I should have known Savannah wouldn’t let me win.
The second I step into school, I know something is wrong. The air feels heavier. People aren’t just staring—they’re whispering.
Not just whispering. Laughing.
I clutch my bag tighter, my heart pounding as I make my way through the hall.
Then I hear it.
“Damn, Noah must feel like an idiot.”
“She really used him like that?”
“Guess she never actually liked him.”
My stomach twists.
I don’t understand. What are they talking about?
Then I see it.
A group of students are huddled around a phone, watching something.
A video.
And I hear my own voice.
“Be my boyfriend. Let’s make Jason suffer.”
My breath catches in my throat.
No.
No, no, no.
I shove my way through the crowd, my pulse hammering. Someone laughs as I pass by.
“Did you see Noah’s face? Brutal.”
I push forward until I finally see the phone screen.
It’s a video.
A blurry shot from behind the lockers. Me and Noah.
The day I asked him to be my fake boyfriend.
The angle is bad, the audio is slightly muffled, but my voice is clear enough.
“Be my boyfriend. Let’s make Jason suffer.”
“It’s just fake.”
I feel like I’m going to be sick.
Because out of context, the video makes it look like I didn’t care. Like I was only using Noah. Like none of it meant anything.
And I already know who’s behind this.
Savannah.
Of course it was Savannah.
But before I can even react, a familiar voice cuts through the noise.
“Layla.”
I turn.
Noah is standing a few feet away, his face unreadable. His brown eyes lock onto mine, but there’s no warmth in them. Just something cold. Closed off.
The way he’s looking at me—it makes my chest ache.
I open my mouth, but before I can say anything, Jason steps in front of me.
His expression is sharp, angry.
“So it was all fake?” His voice is quiet, but there’s an edge to it.
I swallow hard. “Jason, move.”
He doesn’t. “You really did all of this just to get back at me?”
My hands curl into fists. “Are you seriously trying to act like the victim right now?”
Jason lets out a bitter laugh. “So that’s a yes.”
I shake my head. “No. That’s not what happened.”
His jaw tightens. “It sure as hell looks like it.”
“Noah knew,” I snap. “He agreed. He—”
Jason cuts me off. “Yeah? And do you think that makes it any better? You were using him, Layla. And now the whole school knows it.”
The words sting.
Because in the beginning, Jason wasn’t wrong.
I was using Noah.
But that’s not the whole story. That’s not the truth anymore.
Before I can answer, Noah finally speaks.
“Layla.”
His voice is quieter than Jason’s. Not angry. Just… tired.
I turn to him, my heart pounding. “Noah, you know that video isn’t the full story. You knew what this was from the start.”
His jaw clenches. “Yeah. I did.”
Something in his voice makes my chest tighten.
He exhales sharply, running a hand through his hair. “I knew it was fake. I knew why you wanted to do it. But—” He shakes his head, laughing bitterly. “I guess I thought maybe, at some point… it wouldn’t be.”
My stomach drops.
No.
I reach for his hand, but he steps back.
“Noah—”
He looks at me then, and the hurt in his eyes is worse than anything Jason could say.
“Just tell me something,” he says quietly. “Was it ever real for you?”
My breath catches.
Because I don’t know how to answer that.
It wasn’t real at first. But somewhere along the way… it changed.
He changed it.
But now? Now it’s too late.
My silence is enough.
Noah exhales, nodding to himself like he’s accepting something he already knew.
“Got it,” he mutters, voice cold. He turns to leave.
No. No, no, no.
I grab his wrist. “Noah, please.”
He doesn’t turn around. Doesn’t pull away.
But his voice is quiet when he says, “I really liked you, Layla.”
