All Chapters of BREAKING THE BRO CODE: Chapter 11 - Chapter 18

Jules POVThe dining hall doors feel heavier than they should.I stand outside for a full minute, watching students stream in and out with their lunch trays. Normal people doing normal things. Nobody is staring at them, whispering about them, hating them."You can do this," I whisper.Maya offered to come with me, but I need to prove I can exist on campus alone. That I'm not completely broken.Even if I feel like I am.I pull open the door and step inside.The noise comes first. Hundreds of conversations, laughter, silverware clattering. Then the smell of food makes my stomach growl so loudly I'm sure everyone can hear it.I haven't had a real meal in three days. Can't afford it now that Dad cut off my meal plan supplement.But I scraped together enough cash for one plate of something. Anything.I grab a tray and join the line, keeping my eyes down. Maybe if I don't look at anyone, they won't look at me."Is that Jules Rowan?" someone whispers behind me.My shoulders tense, but I don'

Jules POVThe campus career center receptionist looks up when I approach."Can I help you?" Her smile is automatic, professional."I need to see a job counselor. I'm looking for work.""Sure, let me just get your information." She pulls up her computer. "Name?""Jules Rowan."Her fingers freeze on the keyboard. The smile disappears."Oh. You're... oh."I watch recognition dawn on her face, followed by something that looks like pity mixed with judgment."The counselors are all booked today," she says, suddenly very interested in her computer screen. "Maybe try back next week.""Your website says walk-ins are welcome until three.""That's usually true, but today is... busy." She won't look at me. "Sorry."I leave before she can see my hands shaking.******The coffee shop on Main Street has a 'Help Wanted' sign in the window.I push through the door, rehearsing what I'll say. I'm reliable, hard-working, available for any shift. They don't need to know I'm desperate enough to work for mi

Jules POVAdrian's dorm building looks the same as it did two weeks ago. Red brick, white trim, students coming and going with their backpacks and coffee cups.But I'm different now. Hollow. Frustrated. Running on fumes and the last shreds of my dignity.I check my phone. 4:47 PM. Adrian's class gets out at five, and he usually heads straight home before evening practice.The cold seeps through my jacket as I settle onto the bench outside his building. October in North Carolina means unpredictable weather—yesterday was warm, today feels like winter came early.I should have worn something warmer. Should have eaten lunch. Should have done a lot of things differently.But I'm here now, and I'm not leaving until he talks to me.5:15 PM. Students stream past, but no Adrian.5:30 PM. My fingers are going numb.5:45 PM. Maybe he went somewhere else. Maybe he saw me waiting and took a different entrance.6:00 PM. I'm shaking now, partly from cold, partly from the reality that I'm sitting out

Jules POVThe library should be safe. It's always been my refuge—quiet, anonymous, a place where I can disappear into studying and pretend the rest of campus doesn't exist.But Veronica's voice carries across the quad outside the windows."I'm just worried about her, you know?"I freeze in my chair, textbook forgotten. Through the glass, I can see Veronica holding court with a group of sorority girls on the lawn."Jules was always... intense," she continues, her tone dripping with false concern. "Even in high school, she'd do anything for attention. I thought college would help her mature, but clearly not."The sorority girls lean in, hungry for details."What do you mean, anything?" one asks.Veronica glances around like she's making sure no one's listening. But she's positioned herself perfectly—voice loud enough to carry, performance calibrated for maximum impact."I shouldn't say." She pauses for effect. "But there were rumors. About her and other guys on the team. Not just Adrian