If Romeo was my man

CHAPTER 4

POV: Travis

God, this class is mind-numbing. I leaned back in my chair, half-listening as Mrs. Sigh droned on about something to do with essays or assignments. I swear she could talk for hours about nothing. My eyes wandered to the clock—twenty minutes left until freedom. I could already hear the lunch bell ringing in my head.

I pulled out my phone, bored out of my mind, and saw a new message from Mike.

Mike: Bianca got busted by that girl who came to our lockers on Friday. You gotta hurry, man.

Travis: The fuck?

Mike: Hurry the hell up, bro.

I was just about to come up with an excuse to leave when the bell finally rang. Saved by the bell—literally. I grabbed my stuff and practically ran out of the room, weaving through the swarm of students to find Mike. The dude was always somewhere near the action.

"Mike, bro, what happened?" I asked, breathless by the time I reached him. He was leaning casually against the wall like nothing crazy just went down.

Mike pointed across the hallway. "See that girl over there?" He nodded toward Emily, who was standing by herself. "That’s the one who confessed to you, man. I didn’t believe it either—she doesn’t look like the type, right? But she just fought Bianca."

I blinked in disbelief. Emily? The quiet, unassuming girl who always kept her head down? She fought Bianca?That was a death wish.

Before I could respond, the principal spotted us peeking through the office curtains and yanked them shut, leaving us with nothing but curiosity. After what felt like an eternity, Bianca stormed out of the office, her face as red as her manicured nails. She looked like she could torch the entire school with just one glare.

"Can you believe this? I’m not gonna spare that bitch. She messed with the wrong girl," Bianca spat, her eyes flashing with rage as she stomped toward us.

Her hair, always perfectly curled, was a little frazzled, her lipstick slightly smudged from what I could only assume was an intense yelling match with the principal. She wore this tight, expensive leather jacket that screamed “rich girl” and skin-tight jeans that probably cost more than my entire wardrobe. But for once, her poised, queen-of-the-school vibe was gone—she looked like she was seconds away from exploding.

"Hey, calm down," I said, stepping in front of her and putting my hands on her shoulders, trying to cool her down before she caused an even bigger scene.

"Don’t touch me," she snapped, loud enough that people passing by turned their heads. Bianca’s anger was like a fire that burned hot and fast, and right now, I was dangerously close to getting scorched.

"Relax, Becca." I kept my voice low, hoping it would somehow bring her back down to earth.

"Don’t Becca me," she hissed, her eyes narrowing into slits. "You gave that bitch the confidence to mess with me. Even if you thought she was cute, did you have to say it?"

"I didn’t—" I tried, but she cut me off, her voice climbing in volume.

"It’s over, Travis."

"Bianca, c'mon, listen—"

"Fuck off!" She screamed the words, her face twisted with fury.

Shit. Not again. I couldn’t lose Bianca, not now. My stomach tightened with dread. If this thing with her ended badly, her father could pull out of the investment deal with my dad’s company. That would be the end of everything. I had to fix this, or my life—and my dad’s expectations—would come crashing down.

---

Having parents who expect you to marry someone like Bianca? Exhausting. I mean, sure, she’s hot in a scary model kind of way, but living with her forever? That sounds like a horror show. Still, I don’t have much choice. My parents have their whole future planned out for me, and it all revolves around keeping Bianca’s family close. If I screw this up, I’m done for.

But damn, Emily really threw a wrench into my plans. Now I have to clean up the mess. I won’t lie—someone needed to put Bianca in her place for a long time, and I respect Emily for doing it. But she’s also made my life ten times more complicated.

I jogged to catch up to Bianca, trying to smooth things over like always. "Bianca, wait, baby, let’s talk about this."

She spun around to face me, her arms crossed, looking both furious and bored. "What?"

I swallowed, trying to keep my voice calm. "I didn’t mean it like that. I only said she was cute so she wouldn’t feel bad."

"Feel bad about *what*? Everyone in this school knows you’re mine. She had the audacity to think she could steal you away from me." Bianca’s voice cracked as she raised her chin, her eyes gleaming with accusation.

I sighed, knowing I was walking on thin ice. "I’m sorry, Becca."

Her face softened slightly, but I could still see the edge in her eyes. "Fine. But you’ll help me teach her a lesson."

I frowned, a knot of unease settling in my gut. "What are you going to do to her?"

A sly smirk curled her lips, and for a moment, her usual icy demeanor returned. "You’ll see. Are you in or not?" Her voice was low, dangerous, daring me to defy her.

I clenched my jaw, my fists tightening at my sides. "I’m in."

It wasn’t like I had a choice.

Her mood flipped like a switch. She leaned in and kissed me hard, then pulled away just as quickly, wiping her lips. "Change your cologne—it’s too strong," she said with a casual wave of her hand. "Anyway, I’m leaving."

And just like that, she turned on her heel, her long, sleek hair flipping over her shoulder as she strode toward her shiny car. I watched as she drove off, the weight of everything sinking in.

Emily, what have you gotten yourself into?

I ran a hand through my hair, rubbing my face as I tried to figure out how I was going to deal with this. I could already feel the headache building as I headed back into the school.