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Chapter 2 - Chapter 2:The Golden Boy

Every college has one: the student everyone seems to orbit around, the one who walks through campus as if the world tilts slightly toward him.

At St. Doyle College, that person was Liam Carter.

It wasn't just that he was handsome though he was, in that effortless, all-American way that made professors remember his name and freshmen whisper when he passed. It was the combination the smile that came easily, the charm that never felt forced, and the confidence that came from always being good at everything he touched

He was the captain of the baseball team, a business major on scholarship, and the face of the college's newest recruitment campaign. His photo bat in hand, sun setting behind him hung on the wall of the student center under the slogan:

"Dream Big. Play Hard."

To most people, Liam's life looked perfect. To Liam, it was just exhausting.

He'd been playing the role for so long that it barely felt like his anymore,the polished son, the team leader, the student everyone trusted. Beneath it all, though, there was a quiet, unspoken fear: that if he stopped pretending, even for a second, everything would collapse.

On a crisp September morning, Liam leaned against the dugout railing, squinting at the field as his teammates warmed up. The smell of cut grass and pine resin filled the air. His coach was shouting something about focus and discipline, but Liam wasn't really listening. His phone buzzed in his pocket, a text from Noah, his roommate and best friend since freshman year.

Noah: Coach said the scouts from Boston might show up next week. You ready to be famous or what?

Liam smirked and typed back,

Liam: I was born ready. You know that.

But he didn't feel ready at all.

He slipped his phone back and grabbed his bat, stepping onto the field. The sun hit his face, and for a second, he looked every bit the hero everyone thought he was the boy with everything ahead of him.

In the stands, a few girls watched, whispering to each other. They always did. It was part of the routine now,giggles, glances, occasional selfies when they thought he wasn't looking. Liam didn't encourage it, but he didn't stop it either. It was easier to play the role than to fight it.

After practice, he and Noah walked back to their dorm. Noah was the opposite of Liam in every way scruffy hair, sarcastic grin, always a bit out of step with everyone else. But he was loyal, and he saw through Liam in ways most people didn't.

"You good, man?" Noah asked, slinging his glove over his shoulder.

"Yeah. Just tired," Liam said.

"You've been tired since freshman year. You sure it's not just the 'perfect guy' act wearing you down?"

Liam laughed softly. "Maybe.

They reached their dorm Room 214, North Hall. Liam paused for a second before unlocking the door. Inside, the room was neat, almost unnaturally so. His textbooks were lined up by subject, his shoes arranged by color. It wasn't vanity; it was control. The one thing he could still manage when everything else felt like a performance

He dropped his gear, stretched, and turned on the small speaker on his desk. The low hum of music filled the room,something soft, rhythmic, grounding. For a few minutes, he just sat there, staring at the trophies on his shelf. Each one represented a version of him that people admired — but none of them felt real anymore.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Liam called.

It was Coach Reyes, mid-40s, broad-shouldered, still carrying the authority of a man who'd once played pro ball.

"Carter," the coach said, stepping in. "You've been sharp lately. Keep that up, and we'll have scouts lined up at the gate."

"Thanks, Coach."

"Don't thank me. Just stay out of trouble. You're a role model on this campus. Don't forget that."

Liam nodded. The words "role model" hit like a weight. Coach left, and the door clicked shut. Liam exhaled. Stay out of trouble if only it were that easy.

Because trouble was already closer than anyone knew.

That evening, he walked across campus for a late meeting with a man he shouldn't have known. The man waited by the back gate near the parking lot leather jacket, sunglasses even in the dark. Liam handed him a sealed envelope, his hand steady even though his heart raced.

"Same place next week?" the man asked.

Liam nodded. "Same time."

He watched him disappear into the night and told himself it was harmless. Just a side hustle. Just temporary.

When he got back to his dorm, Noah was asleep. The campus was quiet. Liam sat at his desk, staring at the envelope's twin another one, unsealed, with names and numbers he didn't dare read twice. He shoved it into a drawer and turned off the light.

Across campus, Emily Hayes was finishing her shift at the campus café. She'd seen Liam before who hadn't? But today, for the first time, she'd spoken to him. Briefly, just enough for him to thank her when she handed him his coffee. But she couldn't shake the way his voice had sounded up close, the way his eyes met hers, calm but unreadable.

Her friend Tessa teased her endlessly as they closed up.

"You're blushing again," Tessa said, grinning.

"I'm not."

"Oh, come on. The Liam Carter smiled at you. That's, like, a campus event."

Emily laughed, embarrassed. "It's not like that. He probably doesn't even know my name."

Tessa smirked. "Give it a week."

As Emily walked back to her dorm, she thought about that smile again. There had been something behind it not arrogance, but sadness, maybe even fear. She didn't know why that stuck with her.

Under the pale glow of the lampposts, she whispered to herself, "You look like someone who needs saving."

Back in Room 214, Liam couldn't sleep. The glow of his laptop cast long shadows on the wall. Numbers, messages, names. Everything organized, coded, clean just like the rest of his life.

He shut it all down and stared out the window at the dark campus below. Somewhere out there, the rest of the world believed he was perfect.

But inside, he knew better.

And he wondered, not for the first time, what would happen if someone ever knew the truth.

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