Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

SOPHIE

“W-what?” I blinked, my heart constricting as shame washed over my entire body. Like a danm soaked chicken. “I… I wasn’t, I am not in hea—“

I sealed my lips shut, realizing the words I was just about to say out loud.

Ace’s lips curved into a small smile, his eyes holding an amusement I had never seen on him before. This was amusing to him wasn’t it? Embarrassing me.

Annoyance raced through my blood and I pushed off him—barely.

I put distance between us, clearing my throat. My fingers bit into my palm as I looked at the ground. “That’s… that’s not a nice thing to say to people.”

“Isn’t it?” From the corner of my eyes, I saw Ace tilt his head slightly. “I had no idea. My apologies, Sophia. I’d be willing to learn more manners if you would be ‘open’ to teaching.”

My eyes widened at the seductive way he had suggested the word ‘Open’

What the…

But not just that… He had called my name. Ace had called my name.

I whipped my eyes to meet his. His unreadable eyes held nothing, but with the intensity in his gaze, I knew I had his full, uninterrupted attention.

How did he even know my name? He had not been there for the introduction downstairs. But my girl-crush moment was ruined when I realized, he had gotten my name wrong. Ofcourse he had.

“My name is Sophie. Not Sophia…”

“Sophia.” He repeated slowly, tasting the name. Like my correction meant horse shit to him. “If you’re done gawking. You can use the door.”

I folded my hands into fists on my sides, words and insults stood at the tip of my tongue, but none would see the light. I wasn’t bold enough to say the colorful insults I usually had to anyone, let alone… him.

Huffing, I turned around and stomped out of his room, pulling the door harder than I intended —okay, maybe as hard as I actually intended, even praying to cause real damage.

I slammed the door closed, and just as soon as the first wave of fresh air hit my pale skin, I could swear I heard a low laugh from Ace’s room.

I was so stupid! Why did I loose my balance like that? Stupid, Stupid Stupid me!

I hit my hand on my face over and over as I hurried down the stairs and towards where Abigail had mentioned was my room.

There was no way in the seven heavens I was facing Ace again at the dining if he indeed, decided to come down for dinner.

Not after embarrassing myself like that. Of all the good, kind, kissable muscled Hockey players I could have had a crush on…. Why on the planet did it to be Ace fucking Beckham?

He was a jerk. Rude, forgetful. And yet, my heart says, ‘Bon voyage, he’s the one for you.’

Even when it knew pretty well I could never be the one he would ever choose. Even If my nerdy self was the last person on the planet.

I jumped on my bed, grabbing the soft pillow, and then, I screamed my entire lungs, shame, and large intestines into it.

****

“Swear on everything you believe in that you had no idea that was the Beckham mansion?!” I held my very harmless water bottle to Madison’s throat.

Her two hands were up in the air in absolute surrender. “I swear on my grandmother’s napkin. I had no idea! I mean, remember the Beckham brothers never really speak about their families? All that is available online about them is their Hockey and maybe who they dated?”

I narrowed my gaze at her, and with a frustrated sigh, let go of her. Madison knew I had a crush on Ace. I mean, who didn’t have a crush on him?

But what she didn’t know, was what had happened between Ace and I at the last Halloween bonfire.

I knew even if I did tell her, she would never believe me. Hell if it didn’t happen to me, I wouldn’t believe me too.

“Party at the Mansion tonight!” Someone screamed, running down the hallway.

Maddie and I turned at the same time, watching as Belladonna Gomez sprinted through the hall, slamming flyers into people’s hands.

They were eager to receive it of-course. Nothing Greenwoods loved more than a party, especially one thrown by the hockey gods.

“Party tonight! Cool kids only,” Belladonna stopped short at where Madison and I stood, her green eyes looked me up and down in disgust. Then moved to Madison. Giving her a flyer instead. “No nerds allowed. You know the drill.”

“How dare yo—“ Madison began, but Belladonna had already sprinted past.

I sighed, shaking my head and turning to unlock my locker. “It’s okay, we both know I would be too busy at the Coffee shop to attend either way. Hell even if I was indeed invited, I still wouldn’t go. It’s not my scene.”

I could feel Madison’s sad eyes on me. Sometimes, I wondered why she hung out with me. Madison and I might be best friends, but we were direct opposites.

She was in the cheerleading team, and I, was a volunteer for the library. She had curves that made it easy for her to be the life of the party, hell to even roll with Mackenzie and her rude goons.

But for some reason utterly unknown to me, she preferred my company.

“I’m sorry, Sophie, I hate when they do that to you.”

I hated when they did that to me too.

I turned to her, forcing a smile on my face and tugging a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “You have to go to that party, Maddie. Even if I’m not going. Remember you are the head of the camera unit? You need to take cool pictures and stuff.”

Maddie huffed a breath like she couldn’t care less about taking pictures. Then, she looked down at the paper in her hand. I turned away, feeling the ache rise in my chest and spread into my muscles.

“Oh. My. Fucking. Goddess!!!” Maddie screamed, sending me into a shock as the books I held tumbled to the ground.

“Madison!” I glared at her, picking the books angrily. “Stop doing that!”

“You are not going to believe this!” She sqeaked, shoving the black flyer into my hand.

And the first line sent every hair on my back standing. “PARTY AT THE BECKHAM MANSION. NINE PM.”

Ace and Jaxon were throwing the party.

And it was the Beckham mansion.

The one I currently worked and, lived in.

“Isn’t this great!? That means you can come too! I mean, you practically live there!”

Great? No! This was far from great. Mrs Abigail had left this morning, and I knew she wouldn’t have had issues with the party eitherway, considering Madison had been invited to a lot of parties in the Beckham house eitherway.

But…. But. Goddess this was bad.

“Omg! We totally need to go shopping, this will be your first adult party ever!”

“No we don’t!” I shot at her, even as she grabbed my wrist, dragging me towards the school exit.

“Why not?!”

“Because I am not attending, I have Library clean up, and to add, I also have a night shift at the coffee shop. And I don’t know if I need to remind you that I wasn’t even invited.”

“Excuses, Excuses,” she sang, not hearing anything I was saying. “I’m getting you a dress for tonight and you have no say in it Sophie Fane. Let’s show up at that party and let the Hockey god see just how much he had been missing by not noticing you.”

“Ughh, I hate you.”

****

If I counted how many times I actually said I would kill Madison and went through with it, she would have been dead a total of five hundred and fifty three times.

After I had woken up, the entire house was empty. Hell I didn’t even wake that late, but the elderly woman who had helped me locate Mrs Abigail earlier, Cecilia, had informed me the boys had left for practice. And Mrs Abigail and her Husband had traveled.

I had to take a cab to school, and the fact that now I had to return to a house that was going to be full of germ driven teenagers, drunk and kissing and fucking and doing really disgusting things everywhere, didn’t make it better.

Maybe I was just jealous that I had not been invited. Once again.

“Oh my goodness, Sophie,” Maddie stood, watching me from the dresser mirror in her bedroom. A small smile I couldn’t stop passed me. Madison had glamoured me with so much make up that I actually looked, beautiful. “You look like someone every man would fall on their knees to worship. “

Every man, except the one person I actually wanted to notice me.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, checking the dress Madison had convinced me to wear. Apparently she had purchased it months ago in my size and hid it, preparing it for this moment where I would finally go to a party with her.

The short gown stopped just underneath my ass, its tightness hugging every curve I didn’t even know I had.

At the top, it hugged my breast in a way that if my breathing quickened just a bit, the swell of my breast was going to rise and fall, drawing attention to it.

My lips thinned into a line as I turned to Maddie, hiding the tears that blurred my vision. She had done so much to make this work. Even though she really didn’t have to.

“Don’t you dare cry and ruin that makeup I spent hours doing, Sophie Fane!” She warned, her own eyes watering with happy tears.

I burst out in mid laugh cry. “I don’t know how to make it up to you.”

“Come to the hockey games with me until this season ends.” She blurted out, almost like she had planned for me to ask that question to give her specific reply.

I rolled my eyes, typical Maddie. “Fine. But we are staying at the back row. Anywhere that wouldn’t draw attention.”

Again, Ace wasn’t going to notice me either way, so it made no sense trying to avoid him and then denying Maddie her chance to see her Hockey games.

“Deal!”

Minutes later, Madison was pulling up to the wide, opened gates of the Beckham mansion.

The entire place was buzzing with music and life. Cars of different shapes and kind were parked all over, and students could be seen littering the arena.

Some with drinks, and some being drowned into their partner’s mouths.

How was that even healthy?

‘You’re just jealous.’ My inner voice echoed in my head and I shook it off.

“Come on…” Maddie pulled me through the crowd, walking so fast on heels that it made me instantly nauseous as I tried to match her pace on my heels.

I barely wore them, and I could already feel the ache in a side of my leg and my toes.

“Slow…” the music drowned out my voice. If I thought the song outside was loud, then I had been joking.

Goddess this was not… my scene.

The bright party lights flashed over my eyes, almost threatening to blind me.

The living room that I had recalled as calm and peaceful, was now anything but.

Students who wore even sexier clothes than what I wore were everywhere.

Even Maddie had disappeared from my sight.

Goosebumps raced over my skin, my heart pumping so loud in my ears I almost felt my skin crawl.

And then, that sensation.

That feeling I often got out of the blues.

Someone was watching.

I turned around, my eyes searching the flicking blue and red lights. Searching over the tens of students. And then to the the balcony that the staircase had.

And there he was.

Ace Beckham stood. His hand on a red cup, his fingers tracing its tip in round circles. But his eyes was not on cup. Or the students. Or the girl who stood next to him—Mackenzie Mc-Carly. The cheer captain and Queen of greenwoods high.

No, his eyes were on me. I had his full, unwavering attention.

My breath hooked in my throat, my grey eyes staring into his as the loud song which had threatened to deafen me, reduced…. Or maybe it didn’t.

I wasn’t sure. My lips parted, and I watched Ace’s eyes as it slowly peeled away from my face, and in one smooth movement, his gaze slid to my neck, waist, thigh.

The dress Maddie had given me. She had been right. It HAD caught his attention.

And before I could let myself react at that fact, a hand snaked around Ace’s chest, her perfectly manicured fingers sliding inside his unbuttoned leather jacket.

My heart dropped. A thousand goosebumps prickling my skin.

Mackenzie’s eyes were blaring fire and brimstone at me, having noticed Ace had been looking at me. She turned him around, making him turn his gaze to her.

I bit my lips, fighting the ice that raced through my body, quenching every heat his stare had brought.

I watched Mackenzie lean in towards Ace, and my breath caught, with Ace now facing her, she peeked a glance at me, a smirk on her face as she stood on her tiptoes and whispered something into Ace’s ear.

And next, they both turned, walking together into the hallway. And I knew… I just knew what they were both going to do. He was going to have sex with her.

I blinked, forcing my teary gaze away from the now empty space.

And every sound of the heightened music, every blinding light flickering across, every single body wheezing through me. It all came back.

With full force.

Tears blurred my vision, my head spinning as nausea and dizziness hit at the same time.

A shiver raced down my body as something cold slammed into me. A drink.

The liquid soaked into my dress instantly, dripping down my chest, my stomach and my thighs.

And then, laughter. It came from everyone and everywhere.

A boy nearby snorted into his cup, another whispering while staring at me, another laughing… another recording on a phone.

Like the entire hall had stopped their activities to watch me. To watch my humiliation.

My breath clogged, I couldn’t breath. My fingers dug into the hem of my wet dress, my eyes racing through the tens of eyes on me.

Maddie, I needed Maddie… where was—

“Sorry, you were so invisible we didn’t see you there.” Betty grinned, an empty cup that once held cold alcohol was in her hand. Betty was one of Mackenzie’s friends.

“Which brings me to question, what are you doing here?” Belladonna folded her arms, “I remember saying no nerd freaks were allowed.”

Shivers rocked my legs as more droplets of the drink slid down my legs to my shoes. My dress was drenched. The dress Maddie had spent months preparing for me.

“Why… why would you do that?!” I cried out, my voice cracking as my tears broke free. They shrugged, as though my outburst meant nothing. Like my feelings were not valid.

Choking out a sob, I pushed past them, making my way through the crowd of bodies.

My eyes stung as more tears slipped past. I swiped it off with the back of my hand, going as fast as I could to the exit door.

I screamed when my leg bent, the heel of my shoe going sideways. Pain shot up my right leg, and I felt the swell and bruise it would leave, but I didn’t stop.

I was racing down the stairs of the mansion now, limping on one good leg.

Until I made a sharp turn to the exit of the mansion, a cab had just been passing, I waved it down, fighting the fresh wave of tears that raced down my cheeks.

“Mr Grey’s Coffee shop please.” The words stumbled through my tears, and I saw the driver peek a glance at me. But thankfully he said nothing. I got into the car and watched the Beckham mansion fade away as he drove through.