My butt itched. I was currently wearing a tight black sparkly dress that felt it could have been a cat scratching post from how itchy it made my butt feel. I wasn't a fan, but Jace had insisted that I wear it tonight. He didn't tell me much about what we were doing tonight other than going into the City to go clubbing with Maggie.
Even now after we have been through so much together, he still doesn't trust me to just straight out let me know what trouble we would be getting ourselves into tonight. At this point, I accepted that no matter what, it wasn't going to be a simple clubbing experience. There were going to be threats and probably physical violence. Maggie and Jace will likely use their magic for something and I will definitely be a pawn in their little games.
I couldn't figure out my exact role, but the dress was a great indication that I would at least be seducing someone tonight. Probably a middle-aged man who has a hard time keeping his hands to himself. Even knowing this, I agreed to accompany Jace.
I started keeping tabs on my phone of all the favors I had done for him, so this was just another thing I could add to the list. Soon, I'll figure out a way for him to repay me for all of my troubles. I was thinking of a new car, but that might be pushing it. I would settle for him to fill out all of my college applications for me. I really wasn't looking forward to writing my college essay and had half the mind to write it about being sucked into Jace's world.
I shifted uncomfortably in Jace's passenger seat as he drove down the 95 South. We were about 15 mins away from Maggie's apartment where we were meeting her before going to the club, but the way Jace drove, I wouldn't be surprised if we got there in the next five minutes.
"Why are you doing that?" He asked, placing a hand on my bare knee to get me to stop moving.
"This dress is making my ass itchy! That's why. Now let me do what I gotta do to feel some relief."
Jace eyed me like I wasn't okay. "You're going to get glitter stuck on my seat," he argued.
"Well, you should have thought about that before you gave it to me to wear."
"Yea, that's not what I was thinking about..." He stopped himself from finishing that sentence, but it was too late, I could already tell where he was going with that, causing me to blush. Being in a fake relationship with Jace, meant that we had to keep up a facade that we liked each other romantically, but it also meant that we were getting too comfortable keeping the ruse going even if no one was around to hear like now as we were alone in his car.
"I'm going to make you a pillow out of this dress after tonight to see how you like it rubbing against your body," I said, pretending I hadn't heard his previous statement.
"Okay, sir knits-a-lot. You need to calm it with the homemade shit before people think your like married to your sewing machine."
I gasped, mocking being hurt. "This is the appreciation I get after making you that hat, which I would like to remind you that you never take off. Am I supposed to believe that you don't appreciate my knitting skills?! And here I was thinking about making you another as your Christmas present."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves here. I never said I didn't appreciate your talent. But since we are on the topic of Christmas presents, I just want to put out there that I am a fan of the color black and will not be opposed to having a warm hat to match my gear," he said, glancing between me and the road.
"Hmmm, I guess we will just have to see if you've been naughty or nice this year when the time comes."
"I can show you naughty if you want to see naughty?"
"Gross."
He chuckled and focused his attention back on the road. "And stop rubbing your sparkly ass all over my seat please."
"I make no such promises."
Soon we arrived at Maggie's apartment, pulling into the parking garage across from her street. I almost tripped exiting his car wearing the high heels I was given as my outfit for tonight. They were strappy six inches pumps, the kind of shoes I rarely wore solely because I couldn't last more than five minutes in them. I was ready to ditch them and put on some slides instead.
I took one more step forward and almost face-planted into the cold New York City concrete. A strong hand grabbed onto my forearm, steadying me before I was able to know what the floor tasted like.
"Do I actually have to wear these?"
"Yes, the club won't let you in if you wear anything less," he said, letting go of me and taking a step back, finding himself in a street light illuminating himself. His curls were perfectly shaped and shinning with product. He wore a pair of black slacks held up by a gold belt. A black button-down clung to his skin under his jacket. He looked good. To say the least. "I can fix this."
"What do you mean?"
He held up his hand and pointed at my shoes quickly chanting some words. The black pumps sparkled as if some just poured glitter all over it. Once he was done chanting, I felt a shift in the comfort level of the heels. I was able to stand up straight, my legs stopped wobbly, and I no longer felt like I was wearing stilts. I could walk normally as if I were wearing sneakers or another flat shoe. I took two steps and managed not to fall. I looked up amazed at what he's capable of doing.
"Is that better?"
"I love magic. Best shit that was ever invented," I said, crossing the street to Maggie's building. Jace followed behind me.
"Magic...wasn't invented—"
"Did I ask?" He ignored me, and I took that as a win.
The elevator opened up to Maggie's extravagant apartment. I didn't realize that I had missed it until I took a step foot in and was once again mesmerized by the view and her impeccable taste in decoration.
"You're late," said Maggie, coming out of the hallway wearing a tight red dress perfectly tailored for her body, her blonde hair in soft waves, and a dramatic smoky eye. I looked down at my own outfit, feeling like I could have done better, or rather Jace could have done better.
She stopped cold in her tracks, her eyes landing on me and my outfit and then shifting to Jace, her eyebrows narrowing at him. Her expression shifted to cold indifference. "What's Elliot doing here?"
I looked to Jace, realizing that Maggie hadn't invited the two of us, he just took it upon himself to bring me. Oh shit.
"I thought Elliot would make a good asset tonight," he shrugged, playing it off as if everything was fine, but one look at Maggie's face and it was clear that everything was not fine.
"Jace, why didn't you tell her I was coming?" I asked, feeling awkward about being put in this situation. "I can just go home if you want," I suggested, turning back to Maggie.
"Yes, you probably should go."
"No, stay," said Jace, at the same time that Maggie said to leave.
Jace stared down at Maggie, who glared up at him. They were having a silent battle and I couldn't help but feel as if I were intruding on something. I wasn't the biggest fan of clubs, so going home wouldn't be a problem for me.
"She will prove herself useful, won't you El?"
I gulped, feeling the pressure as I was put on the spot. "Yes, I'm down."
"So that's settled. Elliot will be joining us," said Jace.
Maggie rolled her eyes and turned back to head into her room. "Jace, can I speak to you in private for a second?" She called back over her shoulder. Jace sent me a wink before following after her. I perched on the arm of the couch, defaulting to my phone since I didn't know what else to do.
With minimum effort, I was able to catch glimpses of their conversation that quickly turned into a shouting match. Maggie was upset and did most of the yelling. I didn't think that my presence would cause such an uproar especially considering that the last time I saw her we ended on a good note. I had been under the impression that we were going out to have a good time, and so far I was not having a good time.
Maggie continued to yell until Jace finally snapped back and it all went silent. A few beats passed where nothing sounded. They either have killed the other or are making out right now; it was hard to tell.
Before I had the chance to take it upon myself to make sure they were still alive, Jace walked out from the hall, massaging his temples as if to will away a headache.
"Want a drink?" He asked me, moving into the kitchen. Maggie hadn't reappeared, and it seemed a bit weird to be drinking her alcohol without her knowing, but I took the glass from Jace's hand as he offered me a vodka soda anyway.
"Is everything alright?"
"Yea," he took a sip of his drink. "She is just being a little dramatic. It's a part of her brand,"
I took a sip of mine, relishing the burning sensation as it went down my throat. "Why didn't you tell her I was coming?"
"Because she would have said no and I wanted you to be here tonight."
"I feel like that wasn't your decision to make. You should have at least warned me. I wouldn't have come if I knew I wasn't going to be welcomed."
"It's fine, everything will be fine."
Maggie reappeared from her bedroom, a fresh face of makeup and her hair in a different style. It was now pulled back in a sleek high ponytail. She eyed me carefully before announcing that our ride for the night had just arrived downstairs.
She marched in front, Jace trailing behind her, and me taking the rear, reluctantly following along, mostly out of curiosity. We piled into one of those big Black SUVs that celebrities were known to travel in that was parked in front of Maggie's building. Jace sat in the middle, and I tried my best to not feel like the third wheel in this situation.
After what felt like an eternity between Maggie's apartment and the East Village, we finally arrived at the club. I quickly stepped out and found myself starring at a long line of people dressed in outfits suited for a gala—a lot of them sparkly and resembling the one I wore myself. That explained why Jace had insisted on the heels. He wasn't kidding about the place having a strict dress code.
Maggie stepped out of the SUV, took one glance at the line, shook her head, and proceeded to gracefully maneuver through the crowd until she found herself in front of the bouncer holding a clipboard with a list attached to it. It took Jace and me a while longer to catch up with Maggie since the crowd hadn't been as forgiving for us.
"Name," asked the bouncer, barely looking up to meet Maggie's soft gaze. She was standing casually off to the side of him as if she was bored with the idea of clubbing on a Saturday night.
"Maggie Everdine," she said, briefly touching his hand that rested on the clipboard. He froze and then looked up with a bright smile.
"Of course, Ms. Everdine! Go right in," he said excitedly, opening the doors for Maggie.
Maggie turned around, winked, and then led us into a dark hallway where the faint sound of a Travis Scott song vibrated through the walls. The first door in the hallway that we encountered was coat check where we handed over our Jackets to a young boy who looked like he would rather be playing video games.
The club was spacious in comparison to most New York City clubs but yet it took a lot of pushing and squeezing to get from one side to the other. Maggie led us straight to a booth that was reserved under her name. A couple of feet from the booth was the V.I.P section, separated from the main dance area by the classic red ropes seen in movies.
"He's not here yet, but once he gets here, I'm going to need you to go through every point of the plan that I told you. No skipping any of the steps, and don't do that thing you do because you know I hate it."
Jace shook his head. "What thing that I do that you hate?"
"You know, go all Jace on me and end up doing something dumb without putting enough thought into it. Kind of like when you decided it would be a good idea to bring Elliot."
"I don't do that,"
"No I think she described it perfectly,"
Maggie smiled at me and then remembered she was mad at me and quickly fixed her face back to indifference. "That makes two out of three, so you have to believe me now. But regardless, don't mess this up for me tonight. You are really good at your job, Jace but try not to get distracted tonight."
"You can count on me tonight!" He exclaimed loudly, getting up and moving towards the bar.
Maggie turned to me then, shifting closer to me so that we could talk over the music. "Look, I think you're cool and all, but it was a mistake bringing you here tonight. I don't know what he was thinking, but it wasn't with your best interest in mind."
"It wasn't my idea, by the way. He told me that you had invited us out tonight. I figured something was up, but I'm always down to help if anything."
"Let's hope we don't need you tonight..."
Jace arrived with three martini's balanced between his two hands. "Drink up ladies," he said passing them to Maggie and I.
I sipped on my martini watching the crowd as people danced, drank, and flirted with strangers. I noticed a lot of designer brands amongst the crowd—Gucci, Chanel, Loui Vuitton—indicating the type of class that frequented this club. I could assume that we were likely here because of money, whether that meant that someone owed them money or they were going to steal some of it.
A women wearing a gorgeous cream dress that stopped right above her knees, moved swiftly through the crowd as it parted for her. She was flanked by three men in black suits who appeared to be her bodyguards. Without question, the bouncer in front of the V.I.P section opened up the ropes to let her walkthrough, where she settled on one of the big white couches.
"She's here. I'm going to try and butter her up for you. Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone," said Maggie as she got up and straightened her dress to look more presentable.
Once she was out of ear shot, I turned to Jace and smacked him on the shoulder. "Your business is with a woman tonight? I thought you brought me along to distract another man like the last time?"
"No, I mostly brought you here because I wanted to see you squeeze into that tight dress—"
"You're literally the worst."
"I know," he said, dodging my incoming hand. "I was kidding by the way. I think you'll prove to be very useful. Just you wait."
That was hard to believe. I felt like I didn't have a purpose for tonight which was worse than if I actually did.