Mia Mitchell knows to throw one hell of a party.

The party was in full swing by the time we arrived and there were half naked people on the roof. And it was only nine.

Rachel was right about Christian and Jared. The party took an even wilder turn with their entry, with almost all of the ladies sidling up to them. Rachel and I got separated in the initial rush, and now none of them were to be seen.

There was a huge makeshift dance floor right in the hall, and dark lighting. I couldn't make out people's faces, but all of them were quite drunk, dancing away to hip songs. I push through the crowd, glaring at one girl as she splashed her vodka on me, and I suddenly spot Rachel in a corner, all alone. I move towards her.

'Hey,' I say, as I reach her. I sit down on an adjacent chair.

Her hands are clutched around a glass which probably contains alcohol and she is staring hard at someone. I follow her line of sight to Jared mauling off a girl's face, his hands on her hips, and her practically on him. I wince.

'I wonder why he doesn't notice me,' says Rachel. Her voice is slow, and her words are sluggish. She must've had too much alcohol.

'It freaking hurts, every single time. And every single time I make myself believe that it is going to be the last one. Every single time, I tell myself that the next day he'll see what is right near him. And every single time, I end up making a fool of myself.'

I watch a tear slip down her eye.

I feel disgusted. I hate people cry, showing the world they are weak. Waterworks annoy the hell out of me, and suddenly I feel the urge to strangle Rachel by the neck.

'Rachel.' She still has her gaze locked on Jared.

'Rach.' I try again, my voice firmer. This time, she lifts her tear streaked face at me.

'Listen to me.' I try my best to ignore the pathways the mascara has made on her cheeks. I lean forward, taking one of her hands in mine.

'Maybe, he isn't the one for you.'

Rachel whimpers, almost shaking off my grip.

'No.' I insist. 'Just think about it. Maybe, you are hurting for someone who doesn't deserve you.'

She raises her eyes to mine.

'You don't think he deserves me?'

I shake my head.

'Just look at him. All he sees is superficial – he goes for the body. He doesn't see that the girl right next to him is beautiful, without a ton of makeup caking her face and plastic surgeries. He doesn't realize she's beautiful, right here.' I point to my heart. 'If he can't realize it, then no. He doesn't deserve you.'

Rachel's eyes stray back to Jared and the girl, who are still defying the nature's rules on requirement of oxygen. I squint at the girl, and I recognize her as Melanie, the drunk girl Christian slept with, the day before she bashed his Mustang into my Maserati.

Yew.

'He still thinks of me as this little girl he's got to protect.' Rachel's voice is a whisper. 'Why is this so hard?'

I breathe through my nose, in and out.

'Look. This is hard, because you want it to be hard.' I gesture to the dancing floor, at the sweaty mess of college students. 'Just let yourself go, Rachel. Don't look back.'

Rachel chews her lip. The dark lights fall on her face, covering it in hues of red and black, and I can't make out her expression.

I wonder if I pushed her too hard.

'You know what.' She stands up, slightly swaying on her feet. 'You, Coral Collins. You are damn right.' She pushes her cup of alcohol into my hand. 'Here. Hold this for me. I'm going to live, tonight. And, Jared Hoftzmann can go to hell.'

She throws up her middle finger and flops her way over to the dance floor. I watch her until she gets lost amidst the crowd of drunk, smelly, irresponsible adults, chuckling softly as I watch her stomp over some poor guy's feet.

I am almost to the point of relaxing, something I haven't done in years. I am almost trusting, believing, that this – whatever this is – is indeed my life, where my greatest worries are stuff like what to wear and how to get my friend over a useless crush and how in the world I am going to prepare for the seminar next week. I am almost convinced that I am Coral Collins, not Alex Fiorentino, who is sitting back on a chair and watching her roomie flail around. I forget that I'm a killing machine; a bomb set to detonate, and for a moment, I'm just Coral.

Almost.

'What are you laughing at?'

I tilt my head just in time to see a really tousled Christian Beneventi fall into Rachel's seat. His hair is all messed up, like someone drove their fingers through it, and I can definitely see bright red lipstick smeared across his cheek and lips.

'Hey, there.' I smile, which I hope is a sexy smolder kinda thing. 'How you doin'?'

Christian furrows his eyebrows, trying to work me out. Meanwhile, I look over his shoulder, searching frantically for someone.

Aha, there she is. Leigh is all set in a flashy red dress that revealed more than it should cover. She's pressed up against a guy-cute- but her gaze is on us. On Christian Beneventi, to be more precise.

I smile, turning the sexiness up a notch.

'Hey,' I lean in to Christian, so close, that I can feel his breath. 'You've got a little something here,' I point to my cheek.

Christian wipes at the smear, his eyebrows still furrowed, but succeeds in only smearing it even more.

I lean even closer. Christian Beneventi stills. His lips are inches from mine.

'You are making it worse.'

I raise a palm to his mouth. Slowly, I wipe off the smear with my thumb.

'Are you drunk?'

I giggle. I throw back my head and giggle. I steal a glance at Leigh and I see it's working; she pushes the guy off her and now, she's glaring at me.

'You are drunk, aren't you?' Christian grabs the glass clutched between my fingers and sniffs it. He groans.

'How many of these did you have?'

I decide to have a little fun.

I lift two fingers, tap my chin. 'Two, I think.' I scrunch my nose. 'Nope, definitely three. Wait a minute, how many did I actually have? Ten?'

Christian raises his eyes to the ceiling in despair. 'You've got to be shitting me. Do you even know who I am?'

I poke him in the cheek. 'You are a wax statue from Madame Tussauds.' I tilt my head. 'Shit. I must be too drunk if a statue begins talking to me.'

'Listen.' Christian grabs my arm. 'Were you and Rachel together?'

I nod.

'Was she drinking too?'

Nod.

'How much?'

Shake, shrug, points to the heavens.

Christian lets out a frustrated breath. 'Did she see Jared?'

Vigorous nods in succession.

Zach does that a lot, whenever he's drunk.

Christian pinches his nose. 'You stay right here. I'll find Jared and ask him to get Rach.'

He gets up and goes off.

I lean back in my seat and grin.

Oh, Christian. You're too easy to fool.

I am almost relaxing again, when I feel nails biting into my skin.

Leigh holds my arm in a vice-like grip and her expression is murderous. I decide to play the I-am-drunk-don't-hurt-me card again.

'Hey, if it isn't Leigh-bad-boy-is-mine-Bitch.'

And, there goes my big mouth.

'What part of stay away from Christian did you not understand, slut?'

My palms itch to get in contact with her makeup laden face, but I smile sickly. 'Uh, the stay away part?'

She pulls me to her roughly. 'You are going to regret this, bitch.'

I glare back at her and tilt my chin up. I'm not going to let my crown slip off my head.

'Make me.'

Leigh glares at me, the red lights from the party giving her face a pale, ghostly aura. Her eyes lock with someone behind me, probably Christian, and she lets go, subtly moving to the dance floor.

I turn. Christian walks up to me, Jared holding up Rachel. She's dead drunk – she doesn't even realize whom she is hanging off.

'Come on,' Christian says. 'We're leaving.'

Jared looks genuinely pissed off – the look of someone who has got his fun time cut off. 'Leaving?' He repeats, lugging up Rachel.

'Aw.' Rachel groans, pointedly glaring daggers at Christian. 'Partypooper.'

'That's IT!' Christian snaps. 'Let's go.'

I glance at Rachel. I watch as her face turns darker under the flashing red and black lights. I watch as she sways unsteadily on her heels.

Before I can say a word, she retches and vomits right onto Christian's shoes.

Well, at least someone has good aim.

\\\\\

Two chapters in one day as a peace offering.

Thank you all for 200+ reads.

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Chapter dedicated to @CelineMahadeo. Big fan of her book Fatal Alliances, which I have read a million times. Absolutely love it.