Chapter 1 Chapter 1
Hailey’s POV
I didn't know that in sixty seconds, my entire life would be destroyed in front of two hundred people.
I could feel my pulse thundering in my ears as I stood behind the podium, staring at a sea of faces.
The lecture hall felt suffocatingly hot, even though the air conditioner hummed somewhere above my head.
“Breathe, this is just another presentation," I said to myself.
For the past few days, I had rehearsed this moment. I stayed up until dawn making sure every slide was perfect.
“You’ve got this, Hailey. Just connect the laptop, smile, and talk.” I muttered, exhaling as I dug my fingernails into the podium.
Moments later, I plugged in the cable and the projector flickered to life. Exhaling again, I clicked display
And then my heart stopped.
It wasn’t my slides on the screen, it was… me.
Naked.
My mind couldn’t process it at first. The image seemed surreal; a cruel hallucination.
But then someone gasped, and another snorted, and a ripple of laughter moved through the room like wildfire.
“What the hell.?”
“Oh my God…”
“Is that… Hailey?”
The words hit like bullets.
My vision blurred as I stared helplessly at the giant screen which was displaying me in all my humiliation.
My trembling hands scrambled across the keyboard, trying to shut it off, unplug or anything but my fingers felt numb.
It was like my body wasn’t mine anymore.
“Whoops,” someone laughed. “Guess we got the uncut version of her project.”
Laughter erupted again. The sound was everywhere, choking, cruel and deafening.
I could barely breathe.
Finally snapping back to reality, I yanked the cable out of the port and slammed my laptop shut. The screen went black, but the damage was already done.
Tears burned behind my eyes, but I refused to cry in front of them.
With my head bowed, I forced my shaky legs to move, grabbed my laptop, and rushed out of the room.
The unending laughter followed me all the way down the hallway but I didn’t even make it far before someone stepped into my path.
Sophia.
Of course it had to be her. Perfect Sophia with her fake smile and venomous heart. The girl who hated me from day one though I had never figured out why.
“Well, well,” she purred, folding her arms across her chest. “That was… quite a show. Didn’t know you were that kind of girl.”
“Please excuse me,” My voice was weak and desperate.
Instead of leaving my path, she took a deliberate step closer, her eyes glinting with satisfaction.
“Tell me, did you film those yourself? Or did you send them to someone and forget to delete them?”
Trying to hold myself together, I bit my bottom lip. “I said move.”
“I’m just curious, you know. You always act so perfect, guess you’re not that different after all.”
Her words sliced through me and something inside me snapped.
“You’re disgusting,” I hissed, gritting my teeth in anger.
“Me?” she laughed. “Sweetheart, you’re the one showing off your body in class. Don’t get mad at me for calling you what you are… you’re a slut.”
I didn’t wait to hear more, I pushed past her, ignoring the echo of her laughter behind me.
With blinded vision, I ran down the corridor and out of the building until I found the nearest bathroom.
Dashing in, I locked myself and that was when I broke. I slid down against the cold door, hugging my knees to my chest as silent sobs racked through me.
The humiliation and the pain, it all poured out in one crushing wave.
I had no idea who had done it or why. All I knew was that everyone had seen my nudity and I was humiliated beyond repair.
I must have stayed in that bathroom for hours because, when I finally checked my phone, the sun was already setting.
When I got back to my dorm, Benita was sitting on her bed, scrolling through her phone. The moment she looked up and saw my face, she tossed it aside and rushed to me.
“Hailey, what happened? Everyone’s talking…”
“Please don’t,” I whispered, my voice hoarse. “I can’t.”
She sighed, wrapping her arms around me. I didn’t resist, I sank into her hug, my body shaking as the tears returned.
“I’m so sorry,” she murmured. “People can be awful.”
After a while, she pulled back and wiped a tear off my cheek with her thumb. “You know what? We’re not doing this.”
“Doing what?”
“Crying in here while those idiots get to laugh out there. No way, we’re going out tonight.”
“What?” I sniffled, giving her a blank stare.
“Out,” she repeated firmly. “A club, a bar, I don’t care. You need to forget this, at least for a few hours.”
“I don’t think…”
“Hailey.” Her tone softened. “Please trust me, you’ll feel better.”
Maybe she was right, sitting here crying wouldn’t fix anything. I couldn’t undo what happened, but maybe I could drown it for a night.
“Fine,” I exhaled, falling on my bed.
Two hours later, I was sitting at the corner of a dimly lit club, nursing my second glass of tequila.
The bass thumped so hard that it felt like my heartbeat was syncing with it and the air in the club smelled like sweat, perfume, and alcohol.
Benita was already on the dance floor, her red dress swirling under the neon lights. She caught my eye and gestured for me to join her, but I shook my head.
I wasn’t in the mood to dance, I was just tired.
Watching the people on the dance floor, I sipped my drink, the burn of alcohol grounding me and pushing back the ache in my chest.
Around me, people laughed, shouted, kissed, and swayed like the world had no pain in it.
It must be nice to live like that.
I shut my eyes and swallowed the rest of the drink. The warmth spread through my veins, easing the sharp edges of my thoughts.
When I opened my eyes, I saw a man sitting alone across the room, in one of the shadowed booths.
He had that quiet confidence that didn’t need attention, the kind that commanded it anyway.
Dark hair, a clean cut jawline and a suit that fit too well to be off the rack. He was older, maybe late thirties and early forties but he wore it with an effortless kind of danger.
And he was watching me.
Our eyes met, and something inside me jolted.
He didn’t look away, didn’t pretend he hadn’t been staring. He just held my gaze, as if he could see right through the mess I was in.
I should have looked away, I should have broken the moment but I didn’t.
My heart drummed faster. I could blame it on the alcohol, on the humiliation, on anything but the truth was, I wanted to feel something other than shame.
And he made me feel it.
I took another slow sip, pretending not to notice that he was still watching. My skin tingled under his gaze and every nerve in my body felt awake.
Benita returned breathless, her cheeks flushed. “Girl, you need to get out there! There’s this guy…”
“I’m fine,” I said quickly, setting my glass down.
Squinting, she leaned in, “You sure? You’ve been sitting here staring into your drink for like twenty minutes.”
“Just thinking.” I mouthed.
She sighed dramatically. “If thinking was an Olympic sport, you would have gold medals.”
“Thanks, I’ll add that to my résumé.”
She chuckled, then leaned closer. “Okay, serious question. Are you gonna mope all night or are you gonna live a little?”
“I’m living,” I said dryly. “I’m alive, see?”
Rolling her eyes, she groaned, “Fine, I’ll leave you to your misery. But at least try not to look like someone killed your puppy.”
She disappeared back into the crowd, and I exhaled slowly.
The man was still there, still watching me and this time when we locked eyes, he smiled. It shouldn’t have made my stomach flutter but it did.
I picked up my glass again, downed the rest of the drink in one burning gulp, and before I could talk myself out of it, I stood.
My legs felt light, my head a little hazy, but there was a strange confidence in my steps as I crossed the room.
He watched me as I approached with a pair of dark and steady eyes.
I stopped right in front of his table and for a moment, I forgot how to breathe.
His gaze flicked to my empty glass, then back to my face. “You’ve had enough for tonight.”
“You don’t even know me.” I laughed.
“No,” he said, tilting his head. “But I can tell when someone’s trying to forget.”
Up close, he was even more devastatingly handsome. Strong jawline, faint stubble and eyes so deep they looked like they could drown a person.
He smelled faintly of something expensive but I didn't mind.
“Sleep with me,” I said.