The Girl in the Hoodie is Mine

Ella’s POV:

"Ooh, it’s you... so what do you want now?" I asked, not surprised that Jason had caught up to me and finally figured out that ’Elly’ and ’Ella’ were one and the same. The moment my boss had shouted my name at the diner, I knew Jason would be the first to notice and put two and two together. As much as he was a jerk—a narcissistic one at that—he wasn’t stupid. I had learned that much during our study session at the library.

He walked closer, his hands casually stuffed in his pockets, a smug expression plastered on his face. "I should’ve known it was you," he said, his tone dripping with amusement. "All that tough-girl attitude, the hoodie... but here you are, serving fries and wiping down tables."

I shrugged, keeping my expression neutral. "Yeah, well, we all have bills to pay."

Jason circled me, as if studying me from every angle. "So this is your secret? Working double shifts to make ends meet while pretending you’re too busy to meet up for the assignment?"

I crossed my arms, refusing to give him the satisfaction of seeing me flinch. "I told you, I have a job. If you thought I was lying, that’s your problem."

He stopped right in front of me, his eyes narrowing. "And here I thought you were just trying to avoid me."

I rolled my eyes. "Don’t flatter yourself, Jason."

He smirked, clearly amused by my response. "Well, I guess I underestimated you, hoodie girl. I thought you were just some loner with a superiority complex. But now I see... you’re a loner with a superiority complex and a part-time job."

"Wow," I replied, deadpan. "You cracked the code. Congratulations."

He chuckled, shaking his head as if my sarcasm entertained him. "You know, you could’ve just said something. I would’ve understood."

I raised an eyebrow. "Oh, really? You? Understand?"

He tilted his head slightly, his smirk fading just a little. "Believe it or not, I don’t think I’m as clueless as you assume."

I wasn’t buying his sudden attempt at sincerity, so I shifted the conversation back. "So, what was all that talk back at the diner about ’finding a way to oppress the hoodie girl’? Sounds like you’ve got a master plan."

Jason’s eyes flickered with something—surprise, maybe, or maybe just amusement that I’d overheard. "You heard that?"

"Hard not to when you’re practically boasting about it to your friends," I said, my tone sharp. "So? What’s your big plan, Knight? Let’s hear it."

He grinned, leaning in slightly as if we were sharing some private joke. "Well, if I told you, it wouldn’t be as fun now, would it?"

I clenched my jaw, trying to ignore the way my heart started to race with frustration. "Fun for you, maybe. Not for me."

Jason leaned back, giving me some space. "Relax, Ella. I’m not out to ruin your life." He paused, a playful gleam in his eye. "At least, not yet."

I scoffed. "Right. Because that’s totally reassuring."

He stared at me for a moment, the teasing gone from his expression. "We still need to finish the project, you know."

"I know," I said, my voice quiet but firm. "But don’t think for a second that whatever game you’re playing is going to work."

Jason studied me for another long moment, his lips twitching as if he were holding back another smirk. "We’ll see, hoodie girl. We’ll see."

Without another word, he turned and walked away, leaving me standing there in the dimly lit alley, my hands clenched into fists at my sides.

The thing about Jason Knight was that he was unpredictable. One minute, he was being a condescending jerk; the next, he was almost... human. But I wasn’t going to let my guard down. Not for him, not for anyone. I had worked too hard to survive in this world, and no cocky golden boy was going to make me falter.

As I watched his figure disappear into the shadows, I took a deep breath and adjusted my bag over my shoulder. Fine. Let him play his little games. If there was one thing I knew how to do, it was survive.

And I had a feeling this was just the beginning.

Jason’s POV:

So, the stupid waitress was the hoodie girl all along.

I couldn’t believe it at first, but it all made sense now. The attitude, the way she carried herself, even her voice—it had all clicked. She was trying to hide, trying to blend into the background like a nobody, but here she was, working shifts at some greasy diner. No wonder she kept her hood up all the time. She didn’t want people to know her dirty little secret: she was a poor waitress scraping by while pretending she was better than everyone else.

Pathetic.

I smirked to myself as I leaned against the brick wall outside the alley, watching her walk from her part-time job at the diner. I’d caught up to her easily, and it was almost laughable how she tried to act like she wasn’t fazed by me knowing her secret. She had the nerve to think she could outsmart me, make a fool out of me in front of the entire class. But now I had her figured out. I’d seen through her pathetic act, and I wasn’t going to let her get away with it. Not after she embarrassed me twice.

First, she embarrassed me in front of everyone, then she tried to switch partners like I wasn’t good enough to work with her. Then she blew me off when I told her to meet up for the project. No one treated Jason Knight like that and got away with it. It was time to put her in her place.

She had no idea what was coming.

I mean, I might have left her alone if she’d just stayed in her lane. But she made it personal when she tried to undermine me. And now, I had all the ammunition I needed to take her down. She probably thought she was so smart, hiding her face under that hoodie, keeping her head down at school like she was some kind of mystery. But I knew what she was hiding. She wasn’t some genius loner with a superiority complex. No, she was just a poor waitress trying to get by, lying her way through life.

It wasn’t just the waitress thing. She must’ve slept with one of the administration guys to get into the university. It was the only explanation. I mean, how else could a girl like her afford to attend an elite school like ours? The tuition was through the roof, and no waitress paycheck was going to cover that. She must’ve done something shady to get in. It all lined up perfectly in my head—the reason she kept her distance from everyone, why she didn’t want to be seen or recognized. She was hiding her shame.

I grinned to myself, satisfied with the picture I’d painted in my mind. Yeah, that was it. And now that I had her secret, I could destroy her.

As she walked further down the alley, I called out to her, "Is it Elly or Ella?"

She froze for a moment, then turned around slowly, her eyes narrowing under the brim of her cap. "Ooh, it’s you... so what do you want now?" she asked, her tone flat, like she wasn’t the least bit surprised that I’d caught up with her.

I couldn’t help but smirk. The moment her boss had yelled her name back at the diner, I’d known she’d be the first to crack. As much as she tried to act tough, she wasn’t invincible. I had her figured out, and now it was just a matter of time before the whole school knew too.

"What do I want?" I echoed, stepping closer. "Well, I just thought I’d drop by and say hi to my project partner. You know, the one who’s been too busy waiting tables to meet up for our assignment."

She rolled her eyes, clearly unimpressed. "Yeah, well, we all have bills to pay," she muttered.

I circled around her slowly, taking my time, savoring the moment. "So this is your big secret, huh? Working double shifts at some dumpy diner, pretending you’ve got better things to do."

She didn’t flinch. Just stood there, arms crossed, watching me with that same bored expression she always had. "I told you, I have a job. If you thought I was lying, that’s your problem."

I stopped right in front of her, my eyes locking onto hers. "I thought you were just avoiding me."

She shrugged, not giving me an inch. "Don’t flatter yourself, Jason."

Her words stung, but I wasn’t going to let it show. Instead, I grinned, leaning in slightly. "Well, I guess I underestimated you, hoodie girl. I thought you were just some loner with an attitude problem. But now I see... you’re a loner with an attitude problem and a part-time job." 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"Wow," she deadpanned. "You cracked the code. Congratulations."

I chuckled, shaking my head. "You know, you could’ve just said something. I would’ve understood."

"Sure, you would’ve," she shot back, sarcasm dripping from every word. "Because you’re so understanding."

"So, what was all that talk back at the diner about ’finding a way to oppress the hoodie girl’? Sounds like you’ve got a master plan." she asked

Her eyes flickered with something—maybe curiosity, maybe frustration. "what’s that all about?"

I grinned, leaning back slightly. "Let’s just say I have a way of making sure people know who they’re dealing with."

Her eyes narrowed. "And who am I dealing with, exactly? The guy who’s too insecure to let anyone think for themselves?"

I laughed, shaking my head at her audacity. "You really think you’re smarter than me, don’t you?"

"I think you’re a jerk who doesn’t know when to quit," she said flatly.

For a moment, I almost respected her for standing up to me. Almost. But then I remembered who I was dealing with. She was just some poor girl hiding behind her hoodie and her minimum-wage job, pretending she was better than everyone else.

"Well, I guess we’ll see about that," I said, my tone darkening. "Because I’m not going to stop until everyone knows exactly who you are."

She raised an eyebrow, clearly unfazed. "You think you can scare me with that?"

She stared at me for a long moment, then shrugged. "Good luck with that."

And with that, she turned and walked away, leaving me standing there in the alley, watching her go.

This wasn’t over. Not by a long shot. She thought she could outsmart me, but she had no idea what she was up against. I’d let her have her little victory for now, but soon enough, she’d realize just how wrong she was.

I’d make sure of it.