Chapter 1

I was standing at the hotel entrance handing out flyers when someone shoved me hard from behind.

I spun around and was shocked to see Jessica Dixon, our high school prom queen.

"I was wondering who dared to block my way. Oh, look! If it isn't Christine Cooper, the top student in our class." Jessica smirked triumphantly, ignoring my obvious rage.

"I heard our resident genius was dirt poor, but I had no idea you were handing out flyers on the street corner."

Her sidekick scrambled forward to echo her taunt, while the rest of our classmates remained silent. I stepped forward to confront her, but Jessica snatched the stack of flyers right out of my hands.

"Oh, look at that! Passing out flyers for my family's hotel? Well, considering you're working for us, I'll let your little attitude slide today. Let's go, guys."

She tossed the flyers into the air and strutted into the hotel, leading the group with her head held high. The glossy leaflets scattered all over the pavement.

As I crouched down to gather them, a bewildered thought crossed my mind.

"Since when did my family's hotel belong to her?"

Chapter 1

Just as I finished retrieving and organizing the flyers, my phone rang. It was the manager, Javier Davis.

"Christine! Where the hell are you?" he snapped. "Once you finish handing off those flyers, get your ass back in here. Don't you dare hide outside slacking off!"

"Sir, there was a little incident, so I haven't finished the task yet," I said frankly, trying to explain what had happened.

But he cut me off before I could get another word in. "I don't give a damn about your excuses. It's just 500 flyers, and you still haven't done it. What are you good at? I'm docking half your pay today."

Before summer break started, my parents and I had agreed that I would work at our family's hotel every vacation to get familiar with the business.

Once I graduated, they planned to hand over the entire business to me. On top of that, they promised that if I stuck it out through this summer, they'd double my allowance when the new semester began.

Thinking about my empty bank account, I swallowed my pride and kept quiet.

"Fine," Javier sighed. "Forget about the flyers. We have some important guests in the house, so get back here and help out."

Before I could respond, he slammed the phone down.

I hurried back inside. The second I stepped into the lobby, Javier handed me a heavy food tray.

"Hurry up!" he barked. "Take this to the Lotus Suite. Don't keep the guests waiting."

He shoved the tray into my hands, his voice dripping with impatience. "Hey, you over there. Don't go in there. All the dishes for the Lotus Suite are going to be served by Christine."

He glared at me, as if I had robbed him of an opportunity. "Listen! The guests are crucial. If they hadn't specifically requested your service, I'd be delivering the food myself."

I caught my breath and balanced the tray before walking toward the suite.

Curiosity gnawed at me. "What kind of important guests could be in there to make the manager so nervous? Did my parents show up unannounced?"

When I pushed open the double doors of the Lotus Suite, I was stunned. Sitting in the room were none other than Jessica Dixon and her friends.

How could they be considered VIPs?

It wasn't that I looked down on them, but my parents had just reviewed our high-profile corporate accounts with me. Jessica and her people weren't even on the list.

I steadied myself and smoothly served the dish onto the table. The classmates sitting around the table looked at me with mixed expressions of amusement and awkwardness.

Finally, Matt Reynolds, our class president, broke the silence. "Hey, we are classmates after all. Why don't you sit down and grab a bite with us, Christine?"

He shot a nervous glance behind me. I turned around, only to realize Jessica had snuck up right behind me at some point.

"Gosh! Are you blind? You almost stepped on me!" she shrieked, startling me.

"You crept up right behind me without making a sound," I shot back, unfazed. "I don't have eyes in the back of my head, so how was I supposed to see you? Besides, I'm a good three feet away from you. What are you screaming about?"

Not expecting me to talk back, Jessica turned livid. "Screaming? Open your damn eyes and look! These are designer heels that cost $18,000 a pair. If you scuff them, can you even afford to pay me back?"

Her sidekick, Tiffany Scott, jumped in. "Pay for them? Look at the pathetic way she's dressed. She probably doesn't even know what high fashion is.

"Christine, with your low wage, you'd have to work half a year without eating or drinking just to buy those shoes. If you know what's good for you, apologize to Jessica and foot the bill for our dinner. Otherwise, you'll pay a heavier price."

The rest of our classmates, eager to watch the drama unfold, chimed in one after another.

"Yeah, Christine. You haven't come to a single party in the past two years, and you even left the class group chat. We'll give you a chance to make up. Cover the check, and we'll let it slide."

Chapter 2

Right after high school graduation, I left our class group chat.

I did it for one reason: to dodge my classmate, Brandon Miller. He used to corner me after school every day. He relentlessly hit on me until graduation and spammed the group chat with embarrassing romantic gestures.

The rest of our classmates just egged him on, playing wingmen and giving him cringey advice. A few even urged him to show up at my door and ask my parents for my hand in marriage.

I was so sick of it that I dropped out of the chat altogether. Who would have thought that today, they'd turn around and play the victim first?

I was just about to push back when the door to the suite clicked open.

"What's everybody chatting about? Sounds lively in here."

Speak of the devil; it was Brandon. Despite the sweltering mid-summer heat, he was sporting a black trench coat and buffed-to-a-shine leather shoes.

Above that monstrosity was a tower of hair gel holding up the same creepy, sleazy smirk I remembered.

"Man, the AC in my Maybach is blasting," he said smoothly. "I'm practically wearing winter gear, and I still almost caught a cold."

The classmates at the table instantly jumped to their feet, ushering him toward the head of the table like royalty.

"Now, who was stupid enough to piss off my little princes?" he continued. "Just tell your man, and I'll take care of them."

Then, as if he had only just noticed the standoff at the door, he shot me a contemptuous look. Jessica trotted over with an exaggerated pout and threw herself into his arms.

"It's that bitch Christine! Babe, you have to get back at her for me." She glared at me venomously, putting on a show of play-act helplessness.

"Christine? You don't mean that waitress standing at the door, do you?" Brandon stared at me with an amused, patronizing grin. "Damn, Christine... If you'd just said yes to me back in the day, you wouldn't have been standing here serving food.

"Tell you what, I'll give you a second chance. Agree to be my side chick today, and I'll wipe the slate clean for everything that happened."

Nestled in Brandon's chest, Jessica gasped and whipped her head up in disbelief, her watery eyes instantly welling up with tears.

"Brandon, don't you want me anymore?" she sobbed theatrically. "I knew you were still obsessed with her. If that's how it is, I might as well just end it all right now."

She made a dramatic motion, as if going to hurl herself against the wall. Brandon quickly snagged her waist, looking down at her with sickly sweet affection.

"Babe, come on," he cooed. "You're my one true love. Making her my side chick is just so you can mess with her whenever you want. She rejected me back then, and now she's picking on you.

"I'm going to drag her name through the mud. I'm doing all of this for you."

"Oh, you're the best!" Jessica laughed. "Since you treat me so well, your reward is buying me a designer bag."

And just like that, the two of them started making out right in front of everyone. The people in the room didn't even try to stop the pair. Instead, they cheered and clapped, showering them with praise for being such a power couple.

"Crazy, the whole lot of them!" I muttered, disgusted by the nauseating display.

My stomach rebelled, and I made a loud gagging sound. "Sorry, guys. Your love is just way too intense for my weak stomach. I'll get someone to clean up the floor."

I turned to bolt. But before I could take two steps, someone blocked my path.

"Not so fast!" Tiffany stepped up. "You think you can just bully Jessica and walk out of here?"

She launched into a wildly exaggerated account of how I had supposedly harassed her bestie. Right on cue, Jessica buried her face in Brandon's chest, letting out soft sobs.

"Christine intentionally bumped into me on the street earlier, and then inside, she slammed her foot right onto mine. She even claimed the shoes you bought me were knockoffs. Brandon, you have to get justice for me." She clung to him like a helpless damsel.

I was almost impressed by her ability to flip the truth upside down. At this point, while I had zero desire to waste my breath on these clowns, I wasn't about to let them smear my name without putting up a fight.

"Everyone bore witness," I said, sweeping my eyes across the crowd. "Whether I bumped into Jessica, stepped on her shoes, or insulted her, you all saw what happened. Brandon, why don't you ask our classmates if a single word of what Jessica just said is true?"

I wasn't expecting any of them to take my side. I just hoped someone would at least have the decency to state the plain facts.

Yet not a soul stepped forward. They all averted their eyes, shifting uncomfortably to avoid eye contact with me.

Left with no other choice, I called out to our class president. "Matt? You were standing right there and saw everything. What do you say?"

Hopefully, he would consider his reputation and tell the truth.

"Uh... well... you see..." Matt swallowed hard, stumbling over his words. "Everyone was chatting just now, and I wasn't paying attention.

"But... Brandon is a young, successful entrepreneur, and Jessica is his partner. She obviously wouldn't lie or frame you. Honestly, Christine, the problem is probably on your end."

The others immediately echoed his words.

"Matt is totally right."

"Matt has always been fair. It's definitely Christine's fault."

"She has always acted all high and mighty, ignoring Brandon like she is better than him. Who knows? Now that Brandon has made it big, maybe she's pulling this stunt on purpose just to get his attention."

"If you ask me, Jessica and Brandon are a match made in heaven. Christine is just green with envy. I bet when Brandon offered to make her his side chick, she was secretly thrilled inside."

Chapter 3

A wave of bitter sorrow washed over me.

These were my classmates. Even after witnessing the truth with their own eyes, they still chose to spread rumors, frame me, and drag my name through the mud—all just to brown-nose a guy with money and power.

And they were doing it for free, without Brandon even promising them a thing in return.

"They say the majority is always right. Christine, what do you have to say now?" Brandon sneered. "I'll give you two choices: become my side chick, or get down on your knees and lick Jessica's shoes squeaky clean.

"To tell you the truth, this hotel is going to be mine very soon. If you play your cards right, I might look out for you once I take over. Look at you. You must be desperate for cash. How about this? I'll bump your pay up by 20 dollars a day once I take charge."

Everyone in the room erupted into boisterous laughter, praising him for his generosity while pressuring me to bow my head and apologize.

I stood my ground, unable to comprehend what I had done wrong.

"Actually, this hotel..."

Hurt and furious, I was just about to blurt out that the hotel belonged to my family when the door swung open with a squeak.

"Excuse me, I noticed our waitress hadn't come out in a while, so I came in to check if everything was all right," Javier purred, his face dripping with sycophancy.

His tone was sickeningly humble as he shot a glare at me.

"I accidentally made a mess on the floor. I was just about to clean it up," I said, seizing the interruption.

I had zero desire to keep arguing with these irrelevant people. All I wanted was to get as far away from them as possible.

"Hold on a second," Javier barked, stopping me in my tracks.

He turned to Brandon with a benevolent smile. It was a warm, gentle expression I had never seen on his face the entire time I'd worked here.

"This waitress is new and clumsy. If she's given you poor service in any way, Mr. Miller, please find it in your heart to forgive her. Christine, what are you standing there for? Apologize to Mr. Miller right now!"

I swallowed hard, weighing my options.

As sickening as these people were, I had indeed made a mess on the floor. Besides, now that the manager had stepped in, I figured they wouldn't keep pushing it. The sooner I apologized, the sooner I could escape this nightmare.

I took a breath, bowed slightly, and said, "I'm sorry."

"Who taught you to give a dry, half-assed apology like that? Is that how I trained you during onboarding?" Javier leaned right into my face, looking as if he wanted to swallow me whole.

"I heard everything that happened while I was standing outside. Get down on your knees and apologize to Ms. Dixon."

I stared at him in disbelief. Was this something a hotel executive would say?

"Do it!" he yelled.

In the next instant, a sharp, stinging slap echoed through the room, landing hard across my cheek.

Turning back to Brandon, he instantly swapped back to his groveling smile. "Don't be upset, Mr. Miller. This waitress is inexperienced. I've taught her some manners."

The sheer speed of his transformation almost made me forget the burning pain throbbing on my face.

"On what ground did you hit me?" I yelled with rage.

From passing out flyers on the street corner to delivering dishes to this room, every person had blamed me, pushed me down, and humiliated me.

They felt entitled to crush my dignity simply because they believed they had more wealth and power, showing contempt for anyone they considered beneath them.

"On what ground? Don't you know the customer is king?" Javier snapped. "If hitting you makes Mr. Miller happy, you should take it as a privilege."

Before the words fully registered, he kicked hard at the back of my knees. "What are you waiting for? Get down! Crawl over there on your knees and lick Ms. Dixon's shoes clean."

The force was brutal. Before I could even react, my knees slammed hard onto the floor, sending a piercing pain through my joints.

"Move it!" he barked.

Before I could gain my balance, he shoved me from behind, sending me crashing face-first into the mess on the floor.

An explosion of harsh laughter erupted the second I went down, with Jessica's screeching giggle piercing right above my head.

"You little whore. Let's see if you ever dare to flirt with Brandon again," she jeered. "If you had just apologized to me earlier, you wouldn't have been suffering like this. Now hurry up and get to work on my shoes."

She thrust her shoe right in front of my face. When I wasn't moving, her tone grew even more venomous.

"Listen! People are lining up down the block for a chance to lick my designer heels. I'm giving you fast-track access, so don't you dare be ungrateful," she hissed. "Once you finish licking them, bow down, give me a proper thank-you, and then you can get out of my sight."

She pulled out her phone, aiming the camera right at me to record. When I still didn't budge, she smirked. "Take your time and think it over. A golden opportunity like this won't come around twice."

Turning to Javier with a bright smile, she added, "You did a fantastic job, Mr. Davis. Once we take over, I'm making you the general manager of this entire establishment."

She cast a sultry glance back at Brandon. "Right, babe?"

Brandon shot me a contemptuous glance before looking at her with gooey affection. "Of course, sweetheart. Whatever you say goes."

Turning to Javier, he added, "Nice job, Davis! You've got a bright future ahead of you."

Even from my angle on the floor, I could see Javier grinning so wide his mouth almost touched his ears. He showered them with endless thanks, and the whole room vibrated with festive cheer.

"Ms. Dixon is giving you a golden opportunity here. Hurry up and do what she says, then give her proper thank-you."

"These are designer shoes. Remember how they feel, so when you buy knockoffs in the future, you can get the good ones."

...

Laughter exploded once again, ringing painfully in my ears. Gritting my teeth, I pushed myself up from the floor and shoved away Jessica's foot.

Ever since I started working this summer job, I'd been doing heavy labor every day, building up biceps that were noticeably stronger than before.

My sudden shove sent Jessica stumbling backward. She lost her balance and let out a high-pitched shriek.

"How dare you put your hands on me? Who do you think you are to touch me?" She lunged at me, swinging her arm wildly.

"Scream all you want, Jessica. Even a gopher doesn't squeal as loudly as you." I ducked deftly and gave her a firm push, sending her sprawling onto the floor.

Javier rushed over to stop me, pinning my arms behind my back. "I've got this bitch, Mr. Miller. Don't hold back. Beat the hell out of her."

With my arms locked tightly behind me, I couldn't move an inch.

Brandon ambled toward me with a sinister leer. "I gave you an easy way out, Christine, but you chose the hard way. Now that you're in my hands, you're going to pay."

He turned to the crowd with a vile grin. "Don't just stand there, guys. Get your phones out and record this. Let me put on a nice little strip show featuring our genius."

He reached his hands toward me with a sickening expression. Surrounding us, our classmates eagerly whipped out their phones, pointing their cameras straight at me.

Right then, a voice called out, "Stop!"