Outside, my body finally gave out. I vomited into the bushes, shaking violently.
Lynda rushed toward me, panic in her eyes.
“What happened?”
“I need to go,” I whispered.
“Did you drink too much?”
I shook my head, tears spilling.
“No. I think… I think I might be pregnant.”
And just like that, everything broke.
Part II — One Week Later
Bailey’s life began to unravel the night of Chase’s party.
The rumors spread through town like a sickness—quiet at first, then impossible to escape. She had never enjoyed attention, not even when she was with Ashton. Back then, people whispered about how the local girl managed to capture the golden boy. How someone so ordinary could be enough.
It never made her admired.
It made her watched.
Girls stared at her with envy sharpened into cruelty. Adults questioned her intentions behind polite smiles. A gold digger, they said. A girl who climbed her way into high society using her body.
This time, the words were uglier.
Slut. Cheater. Ungrateful.
How dare she betray Ashton Miller, the boy everyone loved, the boy everyone trusted?
Fear clawed at her chest. Ashton was thousands of miles away, but she knew the rumors would find him. They always did. She called him every day. Again and again. His line was always busy. Her messages unread.
Ashton never ignored her like this. Never.
She needed to explain.
She needed him to hear her before the lies hardened into truth.
And before she told him about the baby.
She was terrified. Lost. The only person who knew was Lynda.
Lynda’s reaction had been explosive—shock turning quickly into anger. She accused Bailey of being reckless, of destroying everything. When she saw Bailey break down, she apologized, softened her tone, tried to comfort her. Still, the disappointment lingered.
Her only advice was abortion.
“You’re too young,” Lynda had said. “So is Ashton. This will ruin both your futures.”
For a moment, Bailey almost believed her.
But she still needed to speak to him.
When word spread that Ashton was back in town, that someone had seen his car near the old roads, Bailey didn’t hesitate. She grabbed her bike and rode straight to his family’s mansion. His car was parked on the porch.
Her heart leapt.
