Side Character’s Revenge

1 To get back at the golden girl who made my high school a living hell, the second graduation ended, I stole her photos and dove into online dating. I scored eight boyfriends at once, each one a totally different type. By day, I worked shifts at the local convenience store. By night, I flipped on a voice changer and flirted with them. As college move-in day drew near, I dumped them one by one with the flimsiest excuses. Block, delete, clean sweep. When I got to the very last guy, he was stammering into his mic, nervously asking to meet up in real life. I hit him with pure ice. "I don't do timid men. We're done." I blocked him instantly, dropped my phone, and sank into bed with a satisfied sigh. Suddenly, floating lines of glowing text hovered right before my eyes. [LMAO this side character is unhinged! The lengths she goes to just to mess with the main girl!] [Her absolute worst scheme was just catfishing guys with the lead's pictures.] I clutched my phone, my head throbbing with pure rage. The girl who called me a trashy orphan, dumped leftover cafeteria grease on my head, and tried to strip my clothes off in front of everyone gets to be the "main girl"? [Honestly though, she's so tragic. She was supposed to be the real Belmont heiress...] My eyes snapped open. The golden girl's last name was Belmont. … The floating comments kept scrolling across my vision like a live stream playing directly inside my brain. [She has no idea she's the true Belmont heiress.] [She was kidnapped as a baby! Her birth mom went into severe depression, and if they hadn't adopted the current lead, the mom wouldn't have survived.] [The Belmont parents never gave up searching. They still remember her birthmark. Any time they hear of a girl with a crescent-shaped red mole on her shoulder, they travel out to check in person.] [They spent eighteen years doing charity work just to build good karma for her safe return.] The massive revelation slammed into my chest. I couldn't breathe. I wasn't abandoned. I had parents who loved me. They had never stopped searching for me, chasing down every single rumor no matter how small. And Giselle Belmont, the mean girl who had spent three years tormenting me, was nothing more than an adopted substitute. I lay on that creaking cot all night, staring at the cracked ceiling while memories of high school flooded back. Freshman year, Giselle stood at the podium in a designer dress I couldn't even name, introducing herself with effortless grace. I sat in the back corner by the window, wearing a faded uniform, the strap of my cheap sandals bound together with three layers of clear tape. When she walked past my desk, her nose wrinkled in disgust. Later I realized she was disgusted by the faint scent of mothballs clinging to my clothes. At first, she maintained her image as a gentle, charitable rich girl. Until the day of orientation camp when we were changing clothes in the locker room. She pushed the door open and caught sight of the red, crescent-shaped mole beneath my collarbone. Everything changed after that. She treated the entire class to high-end French dining, casually mentioning she was sick of eating it. Meanwhile, I hid in the cafeteria eating ninety-cent noodles, thinking a splash of soy sauce was absolute luxury. When it was my turn for classroom duty, she accidentally knocked over an ink bottle and forced me to scrub the floor on my knees. During gym class, she tripped me during the half-mile run, then pretended to help me up while loudly claiming I was just clumsy. She and her clique called me a charity case, mocking me for having no family and barely scraping together tuition. I had no proof to report her because she covered her tracks flawlessly. For three miserable years, I was forced to endure her cruel glare, wrapping myself in oversized clothes, barely daring to show my face. I swallowed my anger for three long years. The only revenge my teenage mind could cook up after graduation was using her photos to catfish guys, making her future boyfriends think she was a serial player. Now the floating comments were telling me that everything Giselle enjoyed belonged to me. Her last name, her wealth, her status, every step she took while stomping on my dignity, belonged to me. [If only she'd go reclaim her family! She'd never be bullied again, and she wouldn't have to worry about tuition or rent.] I touched the smooth skin below my collarbone. She had targeted me so relentlessly because she knew she wasn't blood. She knew her adoptive parents were still searching for their biological daughter, and she was terrified of being cast aside. So she treated any girl with a red mole on her shoulder as a mortal threat. A cold smile spread across my face. Catfishing a few guys with her pictures was far too light. I could make her pay a much steeper price. 2 I didn't rush off to claim my real parents right away. Instead, I poured all my energy into my part-time job to save up for tuition and expenses. On orientation day at the university, I ran straight into Giselle again. "Sienna!" She jogged over with a bright beam, her voice loud enough to echo down the entire hallway. "We ended up in the same dorm hall! What a crazy coincidence! Is your suitcase heavy? Let me help you with it!" She reached out for my battered suitcase with practiced warmth, as if three years of petty malice had never happened. I smiled softly and handed the heavy bag over. "Thanks so much, Giselle." She froze for a fraction of a second, clearly caught off guard by my smooth cooperation. [Look at the lead putting on her angel act again. Doesn't she get tired?] [She just wants a ugly duckling around to make her look like a swan.] [The funniest part is that the side character's catfishing actually worked! One of the guys showed up on campus looking for Giselle, calling her a heartless ghoster.] [Giselle is losing her mind right now. She has her eyes set on the sole heir of a billionaire family, so her reputation needs to stay squeaky clean.] I smirked inwardly. I played along perfectly. As Giselle hauled my heavy suitcase, I followed right behind her with soft words of gratitude. When she offered to make my bed in front of our new roommates, I handed her tissues to wipe her sweat. In front of everyone, she declared, "We went to high school together, so we know each other inside and out." I nodded beside her, agreeing with a sweet, docile smile. Our roommates looked at us with envy, gushing about how close we were. That was Giselle's first shield in college. To rebuild her persona as the flawless campus darling, her very first step was using a poor classmate to highlight her own generosity and wealth. I was the perfect prop. At the freshman welcome gala, Giselle took a seat right next to me. Before the opening act even finished, she launched into her routine. "Do you know Jasper Sinclair? The sophomore heartthrob? His family is insanely wealthy. Half the girls in our department are dying to get his contact info, but he shuts everyone out." "Did you get it?" I asked, feigning curiosity. Giselle let out a subtle, triumphant laugh. "He actually added me himself. He came up to me out of nowhere, asking what I like to do, even asking if my throat had ever been injured or anything..." She touched her delicate neck, smiling radiant satisfaction. "See? He even paid attention to small details like that. He's totally into me, isn't he?" [I am dying of laughter! Jasper is literally trying to figure out if she's the girl who catfished him LMAO!] Giselle missed my strange expression and continued her boastful chatter. "Do you think he's going to make a move soon? I was worried I wouldn't find anyone up to my standards in college, but I get scouted on day one! I guess when you've got it, you..." Her sentence cut off abruptly as a tall, icy-looking guy walked up to our row. "Giselle Belmont. Do you have a minute? I need to talk to you." Giselle perked up instantly, shot me a playful wink, and floated after him like a delicate butterfly. I stayed in my seat, staring at the back of Jasper's head. A memory suddenly flashed through my mind. A raspy, panicked voice over a late-night voice call: "Baby, please don't leave me! I have super thick skin, I'll do whatever you want, just don't toss me away..." That desperate voice overlapped perfectly with the icy wall of a man standing right in front of me. I almost burst out laughing right then and there. It was him. The absolute last guy I had dumped, the poor soul I had ghosted without a single word of explanation. He had tracked down Giselle to verify something, while Giselle genuinely believed her charm was working magic. I felt zero guilt for fooling Jasper Sinclair. I only felt pure, unadulterated joy waiting for Giselle's inevitable downfall. 3 Jasper was no fool. The girl he had talked to online complained about cafeteria staff having shaky hands, gushed about convenience store skewers being better than fancy restaurant food, and vented about bizarre customers from her evening shifts. The real Giselle, on the other hand, only ever talked about three things: how much her handbag cost, the per-person price at high-end dining spots, and which powerful executives her dad was doing business with. So Jasper began looking elsewhere. When he walked into the campus convenience store where I worked my night shift, the floating text went wild. [He already knows Giselle isn't the girl! Now he's just roaming around the convenience store.] [He looks at literally everyone like they're his ghosting ex. He's like a heartbroken widow!] [He's testing the side character now! After all, whoever used Giselle's name and photos had to be someone close to her!] When I scanned his energy drink at the register, I had to bite my cheek to keep from laughing. Behind Jasper's stony, aristocratic face, he was probably losing his mind every single day. Giselle, meanwhile, was ready to explode. She had assumed Jasper was already in her pocket, another admirer bound to bow down before her. Instead, the prize was slipping through her fingers. She watched in disbelief as Jasper shifted his "coincidental" encounters from her to me. From the convenience store to the study hall to the track field, he seemed to pop up wherever I was. After three days of brooding, she finally cornered me in the cafeteria. "Sienna. You and Jasper Sinclair have been awfully cozy lately." I slowly swallowed my soup. "I haven't really noticed." Giselle's smile twitched for a split second. "You're a penniless charity case. Don't go delusional thinking a guy like him would ever look at you." I gave a helpless shrug. "Then go get him yourself. It's not like I have him on a leash." Giselle choked on her rage and stomped off. From that day on, whenever Jasper "happened" to run into me, Giselle would miraculously spawn a short distance away, glaring daggers. I purposefully dropped a few subtle details from the past while chatting with Jasper. His eyes lit up instantly. His suspicion grew stronger by the second. He was almost certain I was the voice behind his screen. "Why did you..." I looked at his hesitant, handsome face. Jasper was undeniably drop-dead gorgeous, stupidly rich, and surprisingly devoted. But the hatred inside my heart ran far too deep. I wasn't going to spare anything or anyone if I could use them to my advantage. [Jasper is kind of pitiful though.] [Pitiful my ass! Is he more pitiful than the female lead's victim? She catfished him for two months without taking a dime of his money or anything physical. What did he lose besides a little pride?] [Exactly! While he was sipping fifty-dollar pour-over coffee, Sienna was drinking tap water!] [Next month is the university anniversary gala! Her birth parents are attending as major donors! If only they could reunite!] I stopped paying attention to Jasper's awkward attempts at small talk and headed straight to the student center to sign up as an anniversary host. Since I didn't have fancy performing arts training, hosting was my best shot at standing on that stage. A few days later, the results were posted. Giselle strolled into our dorm room with a dazzling smile. "Congrats, Sienna! I heard you got picked as one of the stage hosts!" I was honestly surprised. Everything had gone suspiciously smooth. "This is the centennial celebration, so tons of VIP guests are attending. Since it's your first time hosting, you need to look presentable." Giselle leaned in close, her voice dripping with affectionate concern. "I have a couture gown in my closet that would look stunning on you. Why don't I lend it to you?" Our roommates swooned with envy. "Sienna, your friend is amazing! Borrowing a real couture dress?" "I've never even seen couture in real life! Giselle is so generous!" "They were high school besties, of course she doesn't mind!" Their praise satisfied Giselle immensely. [DON'T ACCEPT IT! Giselle is setting a trap! She bought itching powder and lined the entire inner dress with it!] [Once she puts it on, she'll break out in hives and scratch herself raw on stage! Her reputation will be completely destroyed!] [And the gala is being live streamed in 4K! The recording will be saved in alumni archives forever!] [Just reject her! The school provides rented gowns for hosts anyway!] I simply offered a sweet, innocent smile. "Sure! Thank you so much, Giselle." 4 Giselle delivered a stunning dusty pink gown to my room shortly after, repeatedly reminding me that I absolutely had to wear it for the gala. I agreed enthusiastically, then promptly sealed the dress inside a heavy-duty garment bag and never touched it again. On the afternoon of the centennial gala, the backstage dressing room was chaotic. When Giselle pushed open the door, her eyes landed on me. I was wearing a simple, elegant sapphire-blue dress. "Why aren't you wearing my gown?" Her tone carried a sharp edge of anger. "The fit wasn't quite right," I said with an apologetic smile. "Thank you though! I'll make sure to get it dry-cleaned and returned to you." Giselle's eyes flickered, and she quickly smoothed her expression. "It's fine. That blue one looks nice too. Good luck out there!" Ten minutes later, I stood in the wings waiting for my cue. Giselle came walking through the crowded hallway holding an open tub of body paint. With a sudden, clumsy stagger, she slammed right into me, spilling dark paint all across my chest. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" It was textbook bad acting. I froze in place while everyone around us turned to stare. "I didn't mean to!" Giselle projected her voice across the room. "I tripped on someone's bag, I am so, so sorry!" Passersby rushed over with paper towels and makeup remover. Someone mumbled under their breath, "What good is an apology? She has to go on stage in three minutes!" I didn't blow up. "I'll just modify it." I reached into a nearby prop kit, grabbed a sharp pair of fabric shears, and sliced right through the stained neckline with a clean snip. I trimmed the fabric along my collarbone, transforming the high-neck gown into a dramatic off-the-shoulder cut. My entire upper chest and shoulders were instantly exposed. Right beneath my right collarbone, a distinct, crescent-shaped red mole stood out against my pale skin under the bright lights. I stood up and spun around in front of the mirror. The raw edge sat perfectly below my neck, looking like an intentional, modern design. The remaining paint flecks wiped away easily with cleansing wipes. A few female crew members gathered around, gushing with praise. "Wow, your hands are so quick! That looks ten times better!" "The original neck was a little stiff, but this looks so regal!" "If I hadn't watched you cut it, I'd think it came like that!" I smiled gently, securing the altered seam with hidden safety pins so it wouldn't shift on stage. Giselle stared at the red mole, her jaw clenched so tight her muscles bulged. She had a cello solo scheduled tonight. Both of her parents were sitting in the front row. If they saw Sienna Lane... "Ruining a rental dress provided by the university means you'll have to pay for it out of pocket," Giselle warned coldly. The surrounding students shifted uncomfortably, eyeing Giselle with sudden dislike. She claimed it was an accident, yet now she was rubbing salt in the wound. "It's not a rental," I replied with a calm smile. "I bought this dress off a secondhand app for twelve dollars." Giselle's face paled. She realized how terrible she sounded and tried to backpedal, but I gave her no chance. I took my microphone, passed right by her shoulder, and stepped out onto the massive stage under the glare of high-definition 4K broadcast cameras. The spotlights locked onto me, illuminating the crescent red mark clearly for the entire audience. [HER PARENTS ARE LOOKING AT THE SCREEN RIGHT NOW OMG!] [HER MOM IS IN THE VIP FRONT ROW! SHE SAW THE MOLE!] Mrs. Evelyn Belmont, who had been making polite conversation with the university dean, suddenly froze. Her eyes locked onto the giant screen, and her voice began to tremble uncontrollably. "Nick... look at the stage. The host's shoulder..." Mr. Nick Belmont fought back his rising panic, his voice thick with emotion. "We need to speak to that girl. Right now." 5 Backstage, Giselle frantically typed out a text to Jasper. "Sienna is unbelievable. She deliberately cut her dress to show off her chest and shoulders. Who is she trying to lure in?" In the past, she had talked mess about me constantly, and Jasper had always remained silent, never taking the bait. This time was different. A reply popped up instantly. "I think she looks stunning. And I really dislike the way you talk about other women. Let's delete each other." Before she could process it, her screen refreshed. User has enabled privacy settings. You are no longer contacts. Giselle stared at her phone in absolute disbelief. She had spent three whole months working on Jasper. Everyone on campus believed Jasper was pursuing her, a rumor she had intentionally fed through vague smiles and subtle hints. Now, she was dumped before they were even official, cast aside without a single explanation because he had never belonged to her in the first place. What drove her truly insane was that Jasper had blocked her specifically to defend me. Giselle shook with violent fury. I was walking toward the private dressing room, reaching up to detach my lapel mic and receiver. The room was completely empty, everyone else was still out front watching the show. The moment Giselle slipped inside, she locked the heavy door behind her. Without a word, she reached over and pressed the power button on the microphone pinned near my chest. Seeing the small indicator light go dark, she rested against the vanity table, looking down at me with pure, unadulterated contempt. "Sienna, do you really think showing off a bit of skin is going to get you a ticket into a rich family?" I kept my head down, staring at the mic receiver, saying nothing. It was a defective piece of equipment I had picked up at a flea market. The wiring was reversed. When the light was on, it was muted. When the light went dark, it was live. Both body mics were patched directly into the main auditorium sound system. Before stepping on or off stage, I always adjusted the toggle. Dealing with Giselle required attention to every microscopic detail. "Are you deaf? I'm talking to you." Believing no one was listening, she threw away her polished mask entirely. I raised my head, my eyes rimmed with sudden red. "Giselle... I don't understand..." Giselle let out a harsh sneer. She felt completely secure. She had verified there were no security cameras, no witnesses, and she had personally switched off my microphone. She didn't have to play the benevolent heiress anymore. "Did you think Jasper looking at you meant he actually liked you? A wealthy guy like him just finds a trashy orphan like you entertaining. Once he gets bored, he'll toss you in the gutter. Who do you think you are?" I remained silent, tears welling up in my eyes. "And the hosting spot?" She poked her index finger hard against my shoulder. "You think you won that on merit? I told the student council president to pass you!" "I just wanted to see you put on a pretty dress and stand on that stage, breaking out in hives and scratching yourself like a dog live on camera." She pulled her hand back, her tone dripping with genuine disappointment. "Too bad you knew you didn't deserve good things and bought a cheap secondhand rag instead." My voice cracked into a soft sob. "Why do you hate me so much... I thought you changed... I thought you weren't the person you were in high school..." "Why would I change?" Giselle snorted in disgust. "A lowlife like you was born to be stepped on by me. Didn't three years of high school teach you your place?" As she spoke, she grabbed the collar of my dress and yanked down violently. Two safety pins popped, and the fabric tore with a loud rip. "I'll shred this garbage right now so you have to walk out naked!" "Giselle, stop!" I screamed, struggling back. "If you do this here, aren't you afraid people will find out?" Giselle glared down at my panic, enjoying every second. "Nobody will ever believe you! Everyone knows we're best friends. I was just helping my sweet friend change into a better dress..." She yanked again, trying to tear the seam completely. A deafening BANG echoed through the room as the heavy dressing room door was kicked open. [THE OUTSIDE WORLD HAS COMPLETELY EXPLODED OMG!]