Chapter 3

In the end, they forced Julian to stay behind.

Once I was back in my room, I opened my phone, went to the student portal, and submitted my application for the study abroad program.

At eight, my dad came home and made dinner.

Julian knocked on my door to call me out.

Seeing that I was ignoring him, he sighed.

"Are you still mad at Sasha? You know how she is."

"She might be loud and dramatic, but she really cares about you."

During our junior year of high school, Sasha transferred to our school because of her parents' jobs.

On her very first exam, she blew everyone away, taking my spot in the top three alongside Ethan and Julian.

A classmate who disliked me sneered in my ear.

"Some people act so smug just because they have two guys protecting them. Now look at you. You can't even hold onto third place."

Sasha happened to walk by and heard it. She immediately started a physical fight with the girl.

Both of their parents were called in.

But I was drawn to Sasha's fiercely loyal, no-nonsense personality, and we became best friends.

From then on, our trio became a squad of four.

We even ended up going to the same college.

Until I slowly realized...

I was being pushed out of their world.

Julian pulled the blanket off my head.

"Alright, get up and eat."

My stomach rumbled.

Believing that I shouldn't punish my stomach just because I was upset, I got up to wash my hands and eat.

At the table, Julian casually mentioned, "A new amusement park just opened in town. It has a massive Ferris wheel."

"Sasha invited us to go tomorrow."

I was about to decline when my dad spoke up.

"My coworkers were talking about that place. You should go, Chloe."

"I remember how much you loved Ferris wheels when you saw them on TV as a kid. It's a shame we never had one nearby. I was always too busy with work to take you out of town."

Since my dad put it that way, I swallowed my refusal.

After dinner, our group chat was blowing up.

Sasha was agonizing over what to wear for photos.

She posted several pictures of different outfits.

Julian and Ethan couldn't agree. They had spammed over a hundred messages arguing about which was better.

Finally, Sasha sent an angry voice note.

"Who asked you two? I posted those for Chloe."

Then she added in a softer tone, "Chloe, you're not still mad, right? I promise I'll never do it again."

Ethan replied instantly on her behalf.

"Don't worry, Chloe isn't that petty."

"You helped her with her directional issues. She should be thanking you."

"Right, Chloe?"

Sasha believed him. She kept messaging me to pick the best dress.

Ethan nudged me in the chat. "Don't you think the blue dress suits Sasha perfectly? Even the store clerk praised her when she tried it on."

Julian, sitting next to me on the couch, muttered, "The clerk was just being polite. Ethan is such an idiot to believe them."

"That blue dress makes Sasha look washed out. The yellow one I picked is way better."

"She loved it when she tried it on, too."

"Chloe, we live under the same roof. You have to back me up."

I paused, then asked, "You guys bought those dresses in person?"

"When? Why didn't I know about this?"

Julian was busy replying to Sasha. Without looking up, he said, "At the mall, on the third floor. You were there too. How did you forget so quickly?"