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This chapter's song
No Broken Hearts by Bebe Rexha feat. Nicki Minaj
"No broken hearts in the club No tears in the club 'Cause we gon' get it poppin' tonight No broken hearts in the club More drinks pour it up 'Cause we gon' get it poppin' tonight"
***
In spite of her initial diffidence, Anna is considering accepting Aaleiyah's proposal, knowing that things can't go any worse than this, especially since she left her mother behind without letting her tell her side of the story. Remorse is filling her thoughts; however, a smile by Allyah seems to erase all the troubling issues she's been facing at least for a while.
"Come on," says Aaleiyah, making Anna pop out of her thoughts in an instant. "I know you don't want to tell us right now. But there's a place where you could do so without any problem." She smiles mischievously; before Anna can even ask a question, she ushers her towards her car, a jet black Jeep Compass.
"Get in," commands Aaleiyah, after which Anna takes a seat at the back, followed by Audrina and Allyah, who sit next to her. Ashleigh, on the other hand, occupies the front passenger seat, next to Aaleiyah. The latter, after a brief hesitation, starts the car and the group leaves the area.
They stop at a large car valet in front of what seems to be a pub. As they get off the Jeep, Aaleiyah winks at Anna, asking her, "Do you like this place? After the Tracy incident, I thought you'd enjoy a... what can I say... better organized event!" Everyone else stares at her confused, not recalling at all the fact that Tracy Adair ditched on her without notice.
"There are going to be models and influencers," adds Audrina, showing pride in her tone and especially her facial expression. "I know a lot of them, and I can guarantee that they're not all a bunch of snooty bitches." Anna sighs out of relief, glad that the sparkling world of Internet celebrities can relate to ordinary people like her, too.
The five girls walk into the pub, trying to avoid annoyed glares and frowns; though, Anna fails as she accidentally locks her eyes onto a blonde-haired model whose glacial expression is causing her to make several steps back. Audrina notices that and glares at the model, who leaves her spot but not without smirking and laughing under her breath.
Fortunately, they reach a more isolated lounge, surrounded by bright psychedelic lights, and sit on black leather couches. "Wow, this place is so heavenly!" comments Anna while touching the couch she's sitting on, feeling a pleasant sense of comfort.
Suddenly, a tall, lean young girl approaches the sofas Anna and her friends are sitting on. She has light chocolate-like skin, with big brown eyes and long straight hair of the same color. She smiles at Audrina, who returns the smile at her. As she sits next to Anna, the latter almost jumps off her seat. "Sorry... if you want, I'll go and sit elsewhere."
"No, you don't need to stand up. Stay here," replies the other girl, extending a hand. Anna hesitates, then she sits back at her spot of the sofa and shakes the big-eyed girl's hand. "Nice to meet you," she states politely, showing a heartfelt smile. "I'm Anna." She doesn't say her full given name, not wanting to intimidate her.
The brown-skinned girl introduces herself. "That's a very good name. Simple, but still charming," she states. "Anyway, mine is Alexandria, but you can call me Alex." She smiles widely, making everyone laugh out of relief. In particular, Audrina comments, "Nice to see you in this wide sea of bitchiness." She's clearly referring to the bratty model who put Anna out of her misery.
"Yeah, too many brats in this area, do you agree?" adds Ashleigh, curling her lips at the thought of meeting more unpleasant divas. She's holding a glass of whiskey and Coke, gently offered by the barista who has just passed by, unbeknownst to everyone else.
"Oh, there are drinks, right? I didn't see them until... right now," points out Aaleiyah, who has just noticed that the small table in the lounge is overhauled by several glasses of different sizes containing different drinks. Among them, she notices a Pink Martini, which she takes with no hesitation, causing Audrina to protest, "Hey! I wanted that, too!"
"You can ask the bartender to bring you one." Aaleiyah smirks, after which Audrina leaves the lounge to reach the bar and order her desired Pink Martini. She returns to the table with a tray containing four tall glasses, on top of which there are colored mini umbrellas and a slice of lemon each.
She takes one glass and offers the other three to the other girls, earning mixed reactions. Ashleigh takes hers, but leaves it on the table as she's still busy with her whiskey and Coke; Allyah immediately takes deep sips of her drink, not caring at all about her family's reaction.
In particular, her father, being of Indian descent, does not condone the consume of alcohol, but she doesn't matter, as she's more of a free spirit and believes that a glass of wine during meals won't do any harm. That's probably what prompts Allyah to drink that Martini in a matter of seconds.
While she, as well as Ashleigh, enjoy the peculiar fruity note of the drink, Anna politely declines to taste it, claiming that she doesn't want to get hung over. Still, Aaleiyah, who is unconvinced by her motives, persuades her. "Come on. Just one. You won't regret it."
Looking around, only to see four pairs of pleading eyes, Anna gulps before picking the Martini glass, closing her eyes and drinking all its content without thinking twice of it.
***
Alyzza is sitting at the balcony of her family's apartment, thinking of how her life is changing for the worst since being fired from her job and having that horrific encounter with Annaleigha. That girl is a persecution for her. Because of her, she has since lost all her certainties in life.
Therefore, she must move quickly and try to find a way to regain them before it's too late. The best way to get her life back in track is definitely talking to her mother, face to face, heart to heart. She fears that she'll lose her because of Ainsley and her absurd behavior towards her.
That is because Alanis's cousin threw such a tantrum in front of her entire family, embarrassing her and accusing her of being a double-dealer and her mother to support her devious choices. Obviously, Alyzza couldn't stand these accusations and started a fight with Ainsley. Every time she tries to delete that hurtful memory from her mind, she fails, especially when the Penland girl belittles her.
Alyzza considers standing up and getting back inside to look for her mother but is surprised by the latter reaching her to the balcony. The two women sit on two chairs among the beautiful plants that were watered several hours ago and look deeply into each other's eyes.
"Alyzza, I think we have to talk," says the woman, noticing that her daughter is shivering but assuming that she's just feeling cold. "Let's get back inside, shall we?"
"No, no, we're fine here," is the girl's reply. Her brown eyes are darting through the balcony with suspicion. She lowers her voice as she reprises speaking. "It's a serious matter, Mom, so please listen carefully."
