I'm Evelyn Watson, and just like every other day, my morning starts exactly the same way.
I wake up earlier than I want to, spend way too much time trying to make my hair look decent, and completely forget about breakfast because somehow I'm always running late.
You'd think after sixteen years of living, I would have learned how to manage my time better.
Apparently not.
I was halfway through doing my makeup when I looked at the time on my phone and immediately froze.
8:03.
"You're kidding me."
The first bus I usually took was already gone.
There was no point in rushing anymore, so I finished getting ready as quickly as possible, tied my hair into a simple low ponytail, grabbed some snacks from the kitchen because my mom would definitely complain if she found out I skipped breakfast again, and left the house.
The second I arrived at the bus stop, I immediately regretted it.
Because there they were.
The people I had spent three years trying to forget.
Mason.
Lucy.
And the same group of people who somehow turned my entire hometown against me when I was barely thirteen years old.
Mason was the person who made middle school feel like a nightmare. He wasn't the only reason everything went wrong, but he was definitely one of the biggest ones.
Then there was Lucy.
My ex-best friend.
The person I trusted the most.
The person who knew everything about me.
Funny how the people who know you the best are sometimes the ones who know exactly where to hurt you.
When Lucy first came here from Mexico, I was the first person who talked to her. I was the one who sat next to her, included her, and made sure she didn't feel alone.
She was my best friend.
Or at least, I thought she was.
Looking back now, I realize she never wanted me to have anyone else.
She slowly pushed everyone away from me until she was the only person I had, and then when I needed her the most, she decided to destroy the one thing I had left.
My reputation.
A few rumors became a hundred.
A hundred became everyone believing they knew who I was.
And suddenly, the quiet girl who never bothered anyone became the villain of the entire town.
I hated them.
All of them.
But then my eyes landed on someone standing next to Mason.
Jake Willer.
The complete opposite of Mason.
Jake was probably the most well-known person in our small village. He was rich, tall, around 6'1", with ginger hair and the kind of smile that made people naturally trust him.
He was polite.
He was calm.
He had never personally done anything to hurt me.
