Roll the Dice (Jori)

14

Hey, Hey! Sorry for the late upload. I've been sick as a dog. I had the first half truckin', until a nasty cold hit me out of nowhere. Let me tell you--phlegm is not fun.

Anyway, I hope you don't mind this slow buildup. But I can promise you Jori is gonna kick up pretty soon.

Enjoy your read!

TORI

As soon as we stepped out of the cab, I could tell it wasn't going to be just any house party. The mansion before us was like something out of a movie--no surprise, considering our host.

The second we stepped inside Mr. Monata's mansion, I knew that place was way out of out our league. The house was huge--like, huge. It was the kind of place where you'd expect to see celebrities left and right. There weren't very many, but it was still amazing. People were everywhere, talking and laughing, most of them wearing outfits that looked like they cost more than my entire wardrobe.

The walls were lined with giant windows that let in a view of the cityscape. The casinos and fountains were all lit up, their striking colors dazzling up the whole city of Las Vegas. Everything inside was old-fashioned and shiny. It felt wrong to even step in the place. There was a huge staircase right in the middle of the room--the kind you see in those old movies where someone always makes a dramatic entrance.

The crowd was dressed to impress too. Everyone looked like they had just stepped out of a fashion magazine. I felt a little out of place; like I should've been more prepared for it.

I mean, who just casually goes to a house party that looks like it could host the Oscars?

I glanced over at Jade, who was already scanning the room with that emotionless expression of hers. She looked...good. Really good. She had some morbid-looking, but awfully beautiful dress on. It was dark and flowy.

Go figure.

The place was packed with all sorts of people--actors, directors, writers. It was probably everyone who was anyone in the industry. At one point, we wandered into what must've been the living room, though calling it that felt like an understatement. It was the size of a small theater, complete with a grand piano in the corner and floor-to-ceiling windows that offered an awesome view of the cityscape below. I could see Jade eyeing the piano, but she didn't make a move toward it. Instead, she leaned against a wall, looking perfectly at ease in a place that made me feel like I needed to keep my hands in my pockets just to avoid breaking something.

It had been quite some time since we had last talked. She completely avoided me at the hotel lounge. It was still difficult to come to terms with what happened--but considering the fact she was perfectly content with acting like nothing happened, then so was I. It took some time to think about. To know how I really felt about it.

I was straight. I knew that. I didn't like Jade like...that. And Jade didn't like me like...that, either. I didn't think, at least. I mean, why would she have liked me? She hated me. And all I wanted to settle with was the fact the two of us had just been going through some kind of hormonal crisis and got confused with ourselves. Clearly, it was bad enough that we had to resort to...raunchy...stuff.

My only issue was Aiden. Even if what Jade and I did meant nothing, it was still something. I basically cheated on a guy I wasn't quite dating yet. I went behind his back at his own party and did things with Jade. I hated myself for it. I didn't cheat. I was fully against cheating. I mean, I was cheated on once already by Steven. At that point, I just seemed like a total hypocrite.

I wanted to tell him what happened. I needed to tell him what happened. It was the right thing to do. But at the same time, we weren't even boyfriend-girlfriend. He was just...Aiden. Aiden who happened to be in Las Vegas at the same time as me, and took me on dates.