Blake didn't wait long.
The final bell had barely finished ringing when he spotted Amber heading toward the parking lot. Perfect. He followed.
She noticed him immediately. Her expression shifted—surprise, then something softer. Pleased.
"Blake." She stopped beside her car, voice smooth as silk. "I was hoping you'd come talk to me."
He didn't smile. Didn't return the warmth. Stopped three feet away—close enough to threaten, far enough to control.
"We need to talk."
She leaned casually against the car. "About Jade?"
His jaw tightened. "About the message."
For one second—her smile faltered. Then resurrected itself. "I already told her everything."
"I know."
Her brows pulled together. "What do you mean?"
He stepped closer. "I heard you."
Silence. Heavy. Dense enough to choke on.
Something cracked in Amber's expression. Just for a moment—fear, naked and small. Then she laughed. "So?"
His hands curled slowly into fists. "So you lied."
She shrugged. "It worked."
His voice dropped to something dangerous. "You destroyed everything."
"Oh, please." She rolled her eyes. "You two were never going to last."
Another step closer. "You don't get to decide that."
She tilted her head. Studying. "You really still care about her?"
The question hung. He didn't answer.
She smiled—triumphant, vicious. "I knew it." Arms folding. "Even after everything… you're still stuck on her."
"You let me hate her for three years."
Her eyes flashed. "YOU chose to hate her."
His control snapped—just slightly. Voice rising. "Because of you. "
She stepped closer. Breathing faster now, less controlled. "Because she didn't deserve you."
The words cut. He stared at her.
"She got everything." Amber's voice cracked, fissures showing in the performance. "Mum and Dad always loved her more. And then you chose her too."
His anger shifted—replaced by something colder. Recognition. "You were jealous."
Bitter laughter. "Of course I was." Another step, invading his space. "You were supposed to be mine. "
He shook his head slowly. "You don't get to ruin people's lives because you're jealous."
Her expression hardened instantly. "You think Jade's innocent?"
He didn't hesitate. "She is."
Amber went still. Dangerous stillness. "You're making a mistake."
Blake turned away. "No. You already made it."
He walked. Didn't look back. Didn't see her expression collapse—confidence draining, something desperate replacing it.
He also didn't see the figure behind the building's corner. Jade.
Her heart pounded so hard it hurt. She'd heard enough. The message. The lie. Amber's confession. Blake knew—knew and believed her innocent.
But one sentence echoed louder than everything else: "Mum and Dad always loved her more."
Cold realization spread through her chest. Her parents knew. They had to. They were the ones who told her Blake died.
That night, Jade pushed the front door to her family home open harder than she meant to. Her parents looked up from the living room, surprised, comfortable, guilty.
"Jade?"
Her hands shook. "Blake is alive."
Silence.
They exchanged a glance. That was all she needed.
"You knew." Her voice cracked. "You both knew."
Her mother stood slowly. "Honey—"
"No." Tears blurred everything. "You told me he died."
Her father exhaled. "We were trying to protect you."
"From what?" The word echoed through the house, too loud, too broken.
"From the truth."
She shook her head slowly. "So you lied."
"We thought it would be easier."
"Easier?" Her voice shattered completely. "I spent two years mourning someone who wasn't even dead."
Her mother's eyes filled—guilt, finally, too late. "We thought he was leaving town… thought it was better if you moved on."
"So you decided for me?"
Silence. And that silence hurt more than anything. Tears streamed down her face, hot and furious and deserved.
"You had no right." Her voice dropped to whisper, then broke again. "You let me believe he was gone."
Her father looked away. "We thought it would help you move on."
She shook her head. "No." The whisper barely held together. "You just made everything worse."
And for the first time since the accident—since the funeral, the closed casket, the years of learning not to search crowds—Jade realized something terrifying.
The world she trusted.
The family she loved.
All of it—built on lies.