Prologue

Five Years Ago . . .

PROLOGUE

✿♡ JAZZLENE ♡✿

"Jazzlene! Jazzlene, wait!"

I sprinted through the familiar paths, tears blurring my vision. Somehow, I managed to avoid stumbling, guided by instinct down these well-trodden routes.

"Jazzlene!"

Still, I refused to halt. My feet pounded the ground relentlessly. I couldn't bear to face him, to confront the pain that seared through me. Was this the reason I hadn't been invited to Jenna's birthday party?

Jenna, my best friend—or rather, she used to be. Starting today, I couldn't even bring myself to look at her. We're both fifteen, friends for five years, along with Sheena and Abigail. They weren't just friends; they were family. Especially Jenna. She had been like an older sister to me. So today, on her sixteenth birthday, I wondered why she hadn't extended an invitation to me.

Last week, my friends Abigail, Sheena, and I discussed Jenna's upcoming birthday. She had mentioned that she wouldn't be having a party since her parents were still in Thailand, where their business is based. Jenna planned to celebrate later when they returned home. Despite this, she casually mentioned treating us to lunch at school the following day since her actual birthday fell on a Sunday (today). But because Jenna meant so much to me, I wanted to surprise her with a gift, so I decided to visit her house early. I went alone because Sheena and Abigail hadn't responded to my messages or calls.

When I arrived at her house, I was taken aback by the number of cars parked out front. A large tent was set up in the spacious front yard, with catering and numerous people seated at tables. Puzzled, I stepped out of the taxi with a shopping bag containing swimsuits I had bought as a present. Jenna loved swimming and had mentioned her desire for swimsuits earlier. In my other hand, I held a box of cake.

The gate was open, so I was able to get in right away. No one noticed my presence until I reached their spacious terrace. That’s when her older sister, who was coming out of the main door, noticed me, her eyes widening as if she had seen a ghost.

"J-Jazzlene?"

I smiled in confusion. "Hi, Laira. Where’s Jenna?"

She hadn’t answered my question when I heard familiar laughter from inside. Laughter from a girl and a boy, followed by more laughter that I assumed belonged to Jenna’s parents. And then, the next laughter I heard was the familiar voices of Sheena and Abigail.

I had no choice but to step closer to the main door because it was open. But I stopped short when I saw who was inside—in the living room—facing each other and laughing while food was laid out before them.

I was right.

The first girl and boy I heard laughing were now sitting close together. Jenna—my best friend, and Vince—my boyfriend. With them were Jenna’s parents and my other two friends—Sheena and Abigail.

I could see them clearly. Even with my vision blurred by tears, what I saw was clear. I saw Vince put his arm around Jenna, and I saw how they looked at each other when their eyes met.

I dropped the cake and the shopping bag I was holding, which drew everyone’s attention. Vince quickly stood up from his seat, and both he and Jenna, Sheena, and Abigail looked at me with wide eyes.

"Jazzlene . . ." they all called out to me softly, but I couldn’t speak. I felt so heavy. They betrayed me. My boyfriend cheated on me with my best friend, and I was also betrayed by my so-called best friends.

Sheena and Abigail knew. They knew what was happening, yet they said nothing. They didn’t even inform me that there was something between the two of them. Instead, it seemed like they condoned it.

"Jazzlene!" I heard Vince call out loudly as I started running away. The taxi I took earlier was gone, so I ran faster, hoping to find any vehicle that could help me. Even a white van would do. It might be better if I got kidnapped and chopped up so they wouldn’t have to hide their relationship when I’m gone.

But no white van came my way. Instead, a Matte Black Aston Martin stopped in front of me. I stopped because I recognized that fancy car. It belonged to my brother’s friend. To Adam. And I wasn’t wrong because he suddenly got out from the driver's seat. He was wearing his college uniform.

"Jazzlene?"

There was no emotion on his face. I didn’t know if he was wondering why I was running. I don’t know. All I knew was that Vince was close to catching up to me, and all I wanted was to hurt him ten thousand-fold.

"Adam . . ." My voice was trembling because, honestly, I was scared of him. Of all my brother’s friends, he was the one I feared the most because of his cold demeanor. You couldn’t read any emotions on his face, so you never knew if he was angry, happy, sad, etc. And that was why he was scary and unapproachable to me. "I'm ready to die in your hands. But first . . ." I took a step forward, "—let me kiss you."

I didn’t waste any time. He was much taller than me, so I had to tiptoe and hold onto his shoulders to reach him.

"Jazzle—" Vince didn’t finish calling my name. He stopped, but I could feel he was just a few steps away from us. I didn’t let go of Adam until I was sure that cheating scumbag Vince had left.

Mint.

Adam’s breath smelled like mint.

Sweet.

It tasted like candy—

"He's gone." Adam pushed me away from him, but not roughly. When I looked behind me, Vince was indeed gone. How long had our lips been touching?

"Out of curiosity, why are you crying, and why the hell did you kiss me?"

I turned back to Adam because of his question. But I couldn’t see him clearly now because tears welled up in my eyes again as I remembered what I had witnessed earlier. Vince and my friends' betrayal.

"B-Because . . ."

"Because . . .? What?"

"B-Because . . ." I started to sob.

My shoulders were shaking as I cried when he muttered, "Tell me what or who to kill. Right. Now." His voice was always deep. So deep. Really deep.

I quickly wiped my tears away, looked up at him, and shook my head repeatedly. "N-No. Let it be. Just let it be. I just want to go home. Can you give me a ride?"

In all the years he had been friends with Kuya Zane, this was the first time I asked him a favor. So, I didn’t know if he would agree. If he would let me ride in his fancy car and drop me off—

"I hope you're not waiting for me to open the door for you," he snapped. That’s when I realized he was already inside the car, in the driver's seat. What a gentleman.

I walked to the passenger seat next to him and ducked into the car. It smelled expensive. The scent of leather and his spicy cologne mixed together, calming my nerves slightly. But after a few moments, I suddenly remembered kissing him. I closed my eyes tightly, bowed my head, and bit my lower lip.

'Sht. Why did he have to appear in front of me? There are so many people in the world. My brother has many friends, too. Why couldn’t it have been Henry? Or David? Or Gerald? Sht! Why did it have to be Adam?!'

I looked up and, gathering my courage, glanced at him while fiddling with my fingers in my lap. "Adam, listen. Look. I'm . . ." I stammered. "Sorry. I didn’t mean to do what I did earlier. It’s just that . . . I have a situation and you—can we? Can we just forget that this happened? Please don’t tell my brother. He’ll kill me."

He glanced at me and studied me for a moment, his angular face serious and something else. Something that I couldn’t decipher because now, I was too busy noticing all over how damn handsome he was.

"Are you aware that you assaulted me?" He was now looking at the road as we drove towards my house.

"Assault?" I blinked. "That wasn’t assault."

"You did kiss me."

"But not really. Our lips just touched, they didn’t move at all—"

"Without first securing my consent."

"But I did tell you. I informed you and you didn’t say anything. Silence means yes, right?"

"Excuse me?" He raised an eyebrow when he glanced at me again, and for a moment, it was like I wanted to reach out and strangle him until he ran out of—no, never mind. That’s a sin.

"I thought you wanted it too because you didn’t say anything." I frowned. "Let’s just forget about it. Don’t tell my brother, since it wasn’t really a kiss. The kiss I know involves both lips moving. Our lips didn’t move. Just think of it as if I accidentally stumbled and our lips touched. I’ll treat you coffee tomorrow so we’re even—"

"Explain," he interrupted me with authority in his tone. "I'll let it slide only if you explain to me why you kissed me."

I bit into my lower lip. I had screwed myself over because I knew I had no choice but to tell him the truth.

I explained to him the betrayal of my friends and my boyfriend. I kissed him to show that I wasn't affected or to make Vince jealous or hurt him if it worked. As I recounted the story, I didn't realize I was becoming emotional again, so I reached for a tissue from his tissue box.

"Serves you right."

I was about to sniffle when he said that, so I glanced at him, eyebrows furrowed and feeling resentful. "What? What serves me right? Are you siding with them?"

He sighed. "You're only fifteen, Jazzlene. I bet Zane doesn't even know you have a boyfriend. Am I right? So it serves you right. It's better for you to get hurt to learn your lesson."

"You're so mean!" I sobbed. "I've already been hurt, and you're still like this! Maybe you don't have a girlfriend because of your attitude, huh? Maybe you're just bitter because even I seem to have more luck than you! Because you, it looks like you've never even had a girlfriend!" He didn't respond. He just looked serious, staring ahead. "Remember this, Adam. You won't ever get a girlfriend. No one will love you. Mark my words—" I was about to sob when he suddenly hit the brakes. Thankfully, I was wearing a seatbelt, or I might have borrowed a face from the dog.

"Get out." He pointed to the door on my side. "Now."

"I'll get out even if you don't tell me to! This is our last conversation! Don't come to our house, even if my brother asks you to!"