Chapter 4He Loved Me In Her Skin

Back in the suite, I realized I’d left my phone back at the table in my haste.

I didn’t know Celeste’s passcode, but thankfully, she used face-ID.

Opening her texts, I was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of unread messages.

A stream of guys—asking her out, flirting, suggesting late-night drives.

It was an existence I’d never known.

My own phone usually only had messages from Adam and my best friend, Jordan.

This overwhelming, exhausting flood of attention was the reality of being a gorgeous, popular girl.

I only replied to a few messages from her parents, then tossed the phone aside and fell into a heavy sleep.

Somewhere between waking and dreaming, I saw Adam. He was wearing his vintage Michigan State jersey, looking clean and radiant, walking toward me on the court.

He grabbed my wrist, pinning me against a concrete wall, leaning in for a kiss.

I turned my head, avoiding his mouth, and asked the same question. “Adam, why do you like me?”

He smiled tenderly. “Because you’re so beautiful, so fun, and you have such an outgoing personality.”

The joy flared for only a second before I looked into the nearby mirror. Staring back was Celeste’s bright, dazzling face. I went instantly cold.

It was Celeste’s face!

I shot up in bed, gasping for air. I wiped the cold sweat from my forehead, realizing belatedly it was just a nightmare.

But the dream was too vivid. It had ripped open the deepest part of my insecurity, exposing it to the light.

A knock sounded on the door. I assumed it was Celeste, but when I opened it, I found Gale.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, my voice still hoarse.

The next second, a warm hand landed on my sweat-damp forehead.

“You’re running a slight temperature. Definitely coming down with something.”

Gale held up a paper pharmacy bag. “I got you some cold medicine and a cup of soup. You didn’t eat this morning; have the soup first, then the meds.”

I looked up at his clear, sky-blue eyes, feeling a strange sense of déjà vu.

Gale was truly kind to Celeste—attentive to an almost obsessive degree.

Yet, she didn’t want him. She wanted the one man who was already taken. Was this the cliché of wanting only what you couldn't have?

I drank the soup and took the pill. As the headache began to recede, I felt sticky with sweat.

I asked Gale, “I feel gross. I’m going to go soak in the thermal pool for a while. Want to join me?”

Gale readily agreed.

However, as soon as we reached the pool area, I spotted two familiar figures.

Celeste, in my body, was aggressively pinning Adam against a stone wall, whispering something up at him. Then, she grabbed his collar, stood on her tiptoes, and kissed him.

I froze, staring. The dull, persistent ache in my chest surged, turning into a wave of pain that made me sway.

A hand shot out and steadied my shaking body.

I turned to see Gale’s eyes fixed on mine. He asked quietly, “You’re in love with him?”

I nodded, the movement painful.

“But he’s your sister’s boyfriend.”

The hand holding me was warm, but his words were like an icy wind, carrying a strange, knowing edge. “Celeste, you’re beautiful, but that’s not a golden ticket. Adam chose Daisy for a reason. That means he genuinely loves her. You can’t just barge in.”

I shook my head weakly, biting down hard on my lip to stop the tears. “You don’t understand.”

How could I tell him?

This illogical, unscientific disaster had led us here.

The person Adam was with was me, yet she wasn’t.

And I, living in Celeste’s body, could clearly feel the increasingly urgent, almost hungry desire in Adam’s eyes when he looked at me.

“Stop crying.”

Gale’s voice was suddenly right by my ear, a gentle sigh in his tone. The next second, I was pulled into a warm, solid embrace.