The Crystal by Jones M (ready to read books .TXT) 📖

deny the notions, but Bianca cut me off.

"I'm warning you once more. I don't even give second chances, but you seem like a nice person."

"Excuse me?" I glared at her.

"Do not look at him!" Bianca ignored me. "Zane is mine! Either stop whatever feelings you may be developing for him or deal with my wrath."

I stared at Bianca in disgusted shock.

Zane was dating that?

I had been in a bad mood since morning. Selena was not answering my calls. It was , unfortunately, that time of the month for me, and so it was easy to get me mad. Bianca would not shut her trap that she called a mouth, and that seemed to fuel my bad mood. 

 "Okay, calm your bitchy self down," I said, getting tired of all the crap that was spewing from her mouth. Bianca gasped in shock.

"Bianca, I am in a very bad mood right now. Like I said, I don't want your boyfriend! Okay. You may be right about me looking at him last night--"

Suddenly, Bianca charged after me. She went to slap me on the face. I ducked. She swung again, and I avoided graciously it.

That's it.

I caught her hand just as she was about to hit me in the face and went to deliver my own slap. Bianca's head turned on impact. The sound echoed throughout the building once my hand made contact with her face.

Wow. I must have hit her hard!

"Emery!" Zane yelled out my name as he and the rest of the boys came towards Bianca and me. I felt myself visibly pale as I turned to face him.

Zane wasn't alone; a few members of the crew had come to see what was happening. A millisecond later, Bianca started to let out a fake cry. Apparently, I was the only one who knew it to be fake. The others seemed captivated by her act.

"Z-Zane," she dared to fake stutter as the band mate approached her and wrapped his arms around her. All the while, he and the rest of the boys were sending me harsh glares.

"I promise you it was not what it looked like," I went to defend myself.

"Why did you slap her?" Zane boomed out with fury. His voice caught the attention of the other people who were around the area. They all stopped what they were doing to stare at the commotion that was unfolding. I blushed in embarrassment, hating the looks I was receiving.

"She was insulting me! She was saying some stuff that aren't true about me before she started calling me a bitch! What was I supposed to do, take it?" I yelled out my answer.

"She... she's l-lying Zane," Bianca said as she continued her fake cries.

Well, damn! Bitch can act.

I rolled my eyes at her.

"I was trying to be friends with her. Sh-she told me I was ugly and that I didn't deserve y-you."

"Oh, come on!" I yelled out. "She's the one who's lying!"

"I think I've heard enough," Zane said, stopping me from speaking further. The boys gave me disappointed looks. Just by that, I knew who they believed. 

"Unbelievable," I muttered with a shake of my head as I walked out of the area.

"Where are you going?" Logan yelled.

"Anywhere that is not here."

 It was no use to try to talk them out of what they believed because it would make the situation worse. I momentarily turned my head to see the boys, only to get mad when Bianca sent me a smirk.

Looking back at the moment, I realized that was the sign for me to leave the tour. I should have left and gone back home. That way, I would have escaped the mess that came my way weeks later.

***********************************************************************************************

Third Person's P.O.V

Bianca was in a Starbucks café in London. Since she was dating Zane and the boys' fans were also fans of her, she had to wear a disguise. At the moment, a red wig hid her natural hair and her sunglasses shielded her eyes.

Stirring the cup of coffee on the table, Bianca frowned when she remembered the newly risen problem: the girl, Emery. Bianca was certain that Emery had feelings for Zane, and that Zane may have had feelings for her. 

She hated it.

Bianca was not looking forward to saying goodbye to her rich and famous boyfriend, and so she had to do something to keep him.

"Is this seat taken?" a brunette woman greeted as she stood over Bianca's table. Bianca did not want company at the moment. 

Before she could reply, the woman sat opposite her. 

Bianca cursed the woman under her breath. She wanted to be alone, but the woman was stopping that from happening.

"Hello, Bianca," the woman greeted her. Bianca tensed, directing her gaze from the cup of coffee she held to the woman to see if she knew her.

She didn't.

The woman had pale skin. Just like her, she had worn a pair of dark sunglasses. Her black hair was tied in a bun, and she had worn a pale yellow dress.

"Have we met before?" Bianca asked before taking a sip from her coffee.

The woman laughed Bianca's words.

"No, but I know we have something in common."

Interested, Bianca leaned forward towards the woman.

"Really?" she asked, and the woman nodded. "Then what is it?"

The talk was momentarily interrupted by a waitress who asked what the woman wanted. The person made her order and resumed the talk with Bianca once the waitress was out of earshot.

"You have an issue with an unwanted guest. I know her, and I can help to get rid of her."

Bianca took a few seconds to understand who the woman meant. She suddenly felt like she was being watched. She looked around the café to see if the police had finally caught up to her crimes.

"Don't worry," the woman said. "I'm here alone."

Bianca did not know if she could trust the woman. She seemed suspicious.

"What's in it for you?" Bianca asked with a raised eyebrow.

The woman revealed a smirk.

"Nothing that concerns you."

The girl felt uneasy when the woman replied.

"I don't know..." she trailed off.

"I know about your illegal activities," the woman said. "If you don't accept my help, I will expose you and have you arrested within the hour."

Zane's girlfriend tensed as she felt a chill run down her spine.

"What proof do you have?" Bianca asked. The person older than her shrugged before showing a plastic bag with a knife marked with blood stains. Bianca tensed when she saw the evidence. She recalled the events that revolved around the knife. She even recalled the trouble of getting that knife from the police, only for it to be snatched by the woman in front of her.

"What do you want?"

"I want what you want, and that is to get rid of Emery," the woman replied.

Bianca sighed, knowing she had no way of escaping the deal.

"Fine! I'll help you..." Bianca trailed off, having not asked the woman's name.

The woman in the dress laughed.

"Please, call me Eva."

CHAPTER 33

Emery's P.O.V

I hated her.

After the whole fiasco with Bianca, I left the boys to wander around London. 

It was a usual thing I would do when the boys would be busy with celebrity-related stuff. I wandered the cities we toured and even took photos of sceneries I found amazing.

Anyway, on that particular day, I came across a park. I spent most of the remainder of the day there, watching people minding their own business. I had bought some food before seating on a bench under a tree, delving deep into my thoughts.

Bianca was a bitch; I was not going to argue with that. The boys were quick to defend her from me. She had known the boys longer than I had, so that meant they knew her and trusted her more than me. It also meant she could manipulate them and have them eating from her fingertips. 

It hurt that they did not fully trust me. 

Sighing, I leaned back on the park bench as I stared at my surroundings. The sun was setting; the sky had begun to darken, and the people around the park were reducing. That meant I too had to leave. Who knew whatever bad things could occur at night.

I got up and took out my phone from my pocket, checking for any missed calls or messages.

Nothing. Guess the guys were still mad at me.

I thought over what I had to do. The expected solution came to mind, and that alone had me infuriated. I did not need to apologize. Bianca did! She was the one who lied about the insults. But then the boys would not believe me. 

Thinking about it, the girl did deserve the slap.

Releasing another sigh, I began walking back to the hotel. I wouldn't care whether the boys had returned or were still busy in the theater. As I walked, I noticed the beautiful sight of London in the evening. The street lights had been turned on, illuminating the objects in my surroundings. Buildings lights had been switched on, and the billboards that hung on some of them were also lightened.

About twenty minutes later, I found myself approaching the hotel suite. There were two bodyguards situated next to the door. They had to be placed there ever since a fan of the boys found out their hotel whereabouts some time ago. That led to the most amusing moment in my life where the boys panicked at the sight of a fellow admirer. 

Okay, they could have calmly dealt with the problem, but the fan chased them around the hotel, wanting to kiss them.

Just as I was approaching the door to the hotel suite, the two bodyguards came towards me.

"Ma'am, this is private property. You are not allowed to enter," one of them said.

I was shocked that they didn't let me pass. I knew who the guards were since they tagged along with the boys and me hours ago. They even helped me enter a limo earlier on the previous day! What changed?

"What do you mean 'I'm not allowed to enter'? I have been with the boys for the last two months!"

Although I should have said they saw me in the morning, but that did not come to mind.

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but you are still not allowed to enter."

I felt my patience slipping off. It had been a long day. I was tired; I just wanted was a moment to rest.

I turned to go back the way I came. I turned a corner, making sure the bodyguards could not see me. Then I froze them in time. With quick movements, I went towards the door. I swiftly opened and closed it, unfreezing the security personnel once the door closed.

To my surprise, the boys were there and so was Bianca. Zane's girlfriend gave me a look of shock. It stayed there for quite a while before disintegrating into a glare.

What was that about?

The air in the room instantly became tense as to my arrival.

"Guys, may I talk to you?" I asked out loud. Bianca did not alter the glare she was sending my way while the rest seemed indecisive.

"Okay," Liam replied after a while. I took a deep breath to get rid of the anxiety I was feeling. Well, it wasn't anxiety but fury. I couldn't believe I was doing what I was going to do, but then it had to be that way. It would not help if I had a screaming match with the boys, trying to prove my innocence. They would still pick Bianca's side.

"I want to apologize for my behavior earlier," I started, earning everyone's full attention.

"Bianca," I spoke as I faced her. She was still glaring at me. "I'm sorry I slapped you. I have no idea why I did it. Zane, I'm sorry I slapped your girlfriend. Do you all forgive me?"

"Okay," the response came from the boys seconds later. A smile appeared on my face while a look of disbelief took over Bianca's.

"Are you kidding me? She slapped me!" the bitch screamed.

"But she did apologize," Logan replied, and Ethan nodded in agreement. "It does take a lot of courage for people to admit they're wrong and to apologize."

Bianca opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water whereas I felt victorious about the moment. Before she spoke, one of the security personnel from outside the door entered the room.

Oh no.

"Sirs, there is a woman who says she's--" he cut himself off once he saw I was inside. He got a look of confusion on his face.

"Who's what?" Zane asked.

"How did you get in?" the guard asked me, ignoring Zane's question.

"What do you mean?" Ethan asked with a furrow of his eyebrows. "I thought you allowed her in. I mean, she's with us."

The bodyguard's eyes widened in