They Made Me Confess To A Bricklayer, Then I Saw The Comments Chapter 07
By the third week, I barely checked the reader feed anymore.
The “past life” they kept talking about didn’t matter to me. I only cared about this one.
But the world didn’t stop moving just because I stopped looking.
On a free afternoon, I was alone in my dorm scrolling through my phone when a photo stopped me cold. A post from Chloe.
It was her and Preston at the beach, pressed shoulder to shoulder, smiling. The caption read, [Beach day with my bestie]
I scoffed and kept scrolling.
But a few swipes later, another one caught my eye.
Chloe had left a comment on one of my old posts. [Serena, I heard that broke construction worker dropped you?? Is that true?]
I’d never said anything about a breakup. The rumor was completely made up.
She’d left it there deliberately. She wanted everyone to see it.
I opened our chat, typed a few words, then deleted every single one. She wasn’t worth the energy.
I didn’t go looking for Chloe. She came to me.
That night, she showed up at my dorm.
I opened the door. She was standing there with a Caramel Frappe, smiling sweetly.
“Brought you your favorite. Caramel Frappe. Want it?”
I leaned against the door frame and didn’t take it. “What do you really want, Chloe?”
She gave a little smile. “Just wanted to talk.”
“About what?”
“About you and Rowan.”
I looked at her and waited.
She lowered her voice. “Doesn’t it bother you? He was a broke construction worker. Don’t you feel even a little embarrassed?”
I smiled and didn’t take the bait. “What’s it to you?”
“I’m just looking out for you.”
She sighed. “When you were into Preston, people respected you. Now you’re slumming it with some broke guy, and everyone’s talking.”
“Let them talk,” I said with a shrug. “Your name isn’t the one in their mouths.”
She faltered, then regrouped.
“You know Preston’s been really upset lately, right? He still thinks you have feelings for him.”
“And that’s my problem how?”
“Don’t you feel anything for him at all? You’ve known each other your whole lives…”
I cut her off. “Chloe, what are you actually trying to say?”
She bit her lip, and the mask slipped.
“I just think you shouldn’t string some random guy along to get back at Preston. It’s not fair to Rowan.”
I stared at her for two full seconds, then laughed so hard I nearly doubled over.
“Wait. Chloe, do you like Preston?”
Her face went white. “What are you talking about?”
“If you like him, go get him. Stop coming at me sideways every chance you get.”
“I wasn’t…”
“And one more thing.” I stepped closer, right into her space. “I’m not with Rowan to get a reaction out of anyone, and I’m not with him for revenge.”
“I just like him. Are we clear?”
Chloe’s face turned beet red. She turned on her heel and left without another word.
I shut the door and leaned back against it. I missed Rowan.
I texted him. [What are you up to?]
He replied instantly. [Coding.]
[Miss me?]
A few seconds later, he replied. [Yeah.]