Invisible To Her Bully Chapter 60

Jessa

The noise of the crowd faded into a dull roar, like I was underwater.

I just stood there, frozen in the middle of the chaos, while everyone around me celebrated. The field lights were blinding, and the smell of sweat and fried food mixed in the air, making my stomach churn.

But none of that mattered.

All I could hear were Daniel’s words echoing in my head.

“…the only reason Noah’s paying attention to you is because he lost a bet.”

At first, they hadn’t registered. My mind had been spinning too fast, still caught on Noah’s hands cupping my face, the way he’d kissed me like he’d been holding back for years.

But now?

Now those words hit me like a freight train.

A hot flush burned across my cheeks, my chest tightening as realization sank in.

It wasn’t real.

He wasn’t real.

The kiss. The stolen glances. The jealousy over me wearing Jackson’s number.

All of it—a joke. A bet.

My throat closed up, and suddenly, I couldn’t breathe.

Somewhere nearby, people were shouting Jackson’s name, cheering for the win, celebrating like this was the best night of their lives.

But for me, it felt like the ground had cracked open beneath my feet, ready to swallow me whole.

I stumbled backward, barely aware of Mariah yelling my name until her hand closed around my wrist.

“Jessa!” she shouted over the noise, her face a blur through my tears. “Hey—hey, what happened? You’re white as a sheet.”

I tried to answer, but my voice came out broken, strangled. “He—Daniel—he said—” My breath hitched so hard I couldn’t finish.

Mariah’s eyes sharpened instantly. She didn’t press, didn’t make me explain. Instead, she wrapped her arm around my shoulders and started steering me through the crowd.

“Come on,” she said firmly. “We’re getting you out of here.”

I let her guide me, my legs moving on autopilot. My vision blurred as tears spilled down my cheeks. Every time I blinked, I saw Noah’s face. The way he’d looked at me like I actually mattered for once.

And then Daniel’s voice would crash through, cruel and mocking, reminding me what a fool I was.

By the time we reached the parking lot, my whole body was shaking. Mariah yanked open the passenger side door of her car and practically shoved me inside before circling around to the driver’s seat.

The second the door closed, I broke.

“It was a joke,” I choked out, clutching at my chest like I could physically hold myself together. “He—he never meant any of it. He was just—” My words dissolved into ugly sobs.

Mariah leaned toward me, grabbing my hands. “Jessa, no. Hey, look at me. Breathe, okay? Slow breaths.”

But I couldn’t. The pain clawed at me from the inside, too raw, too sharp.

“I’m so tired of this,” I sobbed, words tumbling out in a rush. “I’m so tired of being the butt of the joke. Of always being the one people laugh at. No matter what I do, it’s never enough. I try so hard, Mariah. I try to be pretty, to fit in, to not take up so much space, but—” My voice cracked, breaking completely. “But I can’t. I’ll never be like them. I’ll never be good enough for anyone.”

Mariah’s eyes glistened, her jaw tight. She squeezed my hands hard. “Jessa, don’t you dare believe that.”

“You don’t get it!” I cried, pulling my hands free. “Everywhere I go, it’s like I don’t exist unless it’s to be someone’s punchline. Jackson’s the star. Noah’s the star. Hell, even Daniel—the jerk who humiliates me every chance he gets—he still matters more than me. I’m just… nothing.”

“You are not nothing,” Mariah snapped, her voice fierce.

But I wasn’t listening. The dam had broken, and years of hurt were spilling out all at once.

“I’m so sick of trying to be different, to stand out in a good way, and just… failing. No matter what I do, it’s wrong. I’m wrong.” My hands fisted in my lap, nails digging into my palms. “I just… I wanted to believe Noah saw me. Really saw me. But he didn’t. I was just—” My voice broke on a ragged sob. “I was just a joke to him, Mariah. Like I always am.”

For a moment, the car was silent except for my ugly crying.

Mariah sat there, breathing hard, like she was fighting her own battle to stay calm.

Finally, she reached over and cupped my tear-streaked face, forcing me to meet her eyes.

“Listen to me,” she said, her tone sharp, commanding. “Noah Carter is an idiot, and Daniel’s an even bigger one. What they think, what they say? That doesn’t define you. Got it?”

I shook my head miserably. “But it does.”

“No, it doesn’t,” Mariah said fiercely. “You are strong and beautiful and way smarter than either of them will ever deserve. And if they can’t see that? Screw them.”

Her words hit something deep inside me, but I couldn’t hold onto it. Not yet. The hurt was too big, too consuming.

I curled into myself, hugging my knees to my chest, and let the tears come until there was nothing left.

Mariah didn’t say another word. She just started the car and drove us away from the stadium, her hand resting on my shoulder the whole way, steady and unshakable—everything I wasn’t.

But even as the field lights faded in the distance, Daniel’s cruel voice still echoed in my head.

And beneath it, a quieter, sharper pain: Noah’s face when he kissed me.

The face of someone I’d dared to hope cared about me.

Someone I now knew I couldn’t trust.