My Boyfriend's Ferrari Lie

My boyfriend Jack had this ugly scar running all the way down his face—long and jagged. Most people were so freaked out by it, they couldn't even look at him, let alone stick around. But not me. I wasn't scared.

Back then, I wasn't just dating him—I was juggling three part-time jobs, grinding day and night. I was pinching every penny, skipping meals, even passing up a soda when I was parched, all to save up enough for his plastic surgery.

Then I landed a temp gig at a car show.

And there he was—Jake. No scar. Not a trace.

He was signing papers to buy a brand-new Ferrari.

When our eyes met, his went wide. For a second, I thought I was seeing things. But it was really him—Jake, standing there, face perfectly smooth.

I froze. My whole body went cold, like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over me.

Jake looked just as shocked. He took a step toward me.

Then this girl, Ashley, slid up and wrapped her arm around his. "Babe, where are you going? We just gotta pay, and then the Ferrari's ours." Her voice trailed off when she noticed me. "Hailey?"

We used to be best friends. Now here she was, glued to my boyfriend. Or ex-boyfriend. Whatever he was.

The flyers I was holding hit the floor.

All at once, my whole relationship with Jake felt like one sick, cruel joke.

I turned to leave.

But Jake grabbed my arm. "Hailey, wait—it's not what you think."

"Then what is it?" I snapped, yanking my arm back.

His face was flawless now. Smooth skin, designer clothes. Nothing like the scarred, broke guy I knew—the one who shopped at discount stores. He was a complete stranger.

"Jake, I thought you were poor. I thought your face got messed up in some accident. I've been killing myself working three jobs so I could pay for your surgery. Were you just using me?"

My voice trembled with rage.

"No—I swear, I never meant to trick you." He looked like he was about to cry, reaching for me again.

But Ashley pulled him back, shooting me a glare. "Hailey, do you even know what today is? It's Tommy's anniversary. I set this whole thing up. I made Jake play you—for a whole year. I wanted you to remember today. I want you to remember that you're the reason Tommy is dead."

She stared right through me. "I want you to know you can't save anyone. You're not a hero. You're a waste of space. You should just die."

Her words cut deeper than any knife.

We used to be inseparable. She knew exactly how to hurt me.

Three years ago, my brother Tommy got his face slashed and his vocal cords ruined. He was a musical genius—he couldn't handle it. He tried to end it more than once. I stayed by his side, trying to pull him back.

Then one day, he asked for a lime popsicle. I ran to the store to get it.

When I came back, he'd jumped off the roof.

I couldn't save him.

And Ashley—who'd been in love with Tommy for five years—turned on me. She blamed me for not watching him close enough.

And I've been stuck in that summer ever since.

I stood there, numb. It was summer, but I felt frozen.

"Get out," I forced out. "Just get out of my life!"

I grabbed whatever was on the table and threw it at them.

Ashley laughed—a cold, ugly sound. "Seeing you like this makes me so happy. I want you to know—no matter what you do, you can't fix what you did."

"Enough! Stop it!" Jake yelled at her. Then he turned to me, his face torn up. "Hailey, I didn't do this for revenge, I swear. I did it because I like you—"

Slap.

I hit him hard, my eyes burning. "You're a liar. A user."

Then I turned and ran.

A year ago, after Tommy died, I found Jake in the school bathroom trying to hurt himself. He had that scar on his face. When I saw him, I saw Tommy. I saw that same kid trapped in the dark.

I ran over, stopped him, held him tight, begging him not to do it.

From then on, I was always with him. I made him food, took him out, tried to make him smile. I was afraid to leave him alone. I was terrified it would happen again.

At first, I was just trying to make up for what happened to Tommy. I wanted to fix things. If I couldn't save my brother, I was gonna save Jake.

But after we moved in together, I couldn't imagine my life without him. He wasn't moody like Tommy—he was brighter. He'd sing to me, dance with me. That's when I knew I liked him for him, not just because he reminded me of my brother.