Hidden In The Chat

Invisible 😔

CHAPTER ONE – Invisible

Fiona’s POV

Mornings were the worst.

Not because of the early wake-up call or the long walk to school, but because she had to step into a world where she didn’t exist. Not really. Not in the way that mattered.

Fiona Cole tugged on the sleeves of her worn-out grey sweater, fingers brushing over the frayed cuffs as she stood quietly in front of her locker. Her glasses slipped a little down her nose, but she ignored it. Her life was a cycle of being overlooked, shoved aside, and muted. She had perfected the art of disappearing.

Seventeen years old and already exhausted.

She wasn’t ugly, just… ignored. Tall and slim, with soft brown skin and a face that always looked a little too serious for a teenager. Her glasses only made her look more withdrawn—like she was hiding behind them. Which she was.

She had no one. No parents. No friends. No safe place to land.

Her fingers hovered over the last book she needed for class when she heard it—the one voice she couldn’t escape.

“Well, well, look who crawled out of the charity bin this morning,” Melissa drawled, leaning against the locker beside hers.

Fiona tensed.

Melissa, her cousin, wore a smirk as sharp as her glittery acrylic nails. She was the school's crowned queen: beautiful, light-skinned, perfect edges, and dressed in designer clothes that Aunt Clara claimed were “gifts” but were clearly bought with the money meant for Fiona’s future.

Behind Melissa stood two of her cheerleader clones, giggling like backup dancers waiting for their cue.

Fiona didn’t respond. She never did. Talking back only made things worse.

“Still pretending to be human?” Melissa’s tone was sugary-sweet. “Honestly, Fiona, if I had your life, I’d delete myself.”

Fiona calmly shut her locker and turned away, clutching her books like a lifeline.

As she walked past, a sharp tug pulled her sweater back.

The books in her hand slipped and crashed to the floor.

“Oh no!” Melissa gasped mockingly. “Clumsy me.”

Laughter erupted around her. A few students turned to look, some amused, others indifferent.

Fiona knelt down, heart pounding, throat tight, and began gathering her books. Her palms stung from the scrape, but she kept her expression blank.

She was used to this.

Used to the stares, the whispers, the loneliness.

Used to the grief that never truly faded after losing her parents two years ago in a car crash. They’d been wealthy, respected — the kind of couple that turned heads. Until the accident that flipped everything upside down.

She remembered the screams, the blood, the lawyers.

Then Aunt Clara stepped in, crocodile tears and forged documents in hand, claiming custody of Fiona and every coin her parents left behind. Since then, Fiona had been nothing more than a burden in her own house.

“Fiona!” the teacher’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts. “Are you coming to class or waiting for the floor to teach you?”

Laughter again. Heat rushed to her face.

She stood, swallowed her pride, and walked silently to her seat at the back of the classroom—far from the others, near the window. Her safe spot. The only place she could breathe.

As the teacher droned on about equations, Fiona’s mind wandered. Her phone buzzed quietly in her lap. She lifted her sweater slightly, just enough to read the message.

> Zane32: “Morning, Moonlight 🌙. Did you miss me?”

Her lips twitched.

Zane32.

He was… different.

They’d met two weeks ago on StarTalk, a dating app she only downloaded out of boredom and loneliness. She’d signed up with a fake name—Luna—and used a picture she found on Pinterest. But everything else? The chats, the late-night confessions, the secrets? That was all her.

And Zane? He was funny. Sweet. Protective. Deep.

He made her feel… seen.

What he didn’t know? Fiona had recognized him the moment he sent his second picture.

Zayden Cole.

The school’s untouchable prince.

Eighteen. Light-skinned. Abs you could shred paper on. Captain of the basketball team. Worshipped by the entire student body—and the only guy Melissa hadn’t been able to claim yet.

To the world, Zayden was perfect.

But to Fiona, through his typed words and quiet pain, she saw a different version.

A boy who carried guilt like it was stitched into his skin. A boy who never spoke of his family. A boy who once typed: “Do you think people can live with blood on their hands… and still deserve love?”

And she understood him. In ways no one else could.

She typed back quickly.

> Luna: “I didn’t miss you. I dreamed about you. You wouldn’t shut up in my head 😂”

He replied almost instantly.

> Zane32: “Told you I’m unforgettable. Call me later tonight?”

She smiled. Just a little.

In a world where no one saw her, he did. Even if he didn’t know who she really was.

Not yet.