Page 25 of Fox
“How can you say that?” He whispers as he stands up. “I am in love with you!” Vomit. I have straight vomit about to make its way up my throat.
“You don’t, and you would’ve never been out there fucking other women if you did!” I reach for the door, but Brody stops me.
“Jai, please, it’s not what you think. Please… I need you.” Fed up with the conversation, I shove him away and gasp as he falls dramaticallyacross the floor. Like, that shove should’ve barely moved him.
“Brody!” One of the other male creators comes running into the entryway. “Oh my god, are you okay? Jai, what the fuck!?” I blink, trying to figure out what’s happening.
“I-I barely touched him!”
“That’s what you always say!” He yells.
“Jace, please,” Brody sobs. “She’s just angry. It’s okay, I-I deserve this. We’ve been through this before.”
Oh my god. I look around the entryway—the mirror. There’s a camera hanging on the mirror that I’m sure it’s hooked up to a live feed.
Closing my eyes, I breathe slowly before staring at the two men. “You won’t get away with this.” I hiss out, and Brody actually flinches. I’m going to kill him. This man is literally trying to ruin me, and I gave him all the ammo he needs.
“How bad is it?”Stevie asks as she sets down my cup of hot tea before taking the seat across from me at Nuts About Dough. I groan while staring at the cup. Over the last hour, I’ve told Stevie about my online persona as well as Brody and how he reacted. It’s funny because I wasn’t going to the donut shop when I ran out of the creator house. I was going to Hel’s. When it hit me that I was driving toward Fox, I nearly wrecked my car. I then spent several minutes trying to tell myself that, no, I wasn’t heading to Fox; I was heading to Hel’s because whenever I was in trouble, my dad always knew how to help. Well, that backfired, and then I sobbed the entire drive here. Now I’m sitting in Stevie’s work because I have nowhere else to go.
“He wouldn’t let me leave,” I whisper, almost in disbelief at what’s happening. “I shoved him, yeah, but not hard! I was trying to get him off the door. He… he made it out as I hurt him like I’ve been hurting him. This could very well ruin me.” I’m going to be banned. Canceled. No one will work with me if this gets out.
“Do you think you could talk to him? Come to some kind of understanding?” Stevie sips her tea, while I stare longingly at my untouched cup. If I pull my hands out of my hoodie and grab that cup, I’ll spill it everywhere I’m shaking so badly.
“The only thing he understands is more followers,” I say bitterly, glaring out the window. “I should’ve known better than to go to his place. I’m so stupid.”
“Who stupid?” I look up to see Stevie’s old Croatian grandmother, Nika, standing at our table with a plate of cookies.
“Me,” I sigh dramatically. “I allowed a man to have all the power over me, and now I’m ruined.”
“Ahhh… Yes, very stupid.” She nods as Stevie gasps.
“Baka!” she scolds. “Janie, I’m sorry, she’s just very blunt, she doesn’t mean.”
“Ah, Stefa, you no apologize for Baka. Baka know what is said. She say she is stupid for giving man the power. This is truth. You know this, as do I.” Stevie’s face pales and her eyes turn downward as Nika looks back to me.
“I once rule all. People feared and respected Nika. I let it go to the head, thought I was untouchable.”
“What happened?” I ask softly after a pregnant pause. Nika exhales before setting the plate of cookies down on our table.
“Nika was foolish. She gave man the power, and he took it. You dangle control in front of man, he will take it, every time. Man always want control over woman.”
“So, what do I do?” I have no idea what compels me to ask this woman for advice, and judging by the look of sheer panic on Stevie’s face, it evidently wasn’t the right choice. Nika’s wrinkled eyes squint as she gives me a cold, calculating smile that hits me in my stomach in the worst of ways.
“You rip his heart from his chest cavity. You do it fast enough; he can watch you eat it before he dies. Enjoy cookies, Nika bake fresh for you.” Nika turns and takes her leave, and I’m left staring wide-eyed at Stevie, who is casually sipping on her tea.
“You get used to her ramblings, pay her no mind. She watches a lot of crime shows.” Her nervous chuckle doesn’t fill me with much confidence as I stare down at the cookies, wondering what in the hell kind of women are running this donut shop.
Taking a steadying breath,I stare at the back door of Hel’s. After the humiliation between Fox and me, it seemed in everyone’s best interest if I took some time off. And then he and I had that video call that left me feeling more vulnerable than I ever remember being with another person. It was too much and nearly made me decide to give the place to him, especially since Brody isn’t doing anything with the shove incident like I thought he would, at least for now. Shocking no one, I found out that he was live-streaming it, and I lost a ton of followers. But it’s not an alarming amount. I knew I would lose a good chunk once he and I split, so I’m not seriously worried.
My plan was to give up the shop and go back to focusing on my influencing job. But Stevie’s grandma’s words kept nagging at me. I mean, a lot of what she said nagged at me. She’s terrifying, yet so loveable. It’s bizarre. When she said you dangle control in front of a man, he will take it every time, I realized I had dangled it in front of Fox on the video call. I told him to take Hel’s, take control. And he said no. Maybe I’m reading too much into that, but it’s been stuck in my brain for two days. So here I am, ready to spend the day here and find out if Fox and I can do this partnership thing. I’m doubtful but, worst case… I rip his heart out and eat it, right?
Adjusting my bag strap on my shoulder, I walk to the stairs leading up to the back door. Today is my twenty-sixth birthday. And while I would like to go home and get drunk off cheap wine and watchThe Officeuntil I pass out, I can’t because Brody and I are supposed to be at a club opening tonight. Something I washoping to get out of, but since the club already paid, I need to go or give them back their money and deal with the fallout. So, I’ve packed a dress that is too short, heels that are too high, and makeup that’s too thick to turn me from Janie Pierce into Jai, the internet celebrity. Gag.
Pausing at the door, I frown.Gag?Since when has my career become something I gag at? Though, I guess this part of it has always been something I’ve hated. I went viral because of my crazy hair and freckles. But within six months, I had to learn how to conceal my freckles. Straighten my hair, change my eye color, my voice. I remember thinking I would never change to appease others. They followed me for me and that’s what they’ll get. But as I walk into my dad’s office and set down the bag, I look in the mirror at my straight hair and light blue eyes, thanks to my contacts, and I realize I am a different person. And I hate it. Despite the fights with Fox, being here has felt like coming home, and I don’t want to lose my home again.
“I fucking hate you.” I hiss out to Jai as she reflects back at me in the mirror. And I mean it. I hate her so much right now. I hate that I have to choose her over me. I hate that I have to go to this club, and I hate that I will have to leave my newfound home eventually and go back to feeding her needs.
I enter the tattooing area, and the familiar aroma of the disinfectants, green soap, and ink fills my nose, but unlike my first day back here, I’m not filled with sadness. Instead, it’s a comfort, like when you return home and your mom is making you your favorite cookies—at least, I think that’s what a mom would do.
