You know what I envy about you, Jennie?”

Blair’s voice is sweet poison as she smiles with just her teeth. “You manage to be the center of everything without lifting a finger.”

~$~

The glass walls of the restaurant sparkle under the noon sun, but everything feels dim inside me. Reo and I sit at a private corner booth overlooking the city skyline—one of those fancy places where even the silence tastes expensive. My cutlery glints too sharply. The air smells like fresh lemon zest, slow-cooked truffle, and money.

I feel like a doll propped up for show.

Across from me, Reo is looking at his phone and tapping furiously...