The Villainess Unbreaks Her Heart

The loud smack of Diana’s hand against Clara’s cheek silenced the entire classroom. Conversations died mid-sentence, and every head turned in their direction. “You b***h,” Diana hissed, eyes blazing. “You actually had the nerve to try and steal Hermes from me?” The red mark on Clara’s cheek bloomed instantly, tears spilling down her face. Diana hadn’t held back. She hadn’t wanted to. She snatched the scented envelope from Clara’s desk... the one with Hermes written in cursive, a heart drawn beside his name. Without hesitation, Diana tore it in pieces in front of everyone. She didn’t throw the pieces away. No. Instead, she looked over at her best friends, Amara and Elena . They were already smiling. Cruelly. Amara grabbed Clara’s hair in one swift, merciless tug while Elena pinned her shoulders down with both hands. Diana stepped forward, seized Clara by the jaw, and forced her mouth open with pressure that made her whimper. “Chew it,” Diana said in a low, cold voice. “And swallow.” Clara sobbed, trying to wriggle free, but Amara and Elena were taller, stronger... Amara at 5’9”, Elena at 5’11”. Clara was no match for them. She looked around desperately, silently begging the other students for help through her tears. No one moved. Of course not. No one wanted to draw Diana’s ire. If they tried to help her, they’d be next. So they just stood there... watching. Some with pity in their eyes, most with fear. No one even tried to call for a teacher. “I said chew it!” Diana shouted, fury overtaking her. Clara sobbed harder as she began to chew the paper slowly, choking on her tears. But before Diana could savor the moment, someone shoved her... hard. She lost her grip on Clara and stumbled back, nearly crashing into a desk. “What the hell?!” Diana snapped, spinning around to see who had dared lay a hand on her. And then she froze. Hermes. His face was thunderous. “H-Heart?” Diana’s voice cracked, disbelief widening her eyes. “Why… why did you push me?” Tears immediately welled up, but he didn’t care. He was shaking with anger. “What the hell is going on, Diana?!” he shouted, glaring at her before turning to Amara and Elena . “Let her go. Now.” Amara and Elena backed off, releasing Clara. “No!” Diana screamed and lunged forward. Diana grabbed Clara by the hair again and shoved the torn paper back into her mouth. “I said eat it! I didn’t tell you to stop! You w***e! You homewrecker! Eat it!” Her voice was hysterical, shrill. “I SAID ENOUGH!” Hermes roared. He gripped Diana’s shoulders and then... slapped her. The classroom gasped. Diana’s hand flew to her cheek, stunned. Her eyes locked with his, wide and disbelieving. His chest heaved, jaw clenched with rage. “Dove!” Amara and Elena shouted in unison as they rushed to her side. They held her gently, checking the side of her face, then glared at Hermes like they wanted to kill him. “What the f**k, Brooks?!” Amara snarled. “You slapped Diana... for that b***h?!” “You’re lucky I didn’t slap both of you too,” Hermes growled, shooting them a deadly look. “You ganged up on one innocent girl. How could you?” “Innocent?!” Diana shouted, pushing past Amara. “She was going to confess to you! She wrote you a love letter! She knew we were engaged and still had the nerve to write that disgusting thing! She’s a homewrecker!” “Diana, enough!” Hermes shouted back. “It was just a letter! Why are you being so damn paranoid?!” Diana let out a bitter laugh, tears streaming freely down her cheeks. “Just a letter? A love letter, Heart!!!” she choked. “So what? Are you saying that’s okay? That she can give you that letter and you’ll just take it? Then what? You’ll start seeing her behind my back? Is that what you’re telling me now?!” Hermes exhaled sharply, his voice low but still laced with fury. “Does every woman who talks to me have to be a threat to you, Diana?” “Because I’m right!” Diana screamed. “That b***h knew you were mine, but she wrote you a letter anyway. If she didn’t want to take you from me, then what the hell was the point of that letter?!” She turned to glare at Clara, who was now being helped up by Julian. He gently wiped Clara’s tears, and Diana hated the pity in his eyes. She turned back to Hermes, trembling with heartbreak and fury. “You are mine,” Diana said, her voice shaking. “And I will not allow any peasant woman to take you away from me.” “You do not own me, Diana!” Hermes shouted. “I am not something you can possess! I am my own person!” Through her tears, Diana laughed... high, broken, hysterical. “That’s not what you said when you took my virginity!” she screamed back. “What... now that you got what you wanted from me, you’re just going to forget all your promises? Didn’t you say it yourself? While you were inside me? While you were thrusting into me, telling me we belonged to each other!” She was too furious to care about the shocked gasps rippling through the classroom. The stares, the whispers, the students frozen in place... none of it mattered. Hermes’ face flushed a deep, furious red. “Enough!” he snarled. “Did I force you?! You gave yourself to me willingly! And you know what? I really regret sleeping with you! I really regret taking your virginity! If I had known you would become like this after we slept together, I would never have touched you! Just because you gave me your virginity does not give you the right to control me... or anyone who wants to be close to me! I’m exhausted, Diana. You’re suffocating me!” He drew in a sharp breath, visibly trying to rein in his anger, then looked straight at her. “Let’s break up.” The words struck Diana like a physical blow. Her eyes widened. Her mind went blank. They had been childhood sweethearts. They grew up together. Their parents were best friends. Everyone had always said it was only natural they would end up together. And Diana had never questioned it. From the moment she learned what romance meant, he had been the only man she ever imagined herself with. He was her first crush. Her first love. Her first kiss. Her first everything. And now he was ending it... because of a scholarship student? “What… what did you say?” she asked, her voice barely holding together. “You heard me,” Hermes said flatly. “We need space away from each other, Diana. Let’s break up.” Diana slapped him. The sound cracked through the room. Her palm burned from the force. “After everything we did?!” she screamed. “After we crossed a line meant only for married couples?! You’re breaking up with me because of that woman?!” Hermes slowly turned his head back toward her. Exhaustion weighed heavily in his eyes... deep, bone-weary exhaustion... layered with anger. “Stop bringing that up!” he shouted. “So what if we already had s*x?! It’s just s*x! Everyone does it... even people who aren’t in relationships! Stop holding it over my head like a loaded gun! I didn’t force you!” Diana stared at him, speechless, tears pouring faster down her cheeks. Hermes turned to Julian and Clara. “Take her to the school clinic,” he said. Julian nodded. Then Hermes looked at Diana one last time. “This ends here, Diana,” he said quietly... coldly... before turning his back and walking out. Diana could only shake her head, unable to believe it. He was ending everything over someone so insignificant. “Hermes Brooks!” she screamed after him. “You can’t do this to me! I won’t allow it!” He didn’t look back. The classroom door closed behind him. “Dove,” Amara said anxiously as she and Elena rushed to Diana’s side. But Diana could only cry... until the whispers reached her ears. “What are you all looking at?!” she screamed at the remaining students. “Did you enjoy the show?! Was it entertaining?! Did you have fun?!” She kicked over a nearby desk. Papers flew. Chairs screeched violently across the floor. She grabbed whatever she could reach and hurled it. The students fled in panic, terrified one of them might become her next target, until only Amara, Elena, and Diana remained in the classroom. Even then, she didn’t stop. She overturned chairs. Slammed desks. Threw books and bags... anything her hands touched. And despite the thick walls, everyone outside could hear her... her screaming, her sobbing, her curses against Clara, her rage-filled cries for Hermes. Yet no teacher dared to enter. No one would. This was Quinn Royal University of Washington, D.C. A private institution owned by her family. And she was Diana Quinn. The Quinn heiress.