CW: mentions of SA
"This is the best," Seung-jun sighs contentedly, sinking lower in the warm water.
I nod, feeling half-asleep. Today, we're at the geothermal spa that Cyra's cousins own. We went hiking both days before, so this is a welcome relief. Es also insisted on taking a walk to see a waterfall this morning. I did something weird to my leg yesterday too and all my muscles are sore, so the spa is incredibly soothing.
The water here is gorgeous, a pale shade of milky teal that resembles the sky. It's warm and so full of minerals that it might as well be cave water. I love it. There's this weird clay that you can smear on your face as a face mask and apparently it's the best thing ever for your skin. I have some smeared on right now.
The spa complex spans several pools, sectioned off for different purposes. There's a public one, a mask bar, a waterfall, a steam cave, an area for specialised float therapy and massages, and an in-water bar. We're in one of the smallest and farthest pools in the spa, completely sectioned off for our privacy and enjoyment.
"Let's take a picture," Cyra suggests, floating lazily over and raising her phone. We pose for a selfie. I brought a crimson halter bikini which makes me look absolutely stunning.
"This reminds me of the baños árabes we have in Spain," Es mumbles, resting her head on a floating board with her eyes closed. "The best ones are historical properties but some guy renovated one and we got to visit ... the water there is nothing compared to this though."
"What's Spain like? I've always wanted to go," Nandika says dreamily.
"I'm a little biased, but I think it's the best country ever. The food there is the best."
"I went there with Teddy and Manon once," Jasper says. He sits on the farthest end of the pool from me—he still hasn't quite forgiven me for tossing him onto the ice. I don't care. It was funny. I never quite realised how strong he was until today, with toned shoulders and ... well, I won't go there. It makes sense—he's a hardcore football player. I'm glad that the warm steam of the pools obscures my flushed cheeks. "He almost got arrested there."
"Really?" Diamond asks, laughing. "What for?"
"Almost punched someone who called Manon a gabacho."
"People like that are nasty," Es says. "I didn't think Teddy got along that well with Manon though?"
"He doesn't," Manon scoffs. "It's more like he got mad because they implied he was one too. He has an inferiority complex about Spain dating back to the eighteenth century."
Interesting. Not unexpected though. A lot of the old money group is European. There's definitely discrimination. It's no wonder Teddy feels like that. It sounds like something I can use against him.
Some more secrets are just casually spilled. Apparently Avril Jewel abruptly dropped out to go to a public school in L.A. "Couldn't handle the heat," Diamond giggles.
"Must've been bad," Cahyono comments. "Nobody just drops out mid-year. At least wait until summer break to disappear."
"Did you see that Mnisi was on the news?" Cyra says.
"No way," Seung-jun says.
"Yes way." Cyra shows us a brief clip of Noelise getting interviewed by a reporter, set against the backdrop of a loud march against climate change. "I got such a jumpscare when I saw it."
Well now I know how Noelise is spending her winter break.
After a little while more, Manon gets out of the water first. The spa provides us with fluffy heated bathrobes that are perfect for the chilly air. "Let's go, we have a dinner reservation."
With mild grumbles, the others all begin to get out as well. "Ugh, I'll meet you guys later," I tell them. I want to lay here, weightless for a little while longer. I think it'll be good for my leg. "Es, I'm stealing your headrest."
Es laughs. "Okay. Take your time. Don't slip and hurt your leg again."
I tip my head back onto the board and close my eyes. It's quiet, the only sound the lapping of water. Only when I'm alone can I really relax. I know it's easy to physically relax in a place like this, even if you are surrounded by other people, but there's still the feeling that you're being watched. That feeling never leaves, like a knot between your shoulders. Not until you're alone.
The weight of the past few months hits me. I can't help being bad at school and I'm not getting any better, so I think I'll try not to worry about it when we get back from break. Teddy is someone that I have plans for. I have plans for a lot of people. Teddy is one of the worst. It seems a little strange, even to me, that I'm hunting him down so determinedly because of Nandika, someone I don't even know that well, but it's not just about Nandika. It's about justice.
And anyways, what else am I going to do to fill my time?
Jasper's another problem. He's annoying, and annoying in the way where he actually has the power to do things to hurt me. I really don't get his deal. It seems a little crazy that he actually thinks I don't have family in Italy and I'm just lying about that. Where else would I have come from? Chicago?
Suddenly, there's a soft splash. I open my eyes and lift my head. Instinctively, I jerk back out of sheer surprise.
Jasper's laugh is low and devoid of humour. "Surprised?"
He sits right across from me. I was floating in the middle of the pool, and Jasper has sat down on the edge, half-submerged in the warm water. He's uncomfortably close. It's hard to look at him from this angle without first looking at his hands, resting casually against the edge with his glinting gold ring, his arms, his chest, his collarbones. Unbidden, the image of him as a cruel angel sculpted from marble rises to my mind.
"What is it this time?" I ask flatly, in a tone that implies I am entirely uninterested in anything he has to say, even if my mouth has gone dry just from his presence.
His gaze narrows. "I just wanted to ask some ... questions."
"I'm not interested in answering." I've snapped out of my relaxation. I reach for the edge of the pool, heaving myself up and out of the water. I shiver. It's cold. I search for the bathrobe I left on a bench, but it's not there. I give Jasper a nasty look. "Oh, really. Very mature."
Jasper smiles with an easy, infuriating grin. He holds his own bathrobe, folded over his arm. I briefly consider trying to take it from him, but I doubt I'd be able to. He's faster and taller than me. "You'll answer now, won't you?"
"No." Even if I have to walk there in the icy cold, it's better than getting interrogated by him.
I turn to leave but suddenly, he stands, grabs my hand and yanks me forcefully back. He angles me so that it'd be so easy for him to just let go and I'd fall into the water. His skin presses against mine and my heartbeat picks up pace. "Do you think this is funny? I'll toss you in the water like you did to me with the ice. Answer my que—"
I jab my elbows backwards, willingly crashing into the water. I surface, spitting up hot water that tastes like minerals. "You tried that trick on the cruise too. Won't work twice, dickhead," I snap.
He shrugs, looking unconcerned. He can look as untouchable as he wants, but I do see him press a hand gingerly to his ribs where I elbowed him. "Shame. Then we'll have to do this differently."
I float backwards in the water, watching him warily as he sits back down. He wouldn't do what Teddy did. Would he? I can't be sure with these kinds of people.
"Differently," I say.
He smiles. It seems to be real, or at least intended to look more real than his previous smiles were, because his eyes crinkle at the corners. Does he just enjoy watching me angry? "Let's trade questions."
"I have nothing I want to ask you."
"I know things about Teddy," he says. "Things I know you'd find useful. You get three questions, I get three questions, and you tell the truth."
"If I lied, you would never know. If you lied, I would never know."
"I'd never lie. I don't actually care about Teddy that much, believe it or not. And you ... well, I can tell when you lie. So, how does that sound?"
He can't tell jack shit about me. And I don't need information about Teddy to ruin him—I can do that all on my own—but I guess I'll humour him. "Sure," I agree. "But nothing we tell each other gets out to anyone, and I mean it."
"Great. So do I. Who's your real mother?"
"Gia Bianchi."
Jasper stares at me so intensely that I think I might actually catch on fire. "The game doesn't work if you're going to lie. I told you that I can tell."
I exhale. "Fine. I don't know who my mom is. She probably lived somewhere in China. My dad had ... many relations during his work."
He nods approvingly and I hate him for it. "As I guessed. Your double eyelids didn't look real."
I reach up self-consciously to touch my eyelids, then jerk my hand down. He doesn't miss it though, eyeing me with an amused look. "As I guessed," I mimic in a high-pitched voice. "Who even says shit like that anymore?"
"Ask your question."
"Fine. Who else has Teddy sexually harassed or assaulted? Both count."
"That's two questions."
"No it's not."
The corner of his mouth lifts slightly. "Alright then. He tried to sleep with our old English teacher last year. She quit because the school board wouldn't do anything about her case. He toyed around with a scholarship last year until she gave him her first time, then immediately ditched her after. And he told me about a girl his older brother brought. She was ... paid. There were probably more like that."
I fight down a wave of revulsion. "I want names."
He gives me names. "I couldn't tell you what the girls were though. Too many like that."
"That's fine."
"My turn. Where did you really live before coming to Arbourne?"
"Porto Rondo."
"Again with the lies. Cut it out," he snaps, seeming to get a little annoyed. I revel in it.
"Shanghai, then Florence."
"When did you move?"
"When I was twelve. Have you ever sexually harassed or assaulted someone?"
"If you count breaking hearts. I suppose that's more romantic though. No, if I want something, there are plenty of people who will give it to me willingly."
I suppose that's alright, but not much better.
"Third question," Jasper says. "Is your name even really Valentina Bianchi?"
I raise an eyebrow. "That's your fourth question."
"No it's ..." He trails off, realising.
"When did you move?" I mimic, in a mocking tone. The brief anger that flashes across his expression is consolation enough for getting coerced into answering those questions. "Now here's my final question."
"That's not fair. Your first question then—"
"Was one question. Didn't you agree?"
Jasper studies me for a moment. "Fine," he says. "Fine, fine. I'll keep my word and all that. Hurry up and ask your question."
"None of this gets leaked, remember," I warn him.
"Yes, yes, I remember."
I take a deep breath. "What happened on Halloween night?" I ask, searching his expression for any hint, any clue.
He reacts beautifully. His face stiffens into a cold mask, his lips thinning to a line and his eyebrows twitching downwards ever so slightly. If he thinks he can read me, he has to fix his own poker face first. "I got arrested," he says.
"Come on. The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."
"That's all that happens," he says impassively. He stands and slips on his bathrobe, walking away.
"I know you're lying," I call. He doesn't respond.
I sink back into the water, looking around. He didn't even tell me where he put my bathrobe. I guess I'll have to walk back in the cold after all.
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