#11: She’s So Evil

Ava:

The party kicked off almost immediately, as more and more exquisitely dressed people were ushered in. Right away, Amelia and the rest started to introduce me to so many faces and their corresponding names while I smiled each time and extended my hand, knowing I would probably never remember these strangers.

Some time after the introduction, a man who I presumed was the host started to speak. Amelia told me all about his successful empire and how his son had only expanded it further. His speech floated past me as my mind started to wander. To be honest, I didn’t know what I was doing here.

I’d chosen to come here with Amelia to take back my life by experiencing the things I’d been prohibited from experiencing, but now I was here, it felt utterly boring. How did Amelia and even Chantel and Leila who were modern and all over the place enjoy this kind of setting? Back in high school, at balls like this, my friends and I would have snuck out to take pictures and mock everyone’s dressing. But now I was much older and that meant I had to sit through the whole thing.

“What are you doing?” Amelia whispered sharply at me.

I blinked, realizing I’d been falling asleep. My eyes quickly perused my surroundings, a wave of relief washing over me when there was no one looking back.

“I’m so bored,” I whispered back.

“Girl, so are we,” Leila chimed in. “Just hold on. In a minute or two, it’ll be time for dancing and that’s when the fun begins.”

My heart skipped a beat. Dancing. All of a sudden, this boring speech didn’t feel so bad. I didn’t know how to dance. Great. I was going to end up making a fool of myself here.

“That’s not even the best part. There are so many people we still haven’t introduced her to. We can do that after we dance,” Chantel muttered excitedly, which only worsened my anxiety.

‘Just breathe’, I whispered over and over to myself as I unsuccessfully dried my clammy hands over my jewel spiked dress. ‘How bad can it be? After all you’ve been dead before. What’s the worst that could happen?’

Contrary to what Leila had said, after the host spoke, a couple more important-looking people spoke. I hated the fact that all I wanted to do at that moment was go home, lay in my bed and sleep. After years of doing just that, everything else felt overwhelming. The thought made me all the more resentful of Scott. Not only had he stolen my life, he’d also stolen my zeal to take it back.

During these hours, I busied myself with admiring the extravagant but intricate design of the hall, weighing in my head how much everything cost. I also noted down my next plans in my head. Build a strong case against Scott to get my money back, go to the safe to find enough evidence to end everything, go to the hospital to get myself checked, and finally, talk to my parents if I could.

Once in a while, my wandering eyes jammed with those of someone familiar, and I would always look away before I’d see them reaching over to someone else to whisper.

Just when I thought I would hyperventilate, someone gave the announcement that it was time to dance and ‘network’. I heaved a sigh of relief even though I knew dancing would only be an extension of my suffering.

All at once, everyone was on their feet, chairs were scuffled away and the somber music changed into a high tempo one. Oh. These people really meant it when they said it was time to dance.

Chantel and Leila got into stride immediately, as this was obviously their favorite part of the show. Amelia fortunately made sure I was at her side at all times. A part of me felt like I was preventing her from having fun, but as if reading my mind, she assured me that me shunning Scott and Belle was all the fun she needed for a lifetime.

I was introduced to more people afterwards during the ‘networking’ part of the segment. I had to beg them to stop, because most of the other guests were business men and women or heirs to said businesses, who either knew what my father had done, or looked down on me when they realized knowing me wouldn’t help their business in anyway.

Being some unknown writer for some recently big shot movie didn’t seem like a big deal to any of these people, who probably never even had time out of their business to watch anything.

It became quite impossible for Amelia to keep babysitting me because almost everyone wanted to talk to her. I had to push her to go so she wouldn’t be hounded with me throughout the party. No matter how much she tried to force me back on people, my father’s reputation was like a rotten wound that couldn’t be overlooked.

Before long, I was practically on my own. It was even more awkward than before, as dancing was the only thing to do as there were no chairs anymore. Now that Amelia and her friends were away, the whispers around me became all too clear, almost as if those saying it really wanted me to hear.

‘I hear she’s been abroad all these years, spending her father’s stolen money. That’s why no one has seen her. What a heartless family…’

‘No! I hear she later got married to Scott after she tricked him with a fake pregnancy. Family of deceivers…’

‘No wonder the poor man hides her away and parades around with Belle, that beauty. You can force the horse to the stream but you can’t force it to drink…’

‘I hear she’s been writing his films. I’ve seen them. No way someone like her could produce something like that. I went to school with her. When did she suddenly become a writer? She probably cajoled him into putting her name there. What a clown…’

‘I wonder what Amelia sees in her. That girl is better off not smearing her name with dirt like hers…’

My head was spinning. I could no longer pretend to not hear them anymore. Tears pooled in my eyes, threatening to destroy my makeup. After all these years, nothing had changed. I wondered how my life would have been if I’d followed my mom abroad, somewhere no one knew us than to face this. It was because of times like this that I genuinely believed Scott had been doing me a favor. I should have never come here.

A strong hand gripped my arm. My heart raced, as I wondered if these people who hated me so much would be willing to take things further and assault me in public. It was Scott, who had a scowl on his face. He was alone.

“Where are your little friends now, huh?” He mocked me. “You think they really care about you? You’re just a charity case to them. I don’t know why you don’t fucking listen!”

“Leave me alone,” I cried, the tears pouring.

I could hear people laughing. This was entertainment. I didn’t look up. I didn’t want to see how many people had gathered to watch the drama unfold.

‘See how she’s making a fool of herself,’ someone said.

‘She’s obviously the type to never listen to her husband…’

‘Scott has absolutely nothing to gain from her. Everyone knows he just feels pity for her but she’s just too stupid to see it.’

Scott stopped dragging me then, knowing I could hear what the people were saying. He knew I wouldn’t be able to handle it, that I would give up and follow him to combat the shame. People really thought I had nothing to offer him.

This was it. After everything, nothing had changed. No amount of false confidence could erase the past. What could I possibly do to change the mind of a legion? Maybe I wasn’t as ready as I thought I was. Going to parties and pretending to be somebody could only take me so far. I had no money, and I had no way of making money on my own anytime soon. I couldn’t keep relying on Amelia. As much as I hated to admit it, Scott was all I had right now. I almost started to follow him when I heard another rumor.

‘She’s so evil. I feel so bad for Scott who still hasn’t gotten over the loss of his baby she got rid of. What a witch…’

I froze. Did he really tell people I purposely got rid of his baby?

“Let’s go, Ava,” he murmured, realizing that statement had caught my attention. I pushed his arm away again, not minding the people who had flocked to listen.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said to no one in particular.

“Oh please. You practically ruined his life,” one of the voices said, coming to life in a body I recognized. “You forced yourself on him just to spite Belle your own friend, killed your own baby and tried to destroy his business. When that didn’t work you forced him to add your name.”

“We all know you abuse him all the time at home,” someone else began to say, “you make his life unbearable and then disappear for weeks to be with other men. That’s why you got rid of the baby. So you won’t have anyone holding you back.”

“See how you’re dressed,” a woman I recognized as my mom’s former friend said. “With heavy makeup. And you’re hanging around with single women, looking for some rich guy you’ll pawn. You think appearing here after all these years will finally make you a saint? Poor Scott always tenses when he hears your name. Who knows what you do to him behind closed doors…”

“Ava, let’s go,” Scott said, more sternly this time. But he didn’t grab my arm. How else would he continue the rumor about him being the victim in all of this?

I looked at him squarely, filled with even more hate than I thought was possible.

“It’s you. It’s been you keeping these rumors alive. You’ve been adding fuel to them to make it impossible for me to leave you,” I said, my voice breaking.

His jaw tensed.

“You don’t know what you’re saying. I’ve only tried to stop them.”

“I won’t just make your life miserable. I’m going to kill you,” I whispered and his eyes popped open.

Without looking back, I walked out of the hall amidst the voices all around me, knowing Scott would be too shaken to follow me.

I had more reasons to get my revenge now. I would never fuck it up this time.