Jordan shook her head. “He said: Don’t come to the party tonight. Stay home in the royal palace, princess.” She read the text word for word, more confusion settling into her features. Anger seared through me. Who the hell did he think he was telling me where I could and couldn’t go?
“Royal is the only guy that calls you princess, what the fuck? Why is his name Fuckboy? Are you fucking him? Did you seriously not tell me?” Jordan started, realization finally hitting her. Great! I rolled my eyes. I didn’t care if Royal didn’t want us— or preferably me— at the party. None of those things mattered to me. He should’ve known telling me not to go would only make me want to rebel against anything he had to say.
“Were not fucking, Jordan,” I corrected her, heading down the road that lead to Sasha’s house. You could see the dim glow of lights from her house way off in the distance.
“Whatever,” she scoffed. “You have his name as Fuckboy in your phone. Clearly something is going on, and I’m not in the loop about it.” I didn’t know what to tell Jordan about Royal’s name being Fuckboy in my phone because I didn’t see an issue with it. Just because his name had the word fuck in it didn’t mean we were automatically fucking.
“There is nothing going on, I promise. He fucks with me which is why I call him that,” I assured her, watching my speedometer rise as I placed my foot heavier against the gas pedal. The whiskey I drank earlier was finally starting to settle into my bloodstream, the warmth of it radiating throughout my body. I focused on getting to the party and nothing else.
Ten minutes later we pulled into the Master’s estate. A long, paved driveway led up to an enormous house set up on a hill. You could hear the loud pounding of the music from the start of the driveway.
“House, more like mansion,” I muttered to myself, turning into the driveway and heading toward the house. There were cars parked every which way, some even sideways. I wasn’t quite sure where I should park.
“Why exactly are we here if Fuckboy said not to come?” Jordan questioned me. I couldn’t exactly tell her I knew he was up to something and I wanted the deets on it, so I just told her a half truth.
“I’m tired of being tied down and told what to do by other people. My peers, my mother, Royal aka Fuckboy.” I snickered. “I’m done being controlled by others.” I slammed on the brakes just in time as a couple that was just making out ran in front of the car.
“Keep it moving!” Jordan yelled out the car window at them. They flipped her the bird and kept their lips locked on one another, ignoring the fact that they were almost ran over by a car. The grip I had on the steering wheel was almost painful. My heart raced inside of my chest. I just needed to park the car, take a deep breath, and figure out why Royal didn’t want me at this party.
“Are you okay?” Jordan’s voice was soft, and I could feel her hand on my shoulder trying to comfort me. Tonight I broke a lot of rules; rules that weren’t set by me, but by the law and by my mother. I almost hit people because they were being reckless and careless, but so was I. Reckless and free. Did I even know how to act those two words out?
It was all kinds of fucking scary, but it was also exhilarating. I never broke the rules, not until Royal came along, shaking up my entire life. He flipped everything on its axis, turning my world completely upside down. It was in that view that I finally felt like I could see everything for what it really was.
“Noelle?” Jordan said my name again, her hands cupping my cheeks and forcing me to focus my attention on nothing but her face.
“What?” I finally got the words out, swallowing past the fear that was lodged in my throat. I could do this. I could explore and go beyond my boundaries.
“Are you okay?” The worry in her eyes was blatantly obvious, and the concern in her voice matched it. My best friend was worried about me, all because things were changing; all because I was changing.
“Never been better,” I revealed. Jordan didn’t look convinced, not even a tiny bit. I pulled my face from her hands and reached for the car door handle.
“I don’t believe you.” She was hurt. I knew she felt like I was keeping something from her. I wasn’t, and I didn’t know how else to explain what was going on inside of me.
“Then I’ll show you,” I warned, knowing that showing her was the only way I could get my point across. I was cracked wide open, the old Noelle slowly dissipating into the air; the new Noelle growing to life right before my eyes. Now if only to show Royal what he did to me. To prove that change could come for all of us.
Chapter Eleven
-Royal