GROUND RULES
641 Words
VIVI’S POINT OF VIEW.
I didn’t realize how tightly I was holding onto him until we stepped outside.
The noise of the party mixed with their whispers got drowned out once the door shut behind us.
The silence was cold, sharp like it would cut through bone. My fingers were still locked with Felix’s. I pulled away fast as I’d just remembered what I’d just done.
What I’d said…….what I’d just agreed to.
The night air hit my face, but it didn’t clear the haze in my head.
Nothing could.
Not when his voice still echoed in my mind.
“Have we met before?”
My chest tightened, my throat locked, but I swallowed it down. Hard.
“Why?” I asked suddenly. My voice sounded steadier than I felt. Felix didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he walked ahead of me, clearly unbothered, like the storm we’d just walked out of meant nothing, like he hadn’t just turned my life upside down.
“Why did you do that?” I pressed, following him. “Back there.”
He stopped, turned, his expression was calm……..too calm. “You agreed.” He said, but that wasn’t an answer.
At least not to me.
“You knew he was there, too.” I shot back. “You knew they would all see.”
At first, there’s a pause. Then, “yes.”
My breath hitched. “So that was the plan?” I asked, my voice tightening despite myself. “Humiliate me? Use me to make a statement?”
“No.” The word came out flat and certain.
He stepped closer until his body was mere inches from mine, not invading or threatening my space. He was just……there.
“I don’t need to humiliate you to make a statement.” He said, and that shut me up. Because something about the way he said it….
It wasn't the least bit cruel.
It was factual. And somehow, that made it worse.
“Then, what do you call that?” I demanded. Felix bent my gaze for a moment longer; his eyes measuring, calculating, and then,
“Control.” The word landed heavily between us. “You walking out of there quietly, or just standing in the garden, crying your eyes out.” He continued. “That would have been their narrative. What do you think my father planned when Reyna invited you over?
You think it’s a coincidence he stepped out barely ten minutes after you rushed into the garden, that too with the crowd?”
My mind pieced everything together.
“Ask yourself? Did the garden look like something major was set to hold there? Why did the entire party suddenly step outside?”
He didn’t look like he was in a hurry; his icy eyes weren’t lazy, but focused on me. He clearly waited for an answer.
I gave it to him. “B-because he wanted to humiliate me.”
“Bingo.” My jaw tightened.
“And this isn’t humiliating me?” I snapped.
“No.” He said calmly. “This is me turning the odds in our favor. Controlling the narrative myself.”
The silence rang between us. I stared at him, trying to decide if I should be angry or impressed.
Or afraid….
“You used me,” I said finally.
“Mutual benefits.” He smiled. “Besides, I have a position for you.” He corrected.
My brows knitted together. “That’s not the same thing.”
“It is tonight.” I opened my mouth to argue, then stopped. Because he wasn’t entirely wrong.
And I hated that. A beat passed between us, then another. The weight of everything settled back in; it felt heavy, unavoidable.
“What happens now?” I asked quietly. Felix didn’t hesitate or waste a moment.
“We get married.”
- Writer
