The hallway was quiet.
Too quiet.
Amber leaned against the lockers, watching the direction Jade had disappeared. She waited one second longer. Confirmation.
Then: "Pathetic."
Lila, short with short black hair and blue eyes stepped from the girls' bathroom nearby, drying her hands. "So," she said. "Did she believe you?"
Amber smirked. "Of course she did."
Lila folded her arms. "You literally admitted everything."
Amber shrugged, unbothered. "So?"
"Aren't you worried she'll tell Blake?"
Soft laughter. "Oh, please. He already hates her." Amber crossed one leg over the other, too pleased. "One little confession won't erase two years of damage."
Lila leaned against the wall. "You really went all out."
Amber tilted her head. "You mean the message?"
"Yeah." Lila's voice dropped. "You actually used her phone?"
The smile widened. "It wasn't hard. She left it on her bed one night." A small shrug. "Copied his number, sent the message, done."
Lila stared. "That's actually insane."
"No hesitation. No guilt. Just certainty.
"And Jade had him." Jealousy flickered, quick and ugly. "I watched them for months. Meeting after school. Walking home. Acting like they were the only two people alive." Her jaw tightened. "It should've been me."
"You liked him that much?"
Amber scoffed. "Liked him?" She pushed off the lockers, pacing slowly. "Blake was the best thing in this town. Smart, confident—every girl wanted him." She stopped. "And he chose Jade." Her lip curled. "That was never going to last."
"So you ruined them."
Amber smiled. "Exactly." Almost proud. "I made sure the message sounded like her. Knew he'd trust her number." Satisfaction darkened her face. "And he did."
Lila frowned. "What about the accident?"
Another shrug. "That wasn't planned." A beat. "But it worked out."
A chill settled in the empty hall.
"When Jade woke up, our parents told her Blake died. And Blake thought Jade betrayed him." Amber breathed slow, satisfied. "It all fell into place."
Except it hadn't.
Because just beyond the corner, hidden from view, Blake stood frozen. He hadn't meant to stop. Only been passing by. But the second he heard Jade's name, something locked into place.
So he stayed. Listened. Every word landed like a blow to the chest. The message. The lie. The betrayal—not Jade's. Amber's.
His jaw tightened hard enough to ache.
For years, he'd believed Jade destroyed everything. For years, he'd carried that anger, fed it, let it become something sharp and bitter. And now—Now he knew the truth.
Amber kept talking, oblivious. "Honestly," she said, "it worked out perfectly."
Lila glanced at her. "Except Blake's back."
The smile returned instantly. "Exactly." Amber's eyes gleamed. "This time, I'm not letting Jade ruin it." She leaned against the lockers again, arms folded. "I'm going to make sure Blake notices the right sister."
Lila smirked. "You really think he'll go for you?"
Amber flipped her hair. "Oh, he will." Full of confidence. "I just have to remind him who he should've chosen."
Behind the wall, Blake's hands curled into fists. His thoughts collided—no longer steady, no longer certain. Every memory from two years suddenly felt wrong.
The anger he'd aimed at Jade. The hatred he'd held. The cold looks, the cruel words, letting her believe she was guilty.
And then—the car. Her face: confused, hurt, shaking, swearing she hadn't betrayed him.
She'd been telling the truth. The entire time.
Blake stepped back, footsteps silent. Amber and Lila never noticed. But his mind was already elsewhere. Because the truth had changed everything.
Jade had never betrayed him. And suddenly, every harsh word felt heavier than before.
He stopped near the hallway's end. Stared at the floor. Then slowly, reached into his jacket pocket. Fingers closed around something small. Worn.
Carefully, he pulled it out. A photograph. Edges bent from being carried too long, too often.
Blake looked down.
Two younger teenagers beneath the oak tree near the park. Jade laughing at something he'd said, face bright and open in a way he hadn't seen in years. And beside her: him. Smiling.
Not the cold version anger had made. Not the bitter boy he'd become. Just Blake. The boy who'd loved her before everything broke.
His thumb brushed gently over Jade's face. And for a moment, the anger gave way to something heavier.
Regret.
Because the girl in that picture—the girl who'd smiled at him like he was her whole world—had never betrayed him. He'd been wrong. About all of it.
Blake slipped the photo back into his pocket, jaw tightening once more. Because now he had a choice.
Tell Jade the truth. Or let Amber keep destroying what remained of them.
And something deep inside already
knew—
This time, he wasn't staying silent.