Don't Grow Partial | Eminem

Bluebottle Fly

Something was bugging Christina. It wasn't the bluebottle fly that helicoptered around the room, its incessant buzzing irritating the daylights out of her.

She wasn't even in the mood to kill it, so she pushed herself up and opened the window, letting in the dew-damp morning air. The breeze felt cool against her skin, almost refreshing, but not quite enough to distract her from the knot twisting in her stomach.

The fly landed on the window's edge, then took off again in that erratic, stupid way flies do, oblivious to how close it had been to freedom. Fucking dumb insect, Christina thought.

She leant against the windowsill, arms crossed, her gaze alternating between the glass and the city below.

It wasn't just the fly. Something deeper gnawed at her, something she couldn't quite name. It was like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop, but she didn't even know where the first one had landed.

It had been two nights since she'd last seen Eminem. Since that exchange, his sneer still fresh in her memory. Irving had handled things — at least on the surface — but there was no way she could believe that Marshall would just back off like that.

He was calculating, always plotting.

Then there was the feeling that Irving wasn't telling her everything.

And Mya... Don't even get me started on Mya, Christina groaned internally. She had thought about the warning she heard earlier from Irving. But then again, Mya wouldn't do anything to betray her. Right?

Quickly pushing the thoughts away, she ran a hand through her hair, trying to shake off the tension. But it lingered. Unnecessarily.

Her phone rang, jolting her out of her thoughts. Nelly's name lit up the screen.

"We still on for Missy's party tonight?" His voice was casual.

"Yeah," Christina muttered. "Still on."

"Cool. I'll pick you up around ten. Ashanti's coming too."

"And Mya?"

There was a pause on the other end. "Yeah. She's coming."

Christina exhaled sharply, her eyes once more tracking the bluebottle fly as it droned dangerously close to her head again.

Great, she thought, pushing back a wave of exasperation. The awkwardness between her and Mya hadn't exactly faded since that night. Now, they'd be stuck in a car together — just perfect.

"Alright. See you then," she said, almost too quickly, before hanging up and cutting Nelly off before he could ask any more questions.

Christina felt a twinge of guilt.

The blonde singer sat down on the sofa, watching the fly zip around one last time before it found its way out the open window, disappearing into the pale blue sky. She stared after it, her mind as scattered as the insect's capricious flight path.

Fucking dumb insect, she thought again, but this time, she wasn't sure if she was talking about the fly — or herself.