Chapter 1The 'Hate-Ship' Playlist: When Your Ex Is Your Muse

Everyone in the industry knows I'm the ex-girlfriend that top singer Jax "The King" Ryder despises most.

On a reality show, a junior idol casually turned on the car stereo, playing the default playlist.

The first song was mine.

Two seconds into the intro, Jax, sitting in the passenger seat, said coldly: "Trash. Skip it."

The idol skipped it. The next song was mine.

He skipped it again. Still my song.

Jax’s face was dark.

He glanced at the driver and sighed: "Kid, you're young, but your taste is terrible."

The idol hesitated, then weakly spoke up: "Uh, Jax... this is your car, and that's your playlist, dude."

Jax: "—Wait, what?!"

* * *

Jax and I are the Entertainment Industry’s Most Famous Opposing Exes.

Our track record is legendary.

Since we debuted, roughly one-third of our songs have been diss tracks aimed at each other.

I don't remember who started it.

All I know is: he drops one, I drop one. He drops one, I drop one...

Hatred is the number one driver of production.

Fueled by Jax’s taunts, I managed to release ten albums in two years.

When we were dating, only our closest friends knew.

But nothing escapes the all-seeing eye of the internet.

Our songs never named names, but when fans mashed our lyrics together, every single line sounded like a public feud.

#JaxAndLena: Hollywood's Pure-Hate CP #JaxAndLena: Did They Dig Up Each Other's Ancestors? #JaxAndLena: Why Did They Break Up? How Can They Hate This Much?

These kinds of twisted, viral hashtags kept hitting the trending list.

As long as we were breathing, the drama continued.

Jax and I consistently topped the charts as the Hottest Male and Female Artists for over a year.

Then, at the end of the year, the platform invited us to accept an award.

The host asked: "To both of you, now that you've achieved such success, is there anyone specific you want to thank?"

I listed everyone dutifully: "I thank my family, my friends, my agent, my fans..."

Jax, however, looked right at me: "I want to thank my ex-girlfriend for dumping me back then. She gave me endless inspiration for heartbreak songs. She is..."

His lips curled slightly, a fake, chilling smile. "...my Muse."

Online, he calls me "a golem freshly chipped out of a horror movie" and "Picasso's abstract painting brought to life." And now, offline, I'm his Muse?

That smug jerk.

Always with the passive-aggression.

On the drive home, I wrote a new song:

Muse is just your cheap fake tear Packing up lies to hide your fear Washed up, voice cracked, who's to blame here? Better go home and disappear Your inspo jumped ship when you lost me New album's dead, not a mystery You got dumped, that's your destiny

That night, I immediately posted the new song demo and a teaser for my new album on Instagram.

Fans went wild and immediately tagged Jax.

It wasn't until late that night that His Royal Highness, Jax, finally logged on.

He first liked my post, then added a comment that was both friendly and aggressively passive:

[6.]

[Lena Shaw, you just wait. 'Smiley Face']