Black Rose

The Party.

It didn't work.

At some point, a little later, a man walked over, giving Blake a very fake smile. "Mr Ivy, how wonderful you could make it."

Blake laughed. "It is my party, Gareth. I'm obligated to be here."

The man, Gareth, shrugged. "Good that you're here, nonetheless. And who is this stunning young lady? Will I see her again sometime soon?" He said, raising an eyebrow at Blake.

Blake shook his head. "No, I don't believe so, unless she royally pisses me off. This is Rose."

I smiled at him forcefully, nodding. "It's nice to meet you, Gareth."

He chuckled. "You should be thankful you have met me now, Rose. Let's just say I have a rather unsavoury line of work."

I glanced at Blake, and his grim look practically confirmed my suspicions.

"Well, it's been nice to see you again, Gareth. I'll make sure to contact you if it comes to that." Blake said, before taking my arm and gently leading me away.

I glanced back to see Gareth taking a sip of his champagne, watching me go with a dark look in his eyes. I quickly looked away.

We ran into Matt again, who seemed significantly less sober than when we had first spoken but was also considerably less scary than Gareth, so I was thankful for the change. He and Blake chatted for a bit, and I started to wonder about how they came to know each other. Then, the conversation turned to me.

"So, are you two like a thing now?" Matt asked, and my heart stopped.

Fortunately, or maybe not so fortunately, Blake was quick to laugh and shook his head. "God, no, Matt, why does your mind always go there? Rose and I are strictly friends. You know I would never do that to Iris, she's too precious to me."

You know that you're too precious to me to sell, don't you?

A lump welled up in my throat as I was reminded of Blake's words earlier in the day. As I was reminded Gareth, and of what was at stake if I didn't do as he wanted me.

"Rose, are you alright? You just went pale." Matt said frowning. Blake squeezed my hand, feigning concern too.

I nodded at them both, slipping my hand from Blake's. "Yes, of course, I'm fine. Just need a moment... Where is the bathroom?"

"Just down the hall towards the foyer. Ladies is the door to the left." Blake said, patting my arm. He was giving me a look I couldn't quite understand. Concern, maybe? Or anger? I didn't know. Either way, I needed a break. I needed a moment to breathe. So I nodded and left, following the directions they gave me. The two continued chatting the moment I was walking away.

I made it to the bathroom and quickly rushed into one of the stalls, then paused, marvelling at how there were bathroom stalls in Blake's house. If you could even call this a home. It was more like a resort in which he lived.

I took a shaky breath, and sat down, putting my head in my hands. God, how was I going to do more of this? I had hardly gotten through one conversation without giving myself away, along with Blake.

How could I pretend that everything was normal when really I was falling apart?

"Ophelia?" Called a voice from outside the stall. It was Gwen, and she sounded worried. Just the sound of concern in her voice was enough to fill me with a rush of confusing emotions. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I said, blinking away tears and taking a shaky breath, "I'm just overwhelmed."

"Well, I can relate to that." She said, with a sigh. "Wanna talk about it?"