Chapter 2
TWO
RYE
Junior Year: Spring Semester
“Wh-what are you going to do?”
The shake in her voice does nothing to me as my eyes dance around her bare body strapped to the slim leather table. Dark red lights highlight her curves, her blue eyes locking with mine.
“Whatever I want.”
“Wicked Games” by the Weeknd fills the room, a freshman from campus in my domain.
Amanda? Kat? Whatever-her-name-is risked showing up to beg for an invite to tonight’s party.
On her knees, she said she’d do anything, and after last semester, I can use the distraction.
The problem is, she isn’t very fun to play with.
Moving toward a velvet curtain, my fingers trail the string of equipment hanging from a thick gold rope. Paddles, floggers, whips, chains. When my finger lands on the handle of a dull-edged dagger, my trail stops.
“Everyone’s watching.”
That moment replays in my head ten times a day. It’s everything I planned, but something was… off. She didn’t protest. She didn’t put up a fight. She always puts up a fight.
Hannah’s social media accounts all say she turned over a new leaf during the break. Charity events. Volunteering in Bali. Even reading to young girls. It’s all a desperate act.
Reaching for the dagger, my grip tightens around the black handle.
“What are you planning on doing with that?” Party Girl’s voice breaks my thoughts.
“Don’t ask me stupid questions.”
She nods, her pink nipples hardening under my gaze. But, looking at her naked body laid out for me doesn’t do it for me either. Her long dark hair hangs off the edge, her lips almost the same shade Hannah wore at the gallery. But the eyes. They’re different. Too dull and too eager all at once.
Rolling my shoulders, I try shifting my focus to the girl who's ready for me to take out my frustrations. A vessel I can channel every last drop of fury into. Someone who knows how to bow to their Crown.
“You crossed a boundary coming here today,” I say, hovering the edge of the blade right above her left thigh. “You’ll pay for that.”
The dull blade kisses her skin before she squeals. “Wh-wait!” A deep sigh escapes me. “I’m sorry, I’m a little nervous. Can you give me a second?”
“You’re boring me.”
“That knife just doesn’t look very fun.”
This won’t do. I’m about to tell her to get out when a voice comes from behind me.
“Whoa.”
Turning on my Italian leather boots, I squint through the blur of my high to see who it is and…well, this is a hell of a surprise.
“If it isn’t my long-lost little sister.” Her heavily lined eyes wander around what she knows as the main lounge of our modern mansion. Her jaw hangs open as she takes it all in, and let’s say I’ve made some alterations. “Welcome home, Krystal.”
“Little sister?” The girl I’ve already forgotten about asks.
Krystal stands in the arched doorway in plaid pants and a leather jacket over her thin shoulders. Gone are the bags under her eyes, and she’s actually sporting a tan instead of her usual pale skin.
“You finally escaped the Academy?” I ask.
She nods, a slow one, but she still doesn’t speak.
Her gaze continues to move around the room, and I can’t blame her.
What was once the finely decorated home we grew up in is now, well, not that.
In this room, tufted leather chaises replace the antique armchairs tucked away in a storage unit at the back of the house.
They surround the leather table in the middle, red silk draping from the crystal chandelier.
“What on earth did you do?” Krystal finally asks.
“Re-decorated,” I reply, watching as she fixes the black beret on top of her black and grey shaggy cut.
We inherited a lot of bullshit from our folks.
Money tainted in expectation, a culture no one in this town cares to understand, and unreasonable standards.
At least we inherited some style. Reaching for the pack of cigs in my oversized black trousers, I drop the dagger to the floor.
“Father didn’t invite me to his circle-jerk on the greens, so I’m having one of my own. ”
“He already cut you off,” she says, reminding me how fast news travels. She takes a step further into the room, her eyes on the row of “tools” hanging off the back wall. “And you’re still trying to piss him off?”
“This isn’t about our father.” Twirling a black cigarette in my hand, she comes to my head again.
The gallery was only the beginning. That moment wasn’t enough.
I told her I own her and I’m a man of my word.
“Enough about him. It’s good to see you.
” My words break her out of whatever shock she’s in, a smile spreading across her round face as she steps towards me.
When she wraps her arms around me, I tower over her, but not by much, her boots helping.
“It’s really good to see you, too, Rye.” Unlike folks in The Hill, she knows how to pronounce my name, but the nickname stuck. “And thanks for finally making me the better offspring.”
That familiar scent of orange and vanilla comes over me. She hasn’t changed it since high school. “They shouldn’t have sent you away.”
She squeezes harder. “I know you tried to stop them.”
“But you know Father.”
“Are you okay?” Krystal releases me before both her hands land on my shoulders. “Do you have money saved up?” She looks around the space again. “Wait, is that why you turned our home into a sex dungeon?”
“Sex kingdom,” I correct. “Don’t cheapen it.”
She laughs. “I missed you.”
“Krystal?” Our mother’s voice comes from a distance. “Krystal!” That voice gets closer. Fast. No sense in running around trying to cover this. She’s likely seen enough. So I light up, lean back, and wait for it.
A flash of white flies by the entrance and reappears. My mother stands in the entryway, designer shopping bags hanging off her fingers. She’s wearing one of her pieces. A cream blazer with these dramatic as fuck shoulder pads draped over a black cashmere dress.
Her dark eyes move to the naked body lying behind me as I puff on the gold tip of my cigarette. She mutters something in Korean before she drops her bags to the floor, rushing over to cover my sister’s eyes.
“Ryung,” she says my name as a warning.
“Mother,” I respond, mocking her tone.
“Mother?” Party Girl sounds even more confused. Looking over my shoulder, she sits up, covering her chest with her hands. “Should I leave?”
“You should’ve left a while ago,” I inform her. “And don’t come tonight. You’re not a fit.”
Silence takes over the room as if she’s waiting for the punchline. But I just take another puff as my mom sighs. And it’s still too long before she leaves the room.
I tilt my chin to my mother. “Thought you were in The Oaks.” My pocket vibrates, and I reach for my phone My abs tighten when I read the notification.
Reminder: The Athena Affair hosted by Hannah Alfonso. 8:00 p.m. Sun House
“I was,” Mother responds. “But your sister insisted we come home early.”
“I didn’t,” Krystal says. “She has an emergency in LA and needs to leave tonight.”
A weight lifts off my chest. I’ll still have the place to myself this weekend. I’ll need it.
“So what?” I ask. “You’re putting your bets on the youngest child since the first two didn’t work out?”
“We should be welcoming your sister back with champagne.” Our mother ignores my remarks, her eyes scanning the room. “Not with a sex dungeon. Ryung, what are you doing? Your father will—”
“Is she really back this time?” I ask, cutting her off. I no longer care what my father thinks. “For good?”
“She's ready for university. It's a good time for her to reintegrate into The Hill,” Mother says.
I rise off the chaise. “You got her into Bons?”
“Of course, I did,” Mother looks at me like I’m insane. “They won’t say no to me.”
She’s right. It pays to be the nepo-babies of a celebrity fashion mogul.
“They’ll eat her alive,” I laugh between my words. “You can’t just send her away and pull her back like nothing happened. Not here.”
“She’s my daughter,” Mother says. “You made a name for yourself. Not that it matters now that you’re tarnishing your family’s.” I puff harder on my cigarette, that look of disgust on her face again. “You should be ashamed. Instead, you're turning our home into a brothel.”
“I still have a name here,” I remind her. And myself. “But for Krystal, it’s different. You know that.”
“I knew I should’ve applied to NYU,” Krystal groans, turning to our mother. “You have connections there, too, right?”
As much as I want her around, she should know better. She was born and raised in Paradise Hill. She should know surviving here takes a lot more than just showing up.
“Don’t be ridiculous. NYU is no SBU.” Mother waves her off. “You’ll spend forever in New York and it won’t get you anywhere close to where two semesters at SBU will get you.”
My phone vibrates again.
Gray: All loaded for tonight [snow emoji]
“Ryung’s right,” Krystal argues. “There’s hierarchy here that I’m not part of anymore.”
“That’s true, but wait just a moment." A small smirk creeps on my face. I know how to make tonight even better. Turns out, Krystal’s timing is perfect. “Tell you what.” I keep my eyes on my phone, texting Gray back. “I’ll help Krystal get back in The Hill’s social graces.”
Ryung: And the posse? Are they all in?
“She doesn’t need your help,” my mother snaps. “Or did you forget you’re an embarrassment to our name?” I hate it when she sounds like him. “If anything, you’re the reason your sister is anxious about being here. Not me.”
“She’s only anxious about being here because you kicked her out in the first place.” This conversation makes me reach for another cigarette.
My mother steps toward me, knocking it out of my hand. “That was your father.”
“You backed his decision when you didn’t stop him. When are you going to stop siding with his bullshit? You'd rather he cut off our resources than actually give a fuck about us.”
“Guys, c’mon.” Krystal’s voice doesn’t make our mother back down.
“You’re spoiled. We spoiled you. We give you everything, and still, you find a way to threaten us. I don’t always agree with your father, but he does what’s best for our name.” She points a long, thin finger in my face, her diamond ring blinding. “Your decisions affect us.”
“No, it affects your business.” I tap another cigarette out of the black pack, proving her right on the spoiled part. “Do us all a favour and admit you’re both—”
“Mom, wait,” Krystal pipes in before I say something I can’t take back.
“I know this school can be ruthless, but Rye’s at the top, regardless of what happened.
” That’s one thing that won’t change, no matter how hard Hannah tries to take that from me.
That night pops back in my head. The heat of her body.
The smell of her minty-sweet, tobacco-laced breath.
The shake in her voice. “As far as I know, a lot of people still respect Ryung. He’s still a Crown.
NYU is great, but SBU is elite. You said it yourself. ”
Mother’s shoulders drop, her eyes moving between her offspring. She really should’ve stuck to dressmaking over baby-making.
“Fine,” she says. “But whatever it is you’re planning. Stop it. If your father finds out, cutting you off will be the least of your issues.”
My phone vibrates again.
Gray: The posse is in
That’s great, but my new plan is greater. “Can’t. Krystal’s coming tonight.”
“I am?” Krystal’s head whips to me.
“No, Krystal will not be part of this,” Mother protests.
“Everyone from campus will be here.”
“So? How is this important?”
“Oh, it’s important.” I chuckle through my words. “But you’re too old to remember what it’s like to be young and influential.”
“It’s okay!” Krystal says, my mother’s face red with a scowl. “I’ll go. I want to go.”
“You know,” Mother says, snarling at me. “Sometimes I worry you’ll end up like your father.”
“You’re the one who procreated with a narc.” She gives me a blank stare. “Narcissist,” I emphasize. “Or did you not notice?”
Our mother ignores me, turning to Krystal. She places her hands on each of her cheeks. “Don’t do anything you’ll regret. Please.”
“You mean don’t do anything that’ll make us look bad,” I say between puffs.
“You do that well enough.” Mother eyes me up and down before she utters something else in Korean and heads for the doors.
“Ouch,” Krystal says once our mother leaves the room. "Why does she insist on speaking Korean but not teaching us any?"
“You really want to be back here?” I ask.
“I do.”
“Why? Did a nun diddle you at your culty school?” I let out a small laugh, but she doesn’t respond. My eyes narrow on hers, bigger and rounder like our father’s. “Wait…”
“It’s not what you think.” She raises a hand as if she can see the heat in my chest. “I started it.”
“No fucking shit, sis.” Crossing my arms, I eye her up again, seeing her in a new light. “Father must be pissed.”
“That’s why I left,” she explains. “Mom won’t say anything, but if people here find out, I’ll never live it down.”
“You’re right about that.”
“I just want a normal life,” she groans. “I want to go to class, get good grades, and forget the last four years."
“If you want normal, you won’t find it here. You know that. But I do know something that will help. How’d you like to be Queen of the Hill?”
My sister’s eyes narrow. “What else is in that cigarette?”
“I’m just saying, you don’t have to go through what the last new girl went through.”
“I’m not new.”
“You’ve been gone for four years, and before then, you weren’t standing on much. You might as well be. And if anyone gets wind of what happened at Saint Helens?” I whistle. “I can only do so much.”
“Isn’t Hannah Alfonso Queen of the Hill?” My body stiffens at her name. “She’ll never give that up.”
A grin spreads across my face. “We’ll make her.”