Riches in Disguise

That was true. While I found her physically attractive, that was just biology-any guy would find her attractive, but it was not the same as having real feelings.

After lunch, we headed back to campus together. At the entrance, I instinctively started walking in a different direction, but to my surprise, she followed me.

"William, where are you going?" she called out.

I stopped and turned to her, confused about why she was following me. "I thought you wanted to keep your distance from me on campus."

Her face turned bright red at my comment. "That's not true! I-I just wasn't sure if you were really Anonymous this morning. Now that I know it's you, why would I keep my distance? I actually want to get closer to you."

While pondering whether she was telling the truth and had changed her mind, I did not dwell on it. After all, it would be nice to have another friend besides Benjamin, Liam, and Matthew.

As we walked together through campus, I told her, "Keep the fact that I'm Anonymous between us for now."

She gave me a sad smile. "I get it. It's embarrassing to admit you spent money on a girl like me, right?"

"That's not what I meant at all," I protested, wondering where she got the idea.

"It's okay, you don't need to explain. I understand," she insisted.

What exactly did she understand? I sighed and tried to clarify, "I honestly don't think it's embarrassing. You—"

Before I could finish explaining, Felicia suddenly grabbed my hand. "William, look!" she exclaimed, pointing ahead.

I looked up to see Lina wearing a pink dress and carrying a white crossbody bag. The sight irritated me-everything from her clothes to her shoes, bag, and even her hair clip were things I had bought her.

Lina stood there looking flirtatious and shy in front of a guy I had never seen before. After she said something, his face lit up with excitement, and he quickly opened the passenger door of his BMW X5 for her.

It was not the most expensive car, but for a college student, it was pretty impressive.

"William, do you know who that guy is?" Felicia asked.

I shook my head, and she gave me a sympathetic look. "That's Ryan Hudson.

He's been Lina's backup plan."

"Oh, why should I care?" I replied.

"You should! He's been pursuing Lina forever-even before you dated her, and he kept at it even when she cheated with Joshua. Looks like he finally got what he wanted!"

I stood there dumbfounded. It dawned on me that while Lina was dating me, she was not just cheating with Joshua but also keeping Ryan on the hook.

"What is she, some kind of time management expert? How did she juggle three guys without getting caught?" I blurted out in disbelief.

"Three? There were at least seven of them! Only a fool like you couldn't see through her games." Felicia scoffed.

I felt like I was wearing a neon sign that said "sucker" as I watched the BMW drive away, suddenly impressed by Ryan's persistence.

"So Ryan saw her date me and cheat with Joshua, and he still stuck around?"

Felicia snorted. "That's because Lina's a master manipulator. She kept telling Ryan that your relationship was rocky and would end soon, so he just kept waiting like an idiot! Then, when she got with Joshua, she claimed Joshua forced her into it. Ryan felt so bad for her but was too scared to confront Joshua, so he just put up with it."noveldrama

"Damn," was all I could say.