Chapter 1

Troy’s POV

Rain poured down in relentless sheets, soaking through my clothes and chilling me to the bone.

 I stood drenched in the middle of the campus courtyard while my stepbrother Jayden and his friends formed a loose circle around me. 

Jayden is my stepbrother — Mom’s biological son.

While I am my Dad’s son. Five years ago, Dad, a driven entrepreneur, married Mom, a skilled surgeon, and blended our families. 

They were still crazy about each other and made sure we felt equally loved. 

Mom treated me like her own son, and Dad did the same with Jayden and Marble.

No one played favorites, to the world, we were the ideal happy family. But Jayden had never accepted me, and he reminded me of that every chance he got.

Jayden leaned back casually, hands shoved deep into his pockets, staring at me like I was some ridiculous character who had wandered out of a comic book.

 His lips curled into that familiar smirk as the entire campus seemed to pause and watch the spectacle.

“Look at you, little brother,” he drawled, loud enough for everyone nearby to hear. 

“Drenched in the rain like a lost puppy,if you had someone to wrap around you and keep you warm, you wouldn’t be in this pathetic situation right now.”

His friends burst into mocking laughter, the sound sharp and cruel as it cut through the downpour. 

Heat flooded my face despite the cold rain. I wished the ground would split open and swallow me whole,anything to escape the humiliation burning in my chest.

I wanted to snap back, to scream at him, or better yet, land a solid slap across his smug jaw.

 But what good would that do? It would only make things worse. 

Jayden always won these encounters,sketching my jaw, I kept my mouth shut and turned away, walking as steadily as I could toward the nearest building in search of my friends.

The moment my back was turned, the laughter grew louder, echoing behind me like a pack of hyenas.

“You’ll never know what it feels like to have someone buried under you while you fuck them six ways to Sunday!” Jayden called out, his voice dripping with mockery.

My grip tightened on the strap of my bag until my knuckles turned white.

 My mind screamed at me to run, but my legs refused to obey. I kept walking slowly, forcing one foot in front of the other, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing me break.

His words shouldn’t have affected me this much. This wasn’t the first time Jayden had bullied me for being a virgin, and it sure as hell wouldn’t be the last.

 He loved flaunting his sexual conquests, painting vivid pictures of his wild nights just to make me feel smaller, less of a man. 

Every taunt chipped away at my confidence, and the more I tried to ignore him, the more vicious his bullying became.

I finally slipped into an empty lecture hall, collapsed into a seat at the back, and shoved my earpods in.

 Music flooded my ears, drowning out the world,for a few blessed minutes, I could pretend none of it had happened.

One of the main reasons I was still a virgin had nothing to do with lack of opportunity,I simply wasn’t interested in girls.

 No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t force myself to feel attraction where there was none.

 Deep down, I saw myself as a freak, even though same-sex relationships had been legal for years, the fear of what people would say—or do—if they ever found out I was gay kept me silent. 

My family’s reaction terrified me most of all, only few of my closest friends knew the truth, and even then, I lived in constant dread that the secret would slip out.

After today’s humiliation, I’d made up my mind. Tonight, I was going to a popular pub downtown.

 I was finally going to pop my cherry—lose my virginity and hopefully silence Jayden’s taunts once and for all. 

Maybe then I’d feel more like a man, maybe then the bullying would stop.

The rest of the day dragged on,Jayden’s friends eventually wandered into the lecture hall, chatting loudly before the professor arrived.

 Classes blurred together until the final bell rang and freedom arrived.

The moment I stepped outside, I spotted our family driver waiting by the car, I quickly said goodbye to my friends and hurried over, only to find Jayden already seated in the back.

 I slid in beside him without a word and immediately plugged in my earbuds, letting the music create a wall between us. From the corner of my eye, I could see him watching me, but I refused to acknowledge him.

 This was the same person who had humiliated me in front of the entire campus just hours ago.

The ride home was silent and tense, when we finally arrived, everyone disappeared into their respective rooms. I lay flat on my bed, staring at the ceiling, second-guessing my decision for the night, but deep down I knew there was no turning back now. 

The humiliation from earlier had pushed me past the point of hesitation.

Around 7 p.m., dinner was served. I headed downstairs to join the family, as we did most evenings. 

Mom and Dad were in their usual lovey-dovey mood, rambling about their day at work and stealing affectionate glances at each other. 

Merbel, our older sister, sat across from me, scrolling through her phone.

I decided to break the comfortable chatter.

“Mom… Dad?”

All eyes turned to me instantly—including Jayden’s and Merbel’s.

“Yes, sweetheart?” they replied almost in unison.

“I’ll be stepping out tonight,” I said, trying to sound casual. “I’m catching a drink with some friends, we planned to hit the club later.”

Mom and Dad exchanged a quick glance. 

Dad spoke first, his tone warm and indulgent. “Go on, sweetheart. Enjoy yourself while you’re still young. Just promise me you’ll take care of yourself, okay?”

Mom nodded, adding with a gentle smile, “But your driver will be going with you. We don’t want you coming home alone at night.”

I couldn’t exactly argue without raising suspicion.

 I nodded in agreement, even though I had lied about going with friends. One thing I hadn’t lied about, though, was my intention to enjoy myself tonight.

 I planned on doing exactly that.

I finished my food quickly and excused myself, heading straight to my room to get dressed. 

A few minutes later, Merbel walked in behind me, offering to help pick an outfit.

“Troy, I like these blue jeans on you,” she said, holding them up. “They suit you better, who knows? Maybe you’ll bring home a sweet girlfriend tonight.”

I forced a laugh and took the jeans anyway, not wanting to argue.

After trying on a few shirts and getting her approval, I was finally ready, i grabbed my jacket and headed out.

The driver took me to a popular spot downtown called Black Sky.

 The moment the car pulled up outside the pub, my stomach twisted with nerves.

 The neon sign glowed against the night sky, music thumping faintly from inside, people laughed and chatted as they moved in and out of the entrance.

 My heart hammered in my chest.

This was it, no more hiding, no more running from Jayden’s taunts, tonight, I was going to change everything.

I took a deep breath, stepped out of the car, and walked toward the entrance, trying to ignore the way my hands were trembling.