Louisa didn't wait for Jayden's stammered reply. Her fingers flew across her phone screen, dialing Ellie's number. She held the device to her ear, her gaze never leaving Jayden's, a silent challenge in her eyes.
"Hey El, I'm here. Meet me out front." Her voice was clipped, all business. Without waiting for Eleanor's response, she ended the call, her attention snapping back to Jayden, who hadn't moved, his blue eyes still fixed on her with a curious intensity.
"And Jayden King," Louisa said, her voice low and firm, "don't go around touching people, mistaking them to be someone else. Next time, your 'dumb impulses' might land you in front of the school principal, or even the police." With that, she turned sharply and walked away, the crimson hem of the borrowed dress swaying behind her like a defiant flag.
Jayden watched her go, a slow smile spreading across his lips. He admired her fire, the unexpected confidence radiating from someone who clearly wasn't accustomed to this world. Her gutsy reaction was a refreshing change from the polite deference he usually encountered. He tucked his hands into his pockets, his gaze following the sway of the crimson fabric. He knew he hadn't truly mistaken the dress, the memory of selecting it for another time, another love, was too vivid. But he would play along, watch the drama unfold.
He saw a flash of fiery red hair emerge from the grand double doors, and a moment later, Eleanor reached Louisa. They exchanged a quick hug and then, deep in conversation, disappeared inside.
Jayden waited a beat longer, a thoughtful expression on his face, before following them into the bustling hall. The air inside was thick with music, laughter, and the clinking of glasses. The decorations were indeed intricate, a lavish display of wealth - towering floral arrangements, shimmering chandeliers, and waiters in crisp uniforms offering trays of delicate canapés. He moved through the crowd unnoticed, his gaze scanning the room until he spotted Louisa and Eleanor near a refreshment table. He subtly made his way towards a more secluded, velvet-roped private area overlooking the main floor, sinking into a plush armchair, his eyes never leaving the intriguing newcomer.
Meanwhile, Nicolas Merico entered the hall, his tie now straightened, a tentative smile on his face. Seeing Louisa and Ellie, two familiar faces in the dazzling crowd, his smile widened. He raised a hand to wave, about to navigate his way through the throng towards them, when suddenly, a sharp shout pierced through the music.
All conversation abruptly ceased. The lively melody stuttered and died. A ripple of shock spread through the hall as heads turned towards the commotion. Near the entrance, a heated argument had erupted, escalating with alarming speed. A shove, a raised voice, and then, the unmistakable sound of a fist connecting with flesh echoed through the stunned silence.
Two figures stood locked in a volatile confrontation. One, Kora Long, an elite student whose usual radiant smile was twisted into a mask of furious betrayal, her designer dress trembling with her barely contained rage. Opposite her stood Maya Lim, a scholarship student whose posture, though defiant, betrayed a tremor of underlying hurt.
"I trusted you, Maya," Kora's voice cracked, the raw emotion slicing through the silence. "Those secrets... the most vulnerable parts of myself I shared with you. I thought... I thought we were friends."
Maya's chin lifted, her gaze unwavering despite the palpable animosity radiating from Kora. "Well, friends don't act high and mighty just because they're swimming in daddy's money. You treated me like I was invisible, like I was living in your shadow. I was tired of it."
"You...!" Kora's voice rose, sharp and accusatory. "You snake! You went after him? After everything I confided in you? You ruined everything!"
"He wasn't some sacred treasure, Kora," Maya shot back, her voice gaining strength, losing its initial tremor. "And maybe if you hadn't been so busy looking down your nose at everyone else, you would have seen the cracks in your perfect little world."
"You are one..." Kora spat, her face contorted with disgust. "You dirty little thing. After everything I did for you! I tried to elevate your worthless life, bring you into our circle!"
A gasp rippled through the observing students. Maya's eyes flashed with a hurt that quickly hardened into defiance. "I didn't ask you to," she retorted, her voice ringing with a newfound strength.
With a determined set to her jaw, she turned her back on Kora and began to walk towards the center of the stunned hall, the silence amplifying each deliberate step.
"You ungrateful bitch!" Kora shrieked after Maya, lunging forward and grful of the scholarship student's hair. The two girls descended into a brutal struggle, the polished floor now a stage for their raw animosity. "I will destroy you, make your pathetic life even more miserable!"
"Let go of me, you crazy druggie!" Maya spat, wrestling to free herself. Her reckless accusation hung in the air, eliciting another wave of shocked gasps from the onlookers. Realizing the gravity of her words, Kora momentarily released her grip, her wide, furious eyes darting around at the sea of disbelieving faces.
Into the stunned silence stepped Cassia Blackwood, her composure a stark contrast to the chaos. Adorned with delicate, expensive jewelry that caught the light, her designer dress a study in understated elegance, she addressed the warring pair with an air of weary authority. "Why don't you two take your disgraceful display back to whatever gutter you crawled out of?"
Across the room, Jayden watched the unfolding drama, a cynical amusement playing on his lips. Outbursts like these weren't entirely uncommon, the pressure cooker of Charterhouse occasionally boiling over in spectacular fashion.
"I can't believe I'm witnessing a full-blown war on day one," Eleanor whispered to Louisa, her eyes wide with a mixture of fascination and apprehension.
"Nevertheless, she shouldn't be attacking her like that," Louisa retorted, her voice tight with indignation. "She must be trying to intimidate the other girl because she's elite."
Her words, though intended to be a hushed observation, carried in the sudden quiet and reached Kora's ears. "What did you just say?" Kora snapped, her fury momentarily redirected. She wouldn't dare lash out at Cassia, an untouchable figure in the school's hierarchy. But this newcomer... this crimson-clad interloper...
"I... I wasn't referring to you," Louisa stammered, suddenly finding herself the unwanted center of attention. All eyes swiveled towards her.
With a predatory grace, Kora stalked towards Louisa, her anger radiating like a physical force. And then, the unthinkable happened. A sharp crack echoed through the hall as Kora's hand connected with Louisa's cheek, the force of the slap rocking her head back. A collective gasp swept through the stunned crowd.
"Don't stick your leech-like noses into my business," Kora hissed, her eyes blazing. "You people."
Ellie's shock quickly morphed into outrage. "You do not have any right to touch her, you spoiled, untrained brat!"
Louisa, her cheek stinging, straightened, her own anger now igniting. "I wasn't finished talking," she said through gritted teeth, her voice trembling but firm.
As if to punctuate her fury, Kora snatched a nearby glass of deep red wine and hurled it at Louisa. The crimson liquid arced through the air, a slow-motion disaster, before splashing across Louisa's chest, staining the pristine white accents of the borrowed Louis Vuitton dress a shocking, irreversible red.
A horrified silence descended. "No," Louisa whispered, staring down at the spreading stain, her voice laced with disbelief and a dawning sense of devastation. "No... not this dress."
"Jeez," Thea Devereux drawled, her eyes wide with a perverse fascination. "She just ruined a perfect piece of Louis Vuitton. Looks like your dress, doesn't it, Cassia?"
Cassia, her usual cool composure momentarily fractured by surprise, glanced at the ruined dress, then her gaze flickered across the room to Jayden. He was staring back at her, his blue eyes holding a strange mixture of shock and a dawning understanding. A silent current passed between them, a shared recognition of the expensive fabric, the distinctive design.
A wave of nausea and a burning shame washed over Louisa. Her mother... her mother had gone to such lengths, taken such a risk for this dress. Tears welled in her eyes, blurring the shocked faces around her, the murmuring whispers fading into a dull hum. She raised her tear-brimmed gaze, focusing on the still-ranting Kora Long, whose face was a mask of entitled fury.
And then, something snapped. A raw, untamed anger surged through Louisa, eclipsing her fear and humiliation. This wasn't about a dress anymore. It was about being demeaned, about being made to feel less than. With a guttural cry that surprised even herself, she retaliated.
Her hand shot out, connecting with Kora's cheek with a resounding crack. Then, before anyone could react, she struck again, the force of the second slap echoing the injustice she felt.
A collective gasp swept through the stunned onlookers. Jayden, leaning against a pillar in the private area, felt a flicker of genuine amusement. He hadn't expected that. This scholarship girl had fire.
"You don't own me," Louisa spat, her voice trembling but laced with fierce defiance, "and I certainly wasn't the one who betrayed you. Don't you dare vent your pathetic little rich-girl drama on me just because you come from money." Her gaze swept over the silent crowd, daring anyone to contradict her. "Thank you for ruining my day."
Without another word, she snatched the glass of champagne from Eleanor's numb fingers. The golden liquid sloshed over the rim as she turned back to Kora, her eyes blazing. And then, with a deliberate, queen-like motion, she upended the glass, pouring the remaining champagne over Kora's shocked face and expensive dress.
The silence that followed was absolute, broken only by Kora's strangled gasp of outrage. Louisa held the empty glass for a beat longer, her point made. Then, with a newfound sense of cold resolve, she turned and walked away, her head held high, the ruined crimson dress a testament to her defiance. She left behind a room full of students frozen in disbelief, shock, and a dawning understanding that the arrival of the scholarship students might just ignite more than academic competition at Charterhouse.
Eleanor, finally snapping out of her stunned paralysis, her eyes wide with a mixture of horror and a grudging admiration, hurried after her best friend.
A slow, knowing smile tugged at the corners of Jayden's lips. This year at Charterhouse was going to be far more interesting than he could have ever imagined.