BABYLON //a.f.i//

• S O M E T H I N G B A D •

Ashton and I made eye contact for a moment, and for some reason I felt like he could feel it too. He simply smiled, putting his fingers on the handle. And with that he opened the door, revealing an image I'd only would've dreamed of before.

A large high-ceiling room packed with people writhing to electronic beats lay before us. The room was decorated heavily in multicolor neon strips and flashing LED lights. A huge crystal chandelier hung from the middle of the room, the light reflecting off of it and speeding even more throughout the room. Beautiful blues, seductive reds, and royal purples danced on the skin of the partygoers. I also noticed a large portion of the crowd wore elaborate masks. One woman wore a shining golden mask complete with a crown of golden roses across her hairline. One man wore a mask the color red wine, a woman with a mask of elegant greens and blues reminiscent of a peacock leaving into him. Together they danced to the music, their arms wrapped tightly around one another.

"What is this place?" I looked over at Ashton.

"Some call it heaven." He placed one arm around my waist, using the other to gently tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear. Leaning in, he whispered in my ear, his hot breath tickling my neck. "And some call it hell."

I closed my eyes as I felt him step back. I breathed in, just taking in the atmosphere. I inhaled the energy and opened my eyes. The three of us moved through the crowd of people. Blinded by glitter and deafened by the music, I almost lost Ashton and Luke in the chaos. Somehow we made it to the other side together, where Ashton pushed his way through a pair of double doors, Luke and I close behind him. We walked down a wide, neon purple lit hallway until Ashton pushed his way through another door.

The three of us entered what seemed to be a more private section of the club. Lit exclusively with red and blue neon lights, it was circular in shape, with a booth covering a large section of the wall. In front of the booth sat a large, circular, metallic table. One man sat in the middle of the booth, wearing a suit the deep maroon color of blood. The light illuminated his platinum blonde hair as he sipped his drink calmly, looking up at Ashton.

"I heard you might be visiting me tonight." His seep voice rang out clear in the quiet room.

"We need to talk Belanova, and I think you know what it's about." Ashton walked briskly over to the table, placing both hand on it before leaning threateningly over it.

The man, who I presumed was the Jimmy Belanova Ashton had mentioned earlier, first glanced at Luke before he gave me a curious look. "Won't you let me welcome my guests properly? Who's this?" He nodded towards me. I felt a bit uncomfortable as all the eyes on the room turned to me.

"Don't stray from the point, Belanova. You know why I'm here." Ashton's tone darkened.

"She's pretty, Ashton. Almost reminds me a bit of Demetria; maybe you really do have a type." The man's tone sounded spiteful now, as if he were regurgitating a bad memory.

Ashton slammed his fists on the table, the noise echoing around the room. "Don't fucking talk about her! I'm here for business!"

"And was it business when you fucked my wife while I was dealing for you?" It disturbed me the cold calm in which Jimmy spoke in. So much hatred laced into the words.

I felt my eyes unintentionally widen at the revelation. "What?"

Luke chuckled quietly, but anger shone in Ashton's eyes. "Fuck you Jimmy, it happened once! Not to mention you stole fucking profits from me for a year after that!"

"It only seemed fair you pay me after your night with Demetria." Again, hatred seethed from his lips.

"You're a fucking child, Jimmy! I didn't come here to argue about the past!" Ashton seethed pure anger. It was interesting, as I had not seen him like this. Dangerous echoed throughout my mind. This man is dangerous.