Setting
Default Location for Upper East Side
Minimap
northwest |
north |
northeast |
west |
You are here. |
east |
southwest |
south |
southeast |
Manhattan, NY is a part of 
Upper East Side.
14 Characters Here
Sienna Alvarez [254] "I swear, guys. This is gonna be our best year yet."
Jane Lynch [203]
Sydney Vale [183] "She's going to regret saying that about me."
Charlotte H. Buchanan [148] As long as we don't die, this is gonna be one hell of a story."
Vincent Mast [113]
Carolina Daily [93] "I didn't become heartless. I became smarter."
Connor Harkins [88]
Brent Barclay [66] "I wouldn't have an attitude problem if you weren't so damn pesky."
Victoria Walsh [58] "I know things about you before you even know about them."
Ricardo Slim-Helú [47] "I'm not in the business of denying myself anything."
Start Character Here »
Kelley didn't think that Piper could have been that much more hungover than she, but unlike the redhead, Kelley made it to class on Friday. She felt dead for most of the day and considered telling Vincent and her Aunt Colette that she wasn't going to make it to dinner, but she knew that that would only cause her a bigger headache. They were all meeting at her mother's new restaurant in Tribeca and god forbid Kelley miss another "family event". So, around seven, she left her apartment in an outfit and walked a few blocks over to Vincent's. He had finally learned how to lock his front door, forcing her to pound on it obnoxiously rather than let herself in. "Let me in, bitch!" she called through the door. For a few seconds, she considered that he wasn't home because there was no sound on the other side of the door. After what seemed like a while, the door creaked open and before she could congratulate him on learning how to use a key, he started speaking in a frenzy.
"Kell, I'm not going to dinner anymore. Did you see those posts? I'm fucked. I'm completely fucked." She had seen the posts on Twitter and Facebook, but honestly, she didn't think it was a big deal. She had known the truth about Vincent's cheating scandal the day after it happened and even then, she didn't think it was a big deal. Vincent had cheated on Sienna with Sydney. For the past few years, everyone already knew that he cheated on her. If they were going to hate him for that, it would have happened back then. Why did he care so much about the detail of Sydney being the other woman coming out? "Oh, calm down, Cowboy Casanova. People will get over it in two days when the next-" she tried to reassure him people who care about it for a few days, and then move on. That was how the Upper East Side worked. He grabbed her wrist before she could finish, and led them out of his apartment.
Kelley could tell that he was panicking when she realized that the address he shot at their cab driver was Sydney Vale's. If Vincent was thinking straight, he would have went to speak to Sienna and receive her side of the story first. She had heard enough about their night together to know that they had left off on good terms yesterday. Vincent, the boy that claimed to be heartbroken when she dumped him, could not really care this much about Sydney when everyone knew he had vowed to never let her come between he and Sienna again. "I don't think this is a good idea..." she commented, though the advice went unheard by her cousin who let her into Sydney's building. The fact that the doorman recognized him by his name and gave him access to Sydney's apartment without even buzzing in wasn't a good sign. Maybe she knew less about Vincent and Sydney's relationship than she thought she did...
To: Piper
Yea wtf. Vincent dragged me to the queen bee's house... Where r u at? Shits gonna go down. U should be worried more than me lol looks like ur friend group is in for a rough weekend
She guessed that Piper would know more about how all of this got out than she, since she was in the same social circle as Sienna and Sydney. Kelley, however, was unaware that everything already went down, until Vincent hesitantly opened Sydney's bedroom door. There she was, the heartless ruler of Constance Billard, bundled up in blankets, red-eyed and alone. It was strange to see the girl who could make people flinch with just a look to appear so vulnerable herself. Kelley hated drama and she still thought that Vincent freaking out over this whole affair was a waste of energy, but Sydney's appearance alone made her feel bad. Kelley wasn't Sienna or Sydney's biggest fan, but she was definitely civil enough with both of them. When it came down to it, she easily preferred the first to the second, however. Her issues with Sydney were the same that most people had with her. She disliked how caught up in herself she was and found her too be too uptight for her liking. Kelley had no real reason to dislike Sienna, especially with how in love Vincent was with her. Maybe it was just the air that that group gave off, because Kelley sometimes rolled her eyes at Piper's behavior too, if she was around her friends.
Even if she didn't want to get involved in the drama, the look the desperate look that Vincent flashed her and the broken look on Sydney's face made Kelley feel inclined to do something. "Sydney, no one is going to care about that stupid post by Monday. People say shit all of the time about you, aren't you used to it by now?" Okay, maybe that wasn't the most compassionate way of putting it. "I mean, when you're popular and whatever, there are so many people who want to try to cut you down, and I'm sure whoever wrote that was one of them. It's not worth crying over." She carefully sat down on the edge of Sydney's bed, desperately hoping that the blonde opposite her wouldn't burst into tears. "Why don't you just tell Sienna you're sorry? I'm sure you guys can move on from this." If she had only known about the dinner the three popular girls had earlier, she definitely wouldn't have suggested that.
While the world was crumbling down for many members of the Upper East Side's most spoken of popular clique, Carolina's was only getting better. She only allowed herself to remain on her new bed for a few minutes before her curiosity go the best of her and she was exploring her room again. To think that this was a spare bedroom was crazy, and she had half the mind to venture out of her bedroom and explore the rest of the penthouse. What would the kitchen look like? The living room? Her attached bathroom had it's own television! She couldn't imagine what unnecessary but undeniably luxurious features the rest of the house would have. Nicole had reassured her that it was just them two... and a hoard of housekeepers in the penthouse, but Carolina still didn't feel comfortable enough venturing out on her own. This wasn't just not her house, but it was Jane Lynch's house, and even if Carolina wasn't scared of the girl or her friends, she also knew to stay in her place if she wanted to avoid conflict. That was how it went at school, and she imagined that was how it was going to go here, too.
"That's this amazing Italian place down the block! Do you want to try it in a little?" she heard her sister calling out from down the hall. Carrie didn't feel like shouting back. Not only was the place big enough that her voice probably wouldn't reach her sister, but she felt like the Lynch abode was too nice for shouting... if that made sense. It reminded her of a museum, almost, where everything was too nice and expensive for a commoner like her, and she had to be cautious not to ruin its ambiance. So, rather than shout back through the bathroom and bedroom and hope that it would reach Nicole, she left the box of toiletries that she was unloading on the bathroom counter and hurried towards her bedroom door. She cracked it open and called out in a voice barely louder than a normal speaking tone, "I'd rather just order something in, if that's okay. I might have to go out in a little while for student government anyway." The thought of Sunday's event had only come to her when she was about to tell Nicole that she was down for Italian, but as soon as she remembered, she knew it was better to keep tonight open in case Lottie wanted to meet up.
To: Charlotte
Hey Lottie is anyone from SGA meeting up tn to go over the details of Sunday's event? LMK if so. I'll be in the UES for a while now so for once it shouldn't take me 20 mins to get to u guys like it usually does lol
"We can stay in and watch something in the theater after, then!" her sister yelled back, clearly more comfortable here than she. But wait... they had their own movie theater?! In the house?! Maybe her mother uprooting to Florida wasn't such a bad thing after all.
To: Lee
Not joking. They have a THEATER in their house man. My mom wouldn't even buy a TV for my room and they have a fucking move theater in their house. Come over and check this place out when ur not busy with Jin
To: Piper
R u kidding me?! At least he's ok. Send him a kiss from me lol and yes!!! My only update is that I moved in w my sister's husband.... aka ur bestie's place... but I wanna hear what's going on. Come over I'm sure Jane would rather u b here than me anyway
Her text to Piper couldn't have been more true because before she could run back into the bathroom, her door swung open and this time, it wasn't only her sister on the other end. She had managed to get to her bed and sat on the edge of it as she blinked at the two woman standing in the doorway. Carolina shouldn't have been surprised to see Jane since this was her house, but it was just weird seeing her out of school to begin with. Carolina rarely attended the parties and social events that Jane hosted or attended (mostly because she was rarely invited), and she didn't think that Jane attended many of the SGA events held outside of school. It was a bit of a reality check to see her there, since this was going to be her new life.
Apparently, Jane wasn't very happy with it, and as Carolina did a double take, she realized that her sister had said something about this being a "surprise". Carolina couldn't blame her for being shocked since she was clearly just finding out about her moving in, but did that really constitute the completely rude "you have got to be kidding me" that Jane spoke before storming down the hall. What a bitch... She flashed Nicole a look of displeasure and half expected her to run down the hall after the angry princess. "She's upset about something else... it's not you." Her sister looked distracted and maybe even genuinely concerned as she continued to switch her gaze from Carolina, to back in the direction that Jane had ran off in. "Uh, she looked right at me when she said that," Carolina objected, raising an eyebrow. "No, don't take it personally, Car. Mom told you about all of the shit I've had to deal with with Jane, right? She just thinks that the whole world revolves around her and doesn't care if she takes her issues out on anyone else. You just can't take it personally. That's what I learned, and if she ever gets too nasty, just tell Adrian that she hasn't eaten all day. He'll either send her back to Illinois or we can watch her squirm through a meal."
Her sister was trying to be playful and Carolina had to laugh at that mischievous grin, but it just reminded her how immature her sister could be. Maybe it was normal for a twenty-seven year old to still want to seek revenge on a bratty teenager with an attitude. Nicole never was a kid person. At the same time, it also suggested that maybe she wasn't mature enough to be married to someone old enough to have a bratty teenager with an attitude. Carolina barely knew about the "shit I've had to deal with with Jane". She would overhear the phone conversations where her Nicole complained about Jane slamming doors and sobbing when she didn't get her way, but she didn't know the details. The eating disorder issue too, which her sister was not gracious in referencing and making fun of, Carolina was on scarcely aware of. From the way it had been explained to her months ago, Jane was just a normal body-conscious teenager. When her sister had called months ago and mentioned that Jane was going to some treatment facility, she had explained it in a similar fashion as she was speaking now - about how Jane had been so bratty that she convinced Adrian to get rid of her for the summer.
That's why, it was hard for Carolina to feel bad for the girl who had just expressed how pissed she was about her moving in. She didn't think Jane had real problems and if her moving into one of the... nine? ten? spare bedrooms in the house was that big of an issue, that oh well. Life would go on for Carolina, that was for sure.
By the time Jane calmed down, her satin pillow was stained with the mascara that was supposed to be waterproof. Apparently, a never ending stream of tears and having her face buried in her pillow voided that label. The fact that her chest had stopped heaving and she could open her eyes without wetting her cheeks was enough to distract her from the ruined pillowcase. This issue, what had just happened between her friends, wasn't a problem that she could move on from after an emotional breakdown, though. This wasn't her dad refusing to let her skip school for a trip to Bali, this wasn't even at the level of her father marrying Nicole. Sienna, Sydney and Piper were the girls that she loved like sisters and when she hated her own family, she had them to turn to. What was going to happen to that now? Sienna and Sydney's differences seemed irreconcilable. Sydney slept with Vincent, the boy that they all knew Sienna had loved forever, and apparently, Sienna had slandered Sydney on social media. It was never stated in the fight that it was Sienna who did it, or at least Jane hadn't heard that being snapped during the heated conversation, but it seemed obvious. There was no way that that post would come out minutes before Sienna confronted Sydney about the same thing without there being a common link.
Jane couldn't imagine picking a side between her two best friends. The reason for Sienna's anger was obvious and valid. Vincent was hers and it completely destroyed their girl code for Sydney to go after him. At the same time, everyone knew how much Sydney's public image meant to her. She had spent years building it up and taking her position at the top, and Sienna had just, at the very least, threatened that. Sienna knew how Sydney worked just as well as Jane did, and confronting Sydney at dinner probably would have been enough. Did she had to make that post too? Probably not. However, Jane couldn't blame Sienna for not being as complicit to Sydney's outrageous demands and expectations as she was. Sienna was too independent to be forced to quell her feelings, especially about Vincent - something she was so passionate about, just to appease Sydney. So, there Jane was, stuck between understanding both sides of the dilemma but unable to choose one over the other.
As if all of that wasn't enough, Jane had to face her own problems being out in the open now, too. It had been shocking to hear Sydney reference the facility she had spent her summer at, because even if they were skeptical of her whereabouts, how would they know that she was there? Out of every place in the world that she could have been staying at, how did they figure out that it was that place?! It baffled Jane, who was sure that she had done a good enough job at covering her disorder's tracks for the past few years, and even the past few months when it had taken on a life of its own.
The only people who she could think to blame this on were Nicole, or Hailey. Hailey Neilson had seen her at the airport in Chicago when they were both flying back to New York. Simply being at an airport thirty minutes from the facility wouldn't have given someone enough reason to magically guess she had been there, but maybe Hailey overheard the facility employee who dropped her off referencing it? It wasn't a very plausible scenario but Jane had to consider it. She wanted someone to blame this on, and she wanted that person to be someone who wouldn't go crying to her dad if she accused them of it. If it was Hailey, that still didn't excuse Sydney from how rash she had treated the subject, or Sienna, for apparently organizing that dinner with the intentions of grilling Jane on it. Sienna's text directly following the dinner had suggested that maybe it wasn't the cynical plan that she felt like Sydney had painted it to be, but Jane was at a point where she didn't know who to trust. She was used to both of them venting to her about the other, and it wouldn't have been too surprising if each tried to make the other seem bad to make themselves look better.
It was stressing Jane out enough that she didn't want to be friends with either of the girls if this was how it was going to be. An unrealistic choice for someone who relied so heavily on socialization, but one that she supposed she could stick to for at least the night. Besides, she always had Sebastian, and that was evident in his text to her. Normally, she would have begged him to come over so she could sob to him about the drama that just went down, but what if he knew about her disorder as well? Maybe he knew for just as long as the girls did, and was waiting to spring it on her at any moment too. Even if he didn't know already, how was she going to explain how exhausting the night was without referencing that? Sydney and Sienna drama was normal, even if it wasn't to this degree, and her reaction had been too emotional for this just to be about them. Jane wasn't ready to talk to Sebastian about her problems. Not because she didn't trust him, but only because she wasn't ready to talk to anyone, including Syd and Sia, about them.
To: Seb
Just please make them be friends again Seb
She needed to distract herself and the list of assignments that Charlotte reminded her of seemed like a good start. It took a bit of effort, but Jane eventually pulled her thick blankets away from her small frame and shuffled over to her desk. It was buried in the back of one of the drawers, but she eventually pulled out Othello. It had been one of the book choices for summer reading, and though she never remembered choosing it, it was apparently the one she selected. All she had to do was flip the cover open to decide that there was no way she could read that. She knew what Rodrigo meant, but she couldn't figure out that "Iago" was a name and not some unknown word, and that alone was a bad sign. She felt bad bugging Charlotte again, especially since she planned on requesting a copy of another assignment from her tomorrow, so Jane took the book out of her room and to Nicole. It probably wasn't the best person to request homework help from. Jane was the first person to point out how dumb she found Nicole to be, but she also assumed that maybe her unwelcome sister would know a thing or two about it. Nicole was standing in Carolina's doorway, and still unwilling and unsure of how to even approach Carolina, she turned to Nicole and held the book out. "Can you help me learn this?" She was trying to be nice because Jane knew that she needed the help and wasn't going to get it with an attitude. Plus, she really had dealt with enough fighting for the day with her friends.
Carolina was not remotely convinced that Jane's reaction to her presence wasn't personal, but she also didn't care enough to linger on the topic. Being treated like she was second class wasn't going to be pleasurable, but Nicole was right. Carolina was used to girls who thought that way after attending Constance for three years. She was used to being one of the few girls who weren't white, one of the few girls who weren't filthy rich, and one of the few girls who wouldn't toss their morals out the window for a chance at popularity. This wasn't going to be anything that she couldn't handle and the pluses of living here outweighed the cons by far, at least as of now.
"Whatever you say, Nic," Carolina said, an eye roll accompanying the smile she had flashed her sister after her immature suggestion to solve their Jane problems. She watched as the blonde's eyes peered down the hall one more time before she shrugged and stepped further into the bedroom. "We can go to Room & Board in Chelsea tomorrow if you want to pick out some new things for the room," she commented distractedly. Carolina watched as her sister ran her fingertips along the dresser and then studied the non-existent dust it left on them. "It's fine, it I don't need anything else." It looked like the things in the room hadn't ever been touched and Carolina grew up with the same bedroom set she had since she was in kindergarten. She wasn't going to start being picky now. "No, we'll go. I've been meaning to have someone come in and redecorate these spare rooms anyway," Nicole continued nonchalantly, before looking towards Carolina with an impish smile. "I think Adrian used to fuck the interior designer who decorated them... before we met, of course, but still." If she expected Carolina to be able to empathize with that, she was sorely mistaken. "Oh, the horror." Sympathizing with people whose problems seemed so insignificant was hard for her. She knew it was wrong, that just because someone's life was easier in some ways didn't mean that they couldn't have problems. Her sister had always been dramatic, so this was nothing new. However, Nicole had been raised in the same home as Carolina, which meant that back then, she had been at least been a modest drama queen. Apparently, being exposed to this life of grandeur changed people. Carolina couldn't fathom herself falling into that trap, and was glad that despite the change of pace, she would still have Lee and Piper to keep her grounded.
"I forgot, you're still in that 'forever alone' phase, aren't you?" her sister teased as she busied herself with opening each drawer of the nearly empty dresser. "We aren't all as lucky as you, Nicole. There are only so many fifty-year-old grey, single billionaires who want to fuck a girl right out of high school." Her sister stifled a laugh dramatically. "I was twenty-five when I started 'fucking him', FYI, and that's not what I'm talking about, Carrie. I'm talking about boys you go to school with! I'm sure there's some geek there who'd be willing to take you to the movies! Or what, are you only into black guys or something?" Her sister was being playful and her jaunty smirk and glistening eyes made that obvious, but really?! This time, it was Carolina busting out an obnoxious laugh. "You are out of your mind. First of all, Constance Billard is an all girls school, and no, I'm not only into black guys. That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. Besides, not every guy at Saint Jude's is white. They're just... not my type." Not her type, mostly for the same reason that many of the Constance girls weren't her type when it came to friendships. She didn't feel like she would fit in enough with them, and wasn't going to put herself out there and have that confirmed. "Sureeeee," her sister winked, clearly unconvinced as she headed towards the door. "I'm too hungry to wait for delivery, so I'm just going to call in an order for Cipriani downstairs. What do you want?" Carolina had never eaten at the upscale restaurant attached the the Sherry Netherland hotel where the Lynch's lived and doubted any of the simple meals she could think of would be on their menu. "Just order me whatever you're having."
She was ready to skim through the endless television channels again when Jane appeared at her door. She addressed Nicole in a tone much sweeter than the one they had heard before, but Carolina was not impressed. Typical rich brat, coming in with that pristine little attitude when she needed help with something. Carolina had a few classes with Jane over the years, so it was no surprise to her when when she requested that Nicole help her "learn" the Othello play. She smirked to herself as she proposed that Jane probably couldn't even spell Othello. Then again, she doubted that Nicole could either, and now, that was going to work against her. Nicole snatched the book out of Jane's hand and studied the cover curiously. "Sorry, doll, never read it." Carolina was almost off the hook. Nicole handed the book back to Jane and shrugged carelessly, took one step away from the door and then it hit her. She could get the girls to bond and give Jane a reason to be nice to Carolina, and boast to Adrian about how Carolina was going to be a great influence on Jane's academic performance. Fuck my life. Carolina knew it was coming as soon as her sister abruptly spun around on her heels and matched her death glare with a cheerful smile.
"I'm sure Carolina will help you though! Car, you've read this thing, haven't you?" She tossed the book and then looked over to Jane, talking now, as if Carolina wasn't even in the room. "All she did when she was a kid was read. If it wasn't Harry Potter, it was Lord of the Rings. If it wasn't Lord of the Rings, it was the dictionary." Carolina's glare intensified at her sister's ignorance and again, the level of high school pettiness she had. She did not move in here to be the thing that united Nicole at Jane at the expense of her dignity.
"I-" Carolina wanted to object and claim that she had to go meet Lottie, which wouldn't have exactly been true since she hadn't heard back from the blonde. Nicole didn't even give her a chance to say no, though.
"You'll help her," Nicole finished the sentence for her in a voice that too closely resembled their mother's for Carolina to want to bother with saying no. Besides, she had chosen the same book for their summer reading assignment and had actually read the play twice in middle school for assignments as well. Nicole disappeared, leaving Jane standing awkwardly in the doorway for a mere minute before the blonde reappeared with a laptop. Carolina didn't shift from her crossed-legged position at the top of her bed, so Nicole took the initiative to lead Jane inside. "Here, you sit. Here's your laptop, and Carolina will help you come up with something that'll get you a good grade. It's your first paper of the year, right? So it won't be weird if you get an A anyway." Nicole seemed just as aware of Jane's poor academic record as Carolina did, but there was no way that she was going to write an A level paper for her! Constance standards were far higher than public school ones and it was sometimes even difficult for Carolina to get an A. She would get Jane a B-, and even that was pushing it.
Jane was obedient to Nicole's direction and sat on the very edge of Carolina's bed. Closer now than she had been all night, Carolina could make out the fatigue in Jane's face. Her eyes looked lifeless, her skin paler than she remembered it to be, and her body thin enough to justify the trip that Nicole had joked about earlier. She didn't look as demonic as Carolina decided she was earlier. It was only when the silence between them passed the one-minute mark that Carolina realized that she was staring and shifted her position on the bed to be slightly closer to Jane. "Okay, well, it was kind of an open-ended assignment. Do you still have the handout with all of the prompts on it?"
"I don't think I ever got one." Carolina knew she had. She sat a few rows behind Jane in that class, but she wasn't going to contest it.
"Alright, well, one of the prompts was to explore some of the literary devices used in the play." She thought that that might spark some thoughts in Jane's mind, but the empty expression she got reminded her of who she was dealing with. "Did you even read it?" Carolina didn't think that the annoyance in her voice had been that obvious, but out of no where, the brunette in front of her started crying. There was no time for Carolina to even react before the slow stream of tears turned into Jane throwing her arms around her and crying into her shoulder. Completely shocked and confused, Carolina didn't know what to do besides uncomfortably pat her back. "You don't need to cry about it, Jane... It's fine, I can tell you what it's about, you don't have to get worked up over it..." If she thought Nicole was a drama queen, she didn't even have words for this girl.
"It's not the stupid book, Caroline," she said her voice cracking as more tears came. Carolina scowled at being called Caroline, a name that her name was mistaken with far too many times, but she didn't correct Jane, who was talking as soon as she caught her breath again. "Sydney slept with Vincent, and when we were out to dinner Sydney ordered the paccheri for me and I wanted the salad, and now Sienna hates Sydney, and Sydney brought up where I was this summer and she had the nerve to say that it was 'fun', and Piper is going to be friends with Sienna and Sydney will never talk to them again." Jane was talking way too fast for Carolina to keep up with and even when she paused to take a breath, too much had been said for her to catch up. "And Sydney got mad at me today for not going to get a facial with her, and I'm supposed to go to Hailey's party tomorrow even though she told everyone where I was this summer, and Lottie's not going to help me with my math work, I just know it, and my whole life is ruined, Caroline." That Caroline thing was going to get on her nerves, but she still didn't think it would be appropriate to correct it now. Not with a girl who had been a stranger one hour before, sobbing on her shoulder.
Jane's jumbled rant probably would have been hard to decipher for someone who knew about the Sienna/Sydney drama, so for Carolina, who was blissfully out of the loop, it was like a foreign language. She managed to make out something about Sydney Vale being mad about Jane not getting a facial with her, Charlotte not helping her with math homework, Sydney sleeping with Vincent, something about a salad and paccheri, and Jane's life being ruined. "Don't cry," was all that Carolina could offer. Not only did she have no idea what Jane was crying about, but she wasn't good with comforting crying people, especially when their problems involved missed facials. "Look, I'll do the paper for you. You should just go to bed... and maybe shower first." The tears dripping down her face had turned a murky grey, and one glance down at her mascara-stained shirt suggested that she would be throwing that shirt out.
When Jane nodded and slowly picked herself up from the bed, sniffling as she left the room, Carolina considered that all of that could have just been an act. Maybe Jane was manipulative enough to know that Carolina would rather just do the paper on her own and remove any responsibility from Jane, than deal with her crying. At the same time, Carolina didn't doubt that there was drama going on in that friend group. She heard enough of it from Sienna at SGA meetings to know that there was always something going on between the girls, with the tension primarily existing between Sienna and Sydney.
Carolina knew that the assignment wouldn't take her long anyway, and even if she had been conned into doing it, it was easier than having to deal with Jane's face palm-worthy commentary on Othello.
Sebastian only shrugs in response to Lee's question about the 'Higher-ups', putting the mobile away. "There's always something going on with them, I'm sure it's nothing that important." Sebastian says, but couldn't keep the worry out of his voice. What was Jane so upset about? The posts had nothing to do with her.
Smiling slightly when he notices Lee kept their old profile, Sebastian grabs a controller, sipping his soda as he does so. When Lee tells Sebastian that they don't exactly 'run in the same circles', Sebastian frowns a little. He'd never really noticed who Lee hung out with, because it was usually just the two of them, occasionally Carolina would tag along but it tended to just be the two boys. But after thinking about it, Sebastian realised they were both very different. Sebastian usually hung out with the 'popular crowd' while Lee opted to stay out of the limelight. It worked like that even when they were best friends. "You could come with me?" Sebastian suggests nonchalantly, referring to Hailey's party, "Like, as a friend." He quickly adds in. Not wanting to give Lee the wrong message and scare him off. Sebastian wasn't definitely wasn't sure that his feelings towards Lee were completely platonic, and he had known Lee was gay since he came out to Sebastian years ago. However what he was sure of was that he didn't want a relationship - not with a guy. Or at least not right now.
Ignoring that thought, Sebastian is just beginning to get comfortable when he gets another text from Jane, skimming it Sebastian sighs, she seemed so upset. Leaning back against the arm of Lee's sofa, Sebastian turns to him. Looking at him while he decides whether he should leave. He really didn't know what to do. Jane hadn't stated that she wanted him to come over, but then again, she might still be expecting him to. Jane did that a lot. Sebastian guessed it was her strong sense of entitlement. While he really loved Jane, he knew that was your average Upper East Sider, thinking that people should come running to her when she needed them. Which Sebastian usually did. But not today, he couldn't and didn't want to leave Lee.
Deciding that if she texted him again, asking him to come over he would go. But for now, he wanted to enjoy Lee's company - for the first time in ages. Placing the soda on the side, Sebastian turns back to face the television his hands gripped around the controller. "Okay, let's do this." He grins, settling into his seat. Sebastian pulls his legs up onto the sofa unintentionally nudging Lee's thigh, quickly choosing to ignore the burning sensation in his cheeks and instead, attempting to recall how exactly it was that the game even worked.
He had a feeling he wasn't going to win this one - If any.
Lee's phone went off again, momentarily distracting him from whatever Sebastian was dealing with in his own group of friends. Carolina's texts were cracking him up. He couldn't imagine how it felt though, to be uprooted like that and just moved into a place like the Lynch's. Hell, he'd only ever been inside places that nice on a handful of occasions. He hadn't even been to Sebastian's that often in the past, because of Jin his house had usually been the center of activity.
To: Carolina
Shit I had to save up to buy my own piece of shit tv, I'd kill for a fucking theater. You. Me. Movie Date. Soon.
Shit I had to save up to buy my own piece of shit tv, I'd kill for a fucking theater. You. Me. Movie Date. Soon.
It was very possible there wasn't anyone else on the planet Lee liked as much as Carolina. She just...understood him, on a level no one else could. On a 'Childhood Sucked, White People Everywhere, Once Poor, Not Putting Up With Your Popular Bullshit' level. He hated being short with her over text...half of him wanted to just catch a train and go see her ASAP. But...
He looked over at Sebastian and realized there was something he wanted a little more. Because it'd been so long since he'd had this and who the hell knew how long it would last. And then he remembered that damn party they were talking about. He arched an eyebrow silently, knowing he had a judgmental expression on his face, but honestly...why not?
He snorts and rolls his eyes. "Of course, as a friend," he muttered, more under his breath than anything else. He wanted to ask if Sebastian had meant a lot of things as a friend, but even Lee wasn't stupid enough to push his luck. He'd been handed an inch, there was no reason to stretch it out. "Yeah. Sure. Why not."
He took a few last drags of his cigarette before dropping the blunt on the coffee table and pulling his lefts up to sit criss-cross. It put them closer, his knee basically resting on Seb's thigh, but he didn't care, didn't make any attempt to move. Instead, he focused on the game.
Half an hour later and he was nearly crying with laughter, leaning over the arm of the couch and holding his side. "Oh my, God, Bastian you actually suck. See, this is why you can't be without me too long. What the hell have you been doing with your life? Spending too much time working on that pretty face of yours?" It was an old jab, one only enunciated by Lee's ever so rare grin. He trash talked with compliments and complimented with trash talk, that was absolutely nothing new. Somethings never changed.
Sebastian smiles happily when Lee accepts his invitation, oblivious to the edge in his voice. "Awesome!" Sebastian was actually beginning to get excited for Hailey's party, "Oh and it's one of those Black Light parties, so try and wear something bright." Sebastian tells him, even though he knew full well that neon wasn't exactly Lee's thing and the boy would most likely just show up in dark colours - as usual.
Saying nothing when Lee rests his knee against his leg, Sebastian stares straight ahead at the Tv, trying to distract himself from it. His cheeks burned even redder but Sebastian tried his best not to let the contact phase him. He put all of his thoughts into trying to win the game instead. After a half an hour - that felt like an eternity - of losing, Sebastian dropped the controller, frustrated. That frustration only mounting as Lee tells him he sucks. "You're cheating," Sebastian concludes, eyeing Lee suspiciously and trying to work out how he could possibly have done, "You have to be, no one's that good!" However, even when annoyed and frustrated, Sebastian couldn't keep a smile off of his face and hearing Lee's familiar laugh only made it grow wider. He had so missed this.
Turning to Lee and pouting a little Sebastian says, "You couldn't even have been nice and let me win one?" Feigning hurt, but unable to sustain it. He was in far too much of a good mood to even pretend to be upset, and a grin kept creeping onto his face whenever he heard Lee laughing. It got to the point where Lee ended up laughing so hard at Sebastian inability to win even one game, that Lee was bent over and clutching his side. Sebastian remembered how rare it was to see Lee smiling, that to have gotten him to cry with laughter completely overjoyed, even if it was at the expense of himself. Sebastian could handle being teased for being rubbish at video games. As long as it meant Lee would keep laughing, Sebastian was happy. He loved Lee's laugh.
He had even found himself enjoying Lee's trash talk. Which wasn't exactly trash talk because it usually ended up complimenting Sebastian, and he didn't mind that at all. "I swear, one day I'm gonna get so good at this and win - then we'll see who's laughing." Sebastian pulls a face at Lee, despite knowing full well that even when he played video games practically everyday with Lee, he only occasionally won. Lee seemed to just have a knack with games. Or maybe it was just Lee's presence that put Sebastian off his game; he did often find himself drifting away from the screen to look at his old friend.
Finishing off his soda, Sebastian decides to send a quick text to Hailey, making sure that she was cool with him bringing a friend. Making sure not to spend too long on the message, as he didn't want Lee to think he was disinterested in hanging out with him, Sebastian swiftly types it up.
To: Hailey
Looking forward to ur party tonight. is it cool if I bring a friend?
Looking forward to ur party tonight. is it cool if I bring a friend?
Sending the text, Sebastian looks at the screen where the game was still up, and then back to Lee. "I'm not sure I want to keep playing," Sebastian says, while he didn't mind losing to Lee, it was getting a bit much. "Not unless you want to, y'know, let me win one?" He adds with a wink, nudging Lee's shoulder, "Because you're such a great guy." Sebastian attempts to butter Lee up a little, while still being incredibly teasing.
Lee had never been to a Black Light party, but he'd heard of them before. He very highly doubted he had anything appropriate in his closet...except jeans and possibly, possibly a white v-neck left over from summer. He figured that would have to do, because there was definitely no neon. He could use that as an excuse to back out though. Because really, what the hell was he thinking?
At some point Sebastian turned to him and asked if he could've been nice and let him win one, and Lee very literally had to bite down on his tongue to keep from asking you couldn't have been nice and talked to me for the last year or so? Part of him wanted to still, but there was a very delicate bridge they were standing on and Lee would be damned if he cut the ropes himself.
Thing was, Lee couldn't even stay passive-aggressively angry for very long. His best friend was in his house, sitting next to him and accusing him of cheating just like old times, grinning so wide it looked like his face might split in two or something. Lee loved it. He loved it so fucking much he was willing to step down off his high-horse long enough to enjoy it.
All of his laughing and squirming ended up with him sitting with his back against the arm of the couch, his feet propped up on the cushion next to him. It put his attention half on Seb and half on the TV, but he'd probably still win. They were talking more now than anything though, the screen still frozen on pause from when he first started laughing. "Whatever, you wish you could beat me. But it's never gunna happen."
He took a drink of his soda while Sebastian was busy with something on his phone for a moment, getting over his laughter and drowning half the thing at the same time. He put his can down and was just about to start another level with Sebastian mentioned not wanting to play anymore. He laughed again, especially when his shoulder was pushed at.
"Whatever," he laughed, using his foot to push at the other mans thigh in retaliation. "Fine, we don't have to play anymore." He smirked to himself as he thumbed through the menu options, saving their latest scores which took Sebastian's profile down quite a bit. He tossed the controller away before facing his friend completely, dropping his head against the couch and smiling. "What do you want to do instead?"
{ Written in collaboration with CharlotteV }
- sorry about the length -
Rolling his eyes playfully at Lee's cockiness, Sebastian only internally vows that one day, he's gonna beat him. And when he manages to - or more like, if he manages to - boy is he gonna gloat about it. Lee won't be able to a day without Sebastian bringing it up. Just as payback for Lee's arrogance today. Poking him right back in the chest, after Lee's retaliation, Sebastian laughs along with him softly. Almost completely forgetting that they'd ever stopped talking for so long. Sebastian found himself starting to believe that the whole incident never happened and that they were still the best of friends. Oh, how many times Sebastian had wished for that to be true.
Pouting as he watches his score on his profile decrease a fair amount, Sebastian shrugs at Lee's question. "I don't mind," He replies, thinking for a moment. As he does, Sebastian finds that he stomach begins to rumble. Biting his lip embarrassedly, he looks to Lee, "Um, we could always make food?" Sebastian suggests, not wanting his stomach to rumble again. Lee glares at him for a moment, eyes narrowed like he may or may not actually answer, before finally sighing and rolling his eyes. "Sure, fine, what do you want?"
Sebastian thinks for a moment, he didn't exactly want to ask for something Lee didn't have, so instead, he asks, "Uh, well, what is there?" Slightly awkwardly, Lee's standoffish behaviour throwing him a little. Lee considers him for a moment, runs a hand up through his hair before shrugging slightly. "Korean shit, mostly. My mother still shops at Korea Town when she can get away with it. There...might be spaghetti. Possibly stuff to make pancakes..." Sebastian's eyes light up a little at the thought of pancakes, but he tries his best to conceal his childish excitement. Instead opting for a nonchalant, "Yeah, I don't mind - Pancakes sound good though, I mean, if you have the stuff for them." He adds a shrug for good measure, but can't keep a small smile from appearing on his lips. "Oh, my god, you actual adorable five year old." Lee rolls his eyes fondly before shoving his friend and pushing himself up off the couch. "We've got to make them from scratch so get off your ass and come help." Sebastian's smile widens into a grin when Lee calls him adorable, jumping up off of the sofa to follow him into the kitchen.
He couldn't help his childishness, there was nothing that Sebastian loved more than pancakes. They had always been his favourite food, ever since he was a child and as he grew up, they became almost a comfort food for when his father was being aggressive and his mother wasn't there. Taking in Lee's tiny kitchen, Sebastian opens the fridge and pulls out a carton of eggs and some milk, "You need these right?" He guesses, Sebastian had never actually made pancakes himself. In fact, he'd barely made any food in his life, which meant this was all the more exciting. Lee looks over his shoulder and nods before digging in the cabinets for the flour, baking powder, and other, little ingredients. "Yeah, grab the butter too, it should be on the top shelf. Also..." he sits the containers down and leans over, unscrewing the lid to the milk and sniffing at it before nodding in approval. "Yeah, just the butter, we're good to go. Do you want fruit? We can throw in some blueberries or strawberries...might have some chocolate-chips leftover..."
Doing as Lee asked and grabbing the butter off the top shelf, Sebastian leans against Lee a little to place it on the counter before replying, "Oh! What about both? Strawberries and chocolate chips!" The delight in his voice evident. Cooking seemed fun, especially with Lee, and Sebastian thought that maybe he should try and do it more often. Lee gives his friend a half amused look before rolling his eyes again slightly. "Switch places with me," he mutters, hands falling on Sebastian's hips as he pushes himself between the small amount of space between his friend and the counter behind him. "The chocolate chips are in that top cabinet. Do you mind?" Lee could reach the high doors if he climbed on the cabinet, but it just seemed easier to get Sebastian to do it while he searched for the strawberries.
Sebastian's eyes widen when Lee's hands land on his hips, but quickly relaxes again when he realises that Lee was only doing it to move past him. Reaching up to grab the chocolate chips from the highest cabinet, just like Lee told him to do, Sebastian again, leans over his friend to set them down, beginning to become much more comfortable with all of the contact. In fact, he kind of enjoyed it. "Okay when do we get to the eating part?" Sebastian then asked, however much he may enjoy this whole cooking process, he also wanted his pancakes. Lee arched his eyebrows comically, and gestures at the raw materials as a whole with his arms. "I mean, be my guest. How much plain flower do you think you can manage?" He kicks the fridge shut with his foot, adding the strawberries to their pile. Sebastian laughs at Lee's sarcastic comment, enjoying his friend's dry humour. "Okay, okay." Sebastian rolls his eyes, "I just want to eat pancakes..." He sighs, looking down at all of their ingredients. "We have everything - what next?" Sebastian then asks, truly lost as to what he was supposed to do now.
"How do you even survive?" Lee asks, rolling his eyes slightly. He moves around the kitchen easily, handing Sebastian a bowl at some point, arms brushing against his friends back when he has to step too close. "Here," he hands over an egg and cracks one of his own gently, dropping the eggshell in the sink before doing one more. After that he walks through the dry ingredients, showing Sebastian how to measure them out and throw them in after the eggs. Sebastian tries his best to keep up with Lee, but ends up quite confused. So he just waits for Lee instructions before doing else, not wanting to mess it up. While Sebastian measures out the flour, Lee begins to beat the eggs. However, as Lee brings his elbow out to whisk, he hits it into the bag in Sebastian's hand, causing a shower of flour to fall down upon him. "Shit!" Sebastian curses as the flour coats Lee's side and back, "I'm sorry." Grabbing a sponge from the side, Sebastian doesn't give himself time to think about what he's doing before he finds himself wiping Lee's bare back with the sponge, feeling incredibly guilty.
Lee goes stiff almost immediatly, looking down at the splashes of white covering his already pale skin, but more so the feeling of Sebastian literally cleaning him off. he clears his throat and tries to side-step out of the situation, but there really isn't a lot of room, while he wipes at what he can reach of the mess. "Um, it's fine, I can...it's fine, you don't have to..." When Lee says this, Sebastian blushes a soft pink colour. "Oh, um sorry, I-I, just uh.." He trails off, removing his hand from Lee. Seeing there's still some on Lee's back Sebastian sighs, "It's just you, um, you still have some on your - uh - on your back." Sebastian manages to get out, averting his gaze from Lee to the floor.
Closing his eyes, Lee's fingers tightening on the counter in front of him, breathing through his nose a couple of times before finally giving a little nod. "Okay...um, then, if you don't mind?" He says and Sebastian mimics his slight nod before placing the sponge back onto Lee's back and trying to get off the flour. It was probably the most awkward situation he had ever been in, and what made it worse was rather than the flour just coming off as he'd hoped, it seemed to cling to Lee's skin and Sebastian wiping a wet sponge over it, made it turn into some kind of paste and stick even more. It took him ages to finally wash off all the flour that had been spilled on Lee, and Sebastian found himself holding his breath for the most part. The tense atmosphere overwhelming. Once he had finished Sebastian took a big step back from Lee, "I, um...Think it's all gone now." Sebastian murmurs, his eyes still on Lee's back.
Lee does his best to keep still, to make the process as easy and as quick as possible, even though that didn't particularly seem to be happening. He kept his eyes closed, focused on breathing through his nose, definitely did not relate the situation to any he'd been in during more...intimate situations. "Thanks," he murmured, when it was finally all over, taking one more breath and clearing his throat awkwardly. "Alright, um, if you want to...remeasure the amount of flour we needed. We can, um...pancakes." Sebastian nods again, "Yeah, pancakes.." He mumbles, taking the flour and extra cautiously measuring it out again. After successfully doing so, he hands it to Lee, making sure that it doesn't spill again.
After Lee had finished mixing up the batter, Sebastian keeping his distance so they didn't end up in another, 'situation', they were finally ready to make the pancakes. The excitement of actually getting to make them overwhelmed Sebastian and he pushed what had just happened to the back of his mind. "Can I pour it into the pan?" Sebastian asks, excitedly. Lee just rolls his eyes and nods, handing the batter over to him. The first pancake Sebastian did was a mess, it was all over the place and thicker on one side. Lee watched him fail with a bemused smirk, before stepping forward and taking Sebastian's wrist. "You're not doing it right." He chastises, guiding Sebastian's hand so that the mixture is even and perfect in the pan. "Awesome!" Sebastian beams, watching the pancake cook.
When the pancakes were all cooked and ready, the boys retreated back to the living room, sitting down on Lee's old sofa and happily tuck into their pancakes. Ignoring what happened between them earlier and focusing on eating instead.
Dɪᴀʟᴏɢᴜᴇ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✦ #00C5CD || Tʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✧ #007478
Charlotte didn't even stop Sienna from letting everything out. She just continued to stroke her arm up and down and look at her with a small smile. "Everything was awful. I-I was out shopping with Jane...for the party tomorrow a-and it was all fine. Sydney bailed 'cause I guess she was mad, I don't know. I had literally just bailed on meeting up with..." Charlotte knew who's name she couldn't say without crying, she didn't even have to say it. She knew it was Vincent and that's what made her mad out of the whole thing. Sienna was crying over a guy who had already cheated on her once with her best friend at that and still decided to think he was a good guy. Cheaters are bad and most don't change. Plain and simple, not that Lottie would lecture Sienna about it right now. She already did when she was told that Vincent had cheated on her in the first place. So, she just kept her mouth shut and let Sia continue. "...and Colette. Because I wanted to spend time with my girls. And maybe Sydney was still mad about last night, which is stupid because if them hooking up back then didn't mean anything, why it would mean anything to her if he and I were just hanging out last night? You should've seen her face, it was like I was holding hands with her boyfriend and we hadn't even done anything yet." Lottie scoffed at the sound of Sydney's name. Oh, yea Sydney was a piece of shit for sleeping with Vincent too. They both were equal pieces of shit for hurting Sienna like that. "Sydney." Scoffing softly once more as she said her name and rolled her eyes. "I'm such a fucking idiot."
When Sienna took a quick pause, Lottie grabbed some toilet paper as she decided to speak. "Sienna, honey, you are not f--.. freakin' idiot. You hung out with Vincent big deal? Sydney's just being... Sydney; a possessive, controlling, little--..
"I sleep with him - give him exactly what he's wanted - but I'm still so fucking stupid. Oh great, no really this was perfect! She slept with the cheater too. Sienna deserved and was better then this. Again, Lottie said nothing. She only sighed as she softly pinched her nose with her left hand. Something she did whenever she was either disappointed or had no idea what to say. Right now, she was a small mix of both. "Because he went straight to Sydney while we're all out and I don't know, she thought it would be nice to post that fucking Snapchat? It was payback? I don't even know...I just...I was so mad. It's been nearly two years, I thought we could start over or something, and then he says some shit like that and I just...snapped." She watched Sienna shrug like it was nothing.
"No one actually knows Tori's the admin of that page, not unless she's told you herself. It was the deal we made. And I was wrong for doing it, I know, but I was so mad and I wanted to hate her so bad. But she made this about Jane! She turned on J in two seconds flat! W-we were supposed to talk about...her summer...because it was such a big deal and...she's been through soooo much..." She just nodded. She knew about the deal, but she still hadn't learned what the rumor was, when she had asked Tori she said it was 'Nothing big, just a stupid little joke.' At this point, Lottie didn't care about what it was and she just moved on from the whole thing.
"And Sydney just threw her under the bus, trying to change the topic at dinner. As if Jane didn't ask a plausible question. She wanted to know what the posts meant and I wanted Sydney to tell her and like a coward, she turned it on Jane. But I couldn't let her do it and suddenly, I am the bad friend for being upset. For not trusting her all the years. For not having the balls to say anything." Of course Sydney didn't own up to it, why would she own up to it? She was Sydney Vale, she needed to seem like she could do no wrong and never fuck up. Lottie stopped shaking her head when Sienna looked up at her and Lottie could finally see how torn up her friend was about all of this. "But she's just as bad, right? Because if she really felt guilty for it, she should have said something! I could have forgiven her and...and we could have been fine. And, Char...I'm just so tired. I don't know if I can pretend anymore...not with her. I did it for me and her and him because he had begged...and she was supposed to be one of my best friend and I wanted to believe she would have been honest eventually...that it really was a mistake."
"Sienna--.."
"But we haven't been friends though, have we? Haven't been friends for years." Lottie hated seeing her friends look so defeated, especially ones that are so strong like Sienna. Lottie pulled her into her arms ago and laid her head softly on Sienna's as she sighed. "I knew there was a reason why I wasn't that popular," She joked as she chuckled before continuing. "But Sienna, I don't think you dealt with it the right way. You're better than that, you're better than stooping to her level. But, it happened and you're right. It's not all your fault. And if you're tired of acting then screw it. Screw them, it's not worth it. You know? I think the only thing you can do is to move forward and put it and them behind you. Okay? She said as she got up and went in front of her friend to lift her chin. [color#00C5CD]"Just keep your chin up and everything will fine.[/color][/b]
The night's events took an unexpected turn when Kelley ended up spending the night. She refused to speak to Vincent, ordering him out of her apartment after his fourth attempt at apologizing, but she didn't want Kelley to leave. Granted, she was in the mood for anyone's coming, and Kelley wouldn't have been her top choice, but having her there ended up being better than expected. Kelley let Sydney go on and on about how pathetic and conniving and jealous Sienna was of her. Sure, Kelley was downing cocktails faster than Sydney was speaking, but she didn't even want a coherent response from the girl. She needed someone to get her anger out to and as long as Kelley was there to nod every now and then, she was fine. They devoured the pizza Sydney had ordered before the cousins arrived, watched an assortment of Disney movies (or, at least had them playing in the background as Sydney ranted), and by two AM, both girls had passed out in Sydney's room.
When morning came, Kelley's hangover was apparent when Sydney woke up to find her locked in the bathroom. She had a couple mixed drinks the night before but hadn't moved beyond being tipsy. However, the emotional strain of the day before forced her into a state of exhaustion. It took rinsing off in cold water and a cup of coffee for her to feel somewhat functional, but with that, came the thoughts of what had went on yesterday. She had lost Sienna as a friend, and even if she wanted to tell herself that it was a good thing, it wasn't. She had potentially lost Jane as a friend, which was definitely a bad thing, especially since Sydney hadn't even tried to reach out to her the night before. That was for no reason besides her being too caught up in her own despair and self-pity, but even if that was just who Sydney was, it wasn't a valid excuse for being a bad friend. All Sydney knew, as she sat on the edge of her kitchen island with her steamy beverage in had, was that she had to win Jane back before Sienna got to her. Sienna was not going to try to ruin her image like that and run off with her friends. Hell no.
Saturday, September 6th | 7:30 PM
It was time for Hailey's party, as made apparent by the countless number of Instagram posts of classmates pregaming through their friends. Sydney, however, had no intentions of going to the party. To start, Hailey was a drug addicted loser who had the nerve to speak to her as if she was the one who was the nobody on Thursday. Secondly, Sienna was going to be there, and although Sydney wasn't hiding from her, she had no desire to see that girl's face ever again. Lastly, Sydney didn't want to show up with anyone other than her friends. Connor was still out with his family, she still hadn't reached out to Jane, Piper was definitely going to side with Sienna, and she didn't really want to show up with Kelley. The blonde was a good ear for the night, but they were so different. A real friendship would never last and Sydney knew that Kelley was smart enough to know when she was being used.
The only thing that gave Sydney the courage to show up at Jane's apartment unannounced, knowing that Sienna very well might have already dragged her to Hailey's, was the fact that Jane's Instagram had been dead for the evening. It would have been very surprising if Jane was looking great in some dolled up outfit for the party and didn't post a picture for everyone to see. Then again, maybe this eating disorder thing had stolen her social media confidence too. It was too late for Sydney to reconsider, because the concierge of Jane's building were already escorting her to the private penthouse elevator. And up she went. 38 stories later, and the elevator bell chimed, doors slowly peeled open and she was in the foyer of the Lynch household.
A member of the house staff was a few feet away, rearranging a vase of flowers when she looked over at Sydney and stopped what she was doing. Though she probably expected it to be Adrian or Nicole, or unbeknownst to Sydney, Carolina, Sydney frequented the home more than often to be a recognized face.
"Miss Vale! I didn't hear you buzz in. Let me get Jane for you," the woman exclaimed pleasantly. Normally, Sydney would have refused and walked up to Jane's bedroom herself, but she didn't know if Jane even wanted to see her. Yesterday had went horribly, Sydney had a lot to apologize for, and Jane was always more emotional than the rest of them. She never had to deal with Jane being actually upset with her, but at the same time, nothing like this had ever happened before. And rather than reflect on herself, Sydney cursed Sienna again for having to be so dramatic.
Sienna had only hiccupped and wiped her eyes at Charlotte's last pieces of advice, knowing that the class president was more than right. "You're right...you're right...I just..." Just didn't know what to do now? Was going to regret her decision at some point? Sienna didn't finish her sentence and she only hoped Charlotte would not ask her to because she did not know how. All she knew was that Charlotte was right - she handled everything wrong. She should have realized then to cut her ties with Vincent and Sydney. She didn't regret snapping at the blonde, never. Not in a million years would she regret going off on Sydney and the blonde had been lucky that was all Sienna had done. However, the post was out, speculation was running her phone rampant, and she honestly wanted to get home and to her ice cream.
"Thanks, Lottie," she said softly when it seemed like the tears would stop. She even managed a small though lackluster smile. "At this point, you're probably the only friend I've got so...thanks." She hugged her fellow Constance girl one more time before deciding to take Charlotte home, texting her own driver. Sienna didn't feel like waiting on a taxi and spending anymore money for the day. After a ten minute waiting period, Sienna and Charlotte were inside the Alvarez family town car and another ten minutes later, Sienna was dropping her friend off with the promise of picking her up for the party. She had not said much during the car ride to Charlotte's place nor had she checked her phone during that entire time, but once she saw to it that her friend had entered the building, Sienna's drivers pulled away from the curb and she turned her gaze to her phone.
Jane's text from earlier remained unanswered. She couldn't offer her friend a response at the moment. She couldn't just make up with Sydney Vale. Sydney would expect immediate regret and for Sienna to take full blame and, after crying in Charlotte's arms and having time to breathe, Sienna felt like she deserved more than groveling at Sydney's knees. She did not exactly expect Sydney to do such to her, but she definitely wasn't planning on finding out any time soon. Instead, she flipped through her phone to see various messages from classmates she almost didn't recall until memories of destroyed chemistry sets, volleyball matches, and failed cooking experiments danced across her mind. Most offered their support and a few, their allegiances though Sienna didn't understand why they would do that. She had not done what she had done out of a desire for Sydney's throne. She just wanted to get back at her at the only way she knew how. By affecting Sydney's image. Sienna's image was just as important to her, but her heart came first and Sydney had aided in breaking it. Despite validating Charlotte's wisdom of her not "handling the situation correctly", Sienna still felt like revenge had been served.
Saturday, September 6th | 7:30 PM
To occupy the void left in her life since she wasn't exactly on speaking terms with either Jane or Sydney, Sienna had woken up early on Saturday morning. No matter her mood and because Cynthia had been upset about the revelation of who Vincent had cheated with getting to her from one of her manicurists (how the hell it had spread that far, Sienna could not even fathom!), Sienna still had to go to her modeling session. And it was also Hailey's birthday and she couldn't ruin the day for her friend just because she was in a bad mood. So, Sienna did something she rarely did. She cooked. She was not the greatest and had to get kitchen staff to help her since Cynthia had gone back to their Long Island estate for the weekend, but she ended up satisfied with the assortment of breakfast food. Because it was Sienna and she loved pancakes, they were definitely an option and because Hailey loved chocolate, they were chocolate-chip. Plating a stack of pancakes and topping it with whipped cream, a chocolate sauce drizzle, and candles, Sienna and Esmee surprised the blonde singer with breakfast-in-bed followed by presents. Esmee had gotten Hailey a Cartier love bracelet from her own summer job money and allowance from their parents. Sienna and Jane - and only because she promised Jane she would include her and literally had to swallow back a lump of emotion when she acknowledged her friend's involvement in the gift giving - had gotten Hailey two new outfits complete with accessories and jewelry, and a paid day of relaxation at Caudalie's with Esmee.
After the girls had eaten and bidding both Esmee and Hailey a good day with a promise to check on everything for Hailey's party for the night, Sienna had gone off to her photo shoot with Young&Reckless. She was getting a large endorsement from both them and Pepsi, so she had to do small things like campaigns, photo shoots, interviews, and commercials. Luckily, she didn't have to act today. She was too tired for any of that. Esmee had taken to washing her hair for her last night and had even put in cornrows because Sienna had not cared enough to stop her. The only thing she had focused on was the smell of her Black Vanilla conditioning products from Carol's Daughter. So, Esmee did what she did and it was fine because the stylists all decided to apply a sew-in weave to her hair, thus leaving Sienna with a red hue for the six hours that she was there. It was a surprisingly sexy color that she would have been more than interested in had she cared. Sienna had had to focus on not giving away too much emotion to Piper when she saw the natural redhead and ignored Sebastian all together, not remembering his name being on the list of models for the shoot.
Once that was over and promising her friend to text her later (and taking out the blasted weave!), Sienna had checked with the club they had rented out for the evening's festivities. As a means to take pressure off of Hailey because she deserved to enjoy her birthday, Sienna had made the final plans for the evening. She had made sure the night would be fun. There would be paint in one of the lounge areas for people to use if they had not already gotten themselves painted, most of the drinks glowed in the dark, there were neon lights with a timed fog machine, the DJ knew some of Hailey's favorite songs, and there would be light snacks and a birthday cake. A few of Hailey's friends were flying in as a surprise and a few of the friends Sienna had introduced her to in California were coming. Overall, the evening was going to be great and satisfied, Sienna returned home to get ready, surprised to see Ricardo Slim-Helú waiting for her when the elevator doors opened.
"Rick," she breathed and Ricky's hand shot out of the elevator, stopping the doors from closing in on a flabbergasted Sienna. He only smirked at her expression. "Miss me?" Her answer was throwing herself into his arms. Ricky didn't hesitate in allowing her to do such, wrapping his firm arms around her waist and spinning her around for a moment. He wasn't surprised when Sienna didn't immediately release him when her feet touched the ground and allowed her the chance to cling. He had seen the Facebook posts that turned into tweets and then full-on debates between classmates who normally did not speak to each other. And least of all about two of the most popular girls at Constance Billard.
Which was why Ricardo was a bit excited for the school year. While being in California had been fun and attending such a prestigious institute for the time that he had had been challenging considering those were some of the best athletes in the country, there was nothing like good old New York, particularly the Upper East Side. For years, he had been entertained by the various gossip blogs that had emerged in the last few years and even more-so, by the whispered rumors in the hallways surrounding each and every student. Some guys felt like it played with their manliness to be involved with gossip, but their heterosexism did not leak into Rick's mind. No, in fact, he reveled in the gossip, oftentimes starting issues or making them worse. And it wasn't like many chose to challenge him. The ones who did either learned their lessons and probably don't live on their side of town anymore, or were some of the few Ricky was entertained enough by to not be upset with. Which included the blonde in his arms.
It took Sienna a minute, but she had come to the conclusion that she honestly had missed Ricky. While both his and Sydney's need for absolute control and demands could be overbearing, she couldn't lie when it came to having grown tolerant of Ricky. Granted, if she and Sydney had never gotten into a tiff over Vincent, then Sydney would be her girl and Ricky would be just another bothersome manwhore like Vincent. But he wasn't. He was fun and she loved flirting with him. Partly because she knew she would never give in to his advances and partly, well...all anyone had to do was look at him! Ricardo Slim-Helú was absolutely gorgeous! There was no doubting his attractiveness and why doing absolutely any and everything came natural to him. Even the air about him was intoxicating at times, especially when he put on that damn smolder. However, and luckily for her and her emotions, he only had a teasing smirk on his face. "You didn't tell me that you were back yet." Ricky shrugged, following Sienna on the path to one of the smaller kitchens. Already comfortable in the Alvarez family home, he walked over to the liquor cabinet and pulled out one of their bottles of scotch. "Kinda thought seeing my gorgeous face would put you in a better mood," he replied and Sienna rolled her eyes, pushing two glass cups towards him. "Yeah, whatever." This was what she needed. Playfulness. Familiarity. Something to get her mind off of everything else.
"I'm surprised you aren't with your queen," she commented after receiving her half-filled glass of scotch. Ricky stared at her, long and leisurely, before smirking. He detected the jealousy underneath the inquiry and happened to like it. It made things all the more fun when shit really hit the fan. Ricky did not favor Sydney nor Sienna more than the other. Did he like it when he girls fought? Oh, yes, he did. Sienna was a tough and fiery little ball of wonders, and Sydney was...well, Sydney was more his equal than he would typically give her credit for. Both of them gave him a bit of entertainment, just in different ways. If anyone else messed with them, he would be more than ready to stand up for them. Them at each other's throats? Delightful. "I will pay my respects before the night is over." There was a pause before he added, "Jealous much?" Sienna scoffed and swallowed down the liquor, gritting her teeth so that she wouldn't allude to the liquor having still taken her aback. A warmth spread in her belly and wanting that feeling again, she drank more until the glass was finished. Noticing Ricky still watching her, Sienna tilted her head curiously. "How did you get in here anyway? And where's...?" Rick answered only a beat later. "I buzzed in just as Esmee and your friend were leaving. Esmee just let me on in." Sienna hummed, maneuvering around the island until she was beside Ricky. Pouring herself more alcohol, she took another drink. "So, I'm guessing that means you're coming to the party tonight." It was more of a statement than a question, especially after noting Ricky's apparel.
Instead of the usual formal attire Upper East Side kids were used to or even the business casual they frequented, Ricky wore black Levi jeans, a simple white muscle shirt underneath a specially designed black varsity jacket with neon green accents, and black and green sneakers from Adidas. It was unsurprisingly tame. There would be paint at the party and Ricky was too cool to ever really have his body painted. Sienna would joke later that he was too stuck-up, but for now she simply appreciated the display of pectoral muscles beneath the thin white fabric of his top. "Careful there, sweetheart," he teased, the deep timbre of his lowered voice forcing Sienna's gaze to meet his. "The last girl that looked at me like that got laid." Heat rushed to her cheeks and Sienna immediately retorted, "It would be a cold day in hell before you and I ever happen." Ricky only chuckled and Sienna growled. "Down, kitten. I was only playing." Sienna only glared at him and Ricky's smirk grew. "Gotta go anyway before I hit up this party of yours. Need to check on a companion of mine who you've been ignoring." Sienna didn't have to question who he was speaking about. It was Vincent.
"And until he gives me something worth paying attention to, I'm gonna keep ignoring him," Sienna stated sharply. She had not answered not one of Vincent's text messages and didn't plan on doing so. She did not know about his having gone to see Sydney instead of her. All she knew was that Sydney obviously meant more to him than he had initially let on and Sienna was hurt. Perhaps she should have reminded herself that she had said that their night had been supposed to be a one night stand. She had prepared herself to be ready for it to be that way. However, she didn't want to focus on that and only shooed Ricky out of her kitchen. "Go on then. I have to get pretty and you're holding me up." Ricky only chuckled as she led him to the elevator, offering her a smirk when the doors closed. Sighing, Sienna only rushed to get herself together. Ricky had managed to hold her up for twenty minutes and she promised to give rides.
On his way down, Ricky leaned against the back wall of the elevator. He had not truly spoken to Sienna about the Sydney-Vincent situation and had chosen not to. He wanted her more pliant and receptive of his words. At the moment, she was vulnerable, but enough to fully let down her guard. It would take more time and he could always plant the seed of suspicion later. For now, he decided, he could text his other friends.
To: Vincent
Omw 2 r place & u better b ready. No excuses.
To: Sydney
I kno u missed me & all, but the least u could have done was give me a welcome home kiss babe. Heard u were dealing w/ a mutiny. Not gonna say I'm not surprised u couldn't handle urself w/out me here, but don't tell me ur in cowering, Syd. Come 2 the party
After a ten minute shower, Sienna returned to her bedroom to put on a matching printed bra and panty set. It was a daring move, especially considering her outfit for the night. But she was feeling reckless. The fact that she had downed two glasses of scotch when she had not eaten dinner yet said enough. The bra's stripes would glow in the dark beneath the revealing top. After applying a shimmering lotion that left her skin feeling silky smooth and giving off her signature scent, Sienna pulled on a pair of Abercrombie & Fitch shorts and a pair of multi-colored Giuseppe Zanotti wedges. The colors would glow in the blacklight of the club. Still topless, Sienna headed over to her vanity to work on her makeup. While the long lashes seemed pink in regular light, they would glow blue later and the eyeliner would be pink. Despite her earlier plans to have glitter all over herself, she didn't feel the need to show off artistically. She just felt like being sexy and stupid for the night. It would be a bad decision later and she would probably get chastised later, but who the fuck cared? Once her face was taken care of and a pair of silver hoops were in her ears, Sienna set to fixing her hair up. One of her favorite stylists had done her nails earlier. It didn't take long to get to the final product for her hair as she had not straightened in last night and the braids had played on the naturally curly state from her mother's genes. Satisfied, Sienna finally pulled on her long-sleeved top, a mid-driff baring little thing with large fishnet holes. It revealed the bra beneath and the neon pink shade made her skin pop. The flat tummy she had worked to keep toned would be revealed and she even chose the belly button ring whose diamond would glow pink. The top would also glow later in the night and after a spritz of perfume, Sienna was ready for her night.
Once in the town car, Sienna checked the time. It was ten minutes after eight, and so she sent out her texts, biting her lip at messaging Jane. She didn't know how the brunette would feel about her ignoring her plea, but she couldn't ignore Jane forever either.
To: Piper
Picking up Charlotte first. Where do u want me 2 pick u up at?
To: Charlotte
Omw, love. B there in 10
To: Carolina
I am so sorry 4 not messaging u back. A lot happened and I'm really sorry. R u coming to dis party tonite?
To: Jane
Hey, I'm omw 2 Hailey's party. Do u need me to send anyone 2 pick u up? Do u need anything?
To:Hailey
Omw. Everything good so far?
"Thanks, Lottie," she said softly when it seemed like the tears would stop. She even managed a small though lackluster smile. "At this point, you're probably the only friend I've got so...thanks." She hugged her fellow Constance girl one more time before deciding to take Charlotte home, texting her own driver. Sienna didn't feel like waiting on a taxi and spending anymore money for the day. After a ten minute waiting period, Sienna and Charlotte were inside the Alvarez family town car and another ten minutes later, Sienna was dropping her friend off with the promise of picking her up for the party. She had not said much during the car ride to Charlotte's place nor had she checked her phone during that entire time, but once she saw to it that her friend had entered the building, Sienna's drivers pulled away from the curb and she turned her gaze to her phone.
Jane's text from earlier remained unanswered. She couldn't offer her friend a response at the moment. She couldn't just make up with Sydney Vale. Sydney would expect immediate regret and for Sienna to take full blame and, after crying in Charlotte's arms and having time to breathe, Sienna felt like she deserved more than groveling at Sydney's knees. She did not exactly expect Sydney to do such to her, but she definitely wasn't planning on finding out any time soon. Instead, she flipped through her phone to see various messages from classmates she almost didn't recall until memories of destroyed chemistry sets, volleyball matches, and failed cooking experiments danced across her mind. Most offered their support and a few, their allegiances though Sienna didn't understand why they would do that. She had not done what she had done out of a desire for Sydney's throne. She just wanted to get back at her at the only way she knew how. By affecting Sydney's image. Sienna's image was just as important to her, but her heart came first and Sydney had aided in breaking it. Despite validating Charlotte's wisdom of her not "handling the situation correctly", Sienna still felt like revenge had been served.
Saturday, September 6th | 7:30 PM
To occupy the void left in her life since she wasn't exactly on speaking terms with either Jane or Sydney, Sienna had woken up early on Saturday morning. No matter her mood and because Cynthia had been upset about the revelation of who Vincent had cheated with getting to her from one of her manicurists (how the hell it had spread that far, Sienna could not even fathom!), Sienna still had to go to her modeling session. And it was also Hailey's birthday and she couldn't ruin the day for her friend just because she was in a bad mood. So, Sienna did something she rarely did. She cooked. She was not the greatest and had to get kitchen staff to help her since Cynthia had gone back to their Long Island estate for the weekend, but she ended up satisfied with the assortment of breakfast food. Because it was Sienna and she loved pancakes, they were definitely an option and because Hailey loved chocolate, they were chocolate-chip. Plating a stack of pancakes and topping it with whipped cream, a chocolate sauce drizzle, and candles, Sienna and Esmee surprised the blonde singer with breakfast-in-bed followed by presents. Esmee had gotten Hailey a Cartier love bracelet from her own summer job money and allowance from their parents. Sienna and Jane - and only because she promised Jane she would include her and literally had to swallow back a lump of emotion when she acknowledged her friend's involvement in the gift giving - had gotten Hailey two new outfits complete with accessories and jewelry, and a paid day of relaxation at Caudalie's with Esmee.
After the girls had eaten and bidding both Esmee and Hailey a good day with a promise to check on everything for Hailey's party for the night, Sienna had gone off to her photo shoot with Young&Reckless. She was getting a large endorsement from both them and Pepsi, so she had to do small things like campaigns, photo shoots, interviews, and commercials. Luckily, she didn't have to act today. She was too tired for any of that. Esmee had taken to washing her hair for her last night and had even put in cornrows because Sienna had not cared enough to stop her. The only thing she had focused on was the smell of her Black Vanilla conditioning products from Carol's Daughter. So, Esmee did what she did and it was fine because the stylists all decided to apply a sew-in weave to her hair, thus leaving Sienna with a red hue for the six hours that she was there. It was a surprisingly sexy color that she would have been more than interested in had she cared. Sienna had had to focus on not giving away too much emotion to Piper when she saw the natural redhead and ignored Sebastian all together, not remembering his name being on the list of models for the shoot.
Once that was over and promising her friend to text her later (and taking out the blasted weave!), Sienna had checked with the club they had rented out for the evening's festivities. As a means to take pressure off of Hailey because she deserved to enjoy her birthday, Sienna had made the final plans for the evening. She had made sure the night would be fun. There would be paint in one of the lounge areas for people to use if they had not already gotten themselves painted, most of the drinks glowed in the dark, there were neon lights with a timed fog machine, the DJ knew some of Hailey's favorite songs, and there would be light snacks and a birthday cake. A few of Hailey's friends were flying in as a surprise and a few of the friends Sienna had introduced her to in California were coming. Overall, the evening was going to be great and satisfied, Sienna returned home to get ready, surprised to see Ricardo Slim-Helú waiting for her when the elevator doors opened.
"Rick," she breathed and Ricky's hand shot out of the elevator, stopping the doors from closing in on a flabbergasted Sienna. He only smirked at her expression. "Miss me?" Her answer was throwing herself into his arms. Ricky didn't hesitate in allowing her to do such, wrapping his firm arms around her waist and spinning her around for a moment. He wasn't surprised when Sienna didn't immediately release him when her feet touched the ground and allowed her the chance to cling. He had seen the Facebook posts that turned into tweets and then full-on debates between classmates who normally did not speak to each other. And least of all about two of the most popular girls at Constance Billard.
Which was why Ricardo was a bit excited for the school year. While being in California had been fun and attending such a prestigious institute for the time that he had had been challenging considering those were some of the best athletes in the country, there was nothing like good old New York, particularly the Upper East Side. For years, he had been entertained by the various gossip blogs that had emerged in the last few years and even more-so, by the whispered rumors in the hallways surrounding each and every student. Some guys felt like it played with their manliness to be involved with gossip, but their heterosexism did not leak into Rick's mind. No, in fact, he reveled in the gossip, oftentimes starting issues or making them worse. And it wasn't like many chose to challenge him. The ones who did either learned their lessons and probably don't live on their side of town anymore, or were some of the few Ricky was entertained enough by to not be upset with. Which included the blonde in his arms.
It took Sienna a minute, but she had come to the conclusion that she honestly had missed Ricky. While both his and Sydney's need for absolute control and demands could be overbearing, she couldn't lie when it came to having grown tolerant of Ricky. Granted, if she and Sydney had never gotten into a tiff over Vincent, then Sydney would be her girl and Ricky would be just another bothersome manwhore like Vincent. But he wasn't. He was fun and she loved flirting with him. Partly because she knew she would never give in to his advances and partly, well...all anyone had to do was look at him! Ricardo Slim-Helú was absolutely gorgeous! There was no doubting his attractiveness and why doing absolutely any and everything came natural to him. Even the air about him was intoxicating at times, especially when he put on that damn smolder. However, and luckily for her and her emotions, he only had a teasing smirk on his face. "You didn't tell me that you were back yet." Ricky shrugged, following Sienna on the path to one of the smaller kitchens. Already comfortable in the Alvarez family home, he walked over to the liquor cabinet and pulled out one of their bottles of scotch. "Kinda thought seeing my gorgeous face would put you in a better mood," he replied and Sienna rolled her eyes, pushing two glass cups towards him. "Yeah, whatever." This was what she needed. Playfulness. Familiarity. Something to get her mind off of everything else.
"I'm surprised you aren't with your queen," she commented after receiving her half-filled glass of scotch. Ricky stared at her, long and leisurely, before smirking. He detected the jealousy underneath the inquiry and happened to like it. It made things all the more fun when shit really hit the fan. Ricky did not favor Sydney nor Sienna more than the other. Did he like it when he girls fought? Oh, yes, he did. Sienna was a tough and fiery little ball of wonders, and Sydney was...well, Sydney was more his equal than he would typically give her credit for. Both of them gave him a bit of entertainment, just in different ways. If anyone else messed with them, he would be more than ready to stand up for them. Them at each other's throats? Delightful. "I will pay my respects before the night is over." There was a pause before he added, "Jealous much?" Sienna scoffed and swallowed down the liquor, gritting her teeth so that she wouldn't allude to the liquor having still taken her aback. A warmth spread in her belly and wanting that feeling again, she drank more until the glass was finished. Noticing Ricky still watching her, Sienna tilted her head curiously. "How did you get in here anyway? And where's...?" Rick answered only a beat later. "I buzzed in just as Esmee and your friend were leaving. Esmee just let me on in." Sienna hummed, maneuvering around the island until she was beside Ricky. Pouring herself more alcohol, she took another drink. "So, I'm guessing that means you're coming to the party tonight." It was more of a statement than a question, especially after noting Ricky's apparel.
Instead of the usual formal attire Upper East Side kids were used to or even the business casual they frequented, Ricky wore black Levi jeans, a simple white muscle shirt underneath a specially designed black varsity jacket with neon green accents, and black and green sneakers from Adidas. It was unsurprisingly tame. There would be paint at the party and Ricky was too cool to ever really have his body painted. Sienna would joke later that he was too stuck-up, but for now she simply appreciated the display of pectoral muscles beneath the thin white fabric of his top. "Careful there, sweetheart," he teased, the deep timbre of his lowered voice forcing Sienna's gaze to meet his. "The last girl that looked at me like that got laid." Heat rushed to her cheeks and Sienna immediately retorted, "It would be a cold day in hell before you and I ever happen." Ricky only chuckled and Sienna growled. "Down, kitten. I was only playing." Sienna only glared at him and Ricky's smirk grew. "Gotta go anyway before I hit up this party of yours. Need to check on a companion of mine who you've been ignoring." Sienna didn't have to question who he was speaking about. It was Vincent.
"And until he gives me something worth paying attention to, I'm gonna keep ignoring him," Sienna stated sharply. She had not answered not one of Vincent's text messages and didn't plan on doing so. She did not know about his having gone to see Sydney instead of her. All she knew was that Sydney obviously meant more to him than he had initially let on and Sienna was hurt. Perhaps she should have reminded herself that she had said that their night had been supposed to be a one night stand. She had prepared herself to be ready for it to be that way. However, she didn't want to focus on that and only shooed Ricky out of her kitchen. "Go on then. I have to get pretty and you're holding me up." Ricky only chuckled as she led him to the elevator, offering her a smirk when the doors closed. Sighing, Sienna only rushed to get herself together. Ricky had managed to hold her up for twenty minutes and she promised to give rides.
On his way down, Ricky leaned against the back wall of the elevator. He had not truly spoken to Sienna about the Sydney-Vincent situation and had chosen not to. He wanted her more pliant and receptive of his words. At the moment, she was vulnerable, but enough to fully let down her guard. It would take more time and he could always plant the seed of suspicion later. For now, he decided, he could text his other friends.
To: Vincent
Omw 2 r place & u better b ready. No excuses.
To: Sydney
I kno u missed me & all, but the least u could have done was give me a welcome home kiss babe. Heard u were dealing w/ a mutiny. Not gonna say I'm not surprised u couldn't handle urself w/out me here, but don't tell me ur in cowering, Syd. Come 2 the party
After a ten minute shower, Sienna returned to her bedroom to put on a matching printed bra and panty set. It was a daring move, especially considering her outfit for the night. But she was feeling reckless. The fact that she had downed two glasses of scotch when she had not eaten dinner yet said enough. The bra's stripes would glow in the dark beneath the revealing top. After applying a shimmering lotion that left her skin feeling silky smooth and giving off her signature scent, Sienna pulled on a pair of Abercrombie & Fitch shorts and a pair of multi-colored Giuseppe Zanotti wedges. The colors would glow in the blacklight of the club. Still topless, Sienna headed over to her vanity to work on her makeup. While the long lashes seemed pink in regular light, they would glow blue later and the eyeliner would be pink. Despite her earlier plans to have glitter all over herself, she didn't feel the need to show off artistically. She just felt like being sexy and stupid for the night. It would be a bad decision later and she would probably get chastised later, but who the fuck cared? Once her face was taken care of and a pair of silver hoops were in her ears, Sienna set to fixing her hair up. One of her favorite stylists had done her nails earlier. It didn't take long to get to the final product for her hair as she had not straightened in last night and the braids had played on the naturally curly state from her mother's genes. Satisfied, Sienna finally pulled on her long-sleeved top, a mid-driff baring little thing with large fishnet holes. It revealed the bra beneath and the neon pink shade made her skin pop. The flat tummy she had worked to keep toned would be revealed and she even chose the belly button ring whose diamond would glow pink. The top would also glow later in the night and after a spritz of perfume, Sienna was ready for her night.
Once in the town car, Sienna checked the time. It was ten minutes after eight, and so she sent out her texts, biting her lip at messaging Jane. She didn't know how the brunette would feel about her ignoring her plea, but she couldn't ignore Jane forever either.
To: Piper
Picking up Charlotte first. Where do u want me 2 pick u up at?
To: Charlotte
Omw, love. B there in 10
To: Carolina
I am so sorry 4 not messaging u back. A lot happened and I'm really sorry. R u coming to dis party tonite?
To: Jane
Hey, I'm omw 2 Hailey's party. Do u need me to send anyone 2 pick u up? Do u need anything?
To:Hailey
Omw. Everything good so far?
Jane's day consisted of some much needed self-attention. She didn't think that there was anything that could help her get over the complete train wreck of a day that yesterday was, but she did her best. Her day began by being dragged out by her father, Nicole and Carolina to breakfast at The Garden. Jane only agreed to go because Nicole claimed that she owed her for getting Carolina to do her paper. She was hungry, anyway, and even though she was not happy with herself afterwards, she had one of the lemon ricotta pancakes she ordered, and a cup of berries. Adrian left the girls for some business meeting in the financial district, and the three girls headed down to Chelsea. Nicole and Carolina went furniture shopping while Jane browsed the selves of Anthropologie, Moschino, American Apparel, Comme des Garçons and Barney's. Retail therapy was a bad habit of Jane's, but it helped her feel better even if she was alone.
Things only started to get bad around four o'clock when she reunited with Carolina and Nicole and was told that the three of them were getting an early dinner in Times Square. Apparently, the restaurant Carmine's had been a family favorite when the two girls were growing up and they wanted to introduce it to Jane since the three of them were going to be "like sisters!", as Nicole put it. Jane's tolerance for Nicole had been better than normal all day since she really was appreciative of Carolina's help, but she wasn't going to eat another meal, at least not so soon after the first. She felt like they were pushing her too much and it was unfair when she had already made an effort with breakfast this morning. However, she took a deep breath and got into the car with them. She already warned both girls in the car that she wasn't hungry and had to stop herself from smacking Nicole who went on and on about how she would be hungry as soon as she saw the lasagna. "You're so stupid," was all she let herself mutter, even if the comment went unnoticed by the pair of sisters who were gushing about past experiences there.
Lunch went just as poorly as Jane expected it would. She was coerced into eating a small piece of garlic bread when Nicole threatened to call her father, she ordered a salad that came out covered in dressing that she wouldn't dare put into her mouth, and, to top it all off, they wouldn't serve her alcohol. It wasn't because of the waiter, who didn't try to card her when she ordered a drink, but because Nicole outright told him that she was underage and not allowed to drink. Why she would do such a thing was unknown to Jane, who actually thought Nicole had become slightly cooler since her sister arrived. But no, she apparently was the same bitch who liked to piss Jane off at any chance she had. So, rather than wait for her salad to arrive, she went to the bathroom, called Max and left the restaurant without uttering a goodbye to either of the girls.
Her father was home from his meeting when she walked in, and it was apparent that Nicole had figured out she bailed and told him. "Why aren't you at the restaurant?" he questioned her, spinning around in his desk chair as she attempted to silently pass by his office. "Votre petite amie est une chienne, voilà pourquoi." Jane had never gotten used to referring to Nicole as her father's wife. It hadn't seemed necessary, since she was sure that he was going to dump her soon after the wedding. Her father paused at her disrespectful remark, his lips sealed tight as if he were contemplating whether to snap at her or just let it go. The waiting left Jane anxious, but she didn't regret calling Nicole a bitch. It wasn't the first time the expletive had left her lips when referring to the blonde. She watched as he raised his slightly and tapped his fingers against each other. "I heard you were upset last night. Tout va bien?" Carolina. Jane should have known that her sobbing to the girl when they had never said more than a couple words to each other was probably unexpected, but did she have to go blabbing about it? Now, obviously her dad was going to be on her case about falling back into her old ways, as if she had ever really gotten over them, and it was one more thing to worry about. "Yes! It was just a problem with my friends. It's not a big deal, okay?" He nodded. He didn't want to hear it any more than she wanted to explain it to him. "Good, go get dressed. You're taking Carolina to that party tonight." Jane wanted to object but her father had already spun back around in his chair, hitting the button on his phone to return to whatever call he had been in the middle of.
If Carolina thought that now that they lived together, she was going to get a free ticket into the group Jane socialized with, she was completely wrong. Did she really think that she could just tell Nicole there was a party and that she had no one to go with, and expect to just be able to tag along with Jane? Hell no. It wasn't even like Jane wanted to go to tonight's party. Sydney and Sienna hadn't texted her today, Sebastian was going with Lee, and she was sure that Piper was going with Sienna. She didn't remember the incident involving her Hailey and Brent the previous night, but she still didn't want to go. The dynamic between her friends was just too volatile. Something was bound to go down again and Jane couldn't bear another cat fight. So, after trying on all of her day's purchases she lit a bunch of vanilla scented candles in her bathroom and relaxed in her Jacuzzi tub.
More time went by than she thought, because when her buzzing phone pulled her out of her trance, it was already eight at night. It was Sienna and her name on the screen caught Jane's attention. Would she agree to make up with Sydney as Jane requested the day before. A moment later... it was apparent that no, she wasn't going to. She had ignored the message regarding Sydney and skipped straight to talking about Hailey's birthday party. The fact that Sienna was being normal was nice... nice enough to tempt her into responding.
To: Sienna
:...............(
To: Sienna
But no it's okay I'll prob stop by a little later
She guessed that socializing might do her well and if Sydney clearly didn't care to mend their friendship, at least she would have Sienna. A few minutes later, Jane stepped out of the tub and slipped into a robe. She needed to straighten her hair and get dressed, but maybe going to Hailey's party would be in the cards tonight. She thought that, at least, until there was a quiet knock on the other side of the door. "Jane, Miss Vale is here to see you." Her heart dropped. She didn't want to see Sydney... or did she? Jane didn't know. She wanted her friends back but she didn't want them back separately. It was extremely unlikely that Sydney was going to be the one to try to make amends with Sienna but Jane had to try. "I'll be down in a minute," she said, shooing the woman away. Jane didn't bother to put on real clothes and left her room as soon as she glanced at her phone once more to see if Sienna had responded.
If Sydney was going to be as stubborn as she always was, Jane was hoping that she would have the courage to tell her to leave, which is why she didn't have Sydney sent up to her room. "You could have told me you were coming. I'm actually getting ready to leave." she said in a tone more annoyed than she had ever addressed Sydney in before. It was as if she hadn't turned off the attitude she used with the hired help. It was kind of empowering, she decided, as she continued. "And before you say anything, just know that I can't be friends with only you and not Sienna. That's not fair, Syd, especially after how mean you were yesterday."
After Sydney’s party, things have been a bit weird and Hailey doesn’t really know why. She didn’t go to school on the first official day and she told Sienna why. It was because she had to go to the loft and have it inspected for her party, not to mention making sure the capacity level was accurate. She even brought in a professional paint team to do the painting on others bodies. It was a lot for her, honestly. At first, she thought that she didn’t need any help but yeah, she did indeed though do things on her own made her feel good.
Hailey seemed pleased with her decision on the area and idea of the party. She hoped that everyone had seen her tweet and Instagram pictures and posts about her party. She told Sienna directly, well because why wouldn’t she, they are the best of friends. She honestly hoped that Sydney would make an appearance so that she can see how a real party is thrown. A soft chuckle escaped over her lips at the thought then she shook her head as the limo pulled up to the Alvarez residence. She got out of the limo and immediately went up to her room, where Esmee was seen. Hailey walked into her room with a raised brow and seen Esmee’s stunned face. “May I help you?” Hailey asked while walking a little bit further into the room. Esmee tried to scurry away but Hailey grabbed her in time. “Nope. Talk.” Esmee put her lips together and shook her head. Hailey folded her arms over her chest and shifted her weight to her right side then raised a brow.
Esmee sighed with a slight eye roll. “Fine.” She walked over to the nearby chair and sat down. She basically caught Hailey up with everything that she has been missing out on. Her mind was blown. Hailey doesn’t do drugs. She wondered how Esmee knew all of this information but figured that Sienna probably told her everything since Hailey has been missing in action lately due to her preparing for her party.
// Saturday | 4-7:30 PM //
Hailey left early from the Alvarez’s residence to get clothes for her party and more. Her parents called her early that morning and left a voice mail on her phone, wishing her a happy birthday and hoping that she will definitely make a statement and stamp her name all over New York, well, The Upper East Side. She smiled slightly at the literally five minute voice mail. It was nice to see that her parents were not too busy for her birthday. As soon as she was done shopping, she saw that she had a text message from Sebastian. She smiled a little bit more then went to typing a reply.
To Sebastian:
Sure! The more, the merrier. Am I right? :3
She sent the message then left the mall and directed the driver to go the loft where they were a few mornings ago. “Thanks.” She told him while getting out and walking right on inside, taking the elevator to the fourth floor, where the room for the party was located. She a bouncer down the stairs to direct people to the elevator and tell them that Hailey’s party was on the fourth floor. She had dressed into nothing more than a blue muscle t-shirt and short shorts. She didn’t bother wearing any shoes since she didn’t really think that they were call for at this moment in time.
Hailey’s phone chimed again and she made sure that everything was organized and in order before grabbing her phone and reading over the message. It was from Sienna. She went to typing a reply then eyed the catering people coming in with a multiple array of sandwiches and even a three layer birthday cake. “Just sit it here, guys.” She directed them towards a nearby table and told them where she wanted everything. “Thanks.” She smiled then sat the drinks, which were in a cooler, right beside the food. She did have alcohol but it was hidden somewhere special and only being brought out for when the party actually began.
To Sienna:
Okies, Chica! BTW, did u still need 2 talk? And yeah, everything is great actually.
Hailey sent the message then retweeted out the exact address of her party and letting people know that they can proceed to the elevator, where there is a bouncer and just come right on up. She was really exhausted and stressed. She was actually even worried that tonight would not even go as planned. A soft sigh escaped over her parted as she wanted to tweet out that the party was cancelled but she couldn’t now since people have been waiting for this for quite some time, well, two days. She apologized for the late notice about her party then sat down in a chair, waiting for people to show up. “Is there anything you don’t want me to play?” DJ Kickstart asked her. She shook her head no then looked at him. “No, country. Just some Pop, Rap and maybe some R & B for the couples that are going to be here and so that I can dance with someone, as well.” She smiled towards him then waved him off as she sat there, staring that the door, waiting for someone to knock, ring the door bell or open the door and simply walk in.
Hailey seemed pleased with her decision on the area and idea of the party. She hoped that everyone had seen her tweet and Instagram pictures and posts about her party. She told Sienna directly, well because why wouldn’t she, they are the best of friends. She honestly hoped that Sydney would make an appearance so that she can see how a real party is thrown. A soft chuckle escaped over her lips at the thought then she shook her head as the limo pulled up to the Alvarez residence. She got out of the limo and immediately went up to her room, where Esmee was seen. Hailey walked into her room with a raised brow and seen Esmee’s stunned face. “May I help you?” Hailey asked while walking a little bit further into the room. Esmee tried to scurry away but Hailey grabbed her in time. “Nope. Talk.” Esmee put her lips together and shook her head. Hailey folded her arms over her chest and shifted her weight to her right side then raised a brow.
Esmee sighed with a slight eye roll. “Fine.” She walked over to the nearby chair and sat down. She basically caught Hailey up with everything that she has been missing out on. Her mind was blown. Hailey doesn’t do drugs. She wondered how Esmee knew all of this information but figured that Sienna probably told her everything since Hailey has been missing in action lately due to her preparing for her party.
// Saturday | 4-7:30 PM //
Hailey left early from the Alvarez’s residence to get clothes for her party and more. Her parents called her early that morning and left a voice mail on her phone, wishing her a happy birthday and hoping that she will definitely make a statement and stamp her name all over New York, well, The Upper East Side. She smiled slightly at the literally five minute voice mail. It was nice to see that her parents were not too busy for her birthday. As soon as she was done shopping, she saw that she had a text message from Sebastian. She smiled a little bit more then went to typing a reply.
To Sebastian:
Sure! The more, the merrier. Am I right? :3
She sent the message then left the mall and directed the driver to go the loft where they were a few mornings ago. “Thanks.” She told him while getting out and walking right on inside, taking the elevator to the fourth floor, where the room for the party was located. She a bouncer down the stairs to direct people to the elevator and tell them that Hailey’s party was on the fourth floor. She had dressed into nothing more than a blue muscle t-shirt and short shorts. She didn’t bother wearing any shoes since she didn’t really think that they were call for at this moment in time.
Hailey’s phone chimed again and she made sure that everything was organized and in order before grabbing her phone and reading over the message. It was from Sienna. She went to typing a reply then eyed the catering people coming in with a multiple array of sandwiches and even a three layer birthday cake. “Just sit it here, guys.” She directed them towards a nearby table and told them where she wanted everything. “Thanks.” She smiled then sat the drinks, which were in a cooler, right beside the food. She did have alcohol but it was hidden somewhere special and only being brought out for when the party actually began.
To Sienna:
Okies, Chica! BTW, did u still need 2 talk? And yeah, everything is great actually.
Hailey sent the message then retweeted out the exact address of her party and letting people know that they can proceed to the elevator, where there is a bouncer and just come right on up. She was really exhausted and stressed. She was actually even worried that tonight would not even go as planned. A soft sigh escaped over her parted as she wanted to tweet out that the party was cancelled but she couldn’t now since people have been waiting for this for quite some time, well, two days. She apologized for the late notice about her party then sat down in a chair, waiting for people to show up. “Is there anything you don’t want me to play?” DJ Kickstart asked her. She shook her head no then looked at him. “No, country. Just some Pop, Rap and maybe some R & B for the couples that are going to be here and so that I can dance with someone, as well.” She smiled towards him then waved him off as she sat there, staring that the door, waiting for someone to knock, ring the door bell or open the door and simply walk in.
Jane might have twisted the story around to make it seem like Carolina was desperately pleading for her to escort her to Hailey's party, but that definitely was not the case. In fact, it was almost the complete opposite of what had went down! During their day of shopping, Nicole had asked her what her plans were for the night. She and Adrian were going to some fancy soiree at the home of one of the designers that LVMH owned, and just to make it seem like she wasn't going to sit home all night and study, she mentioned Hailey's birthday party. Carolina had received an invitation via social media from Sienna, but she didn't really plan on going. Lee had said he was going with Sebastian, which completely caught Carolina off guard because... since when were they friends again? She didn't question him about it, because one, she wanted to save that for an in-person chat, and two, it was a good thing that he was mending his relationship with Seb. Carolina could be antisocial and while Lee could be as well, she thought that it was only a good thing that the boy had one more friend to hang out with. Still, that meant that one of her closest friends was off the list as someone to show up with and Charlotte said she was going with Sienna. There were other student government kids or "school friends", as Carolina referred to the small group of kids she hung out with in classes but not off campus, that she probably could have tagged along with, but honestly, she didn't really want to go. Partying and getting drunk were fun for most teenagers, including herself, but Hailey was already making her way into Jane's crowd through Sienna and Carolina just wasn't used to attending those types of parties. Besides, after spending all night on Jane's English assignment and all day out with her and Nicole, she really did have a lot of work to catch up on.
Hailey's party was simply an excuse for her sister not to worry, or more accurately- badger, her about staying home on a Saturday night when all of New York was at her fingertips. The plan turned on her, though, when Nicole requested that she bring Jane along with her. Apparently, Nicole's manicurist also worked for Constance students and had overheard them talking about the school's drama, which she promptly passed on to Nicole. However she had phrased it gave Nicole a better idea of what was going on in Sydney Vale's group than Carolina had gotten from Jane's indecipherable sobs the night before, because she claimed that Jane needed a friend now more than ever. And so, that duty had somehow fallen onto Carolina's shoulders. Nicole had clearly planned on springing the assignment on her before she let her know at dinner, since when they got home, among the items that Carolina purchased was an outfit for the party. She was skeptical at first, but after trying it on, she had to admit that the neon cutout bralette was cute, especially when matched with the Converse Allstar's. Was it cute enough to convince her that tonight would be the fun night Nicole tried to claim it would be? Definitely not. But it was enough for her to text Jane around eight o'clock, to see if she was ready to go since she hadn't heard from the brunette since she left dinner without warning.
To: Jane
So.. my sister said it might be easier for Max to just drive us both to this party together?? U ready?
To: Sienna
Lol don't worry about it u kno idc. I think I heard wat went down anyway so I totally understand... but yeah my sister wants me to take Jane. i'll find u when i get there.
To: Lee
U at the party yet?
Sydney wasn't nervous, but her patience was draining as she waited for Jane in the foyer. She just wanted this drama to be done and over with. Sienna and her little stunt would be a bigger problem, one that Sydney didn't care to think about, or try to fix at the moment, but Jane was going to be easy. She would apologize for the comment about her summer, and insist that the was just trying to protect Jane by keeping the Vincent thing from her. They had been best friends for years and Sydney was convinced that even a day of silence didn't mean that Jane had sided with Sienna. If for some outlandish reason it did, than Sydney was here to change that. She had to, if she wanted to put Sienna back in her place and make it out of senior year with her crown.
Sydney suspected that the soft footsteps coming from the steps were that of the Lynch's housekeeper but as she looked up with an irked glance, she found that it was Jane. Clad in a white robe, she drifted down the stairs silently. Sydney's pointed look followed her friend with every step, trying to decipher the blank expression she gave until she spoke. And boy, did that catch Sydney off guard. Since when did she need to tell Jane before she was coming over? Especially after a night like yesterday, Sydney would have thought Jane would be thanking her for making the first move to mend their friendship! And really, getting ready to go where in a robe? Her bed, where Sydney was sure she had spent the last 24 hours anyway? She couldn't imagine that Jane was going to Hailey's party, and Sydney herself had no plans on doing that either. Even after Ricky's provocative text. Her friend's new found attitude was not amusing but it pointed to only one explanation: Sienna had gotten to her first. Her final words only confirmed that, as if she were quoting Sienna who insisted that "Sydney is going to try to turn you against me!!!!" in her typical crybaby ways.
"Really, Jane? I come over here to try to be the bigger person and make things right after yesterday, and you have to give me this attitude?" She realized that her tone was too condescending to be used with Jane when she remembered who was really feeding her the behavior. "Okay, let's start over." She took a deep breath and tried to smile. Poor Jane, believing Sienna so easily. She's too sweet for her own good. "What I did to Sienna was... wrong." It was physically hard for her to admit that and get the last word out. "But, you know that we all felt that way about Vincent during freshman year, Jane. If it hadn't been me, it would have been you. He caught me when I was drinking and tricked me into believing that he and Sienna were over, and yeah, I should have stopped it before it got that far, but I wasn't thinking. And imagine that was you, Jane. Would you have told Sienna right after?" Sydney wasn't sure if Jane actually would have kept it from Sienna for as long as Sydney had. Again, her friend was too sweet for her own good. Her conscience probably would have weighed more heavily than Sydney's. Regardless, she hoped that she was getting through to the brunette. "I mean, I loved her and I knew that it would ruin our friendship... just like it did now. I didn't want it to happen this way... I didn't want to hurt her, but there's nothing I can do about it now." An apology would probably do some good, even if it didn't mend their friendship, but Sydney could not apologize to Sienna. Not after what she did. "And it's not like she's innocent in all of this either, Jane. What she did to me was like..." Was like Sydney sleeping with Sienna's ex? Maybe. "Was like me killing Esmee. That's basically what she did to me, so she's not the victim like I'm sure she's telling you she is, anyway." The claim was definitely dramatic but Sydney needed to be dramatic if she was going to come out looking even partially justified in her actions.
She stopped speaking, opting to avoid addressing her comment about Jane's summer until she heard Jane's response. Maybe she wouldn't even have to apologize for that, yet. They could agree that Sienna was the one in the wrong and go see a movie or something, and Sydney could relish in her victory.
To: Ricardo
Keep dreaming Rick. And haha she wishes I was cowering. If you're lucky maybe you'll get to see me but don't get ur hopes up. It's not easy to squeeze some last minute trashy party into my schedule. You should know that.
With the unusual amount of courage that Jane was having today with Sydney, she was ready to tell her to leave when she tried to act like Jane's attitude was uncalled for. It probably still would have been a more indirect "get out" than Sydney deserved, but Jane still wasn't going to just back down. However, the blonde backtracked before Jane could respond and she let her speak. She did her best to follow Sydney's explanation for what she did to Sienna. Even when she asserted that she would have done the same thing with Vincent had she had the chance, Jane remained quiet. She was sure that she would not have done the same thing. Vincent flirted with everyone and yeah, Jane would readily admit that he was the most attractive guy at Saint Jude's, but she never reciprocated his advances because she knew better. Even blackout-drunk level, she knew better. The comment regarding Sienna slandering Sydney's reputation being equal to Sydney killing Sienna's sister brought a small smile to her face. Jane tried to suppress it, but really?! Sydney's image was important to her, that was for sure, but even Jane recognized that Sydney was being more than dramatic now.
"I haven't spoken to her," Jane replied after a slight pause. It wasn't exactly the truth, since the girls had exchanged a couple of texts since the blowout, but it hadn't been a real conversation, and definitely not what Sydney was assuming. She paused once again, trying to figure out which direction she wanted to go to this. There was a large part of her that wanted to shout at Sydney for bringing up her summer, for being so insensitive towards an issue that had ruined her life. At the same time, she desperately wanted things between her friends to go back to normal and maybe it would be selfish to put her emotions between a possible reconciliation. "And I know that she's not the victim here, but what you did was so... so bad." In a matter of those few exchanges, her voice had abandoned its confidence for a pleading tone. "Please make it right, Syd. Tonight, come to this party and talk to her. Please?" She didn't even drop the imploring look when she glanced down at her phone and responded to Carolina.
To: Caroline
Um no I'm not ready just go without me or wait for me and Syd but I'm not rushing just for you
Brent definitely did not own any neon clothes. He didn't need to search through his walk-in closet because he didn't have one. The few outfits he wore frequently were scattered across the floor of his bedroom and after sniffing a few t-shirts, he found a white v-neck that looked and smelled like it was clean. With a shrug, he tossed it on in place of the black one he was wearing and left the jeans and black combat boots in place. It wasn't the typical outfit he was sure to see at the party, but white was at least better than black, he decided. He didn't really care about the dress code to begin with, but he also didn't want to stick out at the party of the new girl. He had spilled Jane's secret about using drugs in front of her without a care the night before, but he didn't want to push his lucky around Hailey. She may not have minded his behavior at Sydney's, but at her own party, that could be different. It wasn't going to stop him from selling drugs because especially after his conversation with Piper ended on a 'maybe' note, he was sure he was going to be making cash.
"I'm leaving!" he called out to Cameron. The creaking sound of his brother's bed and the moans of a girl forced him out of the apartment even faster, without waiting for a response. He stuffed his pockets with a couple bags of weed and this time, a smaller bag of Jane's drug of choice. He wasn't going to risk losing a large sum to Sydney again tonight, that was for sure.
It was only around seven-thirty, so Brent opted to take the half-hour walk to Hailey's party rather than waste the couple dollars on a bus ride. The weather was brisk, especially wearing only a t-shirt, but Brent didn't really mind it. It beat the stuffy, drug-stench that he was used to in his own house.
To: Piper
I'm omw. Our deal still good?
To: Charlotte
Don't think I forgot about you admitting to being into me. Haven't stopped thinking of u since either, babe. And you know, when I imagine you without clothes and in my bed, the self-righteousness doesn't seem as off putting
He had realized that Charlotte's text message from yesterday hadn't actually been sent by her. She was never flirty with him, at least not in such a direct way, and while he figured that it was Rose, it didn't hurt to rub it in that no matter who typed it, it had been sent from her phone. That was enough evidence for him that she wasn't as turned off by him as she liked to act.
Vincent's Saturday went horribly. He had been kicked out of Sydney's the night before which was bad in itself, but when it was clear that she wanted Kelley, or all people, for emotional support, he knew he had screwed up. When he woke up the next morning, not only were there still tens of unopened messages from guys congratulating him on the coveted Sydney Vale 'score' but also an equal amount of ones from his mother expressing how "disappointed" and "devastated" she was by his actions. She was still in the city from her night out with friends and he reluctantly agreed to get breakfast with her, where she continued to express how unacceptable it was for him to hurt Sienna like that. She went on and on about how close she was to leaving his father years ago when they were dating because he put up the same womanizing from as Vincent did, and how Sienna was smarter than she was at that age and was going to realize her worth and move on sooner than later. Vincent knew she was right, but he didn't want to hear it. He didn't want to deal with his mother dramatically tearing up over Eggs Benedict and choking back a sob when he reassured her that he was going to make it right no matter what it took.
After her car picked her up to drive her back to the island, he was in the mindset to actually make things right with Sia. It wasn't going to be that easy, though. His countless phone calls went unanswered and he didn't want to leave her a voicemail where he could say something that would be interpreted wrong and just dig himself into a deeper mess. He wanted to talk to her in person and explain... well, he wasn't sure what he wanted to explain. He had taken his hits for what he had done years ago when he had come clean to Sienna in the first place. Maybe it was wrong for him to expect her to bury the hatred for Sydney for so many years just to keep tensions from boiling over, but he aside from apologizing again for sleeping with Sydney, he didn't know what else he had done wrong. He didn't think there was anything wrong with hanging out with Sydney yesterday. Nothing had happened. He had only went over to apologize for leaving her party early and to clear the air between not only them, but her and Sienna. If there was any apologizing to be done, he thought after giving up trying to call her and walking back to his apartment, it was Sienna to him and he to Sydney! Sienna could have had the decency to give him a head's up after informing Sydney that she knew all along. The way she had done it, through that online post that he was convinced she was behind, made him look like the complete dick (rightfully so, however), for telling Sienna without giving Sydney, her best friend, the chance to clear her name first.
Even though he didn't think he had done anything wrong to Sienna that he hadn't already apologized for, he wasn't actually mad at her. His mother's visit had reminded him even more of why he loved Sienna and couldn't just let her go. He needed to win her back, even if he didn't think he had done something wrong to lose her yesterday anyway. However, he wasn't going to beg. Not at this point, anyway, and especially not when he caught wind of Ricky being back in town. His relationship with the sports' star was an interesting one. They were commonly called best friends and Vincent did see Rick as a best friend, but there had always been a little bit of tension between them. He often brushed it off as harmless competitiveness between the two of them, but when it came to Sienna, it was far from harmless. Vincent liked to pretend that he didn't care if anyone flirted with Sienna because "she's free to fuck whoever she wants, just like I am", but when Rick did it... it just crossed the line. Maybe it was because Vincent thought that Rick was one of the few guys who could woo her into sleeping with him, or because he expected his best friend to just back off and let him figure out what he wanted on his own time. Either way, finding out that Rick was back in New York today of all days irked Vincent more than he would admit.
When night set in and it was around time for Hailey's party, Vincent wasn't sure if he wanted to go. Sienna was definitely going to be there, and what was he going to say to her? He doubted Sydney would show up, probably citing that it wasn't her "scene" even though he knew good and well it would be an attempt to avoid Sienna. Ricardo's text didn't leave him with much of a choice, though, and left him scrambling to find an appropriate neon outfit in his closet. Vincent had went to a couple of raves over the summer but he just wasn't in the mood to go all out in neon. Honestly, he doubted that he would even stay at the party for very long, especially when the inevitable bumping into Sienna occurred. He ended up in a pair of bright orange, Vineyard Vines club pants and a plain white v-neck that accented his toned body. He didn't text Ricardo to confirm that he would be ready, because it wasn't really necessary. Vincent was downstairs and waiting for his friend when he pulled up, and as he slid into the back of the car, he tried to put on a carefree expression. "Cali finally get sick of you and ship you back here?" he greeted Rick with a grin. Even if Ricardo's return was destined to spell trouble, it would at least mean that there would be another guy around to have fun with, since Connor was normally too much of a refined, good guy to actually get into trouble with.
Dɪᴀʟᴏɢᴜᴇ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✦ #00C5CD || Tʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✧ #007478
After finally being able to comfort Sienna and being taken home. All of her time was spent getting ready for the charity event on Sunday. Sure, she was going to Hailey's party but, Rose said she wanted to pick her sister's outfit while she worked so, instead of arguing with Rosie about it. So just said 'screw it' and turned her attention to more important things. The ALS Association Greater New York wasn't going to get donations on their own. So, after trying to reach Connor, she finally decided to just finish on her own. Besides, she was fast and could get things negotiated at the bat of an eyelash; man or woman, she knew what she was doing. And because of a little... disturbance who just loved to blow up her phone and all the drama going on online, she had decided to turn it completely off while she worked, only to turn it back on when she was laying down in bed with her cochlear implant out just so she could de-stress without the hustle and bustle of the outside world esp. since Rosie decided to bring her little... 'friend' home for desert a day early.
Time : 7:30 | Location : The Buchanan Twins' Apartment
“Yeah, it's pretty clear, I ain't no size two / But I can shake it, shake it, like I'm supposed to do
'Cause I got that boom boom that all the boys chase / And all the right junk in all the right places”
Dɪᴀʟᴏɢᴜᴇ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✦ #00C5CD || Tʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✧ #007478
Party Outfit : Shoes
“Yeah, it's pretty clear, I ain't no size two / But I can shake it, shake it, like I'm supposed to do
'Cause I got that boom boom that all the boys chase / And all the right junk in all the right places”
Dɪᴀʟᴏɢᴜᴇ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✦ #00C5CD || Tʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛ Cᴏʟᴏʀ ✧ #007478
Party Outfit : Shoes
Lottie was sitting on her sister's bed with her eyes closed as she tapped her foot rapidly, hoping it would speed up her sister in showing her the outfit. All day she was saying how amazing it was and how great it would look on the curvy girl's body. That always spelled trouble, Rosie was at least ten pounds lighter than Lottie, had a small bust and butt, yet she always insisted her sister to show off her body as if they had to same measurements and everything. "Okay and remember you said you would keep an open mind about the outfit." Rosie said as she stuck her outside the door to see her sister nod her head and groan. "Yes! Now, c'mon 'nd hurry up. You also said you were doin' my makeup, remember?" She asked with her eyes still closed but her eyebrows raised just to mess with her sister. "Ya know, this is why Brent won't fuck you. No one likes a wiseass." Lottie scoffed as she rubbed her temple as she groaned. Ever since yesterday Rose had been slipping in sly comments about Brent and small jabs at Connor whenever given the chance. She did something or she was up to something, Lottie just wasn't sure what it was but, she was going to find out.
"Yea, that's why. It does nothing with the fact that I have my eyes on someone else." Lottie admitted just to get her sister off her bat. She heard her sister scoff before finally hearing footsteps lead out of the closet. "Alright open your eyes and keep an open mind!" Every time she said that, it only made Charlotte more nervous and when she opened her eyes she could understand why her sister kept saying 'keep an open mind'. The coral, almost orange top and high waisted shorts left pretty much nothing to the imagination! Lottie just shook her head as she walked past her sister without saying a word as she decided to look for an outfit on her own. "C'mon, Lots! You said I could pick your outfit. Besides, don't you think others will be dressed in every other neon color!"
"The color is not the issue! Look at those shorts, if I wore them they would just disappear. But, since we're on the topic. Really orange? Really?" Lottie said as she looked through their brightly colored shirts only to be pulled to the full length mirror by her sister. "Lottie, look," She turned her sister's stare back to the mirror after she looked to the side and rolled her eyes. [b]"Just look. Now, imagine this. You at the party in this outfit, the top showing off what every girl wishes she had, you showing off your flat stomach that you've worked for all your life to keep. And the shorts huggin' you in all the right places just enough so that guys won't be able to keep their eyes off you." Lottie had closed her eyes when her sister said imagine only to let a smile come on her face as her sister talked. What could she say? Rose was a great speaker and an even better persuader. "'Sides, didn't you just love all the compliments you got at Syd's party?" Both of the twins smirked before Lottie grabbed the outfit from her sister's hands. "I hate when you're right. Just give me the outfit."
Rosie clapped her hands as she closed the closet's sliding doors to help her sister get dressed. And the next ten minutes were fulled with fixing her outfit and picking the right shoes and putting neon blue paint on her cheeks. "Ta-da. What do you thinking, honestly." Lottie asked as she looked at herself in the mirror only to look towards Rosie to see the wide smile on her face. "You look hot! I mean, you looked amazing in that dress but, oh my God! You have a really good body now that you're showing it off!" Lottie chuckled and looked towards her phone that was laying next to Rose. Rose handed it to her, not even reading the message for once.
To : Sienna <3
K, I'm ready when you get here. :)
K, I'm ready when you get here. :)
She closed her phone only to get another message right away. At first she was irritated at Brent's name but, as soon as she read the message her facial expression relaxed a bit into a more confused look as her face started turning red. But, only for a moment as she turned her expression back to annoyed. "What the hell is he talking about?" Rosie got up from her seat to go behind her sister and see the message over her shoulder. Rosie said nothing as Lottie scrolled up to see the last text she sent to him. Her mouth dropped open as she read over it. "My type?! He would never be my type, Rosie! And I most definitely wouldn't tell him where the event wa--.." Then it hit her as she turned to look at her sister. "You wrote this. And now thanks you, he going to ruin tomorrow." Lottie said as she grabbed her bag and stormed out of the room only for Rosie to follow her. "You're right and I'm sorry. But, at least he's thinking about you." Lottie groaned and rolled her eyes as she went down the stairs trying to leave her sister. Who just followed her as her phone went off. Probably a text from her new little fuck buddy... person... thing. Without a second thought, Rose grabbed her jacket and hurried to the elevator as Lottie sat down on their couch, only to stick her foot to stop the door from closing. "Have fun, make good choices. And if Brent and you actually do something now, you can thank me later! Love you!" Rosie said before removing her foot and Lottie rolling her eyes.
When the door closed and she was sure her sister didn't forget anything and would have to come back up, Lottie turned back to her phone and looked over the text again and again, only to catch herself smirking before her mind drifted off to the idea of the two of them doing... anything the involved her in his bed. She softly shuttered as she shook the thought out of her head. When she read her message she smirked before pressing send and laying down, to wait for Sienna.
To : Barclay
Aw, it's cute that you've daydreamed about me. Really, it's adorable but, you've done more drugs than I thought if you think that me naked in your bed would ever be a thing and that I sent that text.
Aw, it's cute that you've daydreamed about me. Really, it's adorable but, you've done more drugs than I thought if you think that me naked in your bed would ever be a thing and that I sent that text.
Ricardo lounged comfortably in the back of the Slim-Helú town car, legs crossed before him coolly and idly flipping through the recent posts on Twitter and Facebook. Most people had already come to this Hailey's party and were having a good time. Not that he particularly doubted that it would be a fun night. If the girl was a friend of Sienna's, she either had to have a sass that Sienna was known for or had to have a fun bone in her body. And, if her fans had anything to say about it, Hailey Nelson was a fun person to be around. Ricky smirked to himself. He couldn't wait to meet her.
In the midst of checking on the status of Sydney and Sienna's social media war, Sydney messaged him back. He didn't rush to answer or even read what she had to say. It would seem as if he had been waiting for her to respond to him, which he was not. So, he did not rush. He continued to flip through images and posts, grinning at a few of the girls who he once thought as complete crudes wearing some rather scandalous outfits for the night. Something told him he would be enjoying this party a lot more than he originally believed. Finally, after it seemed like a good three minutes had passed, Rick finally pulled up Sydney's text message and had to chuckle. He loved the little attitude she seemed to have. Truthfully, he appreciated a few things about Sydney Vale and loved messing with her, especially. Sienna was fun, yes, and he did love her. But Sydney...there was something about her retorts and her ability to seem unfazed that amused him to no end. The car door opened and he knew Vincent was climbing in, but Rick concentrated only sending his message out.
To: Sydney
No need to pretend, babe. We both know you have more than enough time.
To: Sydney
Also, you should probably check the posts. Something tells me you have more issues than Sia just outing you. Looks like your followers aren't as loyal as you thought, Syd.
Rick wasn't being mean. He was simply orchestrating. There was a difference. Nothing he did to Sydney was particularly cruel, more teasing than anything else. Besides, it would prompt her to action, even if it was something as small as attending a party by someone she probably could give two fucks about. Smirking inwardly, Rick finally turned his attention on Vincent. To be completely honest, Ricardo had missed his friend. Vincent was one of his best guys, one of the few he actually liked the most in New York. Granted, he was sure that Vincent's opinion on him went interchangeably between friendship and contempt, but that really was Vincent's fault. He knew Ricardo liked fucking with people and who did Vincent think he was kidding? The idiot watched Sienna from afar, even when the guys were talking about other girls. He claimed nonchalance, but the second Sienna came into the vicinity, his eyes stayed on her. Even if they strayed, he was like her little bitch, never really straying too far. So, Ricardo had decided to help his friend along. Obviously, he wanted everyone to think Sienna meant nothing to him. That he could give two fucks about who she was with. So, Rick flirted with her. Was that cruel? Actually, it was. Did Rick care? No, especially when Vincent could end it at any second.
"Glad you could still joke at a time like this," Ricardo replied in a rather bored tone, getting a text from a few lacrosse players already at the party and asking about when Rick was getting there. Sienna must have told everyone that he was back already. Smirking, Rick fully stared at his friend. "Got any plans on what you're doing about this 'cause man, this is bad. Even for you. And when were you going to tell me you fucked Sydney Vale? That's like, going-down-in-legends material right there."
In the midst of checking on the status of Sydney and Sienna's social media war, Sydney messaged him back. He didn't rush to answer or even read what she had to say. It would seem as if he had been waiting for her to respond to him, which he was not. So, he did not rush. He continued to flip through images and posts, grinning at a few of the girls who he once thought as complete crudes wearing some rather scandalous outfits for the night. Something told him he would be enjoying this party a lot more than he originally believed. Finally, after it seemed like a good three minutes had passed, Rick finally pulled up Sydney's text message and had to chuckle. He loved the little attitude she seemed to have. Truthfully, he appreciated a few things about Sydney Vale and loved messing with her, especially. Sienna was fun, yes, and he did love her. But Sydney...there was something about her retorts and her ability to seem unfazed that amused him to no end. The car door opened and he knew Vincent was climbing in, but Rick concentrated only sending his message out.
To: Sydney
No need to pretend, babe. We both know you have more than enough time.
To: Sydney
Also, you should probably check the posts. Something tells me you have more issues than Sia just outing you. Looks like your followers aren't as loyal as you thought, Syd.
Rick wasn't being mean. He was simply orchestrating. There was a difference. Nothing he did to Sydney was particularly cruel, more teasing than anything else. Besides, it would prompt her to action, even if it was something as small as attending a party by someone she probably could give two fucks about. Smirking inwardly, Rick finally turned his attention on Vincent. To be completely honest, Ricardo had missed his friend. Vincent was one of his best guys, one of the few he actually liked the most in New York. Granted, he was sure that Vincent's opinion on him went interchangeably between friendship and contempt, but that really was Vincent's fault. He knew Ricardo liked fucking with people and who did Vincent think he was kidding? The idiot watched Sienna from afar, even when the guys were talking about other girls. He claimed nonchalance, but the second Sienna came into the vicinity, his eyes stayed on her. Even if they strayed, he was like her little bitch, never really straying too far. So, Ricardo had decided to help his friend along. Obviously, he wanted everyone to think Sienna meant nothing to him. That he could give two fucks about who she was with. So, Rick flirted with her. Was that cruel? Actually, it was. Did Rick care? No, especially when Vincent could end it at any second.
"Glad you could still joke at a time like this," Ricardo replied in a rather bored tone, getting a text from a few lacrosse players already at the party and asking about when Rick was getting there. Sienna must have told everyone that he was back already. Smirking, Rick fully stared at his friend. "Got any plans on what you're doing about this 'cause man, this is bad. Even for you. And when were you going to tell me you fucked Sydney Vale? That's like, going-down-in-legends material right there."
Sienna had not taken any selfies and despite Esmee's requests, she could not. Both she and Jane were huge on social media, particularly when it came to posting photos of themselves. Whether together or apart, that was a thing that really was them and Sienna was a powerful artist in the social media world. And yet...she wasn't in the mood and she felt just a bit bad for turning her sister down again. She had ignored Esmee last night and was still avoiding actually talking to her sister. Leave it to a situation like this that would make her regret their dynamic. Esmee, the one who had been allowed to enjoy her childhood more than Sienna and actually live, was the mature one while the big sister was the one who could cry in her baby sister's arms. How pathetic could you get after that!? Of course, Esmee would argue that that was the perfectionist or maybe even the Cynthia in her that thought that. Sienna would probably tell Esmee to shut up.
To: Carrie
YAAAAYYY!! Ur coming!!!
Smiling at Charlotte's text message, Sienna glanced out the tinted window of the town car to see that they were pulling up to the apartment building Charlotte lived at and her smile widened. She wanted to show her friend that she was better - that she was doing good. Even if she truly wasn't. Sienna had barely waited for the car to officially stopped before pushing the door open, eyes wide and excited and her mouth agape. Charlotte Buchanan looked hot! She had felt like, with all the compliments that had circulated through school, that she and Charlotte had had the best outfits that night. But this...she could only thank Rose because she knew Charlotte would not have been able to come up with this one on her own. "Oh. My. God! Is that Madam President Buchanan looking scandalous and on the prowl!? Better hurry up in here before the paparazzi show up!" Sienna exclaimed, grinning all the while. She was glad that Charlotte was looking just as scantily-clad as she was. Not like most raves consisted of people actually dressed in layers or anything, but even she knew that the cropped top she was wearing was just a bit daring even for her. Combined with the shorts and the wedges, she knew she looked like a girl looking for trouble.
To: Piper
On our way now, girlie. U still comin?
To: Jane
Just let me kno when & if u get there
To: Hailey
Heard the party's great. Hope ur havin fun
To: Carrie
YAAAAYYY!! Ur coming!!!
Smiling at Charlotte's text message, Sienna glanced out the tinted window of the town car to see that they were pulling up to the apartment building Charlotte lived at and her smile widened. She wanted to show her friend that she was better - that she was doing good. Even if she truly wasn't. Sienna had barely waited for the car to officially stopped before pushing the door open, eyes wide and excited and her mouth agape. Charlotte Buchanan looked hot! She had felt like, with all the compliments that had circulated through school, that she and Charlotte had had the best outfits that night. But this...she could only thank Rose because she knew Charlotte would not have been able to come up with this one on her own. "Oh. My. God! Is that Madam President Buchanan looking scandalous and on the prowl!? Better hurry up in here before the paparazzi show up!" Sienna exclaimed, grinning all the while. She was glad that Charlotte was looking just as scantily-clad as she was. Not like most raves consisted of people actually dressed in layers or anything, but even she knew that the cropped top she was wearing was just a bit daring even for her. Combined with the shorts and the wedges, she knew she looked like a girl looking for trouble.
To: Piper
On our way now, girlie. U still comin?
To: Jane
Just let me kno when & if u get there
To: Hailey
Heard the party's great. Hope ur havin fun
It was selfish and wrong, but Sydney was more than satisfied when Jane dropped her mock-confidence and returned to her old self. She didn't necessarily need Jane to be the lapdog that most people thought her to be, but a Jane that blatantly denied her requests and stood up to her so brazenly was not something that Sydney was used to, or wanted to get used to. The plead that she made, for Sydney to talk to Sienna tonight, wasn't one that she wanted to hear, but it was preferred over the bitch she had dealt with moments before. "Sienna and I will talk at some point, but tonight is not that night," Sydney declared. Her eyes were averted from Jane's longing gaze for a mere second as she glanced down at her phone. Ricardo had responded to her text, but she knew that whatever it said wasn't important enough to warrant an immediate response. If anything, it was going to annoy her and she could deal with putting that off for a few minutes anyway.
"Why not tonight?" Jane replied, her hands absentmindedly fidgeting with the ties of her robe. Sydney's declaration sounded more like an excuse than anything. She probably wanted to put off talking to Sienna in hopes that she would reach out to her first, so that, in true Sydney fashion, she could claim that it was Sienna who came running back to her, begging for forgiveness. It wasn't like Jane expected Sydney to do that to Sienna, either. She really did recognize that both of her friends had wronged each other, but Sienna never would have done what she did if Sydney hadn't done hers first. And really, in Jane's opinion, no matter how much of a dramatic spin Sydney put on it, what Sienna had done didn't seem to compare to what Sydney did with Vincent.
Jane's tone was not accusatory but Sydney was getting annoyed over why she needed to be persistent over this. It had barely been one day since the fight. Sydney wasn't ready to forgive Sienna for what she had done, and even if Sydney had some type of apology to offer Sia, she doubted the singer would be ready to accept it either. Sydney knew that this was just Jane trying to make everything perfect and innocent and happy, like usual, but this wasn't some normal fight where that would work. What Sienna had done yesterday was game changing and Sydney doubted that things could be mended at this point. "I don't want to do it somewhere so public. You know how embarrassingly loud she can get, and I don't think it would be right to steal the new girl's attention on her own birthday. This is probably the only night that she's going to be really relevant, anyway." Hailey wasn't important enough to even be referenced by her name. Not after that little show she put on on Thursday morning, and even more so after her attempt to buy drugs off of Brent Barclay right in front of Jane. Remembering the new blonde reminded Sydney of last night's ordeal and before Jane could insist again that they go to the party, Sydney decided to do some convincing of her own. It was wrong to redirect the conflict of the conversation onto someone else, but Sydney didn't care about Hailey. In fact, she actively disliked her by this point, so in her mind, it didn't seem comparable to how she had thrown Jane under the bus to change the topic during yesterday's dinner. "Besides, that girl is bad news anyway, Jane. I tried to warn Sienna about it and of course she didn't want to listen, but I caught that girl buying drugs at my party." She whipped out her phone, still ignoring Rick's text as she pulled up the photo she had sent Sienna. "It's probably crack or something, for all we know. She did it right in front of you too, and I know you were drinking too much to remember but still, what nerve! Honestly, she wasn't even invited and this is why. I knew she was going to be a problem."
Jane understood that it probably was best to avoid dealing with their friendship problems in the middle of a party, but when else were they going to do it? Even if they were in the privacy of one of their homes, there was still a good chance that Sienna was going to claw Sydney's eyes out or that Sydney was going to try to turn the tables and make things worse. No matter what, Jane doubted that the pair would be able to speak civilly, but she so desperately wanted this resolved. It had only been one day, but that one day had been daunting in itself and she couldn't imagine an entire school year like this. Especially when this was their last school year, and one that they had all vowed to make the most of. Jane wanted to convince Sydney that she could just pull Sienna aside and talk outside or in a separate room, but unsurprisingly, Sydney changed the topic of conversation to Hailey. Jane had her own reservations about Hailey but drugs? That wasn't something that Jane would have suspected. And then the photo was thrust into her face and Jane's heart dropped. She knew exactly what those drugs were, and it didn't take much problem-solving skills to piece together who they were really for if it was Brent Barclay dealing them with Jane standing nearby. "That's not crack, it's Ritalin..." she whispered, not even recognizing that she was speaking aloud as her eyes focused on the phone screen.
Since when did Jane know anything about drugs? Especially something like Ritalin, which Sydney had only vaguely heard of herself. As far as she knew, Jane thought that drugs were just as classless as she. The idea of her friend being able to identify a bag of white pills was surprisingly to say the least, and Sydney honed in on it before Jane had a chance to realize that she had even spoken. "I never knew you were interested in pharmacology, Jane," she said, quirking an eyebrow out of curiosity. "Enlighten me." It was her way of saying "explain yourself" without scaring Jane off. The startled look on her friend's Jane suggested that she was already regretting speaking, though.
"I'm not!" Jane shot back nervously as Sydney wondered how Jane was able to identify the drug so easily. Of course Sydney knew that Jane wasn't "interested in pharmacology" and Jane didn't even consider claiming that she was, because both of them knew that would have been unbelievable. "I just know... someone who uses it." That came out more guilty-sounding than she had wanted to, and before she could stop herself, she was the one throwing someone under the bus. "Piper buys it from Brent some times, okay? But please don't tell anyone I told you that. She would kill me." It wasn't a lie. Well, at least Jane didn't know that it was a lie. Last year when she had met Brent one night to buy some pills, Piper had been there. Jane had no other option than to tell Piper what she was doing meeting up with someone that was so... not their type, and to protect her own reputation, Piper claimed that she was with him for the same reason, despite it being untrue. Because Sydney already disliked Piper, Jane didn't think she was doing that much harm by outing Piper's secret, especially when it was to protect herself. She was still reeling from the girls somehow finding out about her disorder in the first place. She didn't need them to know how bad it actually was, especially if Brent was lurking around trying to force her back into those habits.
The fact that Jane's explanation for the pills didn't strike Sydney as being suspicious pointed to how much she already disliked Piper. She was surprised that the redhead did drugs, but not shocked. She wouldn't put something like that past Piper and hearing the secret actually heightened her mood. Once again, she had been right to dislike someone for no reason because hidden beneath the pettiness was a reason. As Sydney liked to say, her intuition was spot on like usual. "Hmm... not surprising," she surmised, allowing a smirk to creep onto her face. "Maybe Hailey won't be friendless after all, then. The two trap queens can be friends and we can finally drop her from our group." The comment evoked frown from Jane, and Sydney rolled her eyes. "I'm kidding, you know I won't tell anyone." Not yet, at least. Piper hadn't done anything to warrant such a nasty move and Sydney wasn't willing to go that low for no reason after Sienna had just done so to her. "Which is why I don't understand why you couldn't tell me about where you were this summer." She really didn't come over with the intentions of bringing up Jane's summer since Sydney knew that what she had said yesterday didn't come across as the compassionate and concerned friend that she wanted to be, but they seemed to be back in a good place. Maybe she could get an honest answer from Jane now.
The shock of the Ritalin being brought up numbed down Jane's senses enough that Sydney bringing up her summer didn't make her heart race this time. It was already out in the open and if anything, Jane had a reason to brush Sydney off now. Her friend had already addressed the issue so insensitively yesterday that she didn't think she was required to give it much thought today. "I was going to tell you at some point," she said before quickly switching gears. Her bare legs had grown goose bumps from standing in the air conditioned hallway and the reminder of her summer made her feel vulnerable in nothing but the bath robe. "I need to get dressed. Come."
Sydney could tell that Jane was trying to change the conversation and she wouldn't accept that. That was her game, and didn't she deserve an answer anyway? As selfish as it was, Sydney was offended that Jane couldn't even give her best friend some sort of insight, especially now when they were away from Sienna. She followed Jane upstairs, but spoke as they walked. "Then let's make 'some point' now. Like, you know I would have been there for you, Jane. How long has this been going on? You've been a stick forever and Sienna and I were concerned for you last spring but we didn't think that it was anything like this. Why didn't you say something?"
She wasn't going to let this go, apparently. Luckily, Jane's soak had calmed her down and knowing that she had mended her relationship with Sydney and that Sienna was texting her again made her feel better than she had earlier. "I really don't feel like talking about this right now, Syd. It's not 'anything like this'. My dad went crazy after my doctor said something and sent me there without me even knowing where I was going. There was nothing wrong, which is why I didn't say anything. I just didn't want to make a big deal out of a problem that doesn't even exist." She tried to keep her tone light and shrugged nonchalantly as she made her way into her bedroom and headed straight for her closet.
"You're insulting me, Jane. I'm not stupid. Even Sienna picked up on how you act, and that says a lot. I won't push it any more tonight, but just know that this is not the end of this conversation. I want real answers." Sydney followed Jane into the walk-in closet and sat down on one of the chairs as she watched the brunette shuffle through the racks of clothing. "Don't get too dressed up. I don't feel like going out, let's just do something casual." Jane had stepped behind one of the privacy screens to change, so Sydney turned her attention to her phone to finally answer Rick. Sienna had her minions and Sydney had hers. If a few of them wanted to side with Sienna on this, oh well. Sydney didn't think that it would be an amount considerable enough to hurt her, because at this point, she didn't need feel like she needed a million followers anyway. It was senior year and one rumor that she was not going to confirm wasn't going to be enough to ruin her, despite Sienna's hopes.
To: Ricardo
You are so right Rick. Let's dedicate a moment of silence to me losing the admiration of those completely useless and pathetic girls who I didn't and never will care about </3 :(
"I'm still going to that party," Jane reminded Sydney. She had lost most of her confidence since Sydney first arrived, but she wasn't going to be completely submissive to all of Sydney's wishes. Her best friend still didn't deserve that and honestly, the few self-sufficient comments she had made earlier were liberating in a way. If she wanted to go to Hailey's party, she was going to go whether Sydney liked it or not! She had found a dress that she had purchased with Sienna the day before and slipped behind a privacy screen to change into it. Matched with black lace-up boots, it definitely wasn't a typical Jane outfit but from Sienna's description of the party, it didn't seem like a place for a typical Jane outfit anyway. The dress was small and tight which had her pulling at the non-existent bulge that she was sure was protruding from her stomach, but after brushing her issues off to Sydney, she tried not to put too much thought into it. She wanted what she had said to her friend to be true, and she tried to put the "positive thinking" method that she had been taught in therapy to use tonight. Plus, she was sure that the party would have enough drinks for her to forget what she looked like anyway. "You should come, too. I think it'll be fun."
Sydney didn't understand why Jane insisted on going to this party even after Hailey had been outed as a drug user, but she remained quiet. If Jane wanted to go, then so be it. She would have to learn the hard way, but whatever. It was clear to Sydney that she and Jane were on good terms again and it would make her look like the bigger person if she allowed Jane to hang out with Sienna, anyway. Not like Sydney really had the control to choose who Jane could and couldn't hang out with, but she liked how it sounded in her head. "Um, no thanks. I'm not into doing lines of coke in the bathroom with some wannabe singer." She was talking about Hailey, but if Jane thought she meant Sienna, that worked too.
"Open bar!" Jane chimed in, hoping that it would be enough of a convincing factor for Sydney as it was for her. She knew it wouldn't be, and she didn't really care. Honestly, the night probably would be easier without Sienna and Sydney in the same room if neither of them wanted to make up with each other.
"We aren't all alcoholics, babe. Besides, my grandpa wanted to get dinner tonight, so if you're going to abandon me, I guess I'll go do that. Don't drink yourself to death!" she sighed dramatically, although her tone was playful. She stood up and headed out of the closet, only rolling her eyes when Jane cheerfully dismissed her with, "Your loss!". It took less then three minutes for Sydney's car to pull up and for her to be back on her way to her apartment. She really did plan on staying in with her grandfather tonight, but when she got a text from Vincent, those thoughts flew out the window.
From: Vincent
Ik you don't want to talk to me and I get it but I don't think u should come tonight. It's just gonna be too much drama with you two there.
Was he out of his mind to try to tell her what to do and where to go? And to protect his precious little girlfriend who had fucked her over?! Oh, hell no! It left Sydney reeling and trying to recall what cute neon outfits she had on hand as she ordered her driver to speed it up.
Jane felt like she and Sydney had left off on a good note, despite the blonde probably being annoyed that she had decided to go to the party regardless of her wishes. It left her in an exuberant mood that came close to how she used to feel when she was hyped to go out at night, and it was an extreme contrast to how poorly she had felt all day today. She straightened her hair quickly and put just as little effort into its styling as she left it in a simple ponytail. A glance out her window showed that Max hadn't left yet, which only had her sending a text to Carolina once she was already on her way down to the car.
To: Caroline
I'm omw to the car!!!! Let's go
To: Sienna
OMW!!!!!!!!!! How am I supposed to know what you're wearing if you don't post an Insta?! Or are you saving your post for today for one with me <3?!
The smirk on Ricardo's face spelled trouble, but Vincent was happy enough that his partner in crime was back in town to water down the guilt and nervousness that he was feeling. If anyone brought out the womanizer and sheer cockiness in Vincent, it was Ricardo. "It didn't take you long to catch up on the latest drama," he remarked, though it wasn't as surprising as Vincent acted. Ricardo was the Sydney Vale of Saint Jude's. If something happened, he knew about it whether he was in the middle of the drama or on the other side of the country. In fact, it wasn't even unlikely that Rick could manage to be on the other side of the country and still involve himself in the middle of the Upper East Side drama if he wanted to. He didn't have any idea about what he was going to do about the drama, actually. He tried reaching out to Sydney and was kicked out of her house. Even Kelley, who never hid the fact that she didn't like Sydney, wouldn't tell him what Sydney said this morning when he spoke with her. He had tried to reach out to Sienna too, and she didn't even give him any sort of response to work with. How was he supposed to fix all of this when neither girl wanted to speak with him, and he wasn't even sure who he owed an apology to at this point.
"Come on, man, you know I don't kiss and tell," Vincent replied to the second half of Rick's comment. He tried to leave his expression only at a smirk, but even he couldn't resist snickering at the evidently false statement. "This is why I didn't tell anyone though. You know better than anyone that drama between these two doesn't end well and if they end up ripping each other's hair out, I don't want to be the one in the middle of it." That was unavoidable at this point.
As they grew closer to their destination, Vincent decided that maybe Rick was right, and he needed to do something about this. He still was leaning towards owing Sydney more of an apology than Sienna, but it was much more likely that Sienna was going to show up tonight. She was Hailey's closest friend in the Upper East Side, and it wouldn't make sense for her to miss a party, especially not one thrown by the girl who was rooming with her. It was probable that Sienna still wouldn't want to talk to him tonight, but maybe he could avoid some stress and drama by making sure that Sydney didn't show up too. He clearly didn't think the move through, because telling Sydney not to show up somewhere in a way that sounded like he was siding with Sienna spelled trouble, but the message was sent before he could rethink it.
To: Sydney
Ik you don't want to talk to me and I get it but I don't think u should come tonight. It's just gonna be too much drama with you two there.
"But seriously, when did you get back? I figured you were staying on the west coast this semester too." As the seconds passed and he received no response from Sydney, he knew that he had screwed up and decided not to inform Rick of his stupid move. Knowing Sydney's rage and Ricardo's ability to find out everything, he would find out on his own anyway.
Even though Sienna's response to her text suggested that she would have at least one friend there, Carolina didn't want to leave without Jane. The only reason why she was going was because her sister expected her to bring Jane, and if Sydney was going to replace her and go with Jane, there was no real reason for her to go. As she studied her reflection in the mirror, she decided that she did look good enough to kind of want to go, but would she even have fun? If Lee wasn't there, which his lack of response suggested, then she doubted it. Sienna was always a ball of energy but she had so many friends and Carolina didn't want to cling to her like some awkward reject. The idea that the party was being thrown by someone who was new in town was reassuring, though. That meant that it couldn't be as exclusive as one thrown by Sydney Vale and the likes, and the theme of the party seemed too fun to be filled with any bad or judgmental vibes. She decided not to answer Jane's text, even though she felt like telling her to go fuck herself for the "I'm not rushing for you" part. Instead, she opted to wait a little while for the duo to get ready and walked down to the kitchen to pass some time.
Her sister and Adrian had already left for the dinner party they were invited to a few blocks away, and in a "the hell with it" mood, Carolina decided to search for the liquor cabinet. She was going to need something to loosen her up before going to the party anyway, and Jane's attitude made it seem all the more necessary. The Lynch's house was still an unfamiliar space to her so it took a few minutes and many opened doors for her to come across one filled with bottles of alcohol. They were all top shelf brands, with many of them being brands that Adrian's company LMVH owned. Carolina wasn't picky when it came to alcohol and normally opted for whatever cost the least at whatever seedy corner store would sell to her underage friends. Having access to bottles of alcohol that probably cost hundreds of dollars was daunting, but hearing the voices of Jane and Sydney down the hall washed away any reservations she had. She filled a glass with a generous amount of the Belvedere vodka and mixed it with orange juice. It was certainly strong, but went down a lot smoother than the cheap vodka she usually drank at parties, and as she grew more and more impatient with Jane, it began to taste pleasurable.
When her glass ran dry, she decided that there was no point in waiting for Jane. She clearly had no regard for Carolina who had been waiting at least a half an hour to leave and there was no telling how much longer she and Miss Queen Bee would take. For all Carolina knew, they would end up skipping the party last minute anyway, and she would have wasted her whole night. Now that she was in the mood to go, she wanted to get there before her buzz wore off. Sharing the same disregard that Jane showed her, Carolina didn't even text the girl as she took the elevator downstairs and headed out to the car. Coincidentally, as soon as she had sat down in the back seat, she received a text from Jane, essentially telling her to hurry up because she was ready. It had Carolina rolling her eyes before Max could even ask where she was headed to. This bitch...
To: Jane
Already down here... I was waiting 4 u, remember?
In a shocking twist of events, Jane didn't take three years to come downstairs! Carolina knew that she was being impatient too, but god, was this girl inconsiderate. And to think that she was doing this to be nice to Jane, who apparently had lost all of her friends! "I thought Sydney was coming," she commented as the car pulled off. She couldn't have cared less about the response, but decided to be the bigger person by breaking the silence in the car. Glancing over at Jane, she noticed that the girl didn't seem to be in a bad mood anyway. It was a short ride to the building the party was being held in, and Carolina only looked over at Jane briefly before thanking Max and stepping out of the car. "So, do you know this girl... Hailey?" she questioned once Jane had stepped out too. She was still feeling good. She was happy with the outfit her sister had chosen and was ready to get another drink in her system, but she was sort of hoping that Jane wouldn't abandon her right away. At least, not until she downed that drink and was ready to break out of her quiet "don't talk to me, I won't talk to you", side, or until she found Lee.
To: Lee
U better be here!
Friday night proved that alcohol was a blessing from the heavens. There was no way in a million years that Kelley would have been able to survive a night of "girl time" with Sydney Vale if the Vale's bar wasn't fully stocked. Even with the many mixed drinks and shots, Kelley still caught herself rolling her eyes at the dramatic pity party that Sydney was throwing for herself. She did feel bad for Sydney, but not that bad. If she was suddenly so full of regret and knew how wrong she had been, why had she slept with Vincent in the first place? Or again after that? It was apparent that Sydney was not so much sorry that she slept with him, as she was that Sienna found out. She couldn't just abandon Sydney though, and between the endless supply of free drinks and free pizza, and the unexpected persistence from her conscience, she ended up staying the night. By morning, it was apparent that her body was not happy with the amount of alcohol she consumed since she spent a good thirty minutes with her head hanging over Sydney's toilet, and once that fiasco was over, she gladly made her exit.
The rest of her day was spent at home where her mother was throwing her sister Taryn's baby shower was being held. Kelley lacked enough enthusiasm for the day that she considered going back to Sydney's, but she knew she would never hear the end of it from her mother. Family members from all over were coming in for the shower and apparently, her sister "needed her support". It made Kelley laugh sardonically because she knew that her sister couldn't have cared any less about her presence. Kelley was the screw up of the family and Taryn was the sibling who never let her forget that. Admittedly, their relationship was in a better place now than it was a couple of years ago, but Kelley still wasn't excited for the event. Sitting in a room filled with snobby women, laughing about stupid jokes and gushing over how tiny the overpriced outfits people bought for the unborn child were just didn't sound like a fun time to Kelley. Luckily, mimosas were on the menu and every time her mother turned her back, Kelley swallowed as much of the orange cocktail as she could.
Her Aunt Colette had come back into the city for the afternoon, and since the woman was more like a cousin than an aunt, Kelley's day wasn't as dreadful as she thought it would be. The pair went shopping and got dinner after the shower and the only downfall of the evening was that Colette would not stop talking about the Vincent, Sydney, Sienna drama. She blamed her son more than either of the girls, but unsurprisingly, she insisted that Kelley needed to try to fix the situation. She claimed that Vincent couldn't do it on his own because he was "too much like his father" and couldn't understand that he was "ruining his future" by letting Sienna go. It was melodramatic but that was Colette for you, and after the tears started spilling into her chicken piccata, Kelley insisted that she would do what she could just to make her stop.
Rather than go to the party with Vincent and Ricardo (who Kelley didn't even know was back in town), she got a cab there on her own. Her extended dinner with Colette left her running late and she barely had time to get dressed in a neon yellow mesh crop top, white denim shorts and wedges. Although Kelley didn't know Hailey, she had to give her points for throwing a rave-themed party in the regal Upper East Side. She hadn't been to many raves this summer with her parents being on her back, and was definitely in the mood for such a wild and carefree night. By the time she got to the party, she considered texting Brent to see if he had any ecstasy on him to help her get her night going, but was sure he would show his face soon enough anyway. Besides, she was still working on her buzz from the martinis she and Colette had ordered at dinner and wasn't in dire need of a pick me-up so soon into the night.
When the elevator let her off on the floor that the party was being held on, she was pleasantly surprised by the atmosphere. This new girl did seem to know how to throw a party! There were already a lot of people there, the music playing was spot on, and the lightning electrified the neon colors that everyone was wearing. "Hey!" It was only by chance that Kelley bumped into the hostess as she made her way through the party. "You're Hailey, right? Happy birthday, bitch!" Kelley didn't need an excess of alcohol to be comfortable with strangers. Besides, she wanted to be friendly if this was the girl who was financing her drinking binge for the night. "I'm Kelley, I don't think we met. Where can a chica get a drink around here?" she twirled a strand of blonde hair around her finger, her eyes scouring the room for the bar.