I Found Out I Was the Disposable Side Character Novel – The campus queen impersonated me to meet my online boyfriend. My online boyfriend had said he liked gentle, ladylike girls. Before our planned meet-up, I quietly replaced every pair of jeans in my closet with skirts. Then, out of nowhere, subtitles like those streaming video comments started flashing before my eyes. [Wait, is the side character changing her style? If she really changes her look, how is our goddess Chloe supposed to impersonate her and get close to male lead?] [Don’t worry. The lead will just mock her a bit, and she’ll get all insecure and switch back.] [Honestly, her legs were long and straight.
She actually looked better in skirts.] [Looking good is overrated anyway. The female lead was the pure beauty from the School of Arts. This poor girl didn’t deserve the Sterling family heir.] My hand stilled. The dorm door suddenly opened, and in walked Chloe Evans holding her sketchbook. Her gaze drifted lightly to the hem of my skirt. “Calla, you bought this skirt too?” She stepped closer, her voice dripping with fake sweetness. “But this style just doesn’t suit you. It looks… off.” — Chloe’s words felt like a thin needle, stabbing straight into my ears.
My parents had always hoped for a boy. As a child, they dressed me exclusively in boys’ clothing. Even now, I still dressed in a neutral, almost masculine way. But deep down, what girl doesn’t want to feel pretty? Chloe smiled sweetly and patted my shoulder. Her tone sounded sincere. “I just bought a new pair of jeans. You can have them. That way you will not get laughed at by other students for wearing this.” If this had been before, I probably would have felt so ashamed that I would have rushed to take the skirt off and stuff it into the deepest corner of my closet.
Every time I wanted to try something prettier or even slightly sexy, Chloe always talked me out of it. Back then, I truly believed she was doing it for my own good. Until one time, when I overheard our other roommates whispering that my features and figure were actually better than Chloe’s. That if I dressed properly, I should have been the real campus queen. Because of that, Chloe ignored me for three whole days. And I was the one who kept swallowing my pride, begging for her forgiveness.
All because I had treated her as my best friend. Besides, I had always been deeply insecure. I never had any intention of competing with her. I shook my head and took a good look in the mirror. I didn’t look half bad. A small smile touched my lips. “No need, thanks. I want to try a new style.” The smile on Chloe’s face stiffened instantly. The comments appeared again. [What is she doing? She didn’t seriously think she looked good in a skirt, did she?] [If she dresses like this, how is our girl Chloe supposed to pull off the impersonation and land Connor?] [Chill, guys… Our queen Chloe’s got a plan for a ‘chance encounter’ all set.
Once she pulls that off, Calla will be exposed as the fake.] [Totally. A few well-timed tears from Chloe, and Connor will be wrapped around her finger. That tomboy Calla won’t stand a chance.] That was when I finally understood the truth. I was nothing more than a throwaway side character in a feel good romance story. My entire existence was meant to highlight Chloe’s perfection and push her relationship with Connor Sterling forward. In the ending of the novel, because I supposedly sabotaged their love, Chloe had me kidnapped. I was taken overseas and forced into sex work.
Living felt worse than dying. Now that I had awakened, I didn’t want to play along anymore. I wanted to see for myself what would happen when this female supporting character stopped being insecure and stopped being manipulated by the female lead. I straightened my back and looked at my reflection with confidence. Then I met Chloe’s eyes directly. “My online boyfriend said he likes girls in skirts. Seems like a good time for a change.” Chloe pressed her lips together without realizing it. “Oh? You can’t take stuff from some online flirtation seriously.” “Calla, I’m only thinking of you.
Guys say that kind of thing all the time. It doesn’t mean anything.” “Maybe,” I said, lifting the hem of my skirt and giving a little spin. “But I’d like to try anyway. You never know, it might suit me.”