By lunch, Penelope's mic speech had gone viral — well, Bayside-viral. It was reposted on three different student-run accounts, quoted in captions, and even turned into an accidental TikTok by someone who caught the last 30 seconds and added dramatic music.
Most people clapped when they saw her. A few nodded like they suddenly remembered she was a person.
But Lila Harper?
She was fuming.
She marched up to Penelope in the quad, flanked by her minions (aka two cheerleaders named Zoe and Also Zoe), arms crossed, sunglasses on despite the clouds.
"Cute little speech," Lila said. "Really touching. Almost had me crying."
Penelope didn't flinch. "Almost?"Lila leaned closer. "You think one emotional mic drop erases what you actually did?"
Penelope blinked. "What I actually did?"
Lila smirked. "You stole someone who didn't belong to you."
Penelope's voice went cold. "Julian isn't property, Lila."
"No," Lila snapped. "But loyalty? Respect? Maybe try those next time."
Before Penelope could answer, another voice cut in.
"Wow. That's rich coming from you."
The crowd turned.
Callie.
She walked up like she'd just been waiting for a moment to unleash a year's worth of restraint.
"You dated Ethan for two weeks, Lila. And dumped him via meme."Murmurs. One kid actually choked on a juice pouch.
Callie kept going.
"You never liked Julian. You liked the attention. And now that someone else actually sees him? You're mad you don't get to rewrite the script."
Lila looked like she'd swallowed a lemon.
"You've got, like, three burner accounts," Callie added. "And one of them still follows your ex-tutor's hamster."
Gasps. Laughter.
Lila opened her mouth.
Penelope stepped in. "You done?"
Lila stared. Glared. And walked away.
Also Zoe whispered, "I still think the speech was iconic," as she followed her.
Ready for Chapter 29? Because Julian's got something to say now… and it's not just to Penelope.