Chapter 1

On the night before the start of junior year, Kyle texted Erin.

【Registration ends tomorrow. I have something to tell you.】

Erin stared at the message, her heart racing all night.

The next day, he told her to wait at the East Entrance.

She waited for an hour. He said he got it wrong—it was the South Entrance.

She dragged her luggage to the South Entrance. Then he said the student council had called him in unexpectedly, and asked her to meet him on the science building rooftop.

By the time she climbed up, out of breath, she saw balloons and roses everywhere.

Her eyes stung with heat.

So the first two detours were just to set up the surprise.

But the next second, Sophia stepped out from the sea of flowers, wearing a paper crown, doubled over with laughter.

"Erin, you didn't actually think this was for you, did you?"

Kyle leaned against the railing, twirling a ring box in his hand.

"Prank success."

"Next time I'll use this to actually confess to you. Today was just a rehearsal—Sophia helped me run through the process."

The people around them burst into laughter.

Luke even made sure to film it and send it to the family group chat.

"Our Erin is still so easy to fool."

She looked at them and suddenly felt that her feelings for Kyle had turned dirty.

"Erin, your eyes were all red just now. You didn't really think Kyle was about to confess to you, did you?"

Sophia circled her, holding the paper crown.

The laughter on the rooftop hadn't stopped.

Erin looked at Kyle, hoping he would at least walk over and say, Enough, stop it.

But he just smiled, closed the ring box, and slipped it into his pocket.

"Just testing the effect today. Looks like it was pretty convincing."

The classmates around them joined in.

"Kyle's too much—who wouldn't fall for that?"

"That's what happens when you grow up together. You can mess with her and she won't get mad. Anyone else would've flipped."

She didn't say a word.

Luke stepped out from the crowd, his phone camera pointed straight at her face.

"Everyone look—Erin got tricked into crying again."

The flash stung her eyes. For the first time, she didn't play along and smile with them.

Instead, she looked at Kyle, her voice dry. "So that message you sent last night—was that part of the script too?"

Kyle paused, the smile still on his lips. "How else were you going to come up?"

He said it matter-of-factly. "You've always liked that kind of ceremonious stuff, haven't you? Consider it a preview."

Her chest went cold, bit by bit.

She liked ceremony because once, when she was being ostracized by classmates and hiding alone on the playground crying, Kyle had walked over and handed her a piece of fruit candy.

He said that from then on, he'd be there for her on every important day so she wouldn't have to be alone.

She still kept the wrapper in her diary.

Sophia, seeing Erin stay quiet, clutched her chest and softened her voice.

"I just wanted to give you an unforgettable memory for your first day of junior year."

"If you don't like it, I'll apologize, okay?"

Luke immediately put his phone away and pulled Sophia behind him.

"Alright, Erin. Sophia's sensitive. Don't scare her."

She looked at her own brother and felt only bitterness.

"I'm the one who got pranked. Why am I the one scaring her?"

Kyle frowned and stepped in front of Sophia. "You know they only mess with you because they see you as one of us."

One of us?

She used to find those words warm. Now they felt like a slap to the face.

Sophia, trying to smooth things over, peeked out from behind Luke.

She held out the paper crown, trying to place it on Erin's head.

"Come on, today you can be a princess too, alright?"

Erin turned her head away. The crown fell to the ground with a soft thud.

The rooftop went quiet. Luke's expression darkened.

"Erin, it's the first day of the semester. Do you have to make everyone uncomfortable?"

Her heart tightened. Suddenly, she remembered when they were kids—every time Sophia played a prank, ruining her homework or cutting up her dress, her parents said the same thing.

They said, Erin, don't be a downer. Don't make things awkward for everyone.

She unclenched her aching fingers, gripped her suitcase handle, and turned toward the stairwell.

Kyle called after her, "Don't be late for the welcome dinner tonight. I still need to talk to you."

She didn't look back. She didn't answer.

Her phone buzzed. She glanced down. A video had just been posted in the family group chat.

Luke's title: 【First Day of Junior Year: My Sister Got Pranked into a Breakdown.】

Relatives quickly lined up laughing emojis.

Her aunt said, "Erin's always been so earnest."

Her mom sent a long voice message. "Erin, Sophia and your brother tease you because they love you. Don't be petty and make a scene."

Standing in the stairwell corner, she finally let the tears fall.

Not because Kyle hadn't confessed. But because everyone acted like she deserved to be their punchline.