At lunch, Vince sat at his usual table with Dale and Theo. All three of them were covered in bruises, sparking whispers from every direction.
"The connection between Darian and Vanessa—did anyone else know about it?" Vince asked, keeping his voice low.
Theo didn't answer that question. Instead, he glanced past Vince and said,
"Yeah... and she's heading this way right now."
But it wasn't Vanessa.
Karina approached with a lunch tray, her expression somewhere between irritation and worry. She sat down right beside Vince—closer than usual—immediately scanning the injuries on his face.
"Who did this to your beautiful face?" she asked, frowning.
Vince met her eyes, his own expression serious in a way Karina wasn't used to seeing from him.
"Can we talk after school?"
The tone in his voice made her freeze. Vince rarely asked things like that—never with that level of seriousness.
"Oh... okay." she said quietly, uneasy.
Across the table, Dale tapped his own bruised cheek.
"What about our beautiful faces?"
Karina didn't miss a beat.
"Isn't that just how you two usually look?"
Dale's jaw dropped.
"This girl." he muttered, defeated.
But Vince didn't laugh.
He kept staring at his tray, mind somewhere else—eyes flicking occasionally toward the cafeteria entrance, waiting to see who might walk in next.
Meanwhile, behind the football field where the bleachers cast long shadows, Vanessa found herself face-to-face with Darian.
His jaw was clenched, eyes burning.
"Are you dating that rich bitch?" he demanded.
Vanessa didn't flinch.
"And what if I am? Why does it matter to you?" Her tone was icy.
Darian stepped closer, fists tight at his sides.
"Why him? That asshole grew up with a gold spoon in his mouth. He doesn't understand what we went through—how we struggled."
She turned her head slightly, disgust flashing in her eyes.
"He doesn't need to understand. And when did I ever judge people by their background? If I did, yours would've disgusted me the most."
That hit him. Hard.
Darian's voice dropped, low and dangerous.
"I'm warning you, Vanessa. I've got nothing to lose."
She took one step forward, anger finally boiling over.
"And I'm warning you. Push me, and I'll dig up every skeleton you buried. Everyone will know what you did—how you stole someone's life and walked away like nothing happened."
The silence that followed was sharp.
Then she turned and walked away, furious, shaking—but refusing to let him see it.
Darian stared after her, expression darkening.
"When did you get so bold, Vanessa..." he muttered, watching her fade into the distance.
But what unsettled him wasn't her words.
It was the fact she wasn't afraid of him anymore.
Later that afternoon, when school finally let out, Vince met Karina at the old ice cream shop they used to visit as kids—the same sun-faded awning, the same chalkboard menu, even the same worn stools by the window.
Karina pressed her face to the menu, eyes bright.
"Look! They still have mint chocolate chip."
Vince stepped up to the counter.
"Two mint chocolate, please."
Karina's smile warmed. "Thank you, Vince."
They grabbed their cones and found a small booth. She took one bite and sighed dramatically.
"Is this a date?" she teased.
"You know it's not." Vince replied immediately.
Her smile flickered. "Yeah... of course it's not." The disappointment slipped out before she could hide it.
After a moment she leaned forward, elbows on the table.
"So? Why did you want to meet after school?"
Vince hesitated. He knew anything involving Darian set her off. But if anyone could give him the truth about Vanessa's history with him, it was Karina.
Karina saw the hesitation. Saw where his eyes drifted. And her expression hardened.
"You're gonna ask me about Vanessa, aren't you?"
Vince blinked. "How did—"
She cut him off with a small laugh.
"Please. Darian looked like he got hit by a truck. And we both know who did that. So yeah, it wasn't hard to put two and two together."
Her lips curled into a satisfied smirk.
"Honestly? I'm glad you rearranged his face a little."
Vince didn't smile.
"Karina... can you tell me what happened between him and Vanessa?"
She paused, spoon suspended over her cup.
"As much as I hate that girl," she said slowly, "I'll tell you. But only if you agree to do me a favor."
Vince narrowed his eyes.
"A favor? What kind of favor?"
Karina grinned like she'd been waiting for that question all day.
"Just agree. You'll find out the favor in due time."
He groaned. "Karina..."
"Come on," she leaned closer, eyes bright. "Do you want your answers or not?"
He exhaled.
"Fine, fine. I agree. Now tell me."
Karina clasped her hands together in triumph.
"Yes! Okay... where do I start?"
She took a breath.
"Vanessa and Darian... they were best friends."
She paused, her expression shifting—like the next part wasn't so simple.
"But it wasn't the cute kind of best friends."