Chapter 3: Showdown on the Quad

My roommate, Skylar, asked me to go shopping that afternoon. I was in a foul mood and needed to let off steam. Honestly, retail therapy works wonders. By the time we got back to campus, I was feeling a lot better.

The mall’s fluorescent lights and Skylar’s sarcasm worked wonders. For a minute, it felt like everything was back to normal. We splurged on lattes, tried on ridiculous sunglasses, and made fun of everything in sight. It almost felt normal—almost.

Until I saw Natalie in a white dress waiting outside the dorm.

"Madison."

She lit up when she saw me, skipping over happily. The night breeze lifted her long hair. Actually, I’d heard about her not long after I started dating Carter. The star scholarship kid the Winslow family sponsored, now living at his house, same year as us. She was small and slender, not that eye-catching. Honestly, if she didn’t always "accidentally" remind me she lived under the same roof as Carter, or nudge me to think a certain way, I wouldn’t have paid her any attention.

She stopped in front of me, biting her lip, voice timid.

"Madison, can you ask Carter to call me back? He helped me today, and I wanted to treat him to dinner, but now I can’t reach him."

Her eyes darted away, as if rehearsing innocence, but the way she clutched her phone screamed performance. Clearly, she was worried I hadn’t seen her Instagram post.

Skylar couldn’t help but scoff.

"Wow, I’ve never seen someone so shameless. Inviting someone’s boyfriend to dinner right in front of his girlfriend—impressive."

Skylar’s words cut through the tension like a knife. Natalie’s face went pale.

"I didn’t provoke you, did I? Why are you insulting me? I just wanted to say thanks—is that not allowed?"

She sounded hurt. But her eyes—yeah, there was something sharp there. Skylar was about to fire back, but I stopped her. I used to ignore Natalie because Carter handled things well. One time, I’d casually said, "Natalie seems to like you." The next day, Carter rented a fancy apartment near campus and moved out. Before that, they’d barely even spoken.

But now I knew—they were the leads, destined for a "true love" reversal. The colder he was to her now, the more he’d love her later. But now that I’d broken up with Carter, and she was picking a fight with me, I had no reason to play nice.

"Carter and I broke up. Don’t ask me about him again."

I said it as coolly as I could, but my hands still clenched around my shopping bags. She didn’t look surprised—almost like she already knew. Makes sense. He probably told her. I was annoyed and turned to leave, but she called after me.

"Really? You’re not lying? You chased him for a year before he agreed to date you—can you really let go?"

She tried to act casual. But her lips curled into a smile she couldn't quite hide. It made her face look twisted. I stopped, took a deep breath, and turned back with a slight smile.

"Yeah, I chased him. So what? You like him too—why didn’t you go after him? Didn’t want to, or just couldn’t?"

Skylar whistled cheerfully beside me. Natalie’s face turned red, then white, like a color palette.

Honestly, I almost laughed at how fast she changed colors. A crowd of students passed, glancing our way, sensing the drama brewing on the quad.

[Help, I can’t stand the supporting character acting so smug. I want to go in and slap her.]

[Let her have her moment. She’ll behave once the male lead puts her in the psych ward.]

[The male lead dotes on his wife like crazy. Everything the supporting character does to the heroine now, he’ll pay back in full later!]

Natalie seemed to think of something. Within seconds, her expression turned contemptuous.

"You think everyone’s as shameless as you? I’d never chase a guy. See? In the end, Carter still dumped you."

Her words stung. But I wasn’t about to let her see it. I squared my shoulders, chin up.

[Exactly. If she hadn’t thrown herself at him, the male lead would never have looked at her.]

[No matter what she did, the male lead never let her touch him. But our heroine just stands there and he kisses her.]

My smile dropped instantly. Fine, you asked for it.

"First, I dumped him. Second, I never thought you’d want my leftovers so badly. Need me to introduce you two?"

At that moment, Skylar tugged my sleeve—hard.

I could feel her trying to pull me away from the brewing storm, but I was too far gone to care.

"You!"

"What? He might be a hot commodity to you, but to me, he’s not even as likable as the bag I just bought. So keep your useless jealousy to yourself and stop coming at me."

Skylar was practically tearing my sleeve off. I glanced at her. Her eye was twitching. But I was too pissed to care.

"Lastly, let me wish you two a happily ever after in advance. Lock it down soon and stop messing with other people!"

After I finished, I noticed Skylar staring at the sky, like she’d lost the will to live. Natalie, though, didn’t look angry. Her lips curled into a strange smile.

Huh? Were they both stunned by my outburst?

I was still confused when Natalie suddenly switched to a fragile, wounded look. She bit her lip, looked past me, and with teary eyes, said—

"Carter, don’t be mad. Maddie didn’t mean what she said about you."

WHAT!!!

I whipped around. Carter was striding toward me, his face dark as a storm.

He looked like he’d just walked out of a courtroom, ready to hand down a verdict. The tension in the air was so thick, you could slice it with a butter knife. Great. Just what I needed.

[Hahaha, look at the supporting character’s face—flushed, then ghost-pale. She’s terrified.]

[She was so cocky a minute ago, now she’s scared stiff. Why isn’t she smiling?]

[Let’s recap her crimes: tried to force herself on the male lead, cheated on him, called him small and worthless, compared him to trash you throw away. When the male lead takes revenge, which of these is unfair?]

[Can’t wait—waiting for the male lead to put the supporting character in her place!]

For once, I didn’t plan to play nice.