Chapter 39 The truth or dare
Chapter 39: The Truth and the Trap (Elena’s POV)
The air in the hallway was thin, stripped of the oxygen that usually sustained my lungs. Being pinned against the wall by Liam Vance felt like being trapped in the eye of a hurricane. Downstairs, the bass was a violent pulse, but up here, the only sound was the jagged rhythm of our breathing.
Liam’s hands were on either side of my head, caging me in. He looked like a man who had lost his way in his own house. The arrogance was gone, replaced by a raw, desperate hunger that made my stomach flip.
"What do you want, Liam?" I whispered. My voice sounded small, even to me.
"I want you to tell me why you're doing this," he growled. He was so close I could see the golden flecks in his dark eyes—eyes that were usually so cold and dismissive. "Why you're wearing that dress. Why you're looking at me like you want to kill me one second and kiss me the next."
I gripped my cane tighter, the cold metal biting into my palm. It was my anchor. It reminded me of the asphalt, the screeching tires, and the months of physical therapy that he had never had to witness.
"I don't want to kiss you," I lied. The words felt heavy and dishonest in my mouth.
"Liar," he breathed.
He leaned in, his lips grazing the shell of my ear, and a traitorous shiver raced down my spine. I hated the way my body reacted to him. I hated that even after everything, my skin wanted his touch. It was a physical betrayal, a rebellion of my own senses.
"You're a Vance," I said, my hands coming up to push against his chest. His heart was hammering under the expensive fabric of his shirt—fast, wild, and out of control. "You break things, Liam. That’s all you do. You break people, you break rules, and then you pay someone to clean up the mess. I am not another mess for you to manage."
"Then let me break this," he rasped.
His hand moved from the wall to the small of my back, his fingers splaying across the midnight blue fabric of my dress. He pulled me flush against him, and the contact was like an electric shock. Every hard line of his body—the muscles he’d built on the ice, the sheer power of his frame—was pressed against mine.
For a second, the "War" I was fighting felt like a distant memory. The revenge I’d spent months planning... it all paled in comparison to the heat radiating off him. He was the enemy. He was the monster who lived in the mansion. But in this moment, he was just a boy who looked like he was falling apart.
I looked up at him, my heart breaking in a way I didn't expect. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to think that the "Playboy" had finally found something he couldn't just walk away from. But then, I remembered the dinner. I remembered him calling me "dirt" to impress Arthur Miller.
I pushed him back, harder this time. He stumbled, his eyes snapping open.
"You don't get to do that," I said, my voice regaining its edge. "You don't get to play the victim because you’re bored of being rich. You don't get to use me as an escape from the life you chose to keep. You’re the one who called me a 'stain' at the dinner table, Liam. You’re the one who let your friends humiliate me."
Liam’s face went pale. "I had to say that. You know how my father is."
"I know exactly how your father is," I snapped, straightening my dress, though my hands were still shaking. "And I know how you are. You’re a coward. You’ll hold me in the dark when no one is watching, but you’ll spit on me the moment the lights come on. I’m done being your secret, and I’m definitely done being your charity."
I turned to walk away, but he grabbed my wrist.
"Where are you going?"
"To the party," I said, ripping my arm back. "Enjoy your shadow, Liam. I’m going to go stand in the light."
I limped back downstairs, my head held high despite the way my legs were trembling. I didn't go back to the bar. Instead, I followed the noise into the sunken living room. The music had been turned down, and a large circle of students was sitting on the floor and the plush white sofas.
In the center of the circle was an empty bottle of expensive vodka.
"Look who decided to join us!" Jax shouted, his arm wrapped around a cheerleader. He was clearly drunk, his eyes glassy and malicious. "The Ghost is here! Perfect timing. We’re just starting a game of Truth or Dare."
I wanted to turn around and leave, but Chloe was sitting right next to Jax, her gold dress shimmering under the LED lights. She was watching me with a smug, knowing look. If I left now, I was a coward. If I stayed, I was walking into a trap.
"Sit down, Elena," Chloe purred, patting the floor in front of her. "Unless you're too scared to play with the big kids."
I sat. I didn't sit on the floor; I took a seat on the edge of a marble side table, keeping my cane visible. I wasn't going to hide my disability for their comfort.
Liam walked in a moment later. He didn't join the circle. He stood at the back, leaning against a pillar, his eyes fixed on me. He looked like he was vibrating with tension.
"Okay, my turn!" Chloe squealed, spinning the bottle. It whirled on the floor before slowing down and pointing its neck directly at me.
The room went silent. I could feel every eye in the room on my midnight blue dress.
"Truth or Dare, Elena?" Chloe asked, her voice dripping with fake sweetness.
"Truth," I said, my voice steady. I wasn't going to let them dare me to do something humiliating.
Chloe’s smile widened. "Is it true... that you only took the tutoring job to get close to Liam’s trust fund? I mean, a girl from your neighborhood must be desperate for a way out. Did you think if you acted like a 'damsel in distress' with that cane, he’d just hand you a check?"
A few people snickered. The insult was direct, classist, and cruel.
"I took the job because I’m the top of my class and the Vance family needed someone with an actual brain to save Liam’s GPA," I replied calmly. "I don't need his trust fund to have a future. I just need him to learn how to do basic Calculus."
"Oooooh!" the crowd reacted.
Jax laughed, clapping his hands. "She’s got claws! Okay, my turn." He spun the bottle. It landed on Liam.
"Truth or Dare, Cap?" Jax grinned.
Liam didn't even hesitate. "Dare."
Jax looked at me, then back at Liam. A dark, wicked look crossed his face. "I dare you... to tell us who the best kiss in the room is. But you can't just say it. You have to show us."
The room erupted. Chloe sat up straighter, adjusting her dress, looking completely confident that he would walk over to her. She was his girlfriend. She was the Queen. It was the easy way out.
Liam didn't move for a long time. He looked at Chloe, who was smiling at him. Then he looked at me. The air in the room felt like it was charged with electricity.
He started walking. He didn't stop at Chloe’s seat. He walked right past her. The room went dead quiet as he stepped into the center of the circle and stopped right in front of me.
"Liam, what are you doing?" Chloe’s voice was high and sharp.
Liam didn't answer her. He reached out and cupped my face with both hands. His palms were hot, and his eyes were full of that same desperate fire I’d seen in the hallway.
"Truth or Dare, Elena?" he whispered, his voice so low only I could hear it.
"You're making a mistake," I breathed, my heart stopping.
"I don't care," he said.
And then, he leaned down and kissed me.
It wasn't a "dare" kiss. It wasn't a quick peck to satisfy the game. It was deep, hungry, and full of all the words he was too much of a coward to say out loud. In front of Chloe, in front of the Millers, in front of the whole school, the King of Northview was kissing the scholarship girl like his life depended on it.
I should have pushed him away. I should have slapped him. But for three seconds, I forgot to be the victim. I forgot to be the ghost.
Then, the sound of a glass shattering hit the floor.
I shoved him back, my breath coming in gasps. Liam stumbled, looking dazed.
Chloe was standing up, her face pale and twisted with a rage I had never seen before. She didn't look at Liam. She looked at me.
"You're dead," she whispered, her voice trembling. "I’m going to make sure there is nothing left of you by tomorrow morning."
She turned and ran out of the room. Jax was staring at Liam like he’d just seen a ghost. The whole room was in shock.
I grabbed my cane and stood up, my legs feeling like lead. I didn't look at Liam. I didn't wait for him to explain. I pushed through the crowd and headed for the door, the taste of him still on my lips and the weight of a hundred enemies on my back.