Page 30 of Bane's Beginning

I sighed. I never liked this version of me, so prim and proper. It was how I grew up, but there had been a darkness in me since my parents died that had kept me from feeling like I really fit in with the high-society life that my brother wanted me to be in so badly.

Anna walked out of the bathroom in awe. “I make one hot stuck-up bitch!” I laughed at her words.

“Sorry, I know these are your clothes, but damn girl. You got great taste and this dress looks like it is worth more than my car payment.”

“It is,” I teased. I helped her adjust the straps on her dress. She was wearing a halter-top style dress that was silver and sparkled. It was form-fitting and she looked like the dress was hand stitched just for her. “You look beautiful,” I smiled, but it didn’t reach my eyes.

“You okay, T?” I shook my head. “Yes, let’s go buy some coke!” I shouted and she laughed. We made our way downstairs and Maverick, Crash, Hollywood and my brother were waiting on us. I once again heard whistles and I rolled my eyes.

Hollywood looked like he was getting ready to throw up. I glanced at Anna just as she noticed, and her eyes dimmed.

“I don’t think this is a good idea,” Crash said as he looked at his sister. “Remember, I’m 23,” Anna quipped.

Maverick walked over to me and whispered in my ear, “If someone touches you, I might go to jail.” And I laughed, knowing that he was completely serious.

A few hours later, Anna and I were sitting at the bar at Jynx, the same place I had met Maverick. The boys had gone throughthe plan with us, and it wasn't Mission: Impossible or anything. It was simple. They would get to the club before us to not look suspicious. When we would arrive, they would already be sitting across the bar, and we’d also sit at the bar and basically just look pretty and expensive. Easy work, and this time my drinks were free.

Leaning down to speak to Anna, I said, “What was up with Hollywood earlier?” She gave me a look like she had been caught. “It's nothing. Don’t worry about it,” she shot back.

I nodded, not wanting to push her further and make her uncomfortable. I ordered another drink and just let the crowd take over. We small talked and joked as our buzzes got stronger. From the corner of my eye, I saw someone quickly walking towards us and I almost dropped my drink when I realized who it was. It was Chase.

“I would have called you but Marcus took my phone,” he said as he pulled me in for a hug. It felt good to be near my best friend again. “He tracked your location and I couldn’t tell him not to come. He’s behind me.” And sure enough, I looked behind Chase and there was Marcus and he looked fuming.

“What the fuck are you doing here, Thea?” He shouted at me. “And what the fuck are you wearing?” he shouted as he took in my outfit, which was hardly revealing. Marcus looked the same. He was about 6’5” with dark brown hair. He looked like Jacob Elordi in a Nate Jacobs kind of way and definitely not a Noah Flynn type of way. I made the mistake of looking over at the boys and they were heading over here. Marcus caught them walking over this way, too, and he scoffed.

“You come with them? You fucking around on me?”

“Don’t make a scene,” I said. “I’m here with my brother,” I said, pointing to a very pissed off Davien. “Since when have you had a brother, Thea?” he said accusingly. He had to be high because his anger seemed over the top for a man who’s been screwing my best friend.

“Since always, numbnuts. Do we have a problem?” I heard my brother say from behind me. I turned around and made eye contact with a very pissed off Maverick. I knew I had to de-escalate the situation before this turned ugly.

“No, we don’t have a problem,” I responded before Marcus could say something smart. “If you want to go outside and talk about this, we can, but don’t cause a fucking scene. You know I can’t stand that shit.”

“Fine,” he said and started making his way towards the door. “I’ll be back inside in a minute,” I said to the group. Maverick didn’t say anything, he just looked pissed off and I didn’t know what that meant.

As I headed outside, my eyes met Bridgette’s. I can’t believe he brought that bitch with him. I didn’t even acknowledge her presence and kept walking by. I saw the hurt flash in her eyes and I couldn’t help but smile.

Fuck. This night turned into a mess.

Chapter 15: Maverick

I had no clue what the fuck just happened. One minute, the girls were laughing, and then some fucking frat boy piece of shit had my girl in his arms. If that wasn’t enough to set me off, another prick walked up and started spewing shit at her.

It took me every bit of self-control I had to not beat his fucking face in, but I knew that wasn’t what Thea wanted. But what was that shit about cheating?

Pissed off, I leaned against the bar and looked up at the other douchebag and the girl he had with them. She looked like she was about to break down in tears at any minute.

“She didn’t even look at me,” the blonde said.

“What did you expect her to do, Bridgette?” the douchebag scoffed back.

“I don’t know, but how is it fair that she is out there with him and she didn’t even acknowledge that I was standing here,” she cried. I internally groaned, I could already tell she was one of those whiny bitches that grind my gears. Anna looked like she was about to say something and I shook my head. Hollywood and Crash walked off to make rounds and Ares and I grabbed seats by Anna.

“Well, maybe if you didn’t fuck her boyfriend,” the kid told her, and that’s when I realized he might not be as bad as I thought.

“Of course you would say that, Chase. You’ve been so far stuck up her ass that you stopped seeing her for who she really was a long time ago. You don’t think we see it? That Marcus sees it?”

Chase laughed. “You’re unbelievable if you’re implying we’ve ever been anything other than friends. After everything she’s done for you, and you're still out here playing the victim. Thea and I have never been more than friends, and I’ve always treated her that way, which is more than what you and Marcus can say.”