One Night
One Night 58

Chapter 58

Audrey

I couldn’t stop grinning for the rest of the night, and even as we left the bar, the excitement of our win was still buzzing through my veins. We had done it. After everything-after all of the hardship, the sabotage, and the drama-we had actually won the competition!

“I still can’t believe it,” Betty giggled, linking her arm through mine as we walked.

“Yeah, well, believe it,” Avis said, throwing her arm around Betty’s shoulders. “We deserved that win!”

Gavin, stretching his arms languidly, added. “And now, some much-needed rest.”

Tina laughed in response. “Not tonight. The party has only just begun

I raised an eyebrow at my friend. It was nearly midnight. But before I could protest, Tina was already pulling out her phone and shoving an email confirmation for a large pizza order in my face..

“You thought you could get out of spending the night partying?” she cooed. “I already ordered pizza. We’re having a sleepover.”-

Gavin sputtered. “I can’t stay with a bunch of girls-

“No whining, Gavin,” Avis teased. “You’re one of us now.”

“One of us!” Betty chanted, eliciting us to join. “One of us!”

With that settled, we stumbled back to my dorm, laughing and cheering the whole way. Tina was right; as soon as we got inside, the real party began. The pizza arrived, we changed into pajamas, and before it knew it, we were even drunker off of more bottles of wine.

We spent the night playing ridiculous party games, watching cheesy rom-coms, and eating our weight in junk food. It was exactly what we needed after the stress of the competition.

As the night wore on, most of the group started to doze off. I was in the communal dorm kitchen, microwaving another bag of popcorn, when I suddenly heard the sound of a throat clearing behind me. Turning, I saw Tina standing in the doorway with her hands on her hips.

“Hey,” I said with a grin. “I wanted more popcorn.”

“I can see that.” She sauntered over to the counter and hopped up onto it, swinging her legs ever so slightly as she watched me. The sound and smell of fresh popcorn filled the room, and once the microwave went off, I pulled out the steaming bag and emptied it into a bowl

“So,” Tina suddenly said, a mischievous glint in her eye. “Are you going to tell me about your secret boyfriend now?”

I nearly choked on the piece of popcorn I was eating. She hadn’t seen me kissing Edwin earlier right? “What secret boyfriend?”

Tina rolled her eyes. “Come on, Audrey. The mysterious male model? The one you were talking to alone in that room? Your face was all red when I found you.” She wiggled her eyebrows at me. “You don’t have to hide it from me. I get it if you didn’t want anyone to know because of Gavin’s feelings.”

shook my head, trying to keep my expression neutral despite myself. Things with Edwin were complicated, to say the

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Chapter 58

least, but he wasn’t my boyfriend. And he likely never would be. Tina,” I laughed, waving my hand, “I promise you, he’s not my boyfriend.

“Really?” Tina’s face lit up, and she slid down from the counter. “Oh, thank the Goddess. Because he was seriously hot, and I was hoping to get his number.”

My stomach dropped. “You… You want his number?”

“Of course I do.” Tina grinned. “Did you see the way he was looking at me during the show? There was definitely some chemistry there.”

Her words made my heart momentarily stop in my chest. I gripped the edge of the counter behind my back like it was a lifeline, trying to hide the sudden wave of jealousy that washed river me.

Edwin wasn’t interested in Tina… Was he? Surely, even if she did somehow manage to get in touch with him, they wouldn’t.. “L.. I don’t think that’s a good idea, Tina.”

Tina’s smile faltered. “Why not? Wait a minute.” She narrowed her eyes, leaning in to study my face a bit closer. “Audrey, what aren’t you telling me?”

I bit my lip pointedly avoiding her gaze. “It’s nothing, really.”

“B**it, Tina said, crossing her arms. “I know you, Audrey. You’re hiding something, Spill.”

Tina’s gaze practically bored twin holes into my skull. She was always too astute when it came to me-always able to tell when I was lying. I took a deep breath, knowing I couldn’t keep this secret from her any longer.

“Okay, fine. The model… It was Edwin.”

Tina’s jaw dropped. “Edwin? As in, our professor Edwin? As in, your..” She lowered her voice. “…One night stand, Edwin?”

I nodded, bracing myself for her reaction. For a moment, there was nothing but silence as Tina processed my confession. And then, her face, usually so soft, twisted into a hard scowl.

“Are you f**ng kidding me?” Tina hissed, keeping her voice low so as not to be overheard by prying ears. “Audrey, do you know how much trouble we could get in if anyone found out? It’s his company who was hosting the fashion show!”

“I know, I know,” I said, holding up my hands placatingly. “But it’s not like we really had much of a choice. Our other model bailed at the last minute, and Edwin offered to help. He promised he doesn’t have any say in the judging process, so I figured..”

Tina shook her head, her expression a combination of disbelief and anger. “I just can’t believe you didn’t think to tell me. This affects all of us, Audrey, What if someone replaces out and we get disqualified?”

“No one will replace out-

“Linda has been after us since day one. What makes you think she wouldn’t replace out and spread the news everywhere?” There was another silence after that. I felt my shoulders slump: Tina was right, of course. Linda was practically leering over our shoulders every chance she had. Hell, she could have been listening now.

Look. I’m sorry,” I said, feeling a lump form in my throat. “I wanted to tell you and the others, but Edwin made me promise to keep it a secret. That’s why I had you both wear mask”

You could have at least told me. Tina snapped. “We’re supposed to be best friends. If you’re going to do something that

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Chapter 58

could get us disqualified from the fashion show, then you should at least tell me.”

“I know we’re best friends,” I insisted, reaching out to her. “Tina, please-

But Tina pulled her hand away and stepped back, shaking her head. “I need some air. I can’t… I can’t deal with this right now. Goodnight, Audrey.”

Before I could say anything else, she turned and walked out of the kitchen. I heard the metal door at the end of the hallway open and close a moment later, and then she was gone.

Once she was gone, I slumped against the counter, feeling like the worst friend in the world. Tina and I had never fought before. We had always been able to tell each other everything, and we had promised to tell each other everything. And now, because of one s**id secret, I might have ruined our friendship

At the very least, I might have made her mad at me for a long time. Tina wasn’t exactly the most forgiving person in the world.

I quickly pulled out my phone, my fingers hovering over the keyboard as I tried to think of what to say. Finally, I typed out a

message:

“Tina. I’m so sorry, Can we please talk about this?”

I hit send and waited, my heart pounding. The message showed as delivered, then read. But no response came.

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