III: Red-handed
"Carina, can I wear this?" Nathalie swung the diamond necklace in front of Carina.
"Yes. Keep it too." Carina said as she was busy putting her fake lashes on.
The three of them, including Lilith, were in Carina's mansion to prepare for tonight's big event. It's the hundredth annual celebration of the foundation day of Coterie City. October 10, 1920, was the exact date the mafia land had been founded by Thomas Montana. The great-grandfather of Carina. That's how much power she has over the domain.
"You know that you can afford that too right, Nath?" The woman asked, looking at Nathalie in her reflection in the mirror, who was checking how she looked with the said necklace.
She nodded. "Yeah, but I don't have time to go shopping. So I'll just shop for something from your closet." She added, smiling back at Carina's reflection. Carina just shook her head in disapproval, although she didn't mean it at all because she loves these two girls too much. She found nonbiological sisters of her own, and she would kill for them. At the same time, the two girls would do it for her a hundred dozen times.
"Where's Lilith anyway?" Nathalie asked.
Carina was looking around her big walk-in closet that could fit a million dollars of things. She made her way toward the dresses. "She's with JJ." That was all she responded as she started browsing through the number of clothing in front of her.
"I thought she hated men," Nathalie said, sitting in front of the gold vanity where Carina was once on.
"JJ is not a man. He's a boy. And Lilith only likes JJ because of me and because of games. Other than that, she doesn't care." Carina started dialing Julian's number on the phone. It was answered right after four rings. "Julian! Stop playing those stupid games! It's our family's biggest event and you're out there being lazy again! Dress up and send Lilith here quickly!" She shouted over the phone.
"Nuna.." Was the only word Julian said.
"What?" Carina asked in a calm voice this time.
"Will you stop nagging me?" Julian continued, before dropping the call.
Carina held her chest like she was offended, before staring at her cellphone screen with her mouth slightly open. "Why does Julian thinks he's a big guy now?" She asked with a disappointed sigh.
"Carina, that's because he is already old enough to be a big guy. He's 23. He's the same age as me and Lili." Nathalie explained, putting on her brown lipstick for tonight's finishing touch. "And, how can a mere boy look so buff with a five foot ten height? He is a grown man now." She even added, to emphasize her opinion more.
"I don't care. He's still a baby for me." She said, stripping out of her silk robe to put on a gold open-back, spaghetti-strapped body conditioning dress.
"Lilith! Just one more game! That was so close. I think you cheated while I was talking to Nuna!" Julian's shout suddenly echoed in the hallway outside of Carina's room.
"Can I not attend this year?" Lilith suddenly barged inside, ignoring Julian. She sat in Nathalie's lap as soon as she got near her. Nathalie cuddled her anyway, for as long as her dress won't wrinkled or anything. Julian also barged in but quickly looked away when he caught Carina changing. He did not say any other word and just quickly left the room.
"Did you beat him on his game again?" Nathalie whispered to Lilith, hugging her waist. The expressionless woman just nodded.
"No, you cannot come. I won't beat you up, but your brother will, for sure." Carina turned around and checked her reflection in the mirror.
"Then can I wear red matching pajamas for the party?" Lilith asked once more, with a hopeful tone.
"No, that's not a slumber party, Lilith. Wear something revealing, or anything that will accentuate your figure. We'll try to cut ties with your abnormal relationship with that male-hating disease tonight." Carina said, turning around to face their direction just to wink at her after she was finally satisfied with the outfit she will wear for the rest of the evening.
"But it's not going to be easy to move. What if we get into a fight?" She protested. "And not the two of you pushing me to date. No, not again." She sulks in dismay.
Carina pointed a finger at her. "No buts. And you don't need to fight tonight. You'll be there as Huxley's sister, not as my assassin. Now, chop-chop." She demanded, clapping to the beat of every syllable of the two last words she spoke.
"Come on Lili. I'll dress you up." Nathalie motioned for Lilith to stand up from her lap.
"Fine. For as long as it's red." Lilith muttered, pouting in protest.
The Dionysus super club was packed for the night. All the novelties and the privileged are all gathered in one place. Carina, Julian, Nathalie, and Lilith entered the club. Flashing cameras were everywhere upon their arrival. Lilith looked down as she was uncomfortable without a bandana mask on. She rarely goes to parties where she needed to be herself. She would usually have her VIP room, so there won't always be commoners around her. She got used to hiding her true identity.
Huxley greeted them in the VIP area where they will be staying for tonight. He shot a cocky smile at Carina, tilting his head to the side. Carina just rolled her eyes at him. He laughed as a response, subtly feeling happy at how irritated Carina looked before landing his eyes on Lilith.
"Look at you. You're a big girl now." He commented, as soon as he saw what her sister was wearing. She was wearing a short red sheath spaghetti strapped dress with sequins all over, paired with some high heels. Her hair was in space buns and her eye shadow and lipstick are also all in the shade of red.
"I was bribed to wear this." She angrily said, glaring at Carina and Nathalie. Carina was busy greeting the other mafia leaders so she didn't hear what she said, while Nathalie just smiled at Huxley. He chuckled and gave Lilith and Nathalie a small hug. He also shook hands with Julian who was quietly eyeing his surroundings.
"It's not like it's your first time in a club JJ, what are you looking for?" Nathalie asked him once she observed what he was doing. They were all sitting on a big couch now. Huxley left them to greet other guests.
"No. I'm looking for Travis-Hyung and my classmate Hyung." He said as he was still looking around. "Oh wait, there they are." He quickly went out of the VIP area to greet them. Nathalie followed JJ with her look, while Carina started filling up her and Nathalie's glasses with whiskey.
Julian gave Travis and Jaxon a manly hug. "How did the two of you manage to come together?" He asked both of them.
"Travis is my neighbor. He lives beside my apartment." Jaxon answered as they start walking toward the table.
Travis nodded. "Yeah. I was surprised to catch him out of his door dressed up fancy too." Travis explained, making the three of them laugh.
"What a small world." Julian exclaimed. They all grabbed a glass of whiskey on the table. Nathalie waved a cute hello toward Travis when he caught her looking at him. He just gave a quick smile before looking away. But then looked back at her again to check her out.
Nathalie was wearing a navy blue satin ruffled dress. Being the gorgeous girl she was, Travis couldn't help but stare at her for a minute.
"Nathalie, Lilith, this is my classmate Jaxon-Hyung. He's also a new student at my art school. He's around your age too." Julian introduced his newfound friend.
"Wow, look at you making friends easily on your first day." She stood up complimenting JJ, before offering a hand to Jaxon. "Hello, I'm Nathalie. I work for JJ's sister." She introduced herself.
Jaxon gave her a small bow before shaking her hand. "I'm Jaxon. A pleasure to meet you." He said, before looking at the woman sitting beside her. He was about to offer his hand to Lilith but she did not give him any expression. She just looked at him quickly and then went back into filling another glass of whiskey.
"She's Lilith. She's the other boss' little sister." Nathalie introduced her instead, simultaneously pointing at Huxley when she mentioned the word 'boss', after seeing how rude Lilith reacted. "I'm sorry, she just has a unique way of greeting people.." She shot a glance at Lilith. "Greeting men in general," Nathalie added.
Julian moved closer to him and whispered. "Ignore her. She doesn't like boys. I think she's a lesbian. She has a crush on both my Nuna and Nathalie." He tells him. "And she's bad at playing games too." He even added.
Jaxon just smiled, before taking a sip of his drink, while side-glancing in Lilith's direction. He was caught red-handed because Lilith shot him another quick look as if sensing that he was looking at her. But instead of being embarrassed, he just lifted his drink motioning 'cheers' before giving her a cute smile. And once again, she just ignored him.
Jaxon's mind clouded with questions about the woman's attitude and he found it quite amusing, so he just looked at her for a bit longer before joining Travis and Julian in their little conversation.
The music suddenly came to a halt. "Alright, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to the annual celebration of our city's foundation day!" Everybody clapped and cheered with the host's greeting over the microphone. All people looked over the little stage, which is the club's dance floor just redesigned to be tonight's platform.
"Before we continue the party, I would like to call Montana Cartel and Vercetti's family on stage for our welcoming speech please."
Julian stood up to fetch her sister, after muttering a 'wait for me hyungs' to his two friends. Nathalie on the other hand pushed Lilith to stand up. She took the glass of alcohol in her hand. Huxley went to fetch her at the same time.
Lilith slid her arms on Huxley's in dismay. "Do I need to be on stage Hux?" She pouted.
"Are you nervous?" Huxley asked, concerned as they start to move out of the VIP area.
"No. I just-" His brother cut her off.
"Do it to represent mom and dad, Lili. Just give them a sweet smile. Everyone will be enchanted with that smile of yours love, trust me." He assured his sister. Lilith finally broke into a grin, realizing nothing is there to be afraid of for as long as she was beside Huxley. It's the first happy expression she ever did as soon as she stepped into tonight's location.
The spotlight made its way to the four people walking toward the stage. Jaxon couldn't help but stare at Lilith when the bright light shined down on her and her brother. A dozen of thoughts came running through his mind once more. A million questions out of his curiosity.
Carina and Huxley made their speech, as Julian and Lilith just stands behind them listening and clapping for the both of them. "And I would like to say thank you, to the owner of this club." He motioned toward the man behind the bar. "Sin. For letting us use his new super club, for this year's foundation day." He added, the crowd's continuous applause not stopping.
The tall handsome man behind the bar, with broad shoulders, just lifted his drink and gave Carina a flying kiss to acknowledge them. "That's all folks! For now, let's enjoy the rest of the evening." Huxley finally concluded his speech.
The music started to play again and everyone cheered for a good minute until they all went back to what they were doing. Sin followed Huxley into the VIP area.
"Everyone! Meet my friend here, Sin. He's the owner of this beautiful bar." Huxley introduced the man in a white polo. His sleeves rolled up, as he was busy mixing drinks for some guests as soon as the event started.
Sin greeted them one by one. His eyes landed on Jaxon, who also gave him a knowing look, before brushing their staring contest off and then moving towards Carina's direction.
"Are you close to Huxley? Then I don't want to be your friend." Carina joked, rolling her eyes at her biggest and only rival, Huxley, once again.
"Oh come on. I'm not on anyone's side. It's just a pleasure personally knowing the King and Queen of the city." He explained, now facing Nathalie.
"And you are?" Sin gave Nathalie a small smile, his brows slightly raising.
Nathalie bowed to him. "I'm Nathalie." She offered her hand to the curious man.
"And how did you get here?" He asked, taking her hand so he does not shake it, but give it a small kiss. Nathalie was astonished by the gesture, and at the same time by his question too, so she just stared at him, not knowing what to answer.
"I mean, how did an angel like you get here?" He corrected, sitting beside her, not letting go of her hand.
"I-" Nathalie couldn't manage to speak a word out of her mouth anymore. She was just dumbfounded by the man's approach to greeting her.
Everyone on the table laughed, each one of them giving their side remarks, while Nathalie and Sin just stared at each other for god knows how long. Travis on the other hand shifted uncomfortably in his seat, watching the scene in front of him.
Everyone was having fun as the night deepens, they drank and played games. When the music stopped again, the host announced that the dance floor is now open for dancing.
Julian quickly invited her sister to dance, and the same goes for Jin, inviting Nathalie. Huxley was nowhere to be found so Lilith just stayed at the table with Jaxon and Travis. After a couple of minutes, two women tried to talk to the two remaining men at their table. Lilith on the other hand took one bottle of whiskey on the table and stood up to walk out of the VIP area, everyone making way for her as she moves. Jaxon who was just eyeing her, also stood up carrying his drink in one hand. After a few seconds of mental debating, whether he should follow her, he came up with the conclusion to do so, knowing that this is finally his time to get to talk to her.
"Trav, I'll just go to the comfort room." He told Travis, who was busy talking to the two girls beside him. He nodded quickly before proceeding to try his best to listen to what the girls were telling him. He wasn't even interested one bit. He just thought that maybe, just maybe. It might get his mind off of Nathalie tonight.
Jaxon made his way through the crowd to look for Lilith, casually asking people if they saw a small girl wearing a red dress. One bouncer told him he saw one, carrying a bottle of whiskey going up the rooftop. He then made his way to the highest part of the building, finally seeing the person he was looking for. He stared at her back as he was moving closer. She was sitting on the edge of the rooftop facing the outer part of the building, her right hand supporting his body as she was drinking the bottle of alcohol facing her left side.
He was getting fascinated with how much alcohol the woman could ingest, as he was observing her drinking behavior for a couple of hours now.
"I think you fancy alcohol so much," Jaxon spoke, as soon as he was almost near her. He stopped, maintaining a reasonable distance between them.
Lilith did not look back at him. She just heavily sighed. "For fuck's sake. Not another man on a rooftop again." She complained.
"On the other hand, I think you don't fancy men at all." Jaxon just chuckled, ignoring her attitude.
"Whatever, captain obvious." She responded, slightly surprised as to why she was even talking to him.
Jaxon walked closer to the edge of the rooftop and looked at the view. Lilith couldn't help but finally glance at him, and she immediately remembered who he was.
"Why though?" Jaxon asked, still looking at the view in front of him. Lilith didn't answer, she just started drinking her bottle again.
Jaxon now looked at her. "Is it because you're attracted to the same gender?" He teasingly asked. Lilith raised a brow at him. Jaxon took her message of offense and raised his hands in defense. "Okay, I'm sorry. Just guessing." He said, pausing for a little afterward.
"Or maybe, was it a heartbreak that caused it?" He asked once more, making Lilith roll her eyes.
"Yep. Yep, it was a heartbreak." She lied, just for the guy to stop his presumptions. It's a trick she mastered for a long, just to stop a guy from flirting with her.
And that is to lie.
"Well. If that's the case, the one who caused your heartbreak must be stupid." Jaxon stated, finally drinking his alcohol. "A beautiful woman like you doesn't deserve to be broken." He added, once his glass was already empty.
Lilith stared at him, quite surprised by what he said. She often hears those kinds of words coming out from men's mouths, but what was different with Jaxon was the sincerity of his voice.
It's like he meant it. It's like he cared.
She quickly brushed the idea off and looked back at the city lights. Jaxon, also doing the same. They stayed quiet for quite some time. Just simply appreciating the view of the loud but alluring sound the city emits and the active light that always seems so lively.
Coterie would never be dark and empty, and that's one thing Lilith loved about her city.
Jaxon then looked at Lilith, as she seem to be so lost looking afar. The moonlight was shining down on her face. "Your city is really beautiful." He complimented, not removing his gaze away from her.
"You talk as if it's the first time you have seen it. You talk as if you don't belong here." Lilith answered, not giving him a look.
Jaxon was a little surprised by her statement because it was the truth. He didn't belong here. People from his city might be looking for him everywhere now, but he just brushed the guilt off his gut feeling and attempted to show a genuine smile.
"What can I say? I just really love to compliment something a couple more times after seeing it once again." That was all he could manage to say, looking away from the woman who caught him red-handed twice tonight, but without her knowing.