Chapter 2
1785 Words
Edward felt his world fall apart. His dreams, all the late nights and sacrifices to build a future—they were gone. His chest tightened, making it hard to breathe, and then anger surged, sharp and hot, wrapping around his heart until it burned.
"I caught you going beyond cheating," he spat, his voice raw and trembling, the frown etching his face deep enough to melt ice. "And that's the only thing you have to say?"
Sylvara didn’t flinch—no sign of guilt, no hint of regret. She rose slowly from Zayden's lap with cruel precision, her movements fluid and unhurried. Her half-n***d form gleamed under the strobe lights, the tiny black top clinging desperately to her curves, her painted-on skirt hiked up just enough to tease the f*******n. She didn't bother covering herself, letting the exposure hang there like a challenge.
"So?" she drawled, her voice sharp as silk, eyes narrowing with that same cold edge. "Should I be scared because the boy I played with caught me with the one I really love?”
Her words cut into Edward like jagged steel, opening wounds he didn’t even know were there. That was all he was to her—a toy, a distraction, someone to pass the time until the real prize came along. The truth hit him like a freight train, leaving him reeling in the ruins of his own foolishness.
Zayden stepped forward, his presence suffocating. The sharp, exotic scent of his expensive cologne filled the air like bottled arrogance. A slow, cruel smile spread across his face as he looked Edward up and down, like he was nothing more than a dirty napkin tossed aside.
“Relax, Edward,” he hissed, his voice dripping with amusement and entitlement.
“I invited you here. I wanted you to see this. I wanted you to know your place—far below us.”
Sylvara didn’t even look embarrassed. Her flushed cheeks weren’t shameful—they were the glow of their secret tryst. Bold and breathless, she clung to Zayden like he was her lifeline, fingers tracing lazy patterns on his chest, as if Edward didn’t even exist.
“Why’d you do that, baby?” she purred, turning to Zayden with a teasing pout that drove the knife deeper into Edward’s gut. “You know he’s going to ruin our fun now.”
Zayden pressed a possessive kiss to her lips, drawing a slow, deliberate breath.
“It’s better this way,” he said, voice low and dangerous. “So he knows his place.”
Like a trained shadow, Sylvara leaned into him, letting out a moan that cut through Edward like a blade. She didn’t even bother hiding her contemptuous gaze, glancing at Edward as if he were the one intruding.
“You’re still standing here?” she said, frowning with pure annoyance. “You’re embarrassing yourself again.”
Edward’s knees threatened to buckle.
“Sylvara, after everything?” he whispered, disbelief choking him.
She rolled her eyes so hard it was almost painful, like she was trying to push them to the back of her skull.
“What exactly have you done?” she snapped. “Your cheap gifts? Your half-baked efforts? All your ‘hard work’ is garbage, Edward. Trash.”
She raised her hand, letting the glittering diamond ring catch the light.
“This is what Zayden got me for my birthday. Compared to… what was it again? That thrift-store dress and your sad little dinner?” Each word landed like a knife in Edward’s chest.
Zayden leaned in, his laugh sharp and grating, like glass scraping over stone.
“You really thought she belonged to you?” he sneered. “You? A scholarship student? You’re not even a warm-up. You’re background noise.”
The words hit Edward like ice water. His chest tightened painfully.
“Those words… you loved me… were lies too?” he asked, voice barely audible.
Her laughter exploded across the room, cruel and unrestrained.
“Love?” she mocked. “Edward, I was using you. Watching you scramble, trying to impress me—it was fun. You obeyed like a little pet, didn’t you?”
Edward stumbled back, breath catching in his throat.
The billionaire heir draped an arm over Sylvara’s shoulder, pulling her close while his eyes stayed locked on Edward.
“She told you she was celibate, right?” he murmured, calm and dangerous.
“She said she couldn’t stand you,” Kayden said, voice dripping with amusement. “Every time you tried to impress her, she thought you were pathetic.”
Sylvara grinned, her smirk sharp as a knife.
“And meanwhile?” Kayden leaned in, circling Edward like a wolf. “We’ve been running the city nights, hitting the clubs, living like kings. You weren’t even in the picture.”
Zayden wasn’t finished.
He stepped closer, invading Edward’s space, enjoying the silence that had swallowed him whole.
“Remember those nights she said she was too tired to call you?” Zayden asked casually.
Edward didn’t answer.
Zayden’s smile widened.
“That was me.”
The words dropped like stones.
“Remember when her blouse tore and she said she slipped on campus stairs?”
He leaned in slightly.
“Also me.”
Edward’s fingers twitched at his sides.
“You thought she was in the library studying?” Zayden tapped Sylvara's waist possessively, his fingers lingering on the curve of her hip, drawing her closer like a prized possession.
“She was with me. She was in my backseat, fogging up the windows of my Lambo, begging for more.”
Sylvara laughed softly, like it was harmless gossip. She pressed against Zayden, her half-n***d body glowing under the strobe lights, unashamed and utterly intoxicating.
Edward's vision blurred, hot tears stinging at the edges. “What… what is this?” he asked, his voice barely holding together.
Zayden stepped even closer, invading Edward's space until their faces were inches apart, lowering his voice to a whisper that slithered like poison into his veins. ""And do you know why I called for your service tonight? Why I made damn sure you were working tables here, of all places?"
Edward stared at him, his breath coming in shaky gasps.
"Because tonight's a gangbang. My guys. Me. And you—you'd be standing here like an unpaid extra, watching it all unfold. Pathetic.”
“Behind them, Zayden's entourage, all trust-fund smirks and designer threads erupted in laughter, clinking their crystal glasses in a mocking toast, their eyes raking over Edward like he was yesterday's trash.
Edward felt every sound hit him like a physical blow.
Sylvara slipped her arms around Zayden's neck, her body molding to his with effortless sensuality. "Can we go now? I'm getting impatient," she purred, her voice husky with anticipation, fingers trailing down his chest.
"Hold on, s**t," Zayden muttered, not even glancing her way, his focus locked on Edward. He smirked, that poisonous curve of his lips deepening. "Take her to the master suite," he ordered one of his friends, a lanky guy with a wolfish grin and a Rolex that could buy Edward's life ten times over. "She's already leaking, don't keep her waiting.”
"Gladly," the friend replied, his grin splitting wide as he grabbed Sylvara's waist, his hand sliding possessively over her a*s. She didn't resist, didn't protest—just leaned into him with a sultry sigh, her hips swaying as they turned away.
She didn't even look back at Edward, not a single glance of pity or regret. The sound of her heels clicking away on the marble floor echoed like gunshots in his chest.
Zayden clapped his hands slowly, leaning back with that lazy, infuriating smirk.
“Oh,” he said casually, tilting his head toward Edward, “and tell your sister to start wearing longer skirts. Cute girl. Might add her to my weekend schedule.”
That was it.
Something inside Edward shattered completely.
He didn’t think.
He lunged.
Bang!
His fist connected with Zayden's jaw in a thunderous c***k, the impact reverberating through Edward's arm like a shockwave.
The rich boy spun like a top, crashing to the floor in a heap of tailored silk and spilled champagne. Gasps erupted across the hallway, the party's chaotic symphony stuttering into stunned silence for a heartbeat. Blood splattered across the floor, as Zayden's lip split open like overripe fruit.
Zayden touched his jaw, stunned. Blood dripped from his lip.
“You…” he spat, voice low and dangerous, “you bastard.”
Before Edward could process, guards descended on him like wolves. They grabbed his shoulders, pulling him back as he struggled, swinging fists, screaming for release.
Sylvara reappeared in the hallway, half-dressed, her eyes flashing between concern and fury.
“Zayden! Your face—what happened?”
Zayden wiped the blood from his lip with slow, deliberate movements. His eyes, cold and deadly, snapped toward Edward.
Sylvara’s voice hissed, sharp as a blade.
“You can’t let him walk. End him, Zayden. Don’t let him go scot-free.”
Zayden’s grin was chilling.
“I wasn’t planning to,” he said quietly. “I’ll ruin him… slowly.”
The guards dragged Edward through the back exit like a discarded bag. The pavement hit hard. Pain exploded across his palms. The night air bit at his skin. Every heartbeat felt like fire.
He collapsed there, chest heaving, muscles trembling. Breath refused to settle.
Everything felt numb.
The hours of work, the nights he went without food, the scholarship he risked, the dreams he built—all of it lay in ruins. And Sylvara… laughing at him the whole time.
He tried to steady himself, tried to breathe like a man, tried to feel the fire he used to carry. But pain smothered every thought. His vision blurred.
Then he heard it.
The sound of movement behind him.
Low, deliberate, dangerous.
His muscles tensed automatically.
“Not today!” he croaked, waving a hand weakly, more like a drunk than a fighter.
Masked figures emerged from the shadows. Knuckles cracked. Pipes clanged against shoulders and knees.
Edward’s heart jumped into his throat. Adrenaline surged. He scrambled to his feet.
But it was already too late.
They surrounded him on all sides.
The tallest man stepped forward. His presence was heavy, suffocating, like the air itself had frozen.
“Heading somewhere?” he asked, his voice calm, but every word carried the weight of threat.
"Boss says you should've stayed a quiet dog," the tallest thug drawled, his voice a low rumble that echoed off the alley walls like distant thunder. He cracked his knuckles again. "Now you're gonna pay for touching him with interest."
- Writer
