She turns for the door, and panic spikes through me. Instinct takes over—I catch her wrist and spin her back around.
"I didn't lie." My voice comes out harsher than I meant. "I swear I didn't."
She's still staring daggers at me, but I don't flinch. "What you saw earlier was me comforting a friend. I told you—the only reason Taylor even agreed to have this fake thing is to keep her ex off her back."
Caroline's eyes flick away, like she doesn't even want to look at me.
I push on. "He's been stalking her for months. He's violent. And today..." I swallow hard. "Today he cornered her. Jumped her. Assaulted her."
That gets her. Her head snaps back to me, eyes wide.
"What? Assaulted?"
I nod grimly. "Yeah. He didn't get further because some people came down the hall and spooked him, but I'm sure he would've. She barely managed to elbow him and run. And she came straight to me—because I'm the only one who knew what she's been dealing with."
Her gaze locks onto mine now, sharp and searching, like she's peeling me apart to find the truth. I hold steady, praying she can see I'm not making this up.
"She was distraught, Caroline. Shaking, crying. I was just trying to calm her down, and then I was gonna drive her to Campus Safety to file the report. That's what you saw. Nothing else."
Her hand flies to her mouth, horror flashing across her face. "Oh my God... that's terrible."
"I know," I say quietly. "Her situation's fucked up. Way more than people realize."
Her hand drops from her mouth, and then she shoots me a look like I've just sprouted three heads.
"Then why are you here?" she demands.
"Huh?"
"You just said you were going to drive her to Campus Safety. So why are you standing here instead of helping her?" Her stance shifts in an instant—hands on her hips now, glowering at me like I'm the world's dumbest human.
And God help me, I almost laugh.
I really try to bite it back, but... nope. She's too damn cute. One second she's looking like she's jealous out of her mind, the next she's pissed that I chose her over Taylor.
I swear, this girl could tell me to jump off a bridge and I'd be halfway down before realizing she didn't mean it.
"She told me to come here," I explain, still fighting a grin. "Said you'd be overthinking it already, and... well, turns out she was right."
Caroline's eyes narrow.
I lean in a little, lowering my voice. "And honestly? You're kind of adorable pretending you weren't jealous two minutes ago."
Her mouth falls open, indignant. "I wasn't."
"Right..." I drawl.
"I wasn't."
I smirk, shameless. "If you say so."
I let the smirk linger for a beat, then soften it, tipping my head. "So... do you believe me now? That there's nothing between me and Taylor. That it's just friendship."
She hesitates, lips pressing together, eyes flicking away like she's weighing whether to trust me or not. For a second, I think she's about to shoot me down.
But then—finally—she gives the smallest nod.
And just like that, the pressure in my chest eases. One second I was bracing for a nuclear fallout, the next it's like someone hit the big reddisarmbutton.
