All Chapters of CRUEL ROMANCE: MR. LANGSTON'S OBSESSION: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

TESSAThe bass pounds through the Castellano mansion but all I can hear is the sound of my soul being ripped apart piece by bloody piece.I stand frozen in the archway of the main ballroom, champagne flute trembling so violently in my hand that the crystal sings a funeral dirge as I watch the two people I would die for murder me without even blinking.Maya and Derek. My sister in everything but blood and the boy I've loved with every broken piece of my heart for two endless years. They're pressed against the marble pillar in the center of the room like Greek gods claiming their temple. His hands fisted in her hair while her legs wrapped around his waist as they kiss with consuming hunger.Everyone is watching and smiling.The sight burns through my retinas, searing itself into my brain where it will live forever… the moment I learned that love is just another word for self-destruction."Oh my God, Tessa!" Maya's voice cuts through the music as she spots me over Derek's shoulder.She p

TESSAMaya isn't done. "You were never my friend. You were my personal ATM with abandonment issues. The sad, fat girl who'd do anything for scraps of attention. Did you really think I'd choose you over Derek? Look at us, then look at yourself."Derek steps forward with a cruel smile. "And there's one more thing you should know, Tessa. This whole thing? It was a bet. I bet my friends that I could get you to steal at least thirty grand for me before graduation. Guess what? You hit sixty last week. I just won five hundred bucks off your desperation."A bet. I wasn't even a person to them. I was a game. A source of entertainment and easy money.The laughter reaches a crescendo, and someone starts a slow clap that spreads through the crowd. I'm surrounded by the sound of my own destruction, drowning in the cruelty of people I thought were my friends.I can't breathe.The air in the ballroom has turned thick and poisonous, each attempt to fill my lungs met with the suffocating weight of a h

TESSAI open Instagram first, and my world implodes all over again.The video is everywhere. Reposted, shared, turned into memes, reaction videos and compilation clips.#TessaFail is trending.#FatGirlDown has over a million views.Someone has auto-tuned my sobs and turned them into a remix.But it's the comments that really destroy me:"LMAOOOOO this is the funniest thing I've ever seen""Imagine being this delusional about your weight""The audacity of thinking Derek would actually want THAT""Natural selection at work""Someone should put her out of her misery""Fat bitch got what she deserved""This is why obesity should be illegal""I'm crying laughing at this whale""She really thought she was the main character""This is what happens when you don't know your place"The comments keep coming in an endless scroll of cruelty that makes my broken ribs feel gentle in comparison.People I've never met, will never meet, taking time out of their lives to kick me while I'm down. Taking p

TESSAFive years of transformation and rebirth in the most exclusive regions abroad. More than that, five years of education, of rebuilding myself from the inside out under the watchful eye of tutors and professors my father arranged.A bachelor's degree in International Business, a master's in Strategic Communications from the Sorbonne. Languages mastered: French, Spanish, Italian, Mandarin. All while I discovered who I could become when I wasn't limited by other people's expectations.I am no longer just beautiful. I am educated. Cultured.But as the plane descends toward Cascade City's International Airport, my hands shake on the leather armrest. Five years of careful reconstruction, and I still feel like that terrified girl sometimes, especially when it comes to facing my dad.His summons had been abrupt, cutting through my planned life. No explanation, no discussion. Just a terse phone call three days ago: "It's time to come home, Tessa. Your flight is booked. Don't disappoint me

TESSAMom joins us halfway without a word.I follow them down the hallway, past all the family portraits showing generations of Whyte’s and I stop at the most recent one, taken right before they shipped me off. In it, I'm basically invisible behind my parents, the shadow of shame the photographer tried to hide. The girl in the photo looks haunted, broken, like she's trying to disappear into the wallpaper.Looking at that photo now, it's hard to believe it's the same person. The girl in the portrait is maybe two hundred pounds heavier, her face puffy and her eyes are hollow, defeated, like she's already given up on life.The expensive dress they'd put her in hangs awkwardly, clearly chosen to hide rather than flatter.Now I'm wearing a perfectly tailored Chanel suit. My hair is styled in a sleek bob that frames my face perfectly. My makeup is subtle yet flawless, applied with the skill of someone who's had professional training.I look like I belong in the pages of Vogue, like I was bo