Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**Eight Years Ago**

 

Velmore High School was no place for a pauper like Tiana Selma, but she’d earned a scholarship there two years ago at fifteen. Now, on the cusp of graduation, she couldn’t wait to escape this world of rich bullies.

 

She stood by the old iron gate, clutching her worn-out schoolbag to her chest. The wind lifted strands of her chestnut hair as she watched the emptying courtyard. Students laughed, took pictures, and hugged one another, graduation joy spilling through every corner of the school.

 

For everyone else, Velmore High was a dream. For Tiana, it was survival.

 

“The charity case,” they called her, the poor girl from the outskirts of town, with nothing but intelligence and stubbornness to keep her afloat. She was Head Girl, top of the class, the face of academic excellence. And for that reason alone, they hated her.

 

Especially Nikolai Toriaga.

 

He was everything she wasn’t, the rich, adored son of a powerful coffee company owner, handsome enough to make every girl’s heart skip, reckless enough to make every teacher sigh in frustration. He had friends, Declan and Mike, who laughed at everything he said, and a girlfriend, Gina, whose jealousy was as famous as her beauty.

 

Yet, despite the cruelty he and his friends hurled her way, Tiana couldn’t stop the flutter in her chest when Nikolai looked at her, even if it was only to mock her. She didn’t understand it then—how someone who caused her pain could make her heart race. Maybe it was because, deep down, she glimpsed the boy behind the arrogance, the one who sometimes stared out the classroom window with quiet sadness, as if carrying a hidden weight.

 

But those moments were fleeting. What she mostly got from him were words that stung.

 

“Hey, Head Girl, no one cares about your perfect grades.”

 

“Maybe if you smiled less and dressed better, someone would actually like you.”

 

“Why don’t you stop trying so hard? No one’s giving you a medal.”

 

She never retaliated. She’d learned long ago, after her father’s death, from her stepmother’s sharp tongue and her stepsisters’ mockery, that silence was safer. She swallowed her pain, tucking it deep where no one could see it.

 

***

 

That evening, the school hall glowed with golden balloons, silver lights, and soft music pulsing in the background. Everyone was there, the popular kids in designer clothes, laughing, hugging, taking selfies… and somewhere among them, standing awkwardly by the entrance in a simple blue dress, was Tiana.

 

She hadn’t wanted to come. Parties weren’t her thing, reminding her too much of what she lacked—nice clothes, friends, ease. But Ryan Lancaster, the one person who treated her with genuine kindness, had insisted.

 

“Come on, Tiana. It’s your graduation too. You worked harder than all of us. You deserve to be there.”

 

She hesitated, biting her lip. “You really think so?”

 

“I know so. I’ll meet you there… I promise.”

 

So she came, trusting he’d be by her side, knowing she wouldn’t be alone. But when she arrived and scanned the crowd, Ryan was nowhere to be seen.

 

She texted him. “Hey, where are you?”

 

Minutes later, a reply came: “Sorry, Ti. I ate something bad. I have a running stomach. Can’t make it.”

 

Her heart sank, a quiet ache spreading through her chest. She wanted to turn back, but the thought of walking past everyone again, of letting them see her leave alone, stopped her.

 

So she stayed.

 

She found a quiet corner near the refreshments table and watched the people who had made her life miserable for two years, laughing and dancing as if the world belonged to them.

 

Her eyes found Nikolai.

 

He stood near the center of the room, surrounded by his usual circle. He looked infuriatingly good, his white shirt half unbuttoned, sleeves rolled up, a hint of abs showing as he laughed with Declan and Mike. His presence dominated, magnetic and careless. The lights seemed to find him wherever he went.

 

Gina clung to his arm, her glittery dress hugging every curve. They looked perfect together. He whispered something in her ear, and she laughed, that sharp, fake laugh that twisted Tiana’s stomach.

 

She hated that her eyes kept drifting to him, that her heart still reacted… stupid, foolish, traitorous heart.

 

The music shifted. Someone shouted, “Let’s play a game!”

 

A crowd formed near the center. Tiana stayed put, clutching her drink, pretending not to watch. It was Truth or Dare, the perfect game for people who loved to push limits.

 

It started harmlessly—a dare to chug a drink, a truth about secret crushes. Tiana stayed seated, almost forgetting the game, until a thunderous slap of skin broke the air.

 

Everyone gasped. Gina stood there, her face twisted with fury, her palm red from the impact.

 

“You’re disgusting!” she hissed at Nikolai.

 

Tiana froze, her cup halfway to her lips. She turned toward the sound and realized everyone was staring at her.

 

Her pulse stopped.

 

“What’s happening?” she whispered to no one.

 

Declan smirked. “Oh, didn’t you hear? Nikolai got dared to make love to you.”

 

Tiana’s body went rigid, heat flooding her face, humiliation burning through her like fire. Her gaze darted to Nikolai, who was staring at her with those piercing eyes.

 

Gina laughed bitterly, tears in her eyes. “Go on then, Nikolai. The boys dared you. Let’s see if your Head Girl will let you.”

 

She threw her glass onto the floor and stormed off, shards scattering across the floor.

 

Declan snorted. “Man, go for it. It’s just a dare. She’s already staring like she wants it.”

 

Tiana felt the ground beneath her dissolve. Her throat closed, her eyes burned. She wanted to disappear.