15 #4
Everyone gathered on the patio. I didn’t spot Adrik anywhere.
But I could see Artie looking frustrated; Owen, arm in arm, with his girlfriend; and Aleixandre with Laila, both utterly smitten with each other.
The waiters went around giving out glasses of champagne.
The stars still glittered in the sky, falsely promising a perfect night.
The DJ turned down the music, and Aegan paused briefly for everyone to gather before stepping into the center of the crowd. Guests couldn’t wait to hear what he had to say.
I flashed my widest, most perfect smile at the hypocritical, cruel Tagus world.
“The night has barely begun, but I’d like to take a moment to share something very important,” Aegan began, his voice strong, eloquent, and utterly captivating.
His eyes gleamed with wickedness, but since that was his normal expression, I thought nothing of it and straightened up proudly, like a bride beaming beside her groom. The crowd was listening anxiously.
“This party is being held to raise funds for the homeless foundation my father runs, but I recently decided we’d also support another cause.
Which is why I’ve brought several bottles from my personal wine collection to offer for sale tonight.
It wasn’t an easy decision for me, but I’m happy to know that the proceeds from each of these bottles will go toward supporting a new cause that has become very dear to me. ”
Everyone broke out into applause. It even caught me off guard. Him doing something charitable with his precious personal stuff? Well, that was good, I supposed. Bearing in mind that he’s an asshole, donating money was the least he could do for the world.
Aegan asked the crowd to stop clapping. As the applause died down, he dropped the bombshell.
“All the proceeds will go to San Francis Hospital, to cover treatments for my girlfriend Jude Derry’s mom—Elein Derry, who is living with HIV.”
When Aegan turned to me, with his glass raised, I was dumbstruck.
That’s what he meant when he said if you’re still up for it after the party. He was hinting at having something up his sleeve. Something so cruel that I wouldn’t get past it.
It was like the whole world had stood still the second he said “HIV.” Everything around me was drowned out and blurry. I was in disbelief. And then, suddenly, I came to. The impact of what Aegan had said finally hit me.
He’d just told all of Tagus, the people who laughed at me, and who would gossip about this for days, that my mom had HIV.
This was in fact true; she was diagnosed six years ago.
But it was a serious, private, painful issue, which Aegan had blurted out just like that, in front of everyone, like it was no big deal.
When I finally plucked up the courage to glance around, everyone was just standing there, as if expecting something. Their expressions couldn’t hide the fact that they were speculating about my mom—how she might have gotten the disease, and whether I had been born with it . . .
“Cheers,” Aegan said to break the silence.
“Cheers,” everyone said back in unison.
I didn’t raise my glass. I stood there, frozen, like life itself had come to a halt.
Aegan took a swig from his glass before furrowing his brow and saying, “Jude, would you like to say a few words? Maybe you can tell everyone how Elein is doing?”
I parted my lips slightly. To be honest, I tried to say something, but I was speechless. A shudder coursed through my body, destroying my sense of courage. I wanted to break down and cry, but I put all my energy into holding myself together. I couldn’t even call him out on what he’d just done.
Everyone waited.
They were looking at me. Mumbling.
“I—I . . .” managed to say. The world was spinning around me. My mouth was dry; I wanted to throw up. “Well, she . . .”
“She . . . ?” Aegan spurred me on shamelessly.
“It’s just that . . . she . . . well . . .”
Then, before I could say another word, or start puking, out of nowhere somebody shouted.
“Suck my dick, Aegan!”
Suddenly everyone turned to look at the terrace. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Adrik was standing there on the edge. He was holding a bottle of whiskey. What the hell was he doing?
Before we knew it, he jumped headfirst into the pool. There was a great big splash. He got out and caught his breath and then, with the bottle in the air, he shouted, “WHHHEEEE!”
The DJ quickly cranked up the music louder than before and everyone started shouting “WHHHEEEE!” to finally get the party started and let loose.
As I turned to Aegan, I could see he was staring at Adrik with barely contained rage. Adrik, though, was floating in the pool and staring back at his brother, like a challenge.
Other people started jumping into the pool, forgetting all about the toast, for now at least.
I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Artie. She looked at me in pity. Maybe she wanted to comfort me, but that’s not what I needed right then. I didn’t need any of this crap.
I got out of there as fast as possible, humiliated, struggling to hold back the flood of tears and anger that threatened to drown me.
I’d thought I was one step ahead of Aegan Cash, but he’d just thrown me down a well.
I could even hear his voice ringing in my head.
I’ll always have a better plan.