I still couldn’t quite piece together what had happened.
Everett pointed to a screw on my glasses
Right in the center of it was a hidden micro–camera. It was so tiny, like a needle’s eye. You’d never notice it if you didn’t look closely. Everett carefully unscrewed it and pulled out a mess of wiring.
I stared, stunned.
I had never seen anything like this before.
Everett’s world travels had shown him a lot, and he explained that such micro–cameras usually ca
top–secret situations. This one could not only monitor but also track my location.
came at a high price and were used mostly in
He asked me if I’d crossed someone lately, wondering why anyone would bother setting up something like this on me
I frowned, thinking back to a few weeks ago. I remembered an incident from about a month ago.
That day, I was on my way to the university cafeteria when a friend of Kaysen’s accidentally hit my glasses with a basketball, breaking them. Since he was my boyfriend’s friend, I didn’t make a fuss about it. Kaysen assured me over and over that he’d get them fixed for me, saying that if he couldn’t, he’d buy me a new pair.
At the time, I hadn’t thought much of it.
Now I realized that was likely when the camera was installed.
And that explained how Frieda had always known my designs so quickly.
Before, I’d even wondered if she’d hypnotized me somehow.
But it turned out Kayson had planned all this from the start.
Using an accusation of plagiarism would both destroy me and win Frieda over
I still didn’t understand. If Kaysen liked Frieda, why didn’t he just break up with me and go
o after her?
Ithought, “Why does he have to wreck me just to be with her? Is he someone who enjoys hurting others? Or do they just like sneaking around?” The more I thought about it the more disgusted I felt.
Now that I knew the truth, a plan for revenge started forming in my mind.
Originally, I had planned to book a flight straight home, but Everett told me that Lucian Bentley had come along on this trip, too.
My eyes lit up at the mention of Lucian’s name.
Then, feeling a bit shy, I looked away.
He was my teenage crush, though he’d only ever seen me as a kid
L
Still the chance to see him again made me happy
With a bounce in my step. I followed Everett back to his place.
To my surprise, when I opened the door, I found Kaysen standing there.
Next to him was the last person I wanted to see, Frieda. She clung to Kaysen’s arm, looking every bit the picture of his adoring getfriend
I couldn’t resist a jab. “So, you two finally made it official?”
At my words, Frieda instantly let go of his arm and put on a hurt expression.
him“.
“Maureen, it’s not what you think. Kaysen didn’t want to bring me here. I insisted on coming to clear things up with you in person. Don’t be mad at
rolled my eyes.
Kaysen scoffed, Frieda, you don’t need to explain yourself to her. Someone as ungrateful as her wouldn’t understand your kindness”
Everett exchanged a look with Lucian, who shrugged, as confused as we were.
Actually, it didn’t surprise me that they’d found me. The camera had a tracker. And I figured they’d hit a wall with something and, unable to reach me, came to find me in person.
With that thought, an idea popped into my mind, and I decided to mess with them.
I put on a dreamy smile and looped my arm through Lucian’s. Lucian, it’s been so long! Did you miss me?”
I continued, “I came all the way from Noxville just to see you. Now I can finally say my dream came true.”
I
My voice was so sugary–sweet that I felt embarrassed. I silently hoped Lucian would play along.
He pulled me closer, smiling. Really? I’m honored”
I froze, and so did everyone else in the room
Kaysen snapped out of it first. He yanked me away from Lucian, his face twisted with anger. “Maureen, what are you doing? You break up with me, and now you’re with him? Were you two sneaking around behind my back this whole time?”
gave a cold laugh. “Why should I explain myself to you? What’s it to you anyway? You’re one to talk. You’ve been sneaking around with Frieda this whole time. Don’t think I didn’t notice. Frieda’s been posting secret pictures with you on Twitter. Don’t act clueless. You’ve been enjoying having two girls fawning over you?
Kaysen was left speechless.
Frieda quickly moved in front of him, a few fake tears trickling down her cheeks. She sniffed, “Maureen, this is all my fault. I was the one who went after Kaysen. Don’t blame him. I thought that if I could just clear up the plagiarism misunderstanding, it would be fine. But I never imagined you’d drop out of the contest, burn your studio, and come all the way out here. I insisted on coming so I could apologize to you. Please, just forgive me, alright? The contest has already been postponed. If you go back, you can still compete. If you just don’t copy my work again, I’m sure everyone will forgive you
Seeing my unimpressed face, Kaysen joined in to support her.
“Maureen, you should be grateful. Frieda came all the way here just to find you. What else do you want? Do
o you want? Don’t push it.”
Seeing how rude he was, Everett and Lucian moved in, ready to knock some sense into Kaysen
I quickly held them back,
By now, I had the perfect revenge plan in mind.
I thought, “if Frieda loves copying so much, I’ll let her have it.”
Thinking I was trying to protect him, Kaysen smirked smugly.
I gave a cold smile and said, “Alright, I’ll come back to the contest, but on one condition
Frieda’s eyes lit up. “What condition?”
I smirked. “I want you to post a message on your social media, making a bet with me. This time, whoever places lower has to streak across the university field.
Frieda and Kaysen, unaware that I’d found out about the camera, thought they had the contest in the bag, Confidently, they agreed to my terms. And all I had to do was let things play out exactly as I planned.
