Chapter 3
"Scarlett, how could you reject Alistair? I bent over backwards and worked so hard just to make sure he wouldn't get mad at you for deleting him as a friend," Layla complained.
[Scarlett is so gross. She kept Layla and Alistair up all night thinking about her.]
[For real. She deleted Alistair just to play hard to get, and then Layla had to run out and comfort him so he wouldn't be mad.]
[But hey, after last night, Layla and Alistair totally leveled up their relationship.]
[Layla got her butt smacked so hard trying to cheer Alistair up. Now that's some real drama.]
What?
What got smacked and swollen?
I stared at Layla, utterly stunned and incredulous.
"What kind of sacrifice did you make?" I pressed.
"Oh, it's really nothing. You don't need to worry about it," Layla replied.
She was clutching her butt, cheeks burning bright red. She looked so embarrassed that it was almost cute.
Honestly, she didn't look like she'd made any sacrifice at all. If anything, she looked more like she'd just won the lottery or something.
This was next-level crazy.
"Move it, don't block my way to work," I snapped.
I looked away and made a quick getaway.
During my lunch break, I took a moment to text Layla.
I straight up told her I really wasn't interested in Alistair and begged her to stop playing matchmaker for me.
Layla just replied with a meme.
When I got home from work, Layla's door was shut tight.
I thought she was finally over her obsession with setting me up, even though she had been acting kind of off lately.
But honestly, we hardly ever ran into each other anyway.
I figured, as long as she kept paying her share of the rent and we stayed out of each other's way, things could stay peaceful.
But not long after I got back to my room, Layla came over, carrying a huge stack of papers.
I figured it was just her thesis or some work documents.
But when she spread them out, I was stunned.
It turned out to be a whole dossier on Alistair.
Layla said, "Scarlett, I've been thinking, and honestly, I feel like you just don't know Alistair well enough. That's probably why you're so against him.
"So I figured I need to give you a proper introduction to Alistair's killer background. Alistair, 23, Velmerville's rich prince..."
It was obvious Layla was determined to play matchmaker between me and Alistair.
She totally had a crush on him, and the two of them were always all over each other.
How did she even have the guts to keep pushing him on me?
That was so shady.
I seriously couldn't wrap my head around it.
"Layla, seriously, with you and Alistair always glued together, don't you think if either of you got a boyfriend or girlfriend, they'd totally freak out about it?" I asked.
Layla paused, shooting me a cautious look.
"So, are you saying you actually care about how close Alistair and I are?" she asked.
What kind of messed-up logic is that?
I shoved the papers away, grumbling, "Who even cares? I never wanted to get mixed up in your drama."
Layla instantly perked up, only catching the part she wanted to hear.
She said, "See? I knew you wouldn't mind, Scarlett.
"You have no idea, all of Alistair's ex-girlfriends totally had it out for me just because I'm his friend."
Seriously, if her boyfriend was always glued to another girl, who wouldn't get pissed?
Honestly, if they didn't beat her up, they were already being way too nice.
But Layla started whining about how all of Alistair's girlfriends always had a problem with her, acting like it was their fault for not understanding their friendship.
"Scarlett, you're so awesome. I seriously can't wait for you to be Alistair's girlfriend. That's it. I'm setting you two up for a date this Saturday," Layla announced.
Layla just took over my Saturday without even checking if I was cool with it.
She had become a total lunatic about this.
[Why does Scarlett look like she's catching feelings? Does she seriously think Saturday is her big date with Alistair?]
[What date? It's just a group hang with Layla and Alistair's crew.]
[All of the friends of the main couple are shipping them.]
[Scarlett's about to end up the clown of the party, just like all of Alistair's exes. She's gonna get totally clowned on. Can't wait to see it.]
[Layla and Alistair are kind of overdoing it, right? If they like each other, just date already. Why mess with other people's feelings?]
[Honestly, the best part is shipping them before they actually get together. If you don't get it, just scroll on.]
[If they want to flirt, they should just sneak off and do it in private. Why drag everyone else into their business?]
If Layla and Alistair want to flirt, let them go wild.
Why did they have to drag me into this mess?
God, they were such idiots.
I slapped my hand over Layla's yapping mouth and pushed her out of my room.
"I'm working overtime on Saturday, so you and your friend can go on your little date without me. Now, be quiet. I'm going to sleep," I said.
After showering and just as I was about to climb into bed, someone started banging on my door.
The knocking wouldn't stop.
I tried to ignore it, but the pounding kept coming, like they were determined to make me answer.
Annoyed, I smacked the bed, grabbed the broom from the corner, and yanked the door open.
"Layla, I—wait, who the hell are you?" I blurted out.
It wasn't Layla at all. It was some random guy I'd never seen before.
He had one hand in his pocket, flashing me a cocky grin.
"So, you're Scarlett? The one who deleted me off your friends list? Layla's bestie?" he said.
So this was the legendary Alistair everyone kept talking about.
He really looked like he was just asking for a punch.
I gripped the broom tighter, ready to swing if he tried anything.
Alistair just turned around and walked off, leaving me with one line. "Come out for some late-night snacks."
[Damn. He's so good-looking. And he's got that vibe.]
[Scarlett's eyes went wide. She can't take her eyes off him.]
[Alistair and Scarlett don't even know each other, and Layla didn't even give her a heads-up before sending Alistair to knock on her door? Is that even okay?]
[Seriously. Isn't this Scarlett's place? Doesn't anyone think Alistair's being super rude?]
[Come on, Alistair's not some bad guy. He's rich, after all.]
Seriously, he got no class at all. Was this guy really supposed to be the male lead?
Just wait, I would toss him out myself,
I glanced over at the living room and saw Layla with her back turned, acting all suspicious, fiddling with something.
I strode over, broom in hand, and demanded loudly.
"Layla, why'd you bring a guy home? Didn't we agree—no bringing guys over, ever?" I reminded her.