On Rachel’s birthday, while I was still in the dorm, she excitedly invited our other two roommates right in front of me.

"Today’s my birthday, so I’m treating you both to dinner!"

Natalie and Chloe lit up, their eyes going wide with excitement. "Really? That’s awesome!"

I waited a long time, certain Rachel would turn to me next, but the invitation never came.

When I finally looked up, my eyes met hers. I forced a laugh. "What about me, Rachel? Don’t act like I’m invisible!"

Rachel gave a light, dismissive smile. "Lila, don’t you have Student Office work today? You always seem so busy, so I didn’t want to bother you."

I froze. "I don’t have work today."

Her eyes flickered with impatience. "Well, the cake I ordered is just enough for three. There won’t be any left for you."

I laughed awkwardly. "Then I won’t go. You guys have fun. Make sure to enjoy yourselves."

Rachel didn’t answer me. She linked arms with Natalie and Chloe, striding to the door.

"Let’s go! Tonight it’s Dorm 115’s private party!" she shouted loud enough to make sure I heard.

I sat there, unsettled. Was she really leaving me out just because I was busy with Student Office work? On my birthday, I’d invited her. Even if she thought I might be too busy, shouldn’t she at least have the decency to extend a polite invitation?

Left alone in the dorm and ignored like I didn’t matter, I felt restless.

I video-called my boyfriend, Ryan Cooper, hoping he’d come walk with me and distract me from all this, but he declined my call.

My chest tightened with unease. I quickly texted him: "Is something wrong?"

He replied: "Yeah, something urgent."

"More urgent than my call?" I asked.

He shot back, his tone edged with irritation: "Obviously."

"Okay then, I’ll let you get back to it."

His reaction stung. I didn’t understand why he’d snap at me like that. Maybe something really had come up. I tried to think positively and soothe myself.

A little later, he texted again: "Baby, sorry. I was busy just now. My tone came out harsh. It’s my mom’s birthday today. I bought her a Gucci necklace. Now I’m short on cash…"

He attached a picture of the necklace with the price tag: 1,600 dollars.

My face stayed blank as I typed: "So you mean you want me to give you some of my living expenses again?"

He sent a laughing emoji. "Baby, what are you talking about? The money your family gives you… it’s ours. Why are you making it sound like I’m begging you?"

My brows furrowed. "You’ve already gone through over 3,000 this month, and it’s not even mid-month yet. At this rate, I’ll run out of living expenses too."

He sent a rolling-eyes emoji. "Baby, just ask your dad and brother for more. Don’t bother me with this."

That comment left me raw and bitter.

Yes, my family lived comfortably. My dad, Richard Blaine, and my brother, Andrew, both doted on me. Dad gave me 3,000 dollars a month, and Andrew sent another 2,000. They always said a girl should be raised generously so she’d never have to bow her head to anyone.

Ryan, on the other hand, came from a poor farming family. He was a year ahead of me, and I’d first seen him onstage at the freshman orientation ceremony, where he gave a speech as the top student. Later, when I joined the Student Office, I got to know him through work.

He relied on scholarships and student loans to get by. Once we started dating, he learned I received two allowances. He often cried poor to me, insisting my money was our shared property.

Even before I could agree, he’d already grabbed my phone and set himself up with a linked card through my account, using the full amount of my allowance as his limit. He swore he’d only ever take a few hundred in an emergency.

Alas, that "few hundred" soon grew bigger, until he was spending nearly my whole monthly allowance.

He always justified it by saying it was for his mom, who he claimed was frail and sickly.

But the shocking truth? The "mom" he spent my money on… was Rachel Travis.

Before I could even finish arguing with Ryan, the dorm door opened.

Rachel, Natalie, and Chloe walked in together, laughing and chatting away. Their conversation was animated, full of stories and jokes that I knew nothing about. I couldn’t even begin to join in.

Later, Rachel posted photos from her birthday party on social media.

I’d been tied up with Student Office work the past three days, barely checking my phone. Out of nowhere, she sent me a message.

"Lila, what’s your deal?"

My stomach twisted in confusion. I replied with a simple question mark.

She shot back with a rolling-eyes emoji. "I didn’t invite you because I thought you were busy. And now you’re deliberately ignoring my post? Not liking it on purpose?"

I sent another question mark. "No, I was just busy with Student Office work the last few days."

Rachel fired back with another eye-roll emoji. "Wow, how coincidental. You just happened to be too busy to see my birthday post? Disgusting. What, did you scroll past it and pretend you didn’t see?"

I was floored. Really? I’d posted so many times, and she’d skipped me every single time. I never once complained. But the one time she posts for her birthday, I didn’t hit like, and suddenly I was the villain?

Her accusation lit a fire in me. I wasn’t going to swallow it anymore. "I’ve posted plenty of times, and I’ve never once seen you like mine. Who’s really pretending not to see things?"

Rachel shot back with an angry emoji. "You’re way too sensitive. I don’t even check social media much, okay?"

I laughed bitterly as I typed. "If you don’t check, how come you still manage to like everyone else’s posts?"

The screen showed she was still typing, but no message came through. I knew she was just buying time, trying to spin her words into something reasonable, but I saw right through it. She was doing it on purpose.

A few minutes later, her reply popped up. "I didn’t realize you were that sensitive. It’s just a post. Are you really going to argue with me over something that small? I don’t have time for all this drama. Girls like you always make things complicated."

I sat there, speechless.

Who was the one who messaged me out of nowhere, demanding to know why I hadn’t liked her birthday post, when I was in the middle of work?

It was only later that I learned why Rachel had been so upset about me not hitting like.