Scarlett had always been good at pretending.
Pretending she wasn't annoyed. Pretending things didn't get to her. Pretending someone like Ryder Sinclair didn't touch a single part of her carefully-guarded emotions.
But after that night in the living room... pretending was getting harder.
Especially when he did things like this.
---
It started with coffee.
Scarlett walked downstairs late Saturday morning, hair in a lazy bun, hoodie a little too big, eyes half-closed.
Ryder was already in the kitchen — fully dressed, flipping through a magazine.
On the counter was her favorite coffee — with two sugars and oat milk. The exact way she always ordered it. The cup had a sticky note stuck to the sleeve.
"Still not a morning person, I see.
— Your favorite nightmare"
Scarlett blinked at it.
Then at him.
"You memorized my order?"
Ryder shrugged. "You only roll your eyes like that when you're impressed. Don't deny it."
She fought a smile. "You're not supposed to notice things about me."
"That sounds like a you problem."
---
She was vacuuming the hallway when Ryder walked past her room, stopped, then doubled back.
"Is that… The Neighbourhood?"
Scarlett didn't look at him. "Yeah."
"You like Sweater Weather?"
"It's moody. Like me."
Ryder grinned. "Scarlett, I'm starting to think you might secretly be a walking Tumblr page."
She snorted. "Go away."
He didn't.
Instead, he leaned against the doorframe, nodding slowly to the song.
"You've got good taste. I mean, emotionally damaged taste, but still."
Scarlett tried not to laugh.
And failed.
---
They were in the living room again, Mason nowhere in sight, Scarlett curled on the couch reading a book, Ryder quietly scrolling through his phone — oddly peaceful.
Until Scarlett whispered, "Why me?"
He looked up. "What do you mean?"
"You could flirt with anyone. Be with anyone. Girls fall all over you, Ryder. So why are you wasting time on someone who barely tolerates you?"
He didn't answer at first.
Then, slowly, he stood, walked over to her side of the couch, and sat down — not too close, but close enough for her to feel it.
"You're the only one who sees through me," he said, voice low. "Everyone else… they like the Ryder I pretend to be. You're the only one who looks at me and calls me out for being full of crap."
Scarlett's throat tightened.
"I don't want easy anymore," he added.
She looked away.
Because no one had ever said that to her before.
---
Meanwhile – Outside
Vivian was in her car across the street.
Staring at the Sinclair mansion.
Jaw clenched. Eyes narrowed.
She had seen Scarlett through the window. Had seen the way Ryder looked at her. And it made something inside her snap.
He used to look at me like that.
But not anymore.
Vivian smirked to herself.
"If she thinks this is over," she whispered, "she doesn't know who she's dealing with."
---
Vivian's eyes burned with quiet fury as she watched the Sinclair mansion from her car across the street. The late afternoon sun glinted off the windows, but it was the glow between Ryder and Scarlett inside that really bothered her. The easy laughter, the casual closeness — the way Ryder's eyes softened when Scarlett wasn't looking.
She slammed her hands against the steering wheel, her nails digging in. He used to be mine. The words echoed in her mind like a mantra. She wasn't about to let him slip away without a fight.
Vivian pulled out her phone and scrolled through Ryder's social media — tagged photos, comments from friends, and then… a picture of Scarlett laughing, captioned "Best nanny ever." Her lips curled into a cold smile.
Time to remind them who really belongs here.
---
~at school the next day...~
Scarlett tried to focus in class, but her mind kept drifting to Vivian. She'd heard the rumors — whispers about Vivian's jealousy, her history with Ryder, and how far she'd go to get what she wanted.
Katarina noticed her distraction. "You okay?"
Scarlett forced a smile. "Yeah. Just tired."
"From what?"
Scarlett hesitated but then decided to trust her. "Vivian's… making things complicated."
Katarina frowned. "You don't have to deal with that alone."
Scarlett appreciated the offer but wasn't sure anyone could help with this.
---
Later, Ryder found Scarlett by her locker.
"Hey," he said, his usual playful grin replaced by something more serious.
"Hey," she replied, locking eyes with him.
"We need to talk," he said quietly.
Scarlett nodded. "Yeah, we do."
They moved to a quieter hallway corner.
"I know Vivian's been causing trouble," Ryder admitted. "I'm sorry you're caught in the middle."
Scarlett's jaw tightened. "She's not going to scare me."
Ryder smiled softly. "Good. Because I'm not going anywhere."
---
That evening, Vivian made her move.
She showed up at the Sinclair mansion unannounced, her eyes blazing with determination.
Ryder opened the door, surprised to see her.
"What are you doing here?" he asked.
"I came to remind you," Vivian said coolly, stepping inside. "That I'm still part of your life — whether you like it or not."
Ryder's expression darkened. "Not anymore."
Vivian's smile faltered for a moment but then grew wider. "We'll see."
---
The battle lines were drawn.
And Scarlett? She was ready to fight for what — and who — mattered most.
------
Scarlett knew the moment she stepped inside. The usual hum of music from Ryder's room was missing, and Mason's laughter wasn't echoing from the gaming room like it usually did. Even the cooks kept to the kitchen, whispering.
She headed upstairs, unsure why her chest felt so tight.
Then she saw it — Ryder's bedroom door was open, just slightly. Enough to see that something wasn't right.
She pushed it open slowly.
He was sitting at the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees, head in his hands.
Not the Ryder she was used to.
No smug grin. No cocky comment.
Just... silence.
"Ryder?" she asked, cautious.
He didn't answer at first.
Then, finally, "She brought up my mom."
Scarlett blinked. "Vivian?"
He nodded once, slowly. "Said she'd tell everyone what really happened if I didn't push you away."
Scarlett stepped into the room fully now, shutting the door behind her. "What happened to your mom?"
Ryder didn't look at her. "It's complicated."
Scarlett didn't push. She simply walked over and sat beside him.
For a while, they just sat in that silence. His breathing was shaky, her hand resting just close enough that he could feel it if he needed to.
Finally, Ryder whispered, "She left when I was ten. Just disappeared. No goodbye. Nothing."
Scarlett's heart clenched. "Ryder…"
"My dad covered it up," he said with a dry laugh. "Told people she moved to Europe. Told me she just needed space. But I remember the fights. I remember the way she looked at me like I reminded her of everything she hated."
Scarlett turned toward him, her voice quiet but firm. "You're not her."
"I know," he muttered. "But sometimes... I wonder if I was the reason she left."
Scarlett shook her head. "Don't. Don't ever think that."
He looked at her then — really looked. Like he was seeing her for the first time in that moment, not as the girl who rolled her eyes at his flirtation, or the girl who avoided his charms, but as the only person who ever sat with him in his silence and didn't run.
"I've never told anyone that," he whispered.
"Then I guess I'm not just anyone," she said, voice barely above a breath.
---
Later That Night...
Vivian was on a call with someone — her voice low, sharp.
"No, he's not backing off. If anything, she's getting to him."
A pause.
"No, I'm not panicking. But if I'm going to remind him what loyalty looks like... I'll need help."
She hung up and stared at her phone.
Then smiled darkly.
---
Back at the mansion, Scarlett walked out of Ryder's room quietly and headed to hers, her heart still heavy.
But behind her, Ryder looked at the closed door.
For the first time in years... he didn't feel so alone.
Vivian always had a plan.
And when things didn't go her way, she didn't sit around crying — she adapted.
Ryder had always been hers. Not officially, not lately, but emotionally—he belonged to her. Or at least, he used to. Scarlett's sudden presence had disrupted the delicate balance Vivian maintained over Ryder's life, and she was done waiting for him to come to his senses.
That meant it was time to play dirty.
---
She met him at night.
A parking lot near an old café, far from campus, far from the Sinclair name.
The man was older. Mid-30s. Shifty eyes. Wore a cracked leather jacket and a scowl.
"You sure you wanna do this?" he asked.
Vivian smiled sweetly. "I already paid you, didn't I?"
He glanced over the folder she handed him. Photos. Documents. Records that weren't supposed to exist anymore.
"Where'd you get this?"
Vivian tilted her head. "I have connections. You just worry about keeping your mouth shut until I say otherwise."
He whistled low. "This is serious stuff. If this gets out…"
"It won't," she cut in. "Not unless I want it to."
____
the Next Day...
Scarlett walked through the quad, headphones in, lost in her thoughts.
She'd stayed up all night replaying everything Ryder told her. His mom. His pain. The trust he placed in her.
She wasn't used to that.
Ezra waved from across the grass. "Scarlett!"
She waved back, just as Ryder walked by and caught the exchange.
His eyes darkened, just for a second.
Scarlett didn't notice.
But Vivian did.
She watched from her usual table, legs crossed, sunglasses on, a wicked smirk tugging at her lips.
They think this is love. It's just a phase. And I'll end it.
---
~Later That Week...~
Vivian "accidentally" dropped a folder in front of Ryder in class.
He picked it up, eyes narrowing at the familiar handwriting on the first page. His father's signature.
"What is this?" he asked warily.
Vivian leaned in, her voice low and venom-sweet. "Just a reminder. Of what your family would never want Scarlett to know."
He froze.
Vivian winked. "Imagine how she'd look at you if she knew the truth."
Then she walked away, heels clicking like gunshots.
Ryder stared at the folder in his hands.
His world? Just started to crack open.
---
Meanwhile, in the Mansion...
Scarlett sat on the balcony outside her room, feeling like something was shifting.
Like the quiet before a storm.
And she had no idea what was coming.
---
Ryder hadn't left his room all evening.
The folder sat on his desk like a time bomb, daring him to open it again. He already had — twice. And both times, he wished he hadn't.
Inside were documents tied to an old legal settlement. Money trails. Confidential records. A sealed case file with one chilling headline:
"Unlawful Payout: Disappearance of Eleanor Sinclair."
His mother.
The truth wasn't just that she'd left.
It was that his father had paid someone — paid multiple people — to keep quiet about why.
What had really happened?
And worse: why was Vivian the one who had this?
He paced back and forth, fists clenched. His father's absence was suddenly louder than ever. The usual silence in the mansion felt like it was closing in around him.
And in all of it… there was one person he wanted to talk to.
Scarlett.
---
Meanwhile…
Scarlett was curled up on the couch downstairs with Mason and the cooks. Mason was telling a dramatic story about his most recent party foul, and Cook Jenna, in her usual sarcastic way, kept throwing kitchen towels at him for exaggerating.
"—and then I told the security guard, 'Sir, I am the vibe!'" Mason declared.
Scarlett laughed, actually laughed, her guard dropping again. These moments made her forget she was hired to be here. They made her feel like she belonged.
But her laughter faded as she noticed Ryder walk past the living room.
He didn't look at anyone. Just headed straight outside through the sliding door.
Scarlett stood.
"I'll be back," she mumbled.
---
On the balcony...
He was leaning over the railing, head down. His jaw was tight, and even in the dim glow from the garden lights, she could tell something was wrong.
"Ryder?" she asked gently.
He didn't look at her.
"I need to ask you something," he said, voice quiet but heavy. "If I wasn't who you think I am… would you still stay?"
Scarlett blinked. "What does that mean?"
He finally turned to face her, eyes darker than she'd ever seen them. Vulnerable. Angry. Lost.
"It means there's a part of my past that might change everything. About me. About my family. About why this house feels like a lie sometimes."
Scarlett stepped closer. "Is this about your mom?"
He nodded once.
"Then tell me."
He looked down, almost afraid to.
"You don't have to carry it alone," she added.
Silence hung between them. Then Ryder exhaled.
"There's something wrong with the way she disappeared," he admitted. "Something my dad buried. And Vivian knows. She's using it."
Scarlett's eyes widened. "Vivian?"
"She dropped the folder in front of me. Just smiled like it was a joke. But it's not."
Scarlett's voice hardened. "We need to stop her."
Ryder looked at her like she was the only real thing in a world full of masks.
"We?"
Scarlett nodded. "You're not in this alone. Not anymore."
---
In another corner of the city…
Vivian met with the same man again.
"She's getting too close," Vivian said bitterly. "She's smarter than I gave her credit for."
The man shrugged. "Want me to scare her off?"
Vivian's lips curled. "No. Let's just rattle her. Remind her she's in my world now."