Chapter 1

"Eloise, I really was swamped last night. Clarissa's shoes didn't fit, so I took her to exchange them, and it ate up the whole evening."

Aiden Corliss sat on the couch in my family's living room and handed Clarissa Mallory an apple he had just peeled.

I stood in the entryway and looked at the four of them gathered happily around the room.

Dad was reading the newspaper, Mom was peeling an orange for Clarissa, and my brother, Jack Mallory, was checking the weather in Kelderwick for her.

Aiden, the childhood friend who had promised to pick me up for dinner the day before, was gazing at Clarissa with nothing but tenderness.

"Yeah, it's fine."

I kicked off my shoes and walked over to the coffee table.

Jack frowned and set his phone down. "Eloise, what's with the attitude? Aiden's being nice enough to explain, so who's the sour face for?"

Mom patted the back of his hand. "Eloise just got home. Go easy on her."

Then she turned to me. "Eloise, Clarissa's been sickly since she was little. Orientation in Kelderwick would wear her out for sure. Aiden's just looking out for her, so don't be petty about it."

I looked at Mom and said calmly, "I'm not upset."

Clarissa took a bite of her apple and looked at me timidly. "Eloise, are you mad at me for taking Aiden away from you? Maybe I should just go buy my orientation sneakers by myself—"

"No need," Aiden cut in, then turned to me. "Eloise, you're independent. You can handle checking in at Kelderwick on your own. Clarissa gets nervous. She can't do it without me there."

In the gentlest voice, he took away a promise that had been mine all along, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

I nodded. "Okay."

Aiden paused, caught off guard. In the past, I would have argued with him until my eyes turned red. What he did not know was that when someone had been completely let down, they no longer had the energy to fight.

"I came back for the family documents," I said, looking at Dad. "School needs a copy of my birth certificate."

Dad did not even look up. He pointed at the drawer under the TV stand. "They're in there. Get them yourself. Make your copies and bring them back soon. Clarissa needs them for her paperwork in a couple of days."

I went over, pulled open the drawer, and slipped the folder into my bag. "I'm heading out."

"Wait." Aiden stood up and stopped me. "Let's have dinner tonight. Think of it as me making up for yesterday."

Clarissa tugged at his sleeve, her voice small. "Aiden, didn't you say you'd help me pick out a suitcase tonight?"

Aiden patted her hand. "We'll go after dinner. There's plenty of time."

I looked at him and gave a slight shake of my head. "No thanks. I have other plans."

I turned, pushed the door open, and walked out. As it closed behind me, I heard Jack scoff. "Her temper keeps getting worse. Just let her go."

I did not look back and went straight downstairs. The sunlight outside was harsh, and I touched the folder in my bag. Only I knew that I had no intention of ever bringing it back.

When I got back to my rented apartment, I set the folder on the desk. My phone buzzed with a message from Aiden: [Still mad? Clarissa's feet got all blistered last night. I couldn't just leave her. You used to be so understanding. Why are you keeping score all of a sudden?]

I stared at the words on the screen and did not reply.

I had been so understanding before because I believed it would earn me their favor. Later I realized that being understanding only made them think it was natural for me to take the hurt.

I logged into the school's student portal. The page showed my admission to Kelderwick University, but below it, under campus selection, I opened the transfer request page.

[You have requested a transfer to the Tamberlin campus. Submit now?]

The Tamberlin campus was thousands of miles away in the remote western town of Tamberlin, where living conditions were rough. But it had one of the top research labs in the country.

Most importantly, Aiden would not be there, and neither would Clarissa.

I clicked 'Submit' without a second thought.