[right][sub][color=crimson]LOCATION[/color] ⤑ [color=hotpink]On the road[/color]
[color=crimson]TIME[/color] ⤑ [color=hotpink]Afternoon[/color]
[color=crimson]INTERACTING WITH[/color] ⤑ Arthur [Boyfriend], Julius [Ex-Boyfriend]
[color=crimson]FEELING[/color] ⤑ [color=hotpink]Nervous. Why was Julius doing this?[/color]
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No, she didn't want to go anywhere with Julius! She wanted to curl up in Arthur's bed and do nothing all day! Eva let out a very quiet whimper of protest as she was pulled along, though she resigned herself as Arthur closed the passenger door. She didn't have to look back at Julius to know he was looking at her, and she hated it. She hated him! What in the world had she done to deserve this? How could she have known Arthur and Julius were actually related? Of course, she wasn't out of the clear, as Julius decided to poke at the tiger and bring up that she-devil Isabelle. How did he know about her? Eva forced herself to look out the window, doing her best not to react. Hmph, she shouldn't be surprised, Isabelle was right up his 'colossal bitch' type alley or whatever. Of course, Arthur managed to lift her spirits by confirming that yes, [i]she[/i] was his first girlfriend. And hopefully only. Of course, her spirits had gone too high, as Julius decided to take them from her and throw them onto the pavement by asking her if Arthur was her first boyfriend. Her eyes flickered to Arthur, who had tensed up slightly. This must have been some divine punishment for him to ask such a question damn well knowing the answer. What was she going to say? Lying to Arthur seemed like a bad idea, especially if Julius would decide to call her out. But telling him the truth seemed just as risky, Arthur was already feeling some type of way with how his grip on the wheel had tightened.

Shifting in her seat, Eva nervously started playing with her hair. She had to answer. Not answering was just as bad as lying. But what if Julius called her out? She didn't want Arthur to fly off the handle again. Eva needed to be honest. "[color=pink]No,[/color]" Her voice was a lot meeker than before, her previous anger nearly extinguished. God, she hated how she was basically at Julius' mercy. How could she possibly salvage this? Well, they had gotten a lot closer, so even if he wasn't her first, she couldn't imagine herself with anyone else. "[color=pink]Hopefully he'll be my last.[/color]" She voiced her thoughts, giving Arthur a shy smile, though she couldn't stop fumbling with her hair.

[hr]

Thinking the ride would help calm her nerves, Gigi was severely disappointed to find that once she had arrived at Alyssa's house she felt just as crappy. As she stopped outside the house, she spotted Mrs. Brady and Adrian, Alyssa's younger brother, getting into her car. Taking off her helmet, she gave them a wave as she walked into the house, spotting Alyssa in the kitchen. The brunette lifted her eyes from the pot she was hovered over and nodded at Gigi, motioning for her to have a seat at the kitchen table. Once she did, she was surprised to see Gigi slump onto her arms. Wow, she had it bad! Alyssa tried to be more sympathetic, leaving the heat on low as she took a seat next to her friend. The poor girl looked like a kicked puppy, her gray eyes unfocused with the slightest of frowns on her lips. It was bizarre for Gigi to show any emotion, so for Alyssa this was quite the treat. She had to remind herself not to enjoy herself too much, as she figured if she said the wrong thing she'd probably end up either scaring her away or end up getting punched in the face.

Patting Gigi's arm, Alyssa smiled at her as she decided to tackle the problem head on. "[color=orange]How are you feeling?[/color]" She asked gently, knowing that Gigi was a special case and needed to be handled delicately. When her friend would only let out a whimper in response, Alyssa had to keep herself from laughing. "[color=orange]I'm sure you just caught him off guard. Now, tell me what you're thinking right now.[/color]"

There were too many emotions for her to properly get a handle on at the moment, her thoughts a giant mess of contradictions and logic failures. "[color=orangered]I don't know,[/color]" Gigi mumbled. "[color=orangered]I thought it was what he wanted...[/color]"

First things first, Alyssa needed the whole story. The whole juicy story that she would likely hold over Gigi's head for a while, but she wasn't going to tell her that. That's what friends are for! "[color=orange]So the two of you were making out, you gave him the green light, he freaked, and left?[/color]" When Gigi shook her head, Alyssa raised her eyebrow at her. "[color=orange]I thought that's what you said happened.[/color]"

"[color=orangered]I had finished a phone call when he decided to...[/color]" She started out strong, though her blush seemed to steal her voice for a moment, her hand on her neck. "[color=orangered]We didn't make out. He came onto me. If I'm being honest, I couldn't really think straight. But I...couldn't say no.[/color]" She trailed off, closing her eyes for a moment. The way he touched her felt like a ghost on her skin, igniting a desire she had no idea she could even have. Maybe she should have admitted it to Alyssa, but she couldn't quite form the words. Alyssa watched her patiently, and Gigi figured she could at least try to explain herself. "[color=orangered]I really thought it was what he wanted.[/color]" 

"[color=orange]What he wanted, or what you wanted?[/color]" 

"[color=orangered]Does it matter?[/color]"

"[color=orange]It does,[/color]" Alyssa sat up slightly, her hand on Gigi's shoulder. "[color=orange]I told you, it was only a matter of time. You really like Alex, right?[/color]"

Gigi finally brought herself to look at Alyssa, unsure how to respond. Her phone buzzed in her pocket again, and Alyssa quickly looked over Gigi's shoulder to see it was from Alexander. She watched Gigi's eyes light up, though she tried to calm herself as Gigi looked at her, bearing a new expression she had never seen on the dark haired girl's face before: panic. "[color=orangered]He wants to go to dinner,[/color]" She put her phone down, her head in her hands.

"[color=orange]That's great![/color]"

"[color=orangered]No, it isn't![/color]" She protested. 

"[color=orange]Yes, it is. Listen, you're feeling overwhelmed, you made a tiny mistake, you're both going to be just a little awkward around one another,[/color]" Alyssa made sure to be as clear as possible as she spoke. "[color=orange]So the best thing to do is to take things nice and slow. If you go too fast, you're going to get confused and nervous. The good thing is that Alexander is infamous for charming girls, so all you have to do is follow his lead. Don't overthink, go with your gut, and you'll be fine,[/color]" She explained, plucking a stray hair off Gigi's face. "[color=orange]Or what, you're not going to go?[/color]" Not go? No, she couldn't do that to Alexander, that would probably make things worse. Sitting up, Gigi took in a deep breath, taking her phone in her hand again. [i][color=orangered]Sure.[/color][/i] She was just about to send the text when she noticed Alyssa looking at her. "[color=orange]That was super dry. Come on! Add a little something![/color]" She scolded her.

"[color=orangered]Like what?[/color]" She asked, watching Alyssa snatch her phone from her. [i][color=orangered]Sure. Pick me up at 7?[/color][/i] Alyssa sent the text and placed the phone on the counter, looking at Gigi once again as she realized something. "[color=orangered]I'm not going to have you around to correct me. What if I say something wrong?[/color]"

Good question. Fortunately for her, Alyssa had an answer. "[color=orange]Okay, your problem is that you overthink things. So all you have to do is follow your gut,[/color]" She cheerfully replied. "[color=orange]Don't think, just act.[/color]" Her gut usually told her to resort to violence. Not that she was going to admit that to Alyssa. Instead she nodded, running her hands through her hair. Alyssa patted her shoulder once more, though she would stand up. "[color=orange]How about I call Helene and have her dress you up? You want to look nice, right?[/color]" She teased. Helene? Shit, she had forgotten all about her contract. Then again, if Alyssa was the one reaching out to her, maybe she could get an idea of what Evan was planning. There was yet to be any updates, but it was taking longer than it should have. No news should have been good news, but Gigi played this game for far too long to let such an optimistic thought get the better of her. Rather than respond directly, she just shrugged, watching Alyssa take her own phone out to call Helene. 

[hr] 

While Ariadne was busy chasing down her prey through enemy territory, Evan had his own problems. The news of someone potentially buying out his hired gun's contract was nothing new, the timing was what really got to him. It was too much of a coincidence, too suspicious to think the two events weren't correlated. Generally speaking, he thought Ariadne was doing enough to keep Bastien pinned down, but Evan was started to wonder if it was enough. Maybe they had underestimated him. At the very least, he figured Helene was alright for the moment having told him she had stayed with a friend for the night. As he drove his car, his phone rang for his attention. Finally, a call he had been expecting. "[color=darkkhaki]Comme c'est gênant. The agency is quite content with how much Bastien is willing to pay for Giselle's services,[/color]" Gaspard's voice came through the car's speakers.

"[color=darkorange]You confirmed it was him?[/color]" Evan asked.

"[color=darkkhaki]I was not born yesterday, Evan. What better way for him to get to my Étoile than to get the bodyguard I had hired?[/color]" He scoffed. "[color=darkkhaki]I want to know what is taking Ariadne so long.[/color]"

"[color=darkorange]Treading through unfamiliar territory as well as an opposing faction while trying not to draw too much attention to herself makes things complicated,[/color]" Evan chuckled, though he let out a sigh. "[color=darkorange]What do you want me to do about Giselle?[/color]"

"[color=darkkhaki]Until we see which bidder wins, nothing. But I would stay on alert, if things sway the other direction and she gets her chance, I don't doubt she'll take it,[/color]" Gaspard replied, letting out a sigh. "[color=darkkhaki]It's a shame to lose such an asset, but she's too dangerous otherwise. I trust you can handle her.[/color]"

Evan could, and unfortunately that was what made the situation worse. "[color=darkorange]Of course. Au revoir.[/color]"

"[color=darkkhaki]Au revoir. Et nous verrons,[/color]" With that, Gaspard hung up, and Evan let out a long sigh. We will see indeed...

[sub][1]How troublesome. [2]Goodbye. And we will see.[/sub]
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