“That’s not the point!” She pressed her hands to her face. Took a breath. Looked at me like she didn’t recognize me. “What were you thinking?”
“I was thinking Alex needed help.”
Why did I say that? Too late.
“Alex needed help.” She repeated it slowly. “So you risked everything. Your scholarship. Your spot on the team. Your entire future. For him.”
“It wasn’t just for him. The video was going to ruin me too. You said it yourself, someone was blackmailing us.”
“Then you go to the police, Liam!” Her eyes were bright with anger now. With hurt. “You don’t do something illegal and dangerous. You didn’t tell me. You lied to my face. You said it was a group project.”
Guilt twisted in my gut. “I couldn’t tell you before. It was too risky—”
“For who? For you? Or for Alex?”
“For everyone. If you knew, it would’ve put you in a bad position—”
“Don’t.” She held up her hand. “Don’t act like you were protecting me. You were protecting yourself. You didn’t want me to talk you out of it. You didn’t want me to tell you how stupid and reckless it was.”
She wasn’t wrong.
“Em—”
“And the way you looked at him.” Her voice dropped. Quieter now but somehow worse. “When he was leaving. The way you were standing in the hallway before I got here. That wasn’t just... helping someone with a video.”
My chest tightened.
Tell her. Just fucking tell her.
But I couldn’t. The words stuck in my throat.
“We were just—”
“Just what?” She searched my face. “Because from where I’m standing, you just told me you committed a crime for this guy. You brought Noah into it. You risked everything you’ve worked for. And you lied to me about it.”
“I’m sorry—“
“Are you?” Her voice cracked. “Because it doesn’t feel like you’re sorry. It feels like you’re sorry you got caught.”
The words hit me hard… truth.
We stood there in the hallway. Someone laughed down the hall. A door slammed. Normal sounds. But nothing felt normal.
“I’ve felt you pulling away for weeks,” Emily said finally. Her voice was quieter now. Tired. “And I kept telling myself I was imagining it. That you were just stressed about rowing or classes or whatever. But tonight...”
She shook her head.
“Tonight you showed me exactly where your priorities are. And it’s not with me. It’s with him. With Alex. With whatever this is that you won’t talk to me about.”
“That's not true. I needed to deal with this. This was risky but it was the right thing to do.”
“You won’t let me in. You never let me in. Not about anything real. And now you’re breaking into schools and lying to me and I don’t—” Her voice caught. “I don’t even know who you are right now.”
You don’t. Because I just cheated on you and I can’t even say it.
“Em, please—”
“I need space.” She turned toward the stairs. “I need to think.”
