"Zach! Fancy meeting you here," she says in a sugary-high pitch, completely forgetting her boyfriend is standing right next to her.
Zach doesn't acknowledge her. Not even a twitch.
His eyes stay locked on Tyler.
Tyler's lips stretch into something that's more grimace than grin. "Sup, Z. Long time, man. What's with the..." He gestures vaguely at Zach's squared shoulders and planted feet. "Whole bouncer vibe."
Zach's jaw tightens. "Maybe it's the way you're eyeballing my girlfriend like you're trying to strip her with your eyes. Fix it before I do."
"Gi—girlfriend?!"
Cici screeches. Her gaze flies from me to Zach, then back to me as though the math isn't mathing. "What?!"
Zach finally shifts—just enough to pull me snug against his side, his arm tightening around my waist.
"Yeah," he says, firm and proud. "Girlfriend. Caroline's my girlfriend."
I bite back a smug grin so hard my cheeks hurt.
The look on Cici's face is...glorious.
Pure confusion, outrage, disbelief — the whole "how is this possible" meltdown happening in real time. Her tiny hamster wheel of a brain is spinning so fast it's overheating.
Three years ago?
That expression would've gutted me.
Because she's right — Zachwasthe golden boy, the dream guy, the one everyone wanted. And I... wasn't someone anyone fought to stand next to.
But that girl is gone.
And this? This is a truth she'll never swallow:
Zach chose me. Loves me. Wants me.
Not her. Not ever her.
Cici scoffs. "You're lying! I know you, Zach. You were the captain, the most popular guy in school—you could have ANYONE." She gestures at me like she's pointing at a mismatched sock. "And she's a nobody. She never suited you. Sure, she lost weight, so what? It's not like she won't gain it all back."
Her eyes drop to the items in my cart—snacks, candy, the cornbread mix Zach insisted on—and she smirks cruelly.
"By the looks of it, pretty soon she'll be rolling around again."
I actually bark out a laugh.
Zach does not.
"What did you just say?"
His voice is low. Deadly. Vibrating with the effort it takes not to go to jail today.
Cici steps behind Tyler, suddenly tiny.
"I—I'm just telling the truth," she stammers.
"Dude, relax. Stop getting all worked up—you remember what she looked like before. You definitely downgrade—"
That's when Zach snaps.
