Do Not Fall For The Baseball Captains novel Chapter 23

Caleb Ashfield Coward

Caleb Ashfield, Coward

Victoria’s pov

The words were spoken calmly, quietly, but they cut right through the noise of the room.

I froze, turning my head slowly to look at Caleb. He was sitting on the edge of the sofa, his hands resting on his knees, his eyes fixed on me with a warning look.

I scoffed, a bitter, disbelieving sound escaping my lips. A hot tear finally broke free, tracing a burning line down my cheek.

“You’re telling me to stop?” I whispered, my voice cracking under the weight of the betrayal.

“When she was dragging me by my hair and throwing me around your living room, you didn’t say a single word to her, Caleb. But the second I point out the objective truth, you tell me to shut up?”

“Tori, please, she’s just upset, let’s just calm down-” he started, his voice adopting that dismissive, placating tone he always used when he wanted to minimize my feelings.

“Are you serious right now?” I stepped back, looking at him as if he were a complete stranger.

“Tell me, Caleb…does this friendship even mean anything to you anymore? Because I don’t think it means a single thing to you anymore. You’ve turned your back on me so many times this semester. You let people insult me, you treat me like a piece of old furniture you can just dust off whenever you’re bored or lonely, and then you discard me the second she snaps her fingers. Our fifteen years don’t matter to you at all. I don’t even know why I’m standing in this room.”

“Oh, spare us the theatrical waterworks,” Lexi barked, crossing her arms and stepping back over to her friends.

“I am completely done with this bullshit. I want this charity case away from my boyfriend permanently. If I catch you within ten feet of Caleb on campus again, Victoria, I swear to God I will create a scandal that will make your life here a living hell. I‘

Il make sure everyone knows exactly what kind of desperate disgusting person you are.”

I wiped the tears from my face with the back of my hand, the hurt turning entirely into a cold, focused anger.

I looked at Lexi, then at Amelia, their other friend, and back to Lexi.

“You think you run this school, don’t you? You think because your parents have money and you have a social media following, you’re some kind of queen. You’re not a queen, Lexi. You’re just a selfish, arrogant girl who thrives on controlling people because you’re deeply insecure. Caleb isn’t with you because you’re wonderful; he’s tolerating you. And I am definitely not going to let a toxic person like you dictate a friendship that existed long before you even knew his name.”

Lexi’s face went completely pale with rage.

‘You little…”

She lunged at me a second time, her manicured fingers aiming directly for my throat.

braced myself, my vision blurring as she slammed into me with enough force to send us both stumbling backward.

For a terrifying second, my life felt like it was spinning out of control. I didn’t know how to protect myself from this kind of malice.

My stupid, lingering feelings for Caleb had brought me directly into the exact type of trashy, violent situation I had spent twenty–two years avoiding.

Lexi gave me a violent shove, intending to throw me against the sharp corner of the console table.

I lost my footing, my eyes squeezing shut as I prepared for the impact.

But the hard wood never came. Instead, I landed squarely against a broad, solid chest.

Strong arms instantly wrapped around my waist, lifting me effortlessly and stabilizing my weight. The scent of familia expensive cologne and rain filled my senses. I opened my eyes and looked up.

It was Elijah.

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