by Eden Beck
The least of which is not Victoria’s final and utter defeat.
It looks like I didn’t have to murder her after all.
The glow of delight and joy stays with me as the evening draws to a close. The boys, Laura, Dana, and I walk back to our room as soon as it’s over. We all sit together in the cramped space and talk for a long while, until everyone is tired. It’s been a long time coming. A lot of preparation, time, and calculation went into what we accomplished tonight.
Finally, everyone else leaves, and Dana and I slip into our pajamas and crawl into bed; exhausted.
“You won it all tonight, Teddy,” Dana says so happily. “The ticket sales, the auction, the crown of the Valentine’s queen … even your bid for the trip to Nice! I’m so excited for you, I don’t know if I can fall asleep!”
“You’ll fall asleep, but when you do, dream of Nice, because I’m taking you, Laura, and the boys with me. It’s my spring break gift to us all. We’ve earned it!” I tell her with a blissful sigh as I nestle down into my pillow.
Dana doesn’t respond, and I look over and see that she’s already fast asleep. “Sweet dreams, sister,” I whisper, and turn out the light.
Chapter 15
The school is buzzing with excitement for the dance, but I don’t see or hear from Victoria all day on Saturday, which is a nice break.
Everyone sleeps in after the late night before, but we meet up for breakfast in the dining hall. Instead of a leisurely breakfast, everyone in our group is surprised when a seemingly endless stream of students keeps coming by to congratulate me and be friendly with me, most of them telling me that they voted for my Valentine’s Day dance theme.
This must be what it was to be Victoria, in her heyday.
To be quite honest, it’s exhausting.
After our busy breakfast, Wills takes all of us out onto the lake by the school and we go sailing for a while before leaving campus to have a quiet lunch in town. Ice has formed a thin sheet along the outer rim of the lake, but a few boats still bob in the water at the end of the dock.
It’s freezing, but the brisk air only makes me feel more alive. We stay out until our teeth begin to chatter and our lips are blue from the cold, despite the thick winter jackets we wear.
When we come back to school after lunch, it’s time to get ready for the dance.
I wear a strapless dress with a sweetheart neckline that fits me snugly to my waist and then flares out with flowy red material to the backs of my legs. The material beneath the skirt is all white and can’t be seen unless I turn.
“Do I look like a goddess?” I ask Dana with a teasing smile.
“You look like the goddess. Venus in person!” She heads for the bathroom to get herself ready, and when she comes back out, I love the sassy blue dress she’s wearing. It’s not what I would’ve expected her to pick for herself—so I suspect Laura had something to do with it.
“Sister goddess!” I exclaim happily. “We are going to have such a good time.”
There’s a knock at the door, and when Dana opens it, we see both of my boys there waiting for me. They come in, both of them with flowers for me; Blair with a corsage for my wrist and Wills with one for my dress.
There’s no time to wait. I’m anxious to get to the scene of my triumph.
We leave all together. We stop once for Dana to pick Laura up, and then all of us head to the dance.
Schools like this don’t throw dances in the gymnasium. They have a proper ballroom for that.
As soon as we step inside, it looks like we’ve walked into Zeus’ palace on Mount Olympus.
There are pseudo pillars everywhere and huge swaths of sheer white material lit from below with an ethereal glow. Two big ice sculptures sit on the tables where the drinks are; Venus and Cupid.
There are rounded faux-stone steps that lead up to a stage made to look as if it’s a marble platform, and on it there are two regal looking thrones. My throne. Even the walls have backdrops of the hills of Greece, including one with the Acropolis on it.
We all stare at it, and Wills and Blair each lean in to kiss me with smiles on their faces.
“This is so much better than the yacht party that Victoria wanted to do.” Laura shakes her head as she stares at it, stunned.
“Agreed. I feel like we are all gods and goddesses tonight!” Dana squeals, taking Laura’s hand and leading her into the room.
The dance is already going strong.
The boys and I dance together, not far from Dana and Laura. I see Victoria and Astor on the other side of the dance floor, and though he’s dancing with her, he’s staring at me. He looks amazing in his tuxedo; so refined and sexy, I have to make myself look away from him.
I just wish that I could convince my heart to forget him.
Finally, Dr. Baxter goes up onto the stage and pauses the dance. As soon as the spotlight trains on him, everyone gathers in front of the stage.
“Good evening to you, students and faculty. I hope you’re having fun. The time has come to crown your Valentine’s Day royalty!” he announces, and the crowd cheers loudly. Two teachers are beside him, holding the crowns. He peers out into the sea of faces and calls our names.
“Astor Hawthorne and Teddy White, please come to the stage!” There’s deafening applause and cheering, and each of my boys kiss me once before they let me go up without them.
Astor watches me like I’m the only person in the room when I join him, and it feels like he can see straight into me. I don’t look back at him, thinking avoidance is best. He’s crowned, and then I am crowned, and he takes my hand in his and lifts our entwined fingers up over our heads in triumph as everyone cheers.
Everyone except Victoria, who is standing near the front of the stage, burning holes into me with fiery bitterness in her eyes.
I just try to concentrate on the crowd, and not the way his hand feels intertwined with mine.
“Your king and queen!” Dr. Baxter announces happily. “And now, will the Valentine’s Day king and queen please make their way to the floor for their traditional dance of love?”
My heart stops for a moment in my chest and I look at Dr. Baxter as Astor, still holding my hand, leads me off of the stage and down the stairs toward the dance floor.
I hadn’t realized that I was going to have to dance with him. I shoot a look over to Dana and she gives me sympathetic eyes and a shrug. I am stuck. There’s no way out of this.
The other students form a wide circle around us, and a slow love song starts. Astor brings me in close to him, wrapping one arm around my waist and holding me firmly as his other hand opens to entwine his fingers with mine.
“You look so beautiful tonight,” he tells me quietly, staring down into my eyes. “I haven’t been able to stop looking at you.”
“You’ve been looking at me a lot lately,” I tell him coolly. “I wish you wouldn’t.”
The corner of his mouth turns up a little in a smile. “Do you like it?”
“No!” I growl at him vehemently.
“Come now, that’s no way for a queen to talk to her king. We get to share this dance together. Let’s make the most of it. Let’s enjoy holding on to one another and being so close. We haven’t been close at all since that night.” His eyes move over my face and stop on my lips. “You know the one.”
“That night never should have happened, and you know it.” I narrow my eyes at him. “I don’t want to talk about it again.”
He looks hurt, and I remind myself that he doesn’t really mean it.
Astor leans close, nuzzling his lips against my ear. I hear him breathe me in. “God you smell so good. I miss you. Come on, Teddy. Aren’t you ever going to forgive me?”
“No,” I answer darkly, and as I say it I can see Victoria at the innermost edge of the circle of students around us. She’s watching us intently and it’s clear as day that she is seething with rage. I find myself loving that richly rewarding aspect of this forced dance. I am making her suffer, and though I ha
dn’t intended to, I revel in the result.
I feel Astor gently kiss the bottom of my ear and my cheek, and an electric stream of fire blazes through me, stealing my breath away and making me close my eyes for a moment. I’m grateful that he can’t see the involuntary reaction he’s caused, and I struggle to get control of myself.
“Can you feel that?” he murmurs against my cheek, “It feels so good, doesn’t it? Don’t you want more? I want more. I want all of you, Teddy.”
“No!” I tell him sharply again, and lean back away from him a little. I look up into his eyes and speak low enough that no one but him can hear me. “You only want me now because I’m socially acceptable! There is nothing at all genuine about why you want me now, and I know it. You can’t convince me otherwise.”
The song comes to a close, and I see Victoria start to walk toward us. Astor gives me a hard look and then takes my face in his hands and kisses me; closing his mouth over mine right there in front of everyone.
I can’t believe he’s doing it, and my first instinct is to pull away from him. But I hear Victoria somewhere near us as she gasps and something else in me takes over, something deeply vindictive.
I part my lips and deepen our kiss, twisting my tongue around Astor’s as I close my fingers over the lapels of his jacket, pulling him up against me.
It’s a long, sensual kiss, and I cannot stop the aching desire for him that burns through every part of me. I suffer through it because I know that what we are doing is killing Victoria, and I want her to hurt as much as possible.
I know nothing means more to her than him, and so I kiss him as passionately as I did when he was in my bed at the beginning of the semester. I hear him moan somewhere in the depths of his chest, and at the sound of it, I snap out of my vengeful moment and shove him away from me.
He stares at me, his eyes hungry, and his mouth open. I lift my chin and shake my head.
“Don’t you ever touch me again.”
Astor blinks in confusion, and I turn to look at Victoria who is standing almost between Astor and I now.
“How dare you!” Victoria screams at me in a rage, but I just look at her evenly and keep my chin up.
“How does it feel to lose so much, huh Victoria? You lost the dance theme competition. You lost the auction. You lost the Valentine’s Queen crown that you’ve wanted for so long, and now you’ve even lost your man.”
I straighten myself up even further. I know I’m being cruel. I know I’m being vengeful.
I want it that way.
“He wants me, Victoria, but don’t you worry your crazy little head about it. Astor doesn’t really love me. He just wants to ride the Teddy White popularity train, but I’m not going to let him.” My words slice at her and I glance over at Astor. I’ve never seen him look so wounded, so totally torn up, and part of me hates it, but part of me feels vindicated as well. He’s had it coming for a long, long time.
I look back at Victoria, who’s about to erupt with anger and bitterness. “Victoria, every time you’ve come after me and tried to attack me or humiliate me, it’s blown up in your face.” Once, even literally. “Every one of your attempts has been a complete, colossal failure. The ironic thing is, every one of your failures has been another key to my success. You are your own worst enemy.”
Blair and Wills are standing right behind me, along with Laura and Dana, and several other of my newer friends. Victoria glares hotly at Astor and shakes her head.
“How could you!” she shouts venomously at him, and then she turns and storms away. Astor only watches her for a moment, but then he turns back and looks at me. As is his way.
We share a gaze for a moment, and then I slide my hands into Wills and Blair’s, and we head to the other side of the dance floor where the drinks are, under the big ice sculpture of Venus.
Blair hands me some punch while Wills gets a chocolate frosted brownie for me.
Dana smiles wide at me. She’s shaking, but it’s from excitement. This is her moment too, I realize.
“So? Is revenge as sweet as you hoped it would be?” she asks. She knows how long and how bad I’ve wanted to get back at Victoria. “How are you feeling?”
I think about it, trying to sift through the tangle of emotion storming within me.
“I … I feel kind of powerful, actually.” It’s weird, but that’s about the best way to describe it. I feel powerful. I really kicked some ass this week, and no lie, I’m proud. All my life I’ve felt helpless, unable to overcome the obstacles set before me. It’s something I’ve never felt before, and it’s really a rush. I nod again, and grin back at her. “I guess it feels pretty damn good.”
Chapter 16
With the bulk of my revenge over with, the weeks slip into a kind of monotony. A glorious, golden monotony. No bullying, no snide looks and remarks from Victoria. I won, and it’s as sweet as I imagined it.
Or so I tell myself.
As much as I try not to let it, the memory of my dance with Astor keeps resurfacing in my mind. If only he’d done things right. If only he didn’t make it so impossible for us to be together.
Before we know it, it’s spring break, and all of us are more than ready for it.
It seems like the whole school has a terrible case of senioritis. When I won the trip to Nice, France, I contacted the travel agent who donated it to the Valentine’s auction, and I had her make some adjustments. I’m taking my boys and both my closest friends with me.
My decision to take my father’s name sped up the whole trust process, and as of just a few days ago, I have access to more money than I know what to do with. It’s burning a hole in my proverbial pocket.
I don’t know who’s more excited about the whole thing—me or Dana.
Neither one of us has been to France before, and though Wills and Blair have both been to Paris and a few other places, they haven’t been to Nice. This will be an exploratory trip for all of us—and, most notably—the first trip any of us will take without any parents attending.
It’s my first trip anywhere, but I think that goes without saying.
Now that my trust fund is in order, I may or may not go a little crazy with the plans.
I rent a penthouse that takes up the entire top floor of a hotel that sits right on the main strip facing the beach, and I fly everyone out first class. This is the beginning of the rest of our lives, and I plan to start it out in style.
A limousine picks us up at the airport in Nice, and in fifteen minutes we’re at the hotel. We go ahead while the bellhop takes our bags, and Blair wastes no time heading straight to the fully stocked bar up in the suite.
He catches me eying the hotel staff still bringing in our luggage, and he gives me a wink. After all this time, it still makes my heart flutter.
“Don’t worry,” he says. “Even if they cared at all, which I promise you they don’t, the drinking age here is eighteen. We’re all in the clear.”
I don’t need any more of an invitation than that.
“Well then, let’s get this party started!” I cry out, and we all share a toast and polish off all the champagne in the bar in no time at all. I ask one of the porters to have several more bottles sent up, and he nods at me before he leaves.
“What are we going to do first?” Dana asks, picking up her third glass of champagne.
“Oh,” I say, looking at her over the top of my glass. I try to muster up the most mysterious expression I can. “I have some ideas.”
We’re all a bit buzzed when we leave the hotel and head out into the city.
Nice looks like a living postcard everywhere we go. The streets and sidewalks are clean, the colors of the buildings and homes are mostly pastel shades, and there are flowers everywhere.
The people are kind to us, especially when I make an effort to ask for directions in my broken French … or when Blair takes out his wallet and flashes more cash than most of these people have seen in their lives.
It feels almost like we stepped back in tim
e, but kept some of the best parts of the modern world when we did it. I love Nice immediately.
We stop and eat at a beautiful restaurant, having some of the best food that any of us has ever had, and then we head to the shops.
I’ve never been much of one for shopping, but having basically no budget makes it considerably more enjoyable. Also, not having an overbearing aunt who’s pretending I’m her dead daughter helps. In fact, I could really get used to this.
The entire afternoon is spent going from one shop to the next, buying anything we want from chocolate to clothes and shoes. We have the time of our lives, and I decide that this is definitely the life for me.
After we’re all shopped out, we head back to the hotel and drop off our packages. The limo takes us down the coast to Cannes, just a short drive away, and we spend the evening dancing, drinking, and eating until I think I’m going to pop. We even stop in at an upscale hookah bar for a bit, and try that out.
With a solid night’s sleep, we’re up and ready to go again in the morning, going out on the Mediterranean on a sailboat I’ve hired. Wills keeps trying to tell the crew what to do while the rest of us have a great time diving off of the boat and swimming in the sea, watching dolphins jump at the front of the boat, and eating like royalty at a little island stop where there’s a pretty restaurant tucked away in a stunning Mediterranean garden.
When we get back to the hotel later that evening, we’re all a bit tired from the sun, the sea, and the booze, so we pass out and both of my boys are wrapped around me in the massive bed I have in the master suite. It’s like heaven.
It may be because of this feeling that I get a little carried away the next night.
It’s easy to get caught up in this life; to forget consequences and caution.
So, naturally, I throw all caution to the wind and decide to throw an absolute rager at the penthouse. I may or may not be a little tipsy on champagne when I make the announcement, and I may be even more tipsy when I invite the entire beach to join us.