LOGINBy the time lunch rolled around, my brain felt like it had been wrung out, hung up, and put through emotional laundry three times. Talking to Brandon that morning helped—a lot. It felt like we’d finally stepped out of the fog. But the fog didn’t lift entirely.Not when the blackmail was still unsolved.Not when Peter still walked these halls like a ghost with secrets.And definitely not when Drake kept hovering like a storm cloud I wasn’t ready to deal with again.So when Brandon found me near my locker and said, “I think I know what we need to do,” my stomach clenched—not from fear but from that weird thrill I only get when he’s about to say something totally reckless.“What?” I asked.He looked around the hallway once, lowered his voice, and said,“We’re checking Peter’s room again.”My heart practically yeeted itself out of my chest. “Are you insane? We already checked it.”“Yeah, when we were panicked and rushed,” he countered. “But now we know more. We know someone helped Drake.
Brandon POVI didn’t expect to fall asleep.Honestly, I didn’t even think it was physically possible considering the circus going on inside my head. But somehow I passed out with my hoodie still on, curled up sideways on my bed like someone who’d lost a fight with gravity.When my alarm blared the next morning, I woke up with a stiff neck, a dry throat, and that heavy, crushing feeling in my chest that reminded me this wasn’t a nightmare.It was real.Cameron still needed space.We were still in this weird, painful almost-broken place.Drake was still somewhere lurking like a villain with too much free time.I groaned and dragged myself out of bed.My phone had zero messages.Not from Cameron.Not from anyone.Just silence.It hurt more than anything Drake ever said.I threw on clothes and headed out the door, not bothering with breakfast because food felt pointless when your heart was somewhere between “shattered” and “please don’t die today.”⸻Walking into school felt like stepping
Cameron’s POVI don’t know why my hands wouldn’t stop shaking.Like, genuinely shaking.I thought seeing Brandon on those bleachers after school would calm me down, help me breathe, maybe even give me back a piece of the sanity I’d lost overnight. But instead… it felt like staring straight into a storm and realizing it was my own feelings tearing me apart.And now I was in my room, pacing like a crazy person, dragging my fingers through my hair until it hurt.Everything felt loud.My heartbeat.My thoughts.The stupid echo of his voice saying, “I won’t stop fighting for you.”God. Why did that make my chest hurt even more?My phone buzzed on the table. I froze. I didn’t move for a whole five seconds before I finally reached for it, half-expecting Brandon, half-hoping it wasn’t, because I honestly didn’t know if my heart could take more.But it wasn’t him.It was Drake.Drake: “We’re still talking tonight, right?”My stomach twisted.Talking? No. Arguing? More accurate. Because I wasn’
Brandon’s POVI didn’t sleep.Like—not even a little.I spent the whole night sitting on the edge of my bed, elbows on my knees, staring at the stupid wall like it was going to suddenly explain how everything went so wrong so fast. Cameron’s face kept replaying in my mind—the shock, the betrayal, the way he looked at me like I was suddenly someone he didn’t even know.I swear my chest physically hurt.My phone stayed on the nightstand. I kept glancing at it every five seconds, hoping for even one text from him.Nothing.Not a “goodnight.”Not a “don’t talk to me.”Not even a blocked notification.Just silence.The kind that eats you alive.By morning, I felt like I’d aged 10 years. I skipped breakfast, threw on a hoodie, and practically dragged myself to school because even though my brain told me to act normal, my heart was like: nope, we’re dying today.When I walked into the hallway, people were loud, laughing, bumping into each other. Everything felt too bright and too fast. My he
Cameron’s POV If someone had told me this morning that my night would end with Brandon holding my hand and willingly walking into my room again, I would’ve laughed. Or panicked. Or both. But right now?Right now the world felt quiet.Too quiet.We stepped inside, and the door clicked shut behind us. My room looked the same—notes everywhere, hoodie on the chair, blankets half-folded—but something in the air felt… off. Like the universe was holding its breath.Brandon didn’t seem to notice. He walked to my bed, sat down, and smiled at me. “You okay?”“I think so.”“You think so?” he teased gently.I sat beside him. “I didn’t expect today to do… all that.”“Me neither,” he laughed softly. “But I’m not complaining.”He leaned forward like he wanted to kiss me again—then my phone buzzed.Once.Twice.Then again, buzzing so aggressively it shook the entire desk.I frowned. “Who the hell—”Brandon’s expression changed instantly. “Cameron. Don’t check it.”“Why?”“Just—” he reached for my ha
Brandon’s POV I swear waiting for someone during an exam should count as a sport.Because the amount of pacing I did outside that hall? Olympic level. Gold medal–worthy. Record breaking. I probably walked a full marathon in the thirty minutes since Cameron sat down to write.I tried sitting on a bench—lasted two minutes.I tried scrolling through Instagram—didn’t make it past one Reel.I tried breathing exercises—felt stupid.My stomach was basically doing backflips because all I could think was:Please let him be okay.Please let him not freak out.Please let him remember everything from last night.Especially the part where I told him he wasn’t alone anymore.God, I hope he believed me.I looked up when the exam hall door clanked open a crack, and students started spilling out. Some looked dead inside. Some looked like they wanted to sue the lecturer personally. A few were celebrating like they just won the lottery.But no Cameron yet.Then I saw him.He stepped out slowly, blinkin







