Emma’s heart pounded as she paced her room, the video replaying in her mind. Liam and Victoria, standing close, their voices heated but conspiratorial.
“This isn’t what we agreed on,” Liam had said. What agreement? Emma’s thoughts spiraled. She grabbed her phone and texted Liam.
“We need to talk. Now.”
His reply came almost instantly.
“Meet me by the bleachers.”
The cold air stung Emma’s face as she approached the bleachers, her hands shoved deep into her pockets. Liam was already there, leaning against the metal frame, his usual smirk nowhere to be seen.
“Emma,” he said as she walked up. “What’s going on?”
She didn’t waste time. “What’s going on? This!” She shoved her phone at him, playing the video.
Liam’s jaw tightened as he watched. When it ended, he handed the phone back calmly. “Where did you get that?”
“Don’t,” Emma snapped, her voice shaking. “Don’t act like this isn’t a big deal. Are you working with Victoria? Were you playing me this whole time?”
Liam stepped closer, his voice low but firm. “No. I’m not working with her.”
“Then explain the video!” Emma demanded, tears prickling her eyes. “Explain why it looks like you’re plotting with her to destroy me.”
“She’s trying to turn you against me,” Liam said, his voice softening. “Think about it. Why would I defend you, stand up for you, if I was on her side? It doesn’t make sense.”
Emma shook her head, her thoughts a mess. “I don’t know what to believe anymore.”
Liam’s expression hardened. “Believe me. Or don’t. But if you let her get in your head, she’s already won.”
The tension at school reached its peak when Victoria made her grand announcement during lunch. She stood on a table in the cafeteria, clinking a glass with a spoon to get everyone’s attention.
“Ladies and gentlemen,” she began, her voice dripping with confidence, “I have an exciting update about our very own Emma Williams.”
Emma froze mid-bite, her stomach sinking.
“Since she’s been so dedicated to her little bucket list, I think it’s only fair that we reveal her final dare at the winter formal,” Victoria said, smirking at Emma. “I promise it’ll be… legendary.”
The room erupted into whispers and laughter.
Emma’s hands clenched into fists. “She’s planning something,” she muttered to Katie, who sat across from her.
Katie looked nervous. “What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know,” Emma admitted. “But I’m not letting her blindside me again.”
That night, Emma cornered her parents in the living room. She wasn’t in the mood for vague answers or half-truths anymore.
“Tell me everything,” she demanded, holding up the photo of her and Victoria as kids. “What happened between our families?”
Her dad sighed heavily, setting his coffee cup down. “Emma, this isn’t something you need to worry about.”
“Yes, it is,” she snapped. “Victoria’s been tormenting me for months, and it all goes back to whatever you’re hiding. So just tell me the truth!”
Her mom placed a hand on her dad’s arm, nodding. “She deserves to know.”
Her dad leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “Years ago, I was business partners with Victoria’s father. We were working on a big deal, but he made some risky decisions that backfired. His company collapsed, and he blamed me for not saving him.”
Emma frowned. “But that wasn’t your fault.”
Her dad’s face darkened. “That’s not how he saw it. He said I betrayed him. He lost everything—his business, his reputation, even their home.”
Emma’s stomach churned. “So the Sterlings think we ruined their lives?”
Her mom nodded sadly. “We tried to stay out of it, but Victoria’s family… they’ve always held a grudge.”
Emma’s chest tightened. This wasn’t just about high school drama. This was years of resentment boiling over, and she was caught in the middle.
Emma found Liam leaning against her locker the next morning. He looked at her carefully, as if he knew something was wrong.
“I found out about the feud,” Emma said, not bothering with small talk.
Liam raised an eyebrow. “So they finally told you?”
Emma crossed her arms. “Why didn’t you? You knew about it, didn’t you?”
Liam sighed. “Yeah, I knew. But it wasn’t my story to tell.”
“That’s not good enough,” Emma snapped. “You’ve been keeping things from me this whole time. How am I supposed to trust you?”
Liam looked away for a moment, then back at her. “Fine. You want the truth? Victoria’s personal vendetta against you? It’s not just about your family. It’s about mine too.”
Emma blinked. “What?”
“My brother was engaged to Victoria,” Liam said, his voice flat. “Years ago. But he broke it off after she tried to ruin his career. She turned his friends against him, spread lies about him… it was brutal. And now she’s doing the same thing to you.”
Emma stared at him, her mind racing. “So you’re here because you want revenge.”
Liam shook his head. “I’m here because I don’t want her to destroy anyone else.”
Determined to get answers, Emma decided to confront Victoria directly. She waited until after school, lurking by the parking lot where Victoria usually met her friends.
But when she got there, she stopped in her tracks.
Victoria was standing by her car, talking on her phone.
“Yes, I know,” Victoria said, her voice annoyed. “But it’s all falling into place. By the formal, it’ll be done. She won’t recover from this.”
Emma’s fists clenched, but then Victoria said something that made her freeze.
“Relax,” Victoria snapped. “I’m handling it. Besides, her dad’s the one who started all of this, so he owes me.”
Emma’s blood turned cold.
She ducked behind a nearby car, her mind racing. Was her father involved in this too?
Her phone buzzed in her pocket, pulling her back to reality.
It was another message from the unknown number.
“You have no idea who your enemies really are.”