Chapter 6: Betrayal

ELOWEN BENNETT

I couldn’t sleep.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw them. Liora’s arms around Dax’s neck. His hands on her waist like they belonged there. The way they kissed like I was nothing more than an annoying interruption.

By six in the morning, I was done pretending I could rest. My chest felt raw, like someone had scraped it with sandpaper. I kept replaying every moment of the last three months, trying to find the exact second I became so easy to betray.

I needed answers.

Maybe I had done something wrong. Maybe I had been a terrible girlfriend or a clingy friend without realizing it. The thoughts wouldn’t stop spinning, so I did the only thing that made sense in my broken mind.

I went to Liora’s house.

Her mom worked early shifts, so I knew she’d be home alone. I didn’t text or call. I just showed up at a little after seven, still wearing the same black dress from last night, now wrinkled and stained with dried punch and chlorine. My eyes were swollen from crying, and my hair was a mess, but I didn’t care.

I needed to hear her say it to my face.

Maybe then it would feel real.

I knocked on the door, my hand shaking. When no one answered, I tried the handle. It was unlocked, like always. Liora never locked her door during the day.

The moment I stepped inside, I heard voices coming from the living room. Familiar voices. My stomach twisted violently.

“…she actually believed we were best friends,” Liora was saying, laughing that bright, sharp laugh I used to love. “God, she’s so pathetic. Did you see her face when she caught us?”

My feet froze in the hallway.

Dax’s voice came next, low and amused. “Yeah. She looked like a kicked puppy. Honestly, I thought she was going to cry right there in front of everyone.”

They both laughed.

I felt the sound like a punch to the gut.

I should have turned around and left. But my body wouldn’t listen. Instead, I moved closer, staying hidden behind the wall, heart hammering so loud I was scared they’d hear it.

“She made it too easy,” Dax continued. “Three months and she still thought I actually liked her. Bro, the boys are never gonna let me live this down. I had to kiss her a few times just to keep the bet going.”

Liora snorted. “Kissing her was probably the hardest part of the whole thing. She kisses like a dead fish.”

More laughter.

I pressed a hand over my mouth to stop the sob that wanted to rip out of me.

“I only asked her out because of the bet,” Dax said casually, like he was talking about the weather. “Everyone kept saying no one could get the quiet virgin girl to put out. Fifty bucks each if I could do it before graduation. But then she was so boring. Always reading, always hiding in those ugly hoodies. I needed some actual fun, you know?”

“And I delivered,” Liora replied smugly. “You’re welcome, by the way. If I hadn’t pretended to be her friend, you wouldn’t have even gotten close.”

“You’re the real MVP,” Dax said, and I could hear the grin in his voice. “Though I gotta admit, watching Alaric destroy her last night was the highlight of the year. Did you see her face when he told her she has to be his slave for three months? Priceless.”

Liora giggled. “She’s actually going to do it too. Watch her follow him around like a lost dog. Pathetic little Elowen. Always thought she was better than everyone because she reads books and gets good grades.”

My knees felt weak. I had to lean against the wall just to stay upright.

I had come here hoping for an explanation. Maybe even an apology. Some small part of me still believed our friendship had been real. That maybe she had been confused or drunk or—

But this?

This was cruel.

I couldn’t stay hidden anymore. Before I could talk myself out of it, I stepped into the living room.

They were on the couch, half-dressed, tangled up in each other like they had been last night. The second they saw me, their expressions shifted.

Liora looked annoyed more than anything. Dax just raised an eyebrow, completely unbothered.

“Elowen?” Liora sat up, not even bothering to cover herself properly. “What the hell are you doing here?”

I stared at them, my throat burning. “I came to ask if I did something wrong. If I hurt you somehow. Because I thought… I thought you were my best friend.”

Liora rolled her eyes so hard it looked painful. “Here we go.”

Dax chuckled, leaning back against the cushions. “Look, Elowen, don’t make this weird. It was just a bet. Nothing personal.”

“Nothing personal?” My voice cracked, but I forced the words out anyway. “You pretended to like me for three months. You let me believe I finally had a boyfriend who saw me. And you—” I looked at Liora, tears blurring my vision. “You were supposed to be my friend. You defended me when people called me names. You sat with me at lunch every day. Was all of that fake too?”

Liora sighed like I was exhausting her. “Not all of it. At first it was fun playing the hero for the poor invisible girl. But then you just… stayed invisible. It got boring. I have a reputation to keep, Elowen. I can’t be dragging dead weight around forever.”

“Dead weight,” I repeated quietly.

“Yeah,” she said bluntly. “Look at you. You’re cute, I guess, but you’re boring. You never want to do anything fun. You dress like a homeless librarian. Who wants to be friends with that?”

Dax nodded along like she was making perfect sense. “Exactly. And honestly? You’re not even that good in bed—or you wouldn’t be if we’d gotten there. Too stiff. Too quiet. I need someone who actually knows what she’s doing.”

The words sliced through me sharper than anything Tasha had said last night.

I felt something inside me crack wide open.

“So everything… was a lie?” I whispered.

Liora shrugged, completely indifferent. “Pretty much. But hey, at least you got to feel special for a few months, right? Consider it charity work.”

Dax laughed again. “Now she gets to be Alaric’s little errand girl. That should be entertaining. Maybe he’ll finally finish what we started in middle school.”

Tears spilled down my cheeks, hot and fast. I couldn’t stop them anymore.

“I trusted you,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “Both of you. I told you things I never told anyone else.”

Liora stood up, crossing her arms. “And that was your mistake. The world isn’t a fairy tale, Elowen. Grow up. No one was ever going to choose you when they could have someone like me.”

The pain was so sharp it felt physical.

I took one step back, then another.

“I hope you both choke on each other,” I said quietly, the words tasting like ash in my mouth.

Then I turned and ran.

I didn’t stop running until I was three blocks away. My legs gave out near the small park by my house, and I collapsed onto a bench, sobbing so hard my entire body shook.

Everything hurt.

My chest. My stomach. My head.

The boy I thought liked me. The friend I thought had my back. Both of them had been laughing at me the entire time.

And now I was trapped.

Trapped in a three-month deal with Alaric Hayes—the same boy who used to make my life hell. The boy who now owned me because of one stupid accident.

I pulled my knees up to my chest and buried my face in my arms.

How was I supposed to survive this?

How was I supposed to face school tomorrow knowing everyone was probably laughing about me?