3rd Person POV

  Nat hadn’t planned on going out that night.

  She had other things to do. Better things to do.

  But then she overheard someone mention Adam would be at this gig.

  ‘Will that Nickie be there too? She’s probably following him everywhere like a desperate little puppy.’

  Nat convinced herself she was doing it to protect Adam from a manipulative stalker.

  She needed to see it for herself.

  What was so special about this nobody?

  Why was Adam so drawn to her?

  The venue was dimly lit, a mixture of grunge and cigarette smoke, the low hum of bass vibrating through the floorboards.

  Nat scanned the crowd, searching desperately, but she couldn’t spot Adam anywhere… or Nickie.

  She almost turned to head home until she realized she needed the restroom before leaving.

  Nat had barely stepped inside the toilets when she heard it:

  “I swear, she thinks she can just walk in like she owns him.”

  The voice was sharp, disdainful.

  “Who’s the bitch again?”

  “You know, that Nickie or whatever. The one that clings to Adam like his fucking bodyguard or something.”

  Nat’s ears perked instantly.

  She’d seen the girl before at gigs. She was always circling the guys in bands.

  Dark makeup, black lipstick, a perfect goth fantasy that tried a little too hard to look effortless.

  The girl was leaning against the counter, twisting a ring around her finger as she spoke to a bored-looking girl with a patched vest who was adjusting her septum ring in the mirror.

  “The fuck are you blabbing about, Mila?” the punk-vest girl muttered.

  “Ugh, whatever.” Mila scowled and waved her off.

  Nat smoothed her jacket, made sure her face was neutral, and stepped casually toward the sink.

  She stopped at the mirror, fake-checking her makeup.

  “Not a fan either?” she mused, tone deliberately casual.

  Mila glanced up, narrowing her eyes.

  For a second, she didn’t respond, just stared, sizing Nat up like she was deciding if she was worth talking to.

  “Who’s asking?” Mila said flatly, folding her arms.

  “Relax. I’m not her friend.”

  Still, Mila didn’t soften.

  Nat adjusted her voice, to a tone that was sharing a secret with someone equally fed up.

  “I just think it’s funny, y’know? Some nobody suddenly acting like she’s someone? Like she belongs?”

  The other girl gave a very visible eye roll and walked out, completely uninterested.

  “I mean, come on,” Nat added, injecting just the right amount of exasperation.

  “We both know Adam deserves better.”

  That did it.

  Mila’s lip curled.

  “Finally. Someone with a brain.”

  Nat swallowed her smirk, keeping her expression neutral. Hooked.

  Mila shifted her weight, finally relaxing a little, but her eyes stayed testing.

  “You actually know Adam?” she asked.

  Nat didn’t miss a beat.

  “Oh, yeah. Since… way back in middle school.”

  Mila let out a short, skeptical laugh.

  Not quite disbelieving, but close.

  “Then you get it. You know how fucking weird this whole thing is.”

  Nat nodded, encouraging her. ‘Come on. Keep talking.’

  And Mila did.

  “Like, who the hell even is she?” Mila hissed, venom bleeding into her voice.

  “She’s not even pretty. She’s just… there. Clinging to him. It’s pathetic. She’s playing victim, and everyone’s falling for it. But trust me… guys like Adam? They don’t stay with girls like that.”

  “You know she acts all mysterious and tough, but she’s a total fake.”

  “She thinks she’s so above everyone.”

  “I heard she used to be a delinquent or something. She probably got close to Adam to use him.”

  Nat nodded along, pretending to be intrigued, but her patience was wearing thin.

  This was nothing.

  Useless.

  She needed real information.

  “So how do you know her?” Nat asked casually, her eyes flicking to Mila’s reflection in the mirror.

  Mila rolled her eyes.

  “She’s been a thorn in my ass. Hovering around him like a bee. Pathetic little girl. Probably only got in the band because he felt sorry for her.”

  Nat’s mind went blank.

  “What?”

  “Oh, you didn’t know?” Mila said smugly, tilting her chin up.

  “She’s in Adam’s fucking band. That bitch? She’s their drummer.”

  Nat’s stomach twisted violently.

  Nickie. In a band. Not just any band.

  Adam’s band.

  Nat didn’t even know he had a band.

  Nickie wasn’t just some clueless outsider.

  She was on stage.

  She was playing beside him.

  She was sharing the spotlight.

  A sharp, bitter taste filled Nat’s mouth.

  Her vision blurred with rage, jaw clenching so tight it hurt.

  “No. Fucking. Way.”

  Mila grinned, delighted by Nat’s reaction.

  “Surprised? Wait till you see the show. She’ll eat it up… hogging all the attention.”

  Nat forced herself to breathe, nails digging into her palm.

  This wasn’t just about Adam’s attention anymore.

  This was territory.

  This was power.

  And Nickie had crossed the line.

  Nat suddenly had no intention of leaving.

  She turned slightly, masking her fury with a casual smile as her fingers itched to take out her phone.

  She smiled sweetly at Mila, who smirked back, satisfied.

  “You know, the way she behaves… It’s annoying for everyone. People are getting tired of it. Some might even decide to do something about this… tiresome situation.”

  A slow smile curved Mila’s mouth.

  “Oh? People? Like who?”

  Nat met her gaze through the mirror.

  “Oh, you know,” she said lightly. “People who don’t like seeing someone pretend they belong when they don’t.”

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Mila hummed, satisfied.

  “I like the sound of that.”

  Nat turned toward the exit casual, almost dismissive, delivering her final line like a velvet threat:

  “Eventually, she’ll remember her real place. Some girls just need a reminder.”

  Nat’s fingers were already flying on the screen.

  She was seething.

  Nickie wasn’t just some “shy little bookworm.”

  She’d been standing beside Adam the whole time… where Nat couldn’t be.

  ***

  ?? THE REAL FANS ??

  Private Group Chat Created by ?? NatQueen

  ?? NatQueen:

  YOU GUYS. YOU WON’T BELIEVE THIS.

  ?? LisaMars??:

  What? Spill.

  ?? NatQueen:

  SHE’S IN A FUCKING BAND WITH ADAM.

  ?? JuliaRules:

  NO. WAY.

  ?? JanxInTheVoid:

  You’re lying.

  ?? LisaMars??:

  HOW THE HELL DID SHE PULL THAT OFF?!

  ?? NatQueen:

  I WISH I WAS KIDDING. This “shy little bookworm” is apparently like a drummer.

  She’s been HIDING it.

  ?? JennaJinx:

  That sneaky bitch.

  ?? Miri_Muted:

  That changes EVERYTHING.

  ?? LisaMars??:

  She’s after him. 100%.

  ?? P-Paige:

  We can’t let this stand.

  ?? RaeRiot:

  She’s playing the long game. Probably planned this from day one.

  ?? K8_Krush:

  What kind of manipulative villain move is this?!

  ?? JennaJinx:

  She was quiet ON PURPOSE. It’s a whole tactic.

  ?? Em_EyesOnly:

  Classic underdog strategy. Pretend to be harmless, then steal the spotlight.

  ?? JuliaRules:

  Bet she’s already imagining herself as his muse.

  ?? NatQueen:

  No. Fucking. Way.

  We shut this down. She’s not turning Adam’s life into some pathetic groupie love story.

  ?? FionaVenom:

  So… what are we planning here?

  ?? LisaMars??:

  Find her online. Band name, videos, socials. If she’s got history, we’ll dig it up.

  ?? Em_EyesOnly:

  My cousin works at this venue. She sees everything. I’ll ask.

  ?? Miri_Muted:

  Local zines post gig photos. If she’s played before, there’s evidence.

  ?? JennaJinx:

  Old accounts, old posts. everyone’s got skeletons.

  ?? P-Paige:

  Stage lights are brutal when everyone’s watching you crack.

  ?? RaeRiot:

  And she will crack. Trust.

  ‘Well,’ Nat thought,

  ‘Nickie’s life had just become open season.’

  STOLEN ORBIT

  Nat stood near the back of the crowd, arms crossed so tightly across her chest it felt like she was the only thing holding herself together.

  Her jaw ached from how hard she was clenching it.

  She wasn’t here to enjoy the music.

  She wasn’t here to be impressed.

  She was here to confirm it.

  And what she saw?

  Pissed her off.

  Nickie.

  On stage.

  Not just next to Adam.

  Not just present.

  Commanding.

  She looked different than at school.

  Hair a mess of color and asymmetry. Eyeliner sharp. Like she’d stepped out of hiding and into power.

  Her body moved in sync with the drums like she’d built the rhythm from her own bones.

  Arms tight, movements precise, every strike intentional.

  There was nothing hesitant about her.

  She wasn’t just keeping up.

  She was leading.

  Nat’s nails dug into her arms so hard they left tiny crescents.

  She wanted Nickie to suck.

  She needed it.

  But even she couldn’t deny the truth:

  Nickie was good.

  Too good.

  And Adam… looked alive.

  Not the distant, dead-eyed version from last summer, the one Nat remembered. Walking around like he was underwater.

  No.

  Tonight he was electric.

  Present. Laughing. Glowing.

  The kind of person Nat wanted to believe only she could bring out of him.

  But every note, every movement…

  It was like he and Nickie were speaking their own language.

  Bass and drums locked together like two halves of a single pulse.

  And then…

  Adam turned toward her.

  Leaned in like gravity itself demanded it.

  A private smirk passed between them.

  It wasn’t for the crowd.

  It was for her.

  That tiny flicker of connection cracked something in Nat’s chest.

  The jealousy that had been simmering all night twisted into something sharper.

  Hotter.

  Hatred.

  Nickie wasn’t circling Adam’s orbit.

  She was rooted there.

  The crowd cheered for her.

  The drummer.

  Girls weren’t supposed to get that.

  They weren’t supposed to be that.

  That was their place: Nat and the girls who’d built the pedestal Adam stood on.

  Not hers.

  And then, mid-song:

  Adam dropped his bass.

  Feedback screamed.

  He walked over to the drum kit.

  And lifted her. Onto his shoulders.

  Nat’s fingers curled so tightly around her phone that her knuckles turned white.

  This wasn’t flirting.

  This wasn’t background affection.

  This was center stage.

  This was declaration.

  He spun her like they were the only two people on Earth.

  The crowd exploded.

  He carried her across the stage until she shoved a drumstick into his ear.

  He laughed and set her down…

  And they kept playing, like they’d rehearsed this a hundred times.

  Nickie tossed the stick high, caught it in a flash, and launched into a brutal fill.

  Adam grabbed his bass and turned, grinning like she’d just set the stage on fire.

  Nat’s throat burned.

  Her pulse hammered in her ears.

  This wasn’t just admiration.

  This wasn’t just a band.

  This was chemistry.

  This was dangerous.

  She lowered her phone, seething.

  The smile she forced onto her face was ice-thin.

  Then she opened the group chat.

  ***

  ?? THE REAL FANS ??

  Private Group Chat Created by ?? NatQueen

  ?? NatQueen:

  It’s worse than we thought.

  ?? NatQueen:

  Uploading the video now.

  ?? LisaMars??:

  WHAT THE FUCK???

  ?? Miri_Muted:

  Bitch, say sike right now.

  ?? FionaVenom:

  Why the hell is she this good???

  ?? JanxInTheVoid:

  THIS CAN’T BE HAPPENING.

  ?? JuliaRules:

  SHE NEEDS TO GO.

  ?? Em_EyesOnly:

  We have to put her in her place.

  ?? K8_Krush:

  I knew she was faking that “quiet girl” act.

  ?? FionaVenom:

  What do we do???

  ?? P-Paige:

  We don’t wait anymore. We move.

  Strike while everyone’s watching.

  ?? P-Paige:

  Call in a meeting, we need to discuss this in private.

  ?? NatQueen:

  This monday. Social studies room. 15:00.

  ?? NatQueen:

  She wants center stage?

  Fine.

  We’ll make sure she burns in it.