How to Be a Bad Girl ✔

Chapter Twenty-Two - The Act

~♡~Sophia's POV~♡~

Where the heck is she?

I glance at my phone and see that the clock has already struck 7.15 P.M. It's highly unusual for someone like Mac to run late, especially in an important event such as this one. In a party as big and glamorous as tonight's and with a guy as hot as Mark Hamilton III, if she's not fast, someone else would probably snatch him first!

As I walk back and forth, I try calling her. "Come on. Pick up, pick up, pick up!"

She doesn't pick up the first call, so I try calling her again. She finally picks up on my third trial.

"Mac? Where the heck are you?" I yell.

"I'm here, I'm here!" she replies through the phone. At the same time, I can hear her voice nearby, followed by the loud clattering sound of high heels. When I turn to the origin of the noise, Mac is running — or rather trying to run while looking like a duck in the process because God knows how hard it is to run in those five-inch Stilettos — towards me.

"Mac!" I shout as I approach her. "Where the heck have you been?"

She stops in front of me and struggles to take a breath. The second she opens her mouth to talk, the strong smell of booze pierces my nose, causing me to jerk my head back. Has she been drinking? Even before the party?

She wouldn't have done that, would she? I mean, this is Mac we're talking about, not me!

Hell, even I don't come to a party in a drunken state. I get drunk at the party, not before!

"Sorry, I fell asleep," she answers with little to no remorse.

Not wanting to believe what my brain is telling me, I lean forward and sniff her. "Have you been drinking?" Then, the breezing air around us softly blows from her direction to mine and another familiar yet highly unexpected smell hits my nose: the smell of freshly smoked cigarettes. My forehead puckers in a split second. Utter disbelief fills my voice when I continue, "And smoking?"

My mind is playing tricks on me, right?

"Yeah," she replies with an unexpected amount of calmness. "What's the big deal?"

What? Stunned, I blink once. What's the big deal? I blink twice. Why do I feel like I have created a monster?

"N-nothing." I shake my head lightly, trying to convince myself everything is alright. Even so, a small amount of guilt starts to seep into my brain.

Meanwhile, Mac takes a deep breath and straightens herself. "Come on, we're late already!"

Without waiting for me, she struts towards the front door with her chin held up high. There's something different about her tonight. The way she crosses her legs when she's walking, how she sways her hips in a rather sexy movement, and how she flips her hair seductively once in a while; she's doing everything with the utmost confidence. When I watch her walking from behind, it's as if I'm looking at someone else and not the Mackenzie that I knew. It's as if I'm looking at... me.

Or Mini-Me since she's way shorter than I am.

The bottom line is... what have I done?

Shaking the thoughts away, I chase after her. "Mac, wait!" I grab her right arm and force her to turn around. "Where do you think you're going?"

"In! Duh!" she retorts, rolling her eyes. "Where else?"

Seriously, who is this girl?

"Well, do you have an invitation? Because I clearly don't have one!" I reply, irritation spreads through my voice.