Chapter 3

I took a sip of the smoothie Maya gave me. It was bland and watery. Perfect.

"You're right," I said, looking straight at Liam. My voice was firm, filled with a new, fake resolve. "I haven't been taking this seriously enough. But that changes today. I promise, I'll do whatever it takes."

Liam' s expression softened instantly. This was the Chloe he wanted: compliant, eager to please.

"That's my girl," he said, reaching over to squeeze my shoulder. "I knew you had it in you."

He leaned in as if to kiss me, his eyes flicking down to my lips. His approval felt slimy, a reward for good behavior. Before his lips could touch mine, Maya stepped between us, laughing a little too loudly.

"Whoa there, tiger," she said, playfully swatting Liam' s chest. "Let the girl breathe. She's about to start her workout."

Her eyes, however, held a flicker of possessiveness as she looked at Liam. A clear warning. He was her prize, not mine. I saw it so clearly now. The jealousy wasn't just about him; it was about the life she was trying to steal.

She turned her attention back to me, her smile becoming a smirk. "Are you sure you can handle it, Chloe? You've tried before and, well..." She let the sentence hang in the air, a deliberate jab at my past failures.

"She can do it," Liam said, his voice firm again, now defending his own judgment. "She just needs the right motivation."

Instead of arguing or getting defensive, I walked over to the weight rack. I picked up a ten-pound dumbbell, my arm straining slightly. I turned to face them, the weight held in my hand like a promise.

"Maya's right," I said, my voice even. "Talk is cheap."

Then, right there in front of them, I started doing bicep curls. One, two, three. My form was clumsy, my breathing heavy. I made sure they could see the sweat starting to form on my brow. I made them see the "effort."

Liam's face broke into a wide, proud grin. Maya watched me, her eyes narrowed slightly, a flicker of calculation behind her feigned support. They were both completely hooked.

"That's the spirit!" Liam boomed. "Okay, here's the plan. An hour of cardio every morning. Weight training three times a week. And I'm hiring a nutritionist. You'll only eat what they tell you to eat. No cheating."

"And I'll be your workout buddy!" Maya chimed in, her voice dripping with false enthusiasm. "I'll make sure you stick to it. We're in this together!"

"Together," I repeated, letting the dumbbell clatter to the floor as if in exhaustion. I looked up at them, my face a mask of determination and gratitude.

Inside, I was looking at two fools. They had just handed me the weapons to destroy them. They thought they were setting the rules for my transformation. They had no idea they were writing the script for their own downfall.

Their greed, their vanity, their absolute certainty that they were in control-it would be their ruin. And I would enjoy every single second of it.