c h a p t e r
04
tussle
♔
m y r a
I DID NOT LIKE HIM.
After hearing countless things and having two memorable encounters with the man of the hour himself, I concluded that I did not like Nicolas de la Garza.
His presence was like a vortex that sucked out the mere existence of everybody else in his attendance until he filled your entire vision. During the match that I had promised to attend for the sake of Noah, my eyes would keep drawing back to him in the field.
There was something so dark and dangerous about him that sent a chill down my spine but also demanded my attention all the same. It was like watching a horror movie when you knew you were in for a jump scare but couldn't tear your eyes away from the screen.
But tonight wasn't about that; it was supposed to be about Noah, but it wasn't about him either.
Valeria had called me. All on her own, pretending to be some kind of a mother to me, asking me about my day and life in general. I had almost crashed my phone into the wall until Mira got me out of that situation. I told her I was going to a party, and she giggled and promised to keep it between the two of us.
I hated that feeling. Even though Papa would be downright furious if he ever found out that I had been attending parties at that moment, I wanted absolutely nothing to have in common with that woman.
She was not my mother.
My mind was in a trance that couldn't be broken free from so the only way of respite I knew was to numb the emotion by drinking it away.
I didn't own that many cocktail dresses, so Mira had lent me one of hers. It was a gorgeous black dress with spaghetti straps that stopped in the middle of my thigh. It had a little slit on the left side to give a bit of character, and I paired it all with golden earrings.
Mira had a lot going on with her outfit. She wore a black crop top over a short skirt, pairing it with the silver belt. Her tattoos were in full display since she didn't bother to hide them as she did on campus; her long row of rose bushes inked on her arms blinked at me as she grabbed her knee-high boots.
There was something so unique about the way Mira dressed, and it was one of the first things that drew me to her.
One of our earliest memories of bonding had been her rummaging through her closet to find Ugg boots. Upon seeing her unique collection of outfits, I demanded she show me her versatile set of black clothes, and she happily obliged while giving me a fashion show of my own.
"You look great." I complimented, pouring shots for both of us.
"Watching you pour shots seems illegal even after a whole ass year, babe." She exclaimed as she straightened her hair. Our dorm offered us two huge mirrors and wash basins in the bathroom for usage, and it was our second favourite place apart from our beds.
"So Jeremy, huh?" Her reflection wriggled her eyebrows at me as I sighed and set down the glass next to her. Jeremy had approached me in the cafeteria and asked for a date.
Under the scrutiny of hundreds of people, I felt turning him down for a mere date would have been a social suicide that Papa wouldn't have loved hearing about.
I had tried prolonging it for as long as possible, making excuses for classes as I added extra ones to my schedule, taking him to Noah's match to call it a date. Unfortunately, he was more intelligent than that and had just kept waiting.
"I don't like him, Belle," I told her as we clinked our glasses and downed the vodka in one go. The bitter liquid exploded in my mouth as my gag reflex resurfaced in full force.
"Fuck." She breathed, "Then tell him, who cares?"
"It's not that simple," I mumbled in a small voice as the burning in my stomach spread to my food pipe and warmed up my insides. It was a night of mistakes I was ready to commit, so I kept eating at bay, only consuming a bit of salad here and there.
"Whatever you say, babe." At that, the bell rang, "I think that's Lily."
I nodded and went to open the door; Lily was dressed in a pink one-piece with strings across her exposed back. Her skin was flushed red, not from alcohol, as her infectious smile cracked across her face upon spotting me.
"Girl, you look divine!" She hugged me before I brought her into the room and shut the door.
"Shit, the bitch is already wasted," Mira claimed and shut off her straightener before working on her touch-ups.
"Not punk Barbie talking." Lily only ever insulted us when she was buzzed, and right at this moment, this was.
"Will you be fine?" I asked her, worry etching my features. If she was already this far gone, only god knew what could go down in the party. A feeling of apprehension made its way into my gut at that thought.
"Of course!" She chirped and tried to reach for our bottle before Mira whisked it away.
"Punk Barbie can't find her punk Ken, sober, Lily of the Valley." She replied and gulped down a big gulp of drink to piss her off, which worked, unfortunately.
"Fuck you."
"Anyways." She turned to me, "It's Noah's party, and secondly, Abraham is going to be there!"
"Lovely," Mira replied in a deadpanned tone.
•••
Noah was too busy to greet us by the entrance, but his security already knew the three of us, so he let us in without much hassle. Noah was the son of Allen Walker, a musician turned producer who had quite the hold in Hollywood.
I had watched a few movies produced by his father, but they weren't really my cup of tea; most of them were Christmas rom-coms that didn't appeal to me, but I could never say that to the chirpy older man whenever I visited them.
The huge two-floored white marbled mansion boasted a jacuzzi inside and an outdoor pool outside with glass panes on the back of the house, providing a perfect spot for parties. Noah could be called the best emcee in town.
We made our way to the bar, got ourselves a cocktail before the beat changed, and headed to the dance floor.
I felt my head lighten as the alcohol began to kick in, and my steps faltered as the lights dimmed further. The events of today blurred into a washed-out painting as I eyed my friends, who looked equally hazy and lovely.
"I fucking love dancing with you guys," Lily said after a while as she wrapped her fingers around me and made me twirl. I giggled in response.
Mira had a small smile playing on her lips before a large presence appeared behind her. Before we both could warn her about it, the man in question put his arms on her hips and began to sway with her.
She turned almost immediately and pushed him away, "I'm busy, jerk."
He removed his hands and held them up in surrender before rolling his eyes and walking away.
The action reminded me of Nicolas de la Garza doing a mock surrender to me a few weeks ago, and I sighed. My mind was not in the right place.
"Abraham hasn't texted me."
"Girl. Shut the fuck up."
Lily, too wasted to differentiate between sarcasm and genuine, got offended as she glared at Mira with her bright eyes, "Excuse me?"
"You heard me." Mira looked bored, and it was an expression I was beginning to dislike.
"I'm sorry you aren't getting dicked right now, but that doesn't mean you act like that." Lily shrugged, clearly drunk and clearly not in the right state of mind. We knew Lily had the tongue of the snake when she was buzzed, but some words still stung despite it all, and this seemed to hit Mira right in the chest as a dangerous smile appeared on her face.
"If you are the one getting dicked down, then why is Natalya Viconti shoving her tongue down Abraham's throat for the last twenty minutes?"
"What?!"
At that, the two of us whirled around to face the side of Mira and watched the scene unfold right before our eyes. The man with the light hair had his hands tightly gripping Natalya's ass while they kissed almost- too passionately.
Lily looked at the sight and stormed towards them without wasting a breath as I stood rooted to my spot, watching the scene unfold. She shoved Natalya away, but Abraham held on to her. He was rolling his eyes at Lily while appearing almost bored at the confrontation.
The exchange lasted for barely five minutes before Lily turned her head and whizzed past them into the crowd, weaving through them at an impossible speed. I realised with horror that I had lost sight of her.
"Shit." I cursed. She was drunk and high on emotions. I couldn't leave her alone. I looked to Mira, who was still clearly pissed at Lily, and shrugged at me, "I am going to play beer pong by the pool." With that, she left, too.
Exasperated, I followed behind Lily as dread filled me. I ditched my Valentinos under the kitchen sink, hoping no one would find them as everyone had a pair of their own, and frantically began looking for my friend. They belonged to my sister, after all.
I barged through doors with people fucking, making out and fuck, where the hell was Noah? I tried calling his phone, but he didn't pick up. It was understandable, considering he was the host, and in this massive house with blaring music and dimmed lighting, it was hard to locate anybody.
I grabbed hold of a couple of blonde girls in pink, but none of them were Lily. The burning liquid had begun to take effect in my brain as my comprehension of the surroundings blurred further. I tripped on someone's leg before painfully slowly gaining my balance and continuing my search.
It was getting harder to look for her until I came across the second floor, hoping she would be in one of these rooms. The bodyguards on the floor looked strict as they stopped people from letting through, but upon seeing me, they slid away; after all, I was a frequent visitor, just like Mira.
I sifted through all nine doors in the house, wondering why Noah had to live in such a big house when his parents were clearly back in Hollywood.
Finally, my eyes landed on the furthermost door on the floor, which was slightly more significant than the rest. It wasn't Noah's bedroom but his office, a place that was decorated with his awards and certificates and something his father borrowed whenever he came here to visit.
Noah said his father held important meetings there and had it furnished accordingly. I sent a prayer, seeking forgiveness for intrusion as I pushed the door open.
At first, the bright lights blinded me momentarily as I struggled and lost momentum. The thought of Lily quickly made me refocus, but the sight before me froze the blood in my veins.
A bunch of men dressed in dark clothes, some even in suits, looking like bodyguards that flocked rich kids around the neighbourhood. Then, there was Noah standing next to the chair that was usually reserved for his father.
But what shocked me the most was Nicolás de la Cruz sitting on the chair as if he owned the entire place.
A/N
Their dresses as I imagined them are put up. (BUT THEY ARENT SHOWING IDK WHY so here)
Honestly this story was born bcuz I was going thru iffat on pinterest and was like damn girl she's going to be such a hot mc
anyways, thoughts ? I have unimportant exams going on so my timings are a bit off but here's an update
as always
love lilac
༝༚༝༚