Kisses Beneath The Aurora

A Terrible Mistake

The weekend arrived far too quickly for Melanie's liking.

She had hoped that after everything that had happened—the breakup, the humiliation, the fight with Drexter—she would feel a little better. She didn't.

Instead, she found herself doing the one thing she knew she shouldn't.

Melanie scrolled through every picture she had ever taken with Noah on her phone.

She lingered on the first picture from their first date. Then she swiped to another where Noah was kissing her cheek while she laughed. The next photo showed them in matching hoodies, looking so happy that it made her chest ache.

With every photo she swiped through, her heart seemed to break a little more.

She knew she shouldn't be doing this. She was supposed to move on. Everyone kept telling her to move on.

But how was she supposed to move on from someone she had loved for three years?

Lying on her bed, Melanie absentmindedly ate the chocolates Susan had given her. Eventually, against her better judgment, she opened Noah's i********: account.

She scrolled, and scrolled. In every photo, Noah looked happy. While her? She wasn't even close to happiness.

Then she came across a photo of Noah and… Chloe.

Melanie's fingers froze over the screen. She tapped the picture and zoomed in.

Noah was smiling, not just smiling. Really smiling. Chloe stood close to him, too close. Her hand rested on his arm, and they looked so comfortable together that Melanie felt something sharp twist painfully inside her chest.

Had Noah ever smiled at her like that? The thought shattered her.

She zoomed in again. But all she found was Noah looking happy, and Chloe looking like she belonged beside him.

Melanie took another bite of chocolate, though she could barely taste it. She hated Chloe. The first time they had met, Chloe had been rude and dismissive. The second time, after finding out Melanie was Noah's girlfriend, she'd suddenly become sweet and friendly. And now?

Now she was posting intimate photos with Noah.

What a snake. A beautiful, manipulative snake, Melanie thought with disgust.

She tossed her phone onto the bed and groaned. This was horrible. Completely horrible. Was this really how she was going to spend her weekend?

Apparently, yes.

Just then, her phone buzzed with an incoming video call. It was Tiffany, and Melanie answered.

"Hey, Melly!" Tiffany greeted excitedly.

"Hey," Melanie replied flatly.

Tiffany's smile faded slightly. "How are you doing?"

"Good."

"What are you doing right now?"

"Nothing."

"Okayyy." Tiffany hesitated. "Melly, look... I'm sorry I took you to that party. I shouldn't have. This is all my fault."

Melanie let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah, you're right. If you hadn't forced me to go to that stupid party, things would've been different, Tiffany. Everyone on campus knows what happened during the Truth or Dare game. I literally cringe every time I remember it." She groaned and buried half her face in a pillow.

Tiffany's expression softened. “I'm sorry,” she said quietly. “And I'm sorry I haven't checked up on you after the breakup. I've just been... busy. Really busy.”

Melanie rolled her eyes. “Of course you've been busy. Busy thinking about that kiss you had with that dude. So busy that your own sister didn't even cross your mind.” She sighed. “Honestly, I'm surprised you even called.”

“Melly, I have been busy,” Tiffany defended herself. Then her face softened again. “And I'm really sorry about Noah. I really am. He's an asshole.”

For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then Tiffany grinned.

“But... can I admit something?”

Melanie already knew she wasn't going to like whatever came next.

“What?”

Tiffany squealed. “I haven't stopped thinking about that kiss! It was so hot! I swear, I get butterflies every single time I remember it!”

Melanie just stared at her before rolling her eyes.

“Yeah, whatever. I'm not interested in hearing details about your kiss. Especially not when the guy you kissed is an asshole.”

Tiffany burst into giggles.

A lot had happened in the few days since Melanie had arrived at Crestmoor Academy. The breakup, the humiliation, the fight in the dining hall, and, unfortunately, Drexter Grayson.

She still couldn't understand what had possessed her to slap him.

Then again… He deserved it, absolutely deserved it.

If he didn't want to get slapped, maybe he should have thought twice before ruining her relationship.

"But, hey, Melly," Tiffany said gently, pulling her out of her thoughts. "You need to cheer up. Think about it. If I hadn't forced you to go to that party, you wouldn't have met Noah. So, technically, every bad thing has some good in it."

Melanie didn't smile. "Whatever, Tiffany."

But then she paused. Maybe Tiffany had a point. If she hadn't gone to the party, would Noah ever have told her about his stepbrother?

She wasn't sure.

"Tiffany, I found out something."

Tiffany immediately brightened. “Really? What?”

“Drexter. The guy you kissed.”

“Yeah?”

“He's Noah's stepbrother.”

“What?!” Tiffany's jaw dropped.

Melanie nodded and took another bite of chocolate.

“I know. I was shocked too.”

Then, to Melanie's horror, Tiffany squealed.

“Oh my gosh! That's actually perfect!”

Melanie blinked. “What?”

“You and Noah. Me and Drexter. The twin sisters dating the stepbrothers!” Tiffany clapped excitedly. “We're going to be such a cute family!”

Melanie fought the overwhelming urge to roll her eyes so hard that they permanently stayed at the back of her head.

Her sister wasn't just a hopeless romantic. She was completely delusional.

"Tiffany, you've got to be kidding me," she muttered with a sigh.

Before Tiffany could respond, a familiar voice echoed from somewhere off-screen.

"Tiffany! Hurry up! We've been waiting forever!"

Tiffany glanced over her shoulder and grinned sheepishly.

"Oops. That's Susan," she said before turning back to the screen. "Anyway, Melly, I should probably hang up now. I wish we could talk more, but the girls and I are shopping. And after shopping, we're going to the cinema. It's girls' time!"

"Who are you talking to?" Susan's voice rang out.

"Melanie," Tiffany answered.

Susan immediately squealed. A second later, her face popped into the video call, making Melanie laugh despite her bad mood.

"Heyyy, cupcake! How are you doing?" Susan asked excitedly.

"I'm good," Melanie replied with a small smile.

"Tiffany!" another voice called out. "Come on already!"

Tiffany laughed. "Okay, okay! Gotta go!"

"Byeeeeee!" Susan waved enthusiastically. Then the call ended.

For a few moments, Melanie simply stared at the blank screen before opening Noah's i********: again. She hated herself for doing it.

Then, the dorm room door swung open.

"Hey!" Beth greeted as she walked in. She tossed her bag onto her bed, flopped down onto the mattress, and began slipping off her heels.

"Hey," Melanie replied.

Beth frowned almost immediately. "Why are you eating chocolates?" she asked. Then she looked closer at Melanie's face. "Girl, why do you look so sad? You don't look like yourself."

Melanie quickly looked away.

“Might telling me what happened to ya?”

She let out a long breath and placed her phone on the bedside table.

“My boyfriend broke up with me.”

“Yikes. That's tragic,” Beth winced.

“Yeah,” Melanie muttered with a sniffle. “Totally.”

Beth stood up and wandered over to her wardrobe.

"Forget that asshole. What's his name anyway?" she asked casually while searching through her clothes.

"Noah. Noah Grayson."

Beth froze. Slowly, she turned around.

"Wait. Noah Grayson?" she asked.

Melanie nodded.

"Hold on. You're the girl Noah dumped?"

Another nod.

Beth's eyes widened. "The girl from the Truth or Dare game?"

Melanie nodded again.

"And the girl who slapped Drexter Grayson?"

Melanie groaned.

"Wait. You're also the girl who fought Charlotte? As in Charlotte from the Savage Barbies?”

"Yes," Melanie said miserably. "I'm the girl."

For a second, Beth simply stared at her.

"Wow," she finally said. "Girl, you're really popular." A grin spread across her face. "But not in a good way."

Melanie groaned even louder.

"Geez, girl. You seriously need to cheer up."

"It's not that easy," Melanie murmured. "I love Noah so much. We've been together for three years. I can't imagine my life without him."

Beth's expression softened. "Girl, I know it hurts. But you'll get over him. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But you will."

Melanie shook her head. "I don't think so, Beth." She reached for another chocolate. "And what's breaking me even more is that Noah is living his life. I don't even know if he's hurting the way I'm hurting."

“I checked his i********: just now, and he was out with this girl. They took all these cute pictures together. They looked like a couple,” she sighed as she buried her face in her pillow and let out a frustrated groan.

Beth walked over and sat beside her.

"Melanie, you need to move on. Noah already has. And honestly? He's a jerk."

Melanie peeked up at her.

"You can't spend your entire weekend lying in bed, crying, eating chocolates, and stalking your ex's Instagram."

Melanie opened her mouth to protest, but Beth held up a hand.

"Nope. I have an idea."

Melanie blinked in confusion.

"I know the perfect place to cheer you up. Wanna come?"

Melanie looked down at the half-empty box of chocolates beside her. Beth was right. She couldn't spend the entire weekend crying over Noah and stalking his i********:.

Maybe getting out for a few hours wasn't such a bad idea.

"Yeah," she finally said. "I'm in.”

Truthfully, Melanie would have agreed to almost anything if it meant not thinking about Noah for even a few minutes.

Beth grinned excitedly.

* * * * * *

An hour later, Melanie discovered she had made a terrible mistake.

The moment she arrived at the place Beth had brought her to, her jaw dropped and her eyes widened so much she thought they would pop out of their sockets.

A club was the absolute last place Melanie had expected Beth to bring her.