Chapter 1

The deadline to change college applications was 5:00 pm. It was now 5:02 pm.

Two minutes. That was all it took to turn years of my hard work—and the score I'd fought desperately for—into nothing.

I turned to Nicole Porter, my voice shaking. "Why?"

She was my best friend.

The day the results came out, she hugged me and congratulated me for getting into a prestigious college here in the state, just like I'd always wanted.

But now, she'd personally tampered with my college applications, leaving me with no college to attend.

Nicole's face was deathly pale, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Preston Nolin stepped in front of her. He looked at me, his voice calm.

"Fi, I was the one who gave Nicole the login info for the application portal."

There was no explanation. Just a statement. Just like how he'd been standing to the side when Nicole was changing my application earlier. He'd even deliberately blocked me from coming over to check.

It took everything in me not to cry. My voice hoarse, I asked, "Preston Nolin, aren't you supposed to be my boyfriend? Don't you want to go to the same college as me anymore?"

Murlowton University was Preston's dream college.

Back in our first year of high school, he was running on the track during gym class when he stopped in front of me, covered in sweat.

"Fi, let's aim for Murlowton U together. We'll go to the same college, and after we graduate, we'll get married!"

Back then, his eyes sparkled brightly, and his gaze was filled with me and only me.

And so, from then on, I woke up at 4:30 am every day and didn't go to sleep until midnight, all so I could get into the same college as him. I hadn't had a real weekend in years. Any spare time I had was spent doing practice exams or rushing to tutoring sessions.

Three years. Over a thousand days and nights.

And now that Murlowton University was within reach, Preston was the one pushing me away with his own two hands.

All my efforts had suddenly turned into a joke.

Even as he heard my question, Preston's expression remained calm.

"Fi, I'll wait for you at Murlowton U. But Nicole's score was too low. It's not enough to get into college. She has to repeat her senior year."

"So just because she did badly and can't get into college, I'm supposed to sacrifice myself and keep her company?" I demanded, my voice rising sharply. "What exactly is she to you that you'd ruin my life for her?"