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Author: Hewrite
last update Last Updated: 2025-10-08 11:25:42

VENOM NIGHTS

~CHELSEA~

{Playlist suggestion: "Bruises" by Lewis Capaldi}

The bass from the club's sound system vibrated through my ribs as I balanced another tray of drinks above my head.

Friday nights at Venom were always chaos, but tonight felt different. Heavier. Like the air itself was pressing down on me.

My left shoulder screamed every time I lifted the tray, but I had gotten good at hiding pain. Foundation covered the worst of the bruising on my collarbone.

Long sleeves hid the finger marks on my forearms.

Samuel's goodbye gifts from three days ago.

"Chelsea, table seven!" Javier called from behind the bar, his voice barely cutting through the music.

I grabbed the drinks and wove through the crowd, forcing a smile when the college guys at the table looked me up and down like I was part of their order.

One of them...probably from Crawford Elite university based on his expensive watch and entitled smirk....let his hand brush my hip as I set down his beer.

"Thanks, beautiful.
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  • His to Ruin: Breaking Chelsea    037

    WHAT SHE FOUND~CHELSEA POV~{Playlist Suggestion: "Bruises" by Lewis Capaldi}The anxiety sits in my chest like broken glass. I don't know what's worse: meeting Kade after school or the fact that the entire Crawford Elite student body thinks the cleaner is sleeping with a Kingston.Work drags like torture. Every hallway I clean comes with stares and whispers. "That's her." "The one whoring around instead of working." "Heard she's desperate for money."The other cleaning staff won't even look at me. Mrs. Rodriguez, who used to smile and share her homemade cookies, now treats me like I'm contaminated.I'm emptying trash behind the science building when Valerie appears out of nowhere, grabbing my arm so hard her nails pierce my skin."Ow!" I cry out, trying to twist away.She shoves me against the brick wall with surprising strength. My back screams on impact, but she keeps her grip on my arm, nails digging deeper."Finish dealing with that trash whore," Brittany calls from the corne

  • His to Ruin: Breaking Chelsea    036

    EXPOSEDPlaylist suggestion: "At my best" by (feat. Hailee Steinfield) Machine Gun Kelly,~KADE POV~"You're not calling my father."The words come out harder than I intended. Coach Marshal's finger hovers over his phone screen, eyebrow raised like he's daring me to continue."Being on his payroll doesn't make you his bitch," I add."Watch your tone, Kingston." Marshal's voice drops to that dangerous whisper coaches use before they destroy your entire season. "You're walking a thin line here."Chelsea looks like she wants to disappear into the floor. Her knuckles are white where she grips the cart handle."Nothing is going on between us," she says quickly. "Really. Nothing."Marshal's eyes move between us like he's watching a tennis match. "Funny. Your boy here seems to think differently."The way he says 'your boy' makes my skin crawl. Like I'm some kind of pet she's training."Be smart, girl," Marshal continues, focusing on Chelsea now. "You know damn well anything between you and h

  • His to Ruin: Breaking Chelsea    035

    LINES IN THE SAND~KADE POV~{Playlist suggestion: "Devilish" by Chase Atlantic}The locker room stinks of sweat and overpriced cologne. I'm lacing up my cleats when Lucas starts his usual bullshit."Golden boy's been MIA lately," he announces. "Heard he's got himself a little side project."I keep my head down, focusing on double-knotting the laces. My knee feels solid today. Good. I need it to hold up.Denver drops onto the bench beside me. "Ignore him," he mutters. "Guy's got nothing better to do.""You missed Connor's party at Venom," Denver adds. "Where were you?""Busy." The lie comes easily. I was at my mother's cabin with Chelsea and Chase, but that's not something I can explain to anyone here.My phone buzzes. Knox: 'Dinner tonight? Marie is making your favorite.'I delete the text without responding. My older brother's been trying harder since Dad's latest disappointment speech, but I'm not ready for family dinners and fake conversations.Lucas's voice cuts through my though

  • His to Ruin: Breaking Chelsea    034

    THE WEIGHT OF HOME~CHELSEA POV~{Playlist Suggestion: "Heavy" by Linkin Park ft. Kiiara}"You don't have to go back there."Kade's voice cuts through the morning quiet. His hands grip the steering wheel too tightly. We sit in his car outside our building, engine running, three stories of peeling paint and broken promises looming above us."Yes, we do."Chase shifts in the backseat, medical equipment bag clutched to his chest. He needs his checkup today. Moving him around isn't good for his condition."Chelsea." Kade turns to face me. "Samuel could come back. What if next time....""Next time what? Next time we'll handle it like we always do." The words come out sharper than I meant. "This isn't new for us, Kade. Run or hide. Sleep at friends' places. Survive.""But I found you this time."The raw honesty in his voice makes my chest tight. He found us. He helped us. He offered us safety in his dead mother's cabin like it was nothing."Chase has a doctor's appointment," I say instead.

  • His to Ruin: Breaking Chelsea    033

    SILENCE IS A PRICE~CHELSEA POV~{Playlist Suggestion: "I Know the End" by Phoebe Bridgers}The cabin smells like his mother's perfume. Five years dead, but her ghost stays in every corner. Expensive candles on dusty shelves. Silk curtains that haven't been drawn since her funeral. Photos turned face down because Kade says looking at them hurts too much.I understand that kind of hurt.I'm lying in his bed...her bed, really..staring at water stains on the ceiling while he makes breakfast downstairs. Chase's laughter echoes up through the floorboards. The soft clink of dishes and faint conversation drift through the old wood. Normal sounds. Safe sounds.When did my brother last laugh like that? The sound should make me happy. Instead, something dark stirs in my chest. My mind won't stay in this moment of safety.The memory surfaces without permission. It always does when I feel safe. Like my brain waits for moments of peace to remind me they're illusions.Crawford Elite alumni house

  • His to Ruin: Breaking Chelsea    032

    BLOOD ON THE CARPET~KADE POV~{Playlist Suggestion: "Meet You in Hell" by Jade LeMac}Something's wrong.I feel it before I see it—that gut pull you can't explain but can't ignore. My Mustang idles outside Chelsea's building, engine purring while my hands grip the wheel like a lifeline.Five days since Samuel's threat. Four days of Chelsea dodging my calls, her voice distant when she finally picks up. 'Stay away, Kade. I can handle this.'But sitting here now, staring up at her third-floor window where no lights flicker behind thin curtains, I know she was wrong. Dead wrong.I kill the engine and take the stairs two at a time, my knee screaming in protest from last week's workout. The hallway reeks of old carpet and broken dreams, but there's something else threading through the stuffy air. Something metallic that makes my stomach clench.Her door hangs ajar. Just an inch. Not enough to scream break-in, but wrong in every way that matters.'She always locked it. Triple-checked th

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