After meeting Eloise and her friends, I am desperate to be in their circle. They come from different social status but you can't see the gap except for the brand of clothes they're wearing. These are the kinds of people I want to be with. Maybe I can be one of them since Kayla and Jarrod a.k.a The Annoying Brother are one of them.

I'm a transferee in the school and the only people I know are my childhood best friend, Riley, The Annoying Brother and her girlfriend, Kayla...

"What's the Kira-whale in red doing here?"

...and the one who thinks she's Aurora of Sleeping Beauty but actually the Lady Tremaine who treats normal human beings, like me, as Cinderella. Her two equally annoying gay minions are our imaginary stepsisters.

Aurora Ashley.

How nice will it be if she's in fact the Aurora who sleeps and never wakes up. She's the reason why I don't like to transfer in their school. She makes fun of my size since she was able to utter the word, fat.

I level her gaze, then move to scan her from head to toe. She's wearing an extremely tight and revealing shiny silver strapless bodycon dress. Her back is exposed. Her breasts want to be freed. I wonder how many paddings she's wearing today to push her small babies. She's pretty but her thick makeup, her foul attitude and actions make her ugly. She calls me whale because she thinks I'm the biggest human being in this world. Wtf!

"Oh, I thought this was supposed to be a casual party." I walk closer and stop when her pungent perfume hits my olfactory epithelium. I scrunch my nose and blow air through my nostrils. "Why do you look like a hooker, a stinking one?"

She lifts her right arm to smell her armpit. I release a mocking chuckle that's why she glares at me. "Why are you here? Are you even invited?" She looks at her minions, "Be careful. The biggest whale is here and she's parading her belt bag a.k.a belly fat."

The evil stepsisters laugh like it's the funniest joke they've heard. I could even see their tonsils. Where are the flies when you need them? It would be satisfying if they choke on them.

"The same reason why you all are here today. Eloise and Jace surely will not invite villains in this," I spread my arm, "wonderful party."

Their laughter turns into a scowl.

"How dare you! We are with—"

"Oh, I am not interested in whoever brought you here."

"Aren't you ashamed to show your bulging tummy? Photoshop can hide that, but here, cover it. It's a major turn off."

I fake a laugh and stop abruptly. "FYI, Aurora, it's not the photoshop that hides my stomach. Jen is not a fan of photoshop. She knows which angle showcases my beauty." I step towards her and lean forward to whisper my next words. "I'm not ashamed to show my body. Unlike you, I'm not here to seduce a guy."

"You—" She glares at me.

I straighten my back and smile sweetly at her minions and smirk, "Eat more protein. Whales feed on small fishes, like you." I hear them mutter a silent curse.

There's nothing so fulfilling as seeing the angry face of Lady Tremaine. Aurora is the queen of bulli—

"Is everything alright here?"

Someone with a deep voice speaks behind me. A masculine scent with a hint of a fresh lime replaces Aurora's strong perfume. I peer over my shoulder to see who's the guy. My eyes meet the delicious-looking throat. I move my eyes upward, but stop at the red perfectly shaped lips which are just less than a foot away from me. I swallow.

Is that natural or a lipstick?

Shit! It looks soft and inviting. I watch as his lips move in slow motion, yet inaudible.

I blink several times when the lips are replaced by a pair of hazel eyes. I immediately avert my gaze.

Is he saying something? Heat creeps to my cheeks. Luckily, I'm wearing makeup so I look like I'm blushing all the goddamn time.

"Hi, Harrison," Aurora says, batting her long fake eyelashes while tucking the hair behind her ears. "Everything's alright. Kira-wha—," she clears her throat and continues, "Kira and I are just talking, right Kira?"

I raise my eyebrows at her and roll my eyes.

Liar goes to hell.

I want to contradict her statement but the guy behind me is a stranger. I know he's a model like me, but this is the first time I meet him in person. I refuse to stoop to her level, so I nod in response while smiling wickedly at her because I'm mentally plucking her hair one by one while she screams in agony, begging for me to stop. Har har—

"Just so you know..." Harrison's warm breath hits the back of my neck, and I can't stop the shiver that runs through my spine. "I heard everything."

I turn around and catch the smirk on his face before he walks away.

Is it good or bad that he eavesdropped on our bantering? I watch his back until the witch speaks. For a few seconds, I forgot about them.

"Oh, Kira-whale is in love," Aurora says in a teasing tone, followed by a warning. "He's out of your league and hot as fuck for someone like you."

I chuckle, "Right. I'm too attractive for him. It will be too much for your eyes if we'll be together." I don't wait for her response because deep inside, her words strike me. Harrison has the power to turn my surroundings into a slow motion. No other guy has done it before. I hope we'll never meet again after this event. Guys are off-limits. My heart is still whole and intact. I plan to keep it that way forever.

I walk towards the spread of mouth-watering desserts. Picking-up the big plate that is meant for the main course, I start filling it up with every kind of treat on the table. Tiramisu and crème brûlée are my favorites so I take two of each. My plate is already full and I'm munching at the mini chocolate eclair, but I still reach for the lemon tart.

"What are you doing?"

I choke on the eclair and almost drop the plate, when Harrison appears beside me.

I cock my head to the right. "Isn't it obvious? I'm getting my desserts."

"All of these?" He makes a circular motion while pointing at my plate. I raise my eyebrows, not getting any idea what he wants. "Are you going to eat them all?"

"No, I'm just going to stare at them."

He glares at me.

Opsies.

We're not close enough to make sarcastic conversation. My heart says otherwise. It feels like he's no stranger at all and I can say whatever I want. I should've told him earlier that I wanted to strangle Aurora. However, as much as I wanted to throw her under the bus, my not-so-kind inner self didn't want it.

"Of course, I'm going to eat them." I place the plate on the table and turn to face him, my eyes meet his hazel orbs. "Is there something wrong? You look shocked by what I am doing."

He takes a deep breath and his eyes have calmed down. "It's just that I didn't expect you to be eating that much."

"What? Are you blind? Can't you see my fig—"

"I heard you're a swimwear model for Jen. You handled yourself well amidst the bullying some minutes ago." He eyes my plate of sweet treats. "Now you're eating every dessert on this table."

"And so?" I don't think I'll like what he's going to say next.

"And so? That's a lot of calories and mostly sugar."

"And so?"

"What?" His eyes are widening, clearly surprised with my lack of response. "You don't care that these junk foods will make you even bigger?"

Ouch! The way he says the last word causes a crack in my self-esteem.

"And so? My body, my business. Not yours." I don't even try to hide my annoyance at him. How dare he. We've just met and he thinks he has the right to count the calories on my plate.

He moves his head left and right while making a tsk sound. "I guess my first impression is wrong."

I raise my eyebrow. "What? You think I only eat kale?"

"I think," he pauses and scans my body from my boots to my head. "You like — maybe love — yourself but you don't know how to take care of them. Keep feeding yourself with junk, you might end up just what Aurora calls you."

He gives me a disappointed look before he turns to leave. My blood is boiling in rage. Who does he think he is to insult my precious body?

"Asshole. No one cares about your opinion."

Liar.

I'm angry at his audacity to speak those awful words but when I look at my plate, for the first time, I lose my appetite. I pick up the plate and march towards the bin to throw them. As much as I dislike his words, they're actually true.

Damn, why the hell didn't I love kale and quinoa more?

###
The last line is a borrowed line from Jo Watson's Almost A Bride.

What do you think about this chapter? Sorry if I took so long to update.

Thank your for reading. But before you go, click the yellow star below if you like this chapter.

Lovelots,
Alya