Chapter one

ANAYA

“You don't love me, do you?” Lisa's voice thundered across the campus cafeteria, drawing curious glances from the students around us.

She had been pressing me about this for quite a while, and I could feel everyone's attention settling over us.

 “Don't do this,” I said, running my fingers through my rough hair.

“I care about you, but a relationship isn't really something I see myself doing right now.” I avoided her gaze, hoping she would finally let the matter go.

Lisa stepped closer, her eyes fixed on mine, and before I could react, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against mine.

I froze, caught completely off guard, but with half the cafeteria watching, I didn't know what to do. Phones appeared almost immediately as students raised their cameras to capture the scene.

“Oh my God, Brian finally accepted Lisa!” someone shouted.

“She seems good for him!”

“They're so hot together!”

The voices echoed around the cafeteria, making my stomach twist. I endured the kiss for a few seconds before finally pulling away.

Lisa smiled at me, looking far too pleased with herself, while I turned and walked away without saying another word.

“Brian, wait!” She called after me.

I kept walking, but her footsteps followed behind me like a puppy refusing to be left behind.

“Can I come over to your place?” Lisa pouted, following after me. “I've been trying to get your attention for quite a while, but you always seem to ignore me.”

“Fuck,” I groaned inwardly, stopping before turning around.

I grabbed her and pinned her against the wall, my frustration finally breaking through.

“Just because you forced a kiss on me doesn't mean we're something,” I said, staring into her eyes.

She gazed back at me with a frightened expression, and I immediately loosened my hold.

“You keep doing this, so are you perhaps gay?” she asked, her voice quieter this time.

“I keep wanting you, but you don't want me back; at least give me a chance.”

She kept pleading, making it harder for me to simply walk away.

I glanced over her shoulder and noticed students still holding their phones up, desperately trying to capture the perfect angle of Lisa and me.

“Gross,” I cursed inwardly, shoving myself away from her before walking toward the men's dorm.

I couldn't afford a personal apartment, so the dorm was all I had.

I shared a room with three other college guys, and returning there was one of the things I dreaded.

The place was always filled with conversations I wished I could escape.

“Hey, Scholar,” one of the guys called as I walked in.

His name was Joseph, and he was the kind of guy who could spend hours watching p**n and jerking off around midnight.

“Brian,” another guy called, turning toward me. “We saw the pictures of you with Lisa; have you finally accepted her?”

“She is a hot bitch,” he added with a dry  laugh. “I keep wondering why you always shove her aside when boys are dying to get into her pants.”

I said nothing, simply dropping my bag and trying to ignore them.

“I’m not into her,” I replied quietly, forcing my voice into the deeper, manly tone I had practiced since I was fifteen.

I had to be careful because even a small slip caused by my emotions could expose me.

Maxwell sat nearby with his hands on his dick as he watched the video from earlier. “I'd actually make up with Lisa if I were there, right on the spot.”

“Don't you have a dick, man?” he asked with a laugh. “Don't you ever feel hard?”

“Fuck,” I cursed inwardly. Every time I returned to the dorm, it was the same thing—talk about girls, the scent of cigarettes, and the smell of precum lingering around the floor from all the jerking off.

I sighed, wishing I could afford an apartment of my own.

I worked at a restaurant across from campus, but balancing medical school and the restaurant job was becoming harder.

I slipped into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.

My hands moved carefully as I began unwrapping the bandages I used to flatten my breasts.

They were almost flat, exactly the way I wanted them.

Apart from that, there was one thing I could never hide beneath the disguise—I didn't have a dick.

I sighed as I stepped beneath the shower, letting the water pour over me.

My mind drifted back to Lisa.

She was pretty, I couldn't deny that.

But I was straight as fuck, and even though I had spent six years living as a boy, I sometimes found myself imagining what it would be like to have a boyfriend.

The thought made me stare blankly at the shower wall.

I had no idea what my life would look like if I ever stopped pretending to be someone I wasn't.

*******

The next day, I hurried to my lectures, but the gossip about the kiss followed me everywhere.

As I got closer to the lecture hall, I met Lisa again.

“Brian, everyone thinks we're good for each other. Why don't you date me?” she asked.

“You won't have to work at that damn restaurant that barely pays you a hundred bucks.”

“All you have to do is be mine, Brian.” She smiled brightly. “I could even talk to my father; he's a very wealthy man.”

“He can rent you an apartment, or you can stay with me.”

“Aww, so cute,” a girl nearby said.

“Lisa, don't you think you're being desperate?” I mumbled. “If you keep doing this, it won't be cute anymore.”

“But I love you,” she insisted.

I didn't say another word.

Before I knew what was happening, the crowd began shifting, phones rising as everyone searched for another moment to capture.

My attention was drawn toward a gray Cybertruck pulling up near the entrance.

I sighed when I saw the headline on someone's phone from the blog that had posted yesterday's pictures: PAUPER MEDICAL STUDENT KISSES HOTTEST FRESHMAN  STUDENT ON CAMPUS.

Then the Cybertruck's door opened.

“Damn,” I muttered.

The man who stepped out was so striking that I swallowed hard without realizing it.

I stared at him until one of the guys beside me nudged my shoulder.

“Bro, what are you doing? Why are you drooling over a guy?”

“Umm...” I stuttered, embarrassed by my reaction. As far as everyone knew, I was just a guy.

By then, Lisa had already disappeared into the crowd, and I wondered where she had gone.

The man started walking toward the building, each step slow and deliberate.

One step. Two steps.

There was something about the way he moved that made my chest tighten.

“What the fuck?” I whispered, staring harder.

His face looked strangely familiar.

Where had I seen him before?

The crowd suddenly erupted into cheers.

“The ruthless, powerful, and rich son of the mafia boss!”

My breath caught.

Anthony Vicenzo.