Rewriting Fate: His Inescapable Love

I pinned my childhood best friend to the muddy ground, my knee pressing hard into his chest, when a row of glowing, floating text suddenly flashed across my vision. [Oh my god, the male lead is a billionaire's hidden heir!

He's about to be picked up by the wealthiest family, and this cannon fodder villainess has the audacity to straddle him like that.] [After he gets taken back, she shamelessly follows him.

But he falls in love with the female lead at first sight. The villainess does all sorts of wicked things and ends up dying a miserable death on the streets.] What?

I was the villainess? I stared down at the boy still struggling under my grip. I yanked my hands back. Chapter 1 No way. Absolutely not.

They say the bad guys always live the longest, but I wasn't about to test that theory and get myself killed over this. I scrambled off Vance, stumbling back a few steps.

He spat out a mouthful of dirt, his jaw set in a stubborn line. "What's that about?

We done fighting?" I backed up another ten paces before stopping to look at him. "I'm never laying a hand on you again. No more bossing you around, either. Just go." Vance froze.

A flicker of relief crossed his face, but it vanished just as quickly, replaced by a deep frown. "Is this a joke? You've been treating me like your personal servant for years.

Now you're suddenly playing nice?" I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes and forced a bright, plastic smile. "I'm serious. You don't even have to walk to school with me anymore.

We're clear." I spun on my heel and marched away, not bothering to check if he was following.

Behind me, a heavy splash echoed as he kicked the mud. "Who said I wanted to walk with you anyway? Good riddance!" By the time I got home, Mom already had dinner on the table.

I shoved two bowls of casserole down my throat like I hadn't eaten in days. She glanced at the empty space behind me, her brow furrowing. "Where's Vance?

He didn't walk you home?" I swallowed hard. "Drop it, Mom. The guy's destined for better things.

He won't be eating our kind of food much longer." The words barely left my mouth when Mom's face lit up. "Oh, Vance! You're here.

Grab a seat." Vance shot me a weird, guarded look before dropping into the chair next to me. His knee brushed against mine. Mom shoved a heaping bowl in front of him.

Without even looking, he picked up the fried egg from his bowl and reached over to drop it into mine. I slammed my bowl down on the table. "I'm stuffed, Mom.

Going to my room to study." Mom almost choked on a laugh. Her eyes darted between me and Vance. "Sure, honey. Go ahead." Vance's jaw locked tight.

Less than ten minutes later, the front door clicked shut. I let out a long breath. Finally. The next morning, I dragged myself out of bed an hour early just to avoid him.

It was still pitch black outside. Moving quietly so I wouldn't wake Mom, I boiled a few eggs for breakfast.

I stared at the pot for a long moment before giving in and grabbing Vance's share too. Stepping out the front door, the street was completely empty.

I let out a sigh of relief, though a weird tightness settled in my chest. The first bell was about to ring when Vance finally burst through the classroom door.

He locked eyes with me, his expression totally unreadable. I reached into my bag for his egg, but the teacher walked in, trailing a new girl behind him. "Hi everyone.

My name's Audrey. It's nice to meet you all." The floating text panels in front of me exploded. [Holy crap! Why did the female lead transfer to this middleofnowhere town?

Does she know something in advance?] [Look at the male lead staring at her! The villainess is so cooked. She tried playing hard to get, but the real female lead is here now.

No one's going to care about her anymore.] I followed the invisible text's logic and glanced at Vance.

Sure enough, he was staring at Audrey, completely spaced out. "Audrey, where would you like to sit?" The teacher's tone was overly sweet—pretty privilege at its finest.

He scanned the room, his gaze naturally settling on Vance. Audrey's cheeks flushed pink.

She walked straight to Vance's desk, her voice soft and hesitant. "Hi, can I sit here with you?" The entire classroom instantly fell dead silent.

Everyone's eyes darted between the two of them, as if they naturally belonged to the same glamorous, golden world.

I sat just a few feet away, blending in like a faded, outofplace prop in the background. The morning sunlight hit them perfectly, framing the pictureperfect couple. Seriously?

Am I just invisible air to them now? Chapter 2 A vein throbbed at my temple.

Vance shot me a heavy glance. "You have to ask my seatmate if she's cool with it." Audrey's smile stiffened.

She turned her big, pleading eyes to me. "I'm new here, and I don't really know my way around yet. Could you maybe…" I glanced at Vance again.

He kept his head down, lips pressed into a tight line. But the floating text panels had already spoiled the plot—he fell in love with her at first sight. He obviously wanted this.

I wasn't about to play the villain and stand in true love's way. "Sure," I said, grabbing my backpack. "I'll pack my stuff." The second the words left my mouth, Vance slammed his hands onto the desk, his knuckles turning dead white.

He stared straight at me, and some stupid part of me actually hoped he'd say something to stop me. Instead, he let out a harsh scoff. "Fine. Sit wherever you want.

It's been years anyway. I'm sick of looking at you." That stung. Like swallowing a mouthful of ash. I didn't say a single word.

I just shoved my books into my bag and dragged my chair to the empty spot a row back. The guy in the back row was Tucker.

Everyone called him the Monkey King because he was always scaling trees and causing chaos. We were basically two menaces cut from the same cloth.

The moment I dropped my bag, he leaned over, practically vibrating with gossip. "What's the deal with you two? Did you fight?

Vance has been in a killer mood all morning." I looked up.

Vance had his face buried in his folded arms, clearly pretending to sleep so he wouldn't have to talk to Audrey. "No fight," I said, pitching my voice just loud enough to carry over the classroom hum. "Just been hanging out for too long.

Got bored of each other." Vance's broad shoulders flinched.

After the bell rang, I pulled the stillwarm boiled eggs out of my bag and tossed a couple to Tucker. "Bless you, my queen," Tucker cheered.

He trotted over to the classroom door to peel them. Vance sat up. He stared daggers at Tucker for a long moment.

Then, Vance's long legs crossed the distance to my desk in three sharp strides.

His tall frame blocked out the fluorescent lights, casting a heavy shadow that swallowed me completely.

He ground his teeth, his voice dropping into a dark, terrifying rumble. "Where is my share, Quinn?" I took a bite of my last egg. "Gave it to Tucker.

If you want breakfast from now on, make it yourself." The color drained from Vance's face, morphing from furious to bonewhite, and finally settling on cold disbelief.

He stared down at me for a long time, his eyes burning with something heavy and accusing. I didn't say a word. I just chewed my food and looked away.

We were heading down two completely different paths. Soon enough, he'd be the untouchable heir to some massive corporate empire, and I was just a smalltown nobody.

Cutting ties now was the smartest move for both of us. Besides, the real female lead had just made her grand entrance.

Clinging to him like a stagefive clinger would just make me look pathetic.

Vance had always been good to me, but if the floating text was right about our future… I couldn't be his friend anymore. We belonged to two completely different worlds.

There was no crossing that line. After that morning, the cold war officially began.

But completely throwing me off guard, he actually marched up to the teacher and demanded a seat change. Now, Vance sat by himself. Right in the row diagonally behind me.

Chapter 3 I could feel the heavy, suffocating resentment radiating from the desk diagonally behind me every single class. Tucker had essentially become my study buddy.

He was a genius at math and science and constantly tutored me. As a tradeoff, I started bringing him breakfast every morning. Our rural town was basically in the middle of nowhere.

We didn't even have a decent bakery, which meant I had never actually eaten a real birthday cake in my life. Turning eighteen was a massive deal.

The second the final bell rang, Tucker turned to me. "You want to head into the city to buy a cake?" My pulse jumped, and a cold knot twisted in the pit of my stomach. "Are you crazy?

What if we don't make it back before dark? It's too far." Tucker thumped his chest. "Relax. My uncle has a motorcycle in the city.

If it gets late, I'll just have him drive us back." So, with a crumpled hundreddollar bill shoved in my pocket, I snuck off with Tucker, keeping the whole trip a secret from everyone.

We were both complete idiots. We got hopelessly lost on the dirt backroads. The sun dipped below the tree line, plunging everything into a thick, inky darkness.

The reality of the situation hit me like a physical blow. Panic squeezed my throat. "What are we going to do?" Tucker lost all his previous swagger. "We're screwed.

This is my fault. I should have brought a damn compass." We huddled together in the damp ditch, my chest heaving with jagged, panicked breaths. We were so stupid.

If Vance ever found out about this, he'd laugh until he choked. Suddenly, the harsh beam of a flashlight sliced through the darkness, hitting Tucker and me straight in the face.

I scrubbed the dampness from my eyes and squinted into the glare. Vance stood at the edge of the ditch, his face carved from ice.

He held a box by a string in one hand. "Are you two eloping, Quinn?" Oh my god. It was Vance. He was staring right at me in all my miserable, mudcaked glory.

I slapped my hands over my face. "What's wrong?

Cat got your tongue?" His voice dripped with pure acid. "Or did the guilt of getting caught sneaking around on a date with Tucker finally push you to end it all right here in the dirt?" What the hell? "Are you out of your mind, Vance?" I snapped, dropping my hands. "Who said we were dating?

And who I hang out with is none of your damn business." For some twisted reason, a dark chuckle slipped from Vance's throat.

Seeing me still stuck in the muddy ditch, he reached out and hauled me up with a single, effortless pull.

Tucker gasped for air beside me. "Bro, pull me up too." Vance shot Tucker a cold glare, looking at him like he was staring at roadkill.

But when my eyes swept over him with a sharp warning, his jawline clenched tight. Reluctantly, he gripped Tucker's arm and hauled him up with a forceful yank. "Thanks, man.

You're a lifesaver." Tucker flipped back to his usual grinning self, leaning closer to Vance. "But what are you doing way out here?" "Buying a cake for someone who doesn't have a heart." My pulse skipped a wild beat.

Did Vance buy that cake for me? I looked up at him, but his gaze was fixed straight ahead, completely ignoring me. I swallowed hard, trying to figure out how to break the ice.

He bought me a cake, after all. I should say something.

But Tucker, entirely clueless to the fact that he was a massive third wheel, kept running his mouth. "I heard it's the new girl Audrey's birthday today.

Don't tell me you bought that for her, bro." A sharp, physical ache twisted my stomach. I was delusional. Why would I think I deserved something like that?

There was no way Vance remembered my birthday. Before Tucker could even finish his sentence, Audrey materialized out of the shadows like a ghost.

Her eyes locked onto Vance, and a brilliant smile broke across her face. "Vance? Were you waiting for me out here? Is that… a cake?

You knew it was my birthday?" Vance stared at Audrey, a flicker of genuine shock crossing his features. I didn't stick around to hear the rest of the humiliating punchline.

I clamped my hand around Tucker's sleeve and bolted into the dark.

Chapter 4 When I dragged myself home, Mom took one look at my face and stopped what she was doing. "Quinn, what's wrong?" I shook my head. "Mom, I need to ask you something." She raised an eyebrow, dropping onto the sofa next to me and pressing the back of her hand against my forehead. "What is it?

Does this have something to do with Vance?" Nothing slipped past her.

I gave a stiff nod. "Hypothetically… if Vance ends up becoming stupidly rich in the future, and falls for someone else, and I turn into a crazy stalker until he literally ruins my life… what should I do?" My rapidfire hypothetical left her blinking in silence for a solid five seconds.

Finally, she stood up and patted my shoulder. "You silly girl. Just find another guy." It was like a lightbulb flickered on. I’d never met my dad.

According to Mom, he wanted her to stay home and play the obedient housewife.

She told him to go to hell, packed her bags, and moved back to this dirtpoor town to farm rather than play house. The main reason, honestly, was that he was broke anyway.

If Vance didn't like me, or thought I wasn't good enough for his shiny new world, then I’d just go date ten different muscle studs.

Why the hell would I waste my time hanging myself on this one tree? Just like that, the invisible weight on my chest lifted.

After a hot shower, I threw myself onto the bed, ready to bingeread some femaleled fantasy novels. Then, a low sound drifted up from the yard. "Cuckoo. Cuckoo." It was Vance.

Back in the day, we had this stupid secret code. The second he made that ridiculous bird call, I was supposed to sneak out and meet him.

He hadn't used it since our little cold war started. Mom went to bed early, and if she caught me sneaking out in the middle of the night to see him, she’d skin me alive.

I turned the doorknob with agonizing slowness and slipped outside. "What do you want?" I crossed my arms. "It's late." I was just being petty.

I'd known him practically my whole life, and he'd never bought me a cake. The second Audrey showed up, he suddenly turned into Mr. Thoughtful.

Yeah, I was keeping score. "Why are you always so riled up lately?" Vance muttered. I stared at a spot on the fence, refusing to look at him.

He let out a heavy sigh, running a hand through his hair. "I didn't buy the cake for Audrey," he said, his voice dropping. "It was for you, Quinn.

Can you have just a little faith in us?" He shoved the bakery box into my hands and turned on his heel, walking away into the dark.

I stood there clutching the string, a hollow feeling echoing in my chest.

The glowing text panels flared up again. [The female lead definitely rejected the cake first, so he just pawned it off on the villainess.

She's going to think it's some grand romantic gesture and cling to him even harder.

Bet he'll regret giving it to her later.] [The cake is hazelnut, which is the female lead's absolute favorite! He totally still has feelings for her!] Was that true?

I stared down at the box in my hands, then looked back down the empty street where Vance had disappeared. Whatever. I was eating it anyway. Who cares if Audrey liked hazelnut?

I liked it too. Chapter 5 I didn't expect Vance's biological parents to track him down this fast. His adoptive parents were simple farmers.

Vance looked absolutely nothing like them as he grew up, and they just assumed it was some weird genetic fluke. Turns out, he really wasn't theirs.

A fleet of black luxury SUVs—the kind with tinted windows and brands I couldn't even pronounce—pulled up outside our rundown high school.

A swarm of men in tailored suits stepped out. Even our principal practically bent over backward, ushering them inside like royalty. The man leading the pack radiated pure old money.

Beside him stood a pale, terrifiedlooking teenager—the rumored fake heir. One look at the kid, and I knew instantly he was the real biological son of Vance's farm parents.

The resemblance was uncanny.

Vance took the whole earthshattering revelation perfectly in stride, almost like he'd been expecting it all along. [The female lead knew he was the real heir this whole time!

She transferred to this dump just to evaluate him for the billionaire family, to see if he was worthy of going back.] [Now the male lead gets his fortune back and gets engaged to the female lead!

The villainess needs to pack up and get the hell out of the way.] Yeah, right. Like this had anything to do with me. These floating comments were hilarious.

I hadn't even opened my mouth, and they were already dragging me into some imaginary catfight. What a bunch of losers.

Vance stared straight at his billionaire biological father, his jaw set and gaze unwavering.

He gripped my wrist, pulling me firmly behind him, his voice forged in iron. "I'll go back with you, but Quinn comes with me. Where she goes, I go." Uh, wait. I never agreed to that