To Mai Surprise
Disclaimer: I do not own The Nine Lives of Chloe King, nor do I profit from any of my stories.
Chapter 7
When he nodded, I said, "It shouldn't be too much work; the antique shop gets practically no business as it is." I laughed. "I'm Chloe King, by the way," I informed him.
The guy nodded, saying, "It's nice to meet you. I'm Brian. Brian Rezza."
I looked up at him, taking in his appearance for the first time. He was tall, but not as tall as Alek. Brian looked about six feet tall, while Alek was roughly 6'3". Sure, this new Mai was attractive, cute even. Brian had short brown hair, and dull brown eyes, but the chemistry just wasn't there. He didn't look old enough to be Aunt Valentina's new second-in-command.
"You don't even look out of college yet," I commented. "I'm surprised Aunt Val agreed to this."
Brian only laughed, saying, "freshman in college actually. And, from what I've heard, Valentina didn't really have much of a choice." He frowned. "My father can be… forceful… at times."
I nodded. "Makes sense." I heard Jasmine clear her throat and looked at the clock. I was already running late for school. "See ya!" I yelled, closing the door. Jasmine and I took off down the elevator and ran to the garage. Climbing into her navy blue pick-up, I mentally prepared myself for school.
If word gets out about me and Alek… I'm screwed.
After Tyler dropped me off, I walked around campus looking for Chloe. I wanted to give her a hug. As whipped as it seems, I was disappointed when I found Chloe missing. She had been in my room, that much I'm sure of. When I woke up, my red fleece blanket was tucked around my body. Not only that, it was still warm, Chloe's watermelon scent still lingered on the fabric.
Sighting Amy and Paul, I paused to sit on a hidden bench in the courtyard. I heard Chloe's friends yelling at her and decided to eavesdrop.
"Oh my God! Chloe!" Amy screeched. "Where were you yesterday? You didn't answer any of my calls, you didn't text me back, I was so worried!" She wrapped arms around me in a bear hug.
"I'm fine," I started to speak, only to be cut off by more yelling.
"Chloe! Alek was looking for you! Yesterday! Aleksander Benjamin Petrov was looking for you! Jasmine is going to be so pissed! I know you like him, but he's off limits!"
I started to explain myself, but it was no use. "I don't blame you, but still!" Amy shook her head, and then froze. "Miss Chloe King. What the hell are you wearing!" She stared at me as if I had come to school naked.
I looked down. Shit. I was wearing his jacket. Crossing my arms over my chest, I tried to cover the patch on the sleeve. It read 'Петров' in faded gold letters, the Russian spelling for 'Petrov.' It was too late.
"Don't you dare try to hide it!" Amy yelled, grabbing my arms. "Explain yourself. Now!"
"Amy, I'm sorry I haven't said anything about it, but it's all happened so fast, and I wasn't even sure about it until, well, I'm still not even sure about it…" I rambled on, stopping only when I saw Amy's mouth drop open.
Suddenly strong arms wrapped around my shoulders. I whipped around, only to be swept up in a passionate kiss from the Brit himself.
Somewhere in the background, Paul mumbled under his breath, "speak of the devil and he shall appear…"
A rich accent filled my ears as Alek said, "Well don't you look nice today. Though the jacket is a bit big on you…" He smirked. "I will be seeing you later, okay love?" He stalked off to meet up with his jock friends, leaving Amy, Paul, and me stunned.
Paul was the first to regain his voice. "Is Alek Mai?" I nodded.
"You two are… dating?" Amy whispered.
Nodding again, I said, "I think so…"
Paul's eyes lit up. He seemed excited to have a fellow guy to answer his questions, since us girls could barely tolerate his obsession. "Is Alek your mate or something? Are you guys going to have kittens? Or would it be cubs, like lions or tigers…"
I blushed at Paul's last question as Amy smacked him. "That was rude Pauly!" she whispered, then turned to me. The look on her face meant that she was going to need all the details later.
Finding a way to make it up to her, I offered to let her sleepover at the apartment tonight. "Why don't we spend tonight raiding my closet and Jasmine's shoe collection? We could have some girl time and then prep for your big date tomorrow?"
The Alek drama momentarily forgotten, Amy burst into ideas. By the time the bell rang and students started making their way to class, we had planned our weekend. Tonight was 'Girl's Night.' Tomorrow, Amy and Paul would go out to the new Italian restaurant while Jasmine and I threw a birthday party for Mimi. I figure we can make reservations at Benihana and invite all the Mai, then us teens can head to Ground Zero at 9. Since Aunt Valentina wasn't going to be there, the only adult we had to deal with was Mr. Vacinni. It was Mimi's sweet-16, so he just couldn't say no.
At roughly 4 o' clock, Amy and Mimi showed up at the apartment. Mimi was staying at a hotel with her dad, but only until they found an apartment with adequate security.
We decided to watch chick flicks and gossip, trading secrets while sprawled out on the living room couch. I filled Amy in on everything that happened between me and Alek while I painted her nails. Though Jasmine and Mimi were both single, they had their own boy troubles.
A hot Russian had caught Jasmine's eye on our trip to LA; apparently he used to have a crush on Jasmine when she was little. Over time, the short, geeky boy had grown into a tough guy. His facebook page, which Jasmine stalked incessantly, revealed him to be single and currently residing in San Diego.
Mimi, on the other hand, was still in mourning. Her first real relationship had ended only recently, but the two of them had been falling apart for years. Things between them had been fine until he moved away. They had kept in touch with the help of modern-day technology, but both Mimi and her ex had agreed that continuing the relationship was too depressing.
Upon seeing Mimi's tears, Jasmine and I ran to our shared bathroom. Hiding in the cabinets was the mini-fridge where they stored all sorts of perishable junk food. Since Aunt Valentina was so strict about our training routine, she wouldn't let us eat anything that wasn't insanely healthy. Pulling out a two-liter of root beer and a tub of vanilla ice cream, they made floats to cheer everybody up.
We woke up at 1:30 in the afternoon the next day, all four of us getting a solid 9 hours of sleep. Leisurely, we showered and picked out clothes for the day. In a crazy explosion of inexperienced baking, we tried, failed, and tried again to make a birthday cake for Mimi. Finally giving up, we sat around covered in flour and powdered sugar, eating the salvaged icing.
After hours of trying on, and rejecting, outfits, hair and makeup, and fighting over who got to wear the best shoes, we were all ready to go.
After much debate, I had decided to wear Alek's jacket again. I sent him and Brian a text, telling them to meet us at the restaurant and giving them the address on Post Street. With a quick call to Mr. Vacinni, telling him to pick up a good ice cream cake from Baskin-Robbins, we were on our way.
First we dropped Amy off at Paul's house, and then we drove across town to Benihana. I had never been there before, but apparently it was Mimi's favorite restaurant. Arriving first, the three of us took our seats to wait for the guys to show up. We were distracted by the chief making our appetizers that we didn't notice when Mimi's dad came to sit with us.
Mesmerized, we were only brought back to reality when we heard voices coming our way. Looking towards the doorway, both Alek and Brian were talking as they made their way towards us. From what I could hear, Alek was extremely excited. He was finally getting his license. Brian sat down to talk to Mr. Vacinni while Alek settled in the seat to my right.
Sensing tension, I looked at Mimi, who was seated on my other side. Her expression remained blank, but her entire body was ridged. Worried, I announced that I wanted to use the restroom before we ordered. Jumping up, Mimi offered to go with me.
Once inside the classy ladies room, and shielded by the heavy din of the kitchen, I questioned Mimi. "Mimi, what's going on?" I was concerned. "Did something happen? Are you okay?"
She nodded frantically, trying to steady her breathing. Then she looked at the ground and whispered, "it's Brian."
Confused, I said, "What about him? Did he do something?"
She shook her head, regaining her composure. "No! It's Brian! The guy I told you guys about last night! It's Brian. He's my ex!"
So, what do you think? Having panic attacks yet? Another twist! Bet you didn't see that one coming!
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