Chapter 5 Chapter 5 Marcus looked with satisfaction at the summit setup- There were tents , string lights , flowers , balloons , and ribbons everywhere . He'd even had his roommates bring guitars up the mountain to play during the confession . Marcus's friends gathered around him , impressed : " Damn , Marcus ! This confession's so romantic - your childhood sweetheart's gonna be blown away ! " Marcus seemed to imagine my moved expression and smiled smugly . He'd promised me a proper confession when I got to college . I'd gotten through senior year fantasizing about this moment - but he had no idea I'd given up . " No choice , we had some fights recently . She's really pissed , so I gotta pull out all the stops to surprise her . " A roommate said , " Dude , don't act like you're suffering ! Your childhood sweetheart might be a little dramatic , but she's gorgeous ! " " For real ! You never told us campus goddess Joy Sinclair was your childhood sweetheart ! You should've introduced us ages ago ! " Marcus's eyes flashed with pride . After the welcome party , I'd become famous . On the campus forum , I'd won the beauty contest by a landslide . Tons of guys were asking for my contact info . But I'd been giving him the cold shoulder lately , and he was worried about getting replaced while he was busy with lab work So he'd planned this elaborate confession to record and post online , marking his territory . He'd even had his dad propose to my parents . He was confident I'd show up . But by 6 PM , I was nowhere to be seen . Anxiety crept in . " She's here , she's here ! " Marcus relaxed . He signaled for his friends to start playing , straightened his clothes , picked up the flowers , and put on his best smile . A girl approached blindfolded , wearing the dress he recognized , led by a friend . But as she got closer , Marcus froze . His friend , thinking he was just nervous , pushed the girl into his arms while everyone cheered . Marcus snapped out of it and tried to push her away . " What the hell are you doing here ! " But she hugged him tighter and whispered , " Marcus , don't push me away ! " " Joy said she hates you and won't come . " " But you still have me , Marcus . I really love you - let's be together ! " Marcus shoved her away hard . " NO WAY ! You're lying ! " 3.7 % Chapter 5 " Everyone STOP ? " His anxiety surged again . His Joy couldn't possibly hate himd Chelsea fell to the ground , her blindfold slipping off . Everyone realized something was wrong and we quat Marcus frantically found his phone and saw my messages , I'm at the base of the mountain . Where are you ? ] Followed by over a dozen missed calls . Panic completely took over . His hands wouldn't stop shaking Suddenly he grabbed Chelsea , his voice dark " TALK ! What happened ? I told you to bring her here ? " Why didn't she come ? Why are YOU wearing that dress ! Chelsea's eyes flickered as she covered her face , crying " She really didn't want to come . She even slapped me and told me to get lost . I couldn't bear seeing you heartbroken , so I pretended to be her … " There was indeed a faint handprint on Chelsea's face . People started whispering Marcus didn't believe it . He dropped the flowers and ran down the mountain . Despite the shouting behind him , he didn't slow down for a second . I'd called him over and over - even he could tell something was wrong He rushed to my dorm building , begging the security guard to find me . Seeing how frantic he was , she asked , " What's the student's name ? What major ? Which room ? " Marcus quickly said , " Joy Sinclair , pre - med freshman , room …. " He stopped short . He suddenly realized that because he'd only walked Chelsea to her dorm on orientation day … He'd never walked me to mine , so he had no idea which room I lived in . The guard looked at Marcus suspiciously . " You don't know the room number ? At least tell me which class she's in Marcus was stumped . His heart felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible hand . Why didn't he know any of this ? Something was slipping completely out of his control . Marcus still managed to get someone to look up my class and room number . But the security guard said there was no such person in the building . He went crazy trying to rush inside . " That's impossible ! My Joy's gotta be in there ! I need to find her ! " Security dragged him away . His parents called after hearing what happened . Marcus reluctantly joined his advisor's research group .