she's worse

22

I slipped into a tawny brown dress. The sleeves loose at my biceps but slowly getting tighter until they hugged my wrists. The rest of it hugged my body, but it wasn't tight enough to be called a body con.

I decided to keep it simple and somewhat professional. I did my lips a matte nude shade of pink with brown undertones and the only part of my face that stood out was my black lashes contrasting my white hair. I put on a pair of black pumps and let me hait sit natural as I left the bathroom.

By the time Sorin was ready, we were almost about to be late. 

"You ready?" He asked me with a hint of a smirk. He looked extra smug. I couldn't lie and say I was prepared for whatever we were about to see. With his phone-call and Asteria's warning, nothing seemed to add up. I wasn't going to let that show. I haven't been been in a such a ignorantly vulnerable position in years, but no one around me needed to know that.

"When am I not?" I raised my brow at him before rolling my eyes and looking away. If he didn't seem to appreciate the tone of my voice, he didn't show it. And I didn't care for his approval.

"I swear to god, Selene. You're on drugs or something. Why the hell are you so damn moody." He grumbled as he ran his hands up his face and into his hair in frustration.

"I'm on a mission to kill you remember. I'll do drugs after I kill you," I dryly argued. Maybe if I made enough jokes to get him comfortable with the thought of me killing him he would become less suspicious.

"Oh yeah?" He asked as he took a step closer
to me. "Is that what you really want?" he smirked. "To kill me?" He took another step closer.

He stood less than half a foot away from me. Our chests almost touching. Our breath almost going at the same rate.  I looked him up and down.

"Or do you want something else?" His hand went to my hair as his fingers brushed through them. He softly took a lock of hair into his hands. He held it and smiled. "You have beautiful hair, Selene." His eyes never tore away from the hair. Until they did.

"You can let go of my hair now," My voice was almost shaky. Almost, I would never let myself look vulnerable.

Even as I walked into an unknown situation tonight, I had a back up plan. I put Asteria's contact number into my phone and put her on speed dial. Just in case. 

Sorin didn't let go of my hair. So I brought my hand up to where he was holding it. I didn't take the hair out, or push his hand away.  I put my hand into his, intertwining our fingers. I brought our hands down.

I brought my other hand to his chin, gripping it. "Listen to me, Giovanni. I'm not going to ask nicely, ever. When I tell you to get your hand off of me, you do it right then and right there. I'm not to ask you if you understand. Because if you don't, I expect you to make yourself." I let go of his hand and his chin. "Anyways, lets go. We're going to be late to a private dinner. I'm sure you have better manners and a better reputation than that."

I walked ahead of him to the car. He seemed a bit too relaxed and I wanted to punch him. Bastard.

The short ride there felt like multiple eternities. The silence was so casual, so comfortable, so unsettling.

We approached the grand mansion. The trash freshly cut and about green even thought it was autumn. The old brown brick were very clearly starting to fade, giving it an eerie mysterious look. The black gates, which opened for us, creaked as they spread. The long driveway was smooth with bright scenery: orange marigolds on one side and fuchsia camellias on the other.

We approached the front door, and a man offered to park the car for us. We handed it over as we quietly walked up the extravagant set of stairs.

The door opened before we even reached it.