Misery Loves Company

By: theinkslingerr

Track 51: Safety In Numbers (Part I)

"I just wanna thank my amazing viewers for showing Misery Loves Company so much love! It honestly exceeded my expectations," Enid said into the camera.

I was offscreen waiting for my cue to come out.

"Just a few short weeks ago, Misery Hayes was a mess."

There it was— my cue! I joined her in front of the cameras, face made-up and dressed in the Denim Monstrosity (the acid wash denim mini-skirt and matching top Enid pressured me into wearing on my date with Dom). I smiled into the camera manically, and something just told me I had lipstick on my teeth.

It figured this would be the last image I left people with.

Enid gestured to me wildly and continued, "When we first started the show, I was Misery's only friend." She wrinkled her nose. "Sort of. And her idea of an eventful weekend was binging bad Netflix shows and Kit Kats. She'd never even kissed a boy!"

I nodded like the cue cards told me to. It was true, after all.

"Now she's got tons of friends and has kissed not one, but two rock stars. She's also not afraid to stand up to me anymore. Misery Loves Company turned her life around. I hope it helped some of you too. As promised, here is Blue Vendetta performing their new single Safety In Numbers!"

Enid and I cheered and clapped as the boys stormed the room with their instruments. A mic stand was already in place for Jae. Rocco and Eli plugged their guitars into amps and Dom twirled his drumsticks. They were pumped. Excitement radiated from them in waves. They'd been waiting a long time to share this song with the world, and even though being on the show had been a roller coaster ride, I would've probably done it again to be here for this moment.

Rocco strummed a jarring note on his guitar. The anticipation prickled my scalp and bled through my skin in the form of goosebumps.

This was the last episode. I'd survived. Made it through days and situations that threatened to break me. Unexpectedly, my throat closed up and my view of the boys got a little blurry.

This was actually bittersweet.

Jae counted down from five and opened his mouth to sing, but his mic suddenly vanished into thin air. It reappeared in front of Rocco.

I stopped clapping and looked around the room in confusion. That was super weird. What was going on? Enid was still cheering and none of the crew members had batted an eye. Was I the only one who saw that?

I glanced back at Rocco in time to see him singing.

Except it wasn't singing. He was talking to me, hazel eyes bright with fury.

"I want the world to know you're a liar."

"Liar!" Jae, Eli, and Dom repeated in unison.

"I could never love you," he hissed.

"He could never love you! "They chorused.

I stepped back, heart beating wildly in my chest. They were supposed to be singing 'Safety In Numbers.' Why were they doing this to me in front of everyone?

Dom started replicating my heartbeat on his drums while Enid and the crew joined in on the incessant chanting.

"Liar! Liar! Liar!"

"Stop!" I screamed. "I wanted to tell you, Rocco! I tried to tell you!"

"But you didn't." Feedback from the mic distorted his voice. "You let me down like everyone else in my life and now I can never trust you."

Shaking my head in horror, I took another step back and the heel of my foot caught on a wire. I fell and my head cracked open when it hit the floor.

I woke up in bed gasping and drenched in sweat. This wasn't the first nightmare I'd had about deceiving Rocco. Hunching over, I clutched my head; not knowing whether I wanted to cry or throw up. Maybe both would help. Or at least taking some Advil? I began massaging my skull. It was still intact, but throbbed like crazy. Ugh. There was nothing like waking up with a headache.

It was the fifth day since the video airing our dirty laundry had gone viral and I had yet to leave my house. Mainly because the day after it happened, I woke up to every TMZ employee and independent paparazzo camped out on my lawn. The horde had started thinning recently, but I still couldn't count all of them on two hands, so any thoughts of going outside triggered a panic attack.

Sighing, I climbed out of bed and started my new morning ritual. First, I crept to my window and peeked through the blinds, making sure the gap wasn't wide enough to draw attention. There was still a crowd, and everyone in it was armed with desperation and a scary-looking camera. I even recognized the two men that had caused me to jump my own fence a few weeks ago. I guess they really did have mouths to feed.

The good news was Eli's police officer uncle was out there too. When Eli had texted to check up on me, I told him I'd caught a dude with a camera trying to climb over my fence, and he'd asked his uncle to come over immediately. Not only did Lawrence threaten to arrest anyone who trespassed, he'd herded them farther back from my house. Since then, him or a colleague stayed parked outside to keep the vultures in check.

I appreciated it, and my mom and the neighbors did too.

The second part of my morning ritual was punishing myself by checking social media.

The fallout from the video had been insane. And not only were Blue Vendetta fans angry, they felt betrayed.

And you know what angry, betrayed fans turned into?

Detectives.

"The internet was forever," so they dug up every picture of Rocco and Sage they could find and dissected their relationship under a global microscope. You would've thought they knew Rocco and Sage personally or had PhDs in psychology. I looked at all of them, but one in particular caught my interest. It was of Rocco and Sage backstage after a show. He looked much younger than I was used to seeing. Fourteen, maybe fifteen? He still had that lop-sided grin and dark, messy hair. Like a "black colt," some of the comments said. Sage was harder to identify, but if you looked closely it was definitely her. Instead of a sleek, blond bob, she had long brown hair and pretty Cindy Crawford-like moles she must've had removed. She was on Rocco's back, arms draped over his shoulders, legs wrapped around his torso like a koala. They looked giddy, free. And it made me realize I'd seen the picture before. One night, weeks ago, fifty pages deep on an obscure fan forum when I was just starting to admit to myself that I liked BV's music.
It's why she'd looked familiar when I first saw her outside the Iron Barrel.

After fans watched her telling Rocco that Nic was his son and threatening to expose our relationship, they had no problem expressing what they thought of her. She was Crazy. Manipulative. A gold-digger.

I didn't know about that last one, but they were right about the other two. There was proof.

A few people thought Rocco was to blame too.

anon23897: that kid really does look like him :-/ but how do you not suspect you've fathered a child? did they break up and never see each other again?

mistercoolbeans: you know how much play he gets on the regular? dude prolly has a waiting list of girls to smash in every city.

feminist_to_my_core: i don't like Sage, but I'm glad he went with her. if that kid's his then he needs to take responsibility.

the_main_event: my man ain't tryna pay child support XD

bluvenfan97: i don't even know what to believe anymore. if they faked Dom and Misery dating this could be another publicity thing.

bvendettaUK: doubt it. why would they out themselves? there was clearly a judas on set.

I saw comments like this all over Rocco's social media until he finally deactivated his accounts. Chip On Your Shoulder records had disabled their comment section on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and if I was smart, I would've done the same. The things people were calling me made the darkest corners of Reddit look pure. To summarize, I was a whore who couldn't keep my legs closed. A modern day Yoko Ono. They were brutal, and it was hard to read stuff like that about myself, but it was even harder to read stuff about Rocco and his dad. I didn't know why I thought they'd cut him some slack or leave Niccolo out of it because he was dead.

Nothing and no one was off limits online.

vinylissuperior: still can't believe Rocco's Niccolo Segreti's son. can we reevaluate giving money to someone who changed his last name and has been hiding who he is all these years? and whose record label won't hesitate to lie to fans?

vendettahead66: has anyone actually watched segreti's interviews? he was always twitchy and fidgety. you could tell he was on something.

iluvdom: for years we thought Dom was the messy one. plot twist— it was Rocco the whole time! (also, is that really his dad? his nose is huuuuge)

j.paolijenner: always knew Rocco's 'nice guy' persona was fake!

ulitmatefighter555: i've never liked Rocco's playing and now I know why. segreti's over-rated too.

enidsconcubine: guitarist in a band? check. secret son? check. Rocco's right on schedule on his dad's timeline. we should probably expect an overdose sometime in the next ten years.

Then there were the pictures of Rocco and Niccolo side-by-side. The comparison videos of their mannerisms and performances. People had even made the connection that Rocco had written "27 Club" with his dad in mind.

It was overwhelming and sickening.

I threw my phone across my bed when I couldn't take it any more. I hated people! How could they say such horrible things? They didn't know what they were talking about. Especially Jessica Paoli, who always tried to insert herself into the drama brewing online. Rocco's kindness wasn't fake. He was genuinely nice to whoever he came in contact with and was interested in what they had to say. He tried his hardest to be the perfect band mate, the perfect friend, and the perfect grandson. That's why none of this was fair. I understood people were upset because of Operation: Cinderella, but Rocco's paternity was none of their business. That was his secret to keep.

If all of this was hard for me to stomach then he had to be losing it.

I wouldn't know though.

He hadn't returned any of my texts or calls.

Rocco had never flat out ignored me before. Even during our awkward period after I'd found out about his dad and met his grandparents. He'd been stilted and vague, but always responded. Now, I got nothing.

That meant he was really, really upset.

It was a horrible feeling and I wish I knew what to do.

I picked up my phone again. It was open to Instagram and the explore page had refreshed. A caption on a picture caught my eye, so I clicked it. "The Segreti Family Tree." Someone had drawn a tree and put Niccolo's face on the top branch. Rocco and little Nic took up two lower branches, and big question marks filled the rest.

This time my phone went sailing across the room. It made a muffled thunk, but I didn't try and see where it landed. Curling on my side, I stared at nothing and zoned out. I missed Rocco like crazy. I couldn't believe this was happening to us. All I had to do was tell him Enid was blackmailing us and we could've figured it out together. Before Sage got her hands on it.

Instead, I'd tried to take care of things myself when I knew I could never win against Enid.

At the end of the day, it took girls like Sage to beat girls like Enid at her own game.

I lay in bed, tired in a way more sleep wouldn't fix. Hopeless and depressed. By afternoon, I still hadn't moved or eaten anything.

My bedroom door shook lightly with a knock then swung open even though I hadn't given the person permission to enter.

"Misery?" my mom called.

My voice cracked when I answered. "Yeah?"

Things were still raw and unresolved between us because of our conversation at the hospital. I didn't know if they'd ever be normal. How did you reconcile the fact your mom had taken the pain and anger from your dad and grandparents out on you? I had a feeling it would always be lurking in the corner of our minds. But that didn't stop her from driving down to Chip On Your Shoulder records and ripping Ackerman and Winona Springsteen new buttholes after I'd told her about the video. They were currently in the process of suing the rogue crew member, but it was too little, too late as far as my mom was concerned. She felt like they hadn't protected me or vetted their employees properly. They'd only looked out for their own interests. That was probably how most businesses were run, but I didn't dare say it out loud.

She'd also pulled me from Misery Loves Company— not that there was a show to stay on.

It'd been cancelled because of the backlash. Aside from guilt over Rocco, I guess my weird dream this morning had been my subconscious trying to get closure.

I was relieved, but strangely...empty. From now on, my Tuesdays would be free. I wouldn't get to see Rocco and the boys every week.

I sniffled and rubbed the moisture from my eyes. I didn't want my mom to notice. It was always a little awkward whenever I cried and she tried to comfort me.

The bed dipped with her weight. Fortunately, she didn't say anything. I realized it was still light out, so she'd braved the paparazzi outside and came home early. She'd come home early on Friday and Saturday too. We hadn't talked in depth about everything, but she hadn't tried to make me go to school, and it was nice knowing I wasn't alone in the house at night.

"The label decided not to take the Diaz's to court," she finally said.

She'd been talking to Paula again.

If there was anything good that came out of the crew member selling the video to TMZ, it was everyone finally seeing Enid's true colors. Her mom, her fans, her sponsors. Everyone that mattered to her.

"What were they going to take them to court for?" I rasped into my pillow.

"Ackerman used some legal mumbo jumbo, but basically there was a little clause in the contract. If you or Enid willfully did something to harm the band or tarnish their reputation, they could pursue legal action."

Which meant, in a sense, Enid was lucky that the crew member had beaten her to the punch. The Judas had come from within the label's own ranks. It was almost kind of funny. But at this point, it didn't matter who the label tried to sue. They wouldn't be able to regain the public's trust for a while. Especially since an angry detective fan had traced the "casual" couple pics of me and Dom that we'd used for Operation: Cinderella back to someone affiliated with Chip On Your Shoulder.

"I'm glad none of us are getting sued, I guess." I smashed my face further into the pillow.

My mom hummed in agreement before another silence took over.

"How long have you had those braids in?"

"Huh?" I picked up a bunch of purple braids and examined them. They were fuzzy with loose hair, and the tails of some were unraveling. "Oh. I don't even know."

"Who did them?"

I struggled to sit up. "My friend Sienna."

"Want me to help you take them out?"

I was going to brush her off. Tell her I could do it myself or Sienna would help me, but I examined her face and noticed she looked a little self-conscious. If I said no she might never offer to do something like this again.

So, I said, "OK."

Fifteen minutes later, we were in the living room. She was on the couch and I sat on a pillow on the floor between her legs.

We both had scissors and there was a plastic shopping bag by her foot. We snipped the ends off my braids, careful not to cut my real hair. Then we unraveled them and threw the extensions in the plastic bag. It would go in the trash when we were done.

At first we did all of this quietly, only asking questions or giving each other directions, but eventually we started a real conversation.

"Thank god those officers are here," my mom grumbled. She hated coming home to the paparazzi barking at her.

"The hot one is Eli's uncle." The corner of my mouth lifted as I untwisted a braid. Lawrence looked like he was around my mom's age. Maybe a little older.

"Which one is Eli again?"

"The only black one in the band," I answered dryly.

She made a noncommittal noise and kept snipping braids.

Something came over me and I suddenly said, "I didn't see a ring."

She tugged on a braid hard, and I yelped.

"Ow! Mom!"

"Sit still. I don't know how your friend managed to do your hair. You're so tender-headed."

"And you did that on purpose," I muttered.

A few seconds later, she cleared her throat. "I think I saw somewhere that some cops choose not to wear their wedding band or ring in case it gets caught on something and damaged. Or hurts them. Some also do it not to jeopardize their family's safety."

"You should invite him in for coffee tomorrow."

She yanked on my hair again and we continued like that for hours. When all the braids had been taken out and my hair was back to its natural poofy state, I thanked her for helping.

It had been...nice.

"Misery," she murmured.

I stared at her in question as she struggled to find words. "I'm sorry for not looking over the contract for the show. I regret letting you do it. None of this would be happening if I'd just...paid attention."

I let the silence stretch out between us as I blinked at her. She'd never hit me aside from a couple spankings when I was younger, and she'd never used cruel insults in our interactions. She'd just never been in my life. I often wondered if I would've preferred more spankings and hurtful words.

Now that she'd acknowledged it, I didn't know what to say. It wouldn't erase the past or magically fix everything. I took in her naked expression. She didn't look indifferent or cold. She looked guilty, a little bit scared. Warm affection spread through me. She was trying. I guess I could try too. "Thanks for saying that, mom. But actually...I think this is the one time it's good you didn't."

Surprised filled her face. "Why?"

"I'm not gonna lie, the media scrutiny and paparazzi suck. A lot. And people are saying really nasty things about me and my friends online...but I wouldn't even have those friends if I hadn't done this. Nothing would've changed. I would've still been letting Enid treat me like crap."

"I'm sorry I kept questioning you about her. It's not that I didn't believe you. I just didn't want to believe the situation. She was your best friend. I wanted it to be a misunderstanding."

"Me too. But it wasn't."

She sighed. "I hate that people are saying things about you online. They don't even know you."

"Well, they think they do because of that video."

"How's Rocco? Most of the stuff that came out was about him."

"I haven't gotten a chance to talk to him yet, but I hope I will soon." I was kind of impressed she bothered to ask about him.

"I still don't like the idea of you two pursuing a relationship. Especially if that little boy's his."

"I know, and I get where you're coming from, but right now my priority isn't pursuing a relationship with him. It's to make sure he's OK..." 

After my mom and I cleaned up and ate dinner, I went upstairs to shower and wash my hair. When I got out, I picked my phone off the floor and found a text from Eli waiting for me.

Eli: How're you holding up? Is my uncle keeping the paparazzi out of your yard?

I smiled and replied: Yard is vulture-free. Thanks again.

When he'd originally texted to ask if I was OK, I'd been shocked. I thought him, Ji-Hyun, Jae, and Dom were mad at me for not telling anyone about Enid's blackmail. They'd known Rocco longer than me and hadn't spoken to me before I'd left with Sienna, so I'd been pretty worried. But Ji-Hyun texted me the next day and Eli shortly after. It was a huge relief. When I expressed this to Eli now, he said he wished I'd asked for help, but understood why I'd hesitated.

His next text was a confession.

Eli: I never told Rocco or Dom when Ed Sicowski or anyone else bullied me no matter how many times they told me to let them know. They'd always end up finding out anyway, but not from me. I wanted to handle it on my own, because it made me feel weak when I didn't. So, I get you. I know I told you to lay your cards down, but it's not easy.

I bit my lip as I stared at my phone. He did get me. Except now I felt like a liar and a hypocrite. I'd constantly asked Rocco to open up and share his burdens when I wasn't doing the same. Not entirely, anyway. I should've just told him, as planned, the day I went over to his apartment instead of blabbing that I loved him.

Sighing, I sat on my bed, letting my damp towel hang around my neck. I took a deep breath and typed: How is he?

The ellipsis flashed across my screen several times before a text appeared.

Eli: We've barely heard from him. But I do know he's been meeting up with Sage. If the kid's his, he wants to do right by him and she's playing on that guilt.

Me: Why hasn't he gotten a paternity test yet?

Eli: You've met Sage. She's not dumb. There's a reason he hasn't been able to get one.

Like if she wasn't letting Rocco touch Nic or come over to her place where a sippy cup or hair brush might be lying around. Maybe she figured she could win him back before he got a DNA sample. Then it wouldn't matter, because Rocco would just make a good step-dad. I groaned and flopped onto my back. I talked with Eli for another half an hour and then got ready for bed. My mom came in before I turned off the lights.

"I know school's not going to be fun, but you've got to go back at some point. Tomorrow's as good a day as any," she said.

The thought of stepping outside, much less going to school was terrifying and I immediately wanted to argue, but held my tongue. This was what I'd always wanted, right? A concerned parent. A normal, annoying, concerned parent that made me do things I didn't want to do.

I swallowed and pulled my blanket up. She was right. I couldn't hide out at home forever. Plus she'd already let me miss three days.

"Fine," I agreed.

She patted my leg. Awkward, but appreciated. "Call me if the kids are too much or if you see any paparazzi on school grounds. I'll come pick you up and have a word with the principal."

OK, that was a bit comforting. I nodded and once she left, I switched off the lights.

My first day back at school since the release of the video...

It was going to be so much fun.

~~~

The next day, I almost skipped.

It would've been easy to just stay home since my mom went to work.

I thought about all the derogatory names I'd been called online and would now hear in person and strongly considered staying in bed, but I forced myself to get up, fight the gaggle of paparazzi outside, and hop in Sienna's car to go to school.

Thank god she'd offered to pick me up.

She'd also been keeping me posted about our classmates' reactions, and like the people online, they thought I was messing around with every member of Blue Vendetta. A lot of them also thought I was partly at fault for getting the show cancelled.

The good news was everyone detested Enid. They hated me, but they hated "snitches" even more. People knew we'd been best friends, so they were shocked and appalled that she'd try to blackmail me. The general consensus was she'd been jealous Blue Vendetta wasn't paying as much attention to her.

Oh, if they only knew.

She'd posted a tearful apology video on all her social media accounts, but it was poorly received. I'm sure it didn't help that she'd looked emaciated in it. Rumors of an eating disorder quickly spread, which was fatal for a brand that promoted confidence and self-acceptance.

At home I'd been safe, watching the fallout from my phone or computer. School would be a war zone, and I wasn't sure I was ready for combat.

When Sienna and I got to the front entrance of Beechmill High, I took a steadying breath and gazed at the plain red-bricked building.

"You got this." She looped her arm through mine. "Let's go."

The people filing into the school were already pointing and whispering. Others were sliding the bus windows down just to get a good look at me.

I tried to ignore it, but someone shouting a few feet away drew my attention.

"You need to get over it, man! I have."

It was a tall red-haired boy yelling at... Josh.

My eyes widened as he slammed the door of a silver SUV and walked around it to get in Josh's face.

Was that Julian?

Josh's older brother wasn't as big as I would've imagined. Standing a few inches shorter than Josh, Julian's hair was a brassy orange and freckles dotted every visible inch of skin. He was basically a more extreme version of his younger brother, who had dark auburn hair and freckles over his nose and cheeks. Although Julian didn't look physically imposing, I knew better. He was mean and that didn't look like it had changed.

What was he doing here though? I thought he'd stayed in Cali? I figured he'd be in jail for something at this point. Like murder.

Josh's face was pink as he hiked up his back pack. He looked around self-consciously. Everyone's attention was on him now. "Whatever, man. I don't need you to drop me off or pick me up."

"You're such a little girl." Julian smirked. "This is why I tell people I have a little sister."

Josh flushed brighter, sneered, and turned on his heel and walked away. "Bye. Don't forget to put on your seatbelt."

Julian looked after him in disgust then moved to get back in the car. We locked eyes and a flicker of recognition glimmered in his steel blue ones.

"OK, we can go now," I told Sienna, pulling her toward the double doors.

"Who's that? Is he related to Josh?" she whispered conspiratorially.

"They're brothers."

"Ohhh..."

"Except Julian makes Josh look like Mary Poppins."

Keeping with the theme of the week, my day didn't go as expected— for the most part.

During homeroom I got called into the principal's office for the first time in my life. I thought I was in trouble because my name was all over the internet and on TV, but Principal Steltz was warm and asked me to come to her if I had any issues. She also assured me that if any paparazzi were caught lurking on school grounds, they'd be arrested.

I didn't know if she'd come up with that herself or had gotten a call from my mom, but either way I was grateful.

There were eyes on me everywhere I went. Gross guys who assumed I was up for anything tried to grope me and people hurled insults like I'd murdered their entire family.

I felt like Emma Stone in Easy A— except way less cooler and unsure if I'd get a happy ending.

Others...surprised me.

Some people actually approached me and told me it was messed up that Enid had tried to blackmail me. And that I shouldn't let Sage take Rocco.

"I couldn't believe it! I threw my phone. You guys have been friends forever, how could she do that to do?" Harlowe Price whispered fiercely. She'd gone to Beechmill Elementary with me and Enid.

"She was totally jealous no one wanted her. I wish you'd told Rocco." Mei-Lin Chen cornered me during study hall.

Alan Lowe punched my shoulder in gym and said, "You're good peeps, Misery. I would've broken her nose." He blanched. "If I was a girl. Not now as boy-me. That would be bad." He paused to study me, tossing a basketball between two hands. "Did you even wanna do the show?"

Even Tiffany Lynch, Jessica Paoli's friend and one of the perpetrators of the milk-filled condom fiasco cornered me in the bathroom when no one was looking and told me what a sucky friend Enid was.

"You and Jess aren't friends, so you might find it hard to believe, but she'd never do that to one of us. Get better friends, girl."

Later, when she saw me in the hallway with Jessica and the rest of her crew, they taunted me but she didn't.

The day was a curious cocktail of half abuse, half sympathy. I didn't have any classes with Sienna, so all we could do was check in with each other via text until lunch.

I hadn't seen Enid in any of the classes we shared, so I thought she'd skipped.

That's why I was shocked when she showed up at our old table with a lunch tray and plopped down next to me and Sienna.

Was I having another weird dream?

"Hi," she said quietly. The red dye in her hair was fading at the roots, revealing the dark hair underneath. It was in a messy ponytail, and for the first time in a while, Enid Concepción Diaz was out of the house without makeup. No makeup, no jewelry, no smile. She was a blank canvas.  

And everyone in the cafeteria was hoping for a compelling picture.

"What do you want?" Sienna asked sharply.

"To talk to Miz."

It had been a long time since she'd called me that even though she was the one who'd coined the nickname.

To my surprise, it didn't stir up any nostalgia or feelings of closeness. I felt...nothing.

Sienna clearly felt anger. "Why? Got something new you wanna try and blackmail her with?"

"Calm down. You've been friends for five seconds." Enid rolled her eyes.

Oh, no. We were not doing this. "She's done more for me in these five seconds than you have in the past few years," I snapped.

Enid's gaunt face turned red while I nudged Sienna's arm. "It's OK. I want to know why she thought she could sit here."

Sienna hesitated then nodded, throwing one last icy glare at Enid before leaving.

Enid and I stared at each other. You could hear a pin drop in the cafeteria. Her eyes swept the room self-consciously and dropped down to the mozzarella sticks on her tray. She picked at the breading. "You finally took out those braids. Sienna definitely needs more practice with—"

I held a hand up. "If you came to trash talk my best friend, you can go."

She choked on the breading. "Best friend?"

"I'm serious." My back went rigid, my fist curled into a ball next to my lunch tray.

"You— you can't be best friends with someone after a couple of months."

I started to get up, so Enid back peddled. "Wait, wait. Stop! Sit down. Please." She sighed. "I came to see how you were doing with everything that's going on."

I lifted a brow. Why? Her web show got cancelled, she lost followers, sponsors. Almost got sued. Why would she be worried about me? Did Paula put her up to this?

"I'm fine," I bit out vaguely.

"Have you heard from Rocco about what he's planning to do about Sage?"

My eyes widened. Had she fallen and bumped her head? Just because Sage was now a common enemy it didn't mean we were on the same side. The enemy of my enemy was not my friend. "You don't get to ask me about him, Enid. Only friends can do that."

She looked stricken. Like the reality of our new dynamic had just hit her. "I  just...needed room to breathe."

"Then you should've told me. Instead you came up with Misery Loves Company on your own, tried to embarrass me in front of millions of people...repeatedly. Threatened me, and blackmailed me."

Enid opened her mouth then closed it. There was no way she could deny it. Most of these offenses were on tape. She pushed away her tray before putting her elbows on the table so she could cradle her head. "I'm...I'm sorry."

"No, you're not. If Sage and that random guy on the crew hadn't gotten wrapped up in all of this, you would've posted the pic of me and Rocco."

"I was bluffing! I wanted to scare you so you wouldn't even think of telling my mom about...about what you caught me doing."

Her making herself throw up.

I stared into her eyes. Once upon a time I could tell when she was lying.

"So why'd you keep threatening me even after she found out?"

Everyone at the next table was stock still. A girl with a shaved head was leaning over in her seat. A blond boy had his eyes closed in concentration. They weren't even trying to pretend they weren't eavesdropping.

"Because...I was angry," Enid admitted softly. She swallowed. "And maybe...a little jealous about how good things were going for you."

"Wasn't that the point of Misery Loves Company?" I asked dryly.

"Yeah...but I didn't expect it to work so well."

I couldn't help it. My mouth dropped open a little. "So you actually wanted me to crash and burn?"

"No, no, no! That's not–" She made a frustrated sound. "That's not what I mean. You were suffocating me, so I wanted you to make more friends. I wanted you to have your own life. I just didn't want–"

"Me to do better than you?" I finished.

She froze, brown eyes glassy and wide.

"Wow." I barked out a laugh.

"Miz," she whispered, voice heavy with unshed tears.

I shook my head, and even though my throat tightened, my resolve didn't weaken. "You crossed the line, Enid. Every single one, and I let you because I loved you." I pushed my chair back and got up. "But now I'm done."

~~~

Author's notes:

Phew! This was SEVENTEEN PAGES, Y'ALL! Hope you enjoyed it!

And if you're interested in getting an excerpt of my poetry book "Lucid," you can sign up through the link in my bio.