Chapter 4

I checked the time. My mom, Lydia Bluefield, and Nicole were probably already asleep. There was no point in hanging around here now that I'd been kicked out.

I'd thought Felix would be throwing money around tonight, but I ended up leaving his birthday party early.

I came here with Felix, but now I had to grab a cab on my own to get home.

I'd already spent 10 dollars on a gift, and now I was taking a loss.

"Are you going to stay out here?" I was about to leave, but the messages said Sophie was scared. If I left her alone, I'd get flamed. So I asked, "Can you get inside?"

"I know the password," Sophie replied.

I nodded, feeling a bit relieved. At least she knew the password, like a real host. Getting in wouldn't be a problem for her.

I said firmly, "Why don't you wait a bit and then go in? That should work, right?"

Sophie nodded. "I'll give it a try."

[Now that Olivia's gone, is Sophie really going to stay outside and not go back in?]

[Felix always vents his anger on Sophie. No way he'd let her inside.]

[Sophie won't go in either, so he won't get mad.]

[Felix has kicked Sophie out at night before. Good thing the butler, Henry Chase, found her and brought her back.]

Felix's nasty behavior wasn't anything new. Kicking Sophie out at night had happened more than once.

Sophie had to follow Felix's every order at school during the day, and now she was left out here to suffer at night, too. She really didn't deserve this.

[It's so late, and Olivia finished scaring Sophie. She must be really scared right now.]

[If Henry doesn't show up, is Sophie going to be left waiting outside again?]

Alright, I didn't mean to scare Sophie earlier, but I do feel responsible. I said, "I'll make sure you get inside before I go."

Sophie looked up at me, surprised, still sounding suspicious. "Why?"

"Felix kicked you out partly because of me, so I want to make sure you get in okay," I said.

"Don't worry, I'll get in for sure," Sophie replied.

I know I'd got it rough too, but I couldn't help feeling sorry for Sophie.

So when was she actually going to get inside? After the party was over and everyone had gone? Or did she have to wait until Felix cools off, or until Henry comes by?

Was Sophie scared that Felix would bully her again?

Thinking about all this, I couldn't bear it.

Because Sophie hadn't realized the truth yet and still liked Felix, did that mean she had to keep suffering his bullying?

I said with determination, "Let me go in with you."

Sophie looked genuinely surprised. "Getting kicked out wasn't your fault. It was mine."

I hurried to reassure her, "You didn't do anything wrong. Felix is being a jerk. Don't be scared. I'll go in with you. If anything goes down, I've got your back."

I didn't even know where I got the guts to say that. It came out.

If Felix blew up, at least with two of us, he couldn't dump it all on Sophie.

Sophie glanced at the door, then at me, and finally gave in. "Alright, let's use the back door.

"I want to rest. If we go in through the back, I won't have to deal with Felix."

Sophie looked completely drained. She must be really tired and wanted to go back and rest.

I nodded, thinking what she said made sense.

Sophie mumbled, "It's really nothing, you don't have to worry about protecting me over something so trivial."

"So how do we get in?" I asked.

"Follow me," Sophie said.

The back door opened onto the garden. We'd been walking for quite a bit when I suddenly heard footsteps. Several people were running toward us, getting closer.

A kind-faced man hurried over and said, "M-Miss Moore, finally found you."

As he spoke, he caught sight of me and looked surprised. "And this is?"

Sophie quickly explained, "Henry, this is Olivia. She was worried I'd be scared by myself, so she came with me."

So this was Henry, the butler. I followed Sophie's lead and greeted him, "Hello, Henry."

[Henry's here. He's the only one you can really count on.]

[Is Olivia seriously trying to tag along with Sophie and go inside?]

[Olivia was about to hit Sophie. Who knows what she'll pull once she's inside?]

[Sophie's too kind-hearted. She still thinks Olivia's a good person.]

People still thought I was the bad girl, so I figured it was better not to tag along anymore.

I said, "Since Henry's here, I'll head out now."

Sophie glanced at me in surprise. I had promised to stay with her, after all.

The messages were roasting me right now. I really couldn't keep following her.

I said, "Now that Henry's here with you, you don't have to be scared. Go get some rest."

Henry turned to Sophie and said, "Ms. Bluefield's right, Miss Moore, let me walk you back."

Sophie had no choice but to follow Henry as he led her away.

Daisy Lynch, who was beside me, led me away as well.

Once we'd left Sophie behind and were almost at the gate, I finally brought up the thing I'd been wondering about. "Is it possible to catch a cab here?"

Daisy looked confused. "A cab?"

I said, hopefully, "It's pretty late, but there should still be cabs around, right?"

"You can't catch a cab out here in this neighborhood," Daisy said, crushing my hopes. "But Ms. Bluefield, we can send a car for you."

Daisy had no clue Felix kicked me out. She must think I'm one of Felix's classmates.

"Is it really okay, even though Felix kicked me out?" I asked.

Daisy looked unsure. "I-I'll ask Henry about it."

I opened the ride app to see if I could get a cab.

Daisy was about to make a call when her phone buzzed. It was Henry calling. She answered and listened, then said, "Okay."

She walked over to me and said, "Henry said the driver, Lance, will drive you home."

"Is that really okay?" I asked.

Not long after, Lance showed up and drove me home.