I walked into the oversized house completely numb as my surroundings and all the noise around blended into one. Dayton was saying something, but I couldn't hear or understand what he was saying. Maybe it's because my vision is clouded with tears, or the fact that there is a persistent ringing in my ears, I can't seem to get rid of it.

Somehow, I managed to make my way to my bedroom, throwing myself onto my bed as I finally broke down into loud, heavy sobs. This hurt more than the tears I cried in Day's arms, probably because I finally realized how much of a joke I had been.

I am sure he's laughing at me heartily. I must have been some amusement to him and his friends. A joke they will never get tired of cracking.

Pathetic piece of shit.

I'm not sure how long I had my face buried inside my pillow as I cried like a fucking ghoul, but I suddenly felt arms wrap around me gently on both sides.

"Just let it all out," Chloe's soothing voice whispered gently into my ear.

"It's going to be alright," Ashley says gently.

I cried more and so loud it could bring down the roof, but I didn't care, my best friends were here, and suddenly nothing mattered anymore.

Noticing I had calmed down, Ashley and Chloe turned me to face them and also get some air since I had been crying into my pillow for a while. My eyes were puffy, red, and swollen so badly that I could barely see. I heard a shutter sound, and I knew someone had taken a picture of my face.

"Dayton, seriously?" Ashley asks in a deadpanned tone

"It's for keepsake," I can hear the joy and cheekiness in Dayton's voice.

"Gerrout, go and get her some ice cream and chocolates," Chloe says, shooing Dayton away.

He grumbled but didn't resist and left.

"Want to tell us what happened?" Ashely asks

"Ash, don't rush her; allow her to calm down," Chloe scolds.

"She looks calm enough to me," Ashley defends herself.

"Besides, if we don't know what happened, how are we going to comfort her?"

Chloe was rubbing my back in a gentle circular motion to calm me down better, while Ashley talked, threatened, begged, and pleaded before she finally gave up and just sat beside me quietly.

"You are scaring me, do you know that?" she finally says, concern in her tone.

"H-he cheated on me," I said in the tiniest croaked voice I could muster from my parched throat.

"What?"

I can't tell if she genuinely can't hear me or if she just can't believe her ears. Chloe handed me a glass of water to help me.

Ashley looked at me, confused and angry at the same time, but her eyes held softness and pity.

Clearing my throat gently, I repeated audibly, "He cheated on me."

"Who? Jayden?" Chloe asks dumbly.

Ashley looks at her like she's dumber than the chicken in Moana at this point. It took her a moment to finally register what I said before she flew into an outburst.

"HE WHAT?! HOW DARE HE?" she yells angrily

Ashley and I stare at her, genuinely confused. I forgot about my heartbreak, while Ashley forgot about her anger as we watched Chloe rant and swear, something she never does, by the way.

"How did you find out?" Ashley asks once Chloe is done.

"I saw it with my own eyes, he was having sex with some girl in a hotel," I said, showing them the message I had received earlier.

"THIS FUCKER! HOW DARE HE IMMA HAVE HIS HEAD!" Ashley roars.

Chloe was also not taking this well. "How could he do such a thing? If he was tired of you or if he was upset about something you did, why did he not come to you? He's awful for this."

"I always knew he wasn't worth the effort, but this is too much," Ashley says

"Does Ria know?" Chloe asks.

"No, I just found out like an hour ago," I say hoarsely.

"Let's get back at him," Chloe says

Ashley and I stared at her like she had grown an extra head because an idea like that is something only Ashley and Dayton could have thought of, and the fact that it came from Chloe is another shock, since she's the sweetest one in our group who always chooses humanity over revenge.

"Why are you guys staring like that?" Chloe asks innocently.

"UH-uh, nothing, we were just shocked," Ashley says.

"And how do I do that?" I ask

"Damien," Chloe says.

"HELL NO! I'm not allowing that, Bruh, of all people, think of someone else, please," Ashley says firmly.

"After what happened last time, I doubt he will still want to talk to me," I tell Chloe, but she looks determined; it's crazy.

"He's perfect, do you know why?" Chloe asks, looking at us with expectant eyes like we can read her fucking mind.

"Jayden really hates Damien's guts since you guys have broken up. Seeing his ex with his Op is going to piss him off really bad. " Chloe says.

"I do not support this idea," Ashley says

"It's not a bad idea, though," I say, avoiding Ashley's questioning eyes.

"You- I have nothing to say to both of you," Ashley says, glaring at Chloe and me.

"Besides, Damien legit still likes you, like, have you seen the eyes he gives anytime you are in his line of sight, so I think this is a solid plan," Chloe goes on, completely ignoring Ashley's daggered stare.

"I do not support this," Ashley says.

"He makes a good rebound, though, I mean, he is hot and quite a nerd, perfect for her," Chloe says, feeling quite smart.

"Why don't you go date him since you admire him so much?" Ashley says, rolling her eyes

"Nah, I prefer older guys," Chloe says, laughing.

"This is stupid, guys," Ashley says

I just sat there watching Ashley and Chloe arguing over what I should do with my love life. I think it's funny that they are the ones stressing while I do absolutely nothing. But then again, what can I do? I really liked him, hell, I loved him, and yet he played me in my face.

Pathetic.

Yeah, maybe I do need that rebound to get over him.

I stood there, barefoot, clad in loose grey sweatpants, watching her car drive off. I can't explain the numbness or the dull ache I'm suddenly feeling; it feels wrong. Standing there for who knows how long, I finally managed to drag myself back to the room.

Tina was sitting on the windowsill, drinking from a wine glass. She looked at me as I entered the room with a cocky expression.

"Are you done? Chasing after Cinderella, if you are, can we finish what we started?" she says in a flirty tone.

I didn't say anything to her as I just walked straight to the bed and sat down.

What have I done?

Why does it feel so wrong?

I can't figure out why I feel like this; everything feels very sour and bitter. The look on her face seems to be stuck in my head, and I can't get it out.

My chest hurts.

I felt hands on me. I turned back and found Tina behind me. She smiled coyly while her hands kept wandering.

"C'monnn, stop sulking and let's have fun, are we going to let that little minx spoil the day?" she pouts.

My skin crawled where her hands touched so badly that I flung her arms off my body. I stood up, putting some space between us.

"Dress up, we are leaving," I say stiffly.

Tina looked quite offended. "You are not going to leave me hanging just because of her?!"

I sighed, "It's not because of her; I am not just feeling it anymore."

Tina smiled, "I can help put you in the mood. What do you think?"

I watched warily as she got off the bed and walked towards me slowly, her whole body on full display. My eyes were glued to her as she approached me.

"I'll make you forget completely about her," she purrs.

Forget her? Will I be able to?

I stared at Tina's sleeping figure on the bed. She passed out immediately after we were done. The room was a mess, with clothes strewn across the floor. Standing up, I picked up a pair of sweatpants from the mess and put them on.

I found my way through the dark room to the balcony. A lit cigarette in my mouth, I scrolled lazily through my phone until a call came in.

"Jay?"

"Yeah, wassup?" I replied lazily.

"Are you home?"

"No, I'm with Tina," I replied.

"Seriously? I knew you could never settle down, so it was all just a farce."

The noise was causing me a headache; I couldn't help rubbing my temple in annoyance as I let out puffs of smoke.

"Why did you call me?" I asked with irritation in my voice.

"Ah... the guys wanted to know if you would show up at the party."

"No. I'm not feeling it," I said, ending the call.

The questions and noise were getting on my last nerve; my head hurts from everything. My finger hovered over Karina's contact name. Should I call her?

No point.

Even if I do, what am I meant to tell her? I didn't mean to? Even that is a lie. Besides, why do I even feel the need to explain things to her?

Ah, my head hurts.

I can't keep thinking about this; there is no point. It's even better this way, fewer complications and ....

And what?

Ugh!

What's with all these confusing emotions and shit? I can't continue like this.

I need to go to bed.

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ASHELY

I woke up entangled in different sets of limbs, a hand in my mouth, a body half across me. How did we sleep in such a position? Last night's events are a little blurred; all I can remember is Karina crying till her head felt heavy. Dayton also dropped off ice cream for us, but got chased away.

Finally freeing myself from that complicated mess, I got up and got ready for school while the other two slept in. They deserve the extra rest; last night was hectic. Chloe and I spent the whole night trying to cheer Karina up.

Karina, on the other hand, calmed down at some point and then broke down again. Her mom returned from work, confused, and tried calming her down, but Karina lashed out at her. I felt bad, honestly.

Poor Miss Grey.

Jayden is really going to regret messing with my girl. Putting her in such a state, the fact that I have never seen her cry this much since we knew each other makes it all worse.

"Wake up, assholes, we are going to be late," I say, nudging Chloe.

She woke up, her hair looking like it had been through war and back. She seems so lost and confused, it is almost comical; I giggled silently. I just had to take a picture as a keepsake, couldn't help it.

"Is that Karina?" Chloe asks groggily.

I rushed to Karina's side, gently hugging her, "Karina," I call out softly.

She opened her eyes slowly. She stared into space for a good minute before her eyes finally cleared up. She looked at me and Chloe's concerned faces, wondering why we were looking at her like that, as if she wasn't the one who had just literally cried in her sleep.

"Is something wrong?" Karina asks, confused.

Wow.

"You were crying just now in your sleep, and we thought something was wrong," Chloe explained.

"I was?" Karina asks, confused.

She rubbed her cheeks, realizing there were tear stains and wetness on them. She looked at us, more confused than before.

"I didn't know I... never mind, I'm okay now, so let's get ready for school," Karina says.

She got up from the bed, leaving Chloe and me confused and worried. We stared at each other silently, trying to process what had just happened.

Chloe later found Karina in a full mental breakdown with a full-blown panic attack in the bathroom. It took a while for her to calm down and get herself together. Chloe, at some point, ended up crying along with her.

"She's not going to school, she can't," I said firmly.

Chloe and I made our way downstairs. Louisa, Karina's mum, was setting up the breakfast table. She looked up when she heard our footsteps.

"Morning, sit and have breakfast," she says with a smile.

Eggs, toast, and bacon were beautifully arranged on four sets of plates and were set on the table. Tempting. But we're late for school, already eating is going to take more time, and knowing Louisa, she'll want us to finish everything.

Sob.

"Where's Karina?" she asks.

"She is still not okay; she broke down again," Chloe explains.

"She can't go to school in such a state. I fear she might have another breakdown in school," I said.

"I will check on her, you guys won't eat?" Louisa says.

"Thank you, but we are late already. We will get something on the way," I said as we ran out before Louisa held us back.

"She doesn't deserve this," Chloe mutters under her breath.

"I know, and I am going to teach that son of a bitch a lesson and make him regret ever hurting her," I gritted out.

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At Brookville High, it is no secret who calls the shots. A group of popular boys runs the show, and trust me, nothing happens around here without their fingerprints on it. You can already guess the ring leader and the head of the said group.

Chloe and I walked up to a group of girls standing in the corner, giving off mean energy to avoid social interactions. I couldn't help but stifle a laugh.

"Girls!" Cloe squealed as she walked up to them.

Chloe, Valerie, and Jess hugged each other while jumping and squealing like they hadn't seen each other in ages.

"Hey guys, Wassup Ria?" I greeted, making my presence known while hugging Ria.

"Hi, Ashley," the twins say in unison.

"Where is Karina?" Jess asks

"She broke up with Jayden, and she's sick," Chloe explains, looking at Ria.

"When did all this happen? Why wasn't I informed?" Ria asks, confused.

"It happened yesterday. She received an anonymous tip about Jayden. When she got to the address that was given to her, she found him in bed with some girl," I summarized.

"She spent the whole night crying and woke up sick today?" Chloe says.

Ria looked livid, but you could tell the worry overshadowed her anger. Ria and Jayden are cousins; she was so against him and Karina dating, but since Karina was really interested and Ria cares a lot about her, she agreed for Karina's sake.

"Does Karina know the girl?'' Ria asks

"She did not say; she was too distressed to even explain properly, plus she crashed her car," I added.

"I hope she's okay. Let's go see her after school," Valerie says.

"Where is Dayton? I don't see him anywhere; does he know about it?'' Jess asks.

"I doubt he does. He was the one who picked Karina up when she crashed her car and called us. He kept grumbling about how he doesn't know what is going on," Chloe says.

"He is going to have a rampage when he finds out eventually," Valerie says.

"He already hates Jayden's guts. This is going to be the cherry on top," Jess adds.

"Who knows, maybe a fight would happen between them," Chloe says.

"Nah, I doubt they will want to risk their sports career," Valerie says.

"We are literally talking about Dayton here; we all know he is ready to risk anything for us, especially for Karina and Ashley," Jess counters her twin.

"Hey, do not drag me into this, bro," I say.

They just looked at me and continued their conversation. They discussed how it would be when Dayton confronts Jayden, as if it were some sort of game; in fact, they are even betting on it.

Sigh, these girls are mad.

"I bet fifty, Day's going to confront Jayden," Jess says.

"Nah, I am betting Hundred, he is going to pipe Jayden's ass," Valerie adds, feeling quite proud in Dayton.

Lord no.

"I'm betting twenty, he won't," Chloe adds.

I looked at Chloe, not you, too. I am surrounded by fight enthusiasts, to be honest, though I really want to see a showdown between Dayton and Jayden, it is going to be fun and nice too.

I watched as Ria listened silently. It is obvious that she is not happy about this new development, and I know she is trying not to pick sides. I don't blame her, honestly. If I were in her shoes, I would have a difficult time too in such a situation.

But that does not change the fact that her cousin is an absolute dick head who needs to be hanged in public by his balls.

What an asshole, I hope he goes through the worst pain in life.