Chapter 4

"Hazel is going to lose her mind tonight."

Chloe snapped her head up.

The recording kept playing.

Chloe's voice was crystal clear.

"Ethan, did you really think I couldn't get to you just because you didn't drink that mocktail?"

Ethan's voice was cold.

"So you paid the waiter to lure me out?"

Chloe laughed.

"Of course."

"I told him to tell you that Hazel fell down the stairs. And look at you, you ran right up."

"You care about her so much, don't you?"

"This trick is way better than drugs."

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms.

So, she didn't just prepare drugs.

She prepared lies.

She weaponized Ethan's love and concern for me.

The sound of a door locking echoed from the recorder.

Ethan's recorded voice asked:

"Chloe, what the hell do you want?"

Her voice turned sharp and hysterical.

"I want you to see that Hazel doesn't deserve you!"

"Why does she get to brag in the dorm about how much you respect her?"

"Why does she get to keep you on a leash without giving you anything in return?"

"I want to see if you can still belong only to her after tonight."

At the doorway, several classmates' expressions shifted.

The guy who had insulted me the loudest hung his head in shame.

The recording didn't stop.

Ethan said: "What goes on between us is none of your business."

Chloe laughed mockingly.

"Oh yeah? What if tomorrow, everyone finds out that you couldn't handle her prude attitude and lost control with me?"

"Do you think she'll still trust you?"

"How will her parents react?"

"How will the whole campus mock her?"

After a brief pause, she said word for word:

"Ethan, break up with her."

"Be with me."

"Otherwise, I will drag both of you down to hell with me."

Those words felt like a physical slap, leaving the room in absolute, suffocating silence.

Chloe suddenly shrieked and lunged forward.

"Turn it off!"

"It's fake!"

"They edited this! They AI-generated it!"

She clawed desperately to grab the recorder.

Ethan pulled me behind him.

Chloe missed the recorder but scratched the back of my hand.

A bright red line of blood immediately welled up.

Ethan's eyes went completely cold.

"Don't touch her."

Looking at the blood on my hand, I smiled.

"Chloe, aren't you the victim?"

"Since when does a traumatized victim have this much strength to destroy evidence?"

Her lips trembled. She turned to the crowd at the door.

"Don't believe them."

"I'm a girl."

"Would I make up something like this?"

This time, nobody backed her up.

Because the recording was still playing.

Her jealousy, her threats, her schemes. Every single word was recorded, exposing her completely.

Soon, Mrs. Harrison arrived with the hotel security.

Right behind her were two police officers.

The moment Chloe saw the uniforms, her knees buckled, and she collapsed onto the floor.

"Mrs. Harrison..."

She sobbed so hard she could barely breathe.

"I didn't... I swear I didn't."

I raised my bleeding hand, my voice calm and steady.

"Officers, I want to report a crime."

"Chloe drugged my boyfriend, lured him into this room, staged a crime scene, and tried to blackmail him with false accusations."

I pointed to the mocktail sitting on the table.

"That's the drink she tried to force on Ethan. He didn't drink it. Please test it."

Chloe's face went pale.