—1 0 W E E K S P R I O R—
B E L L I S A R I O H O U S E:
Steam from the espresso machine rises and twirls in the air while the sound of seamed milk fills the air of the little quaint cafe. I lean back in my chair and listen intently to the girl with multiple rough edges. Her eyes are so dark to some they are black, she likes to say that she's been dipped in sin and coated in darkness but I know under her rough edges she was just like me.
"You disappeared for a bit, I got a little worried," I tell her as I take a sip of the bitter coffee that glazes over my tongue. "I thought maybe someone ratted on you,"
"You don't even know the half of it... don't worry I didn't say anything about my supplier," Helena rolls her eyes and takes a pack out of her leather jacket pocket. She lights the cigarette and blows out a puff sighing and pushing back her black bangs that fall over her forehead. She offers me one but I shake my head and furrow my brow in confusion.
"What happened?" I ask her as she takes another drag and leans back propping her feet up on the distressed wooden table we sat at. Her dark makeup is smudged as she blinks a few times before looking back at me raising a brow in frustration.
"I was fucked in the fucking ass alright, just not in the way I wanted. I swear after the four months I've had I don't trust a soul in this god awful city," She shakes her head as of she was in disbelief of the memories that had her wrapped around their finger. She scoffs before going on and smirking out of spite as she blew out one more drag.
"He's such a fucking asshole but the problem is I still can't help but love him. I remember like it was yesterday when I came home to find a pool of cops surrounding me... and never did I think it would be the love of my life that would do it all. He ratted to the cops about me and I fucking hate him!" She says angrily with hints of sadness in her tone. I would see the conflict in her broken and scrambled mind. "But I love him... and I can't stop even though he hurt me like that. I wish I could hate him more than I do but I can't."
"Did he say anything to you during the whole thing?" I ask leaning into the table from the engagement I found myself giving. She runs her hand through her dirty bob haircut and clenches her jaw as she thinks about it all. She waged a war in her mind, one of love and hate. Betrayal and anger boil over and conflict her as she speaks with sadness in her face and anger in her body language.
"Nope, he just looked at me while they took me away. A fucking liar, that's all he ever was and I'm just now seeing it. Don't ever trust them, Luna, they will only fuck you over in the end. Especially the ones that you love which is the most fucked up part of it all," She slides her boots off the table and grabs her coffee cup downing the cold cup before putting it back down and biting her bottom lip. She has seen better days and its evident in the way her eyes are glazed over with sadness and hurt that throb inside her head.
"I'm starting to think that's the only way to survive in this place nowadays, I feel like it just gets worse and worse," I confess as the news spins stories of shootings and arson that litter the grimy city that crawled with dirty secrets and corruption of every kind.
"Yeah... hey are you going to the party tonight?" Helena asks me taking another drag as we finish up our meeting. I tilt my head to the side and give her a confused expression, there were multiple parties every night and she wasn't at all specific.
"Which one? There is always a party to go to but not all of them are worth the time," I tell her taking one last sip of my coffee to finish it off. My blue waves cascade down my back as I tilt my head up getting every last drop of the drink.
"Umm the years biggest party and the only one that matters, Sinners and Saints!" Helena enthused as she shakes her head in disbelief as if I were crazy for not knowing the answer to her question.
"That's tonight?" I ask grabbing my shoulder bag that I sling over my shoulder as Helena and I walk towards the exit of the worn out coffee shop that still managed to have the best coffee in the city.
"Its the same day every year! You didn't answer my question, are you going?" Helena asks as I stop outside the shop looking at Helena as she gives me a smug smirk.
"You know that's a Post House party right?" I arched a brow as she nods keeping a smile etched onto her lips that shined under the boiling sun in the sky blue sky.
"Course," she shrugs uncaring of what that really means.
"So I think the word you are looking for is am I going to "crash" the party tonight," I tell her letting a smirk tug onto my lips as Helena begins to walk backward slowly putting distance between us.
"Are you going to be a saint or a sinner?" She asks swiftly spinning around and walking her separate way into the dusty streets we both called home.
☾
"Ah, finally you are home!" Natalia sighs propped up on the grey granite counter with a honey-colored drink in her hand. "You were gone longer than you said you would be, don't worry me like that,"
"We almost sent out the crew," Harry joins in clearly a little tipsy from the drink in his hand and it lazy movements. I scoff and laugh shaking my head and lifting myself up next to Nat while she hands me her drink to share.
"You know I can hold my own, when has anyone ever needed to worry about me?" I ask and Nat nods her head agreeing with me on that point. I take a small sip but give the glass back to her not feeling like getting fucked.
"So where were you?" Harry asks me standing in front of Nat and me in a loose red Hawaiian shirt with a white tee underneath. Even when he doesn't have to deal with business he always finds a way to sneak in flamboyant patterns and outlandish prints.
"Not that its any of your business but I was talking with one of our clients and she had some interesting things to say," I bite my lip and feel him lean into my legs with the smell of bourbon coating his skin.
"Like what?" He asks me as I push him back with my pointed toes seeing a smile cross his face and his dimples carve into the hallows of his cheeks.
"Wouldn't you like to know," He gives me a lazy grin and takes a drink while still keeping his eye on me as I stand up on the counter and saunter about on the wide surface. I walk the line on the edge of the counter making sure to keep my balance as I look down at my black high tops.
"I would, I have the right to know about anything that involves you," Harry tells me as I make my way over to him once again, towering over him with the height of the table to boost me up.
"Is that right?" I bend down to his level coming within inches of his lips. The alcohol is strong on him as I look into his intense green eyes that held my gaze.
"It is," Harry whispers coming in close as I stand up again to my full height missing his advancement he tried to make on me.
"Don't forget who the boss is around here H," I tell him slanting my hips to the side as I give him a hint of a smirk before jumping down and pulling Nat off the counter to follow me.
"She told you!" Nat cackles as I pull her tipsy ass up the stairs towards my bedroom.
"Where are you going now?" Harry pouted to me as I peddle up the stairs with Natalia trailing behind me a little off balance from her drink she had been nursing since I had been home.
"Away from you," I tease even though I could tell he didn't find that funny in the slightest. I watched his face darken from the previous light expression he had. Harry didn't appreciate his authority being challenged even though technically I was above him in the chain of command. After all, I was the heir to the gang since I was an only child.
"So what was that about?" Natalia asks grunting as she jumps onto my bed looking up at the ceiling while I closed the door behind me sighing and leaning against the door exasperated by the entire exchange. I roll my eyes and walk over and lay next to Nat and look into the ceiling finding images in the paint and textures.
"I don't know," I sigh out sitting up while Nat turns onto her side and bites her bottom lip. "Things are just so weird between us now.."
"In what ways?" Nat asks me combing through her black and red hair that looked like silk as her fingers slid through it.
"Ever since that summer fling we had 2 years ago he has been different, it's like he is trying so hard to make it happen again and I just don't feel that way about him," I confess looking back up from my hands at Nat.
"So anything you felt that summer is gone?" Nat furrows her brow unsure of how a feeling could diminish as fast as it sprouted.
"I don't know if I ever loved Harry in that way, to begin with, I think I got caught up in the idea of it all but... I just don't love him like that. I feel like Harry and my Dad are putting so much pressure on me-"
"What do you mean?" Nat cuts me off, her eyes dilating as soon as I brought up my Dad.
"My Dad has told me multiple times he wants Harry to carry on the family business by my side. He's told me a lot and has basically given me no choice but I don't know I just don't think Harry and I make sense. It feels more like a partnership than a friendship now... and now I'm pressured to have something more than that with him," I spill to her as I sigh out and lay back down onto my bed finding my eyes tracing the textures in my ceiling.
"Harry and I just aren't the same friends as we used to be and as things move forward I feel like it will continue to get more and more different..." I say but quickly move on from the topic not wanting to speak any more on it. "Anyways, enough about that. We have a party to crash tonight!"
"What party?" Nat asks as I sit up and give her a big smile biting my lip.
"The only one that matters," I quote Helena and continue to grin getting up off the bed to open up my closet.
Looks like sinner it is.
N. Whose ready for the party? Y'all are all cordially invited the question is, are you a sinner or a saint?;)