Chapter 4
Chapter 4
I closed my eyes and turned away.
Marcus called right after his performance. I blocked him and put on my backup dress.
When the spotlight hit me on stage, I stared at the piano, took a deep breath, and straightened my shoulders.
I played through “Shallow” flawlessly, finally letting out all my anger.
“Clap clap-”
The audience erupted in applause–I turned to see people actually crying.
I’d played beyond my usual ability, unexpectedly moving everyone.
I smiled and bowed gracefully.
Marcus ran up and hugged me. “Joy! That was incredible!”
I pushed him away coldly. “Keep your distance, please.”
He ruffled my hair and handed me a bag, looking exasperated.
“Mad again? You have no idea how much I’ve done for you.”
He kept explaining. “Last time you faked that allergic reaction and tattled, Chelsea got fired.”
“Her plan to buy a dress with her part–time job fell through. Poor girl cried for days.”
“Your dress arrived just in time–I let her borrow it for her performance, then she changed so you could perform too.”
“I helped her out AND didn’t ruin your show. Pretty smart, right?”
I wasn’t listening.
I pulled out the dress to inspect it–the hem was torn, sequins scattered everywhere.
I held the ruined dress with trembling hands.
Marcus saw it too, panic creeping into his voice.
“Joy… I didn’t know this would happen. Chelsea didn’t mean to. I’ll buy you a new one…”
Tears stung my eyes as I slapped him hard and screamed:
“What do you mean ‘she wears it then I wear it‘?! That’s DISGUSTING!”
”
“And get this straight–this is the ONLY dress my mother ever made me! It’s all I have left of her!”
“What gives you the right to give it to Chelsea? What could you possibly replace it with?”
“Taking without asking is STEALING! Don’t you get that?!”
“Marcus Blackthorne, you’re a complete disappointment!”
Chelsea appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the dress from my hands.
Her eyes were red, tears hanging on her lashes.
“Joy, don’t blame Marcus! It’s all my fault! I’ll fix the dress, I promise!”
My face went ice cold. “Give it back!”
2.8%
Chapter 4
Marcus saw his chance and suddenly hugged me.
“Joy, baby, trust me this once. I’ll get your dress fixed perfectly!”
Chelsea caught Marcus’s signal and ran off with my dress.
I was seeing red, but Marcus leaned down and kissed my temple.
“I promise I’ll return it exactly as it was. Don’t be mad.”
The old me might have melted.
But now I just felt sick.
Later, I got the business school notification.
I could report to the honors program after the holiday break.
I breathed a sigh of relief and started packing.
Three days later, Marcus texted:
[Joy, got your dress fixed.]
Me: [Good, I’ll come get it. Where and when?]
[There’s Lover’s Peak outside town. Climb to the summit with me tomorrow and I’ll give it to you~]
[You BETTER come! I’ll give you the dress back when you do!]
I didn’t want to deal with it, but that dress was made by Mom before she died for my piano competition.
It carried her blessing and love–it meant everything to me.
The next day I got to the base of Lover’s Peak but only saw Chelsea.
I called Marcus over and over–no answer.
She smugly pulled up a photo on her phone.
It was taken at the summit–green grass with heart–shaped balloon arrangements.
Marcus was tying pink ribbons on the surrounding trees.
“Stop calling. Marcus is busy setting up my confession ceremony. He doesn’t have time for your calls.”
I realized I’d been played and turned to leave, furious.
But Chelsea called out lazily, “Leaving already? That’s fine–I really like that dress of yours anyway. I’ll wear it when I say yes to Marcus’s confession!”
I was LIVID and slapped her hard.
“What a fucking bitch!”
She laughed shamelessly. “So what? Marcus still likes me best.”
“If Marcus sees this mark on my face, think he’ll destroy your precious dress completely?”
“I heard it’s pretty important to you.”
My hands shook with rage, but I couldn’t risk it. I started running up the mountain.
Chelsea’s eyes glinted as she followed.
But when I reached the halfway point, pain shot through my foot and sweat broke out on my forehead.
3.1%
Chapter 4
I looked down trembling–a rusty bear trap had clamped down on my ankle, blood instantly staining the ground.
Chelsea strolled over looking pleased. “Oops, what an accident~ Looks like you won’t make it to the top. Guess I’ll have to wear the dress instead~”
I knew damn well this was her doing. I was grinding my teeth so hard they might shatter.
The pain made my head spin. Fighting back hatred, I pulled out my phone to call for help.
But she snatched it away and threw it down the mountain. “Wanna call for help? In your dreams!”
I lunged at her but she just smirked and ran off.
Watching her disappear, my blood ran cold.
Lover’s Peak might have a romantic name, but it was in the suburbs–hardly anyone came here.
I tried prying the trap open but it was useless.
I sat pathetically on the ground, crawling down step by step.
Hurt, pain, and fear poured out with my tears.
The blazing sun quickly gave me heat stroke.
I crouched weakly by the path, thinking I might die here with no one finding me.
My sobbing echoed through the silent mountain.
Suddenly a shadow fell across me, and a deep voice said:
“How come every time I find you, you’re in such a sorry state, little crybaby?”
