Chapter 2

My phone screen lit up with two Snapchat notifications.

[Chloe, are you going to confess to me today too? Honestly, I’m actually looking forward to seeing you.]

[Location: The Onyx Lounge]

Alex and I had an agreement: if I confessed to him 99 times, we would officially start dating.

He said he didn’t want to rush into a relationship. He wanted to make sure I was genuine.

For the first 98 times, I took his challenge seriously. I prepared flowers, got him gifts, and publicly chased him.

He just kept count, casually telling me to try harder next time.

Right outside the VIP booth, I heard someone bring up the topic.

"Alex, Chloe has been chasing you for five months. It's almost the 99th time. Are you really going to say yes?"

Hearing them talk about me, my hand froze on the doorknob.

Deep inside the plush sofa, a guy was playing with a Rubik’s cube.

It was Alex. His pale fingers flicked the toy boredly.

The music outside was deafening, the crowd wild.

Yet, he sat there with a cold, gloomy aura that completely isolated him from the warmth of the room.

He glanced at the teasing looks from his friends, then shifted his eyes back to the amber liquid in his glass.

After a clink of glasses, a drunken voice laughed.

"A fake is always a fake."

"She’s just like this toy in my hand. I play with it when I’m bored. When I don’t need it, I can throw it aside."

The guys exchanged glances and burst into laughter.

"Come on, we all know why Alex didn't reject Chloe. He’s just trying to make Elena jealous."

"Am I right, Alex?"

Alex’s sharp, handsome face was half-hidden in the dim light. Nobody could read him.

Unlike his trust-fund friends, Alex had a clean private life. He was polite, though he carried a strange, antisocial coldness deep down.

My chest tightened. I waited for his answer.

Alex didn't deny it. The tear mole under his eye, which usually made him look gentle, now seemed incredibly cold.

"I never said that."

"But if Chloe confesses again, I won't have a reason to say no."

The booth erupted into jeers again.

"Poor Chloe. She’s being used as a rebound by a bad guy like you."

"Alex, if you don't want her, let her be the appetizer. It's not like you're losing anything."

"Or introduce her to me… she's totally my type."

Suddenly, Alex walked over and patted the guy's face mockingly.

He didn't say a word, but the threat was loud and clear.

Someone quickly tried to smooth things over. "Shut up, dude. She has the exact same face as Elena..."

"Even if Alex doesn't want her, she’s out of your league."

These rich kids' conversations were always vulgar. Behind closed doors, their jokes were probably even worse.

Standing outside the door, my heart didn't even ache.

After being his puppy dog for five months, I already knew he had a first love locked in his heart.

No wonder his friends always looked at me with mockery and amusement.

Was I sad? Not really.

Honestly, I felt a tiny spark of… relief?

Well, since he felt this way…

Then I didn't need to feel guilty about sleeping with his brother Stuart during our "talking stage," right?