At our graduation ceremony, cheer captain Blair Montgomery cornered me. The prize for winning her bet? The captain of our school's lacrosse team.

"Only the most popular girl on campus deserves Nathaniel," she declared.

Nathaniel Harrington just scoffed. "Save it, Blair. My love life is none of your business."

Then, after the prom, he told me how he felt in front of everyone.

I thought it was the answer to a crush I’d nurtured for years. Amid the cheers of our friends, I blushed and accepted.

That summer, he took me to his family's lake house. We were practically inseparable.

I was on the verge of turning down a university on the East Coast to stay in-state for him when I overheard one of his calls.

"Blair, they're ready. The fake photos, just like you asked for."

Blair's laughter, sharp and triumphant, crackled through his phone.

"You've worked hard. Let's wait for the town's graduation farewell party and project them for everyone to see. With a scandal like that, let's see if Yale will still want Cassie."

"Nathaniel," she added nonchalantly, "you're not having second thoughts, are you?"

He paused before answering, "Why would I? She brought this on herself. Why does she always have to be better than everyone at everything?"

I set down the custom patch I’d been about to sew onto his varsity jacket. I tossed it on the table next to the spare key he had given me. Then, I opened my email and clicked "Confirm" on the acceptance letter from Yale University that had been waiting in my inbox for a week.

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1

I stepped into my house, which felt as hollow as it always did.

Three years ago, my dad cheated. My mom didn't hesitate to file for divorce and move to the East Coast.

She had always wanted me to start a new life with her in Connecticut, but I just couldn't do it. Every time, I shook my head and refused.

My mom called me constantly, her voice laced with an insistent urgency. "Cassie, your acceptance letter from Yale has been sitting there for weeks. I've already sorted out your dorm and enrollment. What are you waiting for?"

"I want to stay. I'm used to it here."

It was my usual excuse, playing the part of the self-sufficient daughter.

But all my forced smiles and brave fronts couldn't mask the truth I knew deep down.

It was all because Nathaniel Harrington was in this small town.

I picked up the phone and called my mom.

She answered immediately, her voice as gentle and urgent as ever. "Cassie, there are only a few days until freshman orientation. Why are you so stubborn?"

Her words tightened a knot in my chest.

I paused, then said softly, "Mom, I'll go."

There was a beat of silence on the other end, followed by a surge of pure joy.

"Really?! Oh, thank God, that's wonderful! I'll book your flight for the day after tomorrow. You can go straight to the airport after the party."

"Okay," I managed.

"Oh, by the way," my mom said, a new thought brightening her voice, "you mentioned someone special you wanted me to meet. Who was it again?"

I froze for a second.

Back when Nathaniel and I had just gotten together, I was dizzy with fantasies about our future.

I had planned to introduce him to my mom when the time was right, to show her the boy I thought was worth staying for.

But now, the thought was just utterly ridiculous.

"No one important," I said calmly.

I hung up, looked down, and yanked the zipper on my suitcase shut.

Just as I breathed a sigh of relief, the lock on my door clicked. I jumped.

After we got together, I had naively given him a spare key to my house.

He started spending the night, and for the first time, this empty house began to feel like a home.

"Packing? Going somewhere?" Nathaniel drawled, leaning against the doorframe. A lazy smile played on his lips as his eyes landed on the suitcase on my bed.

I shrugged, affecting a casual tone. "Yeah, university is starting soon. Just getting ready in advance."

Hearing this, his eyes softened. He crossed the room and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Cassie, you're always so on top of things, planning everything out. I swear, with you, I never have to sweat the small stuff."

He finished speaking and then, as if just remembering, pulled a cheap-looking keychain from his pocket, dangling it in front of me.

"But this time, I beat you to it."

He dangled the keychain, a cheap plastic heart with our initials clumsily carved into it. It looked like something you'd find at a gas station checkout—tacky and completely not my style.

"One month anniversary," he said, his smile disarmingly sweet.

I blinked, taking an involuntary step back. "You didn't have to do this."

"Why not?" He closed the distance between us, his voice low and magnetic. "Imagine it," he murmured, "At the bonfire tomorrow, we show up with these. Everyone will know we're a couple."

I opened my mouth, a wave of nausea rising in my throat, but I swallowed the words.

He noticed my hesitation and chuckled softly. "I get it. I can't afford anything expensive; this is just a small gesture. You're not going to look down on it, are you?"

He paused, his words hanging in the air like a vow. "One day, I'll buy you the real thing."

Before I could object, he had already taken my backpack and clipped the keychain to the zipper, his fingers intentionally brushing the back of my hand.

I looked down, silent.

A bitter taste flooded my mouth.

We don't have a "one day," Nathaniel.

The next day, at the bonfire party.

Nathaniel led me in. The beach was already buzzing with energy.

"Look who finally showed up!" someone shouted upon seeing us.

"Seriously? You guys are so cute it's actually painful for the rest of us!"

"Damn, Cassie, you really snagged a catch," another guy from school laughed, tapping his beer bottle. "Nathaniel wouldn't give most girls in this school the time of day."

"And it's not just that Nathaniel is handsome. Cassie is just as amazing: valedictorian and got into Yale. They're a match made in heaven!" my best friend giggled.

The beach filled with excited cheers, and someone yelled, "Kiss! Kiss! Make it official!"

Nathaniel flashed his signature easygoing grin, one arm draped over my shoulder. "Whoa, easy there," he laughed. "Let's not give away the whole show at once."

"Oh, don't be shy!"

"Just one kiss, to seal the deal!"

The catcalls echoed around us.

I looked down, forcing a smile.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Blair's face twist into a grimace of fury.

She bit her lip, staring daggers at us, then made an excuse and slipped away. "I'm going to get a drink."

Nathaniel, who had been pretending not to notice her, immediately followed.

I slipped away from the crowd, making my way along the shore toward a shadowed cluster of rocks. And just as I suspected, they were there. Blair stood with a furious expression while Nathaniel followed her out.

"You just had to flaunt your relationship in my face, didn't you?" Blair's voice was cold, sharp with a jealousy she couldn't quite conceal. "And you gave her a matching keychain? Are you trying to make me puke?"

Nathaniel reached for her hand, his voice low and placating. "Haven't I explained this? It's all an act to keep her hooked. The higher I build her up, the harder she'll fall."

He paused, then added comfortingly, "Besides, what's a cheap keychain?"

He took off his lacrosse varsity jacket and draped it over her shoulders with a meaningful look. "This is what really matters," he said.

I hid in the shadows, staring at the patch on the jacket's chest.

It was the custom patch I had spent nights designing for him.

I hadn't forgotten our one-month anniversary. In fact, I'd put a lot of thought into his surprise.

It wasn't until I heard that recording that I left the patch on the table with the key he had given me.

But he had draped that jacket over Blair's shoulders, while fobbing me off with a piece of plastic that cost a few dollars.

It was laughable.

Just like the twisted love triangle we were in.

I love him. And he loves her. How pathetic is that?

The party games were in full swing, and someone suggested a bragging game of 'I have something you don't.' We sat in a circle, each person boasting about their greatest accomplishment.

When it was Blair's turn, she gracefully held her drink, a sly smile on her lips. She deliberately stroked the varsity jacket on her shoulders and announced in a sickly sweet voice, "I have a man who'd do anything for me. Anything."

The circle erupted in jeers and laughter. "Come on, Blair, that's not fair! You're the cheer captain; the line of guys after you could stretch out of town!"

Everyone was laughing and joking, but I was staring intently at the jacket on her shoulders.

The message was crystal clear.

I used to think my rivalry with Blair was just about who was more popular. Now, I understood the truth.

What she wanted was to completely crush me.

Then, it was my turn.

I raised my eyes and said in a cool, detached voice, "I'll be speaking at Yale's opening ceremony as the incoming class representative."

The crowd erupted in a mix of cheers and playful groans. "Okay, that's a serious flex! How's anyone supposed to follow that?"

But I couldn't smile. My eyes were locked on Blair. I paused deliberately, then asked, "And you? Can you do that?"

Her smile froze, her cheeks flushing with anger. After a tense moment, she bit her lip and reluctantly chugged her drink as a penalty. The jacket crumpled under her clenched fist.

Not long after, Blair stormed away from the group, and, predictably, Nathaniel followed her.

I stood up and followed them from a distance.

In the darkness, away from the bonfire, Blair's voice was thick with tears. "Cassie did that on purpose to provoke me! Didn't you hear her? She wanted to humiliate me!"

Nathaniel's voice was gentle, trying to soothe her. "I don't think she meant it like that. Don't overthink it."

"You're taking her side?" Blair's voice sharpened, her tone shifting to a flirtatious challenge. "Then maybe you shouldn't be with me at all."

Nathaniel immediately panicked. He grabbed her hand urgently. "It's not like that at all. You're the most important one. You're the only one I care about."

Seeing his reaction, a flicker of triumphant satisfaction crossed Blair's eyes. "Then prove it," she cooed, moving closer. "Tonight. Get a few of your friends together. I want a video of her for the party tomorrow. I want her so humiliated in front of the whole town that Yale yanks her acceptance."

Hidden in the shadows, my heart pounded in my chest.

A sliver of hope cut through me. I prayed he would refuse, or at least hesitate.

Because just yesterday, he had held me and told me he loved me.

Nathaniel lowered his head and was silent for what felt like an eternity.

But Blair knew how to play him. She leaned in and kissed him. "Nathaniel, if you agree, I'm all yours for the rest of the night."

The moment she finished, Nathaniel pulled her into a fierce embrace. "Don't worry," he breathed, his voice thick with desire. "I'll do anything for you. Once that video gets out, she's done."

The warmth of summer still lingered in the air.

But a bone-deep chill settled in my heart.

"Cassie, have a drink with me?"

Back at the bonfire, Nathaniel's voice was laced with false tenderness. "We'll be going our separate ways soon. Summer is almost over."

I kept my head down, silent.

He let out a wistful sigh. "I know we can't be at the same school, but... at least we could have been in the same state, right?"