T W O
Porsha Ginevra

THE MOON GLOWED with a magical iridescence high above our heads when we finally arrived at the destination. It hung brightly above our heads, dazzling the night sky along with what seemed like a million of stars. It was surprising to see such brightly lit stars, to say the least, considering that our home of Riverside Creek was so heavily polluted by light sources. Stars were a beautiful rarity in today's modern society consisting of urban jungles and almost nothing more.

It took us mere minutes to get ready. Since both Bella and Minnie were my dress size, finding an outfit suitable enough for the party – and still dress comfortably – was simple enough due to my, thankfully, seemingly endless closet. We had all chosen matching outfits, each a simple sweater and a nice pair of winter jeans to keep the cold out. I had also decided on a pair of ankle booties to compliment the entire outfit.

"You are wearing booties to a party?" Minnie asked in disbelief. I clicked the heels of my shoes, allowing the sound to resonate slightly with my steps, smiling slightly at the sound.

"And why not? I got them a few weeks ago and never got to wear them. I am not about to leave a perfect pair of booties in the wardrobe waiting for them to just rot there."

"Well, I think it is cute." Bella nodded with approval, grinning as I gave her a twirl. "It compliments your outfit and makes your legs look even longer. Like, how is that possible?"

"Thank you, Bella. I'm glad to see that someone here has an actual sense of fashion." I targeted the last part of the sentence to Minnie with a pointed roll, to which she replied with a roll of her eyes.

"When you are complaining about how the heels of those booties are killing your feet, just remember what I had warned beforehand," she warned.

We stepped out of the house, braving the cooling winters of winter with a slight shiver as we trudged through the streets in an attempt to locate the boathouse where the countdown party was held at.
The winters of Riverside Creek weren't as cold as the main city, reigning in only minimal snowy days and even fewer white Christmases. This, however, did not guarantee the absence of the classic chill of the season, only that it was more of a colder autumn than a full blown winter. The waters of the river surrounding the quaint little town were henceforth never in history ever frozen solid. In fact, spending Christmas on yachts was a common practice for the richer folk of the town.

Personally, I could remember much of my childhood festivities on a white yacht that my family owned. The glorious family feasts and bountiful of laughter was a constant factor every time I visited the yacht. That was something in which I hoped will never change, to have the yacht stay as a constant symbol of joy and laughter.

Surprisingly, my friends and I were a whole street away when the music first reached our ears. As small of a town we already were, this part of it seemed even more deserted than the others, only having a few houses dotting along the streets every so often. The boathouse stood alone, huge and intimidatingly tall against the dark of the night as strobes of light emitted from its ceilings and into the blanket of the night.

"Here we are, girls." Squeezing both Minnie and Bella's hands in excitement, I let out a small squeal of excitement. "The party of the year."

"That has got to be the biggest understatement you have ever made in your life. And you often over exaggerate every little thing." Bella sighed, eyes trailing after the strobe lights just as she took in every last detail of the massive boathouse that was flooded with people. "They really outdid themselves this year. It is definitely going to be the party of the millennium. I am calling it now."

As much as Bella's words had seemed like an exaggeration, it was fortunately not. It really did seem like the host had put in extra effort this year. The boathouse definitely made full use of its deserted address, blasting the music so loudly that it thumped through their veins and ran the course that blood took. I could feel the rhythm of the music beating against my eardrums even from the distance set between the building and us. Laughter echoed into the night, along with cheers every so often as people continuously flooded into the building in massive endless streams. There were multiple trucks nearby, all bearing company logos of famous brands of expensive liquor, all parked along the fanciest and expensive cars I had ever laid eyes on.

And that was saying a lot considering my well off background.
"This is a weekend party, right?" I could hear Minnie's anxious voice only barely over the sound system, causing me to strain my hearing to better pick up her already usually soft words. "We haven't brought any clothing. Or any sanitary supplies."

"The invitation stated that we wouldn't need to bring anything along with us." Bella shrugged slowly, but her voice was raised to a maximum level, screaming over the music and struggling to get her words across. "All is provided."

"Provided or not, alcohol is a girl's best breakup formula. This party is going to cure my heartbreak and help me move on, I just know it." I murmured under my breath before looping my arms into those of my friends'. "Come on, girls. Time to brave a massive hangover come Monday morning."

The cheers from beside me were barely even audible compared to the ones coming from inside of the building. Crossing the road had been the easy part, but getting into the building was a whole different story in itself. For one, the line snaked long past the entrance, curving around the boathouse and almost out of sight due to the distance. There were bouncers at the doors checking for invitations and I instinctively reached down to pat the pockets of my jeans to make sure that our own ticket in was still safely tucked away.

"Do you think they'll make us wait in line? You are, after all, invited as the guest of honor." Bella pointed out, nudging towards the nasty looking bouncers.

The three men dressed heavily in black attire looked strict and unforgiving. Their hands were crossed over the chests, all practicing a similar stance and easily towering past 6'4 each. Bulging muscles adorned their arms, along with a huge array of colorful and explicit tattoos. They regarded each guest that came before them with great despise across their otherwise impassive features.

A shout came from the front and I immediately darted over to face the commotion with heightened interest. I will probably never admit out loud to my friends or even anyone for that matter, but I was never one to shy away from drama. And honestly? I think everyone that I've ever met in my life already knew that.

A gasp was elicited from the crowd before someone guffawed loudly, pointing to the front of the line. One of the bouncers had apparently straight up smacked a false invitation right out of a man's grip, allowing the paper to fall to the floor as it flew gently against the wind.

"What the hell, dude? That was a totally legit invitation!" The party-goer cried out in protest, not even bending down to retrieve the paper. He was furious, yet I could spy a hint of anxiousness leaking from his expression. For one, his pupils kept darting around, seeing if anyone noticed the commotion. Unfortunately for him, everyone in the vicinity did.

All three bouncers ignored the man, looking straight past him due to the contrasting height difference as their low voices rang out to the crowd. "Next!" They shouted in complete and nearly robotic unison, voices booming over the stereo noise.

"Geez, talk about being rude," I murmured under my breath.

"Hey! Assholes, I was talking to you!" The previous man proceeded to lead out a string of profanities, none of which were regarded by the bouncers. Instead, three other guards appeared from behind the closed doors of the boathouse, two of which placed a hand on the man's shoulder each. The third one stood tall and looming, eyeing the man with great distaste as he spat out his question.

"Is there a problem here?"

"Oh shit, that guy's in trouble." Bella took joy in witnessing the man's apparently inevitable demise, her voice turned into a tune as she sang her words out in delight.

"You are absolutely sadistic, you know that?" Letting out a bark of laughter, I hip bumped my friend slightly. In return, Bella only offered me a mocking scowl followed by a flip of her middle finger.

"They pop good popcorn for the sake of drama, my friend. No beef, no drama. No drama, no popcorn. And you know that homegirl will do anything for food."

"So is that why you always get into fights?" Minnie asked, stifling a grin as Bella shot her a look of disgust.

"That was one time! Besides, the jocks totally asked for it. I wasn't the one that asked them to tap my ass whenever I walked past. Damned perverts. I hope they rot in hell."

I could only shake my head slightly, a small smile gracing my features as I watched my two friends playfully bicker back and forth. In that moment, I felt truly blessed to have met them. If I had not, I truly did not know how different my life would actually be, and for the worse.

The man from before had long since been dragged away, pulled out of sight as he attempted to kick and claw his way out of the guards' impenetrable metal grip. A hint of remorse overcame me as my eyes trailed after the man. He was young, perhaps in his early twenties. And in this age, being able to attend this party would be the opportunity of a lifetime. No wonder he had resorted to a fake invitation in an attempt to bribe his way in. Then again, desperation often resulted to unfortunate circumstances.

"Well well, look what the cat dragged in?" A voice drawled from behind me as my hair immediately stood on end, body freezing as I stared straight ahead unrelentingly. "It had been too long since I last seen you three darling dears."

"Porsha." My teeth gritted against each other in annoyance, spitting out the name as if it was laced with venom. "I would say it was a pleasant surprise, but my mother had taught me not to lie."

My ex-best friend let out a bark of laughter, slowly clicking her heels against the gravel of the road as she made her way over to properly face us. If Minnie had thought that my booties were an unwise choice of footwear for a party, I could bet that she was already toppling over at Porsha's choice of sky-grazing heels.
Unfortunately enough for poor little o'l me, however, her lapdog of a boyfriend had followed along as Porsha's plus one. How did any of them even get an invite, I did not know.

"Addison. Bella, Minnie." Lucius greeted the three of us with a small nod, his hand never leaving his girlfriend's waist. His knuckles had turned to white, indicating a hint of his own discomfort. "How have you all been?"

I knew that his question was clearly directed at me in particular, considering the inconspicuous dart of his eyes towards my own ones. Pretending that I hadn't caught it, I pursed my lips into a thin line, grip tightening on both Bella and Minnie's arms.
"Never better," Minnie replied for me once she noticed my silence, voice stoic. "Especially with your fake ass gone and out of the way."

"Seriously, though." Bella injected with a smirk that could battle with the devil's own grin. She turned to Porsha, smirking nearly maliciously. "Did you get plastic surgery? The last I've seen you, your ass was flatter than your chest. And that's saying a lot."

None of us had missed the split second Porsha's eyes darted down to her own cleavage as if to assess them to see if Bella's words had indeed been true. But as soon as that flicker of doubt had washed over her, it was gone and instead masked over by the practiced look of confidence that I myself had practically instilled into her.

"I'm the one with boys trailing after my every whim and word, Minerva."

And there it was, the attack against the softer one of my two best friends. It was no secret that Minnie had always been the more soft-spoken one of my group of friends, and Porsha was apparently bringing that fact into good use. She knew where the weakness was and she was prepared to strike. Unfortunately enough for her, she had forgotten that strength came in numbers.

"At least none of my boyfriends had ever left me before. Now I can't say the same for you three. Minerva, darling, didn't Brian leave you just because you had braces back in our sophomore year?" Flashing a fake smile that all of us had seen countless of times on Barbie dolls – and I personally have used it countless of times myself – she easily maneuvered her body to face Bella now. "And Bella, dearest, how is it between you and Alex? Still not talking?"

Alex Trevor was Bella's boyfriend of five years, all before a month ago when he had mysteriously stopped talking to Bella in all. Occasionally the three of us would bump into him in the hallways of college considering all of us went to the same town school, and sometimes we would even catch him out with his usual group of friends in the local diner. But never once before did he ever stop to say hi. He simply avoided Bella at all cost.

Needless to say, Bella was absolutely torn when Alex left her. But like the fierce figure she was, she bounced back to her full height within mere hours, waving her ex-boyfriend off as if he were nothing but a bad dream during what was a peaceful sleep.

"And Addison." There it was, the final blow that Porsha Ginevra would undoubtedly lay on her absolute rival – me. "If I recall, Lucius did leave you to be with me. He was the one that saw who truly was worth fighting over. Isn't that right, darling?"

Lucius stood without emotion as he stared straight at us two bickering women. I didn't, however, miss the slight tensing of his arm that held onto Porsha's waist. I could practically see the cogs turning in his head, searching for an answer that would offend neither of us, but none came to his aid.

From the corner of my eyes, I could tell that Porsha was already starting to get impatient with Lucius's lack of an answer. His lips were parted just the slightest, yet still, no noise came out at all. Seeing his silence, I took the opportunity to cut in with a sinister grin of my own.

"Poor you, then, Porsh." Dragging out the old nickname I once had for her when she was still under my wing, an elusive – and truth to be told absolutely delighted – grin appeared on my face as I changed my pose up slightly with a small bend to the hip, hands still linked with both Bella and Minnie. "Having the need to lap up my seconds. Just like the good old days, isn't it? Such fun times they were."

No one within a five-mile radius had missed the fume that positively came out of Porsha's ears when we three had pushed past her, walking in between the sickening couple as Lucius's hand dropped to his side. Sashaying away from the scene and leaving Porsha with my final words hanging in the air had never felt so good.

Especially when I am celebrating my success with my real friends laughing their asses off.

It was for the best. Nothing could ever be more rewarding than cutting out toxic people in our lives and realizing how far we've come without them.

———

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