Fated To Three, And I Broke Them All

Jenna:

Gigi immediately pulled out her phone to do something. Then she turned to me.

"Oh, baby, we’re going," she declared with a wide smile, showing me that she had already picked out costumes and masks for us from a local store.

"You’ll come, right?" she asked.

I began to wonder what the right thing to say would be.

"It’s okay if you don’t want to. I understand." she bit her bottom lip as if wondering her options.

"The way Theodore said it, it really does seem like he wants to find you in the crowd tonight. And, well, knowing Theodore, he’ll probably get a little handsy. I really don’t want to put you in an uncomfortable position."

As Gigi explained what I might expect from the night, she practically eliminated every possibility of me saying no.

"Yes, I’ll come."

As soon as the words left my mouth, she frowned, almost as if she were doing a double take.

"Now that’s the girl I know who’s in love," Gigi teased.

I bit my bottom lip, already imagining how the night would go.

Gigi filled me in on the rules of the party.

I was supposed to stay in character.

We weren’t supposed to take off our masks or ask anyone else to take theirs off.

I mean, we’d already seen Theodore’s mask, so I knew what he looked like.

She also told me that everyone’s mask was unique.

At the entrance, they made sure no one was wearing the same costume as someone else.

That was how it was easy for friends to find each other.

I was both intrigued and excited about the party.

I’d never been to a party before. In fact, I’d never really been anywhere.

So this night out was either going to be incredibly good for me or deeply disappointing.

Because if Theodore didn’t connect with me, he might stop looking forward to anything between us altogether, and I would do anything to prevent that.

At least I knew that much.

Later, I had to figure out a way to sneak out.

I mean, how was I going to do it?

My mother stayed awake until midnight, doing God knows what, wandering around the mansion and trying to gather information on everyone.

She was an eavesdropper.

So if she was doing that, there was no way I’d be able to get ready and leave for the party.

When Gigi came back later, I snuck her into my bedroom, hiding her from the prying eyes of my mother and Lady Lucille.

She showed me my gown.

Well, it looked more like a tiny little dress.

It barely reached above my knees and had an extremely revealing neckline.

I didn’t have particularly large breasts, but even so, the neckline left very little to the imagination.

It was actually a corset maid’s dress.

She had also brought me a silver mask that covered the upper half of my face.

"And we’ll curl your hair, put on some red lipstick, and you’ll be good to go," she said with a smile.

She had bought herself a witch costume, which I thought completely clashed with her personality.

She was so sweet. She should’ve picked a fairy costume instead.

"There is one little problem," I admitted to Gigi as we sat together on my bed.

I hated that I kept putting so much stress on her, always telling her I had one problem or another.

At one point, I wondered if, were I in her position, I would’ve simply given up and stopped helping someone like me.

But Gigi really had a big heart.

She truly put up with me through all of this.

"My mom doesn’t really go to bed early," I said, biting my bottom lip.

"And Lady Lucille also wakes up every few hours, calling for me. Either for a glass of water, or sometimes she wakes up after only a two-hour nap. Then she spends the rest of the night awake, praying to the Moon Goddess, watching her favorite show, or doing something else."

I sighed, almost on the verge of crying.

"Oh no," Gigi murmured.

"Oh—and I guess I kind of hinted to Theodore that you’d be there."

She winced.

"You did?" I asked.

"I don’t know. After Theodore said all those things, I told him that you and I were going to a party. But then I said I was just pranking you, so he wouldn’t think we were desperate. I was trying to throw him off a little."

She pouted.

"But he told me he knew. He caught me in a lie, and he knows we’re going to be there. Now what?" she groaned, slumping her shoulders.

"It’s not like we can just put sleeping pills in their food." she sighed while cupping her face in her hands.

"Oh, Goddess, what are we going to do now?"

Gigi let the joke slip without thinking much about it.

But it stuck with me.

I mean, why couldn’t we do exactly what she said we weren’t supposed to?

What if we put a little sleeping pill in everyone’s food, especially my mother’s, my father’s, and Lady Lucille’s?

It would make it so much easier for us to sneak out, get ready, and do everything on time.

I mean, even while I was out, I wouldn’t have to worry so much about rushing back home, afraid that my family might wake up.

"Gigi, can I ask you something without you judging me?" I said, looking down and avoiding her eyes.

"What is it?" she asked, as though dreading what I was about to say.

"Um—can you get me a sleeping pill that’s not too strong and won’t kill someone in their sleep?" I squeaked, immediately closing my eyes so I wouldn’t have to see her judging me.

"You’re not thinking about that, are you?" she asked, her voice full of disbelief.

"I don’t want you to judge me. Please don’t. That’s why I’m asking you. We’ll be very careful. It won’t harm them. It’ll just make them sleep for a few hours," I pleaded, still not looking up.

"Okay. I’ve never done that before, and honestly, that’s why I was so shocked. But if you really think it won’t harm them and it won’t break their trust, then I guess I can get you some sleeping pills like that," Gigi replied in a whisper.

Then she placed her hand over mine.

"I’m never going to judge you, silly. You’re my best friend."

The rest of her words brought a comforting smile to my lips.