I wasn't the party type of girl at all. Loud music, loud people that I didn't know, it all just seemed silly and pointless to me.

But I was willing to put my thoughts on parties aside in exchange for a chance to either kick the shit out of Caroline or scare the piss out of her.

Going anywhere with Viktor was a chore since he had to use crutches on icy sidewalks (I was his spotter, and I would have been damned if he slipped on my watch), but he was getting okay at it. He told me that in his long list of hockey-related injuries, there wasn't a single one that required crutches besides this one.

Two concussions, a broken wrist, a busted nose, countless pulled muscles and bruises, and a dislocated pinky finger, none of those fazed him. The injuries never deterred him.

Athletes were fucking weird.

In fact, the only reason Viktor had ever questioned his abilities and the merits of the sport was his own damn mind, something he could never escape.

He was his own worst enemy, and there wasn't much I could do to fix it. But there was a distinct change in his personality when he was the only one with access to me, like when we were at Winterview.

Winterview was a small Minnesota town that nobody would ever care about if it weren't for the university. But whether it was from the hockey team or me, Viktor seemed happier there, and therefore, I cared a lot about the town.

The only problem was the fact that I wasn't happy being away from everything besides Viktor.

Viktor and I (plus Diego, but I was ignoring his presence) walked into the party, and to my surprise, there wasn't any loud music. There weren't that many people there either.

Suddenly I liked the Sig Kap parties a hell of a lot more.

"Oh my god, did I seriously cancel my date with Jackie for this lame ass shit?" Diego muttered to himself.

"You did indeed, asshole," I replied with a slight smirk on my face.

Diego took in a breath. "I hate me."

"That makes two of us."

He glared at me for a moment. "You're lucky you have a vagina. Otherwise, I'd kick the shit out of you."

"I doubt that."

My eyes scanned the people there, and I didn't know who any of them were.

I turned to Viktor. "Where's Caroline?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. But do you see those two guys over there?" He covertly pointed over to two guys talking to some girl.

"I'm not blind, so yeah," I replied.

"That's Adrian and Hunter Jardetzky. Didn't you want to talk to them?"

"That's them?" I squinted, even though it didn't help me see any better. I needed a new prescription on my contact lenses. "I expected them to look more like twins. They don't even look related."

The taller one had a face splattered with freckles and a haircut that looked like it was from a shitty 80s movie, and the shorter one had a couple teeth missing and a man bun.

No wonder Caroline picked Viktor over those two.

"They're certainly not as identical as the triplets, but it makes it easy to tell them apart," Viktor said.

I nodded. "Anything I should know before I go?"

"Not really. They're not that smart, so try not to use big words."

If Viktor said someone was stupid, that said a lot.

"Okay," I said, then made my way over to the Jardetzky twins.

The twins laughed at something, but the girl they were talking to seemed less than impressed.

"Yeah, I think I'll be going now. Have fun talking to someone who's not me," she said, then waddled away in heels she wasn't any good at wearing.

"You guys can talk to me, then," I piped up. "I'm Amanda, Viktor's bestie. He's probably told you all about me."

"Yeah, I have no idea who you are," the taller one said.

"Of course, we know who you are. Except, let's be clear, we're Viktor's 'besties,'" the shorter one added.

"You're really not. I've heard you're putting him through hell, and I just wanted to tell you to knock that shit off," I said.

"What the hell did we do?" the taller one asked. He seemed like more of a Hunter than an Adrian to me, so whether that was his actual name or not, he was officially Hunter in my book.

"That asshole snitched, I bet," the shorter one, who was now deemed Adrian by default, said.

"Nope. No one snitched. I just figured it out all on my own." Of course, I only knew about half the story, but they didn't need to know that. "Just wanted to ask you two what's up with the whole 'cheating' thing."

"What cheating thing?" Adrian asked.

"You have more teeth than you have brain cells, I see. We can work with that, I guess. I know that you're somehow involved with Caroline to raise your grades, so you can remain eligible for sports. Now, either you tell me where the fuck Caroline is, or you tell me what's going on."

"Oh, wait. I know who you are," Hunter said, nodding slowly. "You're the loudmouth in our sociology class last semester."

"Yep, that's me." I smiled.

"Ha, that realization hit me like bird shit." Hunter laughed. "I'm stupid."

"I agree, but don't change the subject. I want answers, and I want them now," I said.

"It'd be best if you didn't ask these two idiots for anything. They can't even maintain a two point GPA without my help," a voice said from beside me.

I turned to her. "I knew I smelled two-faced bitch."

Caroline ran her fingers through her shiny hair. "Look, Amanda, I'm sorry it had to come to this. I just wanted you to post the video on your own, and when you didn't, I had to take matters into my own hands."

"Don't even pretend like you had good intentions. You used me, you're using Viktor, I'm sure you're using the twins for some personal gain, and quite frankly, it needs to stop somewhere."

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't use you. I did, and I'm sorry. But Dr. Mann needed to go, and now, he's on his merry way straight out the door where people like him belong. You were just the piece I needed to put it all into play."

I took in a sharp breath. "Now I look like a liar. I'm a lot of horrible things, but I'm not a fucking liar. And what happens to you? Nothing. You act like you're a martyr for some cause, but I'm the sacrificial lamb again."

"Again?" she asked.

"Never mind that. Just—just, fuck—"

Her voice went soft. "I'm really sorry, but it was for a reason. A damn good reason, if you ask me. I couldn't sit there and be complacent anymore. Dr. Mann was worse than you could imagine. He had to go."

"I don't care if there was a reason. I seriously don't. And I've seen some pretty horrible people in my time, so he's not capable of anything unimaginable for me."

What could Dr. Mann possibly have on a convicted felon like Lukas? A backstabbing bitch like Eleanor or Caroline?

Caroline frowned. "I didn't mean to frame you and make you out to be the villain, but it was my only shot at justice."

"Then what the fuck is the issue, if you're so set on getting justice?"

"I told you, he messed with people I really care about. You're one of many, and you got away relatively unscathed."

I tried to read her face, and I couldn't tell whether the sorrow was real or an attempt to pull on my heartstrings.

Unfortunately for her, I had no heart.

"Oh, boo-hoo. We've all been screwed over by someone before. You just gotta put on your big girl panties and deal with it," I said.

She stared back at me with wide eyes, speechless for a moment. "I guess so."

"I have no sympathy for people like you. You put your own narrative before my reputation. That says more about you than it does about me, don't you think?"

Caroline looked over her shoulder where the girl I had met earlier, Drew, was standing, then back at me. "Just get out of here. I don't want you here."

"Then I'm taking your boyfriend with me," I said.

"Uh, no. He's mine, and you need to get your fat ass out of here."

"Chick fight," Adrian said.

I forgot the twins were still standing there.

"He's not yours. Just because you've got the keys to his career, that doesn't mean shit," I said.

"Look, honey, I know you're no good at this, but this isn't just a game for me. It's a lifestyle. I've clawed my way to the top, and I'm never coming down. I've been on the ground with the peasants, and that sure as hell ain't the life for me."

"What's your goal? Money? Open your eyes. Viktor can't get you there anymore. You're gonna have to latch on to someone else. If you're not a queen without a man, you sure as hell aren't one with one. If you have to climb the corpses of other girls to take a seat on your throne, you're not a queen either."

"The hypocrisy from you is astounding." Caroline shook her head. "Where would you be without Viktor? Nowhere."

"No, I'd be in Texas right now. That's where I'd be. But you know what? I'm not there, and I'm not going to let you walk all over the two of us. He won't fight back, but I have no problem jamming a knife into a bitch's kidney."

"Aren't you just full of hypocritical comments today?"

"The thing is, I know I'm not a queen. I'm just a petty badass bitch who likes to steal Satan's throne every once in a while."

She rose her eyebrows, then turned to the twins. "Adrian, get her the fuck out of my sight."

The shorter one frowned, which supported my guesses from earlier. "What do you want me to do? Fight a girl?"

"I don't give a fuck. Just get her out of here."

"I'll fight you. I don't care," I said.

"Just leave, man. I'm not gonna hurt you," Adrian said.

I shook my head. "Someone's gonna have to drag me out of here. I don't fucking care."

"Then get Viktor to remove this thing from my goddamn house." Caroline looked over her shoulder again. "Where the fuck did Drew go?"

"She probably got tired of your shit," I said. "Can you blame her?"

"Do you know her?" Caroline asked.

I nodded. "I met her briefly. Seemed nice enough."

"Yeah, she's a sweetheart, isn't she? If only the world was filled with people like her."

The room got about ten degrees cooler in her shade, but I didn't care.

"But Amanda, I just thought a strong woman like you would be down for our cause. I was wrong, I guess. Hunter, you can remove her now," Caroline added, and with that, Hunter Jardetzky picked me up like I weighed nothing and carried me out of the Sig Kap house.

I swung my hands with whatever force I could muster in our awkward position. "Let go of me, you asshole."

"Sorry, kiddo. You seem nice enough, but I kinda work for Caroline. You know enough to know I just have to go along with her," Hunter replied, unfazed by my lame ass punches.

"Nice enough? I'm a bitch. Were you not listening to the conversation?" I said.

"Not really. I don't really give a shit about getting caught at this point."

That completely contradicted his previous statement about having to go along with Caroline, but I ignored it.

"Just let me know where your dorm is. I'll take you back there," he continued.

I shook my head, then swung at his arm again. "Oh hell no. That's exactly how people get raped and murdered."

Plus, I certainly didn't want anyone to see me in such a vulnerable position. I looked like one weak motherfucker.

"Fair point. How about I just drop you right here?" Hunter replied.

"Sounds lovely."

He set me down like he was afraid to break me or something, and I smoothed down my coat to its normal position.

"Tell Viktor to get out of there as soon as possible," I said.

"Will do. You said your name was Claire, right?"

"It's Amanda," I replied.

"Huh. You just seem like a Claire to me," Hunter said.

"Whatever. Just go tell Viktor that."

"You got it, Claire."

At that point, he had to have been messing with me. He couldn't have been that dumb.

Or maybe he was. Viktor said the twins weren't all that bright.

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Hey everyone! Thank you for reading!

So what's the deal with Caroline? Is there any reason she could possibly have that makes her actions okay?