Caught between love and hate.

Chapter 1: The divide

The Kingsley estate glimmered under the afternoon sun, a beacon of everything Figure Eight stood for: wealth, power, and perfection. Brielle Kingsley sat on the edge of her pool, legs dipping lazily into the cool water. Around her, the hum of distant waves and cicadas filled the air, but her mind was elsewhere.

"Brielle, are you even listening?" Kelce's sharp voice pulled her back to reality.

She glanced up, brushing her blonde hair from her face. Kelce stood near the patio table, flipping through his phone like it owed him something. Beside him, Topper was ranting about Sarah Cameron—for what felt like the hundredth time that week.

"She's such a traitor," Topper spat, leaning back in his chair. "First, she ditches all of us for John B, and now she's running around with those Pogues like she belongs with them."

Brielle sighed, her lips curling into a faint smirk. "Still hung up on Sarah, huh?"

"Not hung up," Topper snapped. "It's about loyalty, Brielle. She turned her back on us."

Kelce chuckled, clearly amused by his friend's spiraling. "Yeah, man, sure. Totally not because you're obsessed with her or anything."

Brielle tuned them out again, her gaze drifting to the horizon. Sarah Cameron. Her former best friend. The two of them had been inseparable growing up—practically sisters. Brielle could still remember sneaking out late at night with Sarah, whispering about dreams of escape from the suffocating expectations of their world. But everything changed when Sarah fell for John B.

Sarah didn't just leave their group; she left their world entirely. She traded yacht parties and designer clothes for dirt bikes and surfboards. At first, Brielle told herself it didn't matter. Sarah had made her choice. But deep down, she felt the loss—of her friend, her confidante.

"You coming to the party tonight?" Topper's voice cut through her thoughts.

Brielle blinked. "What party?"

Kelce rolled his eyes. "The one at Rafe's place. It's gonna be huge. Everyone's coming—except Sarah, obviously. She's probably too busy hanging out with her little Pogue crew."

Brielle hesitated, her stomach twisting at the mention of Sarah. She hadn't seen her in months—not since the last blowout fight that ended with Sarah walking away without looking back.

"I'll think about it," Brielle said finally, standing up and grabbing her towel.

As she walked back toward the house, the weight of her old friendship with Sarah lingered in her chest. She wasn't sure what she hated more: the fact that Sarah had left, or the fact that Brielle still missed her.