Annie I was staring at the white ceiling of that hotel room as I lay on my back on the bed, the annoying noise of the fan disturbing my thoughts. I was bored. Peter had left a few hours ago, saying he needed to take care of something important, so I was left alone in that hotel room. I had already
Annie “I can't believe it; it's not true. Peter would tell me something like that if it were true,” I said in denial, my voice breaking. The surrounding town took its course as I stood there at the payphone with the phone to my ear. Peter's psychologist had just told me something that was shaking a
Annie “I thought you were the only one who understood me. So now you can’t blame me for being attracted to the monster that I am.” Peter's words weighed on me. When I found out about his secret, it was as if the world around me woke up in its most naked and raw colors; it was as if I now realized
Laura I woke up with a start when I woke up, suddenly remembering where I was and what I was doing. “Wake up, Jason…” I called him, while running my hand over my face. He was sleeping next to me and woke up too. “Hmm, what's wrong? Did something happen?” He asked, looking at me with a sleepy fa
Warning: sensitive content Annie “Are you ready?” Peter asked me as he and I were about to storm the Mexican diner down the street. He and I had spent hours talking about it, and no matter how much I told him not to do that and go back home, he said he would only come back after I granted him that
Laura Jason was driving the car while talking to me about something random. “Terry is coming home this Christmas,” he was saying. “He has done an incredible job at the Pretoria branch, but he misses his family.” It had been a few months since Terence had moved to South Africa for work; he was one
Annie It was my parents there trying to get closer to me. My heart almost came out of my mouth, and I almost melted with relief and also anguish. “Dad… Mom,” I stammered, my eyes filling with tears. But Peter was quick; he put his arm around my shoulder, pulling me to his chest, and placed the bar
Jake Gardner “Please tell me. Is he really out of danger?” My wife asked on the other end of the line. “Yes, he is,” I replied. “The bullet hit his shoulder. He’s going to be fine.” I heard her sighing on the other end of the line. "Thank God. I'm going to call Amber to let her know; she's so wo
Laura POV “I love the outfit you chose to wear today. You’re absolutely stunning, my love,” I said, praising my daughter while gently caressing her arm. This weekend had been tough for Annie. She’d had the freshman ball on Friday night, and today, Sunday, she had to accompany me to this brunch at L
Annie POV That night, we fell asleep curled up together, still reveling in each other’s bodies. It was simply impossible to describe. A mix of longing, nostalgia, and satisfaction at having him there again, feeling his body under my fingers, his kisses, his gaze, running my hand through his silky
Annie POV Peter Morton’s face was just inches from mine, staring at me. The electric blue of his eyes was so close I could see his irises dilating and contracting. “You okay, Lady Ann?” he asked. I sighed with a small smile, half in delight. “It’s been a while since anyone called me that.” Actual
Annie POV The masked boy—who I didn’t want to admit was Peter—took me to an upscale, comfortable hotel where I could spend the night safely, away from everything, and try to regain my composure and figure out what to do next. “You can stay here,” he said calmly, though his voice still carried a hi
Annie POV The masked boy led me through the dark campus, his hand firm in mine as we ran away from the ballroom. My legs trembled, the blue dress swishing with each step, and tears still streamed down my face, hot and relentless. The sound of the shouts, the judgments, still echoed in my head, bu
“No choice?” He cut me off, his tone incredulous. “Are you serious? You chose to help Madison make that video. You chose to plug it into the projector. And now Annie’s out there, broken, while you try to run from the responsibility. This doesn’t fix anything, Abby. It wasn’t supposed to end like thi
Abby POV I was there, tucked away in the shadows of the ballroom’s corner, my heart still racing as I watched the chaos I’d helped create unfold. The giant screen kept playing that horrible video, distorted and manipulated clips of Annie echoing through the room like a final verdict. People poin
Annie POV I was still on the dance floor, the warmth of the masked boy’s body against mine, my head resting on his chest as the slow music guided us. The sound of his heartbeat against my ear was almost hypnotic, and I let myself get lost in that feeling I couldn’t quite explain. He’d just said s
I swallowed hard, Caleb’s words coming back to haunt me. “Have you ever stopped to think that maybe we’ve gone too far?” He’d said that at the mall, and I’d hung up on him, but now they echoed in my head. Annie had hurt me, yes. The fight in the dorm, the way she called me fake, like I was trash she