Part 2A Love Rewritten

“Thea, what’s too late?”

“You haven’t had that much to drink. Come on, have another.”

A voice pulled me from my memories. I realized I was back in my senior year of university. Jaxon was hosting a graduation party for our class at his family’s empty villa. For everyone else, it was the start of a new chapter. For me, in my last life, it had been the entrance to hell.

The sweet, cloying voice belonged to Beth. Liam always told me I should be more like her, that even her anger sounded like a lover’s pout, irresistible to any man.

I couldn’t hold my liquor, but when the campus belle offered a toast, refusing would have been a social death sentence. Unfortunately, I’d been reborn just a moment too late. I’d already downed a glass, and the world was starting to spin.

So, no matter how much Beth coaxed, I refused to drink another drop. I just adjusted my glasses and pretended to be drunker than I was. I had a job to do later; I couldn’t afford to be completely wasted.

Seeing my refusal, a sly look entered Beth’s eyes. She raised her own glass to the table. “If the star student won’t drink, I’ll drink the rest for her.”

I lowered my head, a cold smile touching my lips. She was drinking from her own glass but claiming it was for my sake. In my past life, I’d never had an ounce of her cunning. Her words were sweeter than any song.

I poured myself a glass of water and sipped it, quietly watching her performance. By now, Liam had already gotten Jaxon drunk and taken him upstairs. Liam himself had had too much and was resting in the room next to Jaxon’s. Beth’s dramatic display of drinking could only mean she had something else in mind.

Soon, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes were hazy. She leaned against me, her voice just loud enough for everyone to hear. “Thea, I drank so much for you, I’m feeling dizzy. Can you help me upstairs to rest? My life is in your hands now. You have to keep me safe, okay?”

In my past life, Beth had already gotten me completely drunk. I’d only caught the last part about going upstairs to rest before she half-dragged my stumbling form up the stairs.

But this time, I saw the cleverness in her words and actions. She was making it sound like it was my fault she was drunk, that it was my duty to see her safely to a room. With that one statement, she planted a seed in everyone’s mind: whatever happened to her tonight would be my fault. Her drunken, helpless state, needing me for support, only solidified her image as the innocent victim.

But no one could see that, from their angle, Beth, who was taller than me, wasn’t just leaning on my shoulders. She was digging her fingers into them, her grip surprisingly strong as she steered me toward the stairs.

The pain made me wince. Fine. I could play drunk too.

I pretended to take off my glasses, and in that motion, I shook off her grip. Then, I went completely limp, collapsing into her arms. A head shorter than her, with a flushed, baby face, I wrapped my arms around her and whined, my voice soft and slurring, “Beth, I’m so dizzy! I can’t walk.”

No one had expected this. In their eyes, Beth and I were rivals. Liam liked her, and during a game of truth or dare earlier, I had admitted that I liked him.

“Oh no! The star student is really drunk,” someone exclaimed.

Hidden in Beth’s embrace, I stayed silent, playing my part. Out of sight, a small smile touched my lips. My little act had startled Beth; I saw her eyes clear for a second. But she needed me to be her scapegoat tonight, so she gritted her teeth and didn't push me away. Besides, to make her act convincing, she really had drunk a lot. She was at least eighty percent gone.

I looked up at her, my hair a mess, and blinked. “Beth, let’s sleep together tonight.”