LOGINTHE LET GO{Playlist Suggestion: "Glimpse of Us" by Joji / "Let It Go" by James Bay}~KADE POV~The slow song echoed through the huge, glittering ballroom, and I pulled Chelsea flush against my chest, wrapping my free arm securely around her waist while my other hand gripped the silver handle of my cane, balancing my weight so we could just sway together in the middle of the floor.It was supposed to be the perfect moment.I had just completely silenced Valerie, the entire school was finally looking at us with respect instead of pity, and I was holding the most beautiful girl in the world in my arms, wearing a dress I bought for her, surviving a nightmare that was supposed to tear us apart.I leaned my chin against the top of her head, breathing in the sweet, familiar scent of vanilla and rain, waiting for that rush of victory, that warm, triumphant feeling of knowing that I had finally fixed everything and saved the girl I loved.But the feeling never came.Because as I pulled back j
THE PROM{Playlist Suggestion: "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift / "you should see me in a crown" by Billie Eilish}~CHELSEA POV~Crawford Elite clearly didn't just have their Senior Prom in a hot gym with paper decorations and a cheap disco ball. They booked the whole grand ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton downtown. Walking through those big fancy doors felt like entering a coliseum, where everyone was just waiting for the lions to come out.As soon as we entered, the loud music became background noise while many people looked at us. Whispers quickly spread through the crowd of teens in fancy tuxedos and custom dresses.I wanted to shrink, I wanted to hide behind the huge floral arrangements or just turn around and run back to the limo, but Kade didn't let me.He stood up straight and didn't try to hide his injury or the big black knee brace under his nice suit pants. He held his stylish black cane in his right hand and gripped my fingers tightly with his left. He looked so tall and proud
PROM PREP{Playlist Suggestion: "Dancing With Your Ghost" by Sasha Alex Sloan / "The Night We Met" by Lord Huron}~CHELSEA POV~I was staring at myself in the cracked mirror of my tiny bathroom while Zoe aggressively pinned my hair up into this elegant, sweeping style, but I honestly felt like I was looking at a complete stranger, like I was an imposter wearing someone else's skin."Stop moving, Chelsea, I swear to God if you make me smudge this eyeliner I am going to make you walk to Prom," Zoe muttered around a bobby pin she was holding between her teeth, spraying a toxic cloud of hairspray around my head that made me cough."I'm sorry," I whispered, my hands squeezing the edges of the sink so tightly my knuckles were white.I was wearing a beautiful midnight blue silk dress that hugged my curves perfectly, the kind of dress that a normal high school girl would literally kill to wear to her Senior Prom.But every time I looked at my reflection all I could see was a liar.I was a com
THE THREAT{Playlist Suggestion: "Blood // Water" by grandson / "Animals" by Architects}~KOLT POV~I was standing on the second-floor balcony looking down at the main floor of The Mirage, nursing a glass of bourbon that I didn't actually want to drink, just obsessively tracking Chelsea as she moved between the VIP tables with Zoe trailing a few feet behind her like a neon-haired bodyguard.Everything was supposed to be completely normal tonight. I had doubled the security at the front doors and explicitly told Antonio that if any of Kade's little high school friends tried to get in they were to be immediately turned away. But all the security in the world doesn't mean a damn thing when the devil already has a VIP black card.I saw the flash of blonde hair first.It was near the edge of the bar, moving smoothly through the crowd with that arrogant, untouchable swagger that comes from knowing your family is worth three billion dollars. And the absolute second my brain registered tha
DELUSIONS OF GRANDEUR{Playlist Suggestion: "Blank Space" by Taylor Swift / "High School Sweethearts" by Olivia Rodrigo}~VALERIE POV~I was sitting at the absolute best table in the senior courtyard, swirling an iced matcha latte around in its plastic cup and pretending to listen to Brittany complain about her terrible eyelash extensions.But my eyes were completely locked on Kade and his little charity case standing over by the library doors, And honestly, it was so pathetic it was almost painful to watch.Anyone with functioning eyeballs could see that their little fairytale romance was completely and utterly falling apart.Kade was hovering over her, leaning on his black cane—which he had upgraded to from the crutches—trying to hold her hand and talk to her with this intense, desperate look on his face, but Chelsea looked like she was literally standing in front of a firing squad.She kept pulling her hand away, avoiding his eyes, her shoulders hiked up to her ears looking absolut
NORMALCY{Playlist Suggestion: "Until I Found You" by Stephen Sanchez / "Lover" by Taylor Swift}~CHASE POV~I was sitting across from Emma Chen in a cracked red vinyl booth at this cheap retro diner that smelled heavily of fried onions and vanilla milkshakes.My brain was basically malfunctioning because I had absolutely no idea how normal teenagers were actually supposed to do this dating thing without a nurse coming in to check my vitals every fifteen minutes.We had just gotten out of the movie theater where we watched the absolute worst, most predictably terrible horror movie ever made, and I was so hyper-aware of everything my body was doing that I felt like I was vibrating out of my skin.I was trying so hard to make sure I wasn't breathing weird, or looking too pale, or acting like the fragile sick kid, but Emma wasn't even treating me like that—she was just sitting there stealing my french fries one by one, dragging them through a puddle of ketchup and smiling at me like I wa
THE GATEKEEPER{Playlist Suggestion: "Daddy Issues" by The Neighbourhood / "Way Down We Go" by KALEO}~CHELSEA POV~That big hospital building, made of glass and metal, stood out against the dull sky.I stood at the edge of the parking lot, my hands shoved deep into my pockets to hide the shaking.
UNNECESSARY ROUGHNESS{Playlist Suggestion: "My Body is a Cage" by Arcade Fire / "Natural" by Imagine Dragons}~KADE POV~the stadium lights were super bright, almost too bright to look at. You could hear this low buzzing sound that made your head feel weird, kind of like the ache in my knee. I was
THE UGLY TRUTH{Playlist Suggestion: "fake smile" by Ariana Grande / "idontwannabeyouanymore" by Billie Eilish}~DENVER POV~The Prescott mansion smelled like vanilla and cold air. It was a museum, not a home. Everything was white, beige, or gold. Even the air felt special. I sat on the edge of Val
FIRST STEPS{Playlist Suggestion: "Comfort Crowd" by Conan Gray}~MIA POV~If I refreshed the 'Crawford Updates' Twitter page one more time, my thumb was going to fall off.It was 2:14 AM. My roommates, Sarah and Jess, were dead to the world, snoring in a way that usually drove me insane. Tonight,







