Chapter 20: Chapter 20

Karen's POV

I walked into the ballroom and caught my breath. Crystal chandeliers spiraled down from the arching sky-blue ceiling, illuminating the glimmering golden walls. I looked at the guests, they all wore sparkling and new dresses. In the sky, the moon provided lightning in the house.

I found my way through the crowds of drunk people and champagne-bearing waiters. A girl pushed into me, grinding, forcing me into dancing. My voice pushed out into her ear, low but firm, "Get off me, bitch."

Almost everyone was drunk and you with a few people in corners, either talking or making out. I stood idle, by the door for a few minutes listening to the lyrics of the music. The night was alive, the air was so thick with lights and smoke but the roar of the crowd and music that thrummed straight into my eardrums made me irritated.

"You should dance." A familiar voice suggested and I turned back to see Brody.

"I don't think I'll dance tonight." I replied.

He chuckled softly. "Do you want to dance?" He asked, maintaining the question.

I didn't want to be distracted, I couldn't dance. Maybe, it was not my talent. "I can't dance." I murmured, enough for him to hear me.

"You should try, my friends are expecting you to dance." He said.

"But I can't dance."

He seemed to sense my uneasiness and guided me to the dance floor where everyone stopped dancing and looked at us. Some girls looked at me in jealousy and I almost lost my self-esteem. "You didn't tell me you were popular." I whispered.

"My parents are popular and not me."

His eyes were still on me, "Brody," I whispered. "Everyone's looking at us."

He squeezed my hands slightly and smiled. "They're admiring your beautiful dress." He said and chuckled softly.

The music began suddenly, he grabbed my hand firmly as we began to dance. He slightly narrowed his eyes and let out a small chuckle. "You're a bad dancer."

I chuckled. "I couldn't pretend to be a professional." I replied.

"I should kiss you."

I frowned and raised an eyebrow. "You shouldn't kiss ...."

He leaned down to kiss me, just a peck and I stepped back a little. "I'm sorry," he quickly apologized but I wasn't buying that. "I just wanted to make it real."

I ignored him and the music suddenly changed, our pace quickened and I was trying to meet his dance steps but it was impossible. My dress was getting in the way and my heels made my steps clumsy.

Noticing my discomfort, he pulled my body closer to his and my eyes widened. I stared into his eyes and temporarily forgot everything, I missed a step and fell on the floor.

Laughter erupted from the corners of the hall and I glanced at Brody's mom, she gave me an angry look and I ran out of the hall.

Running towards the swimming pool, I sat down on the couch there and began crying. I suddenly felt my temperature rising and it made me regret signing the contract. "Hey, can I sit here?" Helen, Brody's younger sister asked and I nodded. "Are you alright?" She asked, sitting down near me.

I wiped my tears with my hand and looked at her. "I don't think so. Your mom is going to make my life miserable soon, I don't think she likes me."

"She could never like you." she said and I looked at her.

"What do you mean by that?"

"She doesn't want to associate with girls like you. She believes that you're a golddigger."

I scowled. "It's not like I've done anything bad to her."

"Your background did, you don't have anything. There's absolutely nothing to offer than love. She has a great loss on her side if she decides to accept you as Brody's girlfriend."

"How?" I asked, confused.

She frowned and stared at me. "Some people might not invest in her business because of your background."

My eyes widened. "I'm not poor, I afforded an apartment and I'm living a normal life. My mom's a celebrity." I replied and she laughed.

"A celebrity chef?" She asked and let out a chuckle to mock me. "She hasn't even proceeded to the final level of the Cooking Thrills reality show."

I frowned, embarrassed. She was definitely right, even though my mom was leading her opponents, her chance of winning was extremely low. "I'm tired of everything," I muttered and tears welled up in my eyes. "Sometimes, I feel depressed."

"Hey, don't say that. No one deserves to be poor, you're beautiful and I'm sure she'll later love you."

I nodded and chuckled silently. It was a contract and I didn't care, I had to pretend for them to love me, I knew Brody might not pay me if his parents hate me.

"And Brody?"

"He loves you so much, I always see love in his eyes when he looks at you but you never notice."

I chuckled and smiled at her. It was all pretence and we knew what we were doing. I couldn't risk telling her the truth because the contract would be breached. "Yeah, I'm also in love with your brother." I lied with a smile.

"Of course, you should be in love with him," She replied and stood up. She looked at my gown and smiled. "Your gown is lovely."

I gave her a passionate smile. At least, she was the only person who understood me. "Diego is my best friend for now, he thinks and talks like an adult." I told her.

She chuckled and left immediately. I wondered why she avoided talking about her husband and her son. I looked at the sky and tried counting the stars, I lost count as soon as I started and laughed at my foolishness.

I didn't know why he forced me to dance, I couldn't dance and I explained things to him but he didn't seem to believe me. "Hello bitch." A lady shouted from behind me and I jumped up in fear. Turning to the other side, I saw a slim but beautiful lady looking at me, she was with her two friends.

"Who are you?" I asked, confused.

She grinned and turned to look at her friends. "In case you don't know, I'm Sarah, Brody's ex girlfriend."

I folded my hands and looked at her, confused. "How's that my concern?" I asked and she chuckled.

"Stay away from my boyfriend." She warned. She was definitely a patient from the psychiatric hospital.

I looked at her in shock. "He's your ex boyfriend and not, your boyfriend." I reminded her and she slapped me.

I looked at her, surprised by her attitude.

"Sarah, please leave me alone. I don't want to cause a scene around here." I pleaded, taking a few steps backwards.

"You should have never thought of dating Brody." With that, she pushed me into the pool and I tried to swim out but I couldn't.

I couldn't swim. "Help." I screamed.