The Bad Boy Next Room (Charlie and Taylor)

"Yes, Luke was the reason," Charlie admitted. She finished the last of her food and resumed, "And my best friends betrayed me."

She explained to Taylor how Ashley and Sofia were more loyal to Luke, even when he was wrong. She shared how they willingly invited Regina to their apartment and the Nook & Brew Cafe incident.

"Wow." Taylor made a face. He remarked, "The Wall Street Warriors must be some sort of a cult, and Luke is their leader."

Taylor leaned closer to the table and pointed out, "Think about it, Charlie. They gave you a hard time when you decided not to support their basketball team." He shrugged and added, "That's the problem with cults; the exit interview can be really intense."

Charlie raised a brow at Taylor, but quickly, she chuckled and replied, "I guess it's like a cult, huh?"

"But I get how you feel. Friends don't betray you like that," Taylor added.

"Look, I know that nothing is permanent in life. Even married couples break up, but Luke worked hard to pursue me." Charlie recounted, "He chased me for a year."

"He was so caring, buying me lunch and snacks. He was the first one to call when I got sick. He made sure I returned to my dorm or apartment on a rainy day or when I had evening classes. A week into our first meeting, he sent me flowers daily. I rejected him twice, but he never gave up." Charlie gulped and said, "A year into the courtship, I gave him a chance. Eventually, I fell for him. His gifts were extravagant, even setting up fireworks on my last birthday-"

"Your last birthday?" Taylor asked. He cleared his throat and inquired, "When was this?"

"Last year, March 1," Charlie replied.

"I don't know why he suddenly gave up on us. I admit that I was busy with class at the start of the semester because I had major subjects, and I wanted to remain the top student in our batch," Charlie said. "Luke was also busy in the recent weeks, but I never minded his absence because he exerted so much in wooing me. I never thought he would betray me just like that."

Then, Charlie told Taylor about Regina. She implied, “So, maybe Luke's parents influenced his decision? I remember how he was often home early."

"It caught me off guard, and I think that's why it hurt me the most," Charlie admitted, her expression woeful while taking a deep breath. "Because of such betrayal, including from Ashley and Sofia, I moved out from our shared apartment!

Then, just a day after I left, they let Regina occupy my room."

"Wow," Taylor remarked. "Sounds like a conspiracy to me."

"You're better off without Trashley and Snakfia," Taylor added.

Charlie rolled her eyes at Taylor's name-calling, but she chuckled and agreed, "Yeah, they sure were shady friends."

"Don't worry about me being your new roommate-I'd never stab you in the back," Taylor advised. “I prefer a good ol' frontal attack. It's way more efficient." Charlie, "..."

Just then, Charlie's phone rang. Her phone had been blowing up since she had made a grand exit from the auditorium with Taylor. There was Dawn, but she wasn't that persistent. Her fake friends had called and texted, scolding Charlie for getting involved with Taylor. Then, of course, there was Luke.

Charlie had blocked Luke's number, but that night, he had called from his friend's mobile. Charlie had to block them one by one.

"Why aren't you answering that?" Taylor asked while looking at her phone.

"It's an unregistered number. It could be Luke," Charlie indicated.

"You do realize the audacity of this," Taylor pointed out. He grabbed the phone and answered the call, putting it on speaker.

"Taylor -" Charlie was about to retrieve her phone when the person on the other line spoke.

“Charlie, it's Luke. You can't be seriously dating Taylor. He is nothing compared to me!" There was a short pause before Luke resumed, "Is this your way of getting back at me? To try to make me jealous? You certainly got my attention."

"Come on, Charlie. Anyone but Taylor!" Luke added.noveldrama

"Hey, Luke. It's Taylor. What exactly makes you better than me? All I see in you is insecurity wrapped in arrogance," Taylor pointed out. "If you must keep announcing your greatness, maybe you don't believe it yourself."

"Is it too hard to believe that Charlie had moved on to someone better, like me?

Tsk. Tsk. You haven't been looking in the mirror lately, have you, Sullivan?" Taylor warned, "Stop calling my girl, or you will get it from me."