Revenge Turned Blue (Hosie)

12-Shattered Like Glass

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Hope stepped out of the sleek black car, wearing her cream-colored suit, perfectly tailored to her frame. She paired it with a light blue dress shirt, with the top couple of buttons undone in a casual yet polished look.

Hope buttoned her jacket as she circled around to the passenger side, opening the door for Josie, offering her hand to help the brunette, which Josie gracefully accepted.

She emerged from the car, her dress a soft pastel pink that seemed to compliment Hope's outfit well. It was fitted to her body, stopping above her knees, showing off her long legs and her figure for the Tribrid.

Hope offered her arm, which Josie took with a soft smile, allowing herself to be led toward the restaurant's entrance.

"What is this place?" Hope asked curiously, her eyes scanning the outside of the building briefly.

"It's an Italian steakhouse," Josie answered, "Penelope actually recommended it."

Hope opened the door for Josie, then followed her inside.

The restaurant's interior was a nod to a bygone era, with red leather booths, vintage lighting, framed black-and white photos lining the walls.

Hope glanced around as they were being led to their table, taking it all in with an impressed smile. "Red leather booths and everything," she observed.

Josie glanced at the woman at her side, slightly apprehensive, "Too old-school?"

Hope shook her head, her smile widening. "Not at all. It's perfect."

They were seated in one of those plush red booths, where they settled in comfortably. They ordered a bottle of wine to share, and their meals arrived not too long after, Hope with a delicious looking steak and Josie with a pasta dish. The conversation flowed naturally the entire time, surprising Josie a bit. And Hope found herself at ease, more than she's felt in a long time.

And what was even more surprising–Josie felt the same way.

As they finished eating, Josie dabbed her mouth with her napkin and glanced across the room, her eyes catching on something, or rather someone. And it swiftly pushed her back into her agenda for the night, which had gotten off course somehow along the way.

She set her napkin down, smiling apologetically at Hope. "I'm gonna run to the restroom really quick."

Hope nodded with a smile on her lips. "Okay."

Josie slipped out of the booth and walked toward the back of the restaurant, though her destination wasn't actually the restroom. She glanced back at their booth, making sure Hope wasn't watching her.

Then, she approached a man behind the bar, dressed in all black, matching the other servers in the restaurant, fitting the upscale quality of the place. He was handsome, with neatly styled brown hair and warm brown eyes.

Josie knew who he was, but he didn't know her at all.

"Excuse me," Josie said politely, catching the man's attention. "Hi. Um, I'm at that booth over there in the corner, and I don't have a steak knife."

The man gave her a polite smile, "I'm sorry. I'll bring you one."

Josie nodded her thanks, giving him a small smile as he walked off before she turned back to face her booth.

She watched as he approached the table.

"Here you–" Ethan started, holding the steak knife in his hand, but the words died in his throat when his eyes landed on Hope. His expression shifted from polite to shocked, then quickly became something darker as his grip tightened on the handle of the knife. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Hope's eye widened slightly in recognition, "Ethan, I had no idea. I'm–"

But Ethan didn't wait for an explanation. He set the steak knife down harder than necessary and stormed off in an instant.

Josie returned just in time to catch the tail end of the interaction, her eyes flickering from Ethan's retreating figure, a successful look in her eyes that quickly is replaced by a faux sense of concern when she looks at Hope. "Is everything okay? What was that about?" She asks, sliding back into the booth.

Hope took a slow, steadying breath, her gaze finally leaving the man to look across the table, and she somewhat forces a smile. "It's kind of a long story," she said quietly.

Though Hope's demeanor seems to be completely composed and unaffected, Josie has a feeling the Tribrid is definitely shaken by the interaction, as planned. But the whole point of her plan was to get Hope to open up to her more, to solidify their connection. She wanted Hope to lose her composure a bit more, to confide in her. But clearly, Hope's trust is tougher to earn than most.

"You ready to go, love?" Hope asked, pulling Josie out of her thoughts, forcing her own smile with a nod as Hope rose to her feet, helping Josie from the booth.

They began to make their way to the parking lot, but the moment they rounded the corner, Hope deflated at the scene before her.

Ethan stood beside her car, a golf club gripped tightly in his hands. With a violent swing, he brought it crashing down onto the windshield, the glass shattering with a loud crack.

"Damn it," the Tribrid muttered under her breath. She quickly turned to Josie, her expression urgent but still calm. "Wait here, love."

Josie nodded, her expression filled with concern. But as Hope's back turned toward her, making her way over to the man, Josie couldn't help but smirk as her plan began to fall into place.

"Ethan," Hope approached Ethan somewhat cautiously, calling out to him. "Ethan, stop."

The man ignored her, his focus entirely on damaging the car. Another swing of the golf club sent shards of glass scattering across the pavement.

"Ethan!" Hope finally shouted, her voice demanding his attention this time.

Finally, Ethan paused, his chest heaving as he turned to face her. She could see the anger in his eyes, the pain and betrayal all mixed together.

"Look, I know how pissed you are, okay?" Hope said, her voice steady with a sense of understanding. "You have every right to be. But you have no idea how sorry I am about everything that happened."

Josie could hear the sincerity to Hope's words. She knew Ethan could too, but his grip still tightened on the golf club, his knuckles turning white as he stared her down, though the Tribrid didn't cower down. "You happened, Mikaelson. And if you were really sorry, you wouldn't be apologizing to me. You'd be apologizing to my sister."

With that, the man tossed his golf club aside and stormed off, leaving Hope standing there surrounded by the shattered glass. She watched him go, until her eyes turned back to her date.

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