✿ Aileen's POV
I toss back a glass of wine and pour myself some more just as a figure slips beside me.
“Wow, and I thought you said you weren't a wine girl.”
“I'm not in the mood for whatever this is Anika. Go away.”
I swallow everything in my glass. She chuckles.
“Way to show that wine who's boss.”
I sigh and turn to her with a bored expression.
“Go away.”
“Aww, trouble in paradise after that Oscar-winning performance?”
I roll my eyes and pick up the bottle of wine and my glass.
“Fine, I'll leave.”
I turn away from her only to hear her footsteps come after me.
“Hey, I'm not done talking to you.”
“Well, I am” I call out, glancing behind me a bit.
In that moment someone bumps into me, spilling the rest of the wine in my glass on my dress.
“No!” I exclaim, dropping the wine bottle in my hand.
“Oopsie.”
My eyes fall on the strawberry blonde-haired girl and I know it's not an accident.
“Are you drunk? Because it's clear from yesterday's lunch that it runs in your wretched family” she smiles.
My befitting reply is interrupted by Asha rushing up to me.
“Lee, what happened?”
“She spilled her wine all over herself” Maeve quickly replies.
“Poor thing can't even handle a wine glass right” Anika adds with a dramatic sigh.
My jaw ticks.
“It's okay. Lee, come with me. I'll help you fetch it out.”
“Yeah okay, Reid got me this dress and I don't want it to get ruined” I say.
“Oh, I'm sure he'll understand and forgive you for being a clutz” Anika smiles. “He seems to never have a problem with you.”
You little—
“I think you better hurry or else it'll become a permanent stain” Maeve cuts my internal outburst short.
“C'mon,” Asha says, leading me away from them. “We'll get it out in no time okay?”
I nod, dapping the stain on my dress with a napkin in the meantime. I'm about to take the turn to exit the garden when Sophie's sob reaches my ears. I stop abruptly and turn around.
“Fifi?” I call out.
“Excuse me?” Asha asks, turning to me.
I step back into the garden.
“Lee, what's wrong?”
“I thought I heard my best friend's—”
It comes again and I find myself moving in the direction of the loud sobs.
“Sophie?” I call out.
Asha starts to come after me but stops.
“Sophie? Are you around here?” I call again. “I can hear you.”
All hear are sniffs.
“Sophie—”
I stop short when I spot her seated on the grass in a secluded part of the garden, wet tissues scattered around her and her eyes red and puffy.
“Fifi” I let out softly.
She looks at me and forces a smile that turns out to look broken.
“Fifi, what's the matter?” I move closer, kneeling in front of her.
She shakes her head.
“Nothing. I accidentally sniffed some gardenia around here and my allergies are acting up.”
“Try again Soph. And with the truth this time” I bust out her lie.
Her brows furrow and she dabs at her eyes.
“They didn't mean what they said—”
“Who said what and why?” I cut her off, praying it wasn't an attack on me gone wrong.
“Some of Reid's friends. One girl in particular... showing off a lot of cleavage...”
Pamela.
“What did she say?”
Sophie shakes her head.
“Nothing. Don't worry.”
“Sophie Elizabeth Mason, you are crying in a corner of the same garden where the party you've been most excited about is happening” I state, “Don't make me use force to get it out of you.”
She sniffs.
“She commented on my... skin.”
My stomach churns in anger.
“What about your skin, Fifi?”
She shrugged.
“Nothing but the obvious. She stated facts. I'm Albino Lee. She just pointed that out. I don't even know why I'm being emotional over this shit” she rolls her red-rimmed eyes.
Her entire face was red.
“That's all she said?”
Sophie lets out a shaky breath and meets my eyes, hers pooling with tears again.
“She might have said something inappropriate about my size. And I know she only meant it as a joke but it reminded me of all the mean things the kids at school used to say about my body and... you know how hard that was for me and...”
I push up on my knees and press her face into my chest, doing my best to get my arms to wrap all around her.
“It's okay, Fifi. It's okay” I whisper.
Oh, it's not okay.
She sniffs. It takes a while of hugs and whispers to get her to calm down.
“Where's Bonita?” I ask when I'm sure the crying is over.
Sophie sniffs.
“I'm not sure.”
I sigh and nod.
“Okay. Let's go get you some—”
“Oh Lee your dress!” she exclaims. “What happened?”
“Even on this important occasion, I'm a clutz” I play it off.
She chuckles and I stand up, my legs aching from the uncomfortable sitting position I've been in for over an hour. I hold my hand to my best friend.
“Let's go get you some water hm?”
She nods and takes my hands, her clutch pressing into my hand as she grips on tightly to stand. The moment she's up on her feet, something falls out of her clutch.
“Here I got—” I freeze when I pick up the bottle. “Fifi, what is this?”
She sucks in a loud breath.
“I asked a question, Sophie. Where did you get this?” I repeat, trying not to get upset.
“Pamela gave it to me before she and her friends left.”
I snap and let out a nasty laugh.
She's going to be very sorry she came here tonight.
“Lee? Lee no” Sophie grabs me before I can get very far away and God she's freakishly strong.
“Fifi let me go” I frown.
“Not until you promise me you'll let this go.”
I groan.
“Let this go? Sophie, she gave you a box of freaking hair dye! How on earth is that sitting well with you?!” I exclaim.
“It's not but those people aren't worth our time.”
“That's why you snuck away to spend your time crying?”
Her grip loosens on me and I pull away from her.
“Please, Lee? Don't confront her, it's okay” she whispers, her eyes tearing up again.
I groan at the fact that I won't be able to do anything now.
“Alright fine. I won't confront that bitch” I mutter, the knowledge of her kissing Reid like I'd done not long ago annoying me even more.
What did he even see in her?
I shake my head and take Sophie's hand.
“Let's go get you some water and find Bon,” I say, already walking.
It doesn't take long to spot Bonnie, coming in our direction, but with her attention on dabbing something off her chest and out of her hair.
“Bon?” Sophie calls out, getting her attention.
“Oh hey, girls. Where have you... Fifi have you been crying?” she narrows her eyes.
“Allergies.”
Bonita's eyes move to me for confirmation of the story Sophie was trying to sell but they drop back to the stain on my dress.
“What happened to you?”
“Wine, clutz. What happened to you?” I ask.
She rolls her eyes.
“That little brat was talking loudly on her phone and bumped into a waiter carrying marinara sauce and guess who got dosed in it... me.”
I bet you all my money right now that it was no accident.
I frown.
“That's a very expensive dress, Bon. You spent a fortune on it” Sophie sighs, sniffing lightly.
Ten whole grand.
Bonita shakes her head.
“Yes, but it's no problem. I'll get the stain out and I'm sure it'll be as good as new.”
Those people won't be as good as new by the time I'm finished with them.
“If you're thinking about going to confront them in their territory when your future mother-in-law already wants nothing to do with you, then I suggest you abort that mission right now, Missy” Bonita shakes her head.
“Bon, they ruined your dress—”
“Temporary setback before I still look fabulous” she grins.
“Bonnie” I sigh.
“All need is hydrogen peroxide from Hank's toolbox and I'm good to go. Yours too. Either that or baking soda” she smiles. “Then we're good to go. Don't let those valueless plastics get to you Lee, okay? You're too important to me for me to let you lower yourself to their level so ignore them.”
I make a face.
“Yes, it's me asking you to forget them this time. Next time, they're all yours.”
Her smile makes me chuckle.
“Okay fine. Now let's see if I can find you some H₂O₂ before I change my—”
And then I hear it. The cry. Bonnie tenses up immediately, meaning she hears it too.
“Is that...?” Sophie mutters.
Camari runs up to us, going straight to burying her tear-stained face in her mother's leg.
“Cami, what's wrong?” Bonita lowers herself, trying to get her to talk.
Sophie kneels and joins in trying to calm her down enough to get her to talk. I look in the direction Camari is coming from and frown at the high school buddies gathered around.
Oh, I swear I'm going to kill them if they hurt her in any way.
I turn and lower myself to caress Camari's hair.
“Cami? You know you can talk to us right?” Sophie says calmly.
“Yes, baby. You know you can tell us anything right?” Bonnie adds, “So tell us what upset you.”
Who, Bonnie, who.
Camari sobs.
“The girl in the black dress said Daddy is going to die soon because he's older than Mom and that Mom would disappear and Lee was going to sleep and never wake up and then I would be left all alone because no one would want me and... and then her friends looked at me funny and laughed” Camari's nose runs and she sniffs, “I don't want anyone to die mommy. And I... I don't wanna be alone.”
The broken cry that Camari lets out at the end is all it takes for me to see red. I don't think Bonita or Sophie realize I'm gone as they're trying to calm down a six-and-a-half-year-old exposed to emotional bullying but full-grown, supposedly high-class adults.
Reid is joining them just as I arrive at the table. And the only person wearing black at the table is none other than Anika. Reid's eyebrows furrow... not sure if it's at the large stain on my dress or the murder look in my eyes.
“Lee what happened to your—”
I dive straight for Anika who doesn't see me coming until I slap her drink out of her hand. Gasps and shrieks erupt and Anika frowns.
“How dare—”
“Oh, I dare, Nikki!” I snap, causing the rest of her words to remain in her throat. “How dare you say such horrible things to an innocent child?!”
“What are you—” she pauses and scoffs.
“Oh, it's funny?”
She picks up a napkin and dabs at the corner of her mouth.
“This is why you're creating a scene?” she asked. “Because a child is upset?”
Oh God help me.
“Lee, kids get upset for a lot of reasons” she smiles, “The socks they’ve been wearing all day are suddenly the wrong color. You served them their favorite dinner. They saw a leaf that looked like a spider. Meaningless things. You don't have to create a—”
“Oh, I sure as hell am going to create a scene, Anika!” I exclaim. “You just traumatized a six-year-old and you're going to give me a fucked up lecture on not creating a scene? Are you out of your mind?!”
“Lee, what are you—”
“Zip it, Parsons!” I snap at Matthew who knows better than to attempt to calm me down again.
I turn back to Anika.
“If you have a problem with me, you come to me and deal with me. Not hide behind your excuse of pathetic siblings to harass my family!”
“Hey, who do you think you are to call us that huh?!” Amy questions. “Have some respect!”
“This is what you're marrying, Reid?” Pamela scoffs. “You're the real pathetic one, sweetheart” she smirks at me.
“You, shut up” I seethe.
She laughs.
“Cute” she mocks. “Try harder.”
My anger flares and I'm hurling a vase from a nearby table at her.
“Aileen!” someone cries.
Pamela screams and barely dodges the vase as it smashes right beside her on the ground. And in her attempt to get away from me, she crashes into a table in front of her and goes tumbling down with everything on top of her.
“Pam!” Amy shrieks.
“Someone, call the police!” someone shrieks in horror.
Anika turns to me, horrified.
“You psychop—”
“Finish that statement and I will pull out every one of your cosmetic surgeries, Nikki. I dare you” I challenge.
She stumbles back in shock into her fiancé who frowns at me.
“Mate, I'm going to ask you to control your lady or else—”
I'm about to launch at Ethan when someone wraps their arm strong arms around me and drags me away.
“Let go of me!” I kick and scream.
“No can do, Lee. Hate me later.”
It's Landon.
“Lan, let me go!”
He does in time for Reid to grab me.
“Aileen.”
“Don't you fucking touch me, Dalton!” I scream.
He immediately lets go, surprised by my tone. My chest heaves.
“Don't touch me” I repeat.
“Lee, what has gotten over you?” he asks, confusion in his eyes.
Everyone has surrounded us now... all eyes on me.
“Aileen, talk to me. What has come over you?”
I scoff nastily.
“Oh, you wanna talk, Dalton?” I ask, gesturing around with my arms. “Let's talk!”
“Lee...”
“I have been doing my best since day one to get this right. To play this right. I've been trying so hard to reel in my anger and take the insults, the disrespect, and the embarrassment your people keep throwing at me” I begin. “Today I tried especially hard because I know how much this means to you. And so I didn't bite when your people made inappropriate comments about my clothes, or looked at me funny. I know how much all this means to you, Reid. And I have tried... so, so hard to not mess this up.”
“Miha...”
“Ahora no, Nora” I stop her, “Not now.”
I turn back to Reid.
“Your mother insults me, calls me names, and addresses me like I'm not a living being. Aside from having a problem with my social class, she says I'm too 'brown' for her son” I air quote.
I see Portia tense and look around nervously as the reports scribble down.
“Lee don't...”
“No, no, Reid. I don't mind” I shake my head. “Your father deliberately keeps addressing me as your friend... just to tick me off Eros?” I ask.
He doesn't flinch.
“I don't mind that either” I turn to their son. “Then your niece who is without sin comes to my shop and tries to offer me five hundred thousand good American dollars to leave her uncle alone because I'm undeserving of him.”
Reid's eyes move to Maeve who I'm sure wishes the ground would open and swallow her up right now.
“When I refuse, she insults me and threatens me. And even then I don't mind, Reid” I sigh, my chest suddenly heavier than it already is. “I overlook everything for you. And what do I get? Your ex-girlfriend emotionally traumatized my sister, your ex-fling making inappropriate comments about my best friend's health and body and then gifting her hair dye because that's a thing we did now, right? And then Maeve purposely ruins my mother's dress. I'm not even going to talk about mine” I scoff. “And all for what? Just because I'm engaged to you?”
Reid swallows.
“Lee I swear I didn't know—”
“And the ones you knew about?” I ask. “The ones you saw going down right in front of you?”
“I thought I apologized for—”
“It's not enough, Armani! It's not!” I cry, my nose burning and my eyes clouding with tears. “I've taken everything you people have had to throw at me. And what do you do?”
“I'm taking you to Freezy Queen tom—”
“It's not always about the material things Armani” I whisper. “One minute you're acting like you don't care about me and then the next you're...” I stop myself.
“Lee...”
I frown, furiously wiping my face.
“You people can call me names, I don't care. You can make whatever comments you want about me and I'll let it roll off my back. But coming after my family? That's crossing the line one too far” I fume. “And you just stand to let it happen after all the sacrifices I'm willing to make for you Reid” The tears flow as my heart feels betrayed, “You'd just watch and hit me a kiss and an 'I apologize'? Is that all I'm worth?”
“Lee I said I'm—”
I shake my head and sigh tiredly.
“It's not going to change Armani. And it hurts me to say this but this was a bad idea.”
“Freshie—”
“They hurt Camari. Sophie was forced to relive horrifying past events... all triggered by your side of the family. And I'm supposed to just let it roll off my back?” I ask. “The way you'll want to protect your family is the way I'll die to protect mine. And as long as this is still standing and you keep counting on your charm to get you out of things instead of defending those you claim to care about, it's not going to stop.”
“Aileen, we can talk about—”
I shake my head, a sour tang filling my mouth.
“I'm done Armani,” I tell him.
“Freshie—”
He stops short when I slide the ring off my finger.
“Aileen, you don't have to—”
“Yeah, I do. Targeting my family is all I can take. I can't do this anymore Reid. I'm done.”
Reid blinks once twice and when he sees I'm not joking, something flashes across his face.
“Lee, Miha don't—”
But I'm already pressing the ring into his chest. The ring slips through his probably numb fingers as he tries to grasp it, and it falls to the setup platform floor he's standing on. The clinking sound of metal against the marble rumbles through the silence.
“I don't want to see you again. Ever.”
Reid opens his mouth to say something but nothing comes out, and when that broken look reflects on his face, the atmosphere suddenly feels too hot and there isn't enough air.
My heartbeats start to drum against my chest. Each beat is more painful than the other as each one makes it harder to breathe.
Blinking away the tears at bay, I turn away and march out, ignoring whoever is calling me. I don't stop holding back my tears till I get out of the cab in front of my shop, go in, lock the door, enter my office, and slam the door behind me.
Then I let myself crumble onto my knees.
✯✯✯✯✯✯
✿ Reid’s POV
“Reid, what are you waiting for?”
I'm just staring at the direction Lee walked away in, my mouth hanging a bit. For the first time in my life, I was left speechless. For the second time in my life, a girl has broken up with me. But this one wasn't just any normal girl. She was Lee. Freshie. My Aileen. And she was gone.
Just when I thought everything was going perfectly.
We had a date tomorrow. Sirius was supposed to come home with us tonight. And she just—
“Reid,” Hernan repeats, a hard edge in his voice.
Turning to him I clear my throat a little.
“W-What?”
His eyebrows lift a little and he gives me a disappointed look.
“Why are you just standing there, man? Go after her.”
Go after her? Now why would I do that?
Because she's Lee and you like her, my conscience quips.
I shake my head.
As a friend... an ex-friend as of now.
I was just getting attached to her because we've been spending so much time together lately.
Attached and attracted, my conscience quips again.
I frown and pick up the ring.
“She doesn't wanna see me ever again Hernan. You heard her” I say.
“So you're just going to let her go?”
“Hey, she let me go first!” I fume, not sure where the anger was coming from.
After telling me she 'wants this' on the dance floor and sharing the most amazing kiss of my entire existence she lets me go and embarrasses me in front of the whole world.
Sure my parents were going to make sure every footage of tonight's disaster never made it out to the public but they couldn't wipe the embarrassment off their memories.
I press the ring into my hand and turn away from my best friend only to have my father stop me, my mother at his side.
“Where are you going son?”
“Obviously not after her, Dad,” I reply sarcastically, “Are you two happy now?”
“Son...”
“Well I don't know about your father sweetheart, but I already feel a hundred times better and happier” my mother grins.
“Portia” my dad frowns at her.
“What? Don't act like you're not happy our problem has disappeared.”
I shake my head.
“You two deserve each other,” I say and push past them.
“Reid, where are you going, sweetheart?”
“Away from you!”
“Uncle Reid—”
“Ellen get your daughter away from me before I do something we'll both regret” I immediately say firmly.
I hear Maeve's sharp gasp and the mere memory of her encounter with Lee makes me sick to the stomach.
“Uncle Reid I—”
“I don't think you have any right to call me that anymore, Maeve. Go home.”
“But Uncle—”
“Oswald, get Sirius and bring him to my car” I cut her off, walking away as I speak.
I climb into my car and immediately regret it. Aileen's scent I everywhere.
“Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!” I cuss angrily hitting the steering wheel.
The ring falls out of my hand and rolls onto the seat she was in a few hours ago.
We should be driving to our home together right now.
Something unpleasant in me stirs and I don't even have to think about what it is because I know.
I've just lost Lee.
Thank you for reading!
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Ciao
~the_atticwriter