I pushed through the private room door. Captain Monroe was draped limply against Marcus's chest.

When he saw me, his eyes filled with irritation.

I knew it was the captain who'd sent the location and the texts, but I came anyway.

Captain Monroe buried her head in the crook of Marcus's neck, rubbing against it. He tugged irritably at his collar, his voice hoarse. "Didn't I tell you not to come?"

Captain Monroe gripped his hand in return. "I'm the one who asked her here. I'm feeling awful from drinking and need her to bring hangover medicine."

She twisted her hips, grinding against him slightly, playing up her drunkenness.

Marcus swallowed hard. His eyes darkened.

Seeing him wavering, I pulled a document from my bag. "Marcus, Dad says there are supplementary documents for the sponsorship agreement. He needs you to sign."

Our families weren't well-matched, so to secure our future, my father, Robert Wells, had offered to fund Marcus's education for $3 million a year. Among the college students, he could be seen as a rich guy overnight.

Well, I refused to sponsor him anymore.

The lighting in the private room was dim. Marcus signed his name without even looking at the papers.

When I tucked the document back into my bag, he suddenly grabbed my hand. "You came here just for this?"

When I nodded, his face darkened noticeably. He waved me away, telling me to leave quickly.

Then, suddenly, Captain Monroe called out to stop me. "Victoria, there's an extra person on the parade roster three days from now. Since you trained the least, why don't you skip it?"

She smiled. "I'm giving you a chance to slack off."

I pretended I didn't see the clarity and contempt in her eyes.

I replied flatly, "Whatever you say goes, Captain."

I left the room and emailed the document to Dad. On the phone, he asked when I'd decided to leave.

I thought for a moment. "Three days from now."

The moment those words left my mouth, I heard Marcus's confused voice behind me. "Three days? Where are you going?"

I didn't turn around. My face was blank.

"Where do you think? To watch your parade."

Marcus's body stiffened slightly. He pulled me into the car and leaned down to kiss me.

I instinctively pushed back. He hesitated, then kissed me deeper. After a long silence, he spoke, "Vicky, I know you've been feeling neglected lately.

"But when you start university and enter a new environment, some bumps in a relationship are normal. We just need time to adjust."

He shoved a movie ticket into my hands. "Tomorrow, 3 p.m. Don't be late."

I was planning to go, but the next day he showed up at my apartment door instead, dressed in a white hoodie and light blue jeans, like he'd stepped out of high school.

He linked his arm through mine, feeding me popcorn with his left hand while gripping my hand with his right, our fingers intertwined.

Looking at our locked fingers, all I felt was disgust at the sweat in his palm.

I stared blankly at the screen, yawning constantly.

Marcus frowned and turned to me. "Don't like this movie?"

"No, it's fine."

Feeling my indifference, he started to say something, but then his eyes caught a familiar figure in his peripheral vision. Captain Monroe was walking hand in hand with another male student, both of them glowing with affection.

He suddenly released my hand and walked straight out. He moved so abruptly that popcorn scattered everywhere.

Everyone around us turned to look. I whispered apologies over and over, bending down to pick up the kernels one by one.

When I looked up, he was gone. I didn't see him again until the movie ended.

As I was about to leave, I heard a man's roar coming from a nearby alley. He had Captain Monroe pinned against the wall, his eyes rimmed red as if they'd bleed.

"Tell me! Who is he? You've got other men besides me?"

Captain Monroe laughed softly, tilting his chin up with her finger. "Marcus, you're still too young. You don't understand adult complexity. I'm telling you, it's not just him. There are others… My little treasures."

With every word she spoke, his face grew darker. His knuckles cracked from how hard he was clenching them. His voice came out wounded. "You said you'd only like me. Can't you leave them? I have money. I can support you."

Captain Monroe scoffed. "They all have money. You're nothing special. I did lie to you. So do you still like me now?"

He froze.

I didn't watch any further, but I knew the answer.

After that day, Marcus didn't show up to training. Captain Monroe wore a sour expression throughout the session.

However, on the day of the parade, he appeared. Like always, he handed Captain Monroe a bottle of water. Then he handed her a bag.

Inside was a purple diamond necklace worth millions. It was a style I'd had my eye on for ages. Marcus must have spent the sponsorship to buy it.

Once Captain Monroe put on the necklace, he suddenly seemed to remember something, snapping back to reality. He walked over to me and cleared his throat.

"At the movie theater that day, I had to leave suddenly for something urgent. Did the movie end well or badly?"

Before I could answer, a fire alarm suddenly blared across campus. The crowd scattered in panic.

Before I could even react, I saw Marcus grab Captain Monroe's hand and rush toward a safe zone. He knocked me down in the process, and the next student running behind him stepped hard on my stomach.

I coughed up blood.

Five minutes later, the school announced that it was a false alarm, so the fire drill had been activated by accident.

Everyone relaxed, returning to their spots to resume formation.

Soon, the actual parade march played. Marcus stood in place, looking around for a long time, but couldn't find me anywhere. All that remained on the green grass was a small patch stained red.

Principal Lawrence Hart looked at the withdrawal application in front of him, his expression conflicted.

After all, my father had donated an entire library to the school on my first day.

After briefly explaining my reason for leaving, I picked up my suitcase and headed to the airport. As I was about to board, my phone kept buzzing.

There were messages from Marcus.

"How come you're not coming to the parade? You weren't even competing, but you're still part of the company.

"Vicky, I thought you'd forgiven me. Why are you causing trouble again?"

...

I couldn't be bothered responding. I just turned off the screen. Before switching to airplane mode, I sent him one final message.

"The movie ended badly. Marcus, let's break up."

I sent it, pulled my SIM card, and threw it in the trash.

I arrived in Ladern at 3 a.m.

The moment I cleared customs, I saw Dad holding up a sign.

I dropped my suitcase and threw myself at him, finally letting myself fall apart.

"Dad, I shouldn't have stayed in Rathestone because of a guy like him. I should have listened to you."

"It's okay, sweetheart. You cut your losses early. What's one asshole? There are many handsome guys here. I'll line up 10 for you at home!"

I couldn't help but laugh at that. The whole drive, we talked about my future. We both silently avoided discussing anything about Westbrook University back home.

That night, lying in bed after a good meal and a few drinks, my phone suddenly buzzed with a stream of messages.

They were all from university classmates, people I'd barely spoken to in the less than a month since the semester started. They were all asking if I was the one who reported the captain and Marcus.

A classmate sent me a video. It showed Captain Monroe in intimate moments with various students.

In the changing room with some young freshman.

In the woods with an athletic student with tanned skin.

And under moonlight by a window, kissing Marcus in his white hoodie.

They said that on the day of the parade, Principal Hart had stormed onto stage and called the parade off. He had shouted into a megaphone for Captain Monroe to come to his office.

Then he called several male students in one by one, and Marcus was among them.

In the video, when the other guys came out, their faces were flushed with shame and embarrassment, but not Marcus. His face was blank. In his hand, he was clutching a document so hard his knuckles were white.

I zoomed in. It was my withdrawal application.

Captain Monroe came running out of the office crying. She tried to grab his hand, but Marcus shoved her straight to the ground.

Her back hit the corner of a desk. A falling vase shattered against her forehead, drawing blood.

However, Marcus didn't even glance at her. He stepped right over her and strode away.

As he walked, he pulled out his phone, as if he'd received a message. He suddenly stopped in his tracks.

The message must have been long. Otherwise he wouldn't have stood completely still for several minutes.

Finally, he smashed his phone to the ground. The pieces scattered everywhere, some hitting Captain Monroe's face. She screamed and covered her face, wailing in pain.

Marcus walked briskly toward the exit.

The video ended there.

So Marcus really had lost it over Captain Monroe's promiscuity.

Though I had no doubt that in a few days, he'd go crawling back to apologize, begging for her forgiveness. He'd be even more attentive than before, coddling and treasuring her, just like he always did.

I closed the video and turned off my phone without responding.

They were just acquaintances anyway and were not worth my time.

These same people had stood by Captain Monroe before, mocking me. Multiple times, when I'd hand Marcus water, they'd jeer, calling me a doglike follower, a homewrecker.

Thinking about it, I blocked and deleted them all.

A week after arriving in Ladern, I prepared to start school.

Actually, they'd invited me in 10th grade. I'd just turned them down because I didn't want to do long distance with Marcus.

I'd given up that opportunity willingly. Westbrook University wasn't bad anyway, but I never expected to come full circle in less than a month.

The day I left for Catbridge, it was drizzling. I pulled my suitcase with one hand and sheltered my head with the other as I ran through the rain.

Suddenly, a bright yellow umbrella appeared over my head.

"My name's Gareth Hammond. I'm the student assistant helping with new enrollments."

He took my suitcase and gave me a tour of the academic buildings one by one. I had to admit, Catbridge's architecture was stunning with its elegance and grandeur.

Then, near the campus gate, I spotted a figure in the downpour. He was looking left and right, stopping people, asking them questions desperately.

It was Marcus.

The smile on my face vanished instantly. I had no idea how he'd found out I'd transferred to Catbridge.

Still, I couldn't bear to see him. I lowered my head and turned, pulling Gareth toward the classroom building, but I heard the sound of water splashing behind me.

A hand appeared in front of me, blocking my path. His voice was hoarse.

"Vicky, why did you block and delete me?"