Asher didn't go back to school that week.
Or the week after.
His parents called him in sick while he lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, one hand always resting on his barely-there baby bump.
"Sweetheart, you need to eat something," his fer father pleaded, setting down a tray of soup that Asher hadn't touched.
"Not hungry."
"The baby needs nutrition even if you don't feel like eating."
The baby. Right. The baby created during a bet. The baby whose father had used him as a punchline.
But Kael would never know about this baby.
Asher forced himself to take a few sips of soup.
"Do you want to talk about it?" his mer dad asked gently, sitting on the edge of the bed.
"There's nothing to talk about."
"Elliot told us... about what you overheard. About the bet."
Asher's eyes burned. Of course Elliot had told them. His parents had been worried sick, and Elliot had done what he thought was right.
"I don't want to discuss it."
"Asher—"
"I said I don't want to discuss it!" His voice cracked. "What is there to say? I was stupid. I believed someone like Kael Everhart could actually care about someone like me. I gave him everything and it was all just a game. There. Discussion over."
His parents exchanged helpless looks.
"What about the baby's father?" his mer dad asked carefully. "Don't you think he has a right to know?"
"No." Asher's hand moved protectively over his stomach. "He doesn't get to know. He made his choice when he made that bet. He doesn't deserve to be a father."
"Sweetheart, this isn't just about him. It's about the baby—"
"The baby will be fine. Better than fine. Because they'll have parents who actually love them, not someone who treats people like games." Asher's voice was firm. "Please. Don't make me tell him. I can't—I can't face him again. Not after everything."
His fer father and mer dad exchanged a long look.
"Okay," his mer dad said finally. "We won't force you. But Asher, you need to think about the future. What happens when the baby asks about their father?"
"I'll tell them the truth when they're old enough to understand. That their father wasn't ready to be a parent." That their father never loved me. That I was just a bet.
"Alright," his fer father said softly. "We'll support whatever you decide."
Asher's last day at Silvercrest was the following Monday. He only had to go in to officially withdraw and collect his final belongings.
"I can come with you," Elliot offered over the phone. "Moral support."
"No. I need to do this alone. Closure, or whatever."
"If you see him—"
"I won't. I'll be in and out in fifteen minutes. He'll never even know I was there."
Asher arrived at school early, before most students. The hallways were eerily quiet as he made his way to the administrative office.
Mrs. Patterson, the registrar, looked at him with poorly concealed pity. The story had spread, of course. Everyone knew about the bet now—Asher had heard from Elliot that someone had leaked screenshots of Jax and River bragging about it in a group chat.
The scholarship nerd who got played by the most popular guy in school.
"I'm sorry to see you go, Asher," Mrs. Patterson said, sliding withdrawal forms across the desk. "You were an excellent student."
"Thank you."
He signed the forms mechanically. This was it. The official end of his time at Silvercrest.
"All set," Mrs. Patterson said gently. "I wish you all the best, dear. Truly."
Asher nodded and headed to his locker for the last time.
He was shoving books into his bag when he heard footsteps behind him.
"Asher."
His entire body went rigid.
He turned slowly.
Kael stood five feet away, looking haggard. Dark circles under his eyes, rumpled clothes. He looked like he hadn't slept in days.
"Don't," Asher said, his voice cold. "Whatever you're about to say, don't."
"Please. Just let me explain—"
"Explain what? That you and your friends made a bet about who could sleep with me first? That every moment we spent together was a lie? That you used me and then threw me away like garbage?"
"It started as a bet," Kael said desperately. "But it stopped being one. Asher, I fell for you. Everything I felt was real—"
"Liar."
"I'm not lying! Yes, it started wrong, but—"
"But nothing!" Asher slammed his locker shut. "You had weeks to tell me the truth. Weeks to come clean. But you didn't. You let me fall in love with you knowing it was all fake. You slept with me—took my virginity—and then dumped me in a hallway like I was nothing."
His hand instinctively moved to his stomach before he caught himself and dropped it. Kael's eyes flickered to the movement but he seemed too distraught to process it.
"I know I don't deserve your forgiveness—"
"You're right. You don't. You don't deserve anything from me."
"Then why am I telling you anyway?" Kael's voice broke. "Because you deserve the truth. Because I need you to know that what I felt for you was real."
"You're right. It doesn't change anything." Asher blinked back tears. "You destroyed me, Kael. You made me believe I was special, that I mattered. And it was all a lie."
"I'm sorry—"
"Sorry doesn't fix this!" Asher grabbed his bag. "Goodbye, Kael. I hope the bet was worth it."
He turned to walk away.
"I love you."
Asher froze, his hand unconsciously moving to his stomach again where Kael's baby was growing.
"You don't get to say that to me," Asher said quietly, not turning around. "You don't get to make yourself feel better by claiming you love me. So keep your love, Kael. I don't want it."
"Asher, please—"
But Asher was already walking away, his head held high even as tears streamed down his face.
He didn't look back.
He walked out of Silvercrest High for the last time, one hand protectively over his stomach, carrying a secret he would never share.
Behind him, Kael collapsed against the lockers.
Author's Note: Asher kept the secret! Kael has NO idea about the pregnancy and won't find out for YEARS. The way Asher walked away carrying that secret—heartbreaking but so strong. Next chapter: TIME SKIP to the twins being born and Asher building his new life! Then we'll jump to age 22 when he starts working at Everhart Corporation...