***

"Hey Liz, we have to tal- what the fuck?!"

I witnessed the girl's body be pushed off of the bed and thud loudly against the ground. I was thanking all the gods that they were both dressed when the ashiness of the girl's hair struck me and I realized who it was.

"Shit," Liz cursed and tucked both strands of golden hair behind her ears, propping herself on her knees. "Are you okay?"

Victoria rubbed her head a couple times. "Yeah, I'm fine."

What the hell was this? I thought they were mortal enemies?

I didn't bother hiding the monotony that flooded my tone. "I see Karma finally found its way out to you."

Liz widened her eyes at me evocatively before she got up from her bed and helped Victoria up too. "I'll text you later, ok?" She told her.

Victoria nodded and started heading out but stopped right by me. "Hey, I'm sorry about what happened at the game, I panicked."

I raised both my eyebrows.

Seeing as she wasn't going to get any words from me anytime soon, she took the hint and left the room with a sigh.

I turned around and blinked in amusement. "You've been busy."

"I can explain." Liz ran a hand through her hair.

"This'll be good." I went over and sat on her bed, with an expectant look on my face.

She closed the door and grabbed the chair in the corner of the room, dragging it across the floor until she came to a stop in front of me. "It's not what it looks like," she said as she sat down.

"So, you didn't have your tongue down the girl who stole your work's throat? Huh, what do you know?" I leaned back on my elbows.

Liz tilted her head and huffed at my sarcasm. "I know what I'm doing, Jade."

I arched my eyebrows questioningly when I saw Liz's sly expression.

"I promised her war," she said with a knowing smirk. "But I never specified which kind."

I parted my lips in shock and straightened myself back up. Of course she did, this is Liz we're talking about.

"You're playing her."

Liz wiggled her eyebrows. "Ding, ding, ding."

Liz's façade could be misleading. I often forgot how dangerous she could be when she put her mind to it, much more now that she'd been wronged by a jealous idiot.

She might look sweet on the outside, but boy is she a force to be reckoned with. All I can say is, I wouldn't want to be in Victoria's shoes right now.

"So..." Liz began. "You spent the whole day with a certain boy, didn't you?"

"Oh, won't you look at the time." I smothered a grin and forced a yawn. "I think I'm gonna' go get some sleep in."

Liz's laugh echoed behind me as I started leaving the room. "Don't think you're sly, Jade!"

I flipped her off just before my silhouette fused into the dim light that was coming from the hallway.

***

We got to the parking and found Millie standing by Tyler's car on her own. Jesse had called me to invite Liz and I to a day out with the guys. And, I thought - why not?

I finally had something over Millie and nothing was going to ruin this for me.

Her face fell when she saw me show up. "Was it necessary for you to come?" She complained.

I stayed silent, but allowed myself to give her a little smirk. I loved being able to annoy her without even having to open my mouth.

"Any idea of where we're going?" Liz asked, trying to fill the awkward silence.

I shrugged.

Millie shook her head. "The guys said it's supposed to be a surprise."

Liz looked around. "Where are the guys anyway?"

Rolling her eyes, Millie said, "In the bathroom, they have awfully small bladders."

Liz scoffed. "Men." But then she searched for my stare in despair.

Oh, no.

Please don't tell me she's about to leave me here with her.

"Do you really have to?" I whispered.

Liz grimaced. "Really."

I sighed and finally nodded, I guess I had no other choice. Immediately after that, Liz flew off to the bathroom.

Ah, just what I longed for, being left alone with a snake.

Normally I'm not one to start conversations, much less with people like Millie but today was different. Today was going to be a good day, I could feel it.

"So what's your brother up to?" I asked her.

Millie looked at me incredulously. "Don't know, and wouldn't tell you anyway."

That made me want to let out a chuckle. "Relax, I just want to talk to him." I said innocently. "I've come to realize that I quite enjoy his company. Yours on the other hand -" I pressed my lips together and twisted them to one side.

The brown eyed girl narrowed her eyes at me. "You're a sneaky, manipulative, sick bitch."

I just blinked a couple times, waiting for her to finish.

"You know- " I said, "- if I had feelings, that wouldn't hurt them."

"I don't know what you're up to but you're definitely up to no good, and I'm not going to stop until I find out." Her expression was hard and determined.

"I'm counting on it." I winked at her playfully. "Try not to hurt yourself."

I gave her a quick smirk when I heard Jesse's voice approaching us from behind.

"Cheer up Mills'." I smiled and went over to Millie, then swung my arm around her shoulder. "'Tis the season for miracles. Isn't that right, guys?"

Tyler shrugged. "If you say so."

"Agreed," Jesse said.

Liz was confused at my sudden energy outburst but she rolled with it regardless. "I guess."

Before getting in the car I held Jesse back and gave him a concerned look to make sure he was ok, to which he nodded.

Once we did settle in, Tyler turned on the ignition and the car produced a growl-like sound, followed by a sharp but brief squeak.

Liz's expression spoke for itself. "The hell is that noise?"

"Oh, this?" Tyler twisted around so we could see his face. "Just an insignificant squeak," he assured us. "Baby is old, but it works wonders."

"Well that changes everything." Liz sunk back into her seat. "Not," she muttered under her breath.

Jesse twirled around too. "It's worked fine to this day," he justified.

"Exactly." Tyler pressed his foot on the gas. "See? Good as new."

With that questionable argumentation, Tyler took hold of the steering wheel and we drove off.

***

The cold air stung my skin like a thousand needles, sending a shiver down my spine.

I am feeling dangerously murderous.

I turned around to face the pair of idiots. My eyes went back and forth from Tyler to Jesse a couple of times. "Which one of you geniuses thought it would be a good idea to go to the beach in December?"

They both looked at me silently.

"Look at them." Liz scoffed. "I don't think they even knew what a beach really looked like."

Jesse looked up in defeat. "Okay, it was me. I came up with the idea," he admitted. "But only because we haven't had a chance to go since the year started."

"I wonder if the fact that it was literally 40º had anything to do with that." I muttered.

Jesse didn't say anything back at first because he knew that there were no valid arguments that could possibly justify this.

"We can always turn around and go home," he finally said.

"Great idea," I fired bitterly.

He rolled his eyes and we all got inside the car, Tyler and Jesse in the front seats and Liz, Spanish Barbie and myself, in the back. I started putting in my headphones when I heard Tyler's voice coming from the driver's seat.

"So, where to?"

Liz quickly snapped at him. "Just drive," she said boldly. "Someplace other than the beach if it's not too much to ask."

This is why she's my best friend.

I shut my eyes and clicked play, feeling my muscles finally begin to relax as I released the tension in my shoulders with every breath. I let a small smile form in the corner of my lips, but it only lasted a few seconds.

Slowly opening my eyes, I paused the song and stood very still. "Why aren't we moving?"

Tyler looked at me fearfully through the rearview mirror. "Remember that noise we heard before driving off? It may or may not be the cause," he said. "But in my defense, I'll say it was not the first time I'd heard it, so that's why I brushed it off."

My face was completely blank but my voice was dark and low. "You, what?"

Millie's voice echoed inside my head. "We're stranded, Jade. Stuck," she said. "Jodidos."

Her insolence filled me with a suppressed urge to throw her out of a moving train.

I turned my head in a slow but deadly manner towards her, looking straight into her eyes and calmly brought my phone closer to my mouth. "Hey, Siri."

When the phone chimed in response, Millie scowled at me and rolled her eyes. Silence took over the car right as I was about to speak.
*
*
*
"Where can I find the nearest slaughterhouse?"

"Oh, for fuck sake," Jesse protested.

"Your nearest slaughterhouse is 5.2 miles south on th-"

Liz let out a high-pitched cry. "I can't believe I could be at home stuffing my face and watching Stranger Things right now, had I not agreed to this."

Millie shot her a fake smile.

"How tragic," she said over Siri, who was still giving directions faintly in the background. "You're stuck with us, instead."

"That's it." I said. "I've had it." I almost ripped the door out of its hinges on my way out of the car.

I can't believe karma suddenly decided to shit on me all at once.

This situation had me acting completely out of character. "This is ridiculous!" I yelled at literally nobody, because we were the only human beings dumb enough to be out in the middle of nowhere.

I started pacing from side to side.

"And you know the worst part of it all?" I tried to maintain my composure. To say I was annoyed would be the understatement of the century. "I agreed to come without even knowing what I was getting myself into."

I scoffed and threw my hands helplessly up in the air. "I'm the biggest idiot!"

Going over to the hood of the car, I leaned on it and pressed a hand on my forehead for a second, trying to collect my thoughts. Jesse opened the front door and got out of the car, but stood by on that side, in fear of possibly getting strangled. And I don't blame him. Right now I wouldn't want to go within a six foot radius of me, either.

I ignored him and resumed my rant. "But then again I thought that, worst case scenario, you'd take us to Urban Air to get suspended on giant air blowers." I forced my eyes shut and pinched the bridge of my nose, trying not to get too agitated. "Not the BEACH!"

Liz got out the car and stood next to me. "Jade is right, it could literally start snowing any second now."

But then the only -thing- that could get me more stirred up than I already was, decided to open her mouth.

"Cut him some slack, guys. He was just trying to do something nice," Millie said. "I'm sure he had the best intentions."

I felt the blood inside of me start to boil, so I decided to be cautious for once and kept my mouth shut for everyone's sake. I rarely get fired up but when it happens, trust me, you do not want to be near me.

Especially if your name starts with "M" and finishes with "illie".

"She's right." Tyler finally joined in. "And look at it on the bright side -" he trailed off when he noticed a death glare being thrown in his direction.

"Oh no, please. By all means, enlighten us." I smiled humorlessly. "Let us hear what the bright side is."

Tyler went silent.

"Okay, let me try giving my mom a call," Jesse suggested. "Maybe she could come pick us up."

Jesse pursed his lips together tightly. "She's not picking up."

"Awesome," I mumbled.

"Hey, Jess?"

I turned my head instinctively towards Millie.

She glanced at me quickly before focusing back on him. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

Millie pulled him apart just enough so it looked like they were on their own, but made sure they were at a distance where I could still make out what they said.

Jesse had his back to me, so I couldn't really know how he would be reacting to anything she told him, on top of that I couldn't see her face clearly either.

"Are you okay Jesse?" Right there, was one of the few voices that made me twitch with rage.

I saw his shoulders tense up in response. "I'm fine. Why?"

God, Jesse. You make it way too easy.

Millie furrowed her brows with concern. "I've just noticed you've been extra stressed. Is everything okay at home?"

Jesse hesitated, but ultimately sighed loudly, releasing the tension in his tight shoulders. "No," he admitted. "No, I guess not."

Millie pulled him into a hug. Her eyes were closed in a way that when she opened them, she was staring right my way. And then she had the nerve to arrogantly smirk at me.

It was in that very moment that it hit me, everything made so much more sense to me now. The overly sweet act, her being so threatened by me, she knew exactly who I really was. But now I knew her secret too.

It takes one to know one...

Millie was a player.

"I'm not going to pressure you into telling me anything," she told Jesse without taking her eyes off me.

So that's how you wanna go about it, huh?

Millie pulled away and held both his shoulders. "Just know that I'm here for you anytime you need me, okay?"

Jesse nodded silently.

I think Millie was having a hard time remembering who invented the game.

You wanna play, Millie? I'll show you how it's done.

The expression fell off of my face, along with all of the emotions I so foolishly had let take over me. I told myself off, rookie move, Jade.

The mere thought of it made me cringe. I'd just blinked and Millie knew to be quick enough to react, taking advantage of the opening I'd just created for her.

But I was damn well going to make this right.

I calmly reached out a hand to the back pocket of my pants and swiftly slid my phone out. Millie was still talking to Jesse, but she'd shoot me the occasional glance to try and figure out what I was up to.

I dialed the number of someone who I thought could help me kill two birds with one stone. Or at least injure one of them badly enough.

The dial tone rang once.

Millie locked eyes with me in suspicion.

Twice.

I reciprocated her gaze with a hard stare of my own. If your enemy won't blink, make them.

Three times.

All that was left for me to do was sit back and watch it all unfold.

"Hello? Jade, is everything ok?"

"Brody."

Millie's head snapped in my direction the second she heard that name roll off my tongue, as intended.

"Are you okay?" he asked worryingly.

"I'm fine," I said before sighing in frustration. "I hate to bother you, but the guys and I are stranded at the beach, Millie's here too."

"Did you just say the beach?"

I know, it sounds ridiculous.

My eye ticked once unintentionally. "Don't ask." I clicked my tongue. "Look, I wouldn't be calling you if we hadn't exhausted all our options already."

He let out a painful groan. I could practically see him holding a hand against his chest melodramatically, right where his heart would be. "So you're saying I wasn't your first option?"

Feeling a glare burning through me, I bit my lip to repress a flirty smile and leaned over the hood of the car. "Notice how I chose to use the word we," I said after a low chuckle. "You are technically the first person I called."

He let out a small laugh. "That was a really smooth save, Cross."

"It's not my first rodeo, Adams," I fired back.

"I'll be there in thirty." He paused for a second, I could hear his smile through the phone. "Don't go anywhere," he joked.

"Really funny," I said sarcastically, but kept the smile on my face.

He hung up without saying anything else.

I used the hand that I had pressed against the car to push myself back up straight and realized how Millie and Jesse were no longer in the same spot. My eyes scouted the scene for a certain brown-haired girl, I suddenly was feeling in the mood to brag.

My phone went off in my hand, displaying a message that made my smirk be replaced by a scowl. I ran a hand through my hair and clenched my jaw.

Unknown: Hey princess.

I was so done with this idiot, whoever he was.

Me: What do you want?

Unknown: Simple. I'm going to get you back for what you did to me.

Me: You're going to be a tad more specific.

Unknown: Like I said, no fun.

Unknown: I'll give you a hint, though. Brown hair, brown eyes, irresistible...

Me: Thanks, that narrows it down. I'm bored of this, stop texting me.

He didn't try texting me again after that.

I wish I could stop curiosity from eating me up, I despised the fact that I was giving this guy exactly what he wanted. He was toying with me at his will.

I sighed.

It could literally be anyone but my mind always seemed to end up on one certain playboy.

It can't be, I thought.

Leon?

***

A/N

MILLIE HAS BEEN OUTED BISH.

I love me some back to back plot twists, LOL. I like to call it the sike. You think I just dropped a bomb on you guys and there's nothing more where that came from but SIKE! I AIN'T FINISHED THO.

So Jade suspects the mystery guy could be Leon, huh... we'll see.

Anywayyyysssss- CYAAA😈🙌🏼

***