Chapter 2

"Someone gave these to you? What exactly did you do for them?" Piper frowned.

"Finn, do you even remember that you're my boyfriend? They aren’t from some..."

She caught the dirty insult right on the tip of her tongue, swallowing it back the second my eyes locked onto hers.

"I know, okay? It’s just a few bottles of alcohol." I shrugged. "If it bothers you that much, you can pay for the whole bill yourself, girlfriend. Or wait, since you and Cole share feelings, does that mean you share a bank account too?"

Piper pinched the space between her eyebrows, radiating pure annoyance.

“I knew it. You're jealous again,” she added, her voice dropping, "You saw the connection between me and Cole with your own eyes."

Yeah, I saw it. I saw it when I caught her texting him every single detail of her day, twenty-four hours a day, like a full report. She documented every word she said to me and every time our skin touched.

Under every single update, Cole left replies like: “You’re not allowed to speak more than ten sentences to him tomorrow.” or “Good girl today. I’ll let you eat lunch with him tomorrow.”

Piper actually followed every single instruction.

When I tried to break up with her back then, she wrapped her arms around me and begged me to stay. Then Cole showed up under my apartment building, tears streaming down his face, demanding an explanation from Piper.

"What happened to make you this heartbroken?" Cole had yelled at Piper, "I was sitting in the movie theater watching a comedy, crying my eyes out because of you."

They had played me like a total idiot. They ed the whole tragedy together, leaving me completely in the dark.

Now, the booze on the table was gone, but Cole was still clinging to Piper, refusing to go home.

"I’m not done drinking!" Cole slurred, glaring at Piper, "If you don't stay with me, I'll drink alone. I'll hook up with some random girl just to let you feel what it’s like to have another girl touching your body!"

Piper immediately looked ready to give in. She was ready to cave right then and there.

I stared at their cheap little performance, my chest tight. "If you go drink with him tonight, we're over."

"Finn, why do you have to force me into a corner like this?" Piper snapped.

I didn't offer a single word back. I turned on my heel, flagged down a taxi, and slid into the backseat.

Piper let out a heavy sigh, but to my surprise, she ended up sliding in next to me to head home.

She leaned in, trying to smooth things over as the city lights blurred past the window.

"Finn, don't be mad. If I didn't feel everything Cole felt, I wouldn't care if he drank himself to death. But you're different. I hate seeing you unhappy."

Piper’s words hit me like cold water, leaving me totally numb. Deep down, a knot twisted in my gut. There was no way she would actually come home with me without a fight.

Right on cue, halfway through the drive, she clutched her chest. Beads of cold sweat broke out across her forehead.

"It hurts! God, it hurts so much! Finn..." she gasped, her chest heaving.

A bitter, hollow laugh escaped out of my throat. Even though I saw this coming, my stomach dropped straight off a cliff.

Her acting was incredible. No wonder she kept me fooled for so long.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine..." Piper squeezed her eyes shut, wincing in agony. "Finn, something terrible must’ve happened to Cole. This is life or death. I have to go check on him."

I forced a look of fake concern onto my face. "Do you need me to come with you?"

She leaned up and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of my mouth. "It might be dangerous over there, and I don't want you getting hurt. Go home and wait for me, okay?"

She bolted out of the taxi and flagged down another taxi before I could even answer.

I touched my chest, feeling my heart hammering against my ribs, then looked up at the driver in the front seat. "Follow that car."