Chapter 1

My childhood best friend, Ethan, fell head over heels for the new girl at school.

She smoked, drank, got tattoos, and picked fights.

But in Ethan’s eyes, that wasn't being a delinquent. It was "freedom." It was "cool."

I once warned him to stay away from her. She wasn't the kind of girl kids like us—straight-A students—should mess with.

But Ethan just looked at me and said, "Chloe, you don't get it. She’s living the life I’ve always wanted."

I went to the counselor’s office to hand in my AP Physics Olympiad form.

That was when I saw Ethan. He was wearing ripped jeans and a graphic tee—the exact same one Skylar wore. He stood in front of Mrs. Gable with his arms crossed.

The respect he used to have for teachers was gone. His eyes held nothing but arrogance and annoyance.

"Ethan, look at your grade on this practice exam. You dropped from an A straight to a C."

"Look at yourself. Do you even look like an honors student anymore?!"

Mrs. Gable’s desk was covered with Ethan’s latest test papers.

I squinted. The pages were covered in red ink, and his handwriting was a sloppy mess.

Was this a joke?

Ethan used to get perfect scores on every single test. His handwriting was always flawless.

His test papers used to be scanned and distributed to the entire school as answer keys.

A C? He couldn't get a C even if he took the test with his eyes closed.

Yet, Ethan just stood there, completely unfazed. He smirked, looking up at the ceiling, ignoring every word Mrs. Gable said.

"Ethan! I’m talking to you! What is this attitude?"

Ethan let out a cold laugh. "It’s just who I am now."

Suddenly, he leaned down, getting right in Mrs. Gable’s face. He lowered his voice.

"Are you only worried about my grades because you’ll lose your Ivy League placement bonus if I don't get into Harvard?"

Mrs. Gable’s face turned bright red.

She pointed a finger at the smirking Ethan, but she was so angry she couldn't squeeze out a single word.

Honestly, if it weren't for the school's strict code of conduct, I was pretty sure Mrs. Gable would have cursed him out right then and there.

In the end, she didn't say anything else.

She just let out a heavy sigh, threw the test paper at Ethan, and waved him off. "Fine. Whatever. If you want to ruin your life, go ahead."