And we were ready to go scorched earth. Jade was Leo’s girl but somewhere along the way she kinda became mine too. Not in the hate/love thing they had but she meant something. She belonged. She was more one of us than any girl here.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
JADE
The slime wasin my hair.
In my scalp.
In my soul.
My aunt did her best. Oils. Dish soap. Even vodka. But it was no use.
The moment Shani pulled a clump of half-matted, lemon-glued curls from my scalp, I stood up.
“Cut it off,” I said.
“What?” she blinked.
“All of it.”
“Jade…”
“I’m not asking.”
Her eyes searched mine. And what she saw must’ve silenced the protest, because she nodded slowly, grabbed the scissors, and wrapped a towel around my shoulders.
No one spoke.
Each snip was a war drum.
Each curl hitting the tile a piece of the old me dying.
When she was done, I stared into the mirror. My hair wasgone. Just jagged edges around my ears, shorter in the back. Punk rock and uneven. Raw. But somehow… right.
“I look like I survived something,” I said softly.
“Because you did.”
I turned away from the mirror, walked to my phone, and held it in my palm.
Twenty-three missed calls.
Mostly from unknown numbers. A few from Coach Roman. One from a blocked line that made my stomach twist.
But the first one that came in as I stared at the screen… was fromTristan Gold.
I answered.
“You okay?” he asked, no teasing in his voice for once.
“Define okay.”
He sighed. “Look—I’m handling it. Ohio? By the time I’m done, they’ll name the damn school after you.”
A weak laugh escaped me. “Thanks.”
“I’m serious. My dad’s legal team is already poking holes in the NDA. We’ll rip their legacy down brick by brick.”
