Craving My Brother's Best Friend (Bailey and Kaleb) novel Chapter 54

**The Night We Borrowed Fire from a Broken Star by Selvin Arlo Crest**

**Chapter 54**

Bailey’s POV

The incessant buzzing of my phone was like a relentless storm, each notification crashing down on me with a ferocity that left me gasping. My screen lit up with a barrage of messages, each one more venomous than the last, cutting deeper into my already fragile state.

“Whore. You slept with men your dad’s age for grades. Disgusting bitch. Cheap slut. Pathetic girl, rot in hell. Don’t show your face in school again, Kill yourself.”

I scrolled through the hateful words, my vision blurring as tears threatened to spill over. My chest felt constricted, as if an invisible weight was pressing down on me, making it hard to breathe.

No matter how many times I told myself to stop, the compulsion to read on was overpowering.

“Bailey!” Selena’s voice sliced through my haze of despair, sharp and urgent. I looked up to see her pacing my apartment, arms crossed tightly over her chest, her face a mask of anger and worry.

“You need to stop looking at your phone right now,” she insisted, her tone leaving no room for argument.

“I can’t,” I whispered, my voice barely audible, hoarse from the tears. “What if people think it’s true because I’m not saying anything?”

In one swift motion, Selena crossed the room and snatched the phone from my trembling hands. She slammed it down on the table, the sound echoing in the silence like a gunshot. “You’re killing yourself by reading those things. Look at you! You’re shaking, you’re crying. This isn’t helping.”

I buried my face in my hands, the sobs wracking my body. “What am I supposed to do? Everyone thinks I’m disgusting. They think I’m dirty. They think I sold myself for grades.”

Selena crouched before me, her hands gripping my shoulders with a fierce tenderness. “Listen to me, Bailey. You didn’t do any of that. This is a lie, and whoever spread it is going to be caught. I promise.”

I lifted my head, my eyes puffy and red, searching her face for reassurance. “But how? How do I even begin to fight something like this?”

“The forum,” she said quickly, her determination evident. “It was posted on the school forum. Someone runs it. I’m going to find him and make him take it down.”

I blinked at her, a spark of defiance igniting within me. “I’ll go. I’ll talk to him myself.”

“No.” Selena’s voice was firm, unyielding. “You are not going anywhere. If you walk into that school right now, people will attack. You’re not safe outside.”

The very thought of stepping onto campus, of facing those hostile gazes, made my stomach churn violently.

“You’re right,” I admitted, the weight of despair settling heavily on my shoulders.

Going out now would only exacerbate the situation. My name was already plastered across every screen; my face was everywhere, a target for ridicule and scorn.

“Fine,” I whispered, my gaze dropping to the floor. “You go.”

Selena reached for my hands, her grip firm and reassuring. “I’ll be back soon. Just stay inside and don’t step out, okay?”

I sank onto the couch as she left, my phone switched off beside me, a small act of defiance against the chaos. My eyes were swollen from crying, my throat raw and aching.

“Are you sure?” I asked, my voice trembling.

“Yes,” she affirmed. “It’s not safe for you to go to school right now. I’ll find the person in charge of the student forum and tell them to take it down. You just stay here.”

“Okay,” I whispered, the word barely escaping my lips.

Selena softened, returning to squeeze my hands again. “It’s all lies. The idiot who did this will be caught.”

I nodded, though my heart felt like it was being crushed under the weight of my fears.

She left quickly, shutting the door behind her with a finality that echoed in the silence of the room. I curled up on the couch, hugging a pillow tightly to my chest, seeking comfort in its softness.

Suddenly, a loud thud resonated from outside my door, followed by voices that began low and angry but quickly escalated into a cacophony of shouts.

My heart raced, pounding in my ears like a war drum.

Another crash followed, something colliding with the wall, and fear surged through me. “What’s going on?” I whispered to myself, dread pooling in my stomach.

The sounds grew clearer, and I imagined a mob had come to attack me, to unleash their fury.

I rushed to the door, pressing my ear against it, my pulse racing wildly.

“Stay the fuck away from her!” a voice growled.

Kaleb.

I froze, a chill running down my spine.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” another voice shouted, filled with pain and fury.

Ethan.

Without thinking, I flung the door open with such force that it slammed against the wall, the sound reverberating in the hallway.

“Stop!” I screamed, my voice raw and desperate.

But they didn’t hear me. Kaleb’s fist connected with Ethan’s jaw, sending him staggering back against the wall.

Ethan retaliated, swinging back, his fist making contact with Kaleb’s cheek.

“Stop it, both of you!” I cried out, my voice breaking as I lunged forward.

The hallway seemed to freeze for a moment, Kaleb’s fist poised in the air, Ethan pressed against the wall, his face a mask of blood and pain.

Flowers lay crushed on the floor, petals scattered like remnants of a shattered secret.

“Stop it right now!” I pleaded again, stepping closer, my heart pounding in my chest.

Kaleb glanced at me, his chest heaving, sweat glistening on his forehead. His eyes were dark, wild with fury.

Ethan groaned, sliding down the wall, clutching his stomach.

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