The Hive: Aw, summer's end is near and I haven't had the chance to spread all the delicious gossip that I've been given. Don't worry, once you hear about the scandals that I have for you, you'll be begging me for more. I never let my followers down, enjoy the summer while it lasts darlings. I have a feeling that it's only the beginning of what's to come.
Kory shut the door behind her, letting the tears fall. She could feel her heart racing, beating against her chest like a feral animal begging to be let out of its cage. Her breaths were short, she could feel herself breathing, but at the same time, she couldn't. She felt as if she was growing, gasping for air, and there wasn't enough in the world for her to have it. Another birthday was ruined.
That had to be the third year in a row, but what did she expect? With her having a boyfriend that she had an honest connection with, a group of good friends, and a great school to attend, this year was supposed to be different. Instead, it was just like the rest of them. Last year, her father invited huge groups of people from kingdoms around the world. Diplomats, princes, dukes, duchesses, and all their friends came to celebrate his daughter's birthday. Kory only remembered maybe half of their faces and a quarter of their names. She remembered how much she hated them coming to her birthday parties because they only knew her from the outside looking in.
"The troubled princess" is what she'd often hear them whisper as she waltzed around the room with the next heir of some kingdom far, far, away. There'd be some fun moments she'd remember for those birthdays, outside of the bad. When Galfore would come and visit the children for her birthday, then during the festivities, he'd sneak her and Ryan into the kitchen to steal a taste of the icing off the cake. Or her mother would let her choose the breakfast she wanted and let her eat in her room. It wasn't all bad, but those were the moments she'd remember before taking some of the "anxiety medication" and not remembering anything else afterward. It took a lot of convincing for her father to let her plan her birthday party and share it with her friends.
He insisted that she fly out to Tamaran and continue with the tradition. However, with help from Galfore and her mother, Kory was able to do things her way. Knock. "Kory?" She heard Dick's voice on the other side of the door. "Yes?" She squeaked, trying to hold back a sob. "Can I come in?" Even though she didn't want to let Dick in, he'd find a way to see her one way or another. Even if that meant him climbing outside on the side of the building and coming in through her window.
Her boyfriend was a very determined teenage boy. Kory took another breath before pushing herself off the ground and cracking the door open. Dick didn't say anything as he stepped inside Kory's room and closed the door behind him. Kory embraces him in her arms and lets the tears roll. He rubs his hand on her back. "I'm here. I'm here." She could hear him whisper.
She dips the small paintbrush into the water cup then runs her fingers through her curly ponytail and stares at the canvas. In front of her was the photo that she had been working on as a surprise gift to Dick. Ever since they had returned from Seattle, Dick's been pulled into different meetings for the past couple of weeks. Whether it was therapist sessions or meetings with the lawyer, the only time she'd hear from him was at night. They'd talk for thirty minutes or so, then Dick would state that he'd have to go because of curfew. She understood that right now he had alot on his plate and didn't want to bombard him with anything else that may cause him to break down. However, by the way things were going in her life, she wanted to talk to him about it.
Komy barges through the door, shopping bags from expensive stores in both of her hands. She lifts the sunglasses off her face, showcasing her dazzling violet eyes and lilac eyeshadow underneath. Kory nearly shouted for her to knock before barging into her room. But knowing Komy, she wouldn't listen and do it more often to get on her nerves. "Just a couple more weeks, Kory." She thought to herself, biting down on her lip. "Hey sis, what's new?" "I'm a little busy Komy." Kory lied. Komy dropped the bags on the ground and walked over to Kory's seat, taking a look at the canvas in front of her. She grimaces at the image, then turns to Kory. "I thought Mom and Dad paid for your art lessons."
"It's not finished yet." "Hmm, we'll see." Komy scans Kory's face and takes out a compact mirror. "Honey, you're looking a little dry. Are you sure that you're moisturizing—" "What do you want, Komy?" She finally had enough of her sister's pestering, this was supposed to be a quiet time for her. Not Beauty Tips 101 with Komy. Komy held up her hands in defense. "Nothing, nothing. I'm just worried about you that's all. I mean the dry face, poor eating habits, staying in this tiny room. Sweetie, there's a whole world for you to explore. I even bought you the cutest top to cheer you up." Komy struts over to a shopping bag and plucks out a purple lace tube top that looks a tiny bit too small to fit Kory. She hands it to her, and Kory takes the top and gulps. If her father saw her in this, he'd burn it and give her a lecture on the importance of modesty for royals.
"Umm, thanks Komy. I know just the perfect jeans to pair it with." Not. "Of course, you should show it off to that bf of yours. Which, when am I meeting him?" If she could help it, hopefully never. Komy had a bit of a streak when it came to messing with Kory's relationships. Whether that was seduction by prancing around in a tight bikini that showed off a lot of her assets. Wiggling her way through the cracks in the relationship to see if there are any problems for her to expand upon and use to her advantage. She had to be very careful if she were to ever bring Dick around to meet the family. It's not that she didn't believe Dick was strong enough to handle Komy, her mother, and her father.
Quite the opposite, she wasn't ready to introduce, at least not for a looooonnnng while. "Uh-oh, I know that look. What's wrong?" "Nothing's wrong, I'm just…thinking." "About?" "What—pair of jeans would go with this top." She tried to crack a smile, but it didn't work. Komy could see right through her act. She inspected Kory's solemn look and widened her eyes in shock, then put her manicured hands over her mouth. "Oh my X'hal, you didn't tell him?" Kory didn't answer, she turned her head away from Komy, confirming the suspicion. "You didn't! Kory, I hate to be the barrier of bad news, but your bf has to know and soon. Mom and Dad can't hold off forever." She put her head in her hands and sighed.
"Komy, I need a minute alone." Komy rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll go, but you know I'm right. I'd hate for your bf to find out from someone else." She closes the door behind her. Kory's stomach twinged in fear, the way Komy implied someone else finding out. If Komy gathered all the information she could find out about Dick in a matter of days, hell, hours. Dick would be furious with her, probably furious enough to break up with her and she couldn't let that happen. Kory picked the phone up off her desk and dialed Donna's number. The phone rings for a couple of minutes before Donna picks up. "Hey Kor!" "Donna, hey. I need your help." "What's wrong? Is it another Hive post?" "No, not that. The last thing on my mind is The Hive."
Kory continues to talk on the phone with Donna, shuffling around the room in fear while on the other side of the door stands Komy with her ear to the door. She types in The Hive on her phone, and in a couple of seconds the website loads, showcasing different headlines of all the students at Gotham Academy. Her eyes roam to a picture of Kory and Dick, next to it, shows a headline that states. "New It Couple?" Komy clicks on the article and scrolls through it, reading about Dick's wealthy family and Kory having a seedy past. Blah, blah, blah. She hits the bottom of the page and spots a small blue link that displays "Got a tip to feed, send it directly to me!" A smirk settles on her face. She raises her thumb above the link and clicks on it, leading her to a message board. This outta be good.
"Jinx Haiden: Liar." She couldn't stop reading over the blast, constantly looking at her name amongst her friends. She felt as though hers was in big, red, bold letters. "How are you gonna get yourself out of this one?" Jinx thought to herself. Her fingers clutched the side of her phone, the beds of her nails turning a pale white. A hand touched her shoulder and gave it a small shake, she turned to her side and met Wally's gaze. For some odd reason, she felt that was his way of telling her that everything was gonna be okay.
Even though, in actuality, they both knew it wasn't. "Kory, wait—" She heard Dick say. Jinx popped her head up to notice the bubbly redhead leaving the room and Dick following after her. Jinx didn't blame her one bit for leaving her party. If she were in her shoes, Jinx would have probably left as well. "Should we leave? I know Kory's probably not in the celebrating mood anymore." Gar took off his party hat and crumpled it into a paper ball. He tore his eyes away from the paper wad and noticed Jinx watching him. Gar didn't blink, he didn't move.
Instead, he sighed to himself and shook his head, before throwing the crumpled-up party hat away. "I don't think so. She just needs a few minutes, in the meantime. I could take out some party games and we could clean up a bit." Donna suggested. "If I were her, I'd call it a night. I mean The Hive just outed her as a murderer. Who'd want to party after that?" Wally said. "Do you have any other ideas, flame boy?" Donna placed her hands on her hips. "Yeah, we go home." "You know, you're a lot different than what Kory described. She said you were a free-spirit and liked to joke around. So far, I think she's got you all wrong—" "—Excuse me if I'm not in the best mood right now.
Cause my best friend's in a coma and The Hive just talked shit about all my friends." Jinx could see the flames within Wally's eyes, she could feel the heat come off his body as he crossed over to Donna. Donna was about to say something else when Rachel stepped in between them. "Look, I know that the blast threw everyone off. But we shouldn't let this inconvenience stop us from enjoying this party." Everyone else in the room nodded in agreement. Jinx stepped closer to Wally and slipped her hand in his, rubbing each of his fingers to try and cool him down.
She'd see her mother do that with her father sometimes when he'd get wound up. "Donna, I can go with you to grab some party games." Wally scoffs and removes his hand from Jinx's before pushing past Rachel and heading out the door. "I should apologize," Donna claimed, but Rachel shook her head in disagreement. "Give him a minute. It's obvious that the blast didn't just affect Kory." Jinx swallowed the growing lump in her throat, her gaze never cutting away from the door.
Wally paced outside of Kory's apartment, a small joint in his hand, his eyes already a light pink. Jinx steps outside and walks cautiously down the steps. He stops himself to take a hit, letting the smoke seep into his lungs, then exhaling a thick cloud of smoke. "Already high, I see?" Jinx tried to joke. Wally doesn't look at her, instead, he answers her with a grunt, then stares out over the balcony.
Jinx stands next to him, her hands hanging off the railing, she stares out at the small city. She could see a group of small children riding around on their bikes, laughing without a care in the world. Beside them were two pairs of parents, having their conversations, their children never out of sight. "Must be nice" She thought to herself. Wally nudged Jinx, she glanced over at him. He pinched the joint between his fingers and handed it to her. Jinx took the joint in her hands, placed it between her lips, and inhaled the fumes. She lets out a light cough, Wally gently pats her back. "I'm fine, I-I fine." She coughed. "Just thought you could use a little help." His words had a bit of sting to them, he removed his hand from off her back and turned away.
Jinx could tell that Wally wanted to talk about what happened a few months ago, and a part of her did too, that's why she came out here. However, she couldn't give Wally a definite answer when she didn't know what that answer was. "What are you doing out here anyway, Jinx? Thought you needed your space." He folded his arms in front of him. She hung her head low, this was going to be tough. "I did…I just wanted to make sure that you were okay." "So, now you care?" "I always cared Wally—" "—Could've fooled me." Jinx deserved that one.
"Wally, I know what happened a few months ago took us both off guard. Where do we go from here, what did it mean, but the thing is. I can't give you the answer you want to hear." Wally turned back around to her, his face stoic. "Which is what? What is it that I want, Jinx?"She tried to swallow the giant lump in her throat, but of course, it wasn't going down. "You know…it's just that sometimes when people get intimate, things get messy—" Before she could finish, Wally was already centimeters away from her face. He stood over her, his nose acting as a ruler for how tall he was compared to her. She could sniff the faint smell of aftershave he wore and see the small freckles that decorated his chest, yet she couldn't bring herself to look into those stupid blue eyes of his.
"Jinx, what is it that I want?" Jinx swallowed again. "A relationship." He took a breath and let out a heartless laugh, her heart broke just a little. "Jinx, I'm not some lost puppy. We were both hurting and found comfort from it." She sighed in relief, maybe that wasn't so hard after all. "Exactly, that's exactly what I was gonna say." He quipped an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. I'm sure you were." She gave him a playful shove. "Shut up asshole, you don't know what's on my mind." "Me and my abs." Maybe. Jinx rolled her eyes and gave him the finger.
"How was Paris?" Jinx asked as she plopped down on Bee's bed. After her quickie session with Wally, she opened her phone to see three missed calls from Bee. Like the best friend she is, Jinx rushed over right away. "Yeah, but besties don't stab each other in the back." She thought to herself. Bee strolls out of her gigantic closet, her body covered with a lush, gold body robe that has feathers at the bottom and compliments her growing curves nicely. "It was quaint. I missed you and Kor though. None of the girls could compare to you two." Jinx felt the guilt tug at her stomach. "I-I'm sure you made some friends." "Meh. I made destination pals, not gal pals. I'll hang out with them when I visit soon." Bee inspected her nail beds.
"What about you? How was the rest of the year?" She swallowed, small drops of sweat already prickling at her forehead. "Um—boring. Honestly, Sophomore year was so boring without you and V—" Jinx covered her mouth and Bee rolled her eyes. "You could say his name. I'm not gonna burst into tears or crack like a glass vase. I'm sort of over Vic." "Really? You're over him?" "Yeah, kind of. I mean, don't get me wrong, there are parts where I miss the big ol' lug. Then I remember last year and—you get the picture." Jinx wanted to jump and dance on the bed, right there. If Bee was over Vic, that meant she most likely wouldn't be mad about the whole blast last year. Right? "So, you're not still mad about the blast from last year then?"
"Oh no, I'm definitely still mad at that." Guess that answers that. "I thought you were over—" "—I said I was over Vic. Not the blast. I know I'm turning over a new leaf, but when I get a hold of Gar." She mimicked Gar's neck being in the middle of her hands and choking him. Jinx placed a hand around the curve of her neck. Imagining Bee's perfectly manicured nails around her neck and her eyes bulging out of their sockets. "I mean the nerve of that string bean! After all that I've done for him? I INVITED him back to the group and this is how repays me?" She took a pillow off her bed and threw it at her desk lamp, causing it to fall off the table and onto the floor. Thankfully, it didn't crash into pieces.
Jinx got up from the bed and took the lamp off the ground. "I'm guessing that was Gar's face you picturing?" Jinx asked. "You know he hasn't even reached out to apologize? I mean partially it's my fault, but still, he humiliated me in front of the whole school! How am I supposed to go out for Cheer Captain now?" "Wait, you're still thinking about try-outs? What about Kitten or Brooke?" Considering how Bee left the cheer season abruptly, Brooke didn't take the decision lightly, to say the least. She punched her fist through the wall, resulting in it having a small dent and a couple of cracks in it.
The poor custodian had to work two extra weekends to fix the damage left. Of course, Brooke didn't get in trouble for it; she got off with a warning. Although rumor has it that she had a doctor write out that she's prone to "dramatic outbursts" when dealing with a difficult issue. "I wouldn't worry about those two, I'm sure Brookie is fine with me re-auditioning. I saw last year's cheer competition, meh. I want us to head straight to the top this season!" Bee struck a power pose. "Well, I'm right behind you every step of the way!" Jinx plastered on a fake smile, the faint feeling of guilt still itching around her stomach.
The Hive: Yikes, Jinx better watch her back cause if Queen Bee finds out who's really behind the post, she might have to transfer. Queen Bee may have turned over a new leaf, but even I know tiger's don't change their stripes over a couple of months.
Rachel strolled outside of her father's old club, it still looks the same on the outside. The same little paint chips on the bricks, graffiti on the trash can, and the awful smell of weed and throw-up mixed. Yep, the place hasn't changed a bit. Ever since her father left, never to be found. Through the grapevine, she heard that someone had bought the place from under him, but no one knew him. It's as if he appeared from thin air…or hell. "Whatdya want, kid?" She glanced up to see a grimy bouncer with a lit cigarette in his mouth staring down at her. "I need to speak to the owner…for an audition." Rachel felt bile rise in her throat. The bouncer chuckled, Rachel watched in disgust as his beer belly jiggled up and down with each laugh he let out.
"Get outta here, one you ain't old enough to audition. Two, auditions or interviews aren't held on Tuesdays." "I think he'll make an exception for Raven." The bouncer stopped chuckling, and his eyes widened. He removed the sunglasses from his face. "Raven. Ain't no way, you're her." She handed him the fake ID, he skimmed over it, then averted his gaze to her. "Huh, you look different than when you're on stage." "That's what everyone says. Now, you wanna continue pestering me or make an exception and let me in?" She put on her best sultry gaze. The bouncer contemplated for a moment, then propped open the door. "He's out back sweetheart." Rachel walks into the doorway, then feels a small sting of heat around her butt. "Nice ass you've got there." He winks at her, Rachel bites her lip and settles with a wink. On the inside, she's throwing up.
"Thanks." He closes the door behind her, Rachel rolls her eyes and mutters "Asswipe." She gazes around the club, the creepy vibe is still present. However, where black tables and mafia members used to reside, there were now maroon booths in their place and a few workers cleaning up the messes from last night. Their uniforms looked different than the ones her father had the workers wear. Club workers had to wear halter tops that were three sizes too small and underwear to match, leaving little to the imagination. These workers had black tube tops that seemed to fit them well and short red skirts, on top of their heads they were wearing cat ears, bunny ears, and devil horns. "Club's closed until eleven, babe." She turned to see one of the workers behind her with a mop in her hand. "Oh, I have a meeting with the owner." "He's busy. Can I take a message?"
"Trust me, he wouldn't want to pass up meeting with me." Thanks to the girls she used to work with, Rachel managed to pick up a couple of tricks when it came to getting anything she wanted handed to her. "Bat those big eyelashes, show off those pretty, violet eyes, and pop your ass out a bit. Those curves will make the men drool in here!" Rachel thought. "Look whatever you're selling, we ain't—" "—Raven!" Both stopped to notice a young woman in a short turquoise robe, glittery makeup, and stilettos looking their way. Rachel recognized her immediately. Paige, one of her dad's many short-lived flings. She had nothing against her. Rachel considered her kind of like a cool aunt she never had.
Although she seemed sweet as buns, Paige was what Rachel would like to call—reckless. Rachel would see her in her father's office, splayed out on the couch with a bottle of pills in her hand and high as a kite. When she'd hit the stage, Paige would swing that red hair of hers to the beat of the music, it didn't seem mesmerizing enough and attendees would look elsewhere. This caused Paige to act out in rage and take off her stilettos and throw them at the audience, possibly an angry mood swing due to the pills wearing off.
Her father would take Paige to the back, yell at her, she'd push her boobs together, and..you know the rest. After they had a falling out, Paige grabbed a bottle of gin, sprayed it all over his office furniture, and set the place a blaze. She remembered how mad her father was and had Paige escorted out of the club, never to return. "Paige, you work here?" "Girl's gotta eat. You can go, babe. I'll take care of this one." She winked at the worker and took Rachel's hand in hers.
"How ya been? I feel like I haven't seen you in ages!" Paige sipped on the glass of whiskey. Well, she hasn't changed. "Oh you know, finishing school." Rachel lied through her teeth as if it was nothing. No matter how much she wanted to escape it, she knew that this era in her life would always be a part of her. "Good for you, let me know when you graduate.
We could hire you for some great entertainment." She giggled. Rachel thought about a male stripper gyrating his hips in front of her friends and immediately shook the thought out of her head. "Um, I'll keep you posted. When did you start working here?" "Mmm, a little over a month. The manger's quite the charmer." "Already sleeping with him, I see." Rachel thought to herself, yep Paige is still the same old Paige. "Really, better than Trigon?" Paige rolled her eyes. "Ugh, don't even get me started on that piece of shit. I gave that man everything and he treated me like gum on the bottom of his shoe. I hope he rots wherever he is." "You and me both." Rachel thought. "Anyways, I don't want to dwell in the past. What are you here for? Work?"
"Something like that." "Well, I will say that this place is a lot more crowded ever since he took over. I'm making more money than before. There's a bunch of spots filled, but I'm sure once he gets a look at you, he'll make an exception." She threw back the last bit of whiskey and sighed in satisfaction. Paige covered her mouth in embarrassment, "Oops, where are my manners? Want anything?"
"I'm okay, I should be heading down to meet him." "Alright, good luck! Shimmy cakes!" She kissed Rachel's cheek. Rachel bids her adieu and heads out of the dressing room towards the manager's office. As she gets closer, she hears soft moans from behind the door. Rachel rolls her eyes, apparently all of these managers have similar hobbies. She raps her finger against the door, and the moans stop. "Shit!" She heard a female voice say, followed by the sound of rustling clothes and footsteps. The door opens, cigar smoke billows out from the inside, and tears prick her eyes.
A girl with her skirt on backward looks Rachel up and down and scoffs. "Good luck following that act, babyface." The girl sticks her nose in the air and struts off. "Well, well, well. Do my eyes deceive me or is the Raven in my mist?" She heard the voice ask. Rachel turns towards the voice and her eyes widen at the sight. It's the man she saw a couple of days ago when she was out with Gar. Of course, he'd be the new owner.
"Hey, you got anything for me?" Dick asked on the phone as he sat on his bike. "Not since the last time we spoke, Mr. Grayson. I told you that it's gonna be a tricky find since Tony Zucco's been a wall. I've tried to get into buildings that he's owned, past work records, and nada. Guy's got a lot of things off his hands." Dick curses under his breath, clenching the phone in his hands.
"Well, you have to try harder. He must have slipped somewhere." "Look, Mr. Grayson, I know we meet every week to discuss new details, but you have to give me time. I haven't forgotten about your parents." He sucks in a breath and lets it out slowly. "Fine. Call me as soon as you find something." "Will do." He hangs up the phone and stuffs it in his pockets. Dick gazed out at the horizon in front of him, the sun was starting to set over the city of Gotham. He had driven up to the mountainside of Gotham, letting his thoughts run wild, and the memories came crashing through. Dick had been coming up here for the past couple of weeks, sometimes meeting with his PI over the details that he could use against Tony Zucco in the trial.
Bruce and Kory thought he had been going to therapy to help with his grieving. The truth was that he went to the first session, then left in the middle and never looked back. Dick even signed a check to pay for his next couple of "sessions" with his therapist. Kory. His mind instantly snapped to his girlfriend and how lonely she must be. They hadn't had a proper date in weeks, fault on him because he was "tired" from his sessions in therapy and meetings with the lawyers.
He'd been reading articles about Tony Zucco to maybe help get leads on any suspicious activity that he may be involved in and push the PI to find something deeper. Yet, they'd continue hitting dead ends. Still, he didn't want to shut Kory out. "Maybe I should call her." He said to no one in particular. Dick opened his phone to see missed calls from Wally and a post from The Hive. He didn't want to bother seeing some false rumor about someone from Gotham Academy, so instead he presses on Wally's number.
As if Wally was waiting by the phone, he answered it in a snap. "Dude, what the hell? I've been calling you for the past five minutes, I thought you went on an emotional spiral or something." "Wally, what the hell are you talking about now?" "So, you haven't seen The Hive post?" "No." The line goes silent for a couple of moments. "Wally?" "Okay, don't be mad. Well, you could be mad, but I think you should talk to Kory about this."
"About what?" Dick presses the speaker button and clicks on the notification box. Once he takes a look at the headline, his mouth tightens in anger. "This is nothing but a fucking rumor. There's no way Kory would do this and not tell me about it." "I'm sure you're right, but I don't know, the article is pretty detailed." "I'll call you back." He ends the call and throws it in his backpack, before hopping back on his bike and placing his helmet on his head. Dick revs the engine, letting it roar to life, he removes his
The Hive: Hey there, bee hive. Hive here and I've got some honey for you that's oh too sweet to pass up. I've got some news from a very reliable source that our resident Princess Kory is engaged to be married.
"Oh my god, Bee. Bee" Jinx gestures for Bee to come over to her as she stares at her phone in disbelief. Bee quickly runs over, taking her seat next to Jinx and following her gaze. She gasps in shock as she reads over the headline.
The Hive: Yep, you heard that right. Married, as in wedding, groom, glamorous ring, and show-stopping VIP list that'll put Kate Middleton's to shame. The whole shebang. For once, I'm jealous. Kory's got not only one piece of arm candy but two. A hubby-to-be and a bf who's a grade-A hottie.
Gar takes a sip of his drink as he scrolls through his computer screen, before spitting it out in a matter of seconds. "Holy shit." He mutters to himself as he clicks on The Hive Article.
The Hive: I'm all for polyamory relationships, yet if I'm not mistaken, under Tameranian laws you're only supposed to have one spouse and no side pieces. At least that's what I was told. So the question is, who's it gonna be Kory? Prince Charming or Boy Wonder?
Rachel closes the door behind her as 's gaze lingers on her body. He licks his lips in hunger and gives her a wicked smile that sends a chill down her spine. She quickly puts her arms around her body to cover up. "Ain't nothing I haven't seen before, Raven." He chuckles. "Yeah, I stopped you before you could see it. Remember?" "Yeah, I've still got the scratches to prove it."
She's ready to take a seat on the couch before noticing a pair of underwear lying on the cushion and resorts to sitting on the armrest instead. "What can I do for you, Raven? Want to finish that session?" She begrudgingly swallows the bile that's rising in her throat from that sour comment. "No thanks, I actually need something else from you." "Depends on what it is." He raises an eyebrow, and Rachel sighs. She's gonna regret doing this, but she needs this information. Rachel bends over slightly to show off the ample humps of her breasts and pushes them together, smirks.
"Fine, I'll bite. What do ya need?" She twists the strand in her hair seductively and smiles "Did the former owner leave any files behind?" "What would a doll like you want with that kind of stuff?" "Trigon wanted me to come and pick it up for him." "Ha, no one's heard from Trigon in months. You'd expect me to believe that he sent you over to grab his files?" Rachel sways her hips from side to side as she approaches him and pulls him closer to him.
"No one has to know." Mr. Turner pokes his tongue in his cheek, then shakes his head in disagreement. "Nah, you're not getting me killed." "Suit yourself, I didn't want to do this the hard way." "What are you—" Rachel takes hold of his neck and pinches it, and in an instant, Mr. Turner falls into unconsciousness. While staying with Gar's family, Rita taught Rachel a couple of self-defense mechanisms.
Knocking your opponent unconscious was one of them. She pushes Mr. Turner's chair to the side and begins to search through the file cabinets of things, so far it was only current records and no trace of her father's statements. They had to be around somewhere, one thing she knew about clubs is that owners kept track of the previous records for account purposes.
Rachel walks over to the closet and opens it with ease, she peeks inside to see boxes of records inside. She searches over the names that are labeled on the boxes, her eyes narrowing on the box labeled "Trigon". Quickly, she grabs the box out of the closet and closes the door quietly. Maybe this will have the answers she's looking for when trying to find her father's whereabouts.
Xavier pulls out a medium bag of white powder and throws it to a teen with black shades over his face and a hoodie to match. The teen catches it with ease, cracking open the bag and taking a sniff. "Nah-ah, remember the deal." He holds out his hand, and the teen glances up at him and takes off running. "Shit," Xavier mutters under his breath, before snapping his fingers.
The teen manages to run to the end of the alley before Jason falls from the sky and kicks him in the stomach. He falls to the ground releasing a small grunt in pain. Xavier catches up to the duo and gives a swift kick to the teen's face. He snatches the bag out of his hand, "Deal's off, bitch boy." Jason kicks him again, and the teen whimpers. Xavier searched around them to see if anyone was watching them, thank God it was a seedy part of town that many didn't go to as an ideal travel destination. "Let's go before the cops come." They walk away from the teen's body, Xavier stuffs the bag inside his pocket as Jason follows.
"Thanks for the assist, Jason. Looks like that promotion may be coming sooner than you think." Jason's eyes widened in shock. "A promotion?" He nods as they get into the car and close the doors. Jason puts his key into the ignition, letting the car come to life. "Yeah, I've been watching you. We could use more people like you, 'delivery boy' doesn't do you justice." He pulls out a fat wad of cash and hands it over to him, Jason smiles. "Thanks, X." "Don't thank me, consider it a…raise." He grabs the shades of the dashboard and puts them on his face, while Jason takes a seat back to count his money.
Purple. Blue. Red. Lights dance from outside the windows of a modern dance club. Groups of men wearing the hottest line of clothes stood in line googling the scantily clad women in front of them. They were all standing in line outside of the crowded club waiting for their turn to get in. Xavier runs a finger over his cut eyebrow and motions for Jason to follow him.
"What are we doing here?" Jason asks over the music. "I told you that the promotion may be coming sooner than you think. I need to see you scope out some clientele." He heads towards the bouncer, whispering in his ear. The bouncer glances behind Xavier and makes eye contact with Jason. Jason averts his gaze to the sign above the door. "Must be 18 or older to enter" He could feel his palms starting to sweat. The bouncer removes the rope from its latch. Xavier waves a hand at Jason, "Let's go." Jason follows after Xavier as he heads inside.
—
"Can I get a drink, scotch on the rocks? Heavy on the scotch. You want anything?" He asks Jason as they wiggle through the drunk bodies to get themselves to the bar. Jason shakes his head, Xavier shrugs and hands the bartender an ID. "You've been here before?" He shrugs. "Yeah, it's kind of dead tonight though." "This is dead to you?" "Usually the line outside would go all the way to another street. The only way girls would get in is if they slipped Bubbles there, a hundred, or flashed him. He would have taken either."
"His name is Bubbles?" "No, I just called him that 'cause I forgot his name and didn't bother to ask for it again. Plus, he looks like a bubbles." They glance over at the stoic bouncer with the teardrop tattoo under his eye, Jason shudders. "Yep." The bartender hands Xavier his scotch, he kicks it back with ease. "So, what are we supposed to be doing?" Xavier pulls the drink from the bar and searches the crowd. "You're supposed to be eyeing the crowd any potential buyers. College kids looking to buy something for cram sessions, entry-level business associates who need to take the edge off, girls looking to have some wild experience, and stuff like that. You have to mingle with them a bit, kind of get to know their story before selling it to them. I mean you gotta sell it, let's look."
They both look over the crowd of people for potential suspects before Jason's eyes land on a tall, gorgeous raven-haired, caramel-colored skin beauty with violet eyes. She wore a purple lace top that emphasized her breasts and curves, he noticed the small space tattoo that she rocked above her hips. The girl was mesmerizing, he couldn't snap himself out of the daze. She was perfect. "What about her?" Jason pointed towards the girl, Xavier glanced up, and he sucks in a breath. "Damn." Jason quirks an eyebrow at his sudden behavior change. "What's wrong?" "Whatever you do, let me do all the talking." "But—" "—Shh." Jason picks up his glass, they stride over to the girl.
He clears his throat, and the girl stops moving her hips and whirls her head around to notice them. She cracks a smile, one that sends a chill down your spine. "Well, do my eyes deceive me. If it isn't Xavier, my you've grown." "Komy, didn't expect to see you here. Thought your parents sent you to some boarding school in Sweden?" "So they know each other." Jason thought. He could tell Xavier was holding back while Komy kept her gaze alert as if she knew why he was holding back. "Summer break, I wanted to patch things up with baby sis before I went back."
"How touching." He could hear the sarcasm drip from Xavier's voice. Something was definitely off between the two of them. Komy removed her gaze from Xavier and turned it to Jason, he gulped at how icy, but seductive her stare was. "What do we have here? You two related?" "Uh—" "—He's with me. Work and stuff." "Right, getting them young I see." Komy stepped a little closer to him to where he could smell the perfume spilling off her body. "Got a name?" Jason glances at Xavier for guidance, and Xavier shakes his head.
"It's—Paul. Nice to meet you." She purses her lips in interest. "Hmm, I'd never take you for a Paul. You look like you've got more of a daring name, like Thrasher or Reese." "Nah, I got the short end of the deal. Heh." Komy bats her eyelashes as if she were starting to pull him under her spell. "Well, Paul. I'd keep an eye out for Xavier, he tends to put his nose into other people's business." She giggles as if it were an inside joke, except Jason feels as though what she is saying is a double-edged sword.
"You and your jokes always amaze me, Komy. Catch you later?" She nods in agreement. Xavier and Jason are about to leave when Komy lays her hand on Xavier's shoulder. "Wait. I need to talk to you, alone." He gives his glass to Jason before Komy pulls him off into a secluded area, leaving Jason by himself in the middle of the dance floor.
Knock. Knock. Knock. Kory comes down the stairs from her room to the living room. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" She yells as she makes her way to the door. Kory peeks her head over the window before opening it. Dick storms inside, phone in hand, and shades off his face. The vein in his neck pops out, his face a bright red. "Dick, what's wrong?" She asks, already fearing for the worst.
"You want to explain this to me?" He shoves the phone in her face, Kory skims over the headline and her face drops from worry to regret. "Tell me this isn't true." Kory didn't answer him, thoughts were running through her mind as to figure out the right thing to say. "Tell me it's not." His voice shook, she could hear the heartbreak in his voice. "Dick." "No." He scoffs as he shakes his head in disbelief. She could feel the tears brim her eyes as she watched him try not to stomach the news.
"I-I'm so sorry, that you found out this way. I was going to tell you I was at your house not too long ago and—" Were you gonna tell me after the wedding or at the engagement party? How long have you known, Kory? About this? I need the truth. Now." Kory flinched back in fright. "I've known since the week after my birthday. I didn't think I was eligible for it, I truly did. My sister was supposed to be the next in line to initiate this rule, however, with my parents getting older and my sister having—unpredictable methods. It falls to me, the next in line." She sighed in defeat, it felt as though a huge rock had just lifted off her shoulders.
Yet, at the same time, it felt like a bigger one was coming in to replace it. Kory couldn't dare look at Dick's facial expression, but she could feel the emotions radiating off him. Anger, hurt, betrayal, the emotions she'd never want to be the reason for. "Why didn't you tell me? You're my girlfriend, we don't keep secrets from each other." She turned away from him. "Dick so much has been going on, I didn't want to add this to the list." "Ugh! I'm so tired of everyone treating me like some porcelain vase!" She took a step away from him.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell. It's just that, this is the icing on top of the cake to add to this shitty year. I mean, you're only sixteen and they're trying to marry you off?" "It's a part of my culture, my mother and father were married when they were around the same age. It's common for Tameranian royalty to get married this early." "So where does that leave us?" She takes another deep breath and continues, "Galfore and I have been finding every loophole in the laws to see if I could get out of this situation somehow. However, each loophole leads to me having to renounce the throne."
"This means, once you renounce the throne. The ruling falls to either Komy or Ryan." She nods, and Dick puts his hand over his eyes. "The little good news is that they haven't found a "contender" to ally matrimony. All the other kingdoms are either ineligible or too small." "Then what happens? We break up?—" "—I don't want that! That's the last thing I want." Tears started to fall from her eyes, Dick pulls her into his embrace and wipes some of the tears off her face. "It's the last thing I want to, but we can't walk away from this like it's not happening."
"I know, it's just so confusing. I don't know what to do, my heart belongs here with you, but there's also a part that belongs to Tamaran." Dick didn't want to lose her, that's the last thing he wanted to do. His feelings started to develop more into that four-letter word bigger than like and that was scaring him for than engagement. "So, what do you want to do?" He lifted her chin to where she was gazing down at him with tear-stained eyes. "I want for you to hold me, while we figure this out." He nods in agreement as they embrace again, tears now falling down both their cheeks.
Komy manages to wiggle them into a small spot near the back booth, Xavier scopes over the sweaty bodies of drunk people grinding all over each other. If Komy hadn't been here to ruin his fun, then he'd probably have around 20 new customers. "I know what you're doing." She glared at him through the slits of her eyes. He knitted his eyebrows together in confusion. "What are you talking about?" "Oh please, you're protecting my kid sister." "I'm not." "Look at you, you can't even lie about it. I know you've got a little crush on her, that's so sweet." Xavier chuckles slightly "Who's delusional?"
"Please, that whole thing with the kid was to protect Kory, I know that much." "His name is Paul and he's just a protege, that's it. You're reading too much into this, Komy. You've been drinking?" It was her turn to chuckle. She stepped closer to him to where her body was pressed against his, and their eyes never off each other. He could see the sparkles gleaming off her chest, the sweet smell of jasmine floating off of her. His mind snaps to a couple of years back, clothes on the ground and bottles of booze sitting on the nightstand.
She was resting on his chest, he couldn't take his gaze off the fallen angel in front of him. Komy raised her lips to his ear "You can't protect Kory for much longer, she'll want nothing to do with you when she finds out when she finds out who'd been my supplier. Not to mention, that night we…" She giggles before blowing into his ear, his heart rate rattles beneath his chest as Komy struts away from him, her eyes never leaving his. She falls back into the crowd, letting the bodies engulf her in their lustful embrace. Xavier gulps in fear, finally snapping his gaze away from the crowd and over at the bar to see Jason coming towards him. "What happened? Who was that girl?" He shakes his head and fixes his jacket, "Kory's sister." Was all he could muster himself to say before heading out to the crowd of people, leaving Jason to stare after him in disbelief.
The Hive: Xavier Red, drug overload or coward behind the mask? The world may never know, except maybe Komy that is. Looks like there's more to him than meets the eye and he doesn't want a certain red head to know about it. Komy's got him right where she wants him and if he moves out of place, she's not afraid to spill. I'd like to extend a warm welcome to our royal hottie, Komy. You're just the kind of person this place needs. Watch out, Gothamites. This royal hottie's got tricks up her sleeve and she's not afraid to use them. Au revoire for now, The Hive.
Comicgeek16: Hey everyone! Here's an update for ya. I had some harsh life things happen so I wasn't able to update. However, I'm finding the motivation to finish this book and continue to the next/last one. Hopefully you enjoy this chapter! Please R&R, I love the reviews and I appreciate them! Thanks to everyone taking the time to read my story, you have no idea how happy I am to get messages of love and support! You keep me writing lol!But any-who, now you all know the secret that Kory's been keeping and inspiration of the book's cover ;). There's more drama where that came from, see ya soon!