Invited Ex
1099 Words
“I knew it was you. Who else will dress this extremely chic and pretty?” I hear him chuckle. “Always stylish and extravagant,” he adds, and walks up to get a clear view of Cicero holding me.
I feel my stomach twist uncomfortably because, aside from the fact that I’ve hidden everything about my relationships in college from Cicero, Clarence and I are not on good terms.
Our breakup, in fact, stemmed mostly from Clarence’s inferiority complex.
He believes I squander too much money on myself when, in fact, my mother made it her mission in life to shop for my clothes, shoes, and everything else because shopping for me allowed her to shop for ridiculously expensive stuff for herself, too.
Stuff she couldn't get the money from Papa Ben.
Papa Ben has always been very generous when it comes to me.
Not like he was stingy with my mother. As far as I know, he’s also very generous to her.
He didn’t owe us a thing. He literally picked my mom up in her lowest.
We were about to be thrown out of our home, a penthouse that my mother couldn’t keep up with the rent for.
But instead of taking us to a simple and less expensive apartment, she chose to continue faking the hell out of life while squandering cash we didn’t have on a penthouse that had heated f*****g floors.
I don't know how she met Papa Ben. She never told me, but I reckon it must be from those elite parties she spends thousands of dollars purchasing outfits for.
Papa Ben came in and changed our lives.
He even placed my mother on a 200k monthly allowance.
But Mama would always have another expensive dress and bag to buy at Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, and those ridiculously expensive stores with very fancy stuff.
It got to the point where the money wasn’t enough anymore. So, she took up the task of shopping for my basic needs, which allowed her to take out money from my monthly college allowance to get other stuff she wanted.
The result was that I was left with no choice but to wear expensive designer outfits as lounge wear and very expensive silks as sleepwear.
And Clarence, well, he felt inadequate and maybe intimidated. So, to boost his ego or whatever shitty name they call it, he cheated on me with my roommate.
Cicero put me down beside him, as the other guys melted back into the bar to get drinks, including Brody.
“Hello, my fashionista,” Clarence smiles.
Cicero lets out that deep chuckle that tells me he’s still pissed at me but is delighted to watch whatever drama I have with Clarence unfold.
He takes a few steps back, away from us, and leans his elbow on a barstool, observing us.
Shit, this night just took a turn for the worse.
“W-w-what are you doing here?” I finally managed to ask Clarence.
“Why? You don’t think I can afford being in such a gathering?” he asks. “Well, I’m a big fan of the Islanders if you must know. So, getting an invite to this party was a result of my devotion and love for the team.
“Oh my god,” I croak.
Cicero…
He found out about Clarence and me. He found out that I dated him in college. He invited him. He intentionally brought him here.
But why?
To taunt me?
To prove to me that he will eventually find out about all my sexcapades back in college?
Or to…
Wait!
Does he want to kill Clarence? Does he…
I immediately turn to look at Cicero, and he tips an almost empty glass my way, a fat grin on his face.
My mouth goes instantly dry. He’s going to kill Clarence.
I need to get Clarence out of here, out of town, and away from his house or wherever he lives.
Rufus comes up and whispers something in Cicero’s ear, and Cicero turns his head for a moment.
Clarence takes the opportunity to draw me down the dark hallway a few steps.
“Jane, I’ve been thinking a lot about you,” he says.
Seeing this as an opportunity to quickly talk to him and convince him to leave the party, I tug him a bit further.
My hands are trembling from fear when I let go of him. How do things just keep getting worse and worse with Cicero?
“Listen, Clarence, you have to go,” I begin to tell him, but he puts his hand on my arm.
“Go where?” he asks. “I’m here to have fun, celebrate with the Islanders team, create meaningful relationships, and who knows, maybe I could pitch to them and have one of them consider me as part of their social media team, and you know how much money that would make me? I can even buy you a bag. Heard some vain girls talk about a “Kelly” bag. If that’s what is trending now, I could buy one for you.”
Vain girls indeed.
It's almost laughable to hear him talk about sponsoring my “extravagant lifestyle,” like he fondly calls it.
Especially since I have several Kelly bags and I’m currently carrying a mini, courtesy of the personal shopper Cicero hired for me a few months after my mother's death.
“Clarence, you need to go,” I repeat, shaking my head. “You can't be here right now.”
It doesn't take him much time at all to transform from a smiling persona to the same emotionally abusive guy I’ve always known.
“Wait, you’re chasing me away because of some bunch of horny athletes? Are you hanging out around here to try to get a celebrity boyfriend to sponsor your lifestyle? Because the last I heard, your mother died,” he snarls. “Still, even with her death, I never picked you for a starfucker, Jane. You always pretended to be so good and sweet. But really, you’re just a little slut, aren’t you? Hanging around these men, hoping to snag some lifestyle sponsors. Anything just to keep up with the lifestyle, huh?”
I close my eyes, hating that Cicero had to bring this man back into my life.
My stomach sinks when he grabs my arm, but he has barely touched me when I hear a hard, angry sound, and he’s ripped away from me.
I twist around to see Cicero with his hand around Clarence’s throat.
- Writer
