The Influencer Chapter 1

My fiancé and I had been planning a trip to Charleston for months. It was where we'd met, where we'd fallen in love. It was where he was going to propose.

I spent all morning getting ready, feeling a sweet, giddy anticipation. I never expected to be stopped halfway to our meeting spot by a girl with a phone shoved in my face.

She gave me a sugary smile. "Hi there! So sorry to bother you. Could I take a few pictures of you?"

Her phone was held high, angled down at a steep forty-five degrees, aimed directly at my chest. Knowing what the day held, I’d chosen a V-neck sundress. From that angle, I was definitely exposed.

I instinctively covered my chest and took a step back, frowning. "Sorry, my friend is waiting for me."

Her smile faltered, a flicker of annoyance in her eyes. She didn't lower the phone. Instead, she moved closer.

"It'll only take a minute. I have a pretty big following on TikTok. You can check out my page if you want." She puffed out her chest, her tone dripping with condescension. "Opportunities like this don't come around every day for regular people. I'll even tag your account in the comments. With my view count, I could probably get you a few sugar daddies, no problem."

She pulled out a second phone and shoved it in my face. 2.1 million followers. The username looked vaguely familiar, but I didn't spend much time on that side of TikTok. The video thumbnails were all the same: cleavage shots, borderline content pushing the platform’s guidelines.

Her attitude was grating, as if she were bestowing some great honor upon me. I was annoyed, but I didn't want a confrontation.

"I'm sorry, I really don't have time," I said, my voice firm but polite. "And I'm not interested in being famous. But thank you."

Being rejected again clearly irritated her. Her face soured, but at least she finally backed off. I let out a breath and hurried away. I could feel her glaring at my back. After a moment, I realized she was following me, pretending to film the scenery.

I tried to ignore her. Maybe I'd seen her on my 'For You' page once. This was a popular tourist spot; I couldn't exactly tell her to leave. She wouldn't dare try to force me to take pictures in public, right? I pushed the unsettling encounter from my mind.