Angela was running late to the hotel where Lino's wedding was being held. She cursed under her breath as she saw Rosa's name splash across her phone's screen; she'd been calling nonstop for the past hour. She ignored the call as she pulled into the hotel's parking lot. Juice had kept her up on the phone the night before. She didn't mind, though. She could hear a party going strong in the background of his call and was happy he'd found a quiet corner to talk to her instead of joining in on the craziness. As soon as she parked, she spotted Rosa running towards her. Rosa threw open the door wearing way too much make up as she stuck her head inside the car. "Eight A-M, Angela Ruiz! You were supposed to be here at eight A-M!" Rosa shouted, her voice way too loud in the small space of the car. "Not eight-thirty, eight."
"I'm not that late," Angela argued, rolling her eyes at her best friend. "And what the fuck happened to your face?"
"Fuckin' make up artist is insane! You should see Soli! Also you left me alone with Soledad, and if I stay with her any longer, I'm gonna murder her," she stated, tapping her foot as she watched Angela grab her bag. "Also, also look at this fucking ugly tracksuit we gotta wear!"
Angela took in forest green, velour tracksuit, with a raised eyebrow. Rosa's name was embroidered on the front in gold, but it wasn't spelled quite right. "Rolo?" she asked, around a laugh.
"Don't laugh too hard, Angelo," Rosa said, tossing her the tracksuit she was meant to wear. "Soledad's gift as maid of honor. Fuckin' bitch spelled our names wrong on purpose."
Angela grimaced, she'd managed to avoid her high school nemesis at all wedding events mostly because she didn't go to the events. She couldn't go to the shower at the Mayan clubhouse nor could she go to the Bachelorette party that was at one of clubs in Oakland the Mayans owned. The few events she could go to, Soledad couldn't because she was busy at her fancy ass assistant job. "Lovely. Glad to know we're still in fuckin' high school. We should be on Lino's side anyway. They're all still asleep I'm sure."
"Yeah, but unfortunately, we weren't born with dicks so we gotta put on the fancy dress and look pretty. Plus, we're here for Vanessa, who desperately needs us, so buck up buttercup and let's go, Angelo," Rosa insisted, pulling on her hand and dragging her towards the hotel.
Angela smirked when she realized that embossed on Rosa's butt in big gold letters was the word, 'Juicy'. Oh Juice was gonna love those. She was excited about the tracksuit now. "How's Soli anyway?"
"Soli's uh...she's here with Esai," Rosa said on a grimace. "Which she's been bragging about all morning."
She was surprised by her own reaction to that information. There was no hurt or anger; she was just indifferent. She didn't give a shit what either of them did. In fact, she felt a little sorry for the other girl. "Don't know if I feel worse for him or her."
Rosa raised an eyebrow as they got in the elevator. Her dark eyes studying her face for a moment. "Shit, you're in deep wit Juicy fruit, huh? Saying Soli and Esai's name in the same sentence used to piss you the fuck off. You really don't give a shit."
"Nah. Not even a little," Angela said on a laugh. She didn't even want to see Esai, and she definitely didn't care that he was there with the girl that had made her life hell in high school. "They deserve each other."
She laughed too, nodding her head in agreement. "Amen to that. You think you can fix my makeup 'fore the ceremony? They made me look like a fuckin' bruja." (Witch)
"Yeah, I got you," Angela said, looping her arm through Rosa's as the headed inside the room together. There was one girl in the living room area of the large suite that Angela recognized from Vanessa's beauty school who working on Jimena, a girl from they'd all gone to high school with. Angela nodded her greeting to both of them. She hung up her dress in the closet with the rest of the dresses. "Where's Ness?"
Rosa nodded to the double doors. "Getting her hair done. They're doing all those gettin' ready shots, and oh my God!" she gasped, grabbing Angela's wrist and all but shoving her into the nearest bathroom.
"What?" Angela asked, her heart rate kicking up a notch. "What happened?"
"You have a fucking hickey on your neck! You came to the wedding with a fucking hickey on your neck! Are you insane?" Rosa exclaimed, stabbing a finger into the mark.
Angela smacked her hand away, grimacing as she stared at it. Thankfully, it wasn't as dark as it had originally been, but it was noticeable. She cursed under her breath. "Fuckin' Juice. Grab me my bag. I can fix this, and I'll fix your shit too. C'mon, 'fore Ness sees."
She hid the hickey with practiced ease, used to having to hide bruises and abrasions at the funeral home. Once that was done, she got changed into the tracksuit while Rosa washed off the insane clown makeup she had on. "You got another mark on your thigh, hooker," Rosa stated, sitting down on the closed toilet and waiting for Angela to start her makeup. "Do you feed the man?"
"Don't be jealous," Angela shot back at her, applying primer to her face. After years of doing Rosa's make up, she always carried her color of foundation and concealer in her big makeup bag just in case. "And he eats just fine. Trust me."
Rosa gave her a naughty grin, chuckling roughly. "Good. Get that good head," she said on a nod. "I bet he's big, huh? Big ole magic dick."
Angela laughed loudly in response, her cheeks growing hot. "Jesus Christ, Rosa," she murmured, shaking her head. It was like they were back in high school, and she was purposefully being salacious just because she knew Angela would blush. "Close your eyes so I can do your eyeshadow and don't worry about my man's dick."
"Just as long as you're satisfied," she replied with a little shrug.
"Very."
"Good," she said, closing her eyes. "Feels like when we were kids, huh? Doin' makeup in the bathroom."
Angela smiled, it definitely did. She couldn't count how many times she and Rosa had done each other's makeup in her bathroom before parties. Lino was usually sitting in the living room, calling after them, begging them to hurry up. "Can't believe Lee's getting married."
"Weird, right? Always thought it'd be you and E. 'm so glad I was wrong. That woulda been a shit show."
"Yeah," she agreed before spraying setting spray in your face. She'd fantasized about marrying Esai when she was younger. Of a big wedding, not unlike this one, but it always ended with sadness. She'd known Happy wouldn't be there. That there was no way a Son could walk her down the aisle. She'd reasoned she'd have Marcus do it instead, but it always felt wrong to her. Now, she realized it was just never meant to be. "Thank God it didn't work out. You're makeup's done by the way."
Rosa smiled, getting up from the toilet and sliding her arms around her best friend's torso as they both looked in the mirror. Angela hugged her back tightly. Rosa was shorter than Angela, but the way her head barely cleared her shoulder was familiar and comforting. Their reflection was a familiar one, though they both looked a little older than they used to but in a good way. The years had treated them kindly. "You know you're next right? 'cause I ain't ever gettin' married. Lookin' forward to spoilin' you and Lino's kiddos."
"We shall see." Angela laughed, squeezing Rosa gently. She loved the idea of raising her kids with Lino's and with Rosa playing babysitter. Still, if Lino ever took on the Mayan cut again, and with Rosa's ties to the club through her dad and brother, it would incredibly hard to spend a lot of time with either of them. She didn't want to think of it, though. She wanted to enjoy this moment with her best friends while she could.
~'~'~'~
Esai couldn't take his eyes off of Angela as she walked down the aisle with one of the other groomsmen. She hadn't looked at him then, not even when she was standing at the front of the venue looking over the crowd. She'd looked stunning in her dark green dress with her hair beautifully curled, half up and half down, hanging down her shoulders. It reminded him of the first night they'd slept together. It was at that very same hotel after Soli's big birthday party, and she'd been wearing an ugly lime green dress Soli had forced upon all of her entourage. He'd helped her take her hair down, helped her out of her dress, and he'd taken her virginity on the hotel bed just a few floors above where the reception was. She had been sixteen then, and she'd only gotten better with age. He'd ruined that, though. Had destroyed their relationship by cheating on her again. He was determined to win her back. His father had told him he was not allowed to talk to her, but he honestly didn't give a shit. Tonight, they were finally at the same place at the same time, so she was fair game.
They were at the reception now. Mayans and family had the place packed. Soledad leaned her head against his shoulder, and he fought the urge to brush it away. He'd asked her to be his date to the wedding to make Angela jealous, but it didn't seem to be working. While Angela hadn't stopped to look at him once, Soli had done everything in her power to catch his attention. He hated it. "So romantic," Soli said with a sigh as they watched Lino and Nessa dance their first dance. She went to hold his hand, but he moved it away; they weren't a couple, and he didn't want to give her any ideas.
The dance ended, and the floor was flooded with people going to dance to the faster music. Esai spotted Angela slipping out, phone in hand, and quickly got up to follow her. He was vaguely aware of Soli protesting, but he brushed her off to follow Angela. He found her l standing outside the hotel on the patio, her phone pressed to her ear, and he leaned against the open door, staring at her back left bare by the halter-top style dress. It reminded him of the top she wore the time they got back together in Oakland. The night he won her back for just the briefest moment in time. Now, he could hear her laughing at something the other person on the phone said, heard her warm voice reply, "Be safe, baby. I love you."
It was almost as if a dagger pierced his heart. I
love you. He could only guess she was talking to that mohawked idiot. The thought churned his stomach. They hadn't been together long, and she was already telling him she loved him? That was ridiculous. She didn't love that idiot. She couldn't. She was his. Had been since she was sixteen. She would always be his. For life.
As if feeling his gaze, she turned and froze when she saw him standing there, her whole body tensing. "Chiqui..." he started, taking a step closer to her.
Angela held up her hands in front of her immediately. "No."
He hated the fear he saw in her eyes. Did she think he was going to hurt her? "Just hear me out..."
"No," she repeated, backing away with every step he took towards her until she reached the gate of the patio and couldn't go any farther back.
"Please."
"I don't want to hear anything from you. I don't even want to look at you," she spat, standing straighter now, shoulders squaring. The fear was gone, anger replacing it. "Leave me the fuck alone."
Esai hated how strong she was now. How she stood just a little taller, exuded this strange confidence he'd never seen before. She'd always been his sweet girl. Tough when it came to others but not to him. Never to him. To him she was soft, innocent, and amenable. Where'd this girl come from? He grabbed her arm as she started to walk by him. "I want to talk."
She wrenched her arm away. "I don't."
He grabbed her again, pulling her in closer despite the way she fought against him. "You gotta hear me out, chiqui. After so many years, I deserve that."
"You killed my boyfriend. Tried to kill Juice," she seethed, getting in his face. She pushed him away forcefully. "You deserve nothing. It's over, Esai. For life. Get over it."
He hated the way hearing about her dead boyfriend made him feel physically ill. It was a kill he absolutely did not want to take responsibility for. He'd expressly told his cousin not to hurt that stupid guy. He just wanted to scare him away. Make him leave Angela so she'd come back home to him. "I didn't mean to kill him, Angelita," he said softly, taking a step away from her and raking his hand through his hair. "I swear I didn't. 'm sorry my primo took it too far."
"I don't care! It happened anyway! And then you...you took advantage of me...of my grief! And I fell for it! I can't believe I fell for it! I gave you another chance! And I wanted it to work..."
"Bullshit! You wanted to be with that fuckin' Son since day one!"
"I was with you! I didn't do shit with Juice until we were completely done! I don't cheat! Not like you, you fucking asshole!" she shouted, pushing at his chest again. Her pushes hurt too. "You treated me like shit! Disrespected me! I can't be with someone like that! I deserve better!"
Esai felt the words like a slap to the face, and he'd been on the receiving end of her slaps. Honestly, he'd rather she hit him than see the pain in her eyes. He hadn't realized how much he'd hurt her. How he'd let her down. "Shit, chiqui. I'm so sorry. I just wanted to love you."
"Fuck you and your sorry, Esai! That's not love! You don't know what love is! You have this image in your head, and you think that its me that you want but its not because if you did, cheating on me would never have even crossed your mind!" she shouted, gesturing wildly with her hands to punctuate her words. "You like the idea of me, but I'm not the one, E. I'm not. I know because I am with the right person now, and the way he makes me feel is so different than what we had. It's better, and I'm sure you're going to meet someone who will make you feel different. Better. But it isn't me. It's never gonna be me. So let. Me. Go. Before anyone else gets hurt, please."
Esai didn't know where the lump in his throat came from. Why the idea of letting her go was so fucking hard. She was in love with someone else. Had rejected him time and time again, but for some reason that only made him want her more. But why? Was it because she was so hard to get? Because every other girl made it easy for him, but she didn't. She never had. "You love him?"
"Yes," she said on a breath, looking at him like he was stupid.
"More than me?"
She nodded slowly. "Yeah, E."
He could see in her eyes that she wasn't even sorry about it. She didn't love him anymore, and it hurt like hell. Had she ever loved him? Was he even capable of receiving love? "Did you...did you ever love me?"
Angela's eyes narrowed, her head tilting to the side as if she was considering her answer very carefully. "You know I did. You were my whole world in high school," she said, the saddest smile on her face. "But we're not teenagers anymore. We need different things."
Esai's vision blurred for a minute with tears, and he looked away from her hoping she didn't notice. He didn't know why it hurt so much. They'd been broken up for awhile now, but it hurt to hear her say it so honestly. He rubbed a hand over his face, letting out a long breath. "It's like that, huh? Replaced me with another biker man?"
She rolled eyes at him, but he could see a little sadness in her eyes as well. This was the end of an era for the both of them. "I love him, E, and if you fuck that up, I swear to God, I'll kill you myself."
He could tell by the dark look in her eyes that she wasn't kidding. If he hurt that stupid Son, she'd come after him and not in a good way. There'd be no weak and grieving girl to slide in on. She'd kill him before he got the chance to make a move. He didn't take that threat lightly. "Fair enough," he breathed, before sniffling. "If he fucks up, though..."
She shook her head slowly. She seemed to be insanely confident that it wouldn't happen. That the Son would take care of her. "Find another girl, E. A better one."
"Doesn't exist," he said on a laugh.
Angela snorted, rolling her eyes again at him. "She does. You're in love with teenager me, which is wrong on so many levels. Find yourself a grown ass woman, please. Love her."
"Like Soli?"
To his surprise, there wasn't a hint of jealousy on her face like he expected there to be. Soli had been a sore spot between them through their whole relationship, but she didn't even flinch. She just shrugged. "Sure, if she makes you happy."
"You hate her."
She laughed, shrugging again. "I don't have to like her, you do. If she makes you happy, then go for it."
He stared down at his feet, knowing their conversation was almost done and not wanting it to end. "I um...fixed my bike. Was fuckin' hard to do and cost me a shit ton of money, but it's fixed."
The smallest, proud smirk turned up the corner of her pretty lips. "Good."
"Good that its fixed or that it was hard and expensive to do?"
"The second one."
He chuckled at her gall; he was used to the sassy Angela. She was fun. Her wit was what had originally drawn him in to her. He wished he could wrap his arms around her, hold her one last time, but it didn't seem like she'd even allow him near her again. "I ask you for a hug, would I get one?"
Her fingers messed her rings, a nervous habit he recognized and knew well. Except it wasn't her usual ring she was messing with. It was a large Reaper ring. A clear symbol of who she belonged to. That idiot might as well have tattooed it on her forehead. "No, Esai," she answered softly. The way she said his name sending shivers down his spine. She set her hand on his arm gently as she walked by. "Have a good night. Have fun. Drink up. Fuck Soli. Just enjoy the night."
"Don't want to fuck Soli," he muttered, watching her walk away from him and disappear into the party. He didn't want to touch Soli. He wanted Angela, and he was never going to have her again. He sat down heavily into one of the patio chairs and let his head fall into his hands. It finally sunk in that it was all over between them. He'd lost her for good. No amount of scheming or hurting people was going to get her back. He had to let her go and move on. They were done. For life. And it hurt like a bitch.
~'~'~'~
Angela didn't look over her shoulder as she walked away from Esai and back into the hotel. She sucked in a deep breath as she got inside and let it out slowly, laughing to herself about what had just happened. She'd done everything in her power to avoid Esai. Had managed not to even look at him, though she'd heard Soledad squealing and laughing, shouting his name in some sick attempt to make her jealous. It hadn't worked, though; she'd only noticed because Rosa had pointed it out. Honestly, she was glad she was able to talk to Esai in a somewhat civil manner. She got the feeling it'd finally gotten through his thick skull that they were over. That they were never getting back together. It was like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. There was a finality to their conversation that eased her worries. The urge to call Juice again was strong, but she held off. She'd call him later when she was back in the hotel room she was sharing with Rosa. At the moment, she wanted to go back into the ballroom and find her best friends.
She didn't have to go far, Lino was standing right outside of it. She smirked at him, setting her hands on her hips. "Sir, I believe this is your wedding," she stated with a scowl. "What are you doing here?"
"Making sure a murder isn't committed on my wedding night," he replied on a shrug. "Saw Esai follow you out."
Angela smirked. "Nah, he's still alive. Promise," she assured him as he dropped his arm across her shoulders. She moved her arm around his waist, squeezing his die. "How are you, Mr. Married Man?"
"Fuckin' amazing," he answered, the biggest grin on his face. She couldn't help but smile back at him, genuinely happy for her best friend. "Just glad you could be here."
"Are you kiddin' me? I'd never miss this!" she exclaimed, squeezing his side again.
He grinned back at her, kissing her temple. "Been through a lot, me 'n' you."
She held her breath for a moment as they locked eyes. They certainly had. Since they were three, they'd leaned on each other for every major moment. Celebrations, deaths, and everything in between. For some reason she felt tears in her eyes as she nodded. "Yeah," she breathed, smiling at him. "Thanks for always bein' there."
"Could say the same thing to you," he told her. They were quiet for a long time before he cleared his throat. "Kinda...heard what you said to dickhead out there. Proud a you. Some ballsy shit."
"He asked for a hug...what kind of a weird request is that?" she asked around a laugh. She didn't really care that Lino eavesdropped. It made things a hell of a lot easier to talk about without having to give him a play by play.
He chuckled, shaking his head. "Fuckin' ridiculous," he muttered before sighing. "I do like your new man, though. He's a good guy 'n' he fuckin' loves you. Way more than E ever did. Knew it from the second that fool called me outta nowhere and paid for my trip to New York to help ya."
"Still can't believe he did that," she stated, feeling her heart squeeze in her chest at the memory of Lino and Vanessa coming to her rescue in New York. She couldn't wrap her mind around Juice doing something like that for her just because he knew she needed help.
"I can," Lino replied on a nod. At her questioning look, he elaborated. "You're my sister, and I love you, and I know your worth. I love that he sees it too. You just don't because you been stuck with that shitty asshole and then the other dude who was nice but selfish. Juice loves you the right way, and I trust him to take care a ya when the going gets tough. He's already proved that."
A lump rose in Angela's throat. She'd never say it out loud, but Lino's approval meant a lot to her. His opinion was right up there with Happy's, Kozik's, and Rosa's. "For what it's worth, I feel the same way about Nessa. She's good for you. Takes good care a you and calls you on your shit. Love her."
"I know. 's why I picked her," Lino said on a shrug. "Glad you guys could get over all the high school bullshit and be friends."
Angela laughed, nodding her head in a bob. "Me too. Still sucks that she's close with Soli, but as long as I don't gotta see her again, I'm good."
"No promises," he replied as they started towards the ballroom together when "Lean on Me" by Bill Withers came on. He grinned widely, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the dance floor. "C'mon, it's our song!"
Angela laughed, allowing him to pull her to him to dance. They'd danced to this song together for every middle school and high school dance. Going from the awkward pre-teens holding each other at arm's length as they danced, to a more comfortable, respectful distance like family would. At least for the first few lines until Rosa joined in, throwing her arms around both of them. Again, this wasn't unusual for the song to end with the three of them swaying together, screaming the lyrics out of tune just to crack each other up. This night was no different.
For the briefest moment of time, it was like the adult world didn't exist. There was no club bullshit. It was just the three of them, jumping around and dancing like crazy. Angela just wished Juice could've been there too. She would've loved to see him dancing with them. He would've had so much fun. Next time, he'd be there, she decided. Next time, she'd figure out a way to put the two sides of her world together without putting everyone in danger.
~'~'~'~
I love showing Angela with her friends more in this fic, so I hope you guys don't mind reading it! :) The gang's a lot of fun to write! Just gotta figure out a way to get Juicy in there too.
Let me know what you think!!
~Love Ink