Echoes of Betrayal: Rewriting My Destiny Chapter 2

After returning the luxury goods, I casually opened Instagram. I immediately saw Mia’s new post. She was wearing a white princess dress, holding a massive bouquet, and surrounded by gifts, looking like absolute royalty.

And my boyfriend, Caleb, was standing right next to her. He was leaning in toward her slightly. To anyone else, at first glance, they looked exactly like a couple.

"Absolute trash!"

I met Mia back in middle school. She came from an ordinary background. While the rest of us were still in our awkward, unpolished phases, she was delicate, fair, and soft-spoken. She captured the hearts of countless teenage boys.

But with admiration comes envy. One day after school, she was cornered in an alley by a group of mean girls because the guy their leader liked had a crush on Mia.

I was sickly as a kid, so my parents enrolled me in martial arts to build my strength. I only meant to get some exercise, but it turned out I was a natural. Even at a young age, I rarely lost a spar.

Seeing Mia getting bullied, I jumped in and chased the mean girls off with a few quick moves.

Before running away, they yelled at me, "Harper Hayes, you'll pay for this!"

I put my hands on my hips and yelled back, "Bring it on! My brother is Asher Sterling from the high school section!"

I turned around and pulled a tearful, trembling Mia up from the ground.

After that, despite our completely opposite personalities, we became best friends.

Later, she asked me why my brother and I had different last names.

I chewed on my yogurt straw, looking up at Asher’s photo at the top of the school’s honor roll, unsure how to explain that Asher lived with us because his parents had passed away.

Seeing my hesitation, Mia gave me a playful smile.

"I won't pry into rich family secrets. But," she paused, pointing at Asher’s photo, "you wouldn't mind if I tried to date your brother, right?"