COMPLICATED.

CHAPTER 20

ARIA

​I can’t get it out of my head. Nick’s angry look—that cold fury I’ve never seen in all our years of friendship. Everything is so strange now. It’s useless to deny it: we’re friends. I have to forget that kiss once and for all before I ruin our relationship entirely. But everything is already shifting, and I don’t know how to act. I’m screwing everything up, I know. But this is who I am now. I’ll forget what happened. Sooner or later.
​"My friend, you think too much. I’ve been talking to you for ten minutes and you probably haven’t heard a word I said!" Aria’s voice snaps me back to reality. We’re at a gas station; she must have already filled up while I was lost in my own void. How embarrassing.
"I’m sorry, you’re right. It’s just been a long day and fighting with Nick makes it worse. What were you saying?"
"Is it a habit of yours? Apologizing for every little thing?" Aria rolls a strand of black hair around her finger. "I make messes all the time and I never apologize. Forget about everyone, even Nick. If he cares about you, you’ll fix it. It’s not like you’re a couple!"
​My eyes go wide, and I feel the heat rising to my cheeks. I fidget nervously in my seat.
Aria bursts into a raspy, amused laugh. "Oh-oh! Something tells me you actually are!"
"N-no! That’s absurd! We’re friends, nothing more!" Why am I stuttering like a twelve-year-old with her first crush?
"Sure, sure. I’ll pretend to believe you," she replies with a smirk. As she talks, I notice an inflection in her voice for the first time.
"Wow, what an accent! Are you British? I didn't know that."
"Yes, I am," she says curtly, her grip tightening on the steering wheel. Her easygoing vibe vanishes in a second.
"And how is London? I bet it’s beautiful."
Her knuckles turn white. "Just a city like any other. But let’s not bore ourselves with those stories; we’re almost there."
​She doesn't want to talk about it. Message received. I don’t want to risk losing my only ally right now by being too curious. I take a deep breath as we enter New York’s most exclusive neighborhood. Colossal villas and an ostentation of wealth that I usually find irritating. Other kids see these parties as a ticket into luxury; I see them as zoos for bored people.
​Seth’s house is a monster of glass and concrete. There’s already an ocean of people in the garden. The elite of the senior class is all here. I roll down the window, and the music hits me like a slap.
"How do you know Seth?" I ask as we park among a parade of luxury cars. "He’s the basketball captain; you don't seem like the cheerleader type."
Aria smirks. "You mean how do I know him without being a brainless bird? Let’s just say he’s a 'friend.' Seth prefers the company of bad girls." She winks at me and gets out of the car.
​Entering that house is like walking onto the set of an American fraternity movie. In the kitchen, people are drinking shots off a girl lying on the counter; in the living room, cheerleaders are grinding on basketball players; the upstairs rooms are a suspicious revolving door, and people are jumping into the pool in their underwear.
"Aria, where the hell did you bring me?" I yell over the bass.
"Come on, Emma! It’s just getting started!"
"Trust me, it’s usually worse," a male voice interjects.
Seth appears behind Aria and kisses her with a passion that forces me to look away.
"Seth, control yourself! You’re scaring her!" Aria jokes, pushing him back.
"And you’re being rude. Aren't you going to introduce your new friend? I want to meet the girl who actually has the guts to put up with you." Seth looks at me, then gives a strange smile. "So, you’re the famous Emma Hamilton? That douchebag's girlfriend?"
​My blood freezes, then starts to boil. Douchebag. He’s referring to Leo, but the insult hits me too for having been with him.
"Seth! You’re an idiot!" Aria scolds him. Then she turns to me: "Emma, if you want to leave, I get it."
I hear Paul’s words in my head: Prove you’re stronger.
I look Seth straight in the eyes. "Seth!" I yell. "Pour me a drink. Something strong. Now."
The two exchange a surprised look, then Aria lets out a shout of approval.
"Well done, Hamilton!"
Let the party begin. I don't want to feel anything anymore.