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Unsure how to respond, I ignore his text and don't hear from him again for the rest of the weekend. Feeling deflated, but not wanting to be the first to break the silence, I continue to hold out in the hope that he'll crack first and message me again.

The rest of the week goes slowly, and any sighting of Ben is at a distance. As the weekend approaches again, this time it's Sarah who shares plans with us over lunch.

"So, who's party is this?" Kelly asks, dunking a chip into mayonnaise. The thought makes me slightly nauseous.

"Jacob – the son of my mother's close friend. He's having a party at their home in Arkley."

Arkley is quite an elite area, connecting Barnet and Totteridge. It's a top location for celebrities and the streets are lined with fancy cars and even fancier houses.

"He actually knows James and Joseph and a few of the others - they went to secondary school together, so I reckon they're going too." I can't help but wonder if that meant Ben was invited too?

"Are you coming?" She says, looking to me.

"Yeah, sure, sounds good to me." I say, casually. She looks surprised for a second before continuing. "Make sure you dress up, no jeans at this one."

I go to respond but stop myself. "Fine - I'll wear something nicer." I resign.

"With heels!" she says, half joking. Or at least, I hope she is.

I roll my eyes. "Whatever you say, mate."

***

Freshly showered, I decide to wear one of my new purchases, a black tea dress that skims my thighs. I add a killer bra to make my cleavage pop and select an open toe stiletto shoe boot to please Sarah. For my hair, I settle a one-sided messy fishtail braid and go for my classic winged liner but branch out with a red lip.

When I go into the kitchen, I catch my parents making dinner.

"Wow!" mum gasps.

"You look lovely, Hols" my dad adds.

I roll my eyes and blush. "Thanks guys."

"Where are you off to tonight?" Mum asks, tasting the sauce on the wooden spoon.

"Arkley. Sarah's mum's friend is having a get together and she's dragging us along."

"Okay honey, just be careful." she says, before blowing a kiss my way.

Arkley is difficult to get to using public transport, so Sarah has organised a large cab to drop and collect us. As I open the door, the girls wolf-whistle. "Damn! You look hot!" Leila exclaims and I blush.

We make our way to Arkley and as we pass each street, the houses get bigger. I watch in awe as we halt outside a huge white house with statement columns, that looks fresh out of a Hollywood movie. We wait as Sarah kindly pays the cab driver and then follow her to the large wrought iron gates before us. She presses the buzzer and waits for them to open. As we head up the drive, a stuffy looking woman in a pinafore opens the front door and ushers us through the hallway and into the garden. I'm shocked but not altogether surprised they have a maid – first time I've actually seen one in real life though.

Peeling out into the outdoors, I'm overwhelmed by the stretching land I see before me. The garden is decorated beautifully with fairy lights, heat lamps and lanterns as far as the eye can see... and that's quite a distance. We make our way over to the drinks table and grab champagne flutes from the trays in front of us.

"Sarah!" A deep, posh voice rings from behind us and we turn to see, who I assume to be Jacob. He's tall and perfectly turned out, from his side swept strawberry blonde hair to his perfectly shaped jaw. He reminds me of a young Prince Harry. He's wearing a button-down shirt and chinos.

"Hey Jakey!" She says, leaning into him for an air kiss and a hug. I watch as his eyes take me in, moving down my curves, before he removes himself from her embrace. I immediately feel uncomfortable.

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?" He asks, eyes darting between us all.

"Of course, this is Holly, Leila, Carly, Molly and Kerry." We each nod and wave a hello.

"Pleasure to meet you all..." his says, his eyes gazing back to me. "Please, make yourselves at home." He sweeps Sarah off to introduce her to a few of his friends and we stand awkwardly together.

"Bloody hell, Holly, he was looking at you like you were dinner!" Kerry jokes, and everyone giggles.

A little while later, James, Joseph and Mark arrive. They head straight towards us, and James immediately makes a beeline for Carly. We ask them how they know Jacob and whilst they tell us cheeky stories from school, I see Ben arrive at the door. He looks over and as our eyes lock, his jaw drops open. He regains composure quickly and as he makes his way over to our group, I smile into my champagne.

Sarah and Jacob return to the group just as Ben begins his hellos around the circle.

"Boys! Good to see you!" Jacob says animatedly, bringing each one in for a hug. They start reminiscing and the girls and I take our leave to a nearby table.

"These shoes are killing me!" I complain, as I sit down. I try stretching them out a little to stop them aching.

"Suck it up, they look good!" chides Sarah, and I turn my nose up. She's clearly trying to make a good impression with Jacob.

Another group of girls make their way over to our table and introduce themselves. The smallest of the three is blue-eyed Emma, followed by a quiet girl named Fiona, or "Fi" and then a tall, willowy blonde named Becca, who somehow looks familiar.

"Oh my gosh, Becca, Ben's here." says Emma, excitedly.

"Of course, he is – there's coke around." She jokes back.

"You guys know Ben?" I ask, trying to sound light but feeling confused.

"Oh yes... Becca and him have a bit of a thing going on!" Emma jokes.

Becca laughs. "Stop! You'll make me sound awful!"

I smile at her, but inside I am consumed with jealousy. So much so, that I almost forget her comment about coke. Then it hits me – of course, he does drugs... It's so obvious to me now. With a sinking feeling in my stomach, I sit and listen to their stories for a little longer before excusing myself for another drink.

Having secured yet another glass of champagne, I'm feeling a little tipsy. I set it on the wall to pull out a cigarette and out of nowhere, Ben appears, setting my insides aflame.

"Hey tiger, didn't expect to see you here. You look fucking amazing."

"Hi." I respond shortly.

"What's up with you?" He asks, confused.

"Nothing, was just chatting to those girls at our table." I say, motioning him in the direction of the three newbies.

"Okay..." he says, seemingly still puzzled by my annoyance.

"I hear you're pretty familiar with one of them?" I try to add casually.

"Yeah... so? I'm familiar with a lot of girls..." he says, and calmly takes another puff of his cigarette.

"Oh..." I say, the sinking feeling getting worse.

"What's up your arse tonight? You're being a bigger pain than normal." He sounds irritated.

"Nothing... just didn't expect to bump into one your conquests on my night out." I reply, shortly.

"There's quite a few... it'll likely happen again. Anyway, what's it to you? You're not my girlfriend..." his tone is mocking which sets me off.

"Thank fuck!" I respond quietly but angrily. I lift the champagne to my lips and down it in one.

"Look, sorry if –"

I shake my head. "Don't apologise to me. We're not friends, remember?"

I turn and hightail it back to my friends, trying to keep a big smile on my face. Inside I'm embarrassed and angry.

Far too many champagnes later and I've gone passed tipsy into Drunkville – population: me. In my attempt to forget my disagreement with Ben, I take my time to talk to some of the posh boys in attendance.

Jacob seems to be following me around quite a bit as well and is getting a little too handsy for my liking. I catch Ben staring over a few times but choose to ignore him. Becca seems to have fixed herself to his side and the two of them keep disappearing into the house. The sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach just won't disappear, no matter how many champagne glasses I drink. After he fails to reappear for quite some time, I finally decide I've had enough and make my excuses to leave early.

I book myself an Uber and, as I wait on the road for my cab to appear, Ben and Becca tumble out onto the driveway. They look absolutely wasted. I turn my head away from them, willing the cab to come quicker. I bite my lip to quell the emotions rising in me.

"Aww, leaving so soon?" Ben asks, sarcastically.

"Yep... nothing here for me." I reply, looking down at my phone.

He smirks and Becca snakes her arm around his waist and starts nibbling on his ear. The cab arrives and pulls up just in time, as I feel the tears brimming to the surface.

"Got room for two little ones?" He asks, mockingly.

"Afraid not. Enjoy the inevitable STDs." I spit out before jumping in. As we pull away, I hear Ben laughing as Becca asks, "What was that about?"


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