P E A R L
"Say you'll see me again even if it's just in your-"Nevaeh handed me an invisible makeshift microphone in her hand.
I just stared at her like she had gone mad.
"Wildest dreams ahhhh ahh-" She returned her hand to her face, singing into her closed hand.
I shoved a pillow at her, making sure it hit her face hard.
She groaned, and her mood changed in point two seconds.
"If I hear you call me boring one more time, I will embarrass you at school."
"Get out," I drawled, dragging her out of my room.
"Leave your hair out; you kinda look decent-"
I slammed the door shut in her face.
Silence.
I mentally counted to three.
"You weren't the one for, youuu, weren't the one for meee-"
"I don't think Khalid would appreciate your disturbing vocals," I shouted at my door and heard her voice fading away.
I pinched the bridge of my nose and trudged to my mirror.
I never leave my hair out, it's always in a ponytail or a low bun.
It was too frizzy to be let out, and I didn't know how to tame my curls, so I mostly straightened it or tied it up.
My phone resounded from my bed, and I internally groaned, wanting just a moment for myself.
"Hello," I answered.
"Choose a number between one to three," Teagan rushed out.
"Three," I replied.
"Dammit," She whispered.
"Told you," Edvany's voice chimed in the back.
"Is it an ugly outfit?" I asked, pulling my hair away from my face and using a hair tie from my wrist to loosely tie it back.
"No, but Teagan's just picky," Edvany chuckled. "Get some outfits ready, we'll be at yours in five."
The line cut.
Beautiful, I thought sarcastically.
I chose random outfits from my closet and sprawled them on my bed.
When my bedroom door sounded like a pack of wolves were about to knock it down, I opened it, and my two friends almost jumped me.
"Get off me, hyenas." I pushed them off me and let them scrutinise the outfits on my bed.
"Defs not," Teagan moved one outfit aside. It was a plain cream-coloured minidress with silver jewellery.
"Nuh uh," Edvany moved the second outfit away. It was a white crop top with a lavender coloured mini skirt.
They both looked at the last outfit.
It was a simple skin tight black minidress with loose, sheer sleeves. There was a small slit at the bottom.
"Good enough," Teagan remarked, holding the dress up against my body.
"Yeah, this is it." Edvany took the duffel bag she dropped on the floor when she was about to murder me.
She opened it and pulled out their outfits along with three black eye masks.
"It's a masquerade," I stated blankly.
"Yes," Edvany smiled widely, no doubt using the theme to come up with a new song of hers.
She did that as a hobby. Me and my talentless ass could never.
"We're all wearing black," Teagan yipped and started stripping.
I yelped and ran to shut the door before anyone could walk past.
Changing into my dress, I made sure to move my hair out of the way so it wouldn't go frizzy. I wanted to leave it out tonight.
"Done?" I asked, and the hyenas urged me to turn.
Edvany's natural curls sat on her shoulders, covering some skin as her off the shoulder black dress pressed along her upper body. The bottom flared out a little, giving some attention to her long toned legs.
She brushed her hair off her shoulders and did a little dance with her shoulders.
"You like?"
"I love," A smile sprung on my lips, and I turned to Teagan, who admired Edvany's body.
"I want some," She pointed to Edvany's tetas.
"Same, sis." I turned to Teagan, and she narrowed her eyes at me.
"No, you don't get to say anything because at least yours don't look like mosquito bites," She rolled her blue eyes, standing out against her black outfit.
She wore a black tube top and a black leather mini skirt.
A simple silver waist chain decorated her toned abdomen.
"And you don't get to say anything because at least you have a hot body. Let's move," I didn't let her reply as I moved to my vanity at the corner of my room.
"Sit," Edvany ordered, and I complied, letting her fill my face with makeup.
She put concealer, lashes and lip gloss onto my face and let Teagan do the same to her face. They had brought their own makeup supplies and stuffed them into the duffel bag along with their sleepwear and clothes for the next day.
They wanted to stay with me the entire night, and I hadn't complained because I needed the support without feeling like a burden.
They offered, and I couldn't help but agree.
Teagan did her makeup. She loved to use her face as a canvas. After all, she was a painter, and painters love to use anything as a canvas for art's sake.
She was the only one out of us all that was bold enough to use red lipstick and pull it off.
"Let's go," Edvany stated when Teagan was done.
"Wait," Tea let her straight hair down and ruffled it to make it more voluminous.
She turned to me and pulled my hair tie out of my hair, fitting it on my wrist.
"See, your hair is not so bad, doll," Teagan let a bunch of my hair flow down my shoulder and the rest behind my back, reaching my waist.
Edvany snickered from the door. "Curly, wavy, straight. We have it all," She pointed out our different hair types.
"The diversity is immaculate," Teagan chef kissed, and I chuckled.
"Your hair is dead from all that straightening, but it's your hair, ma'am," Edvany fixed some ends of my hair. "It still looks beautiful."
"Okay, let's be sentimental later," She grabbed the masks, and her purse and shooed us out.
I only took my phone and planned to put it in Teagan's purse if I didn't want to hold it. I doubted I'd even leave my phone.
It's not that I didn't trust anyone. It's that I didn't trust myself. Not yet anyway.
⭐︎
The music blared from the entrance before the doors of the hall even opened. A few students stood at the entrance, some hanging out and others preparing themselves to enter.
"One last chance to back out," Edvany whispered to me above the blasting music.
"Too late now," I gestured toward my outfit.
It was too good to not show off. I decided that I'd use that reason to get me through the night.
"Deep breaths," It was like Edvany saw through my mind like she sensed my anxiety building up.
"I feel like I'm gonna faint," I whispered, knowing it was too quiet for anyone to hear.
Adrenaline shot through my body, and the feeling of nausea was creeping in the back of my mind.
Just make it past two hours, I urged myself.
Just two hours.
I opened the doors and felt the bass of the music pulsate from beneath me.
The hall was decorated in black and gold streamers hanging from the high ceiling. People danced to the rhythm of the music - well, most of them did. Only two teachers were present inside of the facility.
There's definitely alcohol snuck in here. Drugs too.
I inhaled a few hollow breaths and felt Edvany's warm hand on my lower back, caressing me.
She always knew how to make anyone feel better with her reassurance.
I let the music sink in, trying to drown my thoughts with the sounds and lyrics of the upbeat songs playing through the speakers.
"Come on," Teagan shouted through the music and grabbed my hand.
Edvany held onto mine and followed us as Tea dragged us to the dance floor.
Teagan swayed to the music, holding my hand up and letting the music take over her body.
She danced like she was in her own world like she didn't give a shit who watched and who didn't.
I didn't have that much confidence, so I stuck to making it less obvious I was even dancing.
Edvany stood beside us, her eyes roaming the crowd as she matched Teagan's energy.
"Who are you looking for?" Teagan yelled with a wide smirk on her face.
"No one," Edvany shook her head as she laughed.
We all knew it was a lie.
I let my eyes search the crowd too, not really knowing who or what I was looking for.
Edvany's reason for scanning the crowd stared back at her, and I raised my eyebrows in awe.
"Who's that?" I asked, slowly letting my body become less tense as we continued to dance.
The guy's light eyes stood out against his dark mask and navy blue shirt.
"Inspiration," She replied, grabbing my hand and dancing with me to shift my attention away.
"You little shit!" Teagan yelled at Edvany. "You didn't tell us,"
Edvany only smiled, and if it weren't for her makeup or the dim lighting, her rosy cheeks would've lit up her dark eyes.
A figure emerged from beside Teagan, and when he accidentally bumped into her shoulder, she stared him down.
"Sorry," He shouted over the music as he leaned into Teagan's ear to get her to hear him better.
She ignored him and turned her body back to us.
The guy's figure loomed over us, and his grey eyes landed on mine.
He lazily bopped his head to the music, and I tried not to give him too much attention as he danced by himself.
Eventually, Teagan whispered something to Edvany, and she nodded.
She glanced at me and nodded her head to the non-alcoholic drinks on the table.
Teagan left to get herself a drink, leaving Edvany and me to dance by ourselves.
I noticed her eyes going back to her 'inspiration,' and smirked at the idea of her crushing.
"Can I know who it is?" I ask.
"No," She replied, glancing at the ground as she swayed her body.
I watched her curls bounce gracefully around her.
"Fine," I teased.
The guy that bumped into Teagan was closer as the music changed to a louder song.
Our eyes made contact again, and when he was closer, I noticed that the grey colours didn't match a natural eye colour. The noticeable rings around the iris of his eyes made me believe he was wearing coloured contacts.
His mask covered half of his face, so it was almost impossible to know who he was.
"Pearl, right?" His voice surged through the music, and I nodded.
His presence was awkward, but something about him felt familiar.
"Be careful," His face was closer to mine when he spoke again.
"Of what?" I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.
He just looked into my eyes for one more moment before backing away and disappearing into the dancing crowd.
I watched as the blur of light brown hair faded and Edvany called out to me.
"What was that about?" Her question raised more inside my head.
I knew this was a bad idea.
If Riot was here-
No, that man wasn't Riot, but he did remind me of someone-
"Pearl?" Edvany called me again, and I turned to her.
"I need air," I told her.
"Let's go," She led me outside, where the stairs leading to a grass field were occupied with a few people talking.
"Let Teagan know we're outside," I said and watched Edvany text Tea.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Her voice was more vibrant and soft without the sound of the thumping music.
"I just need to think," I muttered and leaned against the railing.
A loud laugh sounded from the last step, and I watched Edvany sneak a glance.
I saw her jaw tense as she shot her eyes right back at me.
Raising my eyebrows, I followed her gaze.
Gabriel shook his head with a small grin on his face while Nicandro held his stomach in laughter. River stood beside them, no doubt cursing at them with a faint smirk on his lips. Zion watched his friends with raised eyebrows, as if in disbelief.
He rolled his eyes while pressing his lips together in an attempt to hide his smile. Dimples on each side of his cheek appeared.
Fucking weakness, ahhh.
I speculated about the four guys and turned back to Edvany. Only two of them wore masks; Gabriel and Nicandro. The way she looked at them when Nicandro started laughing was suspicious, and I wondered if one of them was just inside a moment ago. I wondered if one of them was her 'inspiration.'
"Which one?" She parted her lips slightly at my question.
"They're all unavailable-"
My narrowed eyes cut her short.
"If it blossoms into anything, you and Teagan will be the first to know." She reassured me.
"You didn't answer my question." I crossed my arms, slowly letting the earlier events slip from my mind momentarily.
"I can't. It doesn't make sense now, so I just gotta work things out before- Shit, fine, stop looking at me like that. Nicandro- shit- see, now it doesn't even make sense because you practically forced it out of me." She mumbled and turned her face away from the direction of the guys.
I chuckled and let her words sink in.
"Nicandro, as in, 'just got cheated on,' Nicandro?" My chuckle faded when I realised she was being serious.
"I told you, I gotta sort things out before I confirm my feelings, ya know?" Edvany rubbed the back of her neck nervously.
I nodded in understanding, not finding the words to speak.
"Hello, habibis!" Gabriel's voice boomed as he stepped between us.
[loves]
Edvany's eyes widened before they returned to their natural state as she gazed at Gabriel's hazel eyes.
"Gabriel," She gave him a tight-lipped smile.
"Hi," I awkwardly replied.
My eyes shifted to Nicandro, who was in a conversation with River. Nicandro snuck a few glances our way, covering it up by dragging an arm across River's neck and walking away with him.
River shrugged the arm off but continued walking with his idiot friend nevertheless.
Zion was gone from his spot, and when I looked back to Gabriel, Zion was standing right by his side with his eyes on the railing behind me.
My heart stammered from the shock of seeing him so suddenly.
How the hell did he move so quietly?
"You aren't with Teagan?" Gabriel asked.
"Um, she's getting a drink," Edvany replied quietly.
"Hm, that's nice," Gabriel darted his eyes between us, bobbing his head up and down.
Zion sighed and flickered his eyes to the ground.
Gabriel moved closer to Edvany, leaving a respectable gap between them.
"Would you like to go dance with me?" He hesitantly held out an arm to her, but she only glanced at me.
The feel of my phone in my hand grew heavier along with the thumping of my heart.
I gave her a small smile to signal her to go and have fun. If I needed anything, I'd message her. I knew she'd be checking her phone every so often anyway.
She raised her eyebrows, silently asking if I was sure.
I nodded my head once and watched as Edvany sighed and plastered a fake smile on her lips. She hooked her arm into Gabriel's and walked back into the hall.
The sound of music was gone as soon as the door closed behind them, leaving me to endure the silence following.
"Nicandro snuck River inside from the back," Zion muttered, his voice thrumming smoothly in the air. "He wants to talk to Teagan. Don't tell them I told you that. They thought it was a good plan to distract you and Edvany so that River gets a chance to be with Teagan."
I couldn't help but chuckle at their 'plan.'
"I mean, it worked," I shrugged, feeling his eyes on my face as I glanced at the ground.
"Yeah, it did," He looked into the direction Nicandro and River were once walking.
The sound of the crickets chirping filled the atmosphere while the soft wind fluttered around us, ruffling the ends of my hair.
"You don't like parties, do you?" I asked, curious as to why he wasn't dressed for the theme or even eager to get inside.
"I enjoy them when I'm with the people I like," He walked to my side and leaned against the railing behind us.
I agreed to his answer, nodding my head softly.
"You used to be a party animal. I remember," Zion's words dig a hole inside my chest.
Of course, he remembered. Who didn't?
"Yeah, used to." I finally lifted my gaze to meet him.
His eyes were even darker with the absence of any bright lights. I could've sworn I'd seen my reflection in them if I stared deep enough.
"Were you forced to be here?" He asked as if he cared that I was here.
"No, no," I shook my head with a faint smile on my lips. "I just wanted to see if I was in the right mind to come back."
"And you did," The tension in his face lifted, and a softer expression took its place.
"I did, but not without feeling like I was going to pass out." I chuckled to hide the worry that was still embedded in my head.
"Do you still feel like that?" His tone was more gentle as he asked.
Yes.
"Not really," I answered.
He raised his eyebrows and tilted his head. He knew I was lying.
"Okay, yeah, a little," I smiled widely, feeling ashamed that I even found a point in lying in the first place.
"Want me to get you water?" He pointed to the entrance.
"No, it's fine," I reassured him.
His eyes scanned my face, looking for another lie.
"Seriously, I just needed some air," I sighed and leaned further into the railing.
Zion nodded, not wanting to question me further.
I wanted to ask him about his sister, to at least make sure she was alright. I mean, I didn't think he'd be here if she wasn't.
"I've been meaning to talk to you about something," He turned his face to the opposite railing and clenched his jaw.
My nerves shifted from one thing to another.
"About what?" I pulled my sheer sleeves closer to the tips of my fingers.
Zion bit the side of his bottom lip and paused for a moment.
"Uh, so your sister is the same age as mine, right? Sixteen?" I nodded to his question.
"Yeah,"
"A'ight, so, do you speak to her often- your sister?" He kept his eyes focused on the grass field beyond the railing.
"Mostly, she annoys me, eighty percent of the time, but we speak," I made note of the way he kept clenching and unclenching his jaw.
"Must be nice, huh?" He muttered quietly, but loud enough for me to hear.
There was something about the way he spoke that made me believe he wished to be closer with his sister or have a better relationship with her.
"I remember when I was their age, though," I tried to muster a comforting remark. "I didn't get along with any of my siblings, but it turned out it was just a phase."
"Just a phase," Zion chuckled humorlessly. "She's not going through just a phase."
I opened my mouth to reply, say anything, but I decided it was best to stop talking and let him think before he could get a chance to explode.
He sighed and took his time to look back at me.
"I almost lost her," He composed himself as he spoke those words to me. It was as if he was used to saying them. "And I'm doing anything I can to make her happy, to make her stay."
I had no doubt my face was automatically etched with concern.
"You're trying to ask me to help you out?" I asked with a softer voice, hoping he'd realise that I would.
"I don't know what I'm asking. I don't know why I even brought this up to you out of all people," Zion glanced away again, and I felt a slight tug in my chest.
"Okay, uh," Stepping away from him, I cleared my throat. "If you do, you know where to find me."
I walked past him, down the steps until I was on a footpath that led away from the hall.
"Pearl," Zion trailed behind me. "I didn't mean for it to sound like that."
"It's fine," I spun around and met his gaze as he towered over me, yet still creating a small distance between us.
"I'm still trying to figure out the whole 'talking to anyone besides my friends' thing, and it's not working out, but I'm trying." He lowered his head a little to make sure I understood him.
I sighed and let my gaze drop to my phone.
No new messages.
A green light caught my attention from the ground. I stared at the ankle monitor on Zion's left leg.
"I can't go inside," He pointed to his ankle monitor on his left leg.
"Then wait here," I said impatiently before storming into my house.
"How are you here?" I furrowed my eyebrows and looked up at him.
"It's a school event, and curfews are one hour later on Fridays," He followed my gaze back to his ankle.
I checked my phone again. It was only 8:18 pm.
"I should let my friends know I want to go home," I opened my texts and let them know on our group chat.
I felt selfish that I was taking away their fun, but I knew that if I stayed longer I would go out of my mind.
Baby steps, Pearl. Baby steps.
I saw Zion's feet take a step back as he straightened his posture.
It wasn't until I felt someone's presence behind me that I knew why his mood drastically dropped.
"Pearl," Alec's voice drifted through the tension in the air.
I turned around and saw that his green eyes were on Zion.
"Alec, I didn't know you were coming," I stood in front of Zion to grab his attention.
If he started anything tonight, I knew he wouldn't finish it.
"I didn't think I would either," His eyes darted to me, and I realised he wasn't dressed for the occasion.
"You came here last minute?" I walked closer to him, hoping he'd forget Zion was there.
"I came here when I found out you were here," His eyes scanned my body, and I saw his shoulder visibly drop when he saw that I was in a good state.
He wanted to make sure I was okay, and that made my heart warm. I didn't want him to worry about me, though. It made me feel like a burden.
"You didn't have to do that, Alec," I failed to hide my smile. "Edvany and Tea are with me. I'm okay."
It faded when his eyes moved to the spot behind me.
I had to distract him. I wasn't sure how, but when a pair of grey eyes came to mind, I knew exactly what to say.
"Alec," I called his name, and he gave me attention, not without a sigh. "I think- I think I saw Riot's brother tonight."
His stone-cold expression didn't falter as he looked at me, only his green eyes calming at the sight of me.
I didn't let him look back at Zion as I walked right to him.
"Why are you still here then?" Alec's voice was on the verge of rising.
"Good question," I muttered. "Edvany and Teagan should be here soon. They'll take me home."
Alec's eyebrows drew together. "You should've let me know."
He was right. I made a promise to him to let him know of anything regarding Riot. He was the only one that knew.
"I kinda panicked," I lowered my voice.
Alec ran a hand through his brown hair, his eyes drifting to the ground.
"What does this mean?" He made sure only I could hear him.
"I don't know," I answered with the same tone.
"Pearl," Edvany called out my name, and when I turned to find her, Zion was gone from his spot.
"You alright?" She asked as Teagan emerged from behind her.
"Yeah," I watched as their eyes landed on Alec.
He waved once, and they smiled back at him.
"Message me if anything happens," I felt Alec's warm breath tickle my ear when he whispered to me.
I heard his footsteps receding until he was gone.
"What happened?" Teagan asked, looking into the direction he left in.
"He came to check up on me," I straightened the ends of my dress at my mid-thighs. "Then he saw me with Zion, so I kinda had to make sure he didn't go hulk on him."
Teagan raised her eyebrows and exchanged a glance with Edvany.
"What?" I narrowed my eyes on them as they speculated about something.
"What was Zion doing with you?" Teagan asked with a smirk growing on her lips.
"What was River doing with you?" I crossed my arms across my chest, feeling the sudden cold wind brush against us.
"Dancing," She drawled, glancing at Edvany to help her out.
Edvany only glanced at me.
"Let's jet," She took her keys from Teagan's purse and led us to the car.
"The only reason they spoke to us was to get River to speak to her," Edvany quietly pointed out to me.
"Yeah, Zion told me," I mumbled back.
"Be careful around him, Pearl." Her voice was stern, and I wondered what brought it on.
"I will," I agreed with her and let her take us back to my house.
I wasn't sure what I didn't need to be careful of at this point.
_______________
a/n: I love Khalid. that's it. that's the author's note :)
reminder: the sun will shine on us again...
I miss loki
have a good day/ night <3
[NOT EDITED]