"He was like a hybrid, this mix of a man who couldn't contain himself."

➳ ➳ ➳

[Angelina]

To say that it was like I had expected it to be would be a lie. I thought that there would be some people from work, and some friends, like he said. Not the whole fucking neighborhood. There were about a hundred people, and I was sure there would be more to come.

Everyone was wearing expensive clothes and looked so wealthy. The ladies dressed in the most elegant, long, classy dresses, their hair was perfectly styled, and the makeup on their faces made them look like goddesses. Classical music that Nicholas had chosen was playing in the background, but you couldn't hear it very well. The only thing you could listen to was the murmuring of the guests and the sounds of the clinking glass.

I can see Sandra from across the room, serving the guests champagne and wine, always keeping that genuine smile on her face that I could honestly not understand how she did it. I, on the other hand, was in the dark corner of the room by myself, observing everyone, too afraid to get out of my small hole to approach them. I know eventually, I have to do it, but I just wasn't used to having so many people around me, and I guess it makes me feel nervous.

Nick took care of everything and had made sure that his guests had everything they wanted, but he still hasn't appeared.

He went upstairs to his bedroom just before the people came, when he last spoke to me and Sandra and hasn't come down, yet. Sandra says he probably wants to make an entrance. Show off, I call it. I sighed deeply and fixed my dress carefully, making sure not to drop the silver tray with the filled drinks I was holding.

"Angelina! What are you doing here? Go serve our guests." I heard Sandra say, and I tilted my head to the side to look at her annoyed expression. When did she get to this? I parted my lips to speak, but she put her hand in front of me and stopped me from doing anything else. I frowned.

"Don't talk, just go." She said and entered the kitchen. I nodded my head, and after taking a deep breath, I make my way out of the shadows and hiding within the crowd. I fake smiled, trying to be as polite as I could, and started offering expensive drinks and walking around the big living room to make sure everybody has one.

Some of the guests didn't even give me a second glance when I served them while only a few of them smiled politely. Sandra, who came out again, approached me and kept her voice low, indicating privacy.

"So, how's it going?" She asked me, making me bite my lip lightly out of anxiety.

"It's okay, I guess. There's just so many people, and that's what's making me nervous." I confessed, and she smiled before something behind me caught her attention. I looked at her, confused.

"What are you looking at?" I asked and turned around.

"I think that lady wants a drink. I'll go back into the kitchen to help serve others, and you go serve her." She told me, pointing towards the direction of the woman and walked away, again. I straightened up my posture, holding up the tray confidently and approached her, forcing a smile.

"Here you go ma'am," I told her in a low voice, and she smiled at me, showing off her perfect teeth as she took the glass I was offering her.

My eyes moved to her actual face, and I wish I hadn't. The woman was everything I was not. She looked beautiful, and I can tell she was someone important just by the way she was standing and the way her knee-length, black dress made her look professional. Her hair was in an elegant bun, making everyone's eyes focused on her icy, pale blue eyes. Almost white.

"Thank you, dear." She thanked me. Even her English accent was beautiful, posh. I knew she was a smart, rich lady.

"You're welcome," I said, averting my eyes to the ground. Honestly, she did make me feel slightly insecure about the way I looked.

"Tell me, please. When is Mr. Snow coming down?" She asked with a small smirk on her face.

"I don't know-" I started to say, but stopped once I saw a dark figure moving from behind her.

It was Nicholas and all his glory.

All the guests that were talking previously stopped and every eye turned to look at him. He was something to look at. He was dressed in a black suit jacket, skinny black jeans, and a white shirt that was buttoned up with leaving the first few buttons open, revealing his skin but wasn't enough to show his tattoos that I knew were there. His medium-length hair was styled perfectly so it wouldn't fall in his face and his curls looked so soft and touchable. For a moment, I found myself wanting to run my fingers through his hair. He looked like a prince from a fairy tale.

I knew that I was probably staring too long, but it was difficult not to, and I'm sure I wasn't the only one who thought so. The woman in front of me crossed her arms over her chest, still holding her long glass in her hand, and her red lips formed a smirk as she looked at Nick who was walking towards her. I stood behind her, hiding and trying to make my presence unnoticeable.

"Nicholas Snow." She says. Nick stood in front of her and gave his signature half-smile, looking at her seductively.

"Bianca Grades." He mimicked and extended his hand. She put hers in his as he lifts her hand to his lips, leaving a kiss on the back of her hand.

"Always trying to impress." She stated, taking a sip from her drink, and Nicholas smiled and shook his head at her with amusement.

"And you always ruin it for me."

"Me?" She asked, raising her perfectly shaped eyebrows in surprise.

"You look dazzling tonight, everyone's eyes are on you, especially mine." He complimented her.

"You're still not tired with flirting with me Snow, are you?" She laughed, and Nick shrugged. He still hasn't seen me standing there, and I was thankful for that. I was feeling uncomfortable with them flirting, and the last thing I needed was for those green eyes to look directly at me.

"Not at all." He said, smirking and then started looking around, I knew that he was searching for someone to bring him a drink. As much as I hated the idea, I stood straight and exhaled before moving to Nicholas. He narrowed his eyes at me, and I immediately looked down in an attempt to avoid his intense gaze. I stood next to him, but I don't think he noticed.

"Mr. Snow," I said in a whisper, and I heard him clear his throat before taking the full glass from me, without looking at me. He just nodded and motioned for me to leave.

"Go serve the others." He said sternly, and I was about to leave, I wanted to leave, but I was stopped.

"Wait a minute. I'd like one." A man said behind me, and out of nowhere, a hand appeared and took the last glass of champagne I had. My eyes widened in shock, especially when I felt a warm hand press against my back. I stiffened, and the person behind me noticed because a small chuckle escaped his lips.

"I'm sorry, love." He said in his thick accent and moved to stand in front of me, next to Nicholas, who was giving me a dirty look. The young man smiled at me warmly and took a sip from his glass without breaking eye contact with me. I shifted uncomfortably and glanced at him before looking down again.

I officially hate being a maid.

"What a lovely maid you have, Nicholas." He said, patting him on the back, but Nick didn't move a single muscle. The man laughed.

"Oh, come on, smile a bit." He teases him.

"I'm glad you decided to come, Daniel," Nicholas says, changing the subject instead. Daniel nodded in agreement.

"Me too. What's your name, love?" He asked me, staring at me with those sparkling brown eyes. Only mine wouldn't be sparkling, just brown. Brown. He wasn't bad looking. It made me blush a bit. My eyes moved between Nick's stern face, and I didn't know what to do.

"Angelina, sir," I said almost in a creaky whisper, and he smiled as if he was amused. Damn it.

"What a lovely name." He stated, taking one step closer to me. My heart started to raise when Nick stopped him, grabbed his arm, and pulled him back again.

"That's enough, Daniel. You. Do your job." Nicholas said, pointing the finger at me, making Daniel pout.

The fact Nick didn't even try to say my name bothered me a lot, but I didn't say anything, I nodded my head and quickly walked towards the kitchen with a red face. Not of embarrassment, but anger. I was angry.

~ ~ ~

"This is getting tiring," I told Sandra. We were both standing by the door, looking at people talking and having a good time in front of us. Nicholas spoke to pretty much everyone, making sure they had everything they need, but mostly focused on the beautiful lady from earlier, Bianca. His arms would be wrapped around her tiny waist and whispering into her ear, making her laugh. Just the sight of them like that made me boil with anger, even though I know I shouldn't be.

"Who is that lady with Nicholas?" I asked Sandra, and she looked at them before moving her eyes to me.

"From what I know, she's a journalist but a famous one. She interviewed Mr. Snow a few times. Even some celebrities." She informed me.

"Are they like, a...thing?" I asked Sandra, tearing my eyes away from them.

"Angelina, Mr. Snow isn't a thing with anyone. He plays around."

"Yeah, right," I whispered, filling the tray with different kinds of foods and walked away with it.

My eyes were still fixed on Nick, who was now talking to that man, Daniel and Bianca always floating around. He raised a glass in the air and stood on the first few steps at the bottom of the staircase, making everyone's eyes turn to him.

"Thank you all for coming. I want to make a toast." He said, raising his voice a bit to be heard.

"Angel." A voice from behind made me freeze on the spot.

No. It can't be true.

The voice was quite familiar to me, and it wasn't a voice I would like to here again. Who invited him? I looked away from Nicholas and what he was saying to turn around and find Alexander's blue eyes staring right at me.

"Alexander? W-What are you doing here?" I stammered but inside, I feel terrified. How did he get in? Nicholas would never let him in, unless of course he snuck himself in, but wouldn't the alarms and security cameras take action? The more I thought of it, the tenser I felt.

"Well nobody invited me, so I decided to invite myself, so here I am." He said, smirking and glanced at Nicholas who was still talking, but at the moment I wasn't paying much attention to that. I had more important things to worry about.

"I have to admit; I had a good time," Alexander said, taking a sip from his wine.

"How long have you been here?" I asked, even though I was scared to hear the answer.

"From the start."

"I didn't see you," I told him, narrowing my eyes and he chuckled, taking a few steps closer to me.

"That's what happens when you don't want to be seen, Angel." He said.

"Why are you even here? What do you want?" I asked him, annoyed. This was bad, really bad. I didn't want him to cause a scene, especially now. Nick would kill me.

"I just wanted to make sure Nicholas was treating my doll, right. To make sure you weren't trying to escape." He said the last part through gritted teeth and with one movement, he has my arm in his tight grip. His cold eyes were looking at me, angrily.

"Don't you try anything stupid, Angel. I want you to come with me, you are still mine, okay?" He says, applying pressure on my arm that caused me to yelp slightly. I was trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall from my eyes. Everything he is saying made my escape plan impossible.

I am not his property.

"You don't own me," I told him sternly. Except I failed when my voice cracked at the end, making him laugh as an evil cartoon character would.

"That's where you are wrong, Angel. I own every part of you." He whispered in my ear, making me shiver.

"I'm a human being, not your toy."

"No, now your just a doll. You should be very thankful to me. You won't find any better than what I'm offering you." He said and spun me around.

He had managed to take me to the corner of the room without being noticed. Alexander pointed at Nicholas, who was smiling at Bianca as she spoke to him.

"You see him?" He asked, taking my chin in between his fingers and forcing me to look. I try to move, but he has too strong of a grip.

"He doesn't want you, he doesn't love you, no one will ever really love you, Angel. He wants your body. What he wants is a woman like her, a real woman, and not a Doll like you, because all you are in his eyes is the Doll you are. When he even looks at you, he thinks about how many men you have been with." He growled. He turned to face him again. My teary eyes looked at him, and he finally released me.

"But I h-haven't..." My voice cracked as I spoke, unable to complete my sentence. I don't want to talk about it. It was something I don't ever want to relieve. He caressed my hair softly, but I knew the tender act was all fake.

"Oh, I know that, Angel. He won't believe you, though. It's a cruel world with cruel people in it, and he's one of them. So think twice before making a mistake to trust anyone in this world, but me. I am the one who really cares. It's all me." He said, wiping my tears away with his thumb.

"I'll go now. I don't want anyone to see me."

With that, he placed a kiss on my forehead and walked away. I pressed my back against the wall, still holding the silver tray with my now shaky hands. I wasn't feeling well, not after the encounter. He reassured all of the things I knew and grown used to that I am not to believe and forget. All the things that he asked from me ever scares me most.

"Angelina." I could hear Sandra calling my name, and I wiped my tears quickly.

I walk towards the crowd, nut I wasn't feeling so good, and my mind wasn't in the moment. My hands were shaking uncontrollably, and my breathing is unsteady.

"Angelina, be careful!" I hear Sandra say, but I had no time to see what was happening, the tray I held fell from my hands, making the food fly everywhere, including the man's expensive suit, who was in front of me. Everyone around us stopped and stared at us. I was the one who caused the mess. Fuck!

"I'm so sorry," I said, wiping my tears and knelt to pick up the tray and clean some of the stuff I made, but I wasn't doing an outstanding job. My hands were trembling.

"What happened here?" I heard Nick's deep voice ask, and the crowd moved away, letting him pass through.

Oh, Jesus Christ.

I immediately stood up, looking at him with wide eyes. He observed the mess that I made on the ground, and then his expression turned into anger as his eyes met mine. I don't blame him.

"I'm sorry I-"

"Come with me." He said, grabbing the same arm Alexander had forced, taking me away from the people. We went inside the kitchen, and that's when he finally let go of my arm.

"What the fuck, you see what you just did back there?" He asked furiously, making me flinch.

"It was a mistake. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." I tried to apologize, but he wasn't listening. Instead, he balled his fist and slammed it on top of the marble countertop I was leaning on with force.

"You can't ever do anything right. What the hell is wrong with you?" He continued to shout in my face.

"I'm sorry." It was all I could think of now.

"Nick? What are you doing to the poor girl?" Someone else's voice was heard in the kitchen, stopping Nick from yelling at me again. We both look in the direction the sound was coming from, and there stood Daniel with wide eyes at Nicholas.

"Get out, Daniel," Nicholas told him with anger.

"No. I'm not. That is no way to treat a lady. She made a mistake, that's it, she's sorry." He told him, running a hand through his short dark blonde hair. Nicholas shook his head, letting out a small chuckle, and something inside me prepared me for something terrible. I knew it was coming. I could feel it coming.

"Damn it, that's the problem, Daniel. She is not a fucking lady." He said that last part loud enough for him and everyone else to hear and stormed out the kitchen.

This was the final blow.