The Hate Squad
1461 Words
The group chat exploded the second I sent the message.
Lisa:
Guys… I need to tell you something. And you have to promise not to laugh.
Three dots appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again.
Talia:
If this is about that arrogant devil called Betty
again, I’m already angry.
Mira:
Please tell me you didn’t run into Eli Darlington today.
I swallowed and typed.
Lisa:
I’m……marrying him.
Silence.
Then—
Jade:
LMAOOOOOOOOO STOP PLAYING.
Talia:
This isn’t funny.
Mira:
Lisa… blink twice if you’re being kidnapped.
I could almost hear their disbelief through the screen. I typed faster, my fingers shaking.
Me:
My parents. His family. Some stupid debt. It’s real.
The replies came slower this time.
Jade:
You’re serious.
Talia:
That bastard? The same one who made my first year hell?
Mira:
The same one whose friends humiliated us in the cafeteria?
My chest tightened.
That was how the Hater Squad was born.
Not because we were petty—but because we survived him.
I was walking too fast.
Coffee in one hand, phone in the other, thumbs flying across the screen.
Lisa:
I swear I’m not lying. I literally met his mother.
Talia:
Lisa stop. This sounds illegal.
I snorted, barely watching where I was going—
And then I crashed straight into a wall of muscle.
Hot coffee splashed.
A sharp gasp followed.
“Oh my God—”
I looked up.
Eli Darlington stood in front of me, his crisp white shirt now stained brown across the chest.
Time froze. The world narrowed.
His friends were there too—well-dressed, loud, already smirking.
“Are you blind?” one of them snapped. “Do you know how much that shirt costs?” another added.
My heart slammed against my ribs. “I—I’m so sorry. I wasn’t looking.”
I grabbed napkins from my bag, hands shaking, trying to dab the stain.
Someone laughed.
“Scholarship girl ruining designer clothes. Classic.”
I swallowed hard. I looked up at Eli.
He was staring at me.
Not angry.
Not amused.
Just… still.
Like he was seeing something he couldn’t acknowledge.
Like he knew exactly who I was.
I opened my mouth. “Eli—”
He cut his gaze away.
“Let’s go,” he said suddenly.
His friends paused. “What?”
“This isn’t worth my time,” he added coldly.
Shock rippled through them.
“But—”
“Now.”
They exchanged looks, confused but obedient. Then they followed him away.I stood there, frozen.
He didn’t look back.
I exhaled shakily, relief and humiliation tangling in my chest.
That was when I noticed her.
A girl slipped her arm around his as they walked. Tall. Beautiful. Perfect hair. Perfect smile. His girlfriend probably.
The one his mother pretended didn’t exist.
My chest tightened.
He leaned slightly toward her, whispering something that made her laugh.
And just like that, they disappeared into the crowd.
Leaving me standing there alone—with coffee stains on my shoes and a reality I didn’t want.
Damn.
———————————————————————-
By the time I got home, my emotions were boiling over. I slammed the wooden door so hard it shifted on its hinges—the same door that had needed fixing for months now.
My mother jolted up from the chair.
“Lisa!” she gasped. “You scared me half to death. Didn’t you hear there was a robbery down the street?” She squinted, reaching for her glasses resting on the table. “You need to be more careful.”
“I’m not doing this,” I blurted out the second she finished. “I don’t want to marry him.” Anger filling my throat.
She didn’t flinch.
She simply returned to her seat at the table, papers neatly stacked, her expression calm in a way that made my chest ache.
“You don’t get to decide that,” she said softly.
“This is my life!” I snapped.
She looked up then, really looked at me. “And it’s the only thing standing between us and nothing.”
My throat tightened. “You didn’t see him today. You don’t know what he’s like.”
“What he’s like doesn’t matter if we’re sleeping on the streets tomorrow, Li,” she replied gently, worry lining her voice.
“I know exactly why we’re doing this,” she continued, firmer now. “And you know too.”
I clenched my fists. “There has to be another way.”
“There isn’t.” She exhaled. “Your father’s debts are too much. They’ll take the house soon—the only thing we have left.”
Silence swallowed the room.
I turned away before she could see my face and ran to my room, slamming the door behind me.
I collapsed onto my bed, the tears finally breaking free.
Somewhere out there, Eli Darlington was holding another girl like I didn’t exist.
And somehow, I was expected to become his.
I drowned myself in tears till I fell asleep.
———————————————————————-
I saw myself at a beach, the ocean tides dancing softly against the shore. The sun hovered perfectly between sea and sky, painting everything in gold. The air felt warm, calm — too calm. Like the world had paused just for me.
Then I noticed I wasn’t alone.
Eli sat beside me on the sand, close enough that our shoulders almost touched. He wasn’t wearing his usual expensive suit. Just a loose white shirt, sleeves rolled up, barefoot like he belonged here. The sight of him made my chest tighten.
Why him? Even in my dreams?
I shifted away slightly. “What are you doing here?” I asked.
He turned to me slowly, those light green eyes locking onto mine. They didn’t carry their usual arrogance. If anything, they looked… curious. Intimate.
“You ran,” he said.
“I didn’t,” I snapped. “This is my dream.”
He smiled faintly. “Then why does it feel like mine too?”
I frowned, irritated. “I hate you.”
He studied me for a moment, gaze dropping briefly to my lips before returning to my eyes. “You keep saying that,” he said calmly. “But your body disagrees.”
Heat rushed to my face. “You’re delusional.”
“Am I?” He leaned back on his hands, relaxed, confident. “You wouldn’t look at me like that if you truly were.”
The ocean waves grew louder, like they were reacting to the tension between us.
I stood up, brushing sand off my jeans. “This is stupid. Even my dreams are trying to trap me with you.”
He rose too, easily closing the distance between us. “You can’t escape what’s already decided,” he said quietly.
“That’s not true,” I replied, my voice shaking. “I don’t belong to you.”
His expression darkened slightly, something unreadable flashing in his eyes. “You will.”
The word sent a strange shiver through me.
Before I could step back, his hand reached out, fingers grazing my wrist. The touch was light, but it burned. My breath hitched despite myself.
“Let go,” I whispered.
“Then wake up,” he said softly, leaning closer. I could smell him now — oud, warm skin, something dangerously familiar. “Run. Pretend you don’t feel this.”
I swallowed hard. “I don’t want you.”
His lips curved slightly. “Wanting has nothing to do with it.”
He lifted his hand to my face, thumb brushing my cheek. The tenderness of it undid me more than cruelty ever could.
“You hate me because I see you,” he murmured. “Because I remind you that your life isn’t yours anymore.”
My chest ached. “Stop,” I said, tears stinging my eyes. “Please.”
For the first time, his voice softened. “I can’t,” he whispered. “You’re already tied to me.”
He leaned in, forehead resting against mine, our breaths mingling. My lips tingled, my body betraying me in ways I hated.
Just as his lips were about to touch mine—
I jolted awake.
My heart pounded violently against my ribs, my body warm, breath uneven. The room was dark, silent, empty.
It was just a dream.
But it didn’t feel like one.
I pressed my hand to my chest, ashamed, angry, confused.
Yeah, this was definitely a nightmare.
- Writer
