My hands trembled as I watched the video again, then I felt bile rising in my throat. My heart pounded so loud, I couldn't hear my roommate speaking,I couldn't hear anything.
Michael had leaked a video of us.
Blurred but undeniable.
I wanted to scream, I wanted to disappear. I wanted to go back in time and erase every second I had ever spent time with him.
But I couldn't.
I was exposed now.
And the worst part?
It felt like my soul had been stolen.
I locked myself in the bathroom, my roommate kept knocking, asking if I was okay. But what could I say?
"No, I wasn't okay".
I wasn't sure I'd ever be okay again.
I curled up on the cold tiles, fully clothed, eyes wide open, shaking..shame gripped me like chains.
But underneath the shame… was rage.
Burning.
Wild.
Unapologetic.
He thought he'd destroyed me.
But he had just lit a fire.
Amy showed up again, furious, heartbroken, determined.
"We can't ignore this anymore," she said, pacing my dorm room like a storm. "We have to take this to the authorities, for real this time."
I barely recognized my voice.
"What if no one believes us? What if they blame me?"
She stopped.
"Then we scream louder, we won't back down."
I looked at her, real look .
She wasn't just another girl Michael had hurt.
She was a warrior now.
And maybe… I was too.
We went to the school administration the next morning.
Armed with screenshots, videos,voice recordings and names.
We were tired of hiding.
The university counselor filed an official report, she said they'd launch an investigation and involve cybersecurity experts but it would take time.
Amy turned to me after.
"I know someone outside school.
A legal aide.
She works with a women's rights group. Anonymous, powerful, no fluff."
I nodded. "I'm in."
We met the woman two days later.
Her name was Nia.
Sharp eyes.. no-nonsense energy. She listened to our stories like a seasoned soldier on a battlefield.
"I'll say this once," she said, folding her arms. "If what you're saying is true.. and it sounds like it is, then this isn't just college drama. This is a case of digital assault, harassment, and defamation. You have a right to fight back."
I nodded slowly. "What do we do?"
Nia leaned in.
"We play smart.. we gather everything.
We use his ego against him. You say he likes power? Then we bait him with it."
The plan was dangerous and risky, but it gave me a strange feeling I hadn't had in weeks.
Control.
We created a new account..fake, attractive and subtle with attributes of a girl that looked like Michael's type.
Amy helped craft every message, every line, pretending to admire his "confidence," his "ambition."
It didn't take long.
Michael bit.
Within a few days, he was texting this new "girl" late at night. Bragging..flirting..sending voice notes.
One of them? He said:
"These girls I messed with, they were obsessed. You give them attention for a minute, and they lose their minds. One of them's still crying about me, I'm sure."
Another?
"It's easy…make 'em feel seen, then dip before they start expecting stuff."
I listened to those recordings with clenched fists.
Every lie..every manipulation.. every little proof, all his.
Nia compiled everything, and finally, she said: "We're ready."
That evening, Amy and I sat on the rooftop of our dorm building. We were quiet for a while, just watching the sun fall and the sky bruise purple.
Then she said, "Do you regret loving him?"
I thought about it..about the girl I had been before him.
So soft.
So eager.
So trusting.
"I regret believing him," I whispered. "But I don't regret loving.
That was mine.
And it was real.
He just didn't deserve it."
Amy smiled, but her eyes were sad. "Same."
Then she turned serious.
"Are you ready for what comes next?"
I nodded. "I want peace, but if I can't have it quietly, I'll earn it loudly."
But just when I thought we were ready to take him down… another bomb dropped.
A call.
From a private number.
I let it ring three times before answering.
A deep voice.
Not Michael.
"If you don't stop what you're doing… she gets hurt."
I froze.
"Who is this?"
The voice ignored me.
"Back off the case or the girl who helped you disappears."
Amy!!.
I jumped to my feet, panic in my throat. "Touch her and I swear"
I turned to Amy, who was standing by the window, sipping tea and laughing at something on her phone.
She had no idea.
Someone was watching us.
And now it wasn't just my life on the line.