Kathryn:

Pretty whispers, little light touches, it's all political of course, all a game, even with him. But then he kisses me back and I'm overcome by the sheer rightness of it all, the two of us alike in our need, devouring each other's mouths as we move to the bed, pulling off each other's clothes, doing what we should have done a long time ago, fuck the bet. And then he says he loves me, and I'm thrown by that because I have no idea what it means. After all, it's not like he hasn't already said this to Annette and probably a hundred other girls. And then I happen to glance toward the ceiling light fixture, where my little black eye is not there, and then I notice an alarm clock on the desk that wasn't there before, and I recognize the brand, and all of a sudden I know exactly what it means.

What I did just now was a mistake, a stupid mistake. But I'm not that naïve. I know just how this works. He'll edit out the footage of him saying "I love you," agreeing that we're two of a kind. Keep the footage of me sucking his cock.

I rush out of bed and hurl myself towards the desk, but he sees where my eyes have gone and he's on me in two seconds, tackling me, fighting me for control of the tape. The phone sits there, off the hook, I yell "Tell her who's in the room with you! TELL HER WHO'S IN THE ROOM WITH YOU! Tell her who you were just about to fuck!" but he doesn't look too concerned so that must mean he had enough sense to quickly put the phone on mute. And now it's all come down to this completely undignified physical struggle, the two of us knocking over books, a lamp, a bottle of whiskey which breaks and spills its contents all over the floor, shit I can feel it slipping from my hands he's too strong, no wait no he's not and the next thing I know the alarm clock's on the floor, in several pieces, water and alcohol soaking into the guts of it. "There goes your plan," I say. And then we both rush towards the phone in the same instant, thinking the same thing, but he gets there first and slams it down onto the hook.

"Nothing of the kind," he says, "that was merely insurance. You might be interested to know that Blaine has recorded some very choice details of your last drug deal. I'm sure the headmaster of your new school would be even more interested in learning just how well you've recovered."

Blaine? I feel a hysterical laugh coming, quickly suppress it. Obviously Seb isn't as smart as he thinks. "Nooooo..." I choke out, trying my best to sound terrified.

"I knew that as soon as you came here you'd try some shit like this. How does it feel to know you've been beaten at your own game?" As soon as you came here. I file a mental note: Mei-Le is still usable.

Seb grabs a new set of clothes from his closet, takes his cell phone and puts it in his pocket, says, "I'm going now. Annette needs me."

"You're kidding, right? You're going back to the blonde after this?"

"This was just sex. It was a mistake, nothing more. Now I advise you, if you value your new life at all, to stay the fuck out of mine and Annette's." He leaves. His voice was shaking, and for a moment, I feel sorry for him.

I still think he'll cheat on her, but not now, I realize, and not with me. After. After the wedding, the solemn church ceremony, the romantic honeymoon in Hawaii or Tahiti or wherever. Days will go by and he'll find himself stuck with this moron he told himself he loved but really doesn't even know, and run off to some other woman, a random woman whose main virtue is that she is not Annette. Until said woman starts nagging at him to leave Annette for her, and he realizes he's caught in the same trap with her as he was with the blonde, and he decides to try to "save" his relationship with the blonde and tells himself he's a good person for trying. I've gone through similar bullshit. But at least I was never dumb enough to believe in it.

I call up Blaine. "What's up Princess?" he says, the slightest note of fear in his voice.

"I didn't want to have to do this, but... 100 South 7th Street."

He's silent. He doesn't say "you wouldn't," because he knows I would.

"100 South 7th Street, the warehouse, and if you move it, believe me I will find that one too. And don't think for one second that the Latin Kings will protect you, because you're nothing to them, and that includes Paulie, I don't care what he tells you when your dick is inside him."

"I'll destroy the—"

"Not enough. You are not to come near Sebastian, ever again. Understood?"

"Understood."

I look through my room. No bugs, I guess he didn't have the balls to plant them on my territory. I'm safe now, I think. Everything is stable, everything is as it was. I reflect for a moment on my stepbrother's pure idiocy in thinking he could ever get the best of me.

And then I collapse.