Under Rusted Stars

Prologue

Olivia

The zipper is yanked down, and everything happens too fast. The fabric of my dress somehow falls even faster.

Why didn’t I wear a bra?

Why is this happening?

Why does he hate me so much?

One second, I’m standing onstage with a crown on my head. Next, my prom dress is pooled around my ankles, and my bare tits are on full display in front of my entire graduating class.

Oh God, kill me now.

Camera flashes burst through the darkness while laughter spreads across the room like gasoline meeting fire.

“Oh fuck,” he breathes, sounding just as shocked as the principal beside me. “I didn’t think…”

I slap him hard enough to make him stumble backward, and then I run.

Do I grab my dress? Fuck no, I’m too panicked.

I cover my chest with shaking arms and sprint away from the voices, the laughter, and the camera flashes.

I will never live this down because, in a town like Willow Creek, rumors never die.