Page 136 of The Revenge Game

I spot Justin at one of the lower viewing platforms, his hands gripping the railing like it’s the only thing keeping him upright.

The wind’s having its way with his hair, creating chaos just like I did with his life. His perfect posture, the one that used to make me think of golden-boy quarterbacks and untouchable popularity, now looks more like armor being held together by sheer willpower.

“Justin,” I call.

Justin turns to look at me.

His face holds none of its usual warmth or the soft humor that usually plays around his mouth when he looks at me.

Instead, his features are set in lines I’ve never seen before, like someone’s redrawn him without any of the light I’ve grown to love.

And a terrible knowledge seeps into me.

Somewhere between plotting my revenge and falling in love with him, I became the worst kind of bully.

The one who makes you trust them before they break your heart.

I hesitate at the top of the steps, suddenly unsure of my right to close the distance between us.

I want nothing more than to pull him into my arms like I’ve done so many times before, to feel his heart beat steadily against mine.

Instead, I stand frozen, watching the wind tug at his tie like it’s trying to unravel him completely.

Justin’s shoulders hunch forward now, a mirror of how I used to carry myself in those high school hallways, and something inside me breaks. My feet carry me down the steps before I can second-guess myself.

“You never told me we went to high school together. You told me you were from Oklahoma.” His voice is quiet, barely audible over the wind.

“I lied.”

“Why?”

It’s such a simple question. But the answer isn’t so simple.

“Because I wanted to get revenge on you,” I say.

Justin goes stock still.

“What?”

“I wanted to get revenge on you for what you did to me in high school. When I saw you that night in a pub in Oxford Circus, you didn’t even recognize me. And I was… I was so angry about that. I couldn’t believe you didn’t remember me after everything you did to me.”

Justin doesn’t take his eyes off me. “You know why I didn’t recognize you.”

“Yes, I know now. But I didn’t know then.”

The depth of how much I didn’t know almost sinks me.

“What do you mean, get revenge on me?”

Justin’s gripping the railing so tightly his knuckles have gone white, his jaw clenched in that way I’ve only seen when he talks about Bobby Ray.

And now, I have to tell him the depth of my betrayal. Tell him how far it goes beyond just concealing my identity from him.

“I…I orchestrated everything. Getting the job at DTL Enterprises. Moving into your building. Making sure our paths crossed.” The words taste bitter in my mouth. “I wrote programs to mess with your technology. The troll email, your presentation glitches, your calendar scheduling issues…” I trail off because I can’t continue telling him more details of what I did to him. What had felt like justice then now feels like a thousand tiny betrayals.

Justin’s eyes have gone wide. His hand drops from the railing, hanging loose at his side like a surrendered flag.

“My phone playing ‘I’m Too Sexy’ during the sales meeting?” His voice cracks on the last word.