48.
October 4th, 2020
Ihad only just wheeled the last of the massive crate carts towards the end of the room when I heard aswish, followed by loud, consistent rattling. I whipped my head towards the studio entrance just in time to see Aubrey, flanked by four of her friends and Martin, grinning at me like she’d won an Olympic gold medal as the wide shutter-door continued to roll down before my eyes.
It took me a moment to realize what was happening, and when my brain finally registered the act, I stumbled a little as I began running towards the shutter.
Aubrey wiggled her fingers at me. “Ta-ta,bitch,” she spat.
I ignored her words and continued to run.
I ignored the giggles and snickers of her friends as they mocked me.
I ignored the look of guilt on Martin’s face as he kept his eyes on the ground, most definitely too ashamed to look at me.
What the fuck was Aubrey even thinking?
God, I knew she was demented, but I hadn’t at all comprehended that she’d be this disgusting.
I’d only just reached the entrance when the shutter slammed shut completely, caging me in.
I stopped right in front of it, and began banging my fist on it. “Open the fucking door, Aubrey!” I banged the shutter some more, but pulled away when the force I’d used ricocheted against my wrists.
I hissed and shook my hands, and then kicked the bottom of the shutter. “Open the door!” I didn’t want the tears to fall, but they did anyway. I didn’t want fear to tighten my chest, but it didn’t listen. I didn’t want goosebumps to mar my scalp, my arms, my entire fucking body, but they started pricking my skin anyway.
And I didn’t want my breathing to turn shallow, but my lungs didn’t obey me at all.
“Aubrey…” I sucked in a bout of air as I tried to hold back my tears. “Open up!” I slapped the shutter. “Open! Open! Open!” I was so scared. I didn’t know what to do. I felt trapped, and rightfully so.
I tumbled back and sped through every room, but even as I kept opening and shutting doors throughout the massive studio, I knew there wasn’t anything I could do on my own unless Aubrey or someone else decided to open the shutter from the outside.
My suspicion was quickly confirmed when I reached the studio’s rear exit and found it to be locked, too.
“Fuck!” I kicked at the metal door, and cried out when pain shot through my right leg at my stupid, impulsive action.
I muffled a sob behind my hand, and with the help of a supply cart, I dragged myself back toward the entrance.
I wiped my nose with the sleeve of my black hoodie. “What do you want?” I whispered as I placed my forehead against the shutter. “What do you fucking want?” I screamed, and began banging my fists on the door again.
“For you to suffer,” came Aubrey’s voice from outside. “You thought you’d won when Shane held a meeting with me and my manager and practically insulted me in front of him, didn’t you? You thought you’d taught me a lesson and driven me away, huh?” When I didn’t answer, she laughed hysterically. “My manager almost dropped me as a client after everything Shane told him, you know that?” She hit the shutter, which made me gasp and move away from it. “You tried to ruin my career, you cunt, and for that, you’re going to pay.You’re going to fucking pay!”
I didwhat?
Oh, that bitch wasn’t serious.
“You know what, Aubrey?!” I yelled. “I didn’t even care that you existed before you started making yourself known to me after Gallan and I posted those pictures of us on Instagram. I didn’t care about who you were and what you did; I only cared about Gallan. I always have.”
“You aren’t anything, Zaira. I’mAubrey– a rising star; a fashion icon. An up-and-coming entrepreneur. And what areyou? ABSOLUTELYNOTHING. You’re anobody.”
Her friends laughed. Fucking crows, all of them.
I scoffed. “You didn’t even have a career before Gallan,Aubrey. Everything you are, and everything you have, is because he took pity on you and helped you stand back on your feet. He helped you with your clothing line, with your modelling career. He helped you get in the spotlight by staying in a fake relationship with you, and he helped you get back in the media’s eyes by agreeing to doWaves That Hold Us, despite knowing that you would be his costar. So the next time you decide to beat your own drum, know that it wasmyboyfriend who saved you from getting kicked to the curb by not only your manager, but also by Hollywood.” I was panting and sweating, and my vision was slightly blurry due to the heaviness in my head.
“You don’t deserve him!” Aubrey screamed. “You don’t deserveanything.”
I had to laugh at that. “And youdo?”
“Of course I fucking do,” she hissed, and I could tell that she’d gotten closer to the shutter. “I thought sending the Instagram trolls your way would make you run for the hills, but that didn’t work.” She threw something at the gate, which shook it wildly and made me suck in a sharp breath. “I tried to overwhelm you with paparazzi, tried to scare you off with that locker room stunt, but you just wouldn’t leave.” Three consecutive pounds on the shutter. “Why won’t you fucking leave?!”
