Fool Me Twice, Shame On Me ✓

[ 18 ] Double-crossed Part One

Chapter song : Não me toca by Anselmo Ralph

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• C H A P T E R E I G H T E E N  •

Two years ago

16 Hillside Street West

I read the address repeatedly on my phone — to be certain it corresponded to that of the motel situated across the street.

"Are you sure we're at the correct place?" Aaliyah demanded as she darted her eyes from the building to me, in a moment of confusion.

Forcing myself to keep a cool composure, I gave her a reassuring smile as I nodded in confidence.

"Positive."

Truth be told, I had no sense of direction and inwardly withheld the fact that I didn't have a clue of where we currently were.

It was a Friday night, when Aaliyah and I were on our way to Noel Anderson's party which supposedly started at 10 pm. Dean kept pestering me to attend the social event — since he yearned for us to make our first appearance as a couple. He texted me the address to where the party occurred, but throughout the evening, I found it very difficult to uncover the location of the popular football player's residence.

Earlier that day, I pleaded Anthony to accompany me to the event but, being the studious boy that he was, preferred to stay at home and undertake the load of assignments he needed to complete. Natalie was to originally present herself at the party — however, due to a conflict that transpired within the family, she unexpectedly got grounded.

My best friend threw me a look of disbelief. "So, you mean to tell me that the party is hosted in that building?" she thrusted her index finger at the motor inn to insinuate my dishonesty.

I signed in defeat, choosing to drop the act. "Fine Liyah, you win. . . I don't know where we are."

"Why couldn't you just admit it earlier instead of making me waste fifteen minutes of my time. " she protested, "I'm heading towards the motel to ask someone for directions." Aaliyah implied before sauntering towards the crosswalk.

I followed suit and halted in my tracks once we looked both ways of the street for oncoming cars before crossing the road.

"Sorry," I apologized by the time we approached the motel sign. Since it was nightfall, the lobby was empty once we entered the inn and neared the front counter. An older woman who was busy flipping the pages of a Vogue magazine, sat up in a quick motion once she grew aware of our presence.

"Can I help you?" she queried as she eyed the two of us in a welcoming gesture.

"We were wondering if you could help in, giving us directions to Hillside Street West." Aaliyah told her politely.

"We're very lost as you can see," I added sheepishly, "and we're sorry for interrupting your lecture."

The receptionist nodded in understanding. "Don't worry, it's really not a problem. This area is Hillside Street East so to arrive at your destination, you guys have to go from north eastwards firstly, before turning left to face the West. It's about a twenty minutes walk from here."

After she gave us directions, we expressed our gratitude before departing.

By the time we arrived at the party, minutes after it commenced, the house was overcrowded of teenagers. There were people who were socializing among themselves, at every turn we took. Once Aaliyah and I dispersed, I maneuvered my way through the throng with one task in mind — Find Dean.