Chapter 4

"Confessing when she knows he has a girlfriend? What a trashy homewrecker."

"So what if you're his childhood friend? No matter how close you are, you're just a friend. Learn some damn boundaries!"

"She's literally the textbook definition of a toxic pick-me girl. Didn't say a word for years, but the second he gets a girl, she rushes to mark her territory."

"Thank god Mason rejected her. She looks toxic as hell just from the video."

...

Most of the people commenting had probably never seen my face in real life, yet armed with a short clip, they projected the foulest malice onto me without a second thought.

I tried messaging the original poster, but the moment I identified myself, they blocked me.

Afterward, I attempted to defend myself in the comments section, but it only triggered an avalanche of worse insults and personal attacks.

I had never been good under immense pressure. When bad things hit, panic always paralyzed me.

At that moment, the only person I could think of who could possibly help me was Mason.

As long as he was willing to step forward and clarify, all of this could be put to rest.

With that thought, I dialed Mason's number without hesitation, but once again, it wouldn't go through.

Desperation burning through me, I decided to go look for him in person.

I crouched outside his dorm building and waited for hours until I finally spotted Mason walking back.

"Mason!"

I called out loudly. He stopped in his tracks and turned to look at me.

I walked up to him, held out my phone with the post pulled up, and said, "You've seen this post, right? I genuinely didn't know you had a girlfriend. If I had known, I swear I never would have done that. Could you... could you please help me clear this up?"

Mason took the phone, skimmed the post, and looked up. "I don't have a girlfriend. What is there to explain?"

I froze, completely thrown off by his answer.

"You don't have a girlfriend? Then just say publicly that you're single! That way, people won't think I'm some homewrecker trying to steal someone's man!"

Yet Mason shook his head and flatly refused.

"I can't say that. If I do, what happens to Natalie? She comes from a broken home and she's already so insecure and sensitive. If I clear things up for you, it's going to hurt her. I can't do that to her."

"Wait... how?" My voice cracked. "How does clearing my name hurt her?"

"Right now, everyone assumes Natalie is my girlfriend. If I suddenly come out and say I'm single just to defend you, what are people going to say about Natalie? She's fragile. What if she does something drastic?"

I stared at Mason in utter disbelief, my voice breaking. "Then what about me? What am I supposed to do? Do I deserve to be dragged through the mud and harassed by the entire campus?"

Mason looked down at me, his eyes filled with sheer disappointment. "Mandy, could you stop being so dramatic? They're just a few online comments, what's the big deal? Stop being so selfish, okay? Learn to think about other people for once."