Chapter 03

MONICA

"There's no fucking way!" Ava moved closer, trying to inspect me as she batted her eyes surprisingly at me. My lips tilted into a slight smirk despite my stomach twisting into painful knots.

"You look different," Emily muttered amusingly.

"A baffled change if you ask me," Ava mocked, her tone was filled with sarcasm as she leaned again the lockers waiting for the laugh track to play.

"Well, thank you," I forced a smile, keeping my eyes cold and dark because Julian had warned me a million time not to exhibit any ounce of weakness in their front.

Zoey who hasn't spoken since my reveal of identity let out a chuckle, the kind that made people freeze before realizing they should laugh too. "So, you lost your virginity and turned into a full-blown slut?"

"How shameless?" She said in a very belittling and condescending manner. Her voice traveled down the hallway, and a few students passing slowed down to listen.

I sighed inwardly, just when I thought my morning would be less trouble and I could have a good first period but who was I kidding?

I bit the inside of my cheek so hard I almost tasted blood. I flickered an eye, raised an eyebrow and forced myself to lift my chin, to keep my head high the way Julian drilled into me all week.

"And what is this?" Zoey went on, her eyes raking through my outfit again before they lingered on the red ribbon tied neatly into my waves.

"Your little comeback tour after the shame of being a bet?" She laughed out loud hysterically, and the students around followed immediately after her, cackling like berated crows.

"She thought the hottest boy in school would fall for a trash like her," Emily added quickly, her face lightening up like she just earned a gold star for participation as Zoey acknowledged her speech with a smirk.

Ava moved close to Zoey. "Shouldn't you be grateful to Zoey? At least she was generous to let you have a taste of her man but sluts like you can only be greedy and ask for more they can chew," she uttered and I almost scoffed at her words.

"As if," Zoey said, rolling her eyes so dramatically that it was practically an eye exercise. She folded her arms across her chest and leaned back slightly, letting her long nails tap against her elbow. "She's nothing but a cheap whore that has nothing to do but beg for attention even flies wouldn't give to her."

Zoey's attention had been on my ribbon and she pointed at it like it was offensive to her existence. "What is this little piece of fabric trying to make you look... expensive?" She tilted her head to the side.

"Expensive? Monica? Please, are you forgetting she's the janitor's daughter? There is no way in hell the word expensive and her could be in the same spot." Ava eyed me viciously and a bit curiously too, I could notice from the way her eyes swept over the ribbon too.

Olivia giggled, clutching her phone like she was ready to record. "I bet she got that from the gutter. Probably found it stuck on a sidewalk somewhere."

Oh hell no. They had thrown every shade they could at me—whore, trash, slut, janitor's daughter... but insulting the ribbon Julian had picked out for a new me, that was the line. I won't let them.

"It's more expensive than you can think of," I retorted in a tone even I couldn't believe was mine.

"Oh, come off it. I bet you stole it. How could you afford something like that? You're just the worthless janitor's daughter, remember? The girl who scrubs toilets, it's literally in your bloodline."

"My best friend got it for me!" I snapped back, louder this time.

"Right... Julian right?" Zoey snickered. "Well, someone as worthless as you shouldn't wear something so fancy. It doesn't match you. It doesn't match your aesthetics. Trash in ribbons is still trash."

She flicked her hand in the air. "Girls."

It was a command, and they obeyed immediately. Emily and Olivia stepped closer, their fingers reached out for my hair, tugging roughly at the ribbon.

"Wh—what are you doing?" I gasped, jerking back, trying to twist away, but they grabbed me from both sides as their nails scraped against my scalp.

"Hold her still," Emily hissed, yanking harder at the ribbon.

"Let go!" I cried out as I tried to shove Olivia back with my elbow.

Olivia laughed breathlessly, her fingers tightening in my hair. "Stop struggling. We're helping you, sweetie. You shouldn't embarrass yourself with this ugly little bow."

"Get your hands off me!" I kicked out my foot, catching Emily's shin hard enough for her to gasp and curse.

"What the hell!" she shouted, clutching her leg. But Olivia only yanked harder, her face red with effort. "Almost got it—"

"HEY! What is going on here?" a voice rang out.

All three of them froze. My hair was still tangled in Olivia's fingers when Ms. Bennett appeared.

Emily immediately stepped back, her hands up like she was innocent. Olivia's grip loosened, releasing my ribbon, and she smoothed her skirt like nothing had happened.

"Nothing, ma'am," Zoey said instantly. "We were just... complimenting her." She smiled sweetly.

"Yeah," Emily added quickly.

"We love her ribbon."

"So cute." Olivia added

Ms. Bennett's looked at me, then at them, then back again. "Complimenting her," she repeated slowly, like she didn't believe a word of it.

"Yes, ma'am," Zoey added. Before Ms. Bennett could press further, the bell rang. She exhaled through her nose, clearly unconvinced. "Get to class. Now."

The girls turned and walked off immediately. Ms. Bennett gave me one last look before walking away.

I didn't go straight to class with the others. Instead I rushed into the bathroom and slammed the door shut behind me.

I dropped my books on the counter, I leaned forward, staring at myself in the mirror making sure my makeup wasn't messed up.

My reflection was pale with cheeks flushed too red. My ribbon was crooked, my hair messy where their nails had clawed through, and my uniform wrinkled from the tugging. I inhaled and forced myself to breathe slowly, to calm down.

I fixed my uniform first, then smoothed my hair carefully, retied the ribbon and pulled out Julian's lipstick from my pocket and applied it.

"You got this," I muttered.

Grabbing my books, I pushed the bathroom door open and headed to class. The hallway was a mess of whispers but I kept my chin up, just like Julian told me.

When I walked into the classroom, the noise didn't stop but eyes turned. They always turned. My gaze swept quickly around until it landed on him.

Damian, the boy I loved turned enemy.

He was in his usual spot, sprawled in his chair, his posture lazy, but his eyes... his eyes weren't lazy at all. They were on me, avid, dark, and unblinking, following me the second I stepped through the door. My chest squeezed, but I ripped my gaze away fast, ignoring the heat prickling at the back of my neck.

I went straight to my usual seat, the one I had sat in every day since the start of the year, but when I moved to sit, my seatmate, Carrie, shifted away, her face twisting like I'd brought in the plague.

"Don't sit here," she said loudly, her voice loud enough for everyone nearby to hear. "I don't want to be tainted by a cheap slut, it's quite infectious you know?"

A laugh bubbled from a boy two seats over. Someone whispered "cheap" under their breath. I forced a smile, a tiny twitch at the corner of my lips even though it hurt.

"Of course," I murmured and without another word, I turned and walked to the very back of the classroom, sliding into an empty seat near the window.

I dropped my books onto the desk and sat quickly, my eyes glued to the scratched wood surface, pretending not to feel every stare.

The teacher walked in and I was thankful that everyone could finally focus on something else. I lowered my head, scribbling aimlessly into my notebook just to keep my hands busy.

Then the door opened, everyone turned their heads and watched a tall boy walked in. He had a sharp jawline, strong nose, tailored uniform and his presence was enough to make half the class lean forward in their chairs.

But what caught me most was how familiar he looked. He looked like... Damian. Not much but the resemblance was there.

"Class," the teacher announced, pausing with the chalk still in her hand. "This is Gabriel Anderson. He will be joining us."

The name alone was enough to send a ripple through the room. "Did she say Anderson?" someone whispered.

"OMG! As in Anderson Group?"

"Billionaire Anderson?"

"Yes, he's the one, I've seen him in the news, he looks hotter in reality, gosh..." the two girls whose seat were not far from mine were shamelessly gushing over him.

I rolled my eyes and bent my head again, my pen dragging across the paper.

Of course. Another rich boy. Another golden son from some family whose name could buy more than my dad would ever see in his lifetime. This school was crawling with them. And me, the janitor's daughter, the scandal girl, the girl who didn't belong, was just another shadow in the back row. Literally.

"He's so hot."

"He's richer than Damian."

"Do you think he's single?" the voices made me want to shove my notebook into my ears.

"Go ahead Mr. Anderson, pick your seat so we can begin with the lesson." The teacher said in a much respectful tone than she had used with anyone in the class. Of course, even the rich fawned over the richer.

They irked me more than I let on. I didn't want to look up, I chose to ignore all of them. But then...

"Is this seat taken?" a voice asked. My pen stilled. Slowly, I turned my head, my eyes meeting his. It was really him, Gabriel Anderson.