I had never been much of a photo filter girl. I didn't use sparkle effects, or cat ears, or those filters that gave you anime eyes, or flowers in your hair. But there was one filter that I really liked. It made your images crisper, sharper. That is what the world suddenly felt like.
It had sharpened around me. It was like my eyeballs had been dropped into Instagram, and someone had thrown a filter across everything I saw. Which suddenly made several things clear...
One. I had just kissed Laurence Royal.
Two. He looked just as surprised as I was.
And three, my heart seemed to have stopped working, shattering into a million pieces over this terrible mistake I had made.
Laurence Royal stared back at me, his eyes in a daze, his face flushed. I shouldn't have been so quick to assume he was Tate. Laurence and Tate had a similar build, and in the dark light, their hair had a similar coloring. Laurence's back had been turned when I had blurted out my feelings, and I was running on eight cups of coffee and no sleep... this entire night was a dumpster fire of a bad idea.
I tried to say something. Say anything. But I was torn between rage and mortification. What did I just do?!? What just happened? Did I really just kiss Laurence Royal?
"How did you know it was me?" he asked.
I gasped, landing on a dominant emotion, growing angry. A phoenix rising from the ashes of embarrassment. "YOU TRICKED ME ON PURPOSE?!?" I hissed, my mind spinning madly. Laurence had looked just as shocked as I had a moment ago.
He shook his head. "What? No. How did you know it was me..." he trailed off, touching his own mask.
A whole set of information flooded my mind at once as I stared at him. His mask was an identical match to mine.
No... no, no, no, no. He's not... That's not possible. He's been trying to sabotage me for months! He can't—
"How did you know I was your secret admirer?" he finished, his voice a mere whisper on the wind.
"Why did you kiss me?" I asked, wiping my mouth angrily as if that would erase what had just happened.
"You said you liked me," Laurence said, confused, a wild blush filling his face.
I ignored his response for a moment. "You were the one who sent me Uggo? Why?"
"Uggo?" His brow furrowed.
"The butt ugly plant," I sputtered. "The plant thing cut in the shape of a heart!"
He winced. "You... named it Uggo?"
"So the terrible taste stretches further than just socks," I muttered quietly to myself, turning away. I groaned, wanting to scream. "What a disaster!"
He walked towards me until we stood a foot apart. "Can you catch me up Ms. Wint—"
I spun and glared at him. "Ohhhh we are wayyyy past you calling me Ms. Winters after that kiss you laid on me. WHAT WAS THAT?!? Do you just kiss anyone you come across in a hedge maze?!?"
"No—"
"Then what the hell was that?!?" I shouted, far past sane tone levels of conversation.
He ran his fingers through his hair, sending strands up in wild directions. "I like you! I thought my letters made that clear. I thought the... plant gift that you apparently hated made that clear." An angry blush took his face another shade darker as he swore and turned away, covering his mouth, trying to keep me from seeing the newest set of emotions that crossed his features. "I thought me taking care of those articles about your past made that clear."
I stared up at him, embarrassment seeping through my anger. Laurence had been true to his word. The articles he had shown me in his office never came out. I thought he had been trying to blackmail me. But... "You liked me?"
"Still present tense," he said, his back to me.
"But I've done nothing but treat you like crap. I monologued about your socks... and that horrible plant."
He turned and gave me a hard smile and a sad laugh. "I know, it surprises me too."
Laurence crossed his arms, frustration furrowing across his brow. "What I don't understand is why you just confessed to wanting me, only to turn around and freak out when I did something about it."
I pursed my lips, my cheeks burning angrily. "I thought you were... someone else."
His face fell, understanding crossing his dark eyes. "Ah. Your repulsed face after I kissed you now makes a lot more sense."
"I've never been known for subtlety."
"Shocking," he said, his tone teasing, betraying his guarded body language.
I motioned down to his feet. "I like the black socks."
He gave a hollow laugh. "Yeah? Better than the white ones?"
I nodded. "A vast improvement..."
The conversation died. Leaving a blanket of awkward silence as we stood there staring at his socks. Unsure of how to handle the situation like a normal person, I turned and began to walk away, dazed and frazzled by the entire ordeal. I needed the entire evening to be over but paused when Laurence called after me.
"I would say I am sorry I kissed you..." He shrugged, lips tugging up slightly. "But that would be a lie."
I looked back at him, tempted to throw my shoe at his head, and froze, spotting a figure standing behind a set of trees in the distance. I swore, suddenly remembering a camera flash. A flash that filled my vision the moment Laurance Royal kissed me.
OH MY GOSH...
Rage surged through my veins, replacing all embarrassment. "I knew it! You did plan this!" I hissed, my eyes snapping back to Laurence. "I can't believe you would stoop so low!"
He followed my gaze and stumbled into my train of thought, shaking his head wildly. "No! That's not—"
I bolted away, moving as fast as I could, afraid that I would lunge at him and try to rip him to shreds if I looked at his face. He was probably laughing, amused at how easily fooled I had been. I knew this dress was too big. I should have made it smaller. Then I could have beaten him senseless!
I shook my head, killing the thought, angry tears threatening to stream down my face. No. I don't want another scandal. I want to be better than jumping to violence the first chance I get. Just keep walking.
I felt like an idiot. I had assumed I was talking to Tate and had acted impulsively. The first time I had admitted my feelings and it had been to the wrong man. GREAT GOING ALLIE!
"Allie!" Iz shouted in the distance. "Allie, where'd you go?!?"
"Coming!" I shouted back, my voice sounding broken and uneven.
I was halfway up the ramp that lead out of the hedge maze, following the sound of Iz's voice when a hand-pulled me to a stop. "Hold on Allie," Laurence said, his tone insistent.
I pulled my arm away and glared up at him. "Don't start! Pictures are going to be all over the internet in less than an hour! And there is nothing I can do to fix it other than to get as FAR away from you as possible!"
My heart cracked. The pictures... Tate will see them. I need to get away from Laurence. I need to find Tate. I need to explain everything before he assumes I have moved on.
Laurence moved in front of me, blocking my exit. "I didn't ask anyone to take our picture," he said, eyes searching mine earnestly. "This place is crawling with cameras. I didn't ask for a picture! How could I when that moment was spontaneous? It could just be nothing."
"It might not be to you, but it's everything to me! You really think the staff would be hiding in the trees? That's not normal! That was planned."
I swore again, anger rising fast and dangerous. "I can't believe you kissed me!" I yelled, falling back on the one truth I couldn't erase as I shoved past him.
"And you kissed me back!" he countered following me. The reality made my chest ache.
What have I done? No, no, no. How can I erase this? How can I fix this?
I spotted Iz in the distance, watching me from the edge of the maze, her brow raised in concern when she spotted my panicked expression. A couple stood next to her. A man with jet black hair pulled out of his face, and a woman with red hair hidden under a jazz hat gawked at us, most likely attracted to the scene by my screaming. Great.
They felt familiar, but I had been stared at a lot recently and after a moment, I pushed the familiar feeling away, hating the fact that my entire life seemed to be lived like a dramatic stage show.
"That's because I thought you were someone else!" I hissed at Laurence, who now walked in step with me.
"How was I supposed to know that!" he answered, matching my lowered voice.
"Because my hatred of you has been palpable!" I growled, feeling him tense beside me. "You kissed me and damned me to a media shit show that will destroy the small amount of traction I have made." My voice cracked and I could see my small fashion empire crashing around me. Destroyed by one camera flash.
I need to go. I need out. I need to find Tate. I need to explain.
I felt the last of my calm slip, and tears began to trail down my cheeks. "This situation is only good for you!" I shouted, finally reaching the edge of the maze's incline. "So if you truly care about me, do me this one favor, and stay the hell away from me!"
He winced, taking a step back, looking like I had slapped him across the face.
I raced into the courtyard and Iz pulled me into a fierce, protective hug. "Are you okay?" she asked quietly, her chin on my shoulder. "What happened? Do I need to smack him for you?"
I shook my head, holding back a sob. How was I supposed to explain?
So... I just admitted my feelings to who I thought was Tate, but it turned out to be a secret admirer who was in fact my fashion rival, who thought I had suddenly developed feelings and that fashion rival kissed me, and a camera caught our kiss and now it is going to be all over the internet. You don't think that will bother Tate, do you?
What could I say? I was too angry and terrified to form a good enough explanation. Instead, I shook my head again, pulling her tighter. "I just—"
All of the lights in the entire Getty Museum went out, sending up terrified protests throughout the courtyard.
I heard someone curse and suddenly, I was yanked away from Iz.
Iz screamed, her voice ringing out with panic.
I was knocked to the ground as more shouts rang out around me. Two bodies nearby hit the floor, fighting for dominance. "DON'T!" Iz shouted from nearby, seeming to struggle to get the words out.
"Where are you?!?" I shouted into the dark.
I heard a pained cry but did not receive a reply. The silence was deafening, more terrifying than any picture threatening to destroy me ever could be. Because Iz was never quiet. She was full of life, light, and beautiful opinions that made you want to be brave.
"IZ!" I shouted, scrambling to my feet. "Answer me Iz!"
I squinted into the dark and spotted a figure standing above a smaller one on the ground nearby. A small part of the fallen figure's fabric sparked in the moonlight, and I recognized Iz immediately. "GET AWAY FROM HER!" I roared, sprinting towards the figure above Iz.
The figure standing over her, whipped around at my demand, armed with something sharp. I threw myself at the figure, without a thought and we hit the ground, in a mess of ballgown, knife, and gravel.
I moved fast, slamming my fist into what I hoped was the figure's face before the knife could come into play, and was rewarded with a grunt and the smell of the attacker's breath which smelled like fruit.
As I raised my fist again, the figure jolted towards me, and a slice of pain snaked across my collar bone. I scrambled backwards, tripping over my dress, ripping the material, and my head hit the cold courtyard ground with a deafening crack, sending stars across my vision.
The figure scrambled up, hesitating above me, knife raised. "Don't!" A female voice nearby shouted.
Then before I could gather up the material of my dress to either smother the attacker or keep it free from my legs so I could jump on the attacker again, the figure vanished into the dark and the world went quiet.
The pain against my collarbone grew with each wild breath I took, and beads of sweat rolled down my chest, sending a cold shiver across my body. Using the moonlight for guidance, I fumbled towards Iz on my hands and knees.
"Iz!" I said into the dark.
She didn't answer.
I found her face in a small sliver of moonlight as the moon tucked itself behind a cloud. Her dark lashes were stark against her pale cheeks. "Iz..."I said more quietly, suddenly afraid of what I would find if the lights ever came back.
"Iz...?" I breathed, reaching out for her.
It was supposed to be a fancy dress, with fancy clothes...
I swallowed, pulling her head onto my lap. Yanking off one of my lace gloves, I checked her pulse. It was erratic, sending my own skyrocketing. No, no, no. Not her. She'll be okay. She has to be okay.
I promised to keep an eye on her...
The courtyard lights came back on and I stared down at the bundle of tule and lace in my arms, a sob breaking through my body.
To keep her safe...
Iz laid on the ground unconscious, surrounded by slashes of her red dress— no... blood.
She lay like a fairy at the center of a blooming flower... but it wasn't a spread of petals that surrounded her, it was blood. And somehow deep down, I knew that that knife wound that now made up the center of her dress had been meant for me.
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Thank you for reading chapter thirty-eight! I hope you are enjoying the story! Or are at least curious to see where it goes! Add this story to your reading list to know when the next chapter drops!
UPDATE DAYS - A NEW CHAPTER EVERY FRIDAY!
IZ! She's always been a favorite of mine. But that doesn't make her safe in this story. Will she be okay? You'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out!
In honor of Iz being awesome, list your favorite Iz moment or quote HERE--->
How will Aiden react when he sees Iz?
What will happen next?
CHAPTER QUESTION - This was a heavy chapter, so let's go with a light question. Best Pizza topping, and why?