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CHAPTER 3


𝓞𝓾𝓻 𝓯𝓻𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓭𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓹 𝓲𝓼𝓷'𝓽 𝓪 𝓫𝓲𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰: 𝓘𝓽'𝓼 𝓪 𝓶𝓲𝓵𝓵𝓲𝓸𝓷 𝓵𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼!

I stare at my mismatched eyes in the mirror. One of my eyes is a natural green colour, and the other one has become brown with the lens I'm wearing. I slowly and extremely carefully put the other lens in, trying not to let my hand shake. Blinking a few times, I let my eye get used to the unusual intrusion. Ri has been talking about how she invited a few friends from her class and a couple of seniors to hang out with us at dinner.

"Are you ready?" Ri asks.

"Do you think I look weird?" I ask her. I turn around and look at her, running my hand through my now honey blonde hair. She leans on the headboard of her bed, making it creak a little. Her eyes scan me up and down. I fumble with my black coat as she scrunches her eyebrows and narrows her eyes.

"Hm, a little too much black for my liking," she says, eying my black full sleeves and the deep v neck top that's underneath my coat. Her eyes then go back down to my black high heeled boots. "But I feel like those ice-blue jeans balance it out," she continues, gazing at my pants.

"I don't look bad, right?" I ask, "That's all that matters, that I don't look bad."

"Oh please," Ri sasses, "That blonde hair goes perfectly with the brown eyes. And you slay in that outfit. Now, all you need is some makeup and we'll change a few things here and there and you'll be so different. No one would know unless they pay a lot of attention."

"I'm still a little wary of this plan," I say as I sit down in front of a mirror. My lips turn downward in a frown as I hear some shuffling around from Riona collecting her brushes and palettes.

"Just trust me, no one will be able to find you and you'll be beautiful," she says as she starts with a little bit of primer on her hand.

After about half an hour of getting poked and prodded by makeup brushes and liner pencils, Riona is finally done with me.

"All done," she says. I slowly open my eyes and look at my reflection that stares right back at me. My cheekbones are highlighted and higher up now, making me look much better. My eyes, well there was nothing much done on my eyes, except a light eyeshadow with winged liner. My lips looked plumper but not extremely large. I tilt my head a little and look at my jawline, which is now much sharper. I look different, but not crazy new-human-on-earth different.

"Let's get your hair done." Ri appears behind me with a curling iron, but I only sigh.

"I've never curled my hair, Riona. This could turn out to be a disaster," I say, widening my eyes for emphasis as I look at her through the mirror.

She closes her eyes and holds out her hand to stop me. "Say no more, I've got it covered," she says, "you'll be runway ready after I'm done."

She starts curling my hair a little, and in minutes my long and straight as fuck hair turns into soft beach waves cascading down my shoulders. They're a little more bouncy now, and they actually look quite healthy and thick.

"Come on, let's go," Ri says, "Jade messaged me, he's right outside."

I follow her lead, taking my phone and purse and walking to the door. The tapping of our heels hitting the floor echoing around the room as I turn off the heater and we walk out. I grab the cold metal handle of the door and push it open until we've stepped out in the cold winter weather, and then I stick my key inside the lock. The distinct click of the lock confirms that the door is closed, so we head out.

The sound of our heels against the pavement fills the air along with the slight whistle of the chilly wind. The hair at the back of my neck stands as I shiver in the cold. At least it doesn't take long for me to see Jade's familiar black car, and as soon as he pulls up I slide in the passenger seat. Riona slides in the back as well while Jade increases the intensity of the heater.

"I still don't think this is a good idea," I say, my foot bouncing in nervousness.

"You're going to be just fine," Ri says, "If Albert is there, he'll definitely bring a couple of bodyguards who'll be around and mixed with people, so you don't have to worry as long as you're with me or him."

"But what if-" I start out but I'm cut off by Jade.

"You seriously need to calm yourself," he says, "There are a lot of people there, including me and Ri, nobody will do anything. Plus, you look different from afar, so you don't have to worry." He focuses on the road for a few minutes before speaking up again, "We're here. You can get out of my car. Thank you very much," he says.

I roll my eyes and step outside with Riona. After the momentary cold, we again step into the warmth of the hotel. I look around and my eyes widen after looking at the decor and seating arrangement of the hotel. Everything looks sleek, shiny, and extremely modern.

Wow, I've never felt so poor in my whole life.

I follow Riona to the table and my attention turns to the three men sitting beside each other. My eyes immediately land on Albert who is sitting in casual wear, scrolling through his phone. He's wearing a black knitted oversized turtleneck, with grey jeans and his hair the usual messy style. As if feeling my gaze on him he looks up and locks eyes with me. I give him a small smile so I don't look like an idiot, to which he replies with a lopsided grin of his own. As if sensing the motion on his face the butterflies in my stomach go wild, flapping their wings angrily against the walls of my stomach.

I will myself to look away and my eyes land on the other two, who are greeting Riona. One of them has dark blonde hair with champagne brown eyes, and the other one has light brunette hair, much like my previous hair colour, and has hazel green eyes.

"Hello," I say awkwardly, the eyes of both the men focusing on me after they finish hugging Riona.

"I'm Darren," the blonde one says, extending his hand for me to shake.

"Ari," I reply with a smile. I turn to the brunette but I scrunch up my eyebrows, the ghost of my smile still present on my face.

"I know you," I say, "you're in one of my classes."

"Yeah." He grins, "I'm Lucias, by the way, call me Luc."

"Luc's a sophomore, like us. English major. Darren's a senior, a business major, and Albert is the same age as Darren but he graduated early, he's too intelligent for his own good," Ri explains. We get seated as Jade arrives and somehow, I end up sandwiched between Riona and Albert, which I guess... isn't exactly a bad thing.

"And Riona's too dumb and chatty for her own good," Albert says, a twinkle of mischief in his eyes.

"I don't think anyone asked for your opinion on me, Albert," she replies, narrowing her eyes.

"And I think we should make this the end," Darren says, looking between the two siblings.

"Hey," Albert says, grinning as he turns to me.

"Hello, it's nice to see you again," I remark with a soft smile, making sure that nobody is aware of the zoo inside my stomach.

"Your eyes were green?" He asks with a confused expression on his face.

"Oh, yeah, I was wearing lenses yesterday. Poor eyesight." A queasy feeling fills my chest as I lie to him, but I know that I have to.

"And you dyed your hair," he mutters.

"Yup," I say, sipping on my water, trying to avoid his gaze. "Wanted to go for something different."

"It looks good with your eyes," he compliments. I smile a little as I feel my cheeks starting to burn. I quietly thank him and avert my gaze to the breadsticks that arrive. I help myself to one as does everyone else, and when I bite into the buttery treat, my taste buds rejoice. The breadstick has flavour bursting inside of it, and I close my eyes to relish it.

"They're good, aren't they?" Luc says. I snap my eyes open and look at him grinning at me.

"Yes, they are," I say, chewing carefully. "Some of the best I've had."

"Yeah, that's fine, let them come," Albert speaks up and I look at him in confusion as two women walk over to us and stand at the head of the table. I look at them with a scrunched up face as I try to recognize them... I feel as if I know them, but I just can't put my finger on it.

"Oh my God!" One of them exclaims while looking at me. "I swear if you say that you don't know us, I'm gonna stab you in the eye with a butter knife."

My eyes widen hearing the reference and my eyebrows ride up. "Cass?" I ask, immediately turning to look at the other woman with brown hair. "Lee?" They nod at me. I stand up, moving past Ri to wrap my arms around them as all my happy memories come rushing back to me. Cassandra and Blakeley, my close friends since my diaper days. I can't fathom what my life would be without them, and how much I would have suffered.

"How?" I ask as I hug them.

"We're coming to NYU next year, so we thought we'd look around a bit. And Riona here said that we should come, so yeah, here we are," Lee says, smiling from ear to ear.

"Come on, sit down you three, our dinner's about to come and I ordered for you guys too." Riona scoots over to make space for us.

After maybe a half an hour of chatting and eating, Lee speaks up. "It was great meeting you all but we need to leave now, we need to get ready." Together she and Cass stand up again.

"You're leaving so early?" I ask, my lips turning downwards in a frown. This is my first time meeting them again after almost a year, I could use more time with them.

"We've been here since the morning and we looked around, so we need to get back home," Cass says, smiling softly. "We'll visit again, don't worry."

"Okay then." I get up again, wrapping them both in tight hugs. "It was great seeing you guys, I can't wait till you two come back!"

Before leaving, their eyes linger on Darren and Luc, which makes me raise my eyebrows. It's been subtle, but they've been doing this the entire time they've been here. It's a bit... suspicious.

"So, were you a business major?" I ask Albert as I turn to him, trying to engage more in the steady conversation going on around the table.

"Yeah, I was," he replies, taking another bite of his chicken.

"Where did you graduate from?" I ask him, tilting my head.

"From Columbia," he replies, "Riona was accepted there too but for some reason, she was hell-bent on going to NYU. I'm glad she went there, though. It seems like a nice place."

"Oh yeah," I say, nodding. "It's a very nice place,"

"If you don't mind me asking, do you have any siblings?" He asks slowly.

"Yeah, no it's fine," I say, assuring him, "I don't have any siblings," I mutter, trying not to think about Kane.

"You're quite lucky then," he says, eyeing Riona suspiciously while she glares right back at him.

"I don't know, having a sibling seems quite fun." I smile, amused, looking between both of them.

"It's all fun and games until I fuck something up. Then she'll become a reincarnation of Medusa," Albert says, rolling his eyes. A gasp leaves my lips.

"Oh my God, Albert," Riona groans, exasperated, "What is wrong with you?'

"What? I'm just saying the truth."

"That was kinda rude, I'm not going to lie," I smirk, teasing him a little.

"Yeah well, the truth hurts, get over it." He shrugs.

"Shit," Ri curses and all heads turn towards her. "I need to go, it's urgent." She then turns towards me. "Will you be okay?" I nod in response and she rushes out of the hotel. My eyes follow her until she opens the door and disappears behind it.

The slight buzzing of conversation continues around the restaurant as Jade excuses himself to go to the restroom. I look around the hotel, studying all the families, couples, and uni students eating dinner and having fun.

I feel someone's gaze on me so I look over my shoulder. I freeze. It's the same man from earlier today, staring at me. An eerie grin forms on his lips as he gives me a small wave. I feel the blood leaving my face as I zone out. My fingers start to tremble and I lose focus on what's happening around me. All the horrible memories come rushing back to me so I clench my fingers around the arm of the chair I'm in, inhaling deeply through my nose and exhaling through my mouth.

"Ari?" I feel someone shaking me. "Ari? Look at me, Ari?" My unfocused gaze meets Albert's as he looks down at me, concerned.

"What happened?" He asks, "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"N-Nothing," I mumble in a shaky voice as I stand up. "I need to go, I need to get out of here."

"Do you want me to take you back to the dorms? Or call Jade?" Albert asks as he stands up too.

"No, no, I'm fine. Just tell Jade that I went back and he should call me when he's done with the dinner." My voice cracks and Albert opens his mouth to say something, but I run out of the restaurant before he can even utter a word.

I numbly run along the pavement, not knowing where I'm going. Where should I go? I need to go somewhere, anywhere. I stop at the zebra crossing and look around. Even though the road is empty, I look for the pedestrian light. I start walking as soon as the light turns green, but when I'm halfway through the crossing I hear Albert calling me.

"Ari, look behind you!" I hear him shout. I turn around, only to see a car speeding down the road towards me. For a moment, I panic and I jump out of the way as quickly as I can, but I didn't look before moving. The next thing I know a bright light is blinding me, and I'm being pushed.

So, Lee and Cass are finally here!! Not a lot was happening in this chapter but the end was definitely a cliffhanger. And oh boy, is the next chapter chaotic. A lot is going to happen in the next chapters so stay tuned for that and I promise I will be consistent with my updates.

So, do we like Cass and Lee? What do you think of the suspicious glances Darren and Luc's way? And most importantly, what do think will happen in Ari?

Gahh, I can't wait to upload the next chapter and hear your thoughts on it! 

So, once again if you liked the chapter, make sure to tap on that little star in the corner and comment, tell me what you think of the chapter and most importantly give feedback, I know you people think otherwise but it's actually super helpful! 

Also, I just reached a hundred followers! How amazing is that! Thank you to everyone who followed me! Y'all are amazing, and even to those reading this, y'all are just as amazing too!

So, stay safe and see you with the next chapter! 

Edited by the talented Sarah Baker (Wattpad won't let me put her tag in, she is tagged in the inline comment, if anyone wants to check her out!)

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