Chapter 2

Beatrixa's parents were stunned by her words.

They knew their daughter had always adored Maverick, the boy next door, three years her senior.

She had worked so hard to get into the same university as him. Why would she suddenly change her mind and want to move to Elda with them?

Her mother studied Beatrixa's red-rimmed eyes and asked gently, "Bae, what's wrong? Did Maverick hurt you?"

Beatrixa recalled the words she overheard, her heart aching with bitterness. She shook her head. "Mom, he doesn't like me. He's in love with someone else."

Her parents exchanged a glance and sighed, saying nothing more.

"Go pack your things and say goodbye to your friends here. We have one month," her father said, patting her shoulder with a kind smile.

Beatrixa nodded. Then a knock came at the door.

Her mother opened it to find Maverick standing there, polite as ever. "I need to talk to Bae for a moment. Can she come out?"

Beatrixa hadn't expected him to show up just because she ignored his call and message.

Her mother looked back at her, and after a moment's hesitation, Beatrixa stepped outside.

Maverick noticed her swollen eyes, gazed at her briefly, and sighed, his expression a mix of understanding and resignation.

In those few seconds, he realized she had overheard his words, his face showing a mix of helplessness and annoyance.

"Well, that's unfortunate. You heard everything," he said.

Beatrixa's hands and feet felt cold, her eyes brimming with tears. She looked up at him, dazed. "If you love someone else, why did you give me hope?"

Maverick ruffled her hair, his tone soft. "Didn't you hear? You look a lot like her. I planned to keep this from you. This past year, you've been so good, so obedient. I really liked that about you."

Tears finally spilled down Beatrixa's cheeks.

"Don't worry, I won't leave you," he said, wiping her tears gently with his fingers. "We'll stay together, just like before.

But in everyone else's eyes, you'll just be my neighbor girl."

His eyes remained gentle.

Through them, Beatrixa saw her own pitiful, humiliated reflection.

Stunned, she spoke slowly, each word deliberate. "Maverick, are you asking me to be your mistress?"

He didn't deny it.

Beatrixa's body went cold, her eyes wide with disbelief.

For the first time, the girl who had always been obedient in front of him defied him.

Her eyes were still red, her voice trembled, but she spoke firmly, slowly, with resolve. "I won't do it. Maverick, we're done. From now on, you're just my neighbor."

Maverick hadn't expected Beatrixa to stand up to him.

Anger flared in his chest, and he let out a cold laugh. He released her, stepped back, and looked her up and down, his tone sharp. "Don't regret this. After all, a chubby girl like you? Who else but me would want you? If you come crawling back, it won't be so easy."

Without another glance, Maverick walked away.

Beatrixa lowered her head and pinched her arm hard.

Over her three years of high school, anxiety had led to binge eating, causing her to gain tens of pounds.

She was overweight, but that didn't give Maverick the right to attack her.

Beatrixa turned and went back inside to her room, where she began sorting through the things Maverick had given her.

There were handwritten study notes and key points he had meticulously prepared to help her catch up to him.

In the hundred days before her entrance exam, he had given her a hundred paper cranes, one to open each day.

Every crane carried words of encouragement written in his hand.

Looking at these things, Beatrixa's eyes reddened again as memories flooded back.

When she was seven, Maverick's family moved next door. He became the perfect child in her parents' eyes-smart, handsome, and decent.

He had saved her from drowning, and from that moment, she secretly loved him until she was seventeen.

No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't reconcile the boy who had once bravely saved her with the cold, cruel Maverick of today.

Beatrixa packed the paper cranes, the study notes, and the small gifts he had given her into a box.

When the day came to leave, she would return every single one.