Chapter 2

I pulled the laptop back.

"What's wrong?" Ethan asked, his voice losing its gentle edge.

"Ethan," I started, my voice shaky. "Your SATs... are you sure about them?"

He blinked. Then his face tightened.

"What are you saying, Maya? You don't believe me?"

"It's not that, I just..."

"After all these years? You think I'd lie to you?" He sounded hurt, indignant.

My phone screen, still dark, pulsed faintly under my hand. I didn't need to see it to feel the hum of another message waiting.

He stood up, pacing the small kitchen. "I tell you something personal, something I'm embarrassed about, and this is how you react?"

He was good. He looked genuinely wounded.

"I just thought we could be together," he said, his voice softer now, trying a different tactic. "That you'd want that too."

He stepped closer, tried to take the laptop again. "Come on, let's just do it. It'll be our adventure."

"No," I said, clutching it tighter. "I need to talk to my mom first."

His eyes narrowed. Just for a second. Then the hurt look was back.

"Your mom? What's she got to do with us?"

"She has everything to do with my college plans, Ethan."

He sighed, a big, dramatic sound. "Fine. Talk to your mom. But don't take too long, okay? The deadline is soon."

He leaned in, kissed my forehead. It felt cold.

"I'm doing this for us, Maya. Remember that."

He left. The door clicked shut behind him.

I opened my phone.

The pop-up was stark.

"Manipulation Level: Expert. He almost had you. Warning: He will escalate if challenged further."

Another one appeared below it, the text slightly blurred.

"He just texted Tiffany: 'Drama llama Maya is questioning the plan. Gotta handle her. Stanford is priority one.'"

My hands were shaking.

My father saved his father. My mother struggled while they thrived.

And I was just a pawn in his game with Tiffany.

The 'backup plan.'

Anger, cold and sharp, started to burn through the confusion.