BABYLON //a.f.i//

•NOT ALL THAT GLITTERS IS GOLD•

•••Cora•••
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"What did you just call me?"

Max Ronan's face went white again as he attempted to keep his composure. "What do you mean?" He asked.

"Cora, what're you talking about?" I heard Ashton from next to me, but his voice seemed a million miles away.

"Why did you call me that?" My shaking hands clenched into fists. "Why did you call me that?!" I repeated as I stood up wildly, my ragged voice dripping desperation. The images began to flood my mind, memories resurfacing. I hadn't heart that name spoken in years. "Who the fuck are you?!"

Ashton grabbed me by the shoulders, forcing me to look at him now. "Cora!" his voice was demanding now, serious. "Cora what the fuck are you talking about?"

I could hear every beat of my heart. I could hear every rush of air into my lungs. It was all too much. It was all too fucking much. All their faces, every memory I locked so deep down inside of me. The pain was excruciating. My blood felt as if it had turned to acid. "I have to go." I spoke, still shaking, as I pulled myself away from Ashton, shoving past him. I looked back at the table, my eyes meeting those of Max Ronan. "Who are you?" I whispered more to myself than to him. "Who are you?" I turned around, my hands pressed to my temples as tears stung the corners of my eyes.

I stumbled away from the scene clumsily, the heels hindering my escape. Everything blurred together, and that's when the voices came back. They echoed throughout my subconscious. Cordelia. They whispered. Cordelia. I shook my head from side to side, and all I could see were the flashing lights, blinding me. "No." I whispered to myself. "No, no, no." I couldn't stand it. Everything burned. I needed it gone. I needed it suppressed. I needed the illusion.

"You okay babe? You look like shit." A woman's voice broke into my thoughts, pulling me back from the pain for a few moments.

I blinked, and sitting at one of the metallic tables was a woman with magenta hair. She wore a pink minidress that seemed to be made entirely of sequins,as she sparkled like a disco ball in the lights. She sipped on a martini glass slowly as she she looked me over, her arm draped over the booth in a comfortable but seductive fashion.

"W-what?" Was the only comprehensible word I was able to get out. I was still shaking, and I felt incredibly nauseous. My head my spinning and my stomach churning.

She took a slow sip before responding. "I said you look like shit. Is Cinderella not having a very good time at the ball?"

I didn't know who this woman was or why she had chosen to speak to me. Given I probably looked like a psychotic mess, I didn't blame her. Everyone loves a spectacle, especially a messy one.

"I've-I've got to go." I mumbled almost incoherently. The world spun around me, and I pressed my hands against my temples.

"Heyyy you weird bitch, sit the fuck down." The  woman stood up, immediately steadying me with her arms. She guided me to the bleach leather booth opposite her. I sat down, my body suddenly feeling like lead. I placed my elbows on the table, resting my forehead on my hands, trying to ground myself.

"You look fucked up." I heard her slide back into her place in the booth. "You on something?"

"No." I whispered. "No but trust me I'd give anything to be right now."

"And why's that?" Her voice was liquid gold.

"I don't like it." I whispered. "I just don't fucking like this." I waved my arms around me incoherently. "It doesn't make sense. It just doesn't make any fucking sense." I looked up and met her sky blue eyes, which were focused on me in an intrigued manner.