Audie Simeon Arroyo is campus royalty. Varsity volleyball captain, absurdly athletic, magnetic in that effortless way that makes people forgive her for breathing too confidently. Everyone knows her name. Everyone has a crush. Audie knows it and pretends she doesn't, which somehow makes it worse.
Payton Eunice Tecson exists in a completely different ecosystem. Permanently stationed in the library, armed with color-coded notes, a razor-sharp mind, and a deep, unapologetic disdain for campus celebrity. She doesn't attend games. She doesn't gossip. She doesn't care who Audie Simeon Arroyo is, which is frankly offensive to Audie's entire identity.
Their first meeting is not cute.
It is not fate.
It is not organic.
It is loud, public, humiliating, and fueled by mutual contempt.
A collision of worlds sparks in the worst possible place, at the worst possible time, involving academic stakes, athletic ego, and enough verbal violence to make witnesses question whether security should be called.
By the end of the encounter, Audie is furious, Payton is unimpressed, and both are convinced they have just met the most intolerable woman on campus.
No sparks.
No chemistry.
Just chaos, teeth bared, and a mutual desire to never cross paths again.
Which, naturally, will not happen.