Sweet and Spicy [COMPLETED]

Mental Distress

Decision-making turned out to be the hardest thing Kaya ever did. 

Oh, sure, it had only been a few hours since Zoren left the decision up to her, but Kaya hated disappointing people. She asked for a few days. How would she survive them when she couldn't focus after this small amount of time?

Zoren had said they wouldn't really date, but pretending to date didn't seem like a good idea, either. It would, however, keep the press from tearing her down again. Wouldn't it?

Kaya gripped her hair in frustration. There were no right decisions in this kind of situation. 

No matter what she did, it wouldn't go right. Her world had been unlucky for months now. First, with her mother. Now, with any chance she had at living normally. 

"What have I ever done so wrong?" Kaya sank onto the edge of her bed with a sigh. 

No matter what, she would have to make the decision. Which fire should she choose? One seemed more familiar, but the other dealt with this kind of thing for a living. 

Surely, she could come up with a third answer. One that didn't require this much anxiety over the small things. 

Most of Kaya's instincts wanted to ask Jade and Lina for advice. All of Kaya's brain cells knew that wasn't a good idea. Jade and Lina were just as stuck in this situation as Kaya. They would clearly pick the side of the man they knew better. Which meant that they would be no help. 

Kaya's phone vibrated in her hand. She looked down to a text from Lina. No words, just a link to yet another article. 

The headline wasn't nice enough to make a note of it. Kaya should have expected that Ransom Lee's popularity would keep favor on his side. Now, in the world's eyes, Kaya was a cheater and all-around terrible person. 

"What do they want from me?" 

First, they hated her because she was with Ransom. Now, they hated her because she wasn't? Or was it just that reporters would do anything for a scoop? Even lie. 

Kaya would know, she had been on the sharp end of their sword before. She should have avoided this at all costs. 

It could only get worse from here. Now that the dogs had latched onto their target, they wouldn't let go until she was left bleeding and dying. That's how they kept people entertained, by tearing down others. 

For now, Kaya set her phone aside. If she wanted to survive this, she should at least get some sleep. It wouldn't help anyone if she was irritated due to exhaustion. 

Yet, hurt and worry rose up to choke her. Kaya didn't understand. Why her? Why always her? Did someone have it out for her without her knowledge?

"I'll deal with it tomorrow. This can wait." 

Kaya crawled under her blankets and closed her eyes, if only because she wanted to escape. She should have known that, even in the world of dreams, she couldn't escape tragedy.