"You have like the most perfect lid for makeup, I'm so jealous." Alexis smiled with a garnered focus on the light makeup she was putting on my eyes.
"Really?" I dryly chuckled as I stared at myself on the mirror with a squint. "I've never worn makeup before."
"I used to know nothing about it until I joined cheerleading." She gently points my chin upwards as she moved on towards a palette of glitter and a sheet of face crystals. "I couldn't care less about any of the products-thought they were all the same and now here I am completely obsessed."
"How long have you been a cheerleader?"
She does an imitated explosion noise with her mouth. "Oh god, ever since middle school, I think." Alexis continues with a sigh. "My mom and aunt was one and it was always my dream to be in one of the uniforms. People thought I was stupid but whatever."
"I don't know how you do it." I nervously gulped.
"Do what?" She asks as I carefully watched her begin complimenting my thick full brows and large brown eyes with plush iridescent powder.
"To be so confident with who you are all the time."
She dryly scoffed. "Me? I'm like one of the most insecure people in the world."
"What?" I stared at her in disbelief. "No!"
"Yes!" She insisted with a nod before continuing to do my makeup. "Everything I do and say is curated just for me to feel accepted and validated through people and opportunities I can benefit off of and for what? To distract myself from the fact that I'm probably just gonna die and no longer matter one day?"
I kept my chin up as I let out a humorous grimace. "That's pretty dark."
"It is because it's the truth. Life is all about distractions and distractions are made through confidence and confidence is all about creating a balance of what you should care and not care about. Let me tell you something-" Her voice fades for a moment as she placed a strategic pattern of crystals on my face. "It's so much more beneficial for a person to fake confidence instead of beating themselves up for not having any." She finally stands back, giving me the chance to look at the finished look on my face.
I bursted out a gasp that intertwined with laughter as I couldn't stop tilting my head and rotating it to see the makeup on my face. "Holy shit. I-I know this might sound crazy but I wish I can just wake up like this everyday." We laughed together as my eyes were sultry and dark, cut up to a feline wing as a bunch of crystals filled my lid. My cheeks were holographic and glossy, fearlessly embracing the light that hugged onto it as it stretched all way up to my brow bone.
"Wow, can I see your ring!?" The sight of myself was eventually obstructed by Alexis's genuine shock. "It's beautiful!"
"T-thanks." I bit my lip as I tried to contain my excitement. "I got it last night."
Her eyes slowly widened the longer she noticed the ring and what finger it was placed on. "Wait." She eventually snaps her head back at me, her forest grey eyes glinting in realization. "Did he?"
I just nodded with my lips clamped as she rapidly let out a squeal. "Shh! You're the only one that knows and I wanna keep it that way until graduation."
"Okay, okay, sorry. I'm just so happy for you!" She cheers, before meeting me with a hug as she threw her brush back into her makeup bag. "That's huge, Shiloh."
"Trust me, I know." I fought the urge to run my hand over my face due to stress. "I feel like I could lose my mind at any moment because we're so young. I barely even have any money to my name but at the same time I promised I'd trust him and-and honestly I've just never felt this happy in my life before."
"What the two of you have is clearly very real so I say just enjoy the moment and go with the flow." Alexis tilts her head at me and smiles. "You ready?"
I nod before staring at myself one last time, adjusting my cheerleading uniform before following her out towards all the other members of our squad.
Loud whistles and vast amounts of the crowd cheering made its way into my ears as we stuck to our position at the front of the bleachers. Castiel and I exchanged glances a few times as the game progressed. It was a close game but Halyciane was able to win against Maybella. In the midst of an army of cheering boys was Castiel standing up straight with a squint, ignoring the pats and rubs made against his hair and shoulders to look for me.
I got on my tippy toes while shakily raising a hand up in hopes of getting his attention. After a couple more moments of looking over to the bleachers he eventually takes his football helm off to finally spot me.
Castiel eventually rushes pass the crowd of boys as he ran towards the high railing that separated the bleachers from the field with an incline. "Shiloh!" He exclaimed, garnering confused stares and whispers as my mouth dropped.
I cautiously slid through my section to walk down the stairs. "What are you doing?" I mouthed out as my cheeks began to brightly burn at him watching me carefully approach him at the railing.
"There's an after party later, do you think you can meet me at the locker room in twenty?" He asks while looking down at me with his great height.
"Yea sure." I cautiously looked down around me as I could feel a thousand surprised stares and murmurs that were probably questioning how I was able to even know this stellar boy.
"Cool." He says as he carelessly leaned further against the railing to land a quick and unexpected kiss on my mouth, causing audible gasps and cheers behind us. "You look really beautiful by the way." We undoubtedly caught glances from not only his team members but the crowds of people behind me as he didn't care.
"T-thanks." I frantically let out with widened eyes.
"I love you." He smirks before throwing his football helm back on, careless to everybody else around us as he ran back to his team that met him with congratulatory nudges and pats on the shoulder.
"I love you too!" I call out as I swallowed down my immense nerves and pumping heart.
I was stunned to see the mansion in the distance, nestled right inside a wide cul-de-sac that was all the way in the end of this suburban neighborhood. I figured the amounts of floors and rooms it contained were unimaginable as interchanging spotlights beamed up into the cold dark night to highlight it. The air was pulsing with music as my eyes got a better view of the countless parked sports cars that contained a lot of people getting ready to enter the space.
It was like a huge diamond encrusted crib for trust fund babies and I couldn't have been anymore out of place.
Castiel glanced down at me as he noticed my hands beginning to shake due to the cold brisk air and my unbridled anxiety. "You okay?"
"Yea." I quickly cleared my voice with a tiny cough. "I've just never been in a party before." Let alone this freaking huge!
"Remember-" He starts out softly the second we reach the entrance of the party. "everyone in there are just bored pretentious fucks that aren't even half as the amazing person that you are, nor can even cook as good as you so breathe and let's just have a good time, alright?"
I let out a quiet chuckle as my frosty cheeks warmed up at him telling me that. "Alright." I chirped.
We waited for the doorbell to be answered as I had a split moment to wrap my head around the fact that I was here, with him, attending a party and getting ready to meet his football friends that have once openly mocked me in the past.
The door rapidly swung open, opening us up to a familiar boy with golden blonde hair, dashing green eyes and a pearly white smile.
I remember seeing him at the fight that happened in the locker room. He was the only one who didn't make fun of me while waiting for Castiel.
"Castiel, what's up!" The boy greeted deeply with a handshake as their heights equaled and towered over me.
"I just saw you like an hour ago." Castiel says with furrowed brows.
The boy chuckled as he drunkenly leaned against the door. "Yea I know but I missed you baby." He loudly teased, chuckling pass Castiel flipping him off. "Hey." The boy smirks the second he lands his eyes on me.
"H-hi." I did a tiny wave as I observed his emerald gaze shimmering at me.
"This is Shiloh." Castiel looks back at me as the boy doesn't avert his attention off of me for one second. "My fiancé."
The boy hardly reacted out of shock or any remnant of disdain as he walked towards me with his smooth alluring voice. "Yea I know him, he was the cutie that Michael was being a dick to at our last game." He stops only a few inches away from me now as I could feel myself audibly choke. "It's a pleasure to formally meet you without all the noise. My name's Alfieri but you can call me Alfie." He cooed right before lifting my hand up to plant a soft warm peck on it.
I anxiously shrugged at Castiel's unimpressed facial expression as I spoke. "N-nice to meet you to Alfie, I-I'm Shiloh." I thankfully felt comfortable enough to smile at him as he genuinely seemed pretty nice and undeniably charming.
"Cool, well I heard it was gonna rain tonight so you guys better go ahead and come on in. It's cold as yeti's balls outside!" His hand raised to excitedly bang against the door. "Castiel is in the motherfucking house!"
"Castiel!"
"My boyyyy!"
"Oh shit."
"We thought you weren't gonna come!"
"Who's that?"
Loud cheers erupted at the sight of Castiel and I walking inside the smoky gloom that reeked of sweat and various colognes and perfumes that coincided with the stench of alcohol and weed.
"Stay close to me." Castiel whispered into my ear as we followed Alfie into the living room. "Hey guys, what's up." He says, taking the time to greet the boys he was friends with and paying no mind to those who he wasn't.
Even though the large spacious room was surrounded by a bunch of familiar boys that all sported the Halyciane football bomber jacket, it was clear that our presence created an inevitable split between people who didn't care about having me and people who wished I could just drop dead before their eyes.
"Shiloh!" Alexis's voice caught my attention as she came from the side of boys that wasn't entirely too happy to see me. "You came!" She rapidly got up in excitement as she left Luka sitting back next to a boy that was staring at me in absolute disdain and that was Michael. His brow was hugged by a bandaid as he also had a dark scar on his lip. I tried to act like he didn't exist but that proved to be difficult because his face was so clearly messed up by Castiel.
"Hey Alexis." I managed to return her smile as her hands skimmed under mine with her usually bubbly eye contact.
"Come, sit with me!" Alexis suggests as Castiel glanced at us while speaking to his friends. "Do you drink?" I return his reassuring nod as I follow her into couch, sitting right in between her and a visibly uncomfortable Luka.
I awkwardly watched Michael curse and leave as I eventually get interrupted by a familiarly deep voice. "I-uh-"
"He only likes sweet drinks." Luka answers for me before gulping down whatever was in his red cup.
"Is that right?" Alexis asks as I respond with a tiny nod. "Cool then I'm gonna be right back, how about you babe, want anything?"
"Just whiskey please." He answers.
I awkwardly looked around my surroundings as I could barely even see Castiel anymore due to him being absolutely mobbed by his friends. It was funny to witness actually, he seemed so overwhelmed with just how many people were so interested in speaking to him but you could tell he was still trying his best to be an extrovert.
We locked eyes, giving me a glimpse of how apologetic he looked as I threw him an understanding nod for being with his friends.
"Thought you weren't a party person?" Luka speaks through the awkward silence.
I side eye him before responding. "Some things change." I say with a cold tone in my voice.
"Oh yea?" He sighs and wipes his hand over his mouth, breathing out his drink as he leaned over to carefully look at my face. "Just like how you all of a sudden wear makeup now?"
"I don't." I furrowed my brows at him as my tone got harsher. "Alexis put it on me for cheer."
"Relax, I didn't say it looked bad." He says calmly after noticing how I was already in such a defense around him. "I think it looks really good."
"T-thanks." I anxiously bit over my lip.
"Who else did you come here with?" Luka asks as he leaned back against the couch with a steady gaze.
"Just Castiel." I answer plainly.
"No Tori?"
I clenched my jaw at him in sudden annoyance. "Tori hates me because of you." He seemed unbothered at that fact as he nonchalantly brought his attention down at his cup and finished it. "You told her I was talking shit about her and had sex at the thanksgiving dinner when I didn't!"
"So then what happened at that bathroom?" He sighs, laying his arm just right above me as his tone grew audibly mischievous, curious and slow as if he was taunting me with the answer. "I heard the moans, Shiloh."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Luka dryly laughed as if he was able to see right through it so easily.
"You don't know what I'm talking about, of course." Luka sarcastically repeated with a sigh, our eyes collectively landing on Castiel in the distance. "You know, I might be an asshole but at least I give credit where credit is due. That fucker's good at everything. He has everything, too." He fully turned his head back to me now, giving me his full undivided attention. "He knows what he wants and the scariest part is, he ends up getting it, every time. I don't know how he does it."
I cautiously looked down in intimidation, crossing my arms as I began to feel uneasy. "Well I wouldn't say that makes you so completely different from each other. I'd say you have everything as well."
"That's not true." He sighs with buried brows.
"It's not?" I ask.
"I don't have everything."
I lightly scoffed at that. "You're the most popular boy at our school. Both of your parents are rich and you have the best girlfriend in the world. What more could you possibly want?"
"You." He blinked as that word alone seemed to be strong enough to redden his glossy gaze.
"What?" All the commotion around us seemed to have faded for me in shock.
"You heard me right."
"But why? I-I don't understand it. Our lives are clearly way too different from each other so why can't you just let me be happy?"
"We're different?" He seemed genuinely shocked at that. "Oh right because you and Castiel are so similar." He clicks his mouth.
"Castiel's different." I defended. "H-he doesn't hurt me."
Luka's face was momentarily highlighted by the purple lights as he looked down before my skin. "Then how'd you get that bruise around your neck?"
"Accident." I blurted out.
"Accident?" Luka threw me an unimpressed facial expression.
"That's what I just said." My voice sharpened like a knife as I couldn't help but begin to grow annoyed with him.
Luka speaks after letting me process his words in silence. "It's killing me to see you with him Shiloh and you know it."
I immediately winced to myself. "What are you talking about? You abused me everyday while my mom was in the hospital. When I didn't let you touch me once, you-" I blinked through my impending tears as everything rushed back into my mind. "You outed me and told everyone that I tried to touch you when I didn't! You've always been so good at turning everyone against me and now that includes Tori. Now that I'm happy with Castiel you're gonna all of a sudden tell me to feel bad for you? You can go fuck yourself." I immediately proceed to stand, only for him to hold me back.
"Hey-hey-look, I know! I know I've been horrible Shiloh and I regret it all! Just please, sit back down." I looked back and observed his pained expression, his desperation in his words as I let him guide me back down the couch. "I'm just coming clean with how I feel because you deserve to know the truth. I've always liked you, I still do. I know you're under the impression that I should be happy because I have everything but it only looks that way because that's the image I've created for myself." My eyes shook at his words. "Now that I see you so happy with him and-and now that we're about to graduate in a couple months I'm just now willing to admit that everything about me except for football has been one huge front to hide the fact that I wish things were different."
I was speechless and he knew it.
"You don't have to say anything." He adds. "I know you and Castiel are probably perfect for each other. You seem so happy when you're around him and that's what you deserve anyways, to be happy."
"I'm s-sorry about what happened that day." I looked down, nervously fidgeting with the strings of my hoodie. "I should have never let it gone that far."
"Don't apologize. That was all my fault." Luka emphasized his realization with a sigh. "I just remember being so mad and I-I couldn't stop talking shit, next thing you know I'm getting choked."
I turned to completely face him now, causing him to raise a brow at me. "I know things got out of hand but Castiel would never mean to hurt anyone. He's just very protective of me and he can't control how it comes out sometimes." I sniffed.
He half laughed at that and nodded. "I guess you're right, we aren't completely different from each other after all." He sighs, looking at me directly to make sure what he was about to say wouldn't escape me. "Just promise me you won't make excuses for him like you did with me."
"What do you mean?"
Luka carefully trails his eyes down to my lips and ends directly at the sight of my neck. "You know what I mean." He eventually looks away with a sigh. "Can I ask you something?"
"What?" I blinked.
"I know I've done a lot of horrible things to you but I just-you know, I can't help but wonder if you at least remember some of the good times like I do."
My lips flinched as I finally looked down, my voice dying down at the flurry of memories clouding into my head. "I do."
"Do you really?"
"Yea." I deeply sigh. "I remember there used to be this ice cream truck that would pass by your house everyday. We'd race just to go outside and you would win every single time."
"So you do remember." He softly answered, his face drunkenly lighting up. "I had to always speak for you because you were too shy to say your order, it pissed me off." Luka chuckled and regrettably enough I did to. "You liked the green powerpuff girl popsicle and-and I'd always make fun of you for it."
"But you still got it for me." I did a tiny shrug as his eyes didn't leave mine. "Every time."
"Every time." Luka nodded as he visibly reminisced about our past.
A tiny moment of silence broke out as we looked at each other deeply, realizing all the years catching up to us and just how much time is able to change and bend our mind and body, malleable to the sources of what has caused us to be the people we are today, staring into each other's eyes as if we were just meeting for the first time.
"I hope Castiel's treating you like how you deserve to be treated." Luka lightly scratched onto his cheek. "If he's not just tell me so I can beat his ass up."
I did a small smile at that. "He does actually; more than what I think I deserve sometimes." I nodded. "We occasionally fight but what couple doesn't, right? At first I was really overwhelmed by the proposal but I think we're headed off to a pretty good direction overall."
"Wait what?"
"What?"
"What proposal?"
"H-he proposed to me yesterday." I let out, watching Luka's face fall into pure confusion and mixed emotions. "We're engaged."
He emptily blinked at me a few times and eventually looks down in complete shock, only to be greeted by a large sterling diamond. "You're joking right? What is that? A promise ring?" He anxiously chuckled.
I shook my head. "N-no, we're engaged, why would I joke about that?"
Luka observed over my face that refused to crack as he audibly inhaled in sudden earth shattering realization. "Shiloh, are you out of your mind?"
"W-wha-" He had already interrupted me.
"You can't be engaged to Castiel."
"Why not?"
His voice began to pick up volume. "Because Castiel's father would never allow it. He's told me once before that his entire life has already been planned out for him, including who he's gonna get married to and besides all that, he's batshit crazy!"
"Wh-what do you-I'm so confused."
"Look Shiloh, all I'm saying is that this is something you should really be thinking all the way through! You're not just getting engaged with a regular fucking person, alright!?" His eyes eventually leaves mine to look down in realization. "Castiel Eros Cazakashi isn't a regular fucking person."
"What are you talking about? You know nothing Luka!"
"No! Shiloh listen-"
"Castiel and I love each other very much and he cares about me and I know that for a fact!" My tone began to sharpen as Luka frantically put his hands on my shoulders.
"Shiloh no, no, you don't understand, I beg of you, you have no idea what you're getting yourself into. I don't want you to get hurt."
The words coming out of his mouth began to dig into my skin like needles as my face turned sour. "Why would I get hurt? Castiel would never hurt me."
Luka's eyes shakily observed my face as if he was pleading for me to listen. "You really don't know do you?"
"Know what?"
Luka continued to go off as the walls closed in on me the second a familiar face in the other end of the hallway began to approach us.
Everything Luka was saying drowned out to my sight as I watched Tori's fists clench, her face contorting into a disgusted look at her brother as she approached us with growing rage. "Hey what the fuck is wrong with you, get off of him!" Tori grabbed onto Luka to rip his hands away from me.
"Tori you need to-" Luka failed to explain himself as Tori's voice rapidly shot through his.
"You promised me you'd leave him alone!" She exclaimed at him.
"You don't understand." Luka shook his head as the entire situation started to get to him, fueling his drunken anger. "I'm not doing anything wrong, ask him!"
"Leave. Him. Alone!" Tori repeated.
"I'm looking out for your friend!" Luka exclaimed as the rough exchange began to garner attention from the people around us.
"Looking out for him? Since when?" Tori glanced at me for a second as she proceeded to get in front of me with a look of repugnance at her brother. "What is your weird fucking obsession with Shiloh, huh?" She continued as Luka's face began to become painted with hurt.
"Tori-" I tried to interrupt but it failed as she silence me with a raised finger, my eyes cautiously watching the attention from other people grow around us.
"Are you just that bored and unhappy with your life that you have to constantly make everything about you?" Tori ruthlessly continued as Luka looked around in shame. "Congrats, you've spent your entire life curating the most perfect image of yourself to appease everyone but you, so tell me? What could you possibly want from Shiloh!? To help you find yourself? To help you find happiness because you hate your fucking life!?"
My jaw dropped as well as the other people around us as Tori's statement visibly ripped Luka apart, his face and body cracking right before us.
"You don't know anything!" Luka's jaws tightly clenched as his gaze looked at the collective stares directed at him.
"Oh but I think I do, little brother." Tori's face wrinkled even more the second Alexia returns to the couch with our drinks.
"W-what's going on?" Alexis asked, her tone slightly strained and painted with worry.
Tori nonchalantly tilted her head at her, proceeding to carelessly speak out. "My brother is a sad mean bully-" She let out as she brought her attention back up towards Luka. "and a raging fucking homo that you should really break up with." Several gasps and shocked responses emitted all around us.
"T-Tori you can't just do that?" My mouth shook and dropped even further at her outing her own brother as his face turned absolutely broken and dismayed.
"What?" Tori crossed her arms with rolled eyes. "Out him? I have to, it's either now or later when he's seven failed marriages in and still in denial over the fact that he loves dick and not vapid bitches like this." She gestured towards Alexis as the garnered attention that surrounded us grew.
"Excuse me?" Alexis scoffed as she immediately cocked her head up at Luka.
Luka didn't even bother responding as a single tear drop escaped from his reddened eyes, his face burning with rippling anger as he stared at Tori and I with such shame and disdain.
"Anything to say at all?" Tori taunted as she relaxed and crossed her arms before him.
It was unexplainable as the shift was so terrifyingly sudden with Luka's facial expression. Within a few moments he seemed to have masterfully bottle up his intense emotions with a deep sigh, his jaws and reddened eyes relaxing as if bottling everything up inside was something he had always done.
Luka in the most literal sense, looked like he didn't give a single fuck about anything anymore as he stood up off the couch to drunkenly rush towards Castiel whom was still conversing with the other boys.
Oh god.
Tori and I watched Luka in cautious curiosity as I knew chaos was about to ensue.
This was about to be an absolute nightmare. "Luka!" I called out as Tori cautiously held me back.
Luka grabbed an unattended beer bottle from a table and chucked it against the wall, causing countless people to abruptly stop their conversations and laughter to stare at Luka.
"Cut the music." Luka began to wave his arms around as I watched the entire room and eventually the entire house become magnetized by his stern voice. "I said cut the fucking music!" He roars, adding fuel to his impending rampage.
Alfie's eyes were widened as he approached Luka with cautious hands. "D-dude you need to calm down, how much have you had to drink?"
"Not enough, cut the music!" Luka yelled out once again as some of the boys did just that, leaving the atmosphere to drop only to his voice.
"Stay here." Tori sharply whispered to me before beginning to walk towards Luka. "Luka, that's enough!"
"No, tonight's a celebration-" Luka flung his hands away from her persistent attempt to grab him down as he eventually pushes her away which caused a collective gasp to emit. "I said tonight's a celebration!"
"Dude, seriously calm down." Alfie continued as he was already interrupted by Luka's booming voice.
"Can I get everyone's attention! Come on I have something to say!" He yelled out, aggressively throwing his jacket and shirt off as the neon lights illuminated and bounced off his chiseled chest.
I became apart of the crowd that was forming around me as I rushed towards Tori. "Are you okay?" I asked as she does a reassuring nod, my eyes looking at the distance to meet a cold pair of glacial ones that belonged to none other than Castiel.
"What's going on?" Castiel mouthed out as I just shrugged absolutely dumbfounded.
"That's right, everyone fucking squeeze in here!" Everyone in the party began to surround the space now, leaving Luka in an empty circle as he looked around with a devilish chuckle, eventually meeting my confused gaze. "Like I said, It's a celebration after all and trust me, you won't wanna miss it!"
Luka's booming voice eventually starts. "Just a few moments ago, I was outed by my sister." He directly pointed at her, causing countless of stares to suddenly pierce onto her skin. "From one raging homo to another, that's a pretty shitty thing to do, right!?" Whispers began to emit around us now as he didn't stop there. "But I guess it had to happen because now that I'm looking at everyone here, I feel a sense of freedom. No more fronts, no more secrets, and no more fucks to give!" He yells.
Commotion began to increasingly worsen now.
"Yo, the fuck is he talking about?"
"Did he just admit to being gay?"
"I knew it!"
"Put the music back on!"
"He's so hot."
"Nobody cares!"
"What's going on?"
"Ah, ah, ah, shhhh!" Luka raised a hand up as the other pressed against his lips to regain control of the crowd once again. "Freedom is powerful, and for me to finally truly feel it is fucking amazing so for everyone confused, this night isn't about me. This night is actually about everybody else that deserves to feel what I feel! For everybody to feel freedom just like I do!"
"You're making a fool of yourself! Stop it!" Tori exclaimed, brushing past me to yell at him.
"Ah first on the docket, my sister Tori!" He raised his hands up, meeting his face up the lights as he continued. "You'd think after being exposed to quite literally every possible drug that exists on the planet, she wouldn't be such a bitter fucking person. But what do you expect from a junkie whore am I right?"
"Fuck you!" Tori screamed, sharply pointing her finger at him as she tried her best to sustain her composure in front of all these people.
"What is it that makes you so bitter Tori? Our mom constantly cheating on dad?" I cautiously looked at Tori's face fall apart in shock. "You getting assaulted by a bunch of college dudes? Or-or I think it's this one, the fact that I'm the favorite child for choosing not to be such a fuck up like you?"
I finally decided to take a stand and end this before anything else escalates. "Luka, what are you doing? Please stop!"
"Ah!" He cheers, quickly approaching me to throw his arm around my neck. "Here's another one, this is Shiloh Hanson everybody! I outed him and told everyone he tried to touch me when in fact it was actually the other way around! I used to treat him like shit because it was a cover up for how much I was madly in love with him! Anything to share to celebrate this night of freedom?" He glanced down at me as my entire body began to tremble before everyone due to all of the emotions and fear I was processing. "Okay then I will, Shiloh over here is a master at catfishing, a talent really! He made an account under the name Desiree to talk to my best friend, confessing how much he has a crush on him! If you don't believe me, I have the screenshots!"
My heartbeat simultaneously slowed and grew rapid as I emptily blinked at the countless laughs and disgusted looks being thrown at me now. "I-I-" My voice cracked under a heavy weight filling up my chest, my legs growing weak and my entire body going numb as he pulled me further into the middle of the highlighted circle.
"Luka what the fuck is wrong with you!" Castiel angrily approached as Luka eventually throws his arm over him as well.
"And speaking of which, this is the best friend everyone!" Luka let out as he had to silence through another wave of commotion and responses from the people around us. "You must be so angry at the fact that I went through your phone to find out you were being catfished, but no more secrets remember?" He cackled like a lunatic as Castiel aggressively pulled away from Luka's arm. "Interestingly enough everyone, my boy Castiel over here didn't mind that Desiree was actually Shiloh, liking each other enough to even fuck at my house for thanksgiving dinner!"
A legion of gasps and shocked reactions filled the crowd now as I just broke apart into a sob, feeling as if my mind was being clawed out over and over again.
"Such soulmates, am I right?" Luka gravelly spoke. "Now everyone put your lighters up, or drink, I don't really give a fuck, because lastly, I'd like to present a toast to these two for also getting engaged, woo!"
The crowd was all but cheerful as two or three claps painfully emitted through the dreary awkward silence that sliced into me the longer it went on.
"Luka, I'm warning you." Castiel's eyes hid beneath his hair now as he was so mad that heat could radiate into a malignant fire around him.
"This filthy bastard over here has not only taken the love of my life away from me! But has also led him into a fucking trap right in front of my face!" He manically laughed and wheezed at openly admitting to that out loud. "As if his family having this entire city beneath their feet isn't enough!"
Castiel's fists clenched as I stood beside them absolutely ruined.
Luka didn't even care as he walked and stopped right in front of Castiel, facing him head to head as their eyes intensely met directly into one another.
"Castiel Eros Cazakashi, son and heir to his father, Kazan Cazakashi, owner to our ports, our schools, our hospitals and the biggest fucking conglomerates this world has ever seen." Luka continued to circle us. "That's right, I know what you are, you're a fucking leech just like your father, sucking up the life out of everyone!"
Castiel immediately thrashed forward with a raised fist as a couple of the football boys rushed to pull them away from each other.
"Luka please just stop!" I screamed as I got in front of Castiel.
"Tell me Castiel, why is it that you have only known Shiloh at such a short amount of time, but already feel so ready to be engaged with him? Is it because of love, or is it because you're aware that you are about to be a tool for future mergers and acquisitions?"
Castiel's breath heightened as my mouth dropped at them both, wiping my eyes as I couldn't understand what was going on. "W-what does that mean?"
Luka looked over to me. "It means that you're nothing but a pawn to him, Shiloh! Kids like him have their whole lives planned out, including who their gonna get married to! He only proposed to you because not only does he want to go against his father but also because he doesn't wanna be married into some corporate bastard's daughter for money and reputation!"
My chest abruptly hollowed as every beat of my heart was audible through it now. It felt as if a newly made course in my body formed to freeze up all the blood and nerves that held me together, eventually cracking it apart a sunder, along with all my hopes and thoughts I thought were true but weren't.
"No, Shiloh!" I couldn't even look at Castiel anymore as he broke away from the boys to rush towards me. "Look at me, don't listen to him!" He held onto me as I felt my consciousness escape my body completely.
"Is it true?" He asked as I no longer cared about the people watching us anymore. "What he's saying is true isn't it?"
"Shiloh." Castiel clenched his jaw at me as he has never looked at me this frantic before.
"T-that's why-" I slowly turned around in disbelief as I felt my entire body gradually begin to shut down. "T-that's why you were so nice to me all this time, you proposed to me, y-you used me."
"Shiloh no!" Castiel began to shake his head as I didn't even know what was true anymore.
"You knew how much I liked you the second you found out I was Desiree so you took advantage of it! You saw me as an easy target!"
"No stop! I proposed to you because I was ready!" He began to cry before me now as I broke away from his grasp. "I proposed to you because I know in my fucking heart and soul I could spend the rest of my life with you!"
"Come on Shiloh, you're smarter than this." Luka began to chime in behind me. "He lured you with gifts and words, and with things you could never get from anyone else. To add onto that he's also a murderer!" Luka carelessly nodded pass all the petrified faces and shocked expressions. "Oh yes, that's right. A cold blooded killer."
"Shut up!" Castiel roared off to the side before tightly grabbing onto my hands and planting it onto his cherry tinted lips.
"Committed a murder when he was only twelve, while he was institutionalized in conversion therapy." I aimlessly blinked as if time had stopped to freeze up my entire body and mind. "The fucker's family is so rich they were able to cover it up like nothing even fucking happened."
This wasn't happening.
This is just a nightmare.
"Shiloh, please! Don't believe him!" Castiel begged. "He's just trying to get into your head!"
Out of nowhere a sudden lightning bolt struck throughout my body, causing me to absolutely lose it into a loud pained yell. "And who should I believe!? You?" Tori rushed to my side as I felt like dying. "I trusted you Castiel!"
Luka faintly chuckles behind me. "How ironic is it that the one that was catfished, turned out to be the biggest catfish of them all."
My mind and soul couldn't even fully process everything that I was told anymore as it was already too late.
"Fuck you!" Castiel yelled as he immediately ran pass me and swung his fist against Luka's mouth, causing the entire house to fall into chaos and plunder all of us into cataclysm.
My heart fell as I watched Castiel tackle Luka down to the floor, displacing the boys around them as he slammed and pounded onto his face like meat being continuously swung against a wall.
The football team failed to hold Castiel back as Luka got up and kicked Castiel away, meeting him up with a punch of his own as they turned Alfie's living room into an explosive cataclysmic brawl.
Crowds of people either stayed to be entertained or left out of genuine fear.
Time slowed as my surroundings coincided with how I felt inside.
It was a lie.
Everything was a lie.
I felt sick, I felt like vomiting and crying my heart out and dying all at the same time.
For once, I thought I was actually being heard, seen, and loved for who I was.
What a sick fucking joke..
I watched as both of their faces began to draw blood after a couple more exchanges made to each other. Castiel's right brow was etched and scarred as Luka's lip and nose was beyond rocked. "I don't understand why you're so angry." Luka tiredly sighed as he slumped his chest over. "This was supposed to be a celebration of freedom righ-"
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut the fuck up!" Castiel exclaimed as he grabbed a beer bottle from a person filming the fight, proceeding to smash it onto a surface, turning it into a sharp weapon. "You think you know everything!?" He yelled as he brought Luka all the way up to a wall, garnering louder gasps and terrified yells from people as he brought the edge so close to his neck. "You don't!"
I couldn't even stay any longer as I ran pass the countless people talking, filming and laughing about us, rushing outside to drown out the sounds of commotion and enveloping myself to the sounds of thunder and rain.
I hit my head multiple times as I felt myself go into a mental collapse. It was getting harder to breath and harder to maintain and control my pounding heart, the pitch black concrete puttering alongside the rain enveloped my body with water and toil as I couldn't help but take a moment to meet my head up to the sky.
Just like how everything I am as a person seems to always get drowned out by everything else in the world, my loud frantic screams and sobs out of pure heartbreak, sadness, and hatred blended into the bleak pouring sky.
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