "Three orders of sliders from that place on Southbridge Road. Bring them to Midnight Lounge."

The burger place was all over social media, and the line was ridiculously long.

Oliver studied vocabulary while he waited. By the time he finally got to the front, he'd gone through 30 pages of words.

He picked up the food and headed to the bar.

The moment he walked in, he heard a familiar burst of laughter.

"Well, look who it is! Our favorite straight-A lapdog!"

Oliver looked up and saw the usual crowd.

But there was a new guy with them. He had short, ash-gray hair, good looks, and a trendy sense of style.

Oliver stopped short.

Before he could react, the guy walked right up to him. "So you're Sabrina's little lapdog?"

He tilted his head, looking Oliver up and down with curiosity. "Is it just me, or do we kind of look alike?"