Page 16 of The Revenge Plan

“Long time no see Hailey.” When she greeted me, that was when it clicked. It was Dumpy Dana. Dumpy fucking Dana, of all people! I couldn’t believe it was her. She had been one of the people I had bullied when I was in high school. Being fat, wearing frumpy clothes and general awkwardness, had made her an easy target. Shame washed over me when I thought of the terrible ordeal I had put her through. I mean, everyone at school had taken part, including everyone at this table, but I was the one who had done the worst harm. I gave her that nickname after all.

“Wow, you look good Dana.” I didn’t know what else to say, “You’ve lost weight.” She was reed-thin now, and you could have never guessed that she spent her high school days a victim of bullying.

“Years of being fat-shamed is a good motivator.”

I deserved that. I quietly took my seat at the table. It was the only one left and unfortunately; I got to sit opposite Dana. Great.

It didn’t get better from there on. It got worse. They spoke only of topics familiar to them and in jokes. Dana started talking about a recent trip most of them took.

“Paris was as amazing as you said Cade,” she cooed, extending her hand towards Caiden. She had been giving him the eye ever since we came. Had they dated? It sure seemed like it, especially with the way people around the table had been darting their gazes between the three of us the entire time. A slight pang of jealousy struck me. “We went totheplace.Theplace. And you’re right, it’s quite an experience.” Everyone laughed. What was ‘theplace?’. Mya leaned over into my ear noticing my confusion. She said, “it’s this restaurant we all go to whenever one of us goes to Paris. There’s this chef, he’s funny. It’s a thing.”

I nodded and smiled, but it was obvious I didn’t get what they meant. Their inside jokes and references continued like this. Mya tried to bring into the conversation by choosing a topic that was general, but it would always end up veering to something else.

I eventually took a back seat and observed the group. Dana had certainly changed since she was no longer the shy teenager I knew. She took control of the conversation each time and everyone hung on her word. I glanced at Caiden. He seemed fascinated by her as well. Her conversation captivated him, more so than anyone else’s.

I was merely a forgotten toy when Sophie’s husband, a large block of a man with a huge square jaw, asked, “So you never told how your honeymoon went?” I stared at Caiden. ‘You take this one,’ my eyes said.

“We never went,” he shrugged, “been a little busy recently.” He said it so casually you would think he asked him about the weather.

Everyone around the table went quiet.

“Surely your new bride would love to go out somewhere with you,” Mya asked, “Will you be going later?”

“No,” he said. It was flat and decisive. A statement that closed the door to any further inquiries. My cheeks flushed, and I wanted to hide beneath the table until this dreadful party was over. I don’t know why I cared, but I did. I didn’t want these people to know that it was a sham marriage, as they were already suspecting.

Ax looked like he was enjoying my embarrassment as he smirked in my general direction.

But it was only starting. I didn’t know it, but it was about to get worse.

As the brunch went on, Dana felt more emboldened. Our seating shifted after the food went away and the drinks came. She was now sitting beside Caiden. She would continue to lean into him and whisper stuff into his ear. He would respond. He laughed at every little joke she made. I seethed inside. I don’t care; I kept telling myself. I do not care.

???

After brunch was over, Mya called for everyone to change into their swimsuits and go for a volleyball match. Everyone then went over to mingle on the beach as the nets were being prepared. I saw Kailey and Sophie, my former best friends talking to each other and naturally, I made my way to them.

It had been a while since we had called each other best friends. Or simply friends, so I didn’t know what to say to them except the most generic things like, “What a beautiful place Nathaniel got.”

They were talking about some function they had attended, and apparently Swedish royalty had been there. They stopped talking and looked at me. I thought they were going to say something and instead went back to their conversation.

“I’m telling you we had a connection,” Kailey said to Sophie.

“No, you didn’t,” Sophie replied, “That’s how he is with everyone. He’s a bit of a flirt. God, he flirted with me.”

“Who?” I asked.

They turned to me again and then Kailey said to Sophie, “Do you hear something?”

Sophie said, “No. I don’t.” They both took a turn and increased their pace, going back to where the volleyball pitch was being set up.

“What did I do wrong?” I said after them. I thought they would ignore me again, but Sophie turned to me and said, “What are you talking about?” She looked like I had said something ludicrous. I knew that look. I had perfected the art of fake obliviousness.

“This is the first time you responded to me.”

They looked at each other, and then Kailey responded. “We aren’t ignoring you, if that’s what you’re implying.”

“So, what’s the problem? I remember we used to be close once.”

Kailey rolled her eyes. Sophie crossed her arms and sighed, sounding exasperated. I darted my eyes between them, trying to decipher the reason for the new hostility.

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