Page 103 of Deeper

Victoria’s lips made an O shape and she soon caught my apprehension. “Drama’s on the menu tonight. Didn’t you say shit almost went down when y’all ran into Teddy a few weeks ago?”

I thought back to Zander’s near brawl with Teddy at the radio station. It had been scary watching them stand toe-to-toe with each other, two powerhouse forces. Zander wasn’t a scrawny guy, but there’d been no mistaking the height or size difference. Teddy Sykes was at least six-foot-two, with plenty of muscle to back up that sly taunting he’d been doing.

A quick tap into Google found that in the early So What days, or as fans like to callfetusSo What days, Teddy had been a skinny little thing, and then he met a gym he really liked around album number three and he just bulked up. There were tons of images of the singer’s muscled abdomen that came up when I searched under his name.

Still, I didn’t believe it would’ve been an easy feat for him had he and Zander fought. They probably would’ve torn each other apart. Zander had been that pissed.

“Let’s hope Teddy doesn’t get invited. Zander says he and Piper didn’t end so well,” I said.

Victoria nodded. “Yeah, I remember there being reports that he left her high and dry at some resort getaway, like, he just took off and never called her again. I mean, this is potential Patel/Hearst bullshit, so I wasn’t really buying it. Teddy’s got a good rep. He’s like the sweetest thing out of So What.”

Yeah, right, I thought, remembering his going on air and mocking Zander’s anxiety and reclusive ways. “Anyway, it feels like if I don’t go, I’m letting him down.”

“Oh, you are,” Victoria was quick to note. “This is huge. Go and hold his hand. If Jolie’s going to be there…” She let the idea hang in the air as she gathered her cell phone and rocked to the beat of the latest Tyga record.

I sank back in my seat and sipped on my drink, realizing she was right in the end. This was a big event for Zander, a true test of his social anxiety; who was I to leave him hanging? Paul was going as well, but I was sure Zander would be more comfortable with me there beside him.

I guessed I was going to the Dymond Dinner.

“Aww.” Victoria was caught up on something on her phone.

“What?” I wanted to know, being completely nosy and wondering if H. had sent her something romantic.

“Check your Instagram, see what Zander posted.”

Oh. “I don’t even follow him on there.”

Tori deadpanned, her shoulders sagging. “Bianka, quit frontin’ like you’re not feelin’ the kid. Who you tryin’ to fool by not following his socials?”

Why did I feel attacked?

I grabbed my phone and clicked on to the social media app and found Zander’s page. His latest update was a black and white shot of him in a chair getting a tattoo on the right side of his chest. A closer inspection found that it was a minimalist tattoo of three Xs styled as Roman numerals.

The caption was simple:In NYC, it was only right to get some fresh ink from my boy @TazTatted #Z3Sessions

“Looks good,” I commented. When Victoria didn’t reply, I looked up to find her scowling at something on her screen. “What?”

She gaped up at me. “Check The CelebriTea page. She think she slick.”

Her words alerted me, causing me to gather my phone and go on the gossip page’s profile. At once, I caught Victoria’s disgust.

One of their latest posts was a split image of Zander and Jolene Jones with a caption of:#ZanderKhalil touched down in NYC this week, and our girl #Jolie was NOT too far behind. #TeaParty, do you think our lil love birds may rekindle that old thang? #ButWhereHisNewBoo

The post held multiple photos, one of Zander’s recent trip to the tattoo parlor, and images from Jolie’s page.

The screenshot of Jolie’s Instagram story made my stomach sick. It was an all-black post with one word to announce so much more.Single. Even worse, her latest post had the location in New York City. She knew exactly what she was doing.

Victoria was right. She was a bitch.

I looked up at my best friend as a frown marred my face. “What the fuck?”

“Have you heard from him today? I mean, that tattoo pic is from yesterday.”

The last time I’d spoken to Zander had been on Wednesday, but I’d chucked it up to our both being busy. Him recording, and me moving and unpacking. Now, I wondered…

He intentionally hadn’t told me about the trip until the last minute. And he hadn’t made an attempt to invite me along. Did he know about Jolie being there?

I stood from the table. “I-I’m getting a migraine. Can we go?”

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