The victory at the Board Meeting felt sweet, but in the world of the elite, a bruised ego never heals quietly. Vanessa wasn't just angry; she was humiliated, and she knew exactly where to find the girl she blamed for her downfall.
---
The neon sign of the Seven-Star Convenience Store flickered, casting a pale blue light over the empty street of the Old District. April was behind the counter, the quiet hum of the refrigerators the only sound in the shop. She was finally breathing again, the weight of the scholarship threat lifted, when the chime above the door rang with a sharp, aggressive jingle.
In walked Vanessa, flanked by her two closest lieutenants, Misty and Tiffany. They looked completely out of place in their silk blouses and designer bags against the backdrop of cheap snacks and linoleum floors.
Vanessa didn't look like the polished debutante from the Board Meeting. Her eyes were red-rimmed with fury as she slammed her $5,000 handbag onto the plastic counter.
"So, this is it?" Vanessa sneered, her voice echoing through the small shop. "This is where the 'Queen' of St. Jude's spends her nights? Surrounded by expired milk and floor cleaner?"
Misty giggled, picking up a bag of off-brand chips with two fingers as if it were toxic. "It even smells like poverty in here. How does Jaden stand the scent of you, Mendoza?"
April didn't flinch. She kept her eyes on the inventory log she was filling out. "It's a store, Vanessa. If you're not buying anything, the exit is behind you."
Vanessa stepped closer, the smell of her expensive rose perfume clashing violently with the shop's scent of floor wax. "Don't get cocky because Arthur Sterling had a moment of weakness. We all know you did something. You're blackmailing them, aren't you? A girl like you doesn't just get a 'grant' for being smart."
"I earned my rank," April said, finally looking up, her gaze steady. "Something you wouldn't understand."
"Listen to me, you little parasite," Vanessa hissed, leaning over the counter until she was inches from April's face. "Jaden is a Sterling. He's meant to be with someone who can actually walk into a ballroom without looking like the waitstaff. You're just a phase. A charity project he's using to annoy his parents. If you have any dignity left, you'll take your little scholarship and vanish before I make it my life's mission to ruin you."
Tiffany reached over and swept a display of candy bars off the counter, the plastic wrappers crinkling as they hit the floor. "Oops. Clean it up, scholarship girl. That's what you're good at, right?"
April felt a surge of cold anger, but before she could speak, a shadow darkened the doorway.
"I believe the lady asked you to leave."
The girls froze. Standing by the entrance, dressed in a black hoodie that made him blend into the shadows of the Old District, was Jaden. He wasn't the "Golden Boy" right now—he looked like the JD-Zero that the underground feared.
"Jaden!" Vanessa gasped, her voice instantly shifting into a high-pitched, innocent tone. "We were just... we were looking for you! We thought we'd come check on April, since she works in such a dangerous neighborhood."
Jaden walked toward the counter, his eyes never leaving Vanessa's. He didn't look at the mess on the floor; he looked at the fear in Vanessa's eyes.
"The only danger in this neighborhood right now," Jaden said, his voice a low, terrifying vibration, "is what's going to happen to your father's stock options if you don't apologize to my girlfriend and get out of this store. Now."
Vanessa turned pale. "Your... girlfriend?"
"You heard me," Jaden said, reaching out to take April's hand across the counter, his grip firm and protective. "And if I ever see you three within a mile of this shop again, I'll make sure the Board hears about the 'harassment' you've been engaging in. I think your parents would hate to lose their standing because of a few candy bars, don't you?"
Tiffany and Misty scrambled toward the door, not waiting for Vanessa. With one last look of pure, concentrated hatred at April, Vanessa grabbed her bag and stormed out, her heels clicking frantically on the pavement.
The Mask Drops
The silence that followed was heavy. Jaden didn't let go of April's hand. He reached down and began picking up the candy bars Tiffany had thrown, his movements quiet and deliberate.
"You didn't have to do that," April whispered, her heart still racing. "I can handle them."
"I know you can," Jaden said, standing up and placing the last bar back on the shelf. He looked at her, and the JD-Zero intensity vanished, replaced by a soft, genuine exhaustion. "But you shouldn't have to. Not anymore."
He leaned against the counter, looking around the small, flickering shop. "I'm sorry, April. They're like vultures. They can smell when the hierarchy is changing."
April looked at him, really looked at him, and realized he wasn't wearing his school blazer or his expensive watch. He was just a boy. "What are you doing here, Jaden? It's nearly midnight."
"I couldn't sleep," he admitted, his voice barely a whisper. "I realized that for the first time in my life, my father can't tell me what to do. I didn't know where else to go."
He looked at her, a shy, uncertain smile touching his lips. "And... I think I owe you a real date. No contracts. No rankings. Just us. Somewhere that doesn't smell like floor wax."