Bastiana has a loving family, two amazing best friends, and a secret.
Over summer vacation, Bastiana and her besties do their best to focus on their bucket list in order to distract them from all the secrets they're keeping from one another. When a...
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"BENET! GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY GIRL!" Nico roars as he pushes through the crowd.
My head snaps up at the sound of Ash's name in Nico's slurred voice. My face immediately hardens into a scowl as I glare at the idiot stumbling towards us.
As he pushes through the last of the people separating him from us, I instinctively take a step closer to Tiana and Ash, stepping in between them and Nico. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Ash pull Tiana behind him, stepping up beside me.
"What the hell do you think you're doing with my girl, Benet?" Nico slurs as he finally comes to stand in front of us. He sways back and forth slowly, off balance. I can smell the liquor on his breath from here and it makes my hands clench into tight fists at my sides.
"Just being there for her, like usual. Someone should be." Ash quips, a devious smirk on his face.
"Well, get your own girl, Benet." Nico snaps. "This one belongs to me!" He points lazily at where Tiana is standing behind Ash's left side.
"You better watch your damn mouth, Hardt." I growl at him.
"Hold on, Ry." Tiana says as she steps out from behind us, moving to stand directly in front of Nico. "I can speak for myself." She says, looking up at Nico.
Ash and I both move to stand closely behind her, making sure we can react quickly if Nico tries anything. Tiana straightens her spine and squares her shoulders before she speaks again.
"Nice of you to show up, Nico." Her voice is calm and even, but I can hear the irritation below the surface. "And drunk, too. Classy." She shakes her head slowly looking him up and down, taking in his disheveled appearance. "I was hoping that we could have a nice night together. But I see you have other intentions tonight." Nico opens his mouth to speak, but Tiana holds a hand up to stop him. "No. I'm talking now. You don't get to just show up late and drunk, disrespect my best friends and then claim me like property."
Tiana opens her clutch and pulls out the rose she brought for Nico without looking away from his face. She steps up to stand just a few inches in front of him, and reaches up to gently slide the rose into the pocket of his jacket. Nico's face softens as she does so, and he looks down at the flower with a mixture of confusion and wonder. She pats his pocket after she puts the flower in it, letting her hand linger on his chest before she steps back to look up at him.
"I belong to no one but myself." This time her voice is low and calculated, as if she's barely containing her anger.
My teeth clench tighter as my jaw ticks. I hate when someone upsets her like this, especially Nico. Tiana is so full of happiness and light that seeing her angry or sad puts me on edge. She deserves to be with someone whose presence makes her happy, not stressed.
"If you'd like to continue to be part of my life, you'd do well to remember that." Tiana continues, taking another step back so she's standing closer to me and Ash than to Nico. "Do you want that?" I can hear the slight tremble in her voice, and I hate that she's hurting over this, over him.
