Confrontation

Matt pulled me from my hand and guided me through the hallway and to a grand backdoor of this tremendous place. I was so close to freedom, my lips started to curl upright without faking for the first time tonight. Just a couple more steps and we would be out. Au revoir pretentious assholes, enjoy your own lies.

“Where do you think you are going?”

I halted just a couple steps away from the door. Matt stopped as well and both of us turned our backs to face the owner of the voice.

Anton was standing there, puzzled and pissed. I felt like I owed him an explanation. I opened my mouth to come up with some sort of excuse, but Matt interrupted me and answered with an equally pissed tone to his brother.

“What does that matter to you?”

“I think I have to remind you that I brought her here as my date, so I guess I should know where she is going without letting me know and leaving me here?”  

He turned his pointed gaze to me with one brow arched to his forehead. I cannot say that I didn’t feel intimidated. But I have stopped myself from explaining. And what should I have said? Your girlfriend slapped me, your working partner has tried to harass me and the owner of this party insulted me. I chose to keep my silence and I turned my face towards the door, to hide my cheek. 

“You didn’t bring her here as your date, brother, but as your plus one, remember? And she doesn't have to explain anything to you.” Matt continued, as if to read my mind.

“I have asked Alice.”

“Oh, now she is Alice then. Aren’t there any other ridiculous nicknames anymore? Did you even bother to look for her until now? While she had been attacked twice by your - precious - friends?”

A hesitation crossed from Anton’s face. He instantly turned to me again and his look darted from my head to my toe as if searching for a physical impact. I turned my face even more to hide my cheek better.

“What do you mean by 'attacked’? Are you okay Alice?” He asked this with such a sincere curiosity and tender voice, if I didn’t know better I should have thought that he was worried about me. But I did know better than that Anton Alonzo was not a man of tenderness in any kind. 

“I am fine.” I said, trying as curt as I can be. To hide my emotions and my pointlessly watering eyes. 

He got closer with a couple steps and asked again in an even softer tone.

“What is it, Alice? What happened?”

Matt interrupted him one more time, 

“She has had enough for tonight. Let us go, Anton.”

Anton’s impossibly tender and caring eyes he looking at me turned to stone as he turned to his brother. 

“Let ‘us’ go? When you become ‘us’ with her, Matt. I am not talking to you and I have started getting sick of you. Now, if you excuse ‘us’, my assistant and I have to talk. Alone” 

Matt was ready to argue and opened his mouth to object, but I cut in this time to prevent an argument that could attract any undesirable attention from the guests. 

“Give us a minute Matt. I will be with you as soon as I am done.”

Matt turned to me to object again, but he saw the determination on my face, then nodded slightly. 

“I will be outside.”

He left from the back door, and me and Anton were alone now.

“Yes, I am listening.” I said, trying to avoid his gaze on my face.

“What has happened, Alice? What is he talking about?”

“Nothing important.”

“How come you say that? He claims that you had been attacked. By whom? What happened? Talk to me!” 

I slightly turned my face to him and opened my mouth to come up with an excuse and get rid of him, but suddenly he grabbed my chin and turned my face.

“What the hell happened? Who has done it to you?” 

I always had tender skin, even the slightest hits giving me bruises for days. And unfortunately, this slap was not an exception. 

“Noting- “ 

“Stop saying nothing happened!” Anton interrupted me. 

My chin was still in his cage between his thumb and forefinger. He was looking directly into my eyes, closer than I wanted him to be right now. His sandalwood and spice scent was filling my nose again. I couldn’t think for a second about anything but breaking free from this spell he was casting on me, turning me to someone who needed more of his touch and his scent and him alone. I shook my head, and he dropped his hold on my chin. 

“It was Ronda.” 

“Ronda?” He halted as his eyes got darker as a second passed. 

“Yes, can I go now?”

“Why?” 

“She thinks that I am trying to seduce you.”

Anton gritted his teeth so hard that its crunches could be heard from the other side of the hall.

“Please do not confront her, Mr. Alonzo.” Anton winced like he was bothered by the sudden formality of my tone. 

“I have enough to deal with. I don’t want to add a rich girl, who is mad at me, to the list.”

“And who was the second?

“Second?”

“Matt said you have been attacked twice. Who was the second person who attacked you and how?” 

His eyes searched my face and my body again, like trying to see another bruise caused by the second attack. 

“It was Daryl Sanders. It wasn’t an actual attack. More like disturbance.”

“Did he try to kiss you again?” 

This time, while saying these, the words hardly left his lips, like he was struggling to voice them. Every word was so cold and so dangerous, I was nearly sure if I said yes, he would kill him right now without a blink. 

“Noo, no. He just tried to talk.” 

He gave a deep breath like he was trying to calm down.

Suddenly, Anton grabbed my shoulders and lowered his head to be aligned with my eyes. When I surrendered to this silent demand for eye contact, our gazes crashed. His eyes were like stormy clouds, dark and dangerous, ready to strike. There was nothing but confidence and determination. 

“From now on, I won’t let anyone else hurt you, Alice. Ever.” He locked me in his gaze for a second more, then asked me.

“Do you trust me?” His voice was deep and throaty. 

I didn’t know what got into me, one second before, I was pissed at him, at his world and the position he left me without any protection, but now I was just believing him. Believing that he could protect me no matter what, I was trusting him. 

“Yes,” I whispered. 

“Good,” he said. 

“If you go now, you will let them win. I will be next to you for the rest of the night. I won’t let anybody even give you a side eye. But, you should stay and show them you are not afraid of them.”

“Look Mr. Alonzo. I don’t know what you were thinking while you were bringing me here, but they are right. I do not belong here. And I don’t want to be belong. I don’t have ambitions as surviving in society or prove to them who I am. I only want to go home, take these goddamn shoes off and fall asleep in front of the TV while watching an old movie that I have watched a dozen times before. “

“Alice… Don’t go.” he just said with a low voice. He was clearly understanding that I had no intention of playing these games that his society plays. Does it enough for you, Mr. Alonzo? A girl with no ambitions. Is it suitable for you?

When I didn’t reply to him, he released my shoulders in a defeated way. Of course, it isn’t. What was I even thinking? A man like Anton, who was the embodiment of ambition, couldn’t afford to think of himself with an ordinary person like me. I was sure of it. 

“If that’s all?” I gestured to the door. He silently nod. His eyes were like crystals now. Frozen and distant. As if he was thinking a lot but now voicing none of them. 

“Good night Mr. Alonzo.” I didn’t know why I was extending the conversation. But I was desperately hoping for some more words from him. But he just said,

“Good night Ms. Wonderland.”

I forced myself to turn and leave there right away. Because with every passing moment it was getting harder and harder to leave. 

When I threw myself outside, from the captivation of Anton’s presence, I found Matt staying right outside the door. 

When he saw me, his green jade eyes shone with pleasure, and he offered me his arm. I hooked my arm to his, trying to get any semblance of support that I could. 

“Let’s go,” he said nearly in a cheery voice.

“Where are we going?” I asked. 

“To your house, of course. We have an old movie to watch and a couch to fall asleep on.”

I couldn’t believe what I heard. My eyes are large as golf balls,

“I don’t believe that. Matteo Alonzo: Were you listening to us?” I asked. 

“More like, I have been exposed to your conversation, the door was not soundproof, you know.”

While I was looking at him, my mouth open, he smiled at me lightly and dragged me from my arm towards his car, which was waiting outside now with his driver out of it, holding the back door open for us.

“Come love, you can scold me as much as you like while on the road. The probably awful movie you will select for us is waiting.”

I punched him playfully on the shoulder, which was as hard as a marble slab. And let him drag me wherever he likes.