Two Weeks Between Love and Hate

About two years ago, in a fancy rooftop penthouse of a high-end hotel chain, a Christmas party was well on its way. It wasn’t exactly a rager, as everyone there had a combined net worth that measured upwards of twelve figures. Jason was probably the poorest person there. He found himself at the fancy party solely because the CEO’s son, who was also partially his boss, invited him. Well, not so much invited. It was more of a thinly veiled threat.

“Hey come to this party. I’m gonna need some extra entertainment. You know what will happen if you don’t.”

The brat enjoyed having Jason around because he got a kick out of watching him effortlessly reject some of the supermodel-level women with little to no hesitation or regret.

Jason wore a black tuxedo that fit like a glove that was a size too small for him. Despite the tailor taking his measurements, he felt like he was going to burst out the seams if he flexed too much or bent the wrong way. This wasn’t the first time it’s happened either. Each time he came to one of these parties, the suit that was delivered to him after getting measurements done was too small. At this point, he was pretty sure it was on purpose. Not that he could do much about it.

As he leaned against a wall in a less populated area, gulping down his fourth glass of overpriced sparkling white wine, he lazily surveyed the party. It was full of ridiculously wealthy people and their spawn. The party was advertised as family friendly and parents were encouraged to bring their children, so it was a bit more rowdy than most he’d been to. Some kids were young, some older, but a common factor was that most looked like they’d rather be anywhere but here. Almost all of them had an uptight, arrogant look to their expressions like they were looking down on everyone else. Taught that they were superior to the common rabble, they thought they were special little bastards. Even at a party like this full of millionaires and some billionaires, they looked down at others. Jason couldn’t help but wonder just how spoiled most of these kids were.

They all needed a reality check if anyone asked him. Not that any of them would care what some salary man thought.

Jason was slowly letting his mind drift into a half-drunken stupor until a voice broke through the haze, calling out to him as they neared.

“Hey Jason, there you are, buddy! How are you enjoying the festivities?”

A young man with sun-kissed blonde hair and eyes that resembled the color of autumn leaves walked up to him. His sharp, handsome face was framed by a wisp of cigar smoke. The aura of mischief was almost visible around him. Jason glanced over at him with a small scowl, only deepening when he saw he had his arm wrapped around the waist of a voluptuous blonde.

The woman had a figure full of voluptuous curves with a tiny waist. Her proportions were borderline unrealistic.

“Fuck… here we go again, you piece of shit, Vince,” Jason growled silently.

“Oh, you know me, I always have fun at these get-togethers. I love being around a bunch of rich bastards who could have me dragged out into the middle of the street in broad daylight, shot in the back of the head execution style, and then laugh it off while discussing the artful splattering of my brain in their mansions, as the cops pour their drinks,” Jason paused to finish his wine.

“So you know, just peachy,” his words dripped with sarcasm.

The woman’s expression twisted into sheer horror at Jason’s words, while Vince burst into hysterical laughter. He pulled the cigar from his mouth, leaning over and placing a hand on his knees, eyes watering as he coughed from laughing too hard and inhaling some of the smoke.

“Hahaha, it’s funny cause it’s true! Jason, ya gotta warn me first. My chest hurts now haha, oh man,” he said, still chuckling. Slowly regaining his composure, Vince continued, “Anyway, anyway, I wanted you to meet my new friend here. Carmella, meet Jason. He’s a good friend of mine,” he said, giving her an overly friendly smack on her butt that was probably fake the way it barely moved from the strike. “So be nice to him, alright?”

The woman barely flinched from the smack and shot a glare at him but refrained from saying anything.

“Vince… come on man,” Jason groaned with pure annoyance in his voice.

“Oh, come on now! Give her a chance; I’m sure you two will hit it off. Why don’t you tell her about how your boxing career is coming along?” Vince said with a wink, while Jason rolled his eyes and nodded begrudgingly.

“Alright, well, I’ll leave you both to it. See you two very soon,” Vince said casually. With another puff on his cigar, he strolled away with a grin that would make the devil jealous. Jason looked back over at Carmella, who was now eye fucking him as her gaze traced over every ridge caused by the slim-fitting tuxedo. Her desire was obvious as her eyes landed on the bulge of his crotch. Jason was the exact opposite, as he already decided he wasn’t interested before he even heard her name.

Jason pushed off the wall and started walking away.

“Where are we going?” Carmella said as she hurried after him.

Jason sighed as he was followed. “If I’m stuck with you, I am gonna need a stronger drink.”

The blonde woman’s eyes flashed, but Jason wasn’t even looking at her anymore.

“Excuse me? You’re stuck with me?” she said with a scoff, her tone screamed offense, yet she continued to follow him.

“You’re excused, and yes, stuck with you,” he retorted, rolling his eyes.

She gasped, clearly offended. “I’ll have you know that my family runs a multinational—” Jason cut her off abruptly as they reached the refreshment table.

“Shut up. I’m not drunk enough for you to start with the whole ‘my family is this, we own that’ bullshit. Yeah, you and literally everyone else here,” he spat back, the irritation clear in his voice.

Jason casually poured himself a half-full glass of fifty-year-old scotch, nonchalantly sipping it as Carmella stared at him in disbelief.

“You aren’t some special and unique snowflake. You are just some overly fake bimbo shoved on me by someone with more power and money than you.” He savored the taste of the expensive alcohol, unfazed by Carmella’s rising anger.

Jason easily slipped back from the swing of her arm as she tried to slap him. Not even spilling a drop of his drink. Carmella had fully expected to hit the man and over-committed with her swing. Her heels clattered as she stumbled forward. He could have easily caught the woman as she was falling towards him, but instead, he sidestepped her, and she fell to her knees.

“Ahhh! My fucking knees!” she yelled in pain as she landed on the floor. She struggled as she tried getting back to her feet, her ankles constantly twisting as her tall heels slipped on the smooth hardwood.

“You should really be more careful who you try to pick fights with, dumbass,” Jason remarked with a slight slur as he popped an olive into his mouth from the selection of garnishes.

Carmella shot him a look that could kill, but her expression quickly changed as she realized everyone around them was staring and whispering.

“Isn’t anyone going to help me? This man assaulted me!” Carmella asked, fear in her eyes as she saw the disgusted looks aimed her way.

“What is that woman doing on the floor?”

“I believe that is one of the escorts hired for tonight’s entertainment.”

“At least take it into one of the rooms before getting on your knees, stupid whore.”

Several loud unabashed whispers broke the silence, sparking a chorus of agreement from others.

“I’m not! He is the one that...” Carmella protested, but it was too late. The damage was done, and she found herself ostracized in a room full of people who only ever looked out for themselves in the first place.

Tears streamed down Carmella’s cheeks as she struggled to stand up. An older woman suddenly emerged from the crowd and grabbed Carmella’s arm, pulling her up.

“Get up, you stupid girl! You’re making a scene and embarrassing your father and I,” she scolded.

Carmella looked up at the woman, still crying. “But, Mother, he...”

Her sentence trailed off as she realized Jason was gone.

“H-he was just here, this tall guy...” she tried to explain, but a sharp slap across the face interrupted her.

“I don’t care if it was the fucking president; people are saying we have a prostitute for a daughter. We’re going home, now!” Carmella gasped, holding her cheek where her mother had slapped her.

“You struck me! You’ve never hit me before!” Her eyes continued to spill shocked tears.

“Maybe I should have sooner! Now, if you don’t move your ass, I’ll make the doctor who gave it to you take it back!”

“Mom, please!” The two argued as they left the penthouse. The crowd quickly went back to their own conversations. The distant sound of a man’s hysterical laughter rang out loudly.

Vince couldn’t contain himself, now doubled over at the hilarious scene that had just unfolded.

“Haha, that was one of the best yet! When she swung at him and missed, hahaha I almost pissed myself!” he gasped between laughter, struggling to catch his breath and coughing hard as he leaned on his knees.

Meanwhile, Jason pushed open the door to one of the bathrooms, seeking refuge he hoped for a moment of peace. He walked up to one of the sinks, downing the rest of his drink, and placing the empty glass cup on the edge with a clink. He leaned forward on the counter, his stomach turned, and grumbled loudly. Not happy at the large consumption of alcohol, he had been putting in it with so little food.

It was then that he was met with the unmistakable sounds of moans and gags coming from behind a door that led to the shower and toilet. He let out a heavy sigh, staring at his reflection and the bags under his eyes from lack of sleep.The stress of being forced to come to this stupid fucking party had been weighing him down the entire week before and left him running on less than a few hours of sleep in the last few days.

“Oh yeah baby, suck that cock!” a voice from behind the door shouted.

Jason’s fists clenched tight. It was the last straw. He couldn’t take it anymore and finally snapped.

“Shut the fuck up, you disgusting jackasses! There are children at this party!” he screamed his frustrations at the deviants behind the door. Quickly storming out of the bathroom, he muttered under his breath as the voice yelled back.

“Who the fuck-,” but that was all he heard as he left and made his way through the party, he would try his luck with the other bathroom located across the penthouse. Hoping he could die in peace there.

“Jason, hey wait up!” Vince’s grating voice called out to him.

“Bathroom,” Jason replied simply, never slowing his stride.

Luckily, Vince didn’t follow. The sloshing of excess liquid in Jason’s stomach churned like a blender of impending doom. When he finally got to the bathroom, he ignored the sign taped to the door that read lady’s room. As he entered, the sound of crying filled his ears. He prayed it wasn’t Carmella; he didn’t know if she was still at the party or not, but he had zero desire to deal with her.

His stomach grumbled and warned him what was about to happen. He grasped the sink’s edge with an iron grip. The world spun as he felt sick and that alone made him sweat profusely.

“Fuck… fuck, just breath, just breath, just…,” he groaned, feeling bile rise in his throat.

“Hello… Who’s out there?” a soft, feminine voice called out, followed by a loud sniff, but Jason was too preoccupied to respond. He was only vaguely aware of the sound of the door opening and the click of heels next to him.

“A-are you alright?” the voice asked.

“Nope,” was all he managed before he leaned over and emptied the contents of his stomach into the sink.

The only solid food he’d eaten all day was a single olive, so the contents of his stomach were almost all liquid unleashed down the drain.

“Oh, dear!” the woman’s voice exclaimed as Jason’s body wretched and convulsed over the sink.

As Jason’s stomach grumbled with intense pain, feeling only half empty by this point, he felt a hand trying to comfort him by rubbing his back. The idea of a strange woman touching him did the opposite of comfort to him, but it was a kind gesture, even if it did little. He continued to unleash another torrent of previously consumed alcohol down the drain.

Once Jason’s stomach finally ran empty, he dropped to his knees, hanging onto the sink, closing his eyes in exhaustion. His body shook as his blood sugar crashed, panting heavily, and struggling to catch his breath. His chest continued tightening with frequent dry heaves.

“You really shouldn’t drink so much you throw up, it’s not good for you,” the woman with her hand still on his back informed, her voice holding a surprising amount of concern.

“My dad drinks a lot, and all he does anymore is work and sleep.”

Jason wasn’t sure what this woman was trying to say, or why she was even talking to him, to begin with.

“It’s a party. I have to drink… for my own sanity,” he rasped out, closing his eyes wearily.

“Drinking is always a choice. My father warned me about peer pressure,” the woman said in a matter-of-fact tone, like some know-it-all all teenager.

He couldn’t give two shits about the after-school special wisdom she was trying to impart on him.

“Whatever, I don’t really care. Think what you want,” he said with a groan of pain as his chest tightened once more.

His words took a moment to sink in before she finally reacted. “You don’t care?... That’s funny,” she added with a small laugh.

Jason groggily opened his eyes and frowned at the light laughter around him. It was just what he needed now, having to deal with another pain in the ass trust fund brat or an overly confident trophy wife waiting for her hundred-year-old husband to kick the bucket.

“Not sure how it’s funny, I honestly don’t give two flying fucks what you stuck up limp noodle, never worked a real job, soft-handed idiots with more money than brain cells think,” he said, mumbling groggily.

“Your thoughts on who I am or what I do matter about as much as the color of socks worn by the homeless guy on my street corner matters to me.” Using the sink for support, Jason slowly hoisted himself up.

As he turned, he finally faced the person who had been speaking. To his mild surprise, he found himself staring down at a young girl, probably in her mid-teens. Her shiny wheat-blonde hair was styled in an elaborate way with bits sticking out here and there, matching her almost-golden shimmering dress. The fact that he had just cursed out a kid quickly sunk in.

“Shit…this might not end well.” His thoughts raced for a moment before he saw her expression change.

Surprisingly, the young woman wasn’t frowning at Jason. In fact, she was smiling and laughing softly.

“So what color are they?” she suddenly asked as Jason stood there, a bit unsteady.

He took in her facial features as their eyes met. Her eyes and cheeks were stained with mascara that had run from her earlier tears, yet most of her features remained flawlessly beautiful under it. Unable to stop his eyes from traveling down, he saw her figure, well, more like didn’t see. Even for a teenager, her chest was very small, like a washboard, but that would be an insult to washboards, really. Not that it mattered to Jason at all. Even if he were interested in dating, it certainly wouldn’t be with someone so young. Or with a figure that reminded him of painful memories.

“Huh?” Jason finally responded, still feeling a bit woozy from the alcohol.

“His socks, silly. What color are the homeless guy’s socks?” she asked, still smiling at him.

Jason ran a hand through his black hair, slicking it back out of his eyes after it got messed up from his bout of nausea.

“He doesn’t wear socks... he’s homeless. That’s the point,”

The girl pondered the answer for a moment. “Ohhhh, haha, that’s pretty good,” she said, giggling softly, covering her mouth with her hand.

“It wasn’t meant to be funny,” he returned, rubbing his half-numb face.

Just then, someone entered the bathroom. “My word!” an older voice exclaimed from behind.

Both Jason and the blonde girl turned to see who it was. An elderly lady literally grasped the large old-fashioned pearls strung around her neck and stared at them in shock. Seeing Jason’s disheveled appearance and the mascara stains on the young girl’s face, she gasped, making sounds of offense, before retreating out of the bathroom. Both of them were rather confused.

“What was her problem?” Jason asked aloud.

“I don’t know, but you should probably get out of the women’s bathroom,” she said, still smiling.

Jason nodded at that and started walking out without saying another word.

“Hey, wait up!” the girl called out, hurrying to catch up as they left the bathroom.

He had already started heading up a set of stairs to the second floor.

“Where are you going? I can’t keep up in this dress and heels!” she asked, trying her best to keep pace with his long strides.

“I’m trying to find a room without old perverts getting their rocks off in it. Why the hell are you following me?” Jason grumbled

“Ew, is that what people do at these parties?”

“Kid, you have no idea. Don’t go in the other bathroom, by the way,” he warned, pausing to briefly listen at a door before moving on.

“My name is Lina Ki- well, it’s Lina, not kid. I’m sixteen already,” she said, trying to prove she wasn’t a kid.

“Yeah, like I said, don’t go in the other bathroom, kid,” he said, continuing onwards.

Lina grumbled about still being called a kid, but she kept tagging along behind Jason like a lost puppy as he searched the rooms.

“I’ve done plenty of adult things, probably more than you, Mr...” She paused, fishing for Jason’s name.

“Just because you do adult things doesn’t make you an adult. Hell, I doubt a lot of the people here are adults. And Mister is fine. Stop following me, kid,” he said, trying to shake her off as he pressed his ear to the next door.

She scoffed at his words. “Oh, and what exactly makes someone an adult? Vomiting in a sink at a party?” She shot back while leaning against the wall next to the door he was listening at.

“Shhhh,” he hushed her, still listening intently.

She folded her arms in a slight huff, but the corners of her lips still curled into a smile. As annoyed as she was, she was still enjoying herself more than she had been.

“Finally,” Jason said with relief as he swung open the door, revealing a moderately sized bedroom with a queen-sized bed. Stepping inside, he glanced around before shutting and locking the door behind him.

“At last, some fuckin’ peace,” he said with a sigh, relieved to have lost his tail.

“Totally the music out there is so cringy, even during Christmas, it’s all old boring stuff,” Jason spun around to see Lina standing in the middle of the room, surveying the space.

“This room is tiny. Do people actually sleep in these rooms? I almost feel claustrophobic,” she said, prompting Jason to groan in response.

“Yes they do. My whole fucking apartment is barely bigger than this room alone,” he said, unlocking the door and holding it open for her to leave.

“Now, please get out, so I can rest and recover a bit.”

Lina raised a brow at Jason’s words and actions, laughing like it was some kind of joke.

“You are so funny, but no, I’m not going back to that stupid party, especially not with that stupid jer-...uhh that awful music,” she was clearly hiding something, but Jason didn’t give a single fuck at this point.

Running his hand roughly down his face, he let out a long groan. “I can’t do this, I just… can’t, please, just go. I’ve been here for two hours, I threw up, and I’m running on a total of three hours of sleep in the last two days. I’m begging you Lina, please leave,” he pleaded, but Lina stood her ground, arms folded.

“I won’t disturb your rest, but I’m staying. And there is nothing you can do to change my mind,” she said, making her declaration.

“Fuck…” Jason muttered, “Fine, do what you want. I don’t care anymore. But I am laying down and passing out for a while and doing my best to ignore you.”

His head was pounding with a massive headache, he closed and locked the door, but quickly unlocked it again. Being alone in a room with a sixteen-year-old behind a locked door was way past his comfort zone.

He shuffled over to the bed, shedding his tux jacket and tossing it atop of a dresser. Then undid several buttons on his undershirt, the upper ridges of his sculpted chest peaking out.

Lina’s eyes quickly darted away from the man, her cheeks warm while avoiding Jason’s gaze. He didn’t pay any attention to the teenager and simply collapsed onto the mattress and shut his eyes.

She stared at the man on the bed trying to sleep, brain quickly coming up with questions she felt were important enough to interrupt his attempted nap.

“So, if you really don’t want to be here, why did you come in the first place?” Lina sat down next to Jason on the bed, jostling him slightly. “My dad drags me to these things all the time. He says that I need to be around others like our family to build up connections. Well, that and I thought my… a friend was coming, but turns out they’re just a superficial jackass who cares more about looks than personality, loyalty, and… other stuff.”

Jason’s eyes slowly opened as Lina prattled on about a guy that he guessed broke up with her or something.

“You’re not gonna stop talking, are you?” His voice was half muffled by the mattress.

“I mean, who just suddenly says something so hurtful out of nowhere?” Lina continued, ignoring his question.

“Why are people so quick to judge others based on appearance? Like, just because someone has smaller...umm feet,” Lina said vaguely. Clearly, not actually talking about shoe size. “It doesn’t mean they’re not amazing on the inside, right?” Not giving Jason a chance to respond.

“Just what I need, a disgruntled teen with body issues bombarding me with questions and complaints about the opposite sex…Fuck my life,” he thought, just barely managing to keep his thoughts to himself this time. He just wanted a nap, maybe an hour to rest. Why did he attract all the crazies?

Quickly giving up the ghost of a chance that he was going to get any rest he rolled over onto his back.

“If it’s something you can’t change naturally, it’s best to accept it. I think it’s much more attractive when someone is honest with themselves and others,” Jason said sleepily. “And, you know, having small…feet, shouldn’t keep you from loving yourself. Some people probably prefer them.” He was not one of those people.

The truth was that he disliked girls with small breasts, a hang-up of his, rooted in a deep-seated past trauma. Her boyish figure, on the other hand, leaned more towards flat than small chested. It was a small but meaningful distinction that kept his anger at bay.

Lina gazed at Jason sprawled out on the bed, feeling a slight flutter in her chest from his words. She sucked in a deep breath to steady her nerves.

“Exactly. Nobody should be dumped over something as trivial as shoe size, right? I mean…“ she blushed as she basically admitted she was dumped. But it seemed like the conversation was far from over for Jason, as Lina dove back in with more questions.

Jason let out a heavy sigh and glanced at Lina, really taking a good look at her. Yeah, she had a pretty face, but the front and back of her body were about as flat as those moronic theories about Earth.

“Lina, don’t waste your time getting all worked up over guys who don’t want to date you just because your butt and boobs aren’t very big,” Jason was a bit too straightforward and Lina’s face turned an even brighter red with shame and embarrassment as he pointed out the elephant in the room.

“W-who said anything about my boobs or b-butt, you creep!” she said defensively, glaring at him.

Jason rolled his eyes at her comment. “Just shut up and listen, there are always gonna be people who try to drag you down because of what you lack.” He tried to force himself to wake up a bit more to get a little more encouragement in his voice.

“But the real winners are those who take all the negativity in their lives and use it as fuel to better their own lives. So when someone insults who you are, you brush that shit off and show them how much it doesn’t faze you. Piss them off by doing better than them. The best revenge is proving how wrong their insults were and rubbing it in their stupid faces. So stop being a whiny little bitch and prove just what a mistake your ex made.” At this point, he was just saying what he always hoped was true, not necessarily what was true. All in all, it was a pretty convincing story.

Lina sat there, utterly stunned, as she listened to Jason speak.

“You... No one’s ever spoken to me like this before,” she began, her words trailing off.

He just shrugged, hoping she finally got so offended she would leave. “So? I really couldn’t care less if you’re offen—” before he could finish, she shouted, catching him off guard.

“You’re so friggin right! I don’t have to put up with that bull. I know I’m a great catch, and I’m not letting some self-important, egotistical, son of an oil baron jerk off dictate how I feel about myself! My eyes have never been so open! I’m beautiful and smart, I deserve so much better! ”

Jason removed his hands from his ears when she finally stopped shouting, wincing from his pounding headache he spoke up again.

“You know what else you should try?”

“Hmm, what’s that!?” she asked eagerly, hanging on his every word.

“A little humility.”

Lina froze at his words. There was a brief pause before her cheeks slowly warmed with color again.

“Oh… Right, sorry,” her voice was sincere, as she fiddled with her thumbs.

“Now you decide to act like an adult. Shit, couldn’t have done that earlier, huh?” He said draping an arm over his eyes as he laid back on the bed.

“Wait, what?” She said, feeling a small glimmer of hope.

“Being able to take criticism without getting offended or upset is a part of being an adult.” Lina smiled softly at his words and glanced down at her hands.

“Thanks... will you umm... Could you maybe please tell me your name? I promise I won’t tell anyone or anything like that.” She asked, trying to sound as sweet as possible.

With a groan, he slowly sat up in bed and brushed his hair back, letting his fingers slip through the ebony strands of hair.

“Pfft, you think I care if these idiots know who I am? I figured out a long time ago who not to piss off. So my name means little to most of these hyper-rich jackasses.”

Lina’s face scrunched at the line about rich people. “Okay, well then, why won’t you tell me? I just wanna say thanks, and the thought of saying thanks, Mister, makes me feel like a child,” Lina confessed, still nervously playing with her fingers and avoiding eye contact.

Jason let out a long, annoyed sigh. “Look, I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to get attached to me. Or putting me in some revenge diary to get back at me later. I’m just not into kids, and I never plan on being so.”

Lina’s face flushed with a mix of anger and embarrassment as she looked over at Jason.

“I told you, I’m not a kid, and I wouldn’t do that! I just…” she said, arguing a little before pausing, her face warming slightly again. He just rolled his eyes and let out a heavy breath. “ You’re an adult when you turn eighteen, legally, sure, but let’s be honest. You have a lot of growing up to do before I would see you as one.” His words earned a scoff from Lina. She folded her arms over her chest, glaring at him.

“You act like I’m dying to be with you or something. Get real, it’s not happening.”.

Jason looked at Lina with half-lidded eyes, pure disbelief in his gaze. She blushed slightly before confessing,

“Okay, maybe I like you a little, but it’s not because I think you are hot or anything like that...” Her flushed cheeks and inability to keep eye contact said otherwise.

“Even if I did…I think a break from boys would be best for me.”

Even though Jason’s words had provided some strange comfort, Lina’s heart was still recovering from being unexpectedly shattered that night, and for the very complex that worried her the most.

Just thinking about what happened earlier brought renewed tears to her eyes. They slowly spilled over her eyelids, and she quickly wiped them away as they rolled down her cheeks.

He stared at her as she started crying, and let out another heavy sigh. “Listen, Lina, I’m not trying to hurt you, I swear. Put you off, yes, but not hurt. I know how to hurt people. I promise you I'm just trying to make sure you understand. I’m not someone you should pursue. I am a terrible, broken person, and not the type you want to play your boyfriend,” he said in a deadly serious tone.

He was trying to run some damage control, mostly for the sake of his own skin. Dealing with minors, especially wealthy ones, was a risky game to play.

Lina shook her head and sniffled loudly.

“No, that’s not why I’m crying. Sorry it’s just…” she said, her voice choked up with emotion.

She let out a heavy sob despite her desperate efforts to hold them in. “I-I had a boyfriend at the start of tonight. I tried to find him right when I got here… but it was like he was trying to avoid me. Then I found out why he was.”

Jason didn’t want to hear her sob story about her breakup with her boyfriend. His massive headache was still protesting being awake. But if he left the sanctity of the room, he risked getting roped into another one of Vince’s schemes. So, after a moment’s contemplation, he decided to go with the lesser of two evils.

Jason slowly rubbed his face roughly, trying to take long deep breaths. He turned to look out the window, trying to resist the urge to hurl himself off the penthouse roof to end the slow, painful death he was suffering here.

“We’d been dating for almost a year, mostly long distance since he lives in Texas,” her voice wavered. “We still saw each other at least once a month. Everything seemed...” she trailed off, struggling to keep her emotions down so she could speak. Tears got wiped from her face, only for more to take their place. Her hands were now smudged with black from her makeup.

Watching this scene unfold, Jason furrowed his brow and let out a sigh, scanning the room. He rose from the bed and ambled over to the dresser, taking the box of tissues from the top. He brought them over to Lina. She met his gaze with glassy eyes, managing a feeble smile that quickly crumbled into heavy sobs. Her mascara-streaked face had become even worse now. Taking the box, Lina plucked a few tissues.

“The last time we saw each other, it all seemed so right... H-h-he even said he loved me,” she blubbered out between soba, dabbing at her eyes.

Even Jason’s scowl took on a new meaning at this. The guy sounded pretty scummy if he’d professed his love one moment, only to break up with her the next. It all gave him a really bad feeling in the pit of his stomach about what was coming next.

He was just about to sit back down on the bed when Lina dropped a bomb she’d been holding back.

“I know you probably don’t care and that I am just a stupid kid and overreacting. But I thought the night we spent together was something special.”

Jason’s mind screeched to a halt as he practically hovered mid-sit.

“What do you mean, the night you spent together?”

He eventually sat down next to her, his full attention now fixated on her, refusing to blink. Lina threw up her hands momentarily, conceding defeat, upset at herself for getting so worked up, like she was in the wrong.

“I know it's childish to get upset over something like this. But I wanted to wait until we were ready. I thought we loved each other and it would all be perfect after… No wonder he stopped taking my calls after.” Her lip trembled as fresh tears leaked from her eyes. She looked up at the ceiling and sniffed loudly.

“Lina... Tell me what happened that night?” He asked, in the most sober tone he spoke tonight.

Lina looked back at Jason, wiping her eyes with the tissue once more.

“I get it already. You see me as a kid, but you don’t have to act so clueless. It might not mean much to someone like you, but...” Her voice broke as she stifled a sob. “It meant everything to me… I’m sorry, I know you probably don’t care.”

Jason was growing frustrated with her vague responses. “What if I said I do care? What. Happened!?” he asked, emphasizing his last words. His expression was now deadly serious.

“Oh, now you care all of a sudden, huh? I don’t even know your name and you want me to...” He cut her off abruptly.

“My name’s Jason Merris. Now, what happened, Lina?” A strange sense of duty had suddenly surged through him; he needed to know.

Lina’s jaw dropped in disbelief when Jason suddenly revealed his name.

“Um...I...” He hesitated, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. “Please, I’d rather not say. It’s embarrassing for me… I like your name though, it suits you,” she said, averting her gaze as she felt a blush rise into her cheeks.

“You don’t have to share if you’re uncomfortable. But if you do, I’ll give you my full attention and support, I promise.” His words suddenly felt so sincere and kind as Lina found herself lost in his deep green eyes, her heart starting to thud in her chest.

“We, um, well...you know,” she said, stumbling over her words and trying to avoid admitting the truth. Her face flushed even more with embarrassment, quickly looking away from him.

“We were waiting until we were both ready,” she said nervously, biting her lip for a moment. Jason easily read between the lines. Her boyfriend at the time probably had been waiting and pushing for it a long time, but she was hesitant.

“We didn’t want to rush.”

She didn’t want to rush. He probably wanted it right away.

“I remember when we talked about how special it would be to wait until our wedding night.

She thought it would be special. He probably didn’t care when or where they did it.

He was almost completely sure of what happened by now, and it was making him furious. He still vividly remembered waking up in that hotel room a few months ago. The memory seared into his mind.

“Lina, please!” he said, shouting a little, unable to take any more of her rambling.

Lina flinched slightly and scowled, but complied. “We had sex okay, we took each other’s virginity, happy now? You don’t have to shout like that… H-hey, where are you going?”

Jason had got up from the bed and headed towards the door. “I’m going to beat the crap out of that kid and probably end up in jail for the rest of my life or dead.” His voice was very serious.

“Wait, what?!” Lina exclaimed, rushing over to stop him and grabbing his arm, but she was far too small to stop him in any way.

“Jason, wait, please! It’s not worth it. You don’t even know what he looks like!” Lina protested as she was dragged along.

“He’s probably the only teenager who showed up at a black-tie event wearing a bolo tie,” Jason said, leaving Lina stunned.

“W-what? How did you—” she began, but Jason cut her off. “Texas, son of an oil baron. Wasn’t that hard to figure out,” he said, peering down from the second-floor walkway at the crowd below.

“Even so, don’t do it. Why are you so worked up about what happened anyway?” Lina said, still trying to pull him back into the room.

He scowled at her deeply, pulling his arm away effortlessly. “Because it’s fucking wrong! No matter how desperate you are, you don’t just take something like that then act like it’s no big deal, cause it might be a huge deal to the person you steal it from,” Jason ranted, consumed by anger.

Lina watched how worked up Jason was getting over what happened to her. Her heart raced as she realized that he was truly upset.

”He actually cares…about me.” She began to think more about that night between her and her ex.

“He… He said that he couldn’t hold back his love for me anymore. How he needed to express it more physically,” she said, thinking aloud.

Jason just growled in response as he continued to scan the party. It was all starting to make sense to Lina now. He didn’t just have a sudden change of heart; he’d planned this from the beginning.

“I bet he wasn’t even a virgin, either!” She yelled as her sadness turned into anger the more she thought about it.

Jason stormed off, fists clenched tight at his sides, pumping back and forth as he walked. Lina had big plans for her ex, but first. She needed to prevent this new guy from throwing his life away.

“Jason, wait! I have a better plan!” she called out, hoping he’d listen.

Even though they had just met, she found herself drawn to him even more now. At first, she just wanted to be kind and help him recover from drinking too much. Now, the way he seemed so real and genuinely upset about her situation warmed her heart. It helped that he was quite attractive as well. Jason slowed his pace and stopped to turn and look at Lina, his anger still clear in his expression.

Lina smiled at him as he finally stopped. “Listen, if you go beat him up, it’s not going to erase what happened. I don’t want to see you end up in jail, either. You made me realize now that he was probably just using me all along. I don’t want him to feel pain just right now; I want him to feel it for the rest of his life.” She said with a viscous grin.

Jason raised an eyebrow at Lina’s words. “And how do you hurt someone dependent on his father’s money and support for everything?” She continued.

The answer was pretty clear, and Jason understood well. “Cut off that support,” Lina smiled mischievously and nodded at his answer.

Jason delved into the world of the ultra-rich, more than once already, and he knew Lina was right. The only way to truly hurt these people was in their pocketbooks. He still felt like punching someone would at least give him more satisfaction.

“Fine, what’s the plan then?” he said, taking a deep breath to calm himself.

“Let me handle it. First, I need to put on a little show for Daddy. Any chance you’ve got a mirror handy? I left my purse in our private suite,” she said, holding a hand out.

He shot the girl a skeptical look as if silently asking her. “You’re joking, right?” He pulled out his phone, unlocked it, and switched to the front camera, then handed it to her.

She grinned broadly. Jason’s gesture meant more to her than he knew.

“Haha, now I know for sure you’re an outsider. No one else here would ever willingly hand over their unlocked phone.” Lina said, winking at him.

The amount of trust he gave was not lost on Lina. She looked at herself on the phone screen. “Yikes, I look like a trainwreck… perfect,” she said with an unwavering smile.

Handing the phone back to Jason, Lina took a deep breath. “Okay, just hang tight and enjoy the show. Let me get myself ready.” She tilted her head back slightly to stare at the light above her. Her lip trembled as fresh tears welled up in her eyes.

“Sad puppies, sad puppies s-ad…,” she mumbled before tears started flowing quickly.

Moving down the stairs she brushed past Jason, whimpering softly, her golden hair and shimmering gown trailing behind her. He leaned over the railing on the second floor, looking down on her as she navigated through the crowd.

Eventually, Lina reached an older gentleman who had a bit too much gray in his hair for someone with a teenage daughter.

“What is she planning?”