L A N A

I am frozen, my body turning to complete cement as my eyes lock onto what is in front of me.

It's Tyler... and Elizabeth. They're... sleeping together...

He has her pinned against the wall, standing between her legs, his lips pressed against hers as he thrusts into her relentlessly. She grips onto his shoulders desperately, attempting to suppress the vile sounds coming out of her mouth.

I still haven't moved. Not until my mind finally registered what is going on in front of me. I stumble backwards and finally, they take notice of me, both their heads snapping towards me as their eyes widen in shock.

"Lana," Tyler starts, his voice laced with panic as he immediately drops Elizabeth to her feet, grunting as he stumbles away from her and scrambles to get his pants back on.

"This isn't what it looks like..." He says, and hearing his voice makes my heart race even faster.

I still haven't said a word... I don't even know what to say.

Elizabeth stares at me with a flushed face. She quickly tugs at her dress, pulling it back down her legs and steps away from the wall, her eyes glancing between me and Tyler. But she doesn't say a word either...

The room is spinning, and I step back until I feel the doorframe beside me, immediately using it to steady myself. My legs suddenly feel too weak to keep me standing. The air feels toxic, and I feel myself suffocating, like the room is closing down on me from all sides. I'm drowning, each breath harder to take than the last, and finally, after what felt like so long... I am finally able to get a word out.

"How long?" The words barely escape my lips, a whisper drowned out by the roaring in my ears. Part of me is heartbroken, betrayed, and furious that he would do this to me, at our engagement party of all days... But another part of me knew that this would happen, knew that they were doing this behind my back, and now this is all the confirmation I needed.

Tyler attempts to regain his composure and make his way over to me, and I immediately feel the disgust appear on my face.

"Lana, please, let's talk about this privately..." He tries to reason with me, but at this point, I can't even stand his voice. More tears well in my eyes despite my efforts to blink them away, and I stumble backwards as soon as he tries to reach for me.

My eyes travel back to Elizabeth, and see that her nervousness has suddenly disappeared, and is somehow replaced by pure irritation, not a hint of remorse on her face. I turn back to Tyler, who is standing across from me, waiting for me to say something, and that's when my sadness immediately shifts to anger.

Before I know it, my hand swings forward and I slap him across the face, his head snapping to the side as he grunts sharply before exhaling deeply and slowly turning back to look at me, as if he was expecting me to do that.

"How long have you been fucking my best friend, Tyler?" I let out, my voice now rising. "How could you betray me like this? How could you destroy everything we've built?!" I question him, my voice echoing through the halls behind me. He doesn't answer, and instead, he tries to take another step towards me.

The walls seem to close in, the room shrinking with each passing second. I can't be here. I can't breathe, and I need to get out of here.

Without another word, I turn around and walk away, my heels violently clicking against the marble floor beneath me as Tyler's protests fade behind me. Tears cloud my vision as I struggle to focus on where I'm going.

I come back to the main hall, finding the party still in full swing. Guests laugh and dance around me, all of them oblivious to what has just happened. I need to get out, to escape the suffocating facade. How long has he been doing this for? Had he been playing me for a fool this whole time? They both were... the man I loved the most and my best friend...

"Lana?" A familiar voice snaps me out of the chaos in my mind. It's Diane. She walks over to me slowly, confusion and a deep frown written on her face, eyeing me from head to toe.

"What is going on with you?" She asks, and I can't tell if it's genuine concern or irritation.

I shake my head, unable to form words as I feel more tears well in my eyes. The betrayal replays in my mind, over and over again, the memory pressing down on me, threatening to crush me.

Before I can respond, Tyler's voice rings out from behind me.

"Lana."

I freeze, every muscle tensing once again. The room quiets down as eyes turn toward us. The music in the background slowly dies down, and the air falls dead silent...

Everyone can now see how much of a mess I am, how much I'm crying, and that's when murmurs and whispers begin circulating through the room. I glance around nervously, before I refocus my gaze on Tyler, watching as he strides forward, his expression a mask of concern.

"Tyler?" A voice speaks out, and I turn to see Tyler's mother, Margaret, beside Tyler's father, the two of them glancing between us with confusion.

"What is going on?" She speaks out, her voice echoing through the silent room.

Tyler finally stands at the centre of the room, glancing around at all who have their eyes on him.

"Everyone, I need to address something..." He begins to say, just as the murmurs quiet down, everyone eager to hear what he has to say.

Tyler takes a deep breath, his gaze locking onto mine. "I didn't want to do this here, but I feel I have no choice..."

I remain silent, bracing myself for what he is about to say, how him telling everyone he's been cheating on me will impact all of us, how our family and friends will take this, how we will have to call the entire wedding off-...

"Lana has been unfaithful to me."

My thoughts are immediately interrupted by the words that leave his lips.

My heart drops to my feet, and for a second time tonight, I feel myself lose feeling in my legs, making it difficult to keep myself standing. Gasps echo throughout the hall, and the room spins as his words sink in.

He's telling everyone... that I'm the unfaithful one?

L A N A

I am completely stunned, staring back at him in disbelief as a deep frown settles on my brows. My eyes search the room, analysing the reactions of the people around me. Everyone seems confused, their clamouring growing louder and louder until their gazes finally land on me, eyeing me with nothing but pure judgment. As my eyes search the crowd, that's when I finally take notice of someone... of her...

Elizabeth...

She is staring at me with her arms crossed, hidden in the crowd. Her face is blank for a moment... but soon transforms into something devious, something so evil it makes my blood run cold. She smiles, like she's enjoying every second of this... like she's been waiting for my downfall, and it finally seems to be happening.

My eyes snap back to Tyler, finding him staring down at the floor with fake sadness. He can't even look me in the eye.

"You're lying, Tyler... tell them the truth..." I let out, trying my best to keep my voice from breaking as tears stream down my face. I glance around the room again, and the more I do, the more I find people staring back at me with pure judgment. They don't really believe him... do they?

"It's not true!" I suddenly blurt out, my voice shaking once I see how they're feeding into his lies. "You're the one who-..."

Before I can even get another word out, Elizabeth steps forward and speaks, fake sadness and disappointment written on her face. "Lana, I saw the messages. I didn't want to believe it, but there were too many to ignore... You don't have to hide it any more..."

My heart drops again, and pure rage fills my body as I turn to face Elizabeth.

Betrayal upon betrayal. My closest friend, now turning against me.

"Elizabeth... how you could do this to me?" I say quietly, shaking my head at her, staring at her with disgust. Before I can get another word out, someone enters my line of vision...Tyler's mother.

Margaret approaches, her face a mask of disappointment and fury. She blocks my path and stares back at me with rage clear as day on her features.

"You little whore..." She seethes, and I stare at her in shock.

"Mrs Woods, please...-" I try to reason with her, but she refuses to let me speak.

"We took you in, treated you like family, and this is how you repay us?" She continues, and I struggle to find the words to say. I'm too overwhelmed. Finding Tyler cheating with my best friend, and now having him lie to everyone to save his own skin, is too much for my mind to process all at once.

"You have to believe me, I never cheated on him, he's the one who-..." I plead, my voice breaking, but once again, she doesn't even let me finish. Instead, her hand swings fast, and before I know it, the sharp crack of her palm hitting my cheek echoes through the room. Gasps ring out and my head snaps to the side. My face burns, not just from the slap, but from the humiliation. My ears buzz. I'm dizzy, stunned. How is this happening to me right now...?

"You manipulative little bitch," Margaret seethes, pointing a perfectly manicured finger at me. "You grew up with nothing and tried to crawl your way into our world like a parasite. Tyler gave you everything, and this is how you repay him? And now you want to spin the story?!"

I try to speak, but my voice is caught somewhere between my chest and throat. Everyone's watching, wide-eyed and whispering. No one moves to help. No one says a word in my defence.... They all believe Tyler's lies.

"That's not true..." I finally manage, my voice small. "He's lying. He's the one who cheated. I walked in on him and Elizabeth... I saw it..."

"Desperate," Elizabeth cuts in sharply, her tone suddenly cold. "You always were, weren't you? You latched onto Tyler. After all, he was safe, because he could give you the life you never had. You never loved him. You used him... And that wasn't enough for you..." Elizabeth shakes her head. My eyes narrow at her, filled with venom as I stand up straight.

"Used him?" I laugh bitterly, even as my tears spill. "You're the one in his bed, Elizabeth. Don't act like this was some noble act. You lied to me. You both did..."

"She's clearly having some kind of mental breakdown," Tyler says smoothly, turning to the crowd with practised grief in his voice. "And I don't want to shame her any more than necessary, but I found texts. Pictures. Videos. Messages from someone she's been seeing behind my back. I didn't want to believe it either. I loved her..."

He turns to me now, eyes glassy, expression perfectly controlled. "But I can't marry someone who doesn't respect me or herself."

And the crowd eats it up.

I hear someone mutter, "Typical social climber."

Another says, "Wow, I never trusted her vibe."

A third: "Poor Tyler. He deserves better."

It's all crashing down.

Diane stands a few feet away, stunned. I meet her eyes, pleading with her, hoping she'll say something, that she'll do something. But she doesn't. She simply shakes her head and looks away. My throat aches. My hands shake. I look around the room, at people I've laughed with, danced with, built relationships with, and realise none of them ever really saw me. They saw what Tyler let them see. What Margaret allowed...

And now, they see what they want to believe: the poor orphan girl who conned her way into their world and got caught.

"No one's going to say anything?" I whisper. "None of you? You all believe him...?"

Silence.

Margaret crosses her arms. "You need to leave. You're no longer welcome here."

Something in me breaks completely. My tears continue to fall, but I don't say a word. Instead, I begin backing away from them, from all of them, giving Tyler and Elizabeth one last look before I spin around and run out of the room, through the open double doors, out into the night air that bites at my skin. My heels clack against the stone steps, but I don't stop... All I know is that I need to get away from here...

I hear someone call my name behind me, but I don't turn. They won't believe me. Not tonight. Maybe not ever, and Tyler knows that.

He's won this round.

But he doesn't know what losing me really means yet.

L A N A

I don't know how long I've been walking for, but I know it's long enough for my legs to feel shredded.

The cold creates goosebumps and shivers along my skin, and my heels are now working against me. I probably should've taken them off the moment I ran out of there, but they were expensive, very expensive... Well, according to what Tyler told me...

Ugh. 

No matter what I do, I simply can not escape the thought of him, of what he's done, with him and Elizabeth...

My feet are sore, but somehow, my mind isn't so much focused on the pain; instead, a different kind of pain plagues my thoughts. I can't believe I was humiliated like that. How could I let them do that to me, treat me like that? I begin thinking of what else I should've said, how I should've reacted, but I was too stunned to do anything that really mattered...

I make my way through the night as the city buzzes around me, having no clue what has happened to me. I stumble through it, somewhere between rage and shock and right now, I'm not even crying anymore. That part's done. My face is smudged with makeup and tears, my body stiff, but I keep moving. I don't know where I'm going, just away. Far enough that no one can find me and tell me this wasn't real.

That they didn't really turn on me.

That he didn't really say those things.

That she wasn't in his bed this whole time.

I pass corner stores, past flashing neon signs and fast-food joints that smell like grease and burnt dreams. A group of drunk guys yells something at me from across the street, but I don't hear what it is, thankfully, and just keep walking, my arms wrapped around myself and my head down. One of them starts to follow for a second, but a passing cop car sends him scurrying. Doesn't matter. I'm already too far gone.

I could've just gone home. But how can I even do that...? It'll only make the betrayal worse and make the pain heavier. I don't want to have to think about how many times he would sneak her into our apartment when I was at work, how many times the two of them had slept together in my own bed...

No. I can't manage thinking about that right now; it's only going to drive me crazy. The best thing I can do is book a hotel. At least for the night, until I can figure out what I'm going to do... Thankfully, I still have my purse, my phone and my card. Even though Tyler was providing for both of us, I also worked as a graphic designer and media specialist, so I had a little money of my own. Not as much as he does, but enough to keep myself afloat... And though it'll take some time, I'll be able to get back up on my feet after this.

I sigh to myself and glance around me, trying to spot any bars or restaurants I could stay in while before I book an Uber and a hotel for the night, and maybe get a drink or two... or five. 

I look around my for a moment, until one building catches my eye, gleaming with a red neon sign that reads...

Bella...

The name doesn't ring any bells, but something about the glow of that red neon pulls me in. Maybe it's the way the light bleeds onto the sidewalk like spilt wine, or it's how different it feels from the rest of this cold, indifferent city.

I make my way towards it, but hesitate at the entrance. The double doors are dark wood, polished so clean I can see my miserable reflection in them. My makeup is mostly gone, my hair wind-snatched and chaotic. I look completely insane. I quickly gather myself and run my hands through my hair so I look somewhat presentable, just so that they don't kick me out before I can enter. All I need is just somewhere I can sit, where it's quiet and warm, somewhere that doesn't remind me of everything I've lost tonight and a place where I can just have a moment to think.

And so, I finally push the door open.

The smell hits first. Rich cologne, aged liquor and cigars. It smells like class more notably... money. The lighting is low, ambient, and mysterious, a mix of red and purple and orange. I hear the soft hum of jazz ring through the air, and so I glance around to find a live band playing, tucked in a cosy corner of the room. A piano, saxophone and double bass echo-filled the room, and it brings a soft smile to my face as I walk in. I do really love jazz and soul music, so it's something I can appreciate...

A beautiful woman greets me at a small desk near the entrance. Her black dress hugs her graciously, and her hair is pinned up like she's walked out of an old film.

"Buonasera," she lets out, her accent light and polished, European maybe, and I have no idea what she's saying.

"How may I help you, signorina?" She asks with a polite smile, and that's when I realise she might be speaking Italian.

I pause. "Um. I was hoping to just... sit somewhere. Maybe get a few drinks." I sigh heavily.

She gives an understanding nod, staring at me without judgment. "Of course. Please, follow me."

I give her a small smile before glancing around as I walk behind her. The place is mostly filled with sharply dressed men and even sharper-looking women. It looks like the type of place where you order your whiskey neat and everyone knows your name but says it quietly. It's luxe without being flashy, and intimate but intimidating.

Maybe I should leave...

But then again, maybe this is exactly the kind of place I need to be right now. Somewhere, no one knows me, where I can pretend I'm not the girl who got dumped, betrayed and slapped in front of a hundred people...

The hostess guides me to a bar, bringing my attention back to the present. The stools are leather, and the bar top is deep mahogany. The bartender is tall, clean-cut, and looks like he belongs on the cover of a magazine. He is perfectly handsome. Seems all the staff here is just effortlessly attractive. He smiles gently as I sit down, cleaning a few cups before throwing the towel in his hands over his shoulder.

"What can I get for you tonight, beautiful?" he asks, a flirtatious smile on his lips as he looks back at me.

I'm unable to help the smile that forms on my face as he looks down at me. But then I let it fade as a sharp pang hits my chest. I can't be smiling at another guy flirting with me... what would Tyler think? That would be cheating?

My thoughts are instinctual, and quickly, I remind myself that I no longer owe any loyalty to him. He's chosen to do whatever he wants, so why the hell can't I?

I lean against the bar, maintaining eye contact with him as a warmer smile appears on my lips. "3 shots of rum, please. And your nicest berry cocktail."

He arches a brow before a chuckle leaves his lips, nodding gently before he gets to work.

I settle in, letting the heat of the room wrap around me. It's the first time all night I've felt even remotely grounded, and maybe I should soak it all in.

He sets the shot glasses in front of me, bringing my attention back to him.

"Rough night?" he asks.

"You have no idea," I answer before grabbing the first shot class and downing it in a second. Then the next, then the next. It burns, but it's clean and expensive. I sincerely hope it does the trick in helping me numb myself. I sigh to myself once I've downed all of them, shaking my head for a moment before taking a sip of the cocktail, letting it slip down my throat and soothe it.

I finally allow myself to relax... but it seemingly only lasts for a moment...

I soon hear a series of footsteps echo through the room, and it makes me turn to my right, my eyes landing on the people who have just walked through the entrance.

The moment they do, the air suddenly shifts, becoming much heavier, and I don't seem to be the only one who notices it. No one says a word, but the atmosphere changes like a cold front just blew in. Conversations quiet down, and glasses lower. Eyes lift, not casually, but like they're watching for danger.

And then I see them. The five men who enter the room, immediately sending my heart racing for no apparent reason...

The one in front moves like he owns the place. He is dressed in an expensive-looking charcoal grey suit, gold cufflinks, and black leather gloves that he keeps on the entire time. In fact, all of them have gloves on... He has silky brown hair, slicked to the back, and he is extremely handsome. But his expression makes me feel uneasy, a sudden coldness passing through my body...

Alarm bells go haywire in my mind, my intuition immediately telling me to be on high alert...

And somehow in my gut, I know he's trouble...