Ch.10: Ready

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I didn't expect to end up drinking this much

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I didn't expect to end up drinking this much. What started as a typical house party had morphed into some kind of wild festival, with half the neighborhood showing up, even some grown adults who probably had no business being there. The place was a chaotic blur of flashing lights, thumping bass, and bodies moving in every direction. It was the kind of night you only see in movies or read about in urban legends.

As usual, I was in the corner with Valentina, our lips locked, her hands getting more adventurous by the second. Everything was going as planned—or at least, my usual plan—until something caught my eye.

Through the dim light and the fog of too many drinks, I saw her. Leah. The Leah, standing just a few feet away, looking like she'd somehow stepped out of a Vogue cover shoot and into this teenage wasteland. The sight of her froze me in place, like I'd just seen a ghost—an incredibly gorgeous, impossibly out-of-place ghost.

I pulled away from Valentina so fast she nearly lost her balance. She gave me a confused look, her lips still slightly parted. "What's it?" she asked, her tone teetering between concern and irritation.

"Nothing," I lied, trying to play it cool. "Just... give me 5 minutes." I forced a casual shrug, but my eyes kept darting back to Leah.

Valentina raised an eyebrow but didn't press further. "Fine," she muttered, then wandered off to find Jason, who was probably too drunk to notice or care about anything by now.

I took a deep breath and tried to clear my head. What the hell was Leah doing here? This wasn't her scene—not by a long shot. Was she lost? Bored? Or maybe she had a secret wild side no one knew about? Either way, I couldn't just ignore this. My curiosity, mixed with a buzz of alcohol, made it impossible to resist.

I started to make my way through the crowd, weaving between people dancing, laughing, and shouting. My heart pounded in my chest, but I wasn't sure if it was because of the alcohol, the music, or the fact that Leah was here, right in front of me, looking like she belonged in a whole different world.

As I got closer, I noticed she was talking to someone—a guy I didn't recognize, probably another one of those random adults who had shown up. He was laughing, but Leah didn't seem that into it. She looked... bored? Or maybe just distracted.
——————-

The moment Leah's words left her mouth, I could practically feel the heat radiating off my neck. "Kid?" I'm standing here, looking like the epitome of a man, and she calls me a kid? I could hear the metaphorical sound of my ego taking a hit, but I kept my face as neutral as ever.

"Just the neighbor's kid," she'd said like I was some child she babysat. My eyes flicked to the guy she was talking to, and the urge to remind everyone in this vicinity that I was anything but a kid was strong. But no, I had to play it cool, had to keep that calm, collected, and sexy exterior I'd perfected over the years. Can't let a single word get under my skin, right? I'm Enzo Parker—nothing fazes me.

Except, apparently, Leah.

"Cool," I replied, my voice as even and cold as I could muster, pulling my hand back with a slow, deliberate motion like I had all the time in the world. On the inside, though? I was already planning my comeback. This wasn't over. Not by a long shot.

I turned away, giving a casual wave like this whole interaction hadn't just ruined my night, my mind racing. Time to hit the bar and down something strong. If I was going to be stuck in this "kid" role, I might as well drown it in a few shots of tequila.

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⏰ Last updated: Aug 24 ⏰

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