Chapter 12: Confrontations, Chaos, and Unintentional Heartbeats
The backyard had mostly cleared. Lily sat on the steps, soda in hand, enjoying the last of her birthday chaos.
Noah didn't move.
He had stormed past the crowd, the music, and the whispers, straight toward her, his jaw tight and his gaze locked on hers.
"Lily Hart," he growled, voice low and dangerous. "Explain the engagement."
Lily smirked, tilting her head. "I can explain one thing: your ego."
Noah's hands clenched. "This is serious."
"So am I," Lily replied coolly. "Which is why I need you to break it off."
His eyes narrowed. "Excuse me?"
"You heard me," Lily said, tone steady, almost teasing. "Break the engagement. I'll talk to my parents. I'll handle it. But I'm not letting this… happen."
Noah's chest heaved. "You… you're telling me to break it off? After I've accepted it?"
Lily nodded. "Yes. Because I don't want it. And because I want to have fun, breathe, and live my life without drama."
Noah's lips pressed into a thin line. "So this is how you… hate me?"
Her eyebrows rose. "Hate you? I've spent months pretending I didn't care. Now you're saying I hate you because I want control over my own life?"
"No," he spat, voice tight with fury. "This… this isn't about control. I… I'm okay with the engagement."
Her eyes widened slightly. "You're—what?"
"I'm okay with it," he repeated. "If that's what your parents want… fine. I… I don't care. It's fine."
Lily blinked.
Then smirked. "Good. Because I'm not going to fight someone who thinks I should do what they want. You're impossible."
Noah's chest heaved. He wanted to argue. He wanted to grab her, shake her, yell at her… but Lily's eyes held that too-cool-for-you confidence that always made him stop.
Instead, he stormed off.
In the weeks that followed, Lily continued her carefree life, deliberately living on her terms.
She cheered for other guys during sports matches, laughing freely.
She started joining night jogs, hanging out with Mia at cafes, attending spontaneous karaoke nights.
She flirted with models, street performers, and even a magician who performed at the library.
Noah, however, followed her like a shadow.
Everywhere she went, he was there: watching, frowning, simmering.
Publicly, it was obvious. The way he lingered near her during parties, subtly blocked other guys from approaching, or gave a death glare to anyone touching her casually.
Meanwhile… Amy Rivers escalated her sabotage attempts.
She tried to "accidentally" trip Lily during PE class. Lily did a flawless somersault and landed on her feet, leaving Amy sprawling on the floor, twisting her ankle slightly.
She attempted to spike Lily's smoothie with extra chili powder. Lily drank it casually and declared, "This is surprisingly spicy. I like it." Amy nearly fainted in horror.
She spread rumors about Lily flirting with a new exchange student. Lily simply laughed, waved, and introduced the student to everyone as "my new favorite distraction."
Every single sabotage backfired spectacularly, leaving Lily glowing, Noah increasingly obsessed, and Amy spiraling into public humiliation.
And something unexpected happened:
As Lily watched Noah scowl across the cafeteria while she laughed with Mia, a tiny warmth grew in her chest.
She liked that he was jealous.
She liked that he was noticing her.
She liked that he couldn't stop watching her.
She also realized…
She didn't hate him anymore.
Not really.
Not in the way she once had.
And the more she saw him—angry, obsessed, frustrated yet undeniably captivated—the more she wanted to… tease him.
And maybe, just maybe… she liked that too.