Chapter 5

Colton and Kelsey did not reach out for the next two weeks.

Juliette's mother, Christine Fulton, noticed that her friends had stopped coming around and could not help but ask, "How come Kelsey hasn't been over lately? You two never go out anymore. Did you have a fight?"

Juliette shook her head. "No. We're all going our separate ways soon. There's no point being joined at the hip."

"Going your separate ways?" Christine frowned, a note of reproach creeping into her voice.

"Aren't you all enrolled at the same school? Juliette, you can't just shut yourself in all the time. You should learn from Kelsey. Everyone adores that girl. Having a friend like her is something you should appreciate, not throw away over some petty grudge."

Juliette's eyes stung. "Mom, do you really like Kelsey that much? Do you even know what she did?"

"Even if she did do something, you're the one making it a bigger deal than it needs to be. You're too young to be this difficult."

Christine turned and headed into the kitchen. "Honestly, if I could trade, I'd want Kelsey as my daughter instead."

The words caught in Juliette's throat, and for a moment she could not speak at all.

Ever since Kelsey had befriended her, she was always at Juliette's house. Some days she would stay from morning until night.

She had a way of charming everyone she met, and she called Christine "Mom" from the very beginning. She would rub her shoulders, massage her feet, take her shopping, and go with her to the salon. She did more for her than Juliette ever had.

Over time, Christine had grown genuinely fond of Kelsey, and she never missed a chance to tell Juliette she should be more like her.

Juliette did not know how to be like her. After her father passed away, she had gone quiet. She kept to herself. The only people she had were Colton and Kelsey, and she had believed they would be in her life forever.

She had been wrong.

Her phone rang, pulling her out of her thoughts. It was a classmate she was friendly with.

"Juliette, did you see Kelsey's posts? She went on a trip. And guess who she went with? Colton. It's just the two of them."

Juliette's hand trembled. She opened Kelsey's profile again, but it was still empty.

Their last conversation still sat there, untouched since the night of the party, ending on Kelsey's apology.

[Juliette, I know nothing I say right now will help, but please believe me. There's nothing going on between me and Colton. If it bothers you, I'll never spend time alone with him again.]

"Are you listening? Kelsey blocked you, didn't she? I'll send you the screenshots."

The images came through a moment later.

It was a post from three days ago.

[We made a deal. Three days of pretending we're together. After that, I give him back to her.

[Just this once, I'm going to be selfish. God, please forgive me.]

Below the caption was a photo of Kelsey leaning into Colton's arms. He was looking down at her with an expression so tender it did not seem real.

What stung even more were the comments.

[Go have fun. We'll keep your secret. Juliette will never find out.]

[No regrets in your youth, right? Make the most of these three days.]

[Honestly, I always knew you had feelings for Colton. If you love someone, you should go for it. Don't let yourself look back and wonder.]

Kelsey had not replied to any of them, except one.

[I already went for it. Knowing he has a place for me in his heart is enough.

[Once we get to school, I'm cutting Colton out of my life for good.]

"She's shameless, Juliette. Going after your boyfriend right out in the open. Are you really going to Lakewood with them? They'll walk all over you."

Juliette's voice was calm. "Don't worry. I'm not going to Lakewood. I scored 705 on the college entrance exam. I applied to Kensington."

"705! You scored that high? That's amazing, Juliette. Let them choke on that."

"Yeah. I leave the day after tomorrow. I already bought my ticket."

The front door swung open behind her. "What ticket?"