Chapter 2 The boy who hates me

ELARA POV

“This is the sister you told me so much about?”

Zach’s voice was calm. Smooth yet careless.

But the look in his eyes?

Pure irritation.

My chest tightened painfully as his cold gaze scanned my oversized hoodie, my messy hair, and finally stopped at the scar near my eye.

The same lips that had kissed me breathless hours ago curled slightly like he regretted even looking at me.

I couldn’t breathe.

No.

This had to be some kind of cruel joke.

The stranger from the club… the boy whose touch still burned against my skin… the boy I hadn’t stopped thinking about for hours…

Was Zach Reed.

Ash’s best friend.

“Lara?” Ash frowned slightly. “You okay?”

I forced myself to nod quickly.

“Y-Yeah.”

Zach kept staring at me, but there was nothing soft in his eyes anymore. No warmth. No dangerous desire.

Just indifference.

Like I was nothing.

“You didn’t tell me your sister was this….quiet,” Zach muttered lazily like he was going to say something else.

Ash laughed lightly. “She’s always been shy.”

“I can see that.”

His tone carried something sharp beneath

it.

Something mocking.

Heat crawled up my neck.

I lowered my gaze instantly, trying to hide how badly his words affected me.

How could someone change so fast?

Hours ago, he touched me like I was everything to him and now he looked at me like I disgusted him.

Selena suddenly stepped forward with a proud smile plastered across her face.

“Zach comes from one of the most influential families in Los Angeles, Elara. Try not to embarrass us around him.”

I swallowed quietly. “Of course.”

Zach shoved one hand into his pocket, looking completely uninterested in the conversation.

“You don’t have to worry,” he said dryly.

“She doesn’t seem like the type to talk much anyway.”

The insult landed harder than it should have.

Ash shot Zach a warning look. “Ignore him. He’s always like this.”

But I couldn’t ignore him.

Not when my heart still remembered the way his hands touched me and.. his soft lips.

Not when my body still reacted to his voice.

Not when I knew something he didn’t.

You kissed me.

The thought made panic rise inside me.

What if he found out?

What if he realized Star Girl and Elara Vale were the same person?

No.

That could never happen.

Because if Zach Reed discovered the girl beneath the mask was me…

He would hate me even more.

The next morning, I regretted existing. It was a normal feeling for me but now it is stronger and heavier than before.

That was the only explanation for why my life kept getting worse.

I stood outside Westbridge Academy with my hoodie pulled tightly around me while students walked past laughing and talking.

The moment they noticed me, the whispers started.

“Look, it’s Scarface.”

“She seriously came to school looking like that?”

“I heard she scares little kids.”

Laughter followed.

I kept walking.

Head down.

Silent.

That was how I survived this place.

But today felt different.

Because for the first time ever…

Zach Reed was here.

Girls crowded around the front entrance the second his black car pulled up.

“Oh my God, he’s even hotter in person.”

“I heard he got expelled from his last school.”

“No way. He looks dangerous.”

He did.

Zach stepped out wearing his school uniform like he owned the entire world. His dark hair fell slightly over his forehead while his sharp eyes scanned the campus lazily.

The attention around him was immediate.

Everyone wanted him.

Meanwhile, I just wanted to disappear.

Ash walked beside him casually, laughing about something.

Then Zach’s eyes landed on me.

For one second, something unreadable crossed his face.

Recognition.

Not of Star Girl.

Just me.

The “pathetic stepsister.”

He looked away almost instantly.

Like I wasn’t worth the effort.

I hated how much that hurt.

Ash noticed me first and smiled. “Lara!”

Some students nearby turned toward me immediately.

The mocking whispers grew louder.

Great.

Exactly what I needed.

Ash walked over while Zach followed behind slowly.

“You okay?” Ash asked softly.

I nodded quickly.

Before I could answer, Zach spoke.

“Can I talk to you for a second?”

I blinked in surprise.

The girls nearby immediately started glaring at me.

Zach ignored them completely and walked past me toward the empty hallway beside the main building.

Confused, I followed him.

The second we were alone, his expression turned cold.

“I’m only saying this once,” he said quietly.

My stomach tightened.

“You’re Ash’s sister, so I’ll tolerate you at home. But here?” His eyes hardened.

“Stay away from me. Don't even try to act like you know me.”

I stared at him silently, just staring at his cold eyes.

“I don't want people thinking I associate with someone like you,” Zach continued bluntly, “it’ll become annoying.”

Someone like you. The words hit harder than the insults at school ever did.

Because this was the same boy who held me like I mattered only hours ago.

I forced myself to speak.

“You don’t have to worry. I won’t tell anyone. I also don't want to have anything to do with you ”

“Good.”

For a moment, neither of us moved.

Then footsteps echoed nearby.

A group of girls entered the hallway.

The second they noticed us together, their faces twisted.

One of them—Lisa Stone—laughed mockingly.

“Well, this is shocking.”

Another girl folded her arms. “Elara stalking the new guy already?”

“I wasn’t—”

“Oh shut up,” Lisa interrupted. “Do you seriously think someone like Zach Reed would look twice at you?”

Laughter erupted.

My fingers tightened around my bag.

Normally, teachers stopped situations like this before it got too bad.

But there were no teachers here.

Only Zach.

Zach, who could easily end this with one sentence.

Instead, he leaned against the wall silently.

Watching with a smirk on his face like he was enjoying the drama.

Lisa stepped closer to me with fake sympathy.

“You should really stop embarrassing yourself, Elara. It’s painful to watch.”

“She probably thinks hiding behind hoodies

makes her scar invisible.”

More laughter.

I kept waiting.

Waiting for Zach to say something.

Anything.

But he didn’t.

He just watched me with cold, unreadable eyes.

And just when I thought I've seen enough, Zach did the unbelievable.