Chapter 5

• I am still unsure how I managed to escape from Adonis’s trouble last night but yes I did, however the moment remained etched into my brain.
• When he stood so close to me, the way he smelled sent crazy signals to my brain, it was like he was wearing some pheromone on him.
• Fast forward to this morning, the driver had picked me up and was about to drive off when suddenly Adonis came running to us. I was surprised when he joined me in the car.
• I was tempted to ask what happened to his bike but I didn’t want to open the conversation. His perfume smelled so good, but a bit too masculine and toxic.
• We both sat in the back of the car silently, exchanging no words. He seemed too busy with his phone and I didn’t know if I should be happy about that or not.
• Arriving at our institute, my heart started racing, the idea of people seeing us together suddenly occurring to me.
• We both came down from different sides of the car and I stalled for him to walk away before I followed. There were a lot of eyes on me, my name was already being whispered like a trending hashtag.
• Some people smiled at me. Some smirked. Some stared a little too long. I had never been this nervous, not even on my first day in school.
• “Hey Gina!” A familiar voice called out to me.
• I turned to my left to see Tessa running towards me while waving to get my attention.
• “Oh thank God.” I whispered, as it saved me from the embarrassment of walking alone with all those eyes on me.
• “Hey Tessa,” I smiled at her.
• “Oh my God, you come to school in a Bentley! Wow!” she exclaimed, amazement written all over her face.
• I chuckled. “I know, I am thrilled too. Apparently, that is one of the perks of having a rich stepfather.”
• Just then we spotted the other two girls near the old fountain. Evelyn and Michelle, that was their names if I remember correctly.
• “Hey girl!!” Evelyn waved at me excitedly, while Michelle leaned against the stone edge.
• “Hey girls,” Tessa and I responded simultaneously.
• “I saw you two, so it is true, he really is your stepbrother?” Michelle went straight to business.
• I blinked. “Uh. Yes?”
• So she didn’t believe me when I said it yesterday. Girls!
• “Holy shit! I have a ton of questions!” Evelyn squealed excitedly. “What does he eat for breakfast? Does he like toast or, like, protein powder? Is that eagle tattoo the only one, if not… Where else does he have tattoos? Has he ever—”
• “Eve,” Michelle cut in, rolling her eyes. “You’re being feral again.”
• “I’m just saying!” Evelyn insisted. “This is like living next to a Greek god and pretending he’s not sculpted by sin.”
• I was still trying to figure out whether to laugh or run when suddenly I noticed the squad of fancy looking girls approaching us.
• Right, it was them! I recognized the three from yesterday, they had an addition today and she looked like she was in charge.
• “Uh-oh!” Michelle muttered, fear etched on her face.
• “What?” I asked immediately.
• “That is Mandy Davenport, First of Her Name, Destroyer of Reputations. Senior student and Queen of The Hive.” Evelyn replied immediately, reeking of nervousness.
• “The Queen Bee?” I asked with wide eyes.
• “Oh,yeah! Totally the Queen Bee. Also, this is where we take our leave, we will see you girls later.” Evelyn said in a rush of words as she quickly dragged Michelle’s arm and they turned to the left.
• “Oh shit! We are done for!” Tessa panicked. It was just the two of us now.
• “Okay relax, what is the worst they can do?” I tried to act confident, but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t scared too.
• The four ladies finally got to us and stopped, the girl Mandy, She was taller, hotter, with icy blue eyes and lips painted the color of blood roses.
• Jenna folded her arms beside Mandy while the two other minions flanked us from both sides. Tessa immediately stood behind me, using me as a shield, I couldn’t blame her.
• Mandy smiled at me, she looked calm, yet dangerous. “Gina, right?”
• I crossed my arms. “That’s me.”
• “I watched your cafeteria performance. Impressive.” She smirked, her voice a blend of Arianna Grande and Sabrina Carpenter.
• “I wasn’t trying to impress anyone,” I said coolly.
• “Oh, but you did,” she replied, eyes glinting. “You made an entrance. That’s rare.”
• She paused, glancing at Tessa. Her lip twitched slightly — not quite a sneer, but close. Clearly she disapproved of my company.
• Then she looked back at me.
• “We’re throwing a party tonight,” she said. “It’s invite-only. All the top guns are going to be there, I think you are qualified to be there as well.”
• Jenna smirked like it was all a joke. I was confused; they weren’t going to fight me? I just embarrassed one of them and everyone warned me to watch my back, so why are they inviting me to join their elite club?
• “But why me?” I asked cautiously.
• Mandy leaned in, her perfume something soft and expensive. “Because people are already watching you. And if they’re going to watch… you might as well give them a reason.”
• She handed me a card — black and gold, embossed with a crimson crest.
• “1530 Belladonna Crescent, Hillgrove Heights, CA, be there by seven pm, and tell your brother I said hello.” she grinned.
• With that she walked away, her army trailing after her. The silence they left behind was heavy with disbelief.
• “Okay, did I just get invited to roll with the big girls?” I muttered as I turned to Tessa.
• “You’re not seriously considering it, are you?” She asked, arms crossed.
• “Well, why not?” I laughed.
• Tessa frowned. “It could be a trap. Or worse. A popularity scam. You don’t know these girls, they don’t forgive or forget, they will lure you in and then embarrass you for life.”
• I stared at the card.
• And for the first time, I wasn’t sure if I’d just been recruited… or baited.
• TBC!