Ruby smeared the tinted lip balm over her lips as she stared at her reflection in the oval mirror. Her sister, Riley, had managed to draw the perfect eyeliner above her eyes. All of this with the silver drop earrings and a maroon ribbed crop top made sure she looked beautiful. She examined herself carefully, wondering if she had overdone that. She had never put much effort before in making herself look pretty; she had believed she looked good without anything on her face and that was enough for her. But now she felt the need to do a little extra. It made her happy, she realized, in surprise. And as much as she tried to not admit the reason behind it, she knew very well why. Caden Miller had her doing things she never imagined she’d do. What was the purpose though?Was she trying to actively get him to be hers? No, that was silly. All she needed was a glance, a smile perhaps. That’d be enough. She slapped her forehead. What was wrong with her? Her cheeks flushed red as she recalled

Six days into the term break, Ruby had started to feel restless. She had never spent so much of her time inside the house, not since she had first left for her boarding school. Riley had kept her company in the evenings upon returning from work. They watched teen dramas together, getting stuffed on popcorn as Riley gossiped about her co-workers. While Ruby’s days were spent immersed in the pile of books she owned—reading about bad boys that turned good for the girls they fell in love with; grey characters that struggled with making decisions; and why the stars were something to be fascinated about endlessly. The feeling was odd because she had always believed she enjoyed her own company. She’d never felt the need to be around other humans. It was because she missed school. She missed being on her toes with all the homework and classwork and assignments and presentations. She missed being surrounded by Olivia, Luke, Florence… and Caden. Although she had made up her mind to speak to C

Daniel’s mother opened the front door of the house. Her eyes widened the moment she saw Florence’s distraught face, but she quickly bit her lip and offered a smile. “Oh, hello, dear. Come inside. Dinner’s ready.”Florence tried her best to stretch her lips into a smile, but she failed terribly and could only cry. Daniel was supportive, guiding her in, his arm still protectively wrapped around her. He told his mom, “Can you bring our food upstairs?”“Of course,” his mother said, nodding. “Give me just a minute.”He guided Florence up the stairs, although she didn’t need it. Florence had been frequently visiting Daniel’s house ever since she was a baby. They had been playschool mates because their mothers had been childhood friends. However, the stark change in Florence’s mother’s behavior over the last few years had clearly affected her relationship with Daniel’s mother as well. The moment Florence stepped inside Daniel’s room, a question struck her mind. “Does your mom know that we’r

Ruby was a different person—she knew it the moment she stepped inside her classroom after the long-term break. Or maybe that was an exaggeration. Arguably, at least one-sixteenth of her was different. She had not given much thought to who had spiked her fruit punch at Florence’s house party over the break. She had spent it reasonably—mending her sistership with Riley over TV shows, hanging out at Olivia’s to help her with babysitting/the daycare, and, of course, daydreaming of being with Caden. That guy was always there, in some way. In some corner of her mind, he had found a place and he liked to remind her of it every now and then. But now, feeling the first wave of her classmates’ chatter pass through her, she suddenly found herself trying to discover who among them had done that to her. It could’ve ended horribly. Ruby wasn’t stupid. She knew why people spike drinks at a party. But to think it was random and not carefully selected was not something she could wrap her head around