Thanks so much to sushinim for the cover above. I love the outfits in this ♡

Shoutout comment of Chapter 5 goes to felicityderos!! girl I feel you 😂 Felix got me bad

For the first time, I wasn't visiting Penelope Aldgate's home alone. Her apartment was the opposite of what I knew it to be, the clean and spacious rooms now a turbulent collection of garment bags and suitcases.

"Come in," she barked as I lingered in the doorway gaping at the mess. A few people dressed in uniform milled around, folding clothes and wheeling laundry carts.

"I need privacy, go!" she demanded to the staff, waving her arms around to catch their attention.

I tried not to cringe, and instead did my best to give them polite smiles as they passed me.

"What's going on?" I asked, putting my bag down and walking over to where Penelope stood with a piece of paper in her hand. Apparently, I wasn't the only one with unexpected mail today.

"You tell me!" She cried. And then I noticed the smudges beneath her eyes. "Cole gave me this stupid note. A note. He doesn't even write."

She tucked it back inside of her pocket.

"You saw him?"

She nodded, and slumped onto the sofa. "I don't know what's happening."

Neither did I, but I did my best to comfort her, sitting beside her and touching her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"He didn't break up with me," she said quickly, wiping her cheek with the back of her hand and attempting to compose herself. "If that's what you're thinking."

"Oh," I said, my confusion doubling. I felt like I was getting whiplash from being around her. She was unpredictable

"He's just... making me doubt everything. Doubt us."

"Why did he write to you when you're here?"

"I don't know! He's supposed to be here now, we were going to go for dinner but Poppy needs a ride to her swim meet and by the time they'll get home I'll be on my next flight."

"Look, I know long distance is tough, but..." I was about to point out how toxic it was to be so paranoid you needed to hire a spy for your boyfriend, but then I remembered it was her paranoia paying my rent. Did that make me a bad person? Probably. "You just need to give it some time. I'll be here to tell you anything that happens when you're gone, and in the meantime, why don't you write back? Write him a letter telling him how you feel."

"I don't know... it feels so stupid."

I looked at her watery eyes, her beautiful face crumpled.

"Well, guys can be stupid, okay? Don't let him ruin your time back here."

Her fingers scrunched around the hem of her blouse.

"You have to go to the party this weekend. The big one. It's really important, okay?"

"Um, okay," I said. "When is it?"

She shook her head "I don't know. But it's the middle-winter weekend, there's always this huge exclusive party spread by word of mouth, I haven't heard anything but I can't exactly ask about it now. You have to get an invite."

"How?"

She shrugged her thin shoulders. "I don't know. Find a date. Convince Felix. Just go, please, and watch Cole. I can't bear to not know what he... what happens there."

I gave her a long, sad, look, before biting my tongue and looking away. I felt so bad for her, a murky pool of guilt swirling in my chest. "I'll do it."

"I'll up your rate by half," she said. "It'll be worth it. I promise."

I gulped. That was a lot of money.

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me, it's nothing to me. I just need to make sure my relationship survives this."

It sounded like it was already gone. But, I tried to remind myself that the alternative to this job was extremely dire.

"Okay."

I noticed Sebastian's car outside of my apartment block when I got home. It was dark, and rain was gingerly scattering over the pavement, just picking up to a downpour as I knocked on the window. I heard the door unlock and slid inside.

"What are you doing here?"

"You weren't answering your phone."

I wasn't. It was dead, and I'd run out of credit and forgot to recharge after going to Penelope's.

"I thought you'd been stabbed for bus money or something," he joked, but I heard a break in his voice.

"No, I'm fine. I just had... work stuff."

"Did you get the letter?" he asked, tapping his thumbs against the steering wheel. I wondered how long he'd been waiting in this neighborhood. It was much more likely he'd be the one to be robbed for money, driving such a flashy vehicle on this street.

"Yes." I gritted my teeth. "Did you have any part in that?"

He sighed and I slumped in my seat.

"I wouldn't have done it if it wasn't important, Joselyn."

"This is exactly why I was avoiding you before. And you're doing it again." I reached for the door handle, but he'd locked me in. "Sebastian. Let me out."

"Not if you're pissed with me."

I glared at him.

He finally crumbled. "Fine. But I want you to come to dinner with me and Remy. I want to actually catch up with you, maybe keep some semblance of a relationship between us."

"Fine," I mimicked. When he unlocked the door, I was quick to exit. "But if you try anything, then that's it."

I shut the door heavily, wrapped my jacket tighter around my torso, and headed towards my building.

The next day in class, I tried something new. I sat at the front, second row. This would either end in two scenarios. The first, Felix would shrug it off and continue to sit at the back. This was probably the most likely. His infatuation should be wearing off by now, anyway.

The second, though, was that he'd join me, proving he was at least somewhat serious with his interest.

I unlaced the thick plaid scarf I'd had wrapped around my neck and took my seat. Students were already starting to file in, and I wondered if they'd observed my game of musical chairs the past few weeks. Probably not. I'd made such an effort before to blend in. The college experience wasn't exactly on my priority list. I was just another face in the crowd.

I updated Penelope on my plan and settled in, waiting for the professor to start his lecture, tapping my pen against the paper. Any minute now.

And, just in time to be late without being unfashionably so, the door opened and Penelope's gang came through the door. Cole, Poppy, Jada, and Felix. Felix.

His windswept hair was draped in jewels of rain, his dark eyes scanning the room beneath thick lashes. Finally, they landed on me.

Felix raised his eyebrows, hesitated long enough to give me a curious look, before winking and following his friends to the back of the classroom.

I released the breath I'd been holding. My plan had backfired. And now I wasn't even doing my job.

By Friday, the sky was thundering, the morning not even feeling like morning with the thick rainclouds that blocked the sun. And even worse, I was failing. I was still yet to even hold Felix's attention, let alone get an invite to this so-called exclusive party.

As if the universe was against me, my umbrella broke and my hood barely shielded the rain from falling into my eyes. I realized I'd forgotten my headphones by the time I got to the bus, the murmur of morning commuters torturous compared to the songs I'd queued up to get me through the ride.

And, this time I was the one running late to class.

Dodging puddles and letting the rain soak the tights I was wearing beneath my miniskirt, I trudged to class. I was already ready for the day to end, to curl up in bed in defeat by the time night fell. At this point, Cole could go enjoy his party. I could suffer the lack of a bonus.

With my hands shielding my face from the raindrops, I hit the chest of a tall figure lingering outside of the building. I let out a grunt, flying backwards before their hands caught me.

"Hey, Josie."

I pushed my hood from my eyes, waterdrops sticking to my fingers. "Oh, shit, sorry."

Felix's lips were cocked in a smirk, and he eyed me with amusement. "I was actually hoping to catch you. Just not literally."

I gave a sarcastic smile to mirror his, feeling embarrassed. Then a sliver of hope rippled inside of me. He was hoping to catch me. "You shouldn't stand in doorways."

"You should watch where you're going."

"Fair enough, I guess."

"Look," he said, running his hand down his backpack strap. Unlike me, he was completely dry. "I was wondering if you were doing anything tonight?"

Thank God. Internally, I sighed in relief. I was going to get my invitation.

"Uh, maybe. Why?" I tried to fasten my posture into an ever-cool slouch, but I was shivering slightly. Though we were under the roof, the air was freezing against my wet clothes.

Felix hesitated, and if I wasn't so anxious, I'd have been amused.

"I was wondering," he looked away, mussing his hair. "If you'd like to hang out. Dinner. Drinks, maybe even a movie—"

"Wait, like..." My voice trailed off as I stared at him with wide eyes.

"Yeah," he said, shrugging. "A date."