Cheater

Eleven

Cesar's POV:
It's almost one and the crew still isn't here. "Not gonna drink?" Bubblez asks me when she sees me staring at my beer. "Jamal probably told them not to come. Bet that dumb ass got jumped in." I laugh. "Thought you said he was smart?" She smiles. "You know what I mean." I shrug. "Baby, relax. I know how much they mean to you but you gotta trust that they're gonna show... they always do." She kisses me. "I'm not keeping my hopes up." I shrug. "Well you shouldn't doubt your best friends." Bubblez points behind me. "Hey guys!" She waves them over. "Hi." I smile at Monse. "Sorry we're late. Jamal's the designated driver and he decided to disappear for a few hours." Monse explains. "Don't worry about it." I tell them. "He was scared you guys weren't gonna show." Bubblez laughs. "Alsía's been here all night, you should go find her." I say to Jamal. "You know whatever you're trying to do... it doesn't make up for what you already did to us." He says. "Jamal!" Jasmine gives him a look. "I'm gonna go look for her." He storms off. "Jamal's been on edge since he left the Joint." Monse tries to cover for him. "It's on me. I know how he feels about me." I shrug it off. "I need a drink, anyone else?" Ruby asks. "Yes." We all say quickly. "I'll help." Jasmine follows him into the house. "I thought you guys started hanging out again." Bubblez says. "He's just in a bad mood and I doubt seeing you guys together is helping." Monse explains. "He hates me." She sighs. "He doesn't hate you." I say. "Maybe a little." Monse says honestly. "Hey Kiara!" One of Bubblez friends waves her over. "I'll be right back." She kisses my cheek and goes to them. "Maybe a little?" I narrow my eyes at Monse. "I was just being honest." She shrugs. "I don't think either of us wanna be honest with her." I laugh under my breath. "Who said I didn't?" She asks. "What does that mean?" I step closer to her. "I don't know yet." Monse tells me. "You can't say shit like that." I say. "Why not?" She crosses her arms. "I waited, you left." I remind her. "You told me not to stay for you." She says. "That's just what people say, Monse! You think I didn't want you here?" I ask her. "Why didn't you just tell me?" She glares at me. "I wasn't gonna make you choose between me and something you wanted to do... again. It's not like I actually thought you'd leave." I admit. "I was ready to run away with you, you think I wouldn't stay here for you?" She asks. "You went to Brentwood after I tried to stop you, remember? How was this gonna be any different, Monse?" I ask before I walk away from her.

Monse's POV:
After Cesar left me alone in the middle of the party I ended up sitting alone in the kitchen. "Oh thank God, I finally found you! I've been looking for you for at least half an hour." Bubblez sits next to me on the counter and hands me a soda. "I'm not driving." I tell her. "I know but Cesar told me you weren't a big drinker." She smiles. "I'm not." I say. "Yeah, Cesar prides himself on how much he knows about you." Bubblez nods awkwardly. "Do you ever miss him?" She asks. "What?" I look at her with wide eyes. "I'm sorry, I don't wanna make this weird." She says quickly. "Too late." I mumble under my breath. "It's just... he talks about you a lot. I thought he still had feelings for you." She explains. "Wait, really?!" I sound way too excited. "Yeah... I actually almost broke up with him 'cause of it. He doesn't know that though." Bubblez says. "We weren't meant to be more than friends." I assure her. "That doesn't mean he doesn't still have feelings for you. I mean, you were each others first love." She tells me. "He told you that?" I ask. "Yeah, I guess you don't actually know how we ended up together." She laughs. "Cesar was at Ruby's and he was a mess. Some how I ended up being the only person he could talk to. He talked about you nonstop. When he kissed me it was a mistake, we both knew it, but we both needed someone." Bubblez looks upset which is kinda weird to see. "Sometimes we just don't think things through." I can't look her in the eye. "I know we don't know each other like that but we should hangout. I think we have a lot more in common than just lil Spooky." Shit, she knows. "Like what?" I ask. "People underestimate us. I've done more for the Santos than any of these guys and from what lil Spooky tells me, so have you. If it wasn't for you he'd probably be dead." She explains. "I'll drink to that." I laugh under my breath. "I might not be a big drinker but I'm a fun drunk." I get up and grab a couple beers out of a cooler. "I can see why Cesar likes you so much." She says. "I think he likes me the normal amount." I laugh. "No, he used to be so crazy about you. There's love and then there's what you guys had." I can tell she's uncomfortable. "Used to be but we were just infatuated. It was really intense but definitely not made to last." I tell her. "Wow, boarding school really teaches you some big words." She laughs. "What can I say, I'm a nerd." I smile. "If he didn't tell me he loved me I would totally be spiraling right now. You're smart and fun to hangout with, talk about a down grade. All I do is piss him off." Bubblez says. "He said he loved you?" I ask. "Yeah, a few days ago." She nods. "Right." I say. "I should probably go find Jasmine and Ruby. We all ditched them." I put down my beer and walk away.
"We have to go." I tell Jasmine when I find her. "Are you ok?" She asks. "No." I try not to cry.