Touch her and I'll kill you

She's mine.

   When the evening of Veronica's party came to pass, Mira lay in her bed watching snap stories of the event.

   Did she regret not going?

   A little. There was free alcohol and she was missing out on all the fun. She may not have liked Veronica, but she definitely liked to party.

   She had't spoken to Veronica at all since their phone call and it didn't surprise her that Veronica hadn't made an attempt to speak to her either. Betty had called Mira to ask what had happened between them and Mira had told her everything. Surprisingly, Betty had believed her, despite the fact Veronica had been running around telling her immediate friends what a psycho Mira was. However, Mira made Betty keep things quiet. She didn't need more drama. She hadn't even told Hiram about what had happened, afraid of what he would do if he found out.

   The one person Mira had personally reached out to was Cheryl who, when asked about Nick, denied even having heard of him. Mira guessed she didn't want to bring up past memories of what had occurred between them and she didn't blame her. She just wished someone would expose Nick. 

   Suddenly, she heard a honk outside her house. Curious, she peaked out her bedroom window and saw Reggie's pickup in her driveway. 

   "What the hell," she said before grabbing her phone off her bed and dialling his number. "What the hell are you doing outside my house?"

   "Get ready, you're coming to the party," Betty said from the other end of the call.

   "Betty?"

   "Tony found out about what happened between Nick and Cheryl. Needless to say, she was pissed," Betty said. "She set up some plan to expose Nick and wants you to be there when it happens."

   "Why me?"

   "I kind of told her he tried to do it to you too," Betty admitted. "I'm sorry."

   "Don't be, this is great. Give me fifteen, I'm coming," Mira said before hanging up. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" she screamed in happiness, throwing a dress and heels on. She didn't even care about her hair and makeup at this point, she was just so happy she practically sprinted out of the house and to Reggie's pickup. Where were her parents, some of you might be wondering? Conveniently as absent as ever.

   Mira stepped into the backseat of the pickup where Reggie and Betty welcomed her from the front seats, while Valerie shifted over to give her a seat beside her. 

   "Oh, hey Valerie. I haven't seen you in a while," Mira said, putting her seatbelt on.

   "Yeah, that's usually how it goes," she said. "You know I dated Archie for a bit, but no one remembers."

   "Oh, why'd you two break up?"

   "It wasn't relevant to the storyline anymore," she shrugged. "I disappeared after that, no one knows where I went."

   "But, they can't just cut you out like that without a good, well planned out explanation. Can they?"

   "Yes they can. I'll show you," Valerie said before jumping out of the window. 

   "Valerie!" Mira screamed. "Reggie stop the truck!"

   "It's fine, Mira," Reggie shrugged. "It's bad writing, just accept it. She'll be back when the storyline needs her again."

   "But Reggie, you're not that relevant in the new season. Do you think they'll cut you off?" Betty asked. 

   "I'm the only Asian, I make the show diverse. They wouldn't dare," Reggie said. 

   The three enjoyed bonding montage music as they drove to Veronica's house. When they arrived, the party was at its peak. The house was swarming with extras who danced poorly and offbeat to the blaring copyright free music. Slideshows of Veronica's face were set up around the house where people stood in small groups drinking out of red solo cups. Random couples made out in the hallways while all the single people played spin the bottle in the living room. It looked like a basic, average, high school movie party. 

   Mira wondered where Hiram was during all this. She noticed his office door was closed, but the lights inside were on and shining through the opening underneath the door. She watched as a couple looking for a private room tried to open the door, only to find it locked. He must have been inside. 

   "What the hell are you doing here?" Veronica said with a raised eyebrow as she looked Mira up and down with attitude. 

   Mira grabbed a red solo cup from a passing extra and downed whatever was in it in one gulp. "I'm here for an apology."

   Veronica scoffed and folded her arms over her chest as a group of mean girls assembled behind her while a different group of mean girls assembled behind Mira. So this was how it was going to be. A good old catfight, teen movie style. 

   "You're obviously looking in the wrong place if you think you're going to find one here," Veronica said. 

   "For someone whose character is built around female empowerment, you're really quick to throw everything away for a guy," Mira said. 

   "You're really going to bring up my character? You don't even have a proper description or background! Where the hell are your parents, Mira?! What's your last name?! How old are you?!"

   "No one cares about that stuff, Veronica! Why do you keep calling your dad daddy?! It makes the rest of us uncomfortable!" 

   "You know what, Mira? You can't sing or dance."

   "Neither can you!" Mira exclaimed. "Or anyone else in this town except for Valerie and Josie, but God knows where they went! Just stop with the random musicals! They're all bad!"

   Veronica gasped. "You take that back!" 

   Suddenly, the dj in the background paused the music to make an announcement. "Excuse me, if I could have your attention. Please direct your attention to your nearest projection screen for a very special video brought to you by Maybelline. Maybe she's born with it, maybe it's Maybelline. Alright, now for the actual video. Viewer discretion is advised."

   The projection screens that projected Veronica's face were now projecting a video from inside a bedroom that seemed to be filmed by a hidden camera. In the video, Nick and Tony seemed to be having a heated argument. Suddenly, Nick grabbed Tony by the waist and tried forcing her to get on the bed. 

   "Oh my god," Veronica said, staring at the screen in disbelief. 

   Tony fought back, but only for Nick to shove her up against the wall. However, before he could do anything, Cheryl and her cheerleaders burst through the door and pushed Nick to the ground before the camera shut off. 

   "I hope you enjoyed the video," the dj said. 

   Mira didn't have to wait long for Veronica to express guilt. It was clear how she felt when she turned to look at Mira with watery eyes and a trembling jaw. 

   "Mira," Veronica said. "I'm so sorry I didn't believe you. I've known Nick all my life, I didn't think he was capable of all this."

   "It's not your fault, Veronica," Mira said. 

   "It had to be done for entertainment purposes," Betty said. 

   "Still, I'm sorry you had to go through this," Veronica said, pulling Mira into a hug. "I'm so sorry for what he did to you."

   "I accept your apology," Mira said, returning the hug. Now that things were settled, Mira wanted nothing more than to get drunk, party, and forget everything that had happened. However, looking over Veronica's shoulder and past the crowd of people, she found the one person she didn't want knowing about the situation. Judging by his cold expression and the hand he ran down his face as he processed everything, she knew he had heard everything. The night was far from over. 

   When the music and party started back up again, Mira only got to enjoy a few minutes of it before she got a text from Hiram telling her to go upstairs. After making sure no one was looking, she hurried up the stairs and into his room. He was pacing by the window with a half-empty glass of whiskey in his hand before he looked at her with a look so angry, so full of rage, she almost ran out the door in fear for her life.

   "How could you not tell me, Mira?" he spoke, his voice so low and cold she got chills up her back and down her arms. 

   "I was afraid you were going to be angry," she said. 

   "Angry?" he said. "I'm fucking furious!"

   She cowered against the door at the sound of his voice. "That's why I didn't tell you. I didn't want you doing anything crazy. I got out of his car before anything could happen."

   "Why were you in his car?"

   "My battery died again. He offered me a ride home and I agreed. I didn't know he was going to try and-"

   "Why didn't you come to me?"

   "We were already outside and I didn't think-"

   "Did he touch you?"

    "Technically yes, but not in that way. He didn't get that far."

    "Hm," was all he said, the room growing quiet as he looked down at his drink in deep thought. She prepared herself for his imminent outburst of anger, she prepared for him to throw his glass against the wall, she prepared herself for the worst, but all she got was a calm. "Okay."

   "Okay?" she repeated. Was that it? Was that his big reaction? That was all he could say?

   "Okay," he repeated, his voice clear and crisp as he drank the rest of his drink. Needless to say, she was more than surprised by his reaction. He didn't even care. He didn't even bat an eye. To make it worse, he added, "You should head back to the party."

   Well, she decided, if he didn't care then neither would she. She would enjoy her night instead of worrying over something that already happened. "Sure," she said, turning to leave and join her friends. It was finally time for booze and partying.

   "Mira," he said, stopping her before she could take a step out the door. "One more question."

   "Yes?"

   "Do you know where Nick is?"

   "No," she said, her heart sinking as a feeling of dread washed over her. "Why?"

   "No reason," Hiram said. "Close the door on your way out."