Chapter 1

My boyfriend always gushed about my figure, saying it was a *crime* I wasn't a model.

After I graduated and couldn't find a job, he kept pushing me to audition for modeling gigs.

He even picked out the scantiest bikini for me.

Once I landed the job, I called him, excited to share the news.

But then I overheard him telling someone, “A girlfriend this hot? Five grand is *my* loss for her.”

My name is Skylar, and I’m 22.

After graduating, I couldn’t find a decent job, so I decided to audition at an advertising agency my boyfriend recommended. He said it was for modeling.

Before I went, he gave me detailed instructions, “Go find Derek. Do exactly what he says.”

“Once you get the job, you’ll make at least this much.” He mouthed ‘fifty thousand.’

Fifty thousand a month.

Chasing that kind of money, I bit the bullet and bought a form-fitting outfit.

My boyfriend had an urgent matter come up. He sounded apologetic, “Skylar, I really can’t get away. You’ll have to go alone, I’m so sorry.”

I knew he was busy, so I found the audition location myself.

Only when I got there did I realize it was in a remote suburb.

“Is Derek here?”

I pushed open the door but saw no one.

Suddenly, a large hand clamped over my mouth from behind, dragging me deeper inside.

I bit his hand, trying to escape.

But another person was blocking the exit, cutting off my escape route.

Just as despair washed over me, the man in front suddenly spoke, “Jason, what the hell are you doing? You’re scaring your girlfriend half to death!”

I turned my head to see it was my boyfriend, Jason, who had covered my mouth. He was clutching his bleeding hand. “You’re ruthless, Skylar.”

“Serves you right,” I glared at him fiercely.

The man who had just spoken up for me was Derek.

He was a burly man with a full beard. He looked me up and down, nodding repeatedly. “Good bone structure. You’re Skylar, right? Follow me.”

I followed Derek to the dressing room door. He took a tiny black bikini from a nearby hanger. “Put this on.”

I felt a blush creep up my neck. “Do I really have to wear this?”

Seeing my hesitation, his expression hardened. “Fine, don’t. You can leave with Jason right now.”

Jason quickly stepped in, trying to smooth things over, pushing me into the dressing room.

I didn’t dare waste time. Trembling, I changed and came out.

“Alright, do a catwalk for me,” Derek instructed.

It was my first time wearing something like this, walking in front of a group of men. I felt incredibly self-conscious and awkward.

Derek saw my rigid posture and started yelling at me. “You’re here to model and show off your body! Head up, chest out!”

When I didn’t get it right, he even smacked me hard with a thin stick.

The spot where he hit me immediately swelled and turned red. I forced myself to straighten, trying desperately to meet his demands.

He continued to criticize me from head to toe. All my previous confidence was completely gone.

Finally, I was utterly exhausted, but he still shook his head. “Your basics are terrible. If you want to pass this audition, you’ll have to take a ten-day crash course.”

“Okay,” Jason quickly agreed for me while I was still debating whether to continue modeling.

“Alright then, come in and pay up.”

I clutched my bank card and walked in, quietly asking Jason on the way how much it would cost.

He mouthed ‘one hundred thousand.’

What? A hundred thousand?

I only had exactly a hundred thousand in my card. It was all my savings, accumulated over a long time.

I hesitated, unable to make up my mind.

But Jason snatched the card and swiped it. “Skylar, you’ll earn this back in just a month.”

There was nothing I could do. The money was paid, so I moved into the company’s dormitory.

The three girls I shared the room with weren’t exactly friendly.

That very night, one of the girls, Ashley, doused me with water and locked me in the bathroom.