He left scars, I build fire

Rain sounded on the broken pavement, cold and pitiless, as I sat on the curb in front of the gas station, my heart sinking a little more with each buzz of my phone. One cruel message from Jace lit up the screen:“We’re done. I can’t be with you when you’re like this anymore.”His words cut deeper than the cold. My fingers shook as I gazed at the illuminated text. The girl I’d been — the one who laughed, who believed — felt buried under layers of shame and doubt. The rain blurred the surroundings, but I could feel the needles that stung my flesh with each sharp raindrop.“Why?” I said to the empty street, my voice cracking. “Is it really because of me? Because of this…” I wrapped my oversized coat even more tightly around my body, the weight of his rejection too heavy for even my leather jacket to shield. Chubby. Ugly. Not enough.“Nova, you there?” a voice interrupted my downward spiral. I barely noticed at first, but then I saw a shape move next to me—tall, silent, standing near enou

I didn’t expect the crowd outside Crestwood’s gym to fall silent when I walked past, but they did. I heard a can drop. Shoes scuffed the tile floor as necks turned and eyes locked on me — not with mockery this time, but something far more dangerous: curiosity.“Nova… you look like someone who eats heartbreak for breakfast,” Talia muttered beside me, her voice a mix of admiration and disbelief. She nudged me with her elbow, flashing a grin. “He’s staring.”I didn’t need her to say who.Jace.He stood near the vending machine, flanked by two basketball teammates, trying too hard to look indifferent. His dark hair was buzzed shorter than I remembered, but the same cocky confidence clung to him — until our eyes met. His grip tightened around a soda can, jaw twitching slightly.It was petty, but I smiled. Not for him. For me.I tugged at the hem of my new denim jacket — cropped, cinched at the waist — a far cry from the oversized hoodies I used to hide behind. My wavy brown hair, now cut t

My feet froze as Jace stepped fully into the doorway, sunlight catching on the sharp lines of his lean body. It hit his hazel eyes just right, turning them almost gold—but there was nothing warm in them. His jaw clenched. His eyes burned. And his stare was locked on Ryder’s retreating back.I could feel the shift in the room, like the moment right before a downpour. Thick air. A hush before the thunder.“Since when,” Jace said tightly, “do you talk to him?”I gathered my books slowly, not looking at him. “Since it became a school assignment. Don’t make it a thing.”“It already is a thing, Nova,” he snapped. “You don’t even know him. That guy’s bad news.”I met his glare. “So was being dumped because I gained fifteen pounds. Funny how I survived that.”His face twisted like I’d slapped him. “That’s not what it was about—”“Oh, so it wasn’t about me not being good enough to stand beside the school’s favorite golden boy? Or was it the stretch marks? The soft stomach? Remind me, Jace.”He