Pari would know what to do. And she was free-- he'd checked with her personal assistant. Or rather, he'd shot Sparrow a text to ask if she knew if Pari was up to anything, and she'd said no, and that was good enough for him. He'd risk her criticism of his strange fashion choices and emotional stupidity and in exchange for expediency. There was no point in hiding any of it from her anyways, not if they didn't do something quick. It was for this reason that he knocked firmly on her door this Thursday evening in some of his finest (read: "artsiest") party couture without bothering to try to clean up the black eyeliner that had turned his face into a raccoon. (edited)
peach — 06/29/2020 2:13 AM
The door to Parisa's room opened quietly and a member of the staff stood on the other side. She looked at Vic once, then again, the second time with more alarm. "S-sir?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:14 AM
"Oh, don't give me that look. Is she here?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:17 AM
"Princess," she called hesitantly into the room. "Vic is here to see you."
"Send him in and leave." Pari's voice echoed. The girl gave Vic an obedient curtsy and stepped inside, waiting for him to enter before taking her leave.
Vic ventured through the princess' suites, walking past the common area and her sunroom before following Pari's voice into her enormous bathroom, where she was wringing her hair out in the skin she used to condition it in whatever essences the staff brought over. Today, the whole place smelled of roses and camphor. Pari squeezed the last droplets out of her hair before tossing it over her shoulder, then turned to Vic and froze. "What the hell are you supposed to be? (edited)
plum — 06/29/2020 2:20 AM
He heaved an enormous sigh as he crossed the threshold. "I was /supposed/ to be hot. Forget about it."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:23 AM
"In what universe? Vic, you look like a drowned lemur." she gave his outfit a once-over. "... wearing Lady Gaga's cast-offs."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:25 AM
"Thank you, exactly what I was going for." He stood there, arms at his sides with palms pointed towards her. "Anything else you need to get out of your system?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:27 AM
"Just one tip: try to go for less of a kindergartener-raiding-mommy's-makeup-bag look next time." Parisa snorted. "Mala's gonna kill you."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:28 AM
"I took it from you, actually, so if you want to get mad at me for that now, go for it."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:29 AM
"No, I'm glad I could contribute to this work of art." she took a seat on the edge of her hairwashing tub, raising an eyebrow at him. "Is that it, you just wanted me to rate your look?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:31 AM
This actually got him to crack a bit of a grin, but he quickly sombered again. "No, um... I kind of need your help."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:32 AM
"Of course you do. What's up?"
"You know-- well, you might not know-- but anyway the sophomores were throwing that dumb after-finals party tonight?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:34 AM
"Yeah?" She crossed her arms. All of the parties went through Pari's radar, but she was notoriously choosy about which ones she attended. The sophomore post-finals bash certainly wasn't worthy of taking a spot in her schedule. "What about it?" (edited)
plum — 06/29/2020 2:35 AM
"Well I went, clearly."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:36 AM
"Like /that/? Jesus, Vic." (edited)
plum — 06/29/2020 2:36 AM
"Well, no! I looked better on the way out!" He was quick to protest.
peach — 06/29/2020 2:37 AM
She didn't look like she believed him. "Okay, so? You went to the party..."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:38 AM
He swallowed, fidgeting with his phone. "God, this is really embarrassing."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:38 AM
"What, did you puke on someone? Dance naked on a table?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:41 AM
"No... I might have started hitting it off with someone. And then found out that someone was indulging me as a joke. And someone has video of it."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:42 AM
Her eyes narrowed. "What happened, exactly?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:45 AM
"Well. You know how I mentioned that mystery crush like a week ago? I guess I misread the whole stupid thing."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:46 AM
"Vic, who was it?" she asked. "If you're being all coy because it's a guy or something, you can stop. I guessed a long time ago. And my brother's /gay/."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:46 AM
"Lucifer's gay?" He paused. "I guess that makes sense."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:47 AM
She paused, realizing that this was probably a secret. "Shit. Don't tell anyone, I don't think he wants it out there yet."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:50 AM
"Oh, it's fine, I won't tell. I kinda always wondered."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:50 AM
"Back to you," she said pointedly. "Who's this mystery crush and what did they do?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:53 AM
"Okay, first of all, it might've been Vinny Sonders, so hoorah, you were right, I guess. I mean, kinda."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:54 AM
"Vinny Sonders is a total fuckboy." She said in disgust. "He thinks /muscle tanks/ are the epitome of fashion. I'm pretty sure he still uses the word "swag" unironically."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:56 AM
"Okay, well sue me for thinking he might've had some depth to him!" He threw his hands up. "You know, like when someone's /so/ straight you get suspicious?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:57 AM
"No." she said flatly. "I find that people are exactly what they present themselves to be, just a lot more stupid than they think they are."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:00 AM
"The point of the matter is, it was a prank. And it was really kind awful. Like, I don't care, I should've known, it's whatever," he purported, with a growing expression that said he might have cared a little bit. "I just don't want everyone talking about the stupid video at school tomorrow."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:02 AM
"What happened?" She asked for the third time. "I can't fix it if I don't know what went down. Tell me everything you remember."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:07 AM
"I was just in some corner, he came up to me and I thought it was just us. He said he'd noticed me like," Vic's cheeks were hot. "Whatever, noticed my interest. The whole time, I thought he was flirting. Turns out he was just making fun of me. Then he /actually/ mocked me, and he brought you all into it, and then he and his dumb friend ran off with the stupid recording."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:07 AM
"What do you mean, he brought us into it?" her eyes slanted further.
plum — 06/29/2020 3:08 AM
"He was just talkin' shit, Pari."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:08 AM
"Do you have the recording?"
plum — 06/29/2020 3:09 AM
"No, but I'm sure it's started making its rounds. Or if it hasn't, it will soon. The hell am I supposed to do? He's in my stupid chem class tomorrow. I can't go to that class."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:10 AM
"Vic, what do you want me to do?" She rested her elbows on her knees. "Stop the video from circulating? Ruin his life? Run him out of the country?"
plum — 06/29/2020 3:11 AM
"You actually have ideas for all of those?"
peach — 06/29/2020 3:14 AM
"I mean, give me a day." she shrugged easily, expression taking on a wicked gleam. "Vinny's dad works for an engineering firm. I can have him demoted and transferred. His sister goes to big-name music school in America. Her reputation tanks, the family gets to deal with international backlash and she'll never find a job in the industry again. Vinny's started applying for colleges. It'd be easy enough to block him from getting a seat in Atherdale. If I can get my hands on that video, we can prevent him from getting a seat /anywhere/, especially if he shit-talked me or Kyros."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:16 AM
"Any clue onnn how to stop literally everyone from seeing that video?" He shifted his weight on feet. "Like maybe we could discredit it, right? Or um... make people talk about something else..?"
peach — 06/29/2020 3:17 AM
"Oh." She frowned. "If that's it, then yeah. Easy enough to discredit him. But I need to know what he said, first."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:18 AM
"All of it?" He cringed.
peach — 06/29/2020 3:18 AM
"I mean, yeah, that would be the place to start."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:24 AM
"Um, I don't remember it /all/, but... after he did his little shtick he basically just laughed in my face and said a lot of dumb shit about the way I dress and the fact that I'm always "chasing after the big kids" and "desperately mooching off of your limelight" or whatever."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:25 AM
Her expression contorted into a terrifying amusement. "Wait, seriously?"
plum — 06/29/2020 3:25 AM
"... yeah?"
peach — 06/29/2020 3:31 AM
"Vinny said that?" she sneered. "Vinny, who's been trying to get Kyros to hang out with him since freshman year? Vic, he's totally jealous."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:31 AM
"Of /me?/"
peach — 06/29/2020 3:34 AM
"You've literally been Kyros's friend since you were a baby." she dismissed. "God, it's so easy it's almost unfair. I'll just ask Kyros to cut him down really bad in front of everyone. And I can just shit talk his outfits for a couple of weeks and any time someone sees that video, the only thing they'll be able to think about is the pot calling the kettle black. God, Vinny's such a limp dick."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:35 AM
He laughed at her choice of words. "You were so ready to run his entire family's lives into the ground."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:37 AM
"I barely ever get to do it. The last time was that bastard, Kaynor." her eyes were dark with hatred, but she pushed herself off the tub and descended the stairs toward him. "No worries, Vic. It's easy enough to fix. And if you want the video down, I mean, where's he going to distribute it? Twitter? Just file a complaint with Mala's name attached and you're golden. It'll get passed around our school, probably, but again... he'll just look pathetic."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:39 AM
"Thanks... I'm glad you're on /my/ side."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:41 AM
She paused, standing next to him, and said, "Don't listen to limp dick Vinny, by the way. If I didn't want to hang out with you, you would know. Same for Kyros."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:42 AM
"You'd for sure tell me if I was annoying?" He asked, a rare moment of doubt flashing in his eyes.
peach — 06/29/2020 3:45 AM
"You're being annoying."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:47 AM
"Hey!"
peach — 06/29/2020 3:49 AM
She bumped his shoulder with hers and said, "The only bad thing is that you're gonna get outed. Do you care?"
plum — 06/29/2020 3:51 AM
"I mean, kinda. It wasn't really supposed to be a whole thing, at least not yet... it would've been nice to experiment in peace, you know? Don't want all the ladies to think I'm off the market all of a sudden because of some douchebag."
peach — 06/29/2020 3:53 AM
She frowned, thinking on it. Preventing Vic from being outed would be harder once that video started circulating. "It'd be easy enough to deny that you're into guys and make Vinny look like a desperate loser, but I don't think you want all the guys to think you're off the market either."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:54 AM
"This is balance is harder to keep than I expected."
peach — 06/29/2020 4:00 AM
"I mean, I could just set you up on a blind date with a girl so that everyone knows you're still available."
plum — 06/29/2020 4:00 AM
He raised his eyebrows. "Got anyone in mind?"
peach — 06/29/2020 4:01 AM
She scrutinized him. "Ina has a little sister in the grade below you. Know her?"
plum — 06/29/2020 4:01 AM
"I've heard of her..." he offered.
peach — 06/29/2020 4:02 AM
"She's cute, kind, open-minded. Idolizes Sparrow so she's a good kid. And you can get rid of her easy after the first date because she's so sweet."
plum — 06/29/2020 4:03 AM
"Man, that was so wholesome until the last sentence."
peach — 06/29/2020 4:04 AM
"All I mean is, she's easy to get rid of." Pari shrugged. "And hey, it's not like you're the love of her life. She'll find a dude, or a chick, or whatever. She gets the experience and you'll get to showcase your availability. Win-win."
plum — 06/29/2020 4:05 AM
"Yeah, it's not the worst." He agreed. "You think you could actually set it up? Won't she wonder why you're asking?"
peach — 06/29/2020 4:05 AM
"No, I'll just drop a hint that you're looking to mingle." she shrugged. "Don't worry about it."
plum — 06/29/2020 4:06 AM
"Alright," he allowed. "I know you have your ways."
peach — 06/29/2020 12:30 PM
"I do," she agreed blissfully as he followed her out the door.
plum — 06/29/2020 1:12 PM
"By the way... can I borrow something to get this off?" He motioned to his face. "It's enough that all your staff had to see me looking like the Winter Soldier."
peach — 06/29/2020 1:19 PM
She glanced at him again and laughed, pointing back at the bathroom. "Yeah, go to the vanity and there'll be a pad of makeup wipes."
plum — 06/29/2020 1:26 PM
"Thanks," he muttered, going to retrieve them. He returned with a much fresher face, heaving another sigh as he came to a halt in the bathroom doorway. "Did you have plans?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:02 PM
"No, but by that multitude of sighs I'm guessing you want a distraction?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:06 PM
"Please. I'm trying to avoid adding that memory to the 2am embarrassing memory playlist. Do you even have one of those?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:07 PM
"What, an embarrassing memory playlist?" she leaned against the back of a divan in the center of her room. "Vic, the trick to not having embarrassing memories is to never be embarrassed. I have no shame. It makes life a lot easier."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:07 PM
"Well, it's not for lack of /trying./"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:08 PM
Her lips twisted to the side as she thought on his plight for a moment. "Yeah, I guess it sucks to not be one of the most powerful people in the world. Glad I'm not you!"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:12 PM
He rolled his eyes with a good-natured scoff. "I do an okay job, I think. I'm not actually that worried about people in general, it's more like..."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:13 PM
She waited for him to continue, swinging over to the other side of the divan and settling on the cushions.
plum — 06/29/2020 2:14 PM
"I don't know, the context of it all. I wasn't ready to talk about it with everyone. And by everyone, I guess I just mean the crew."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:16 PM
She patted the seat beside her, waiting for him to come over before asking, "Am I the first one to know?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:19 PM
"Yeah, basically," he scoffed. "I mean, I was gonna tell you first anyway, but."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:20 PM
Pari tried to tamp down the satisfaction she felt at his answer, but she couldn't deny that knowing Vic would turn to her first stroked her ego some. She pressed her lips together and gave him a short nod. "Well... you know everyone will be nice about it? I don't think anyone would make it a big deal except for Sparrow, and she'll probably make you cookies or something, so it's not a bad idea for her to know."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:27 PM
"Well, Feofil's family is all like conservative Catholic Russians, so... And Kyros was just kind of a wild card to me. I knew Sparrow would be chill, and Mirza honestly probably doesn't care."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:29 PM
"Kyros is a good guy." she said. "He'd make fun of you for your hair and your makeup and your clothes, but not because you wear makeup or choose certain clothes. And he's definitely not homophobic. And Saskia's best friends with Lucifer. I dunno if she knows that he's gay, but I have my doubts that she'd care. She's also been looking after you since you were a kid." (edited)
plum — 06/29/2020 2:31 PM
"I know. I also don't know what my mom's gonna say. If anything, I think she'll just tell me not to tell my grandparents." He said, then mused after a pause, "And I promise I really was killing the eyeliner before shit went down."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:32 PM
"Well, we'll never know, unless you have pictures." she noted. "... Vic, don't worry about the gang. We've known each other since we were kids. I promise you this will pass like a fart in a windstorm."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:34 PM
"Interesting metaphor," he laughed, unlocking his phone and finding the photo app before showing her a selfie he'd taken with Delaney Cox as they rolled up to the party. "See? It was tasteful. Rockstar."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:41 PM
She scrutinized the picture for a moment, then said. "Mm. Wings aren't symmetrical but it's a good first try. Delaney, though. Someone tell that girl to stop laying it on so thick. Her eyes look beady."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:44 PM
"Listen, at least she tried," he took a second look at the picture. "Although yeah, that is a really questionable shade of orange. Her face looks like a construction zone."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:47 PM
"Yeah, that spray tan? I'd rather go for a regular tan and risk the skin cancer than look like that."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:49 PM
"At least I could be confident she wasn't upstaging me in the looks department." He decided.
peach — 06/29/2020 2:49 PM
"Yeah, standing next to her you look like a 7 at least." she agreed. "Was the party fun, other than Vinny?"
plum — 06/29/2020 2:50 PM
"Excuse you," he tucked his phone away. "I'm definitely at least an eight. And meh. It was fine. My expectations weren't super high to begin with."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:51 PM
"Seven point four." she bartered. "Asymmetrical eyeliner. And hey, we can do something that'll be more fun than that stupid party."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:52 PM
"Not a hard thing to do," he looked to her. "What'd you have in mind?"
peach — 06/29/2020 2:53 PM
"We can always go bother Kyros." she suggested. "I think he's just studying or prepping for something or whatever. Or we can go play that VR zombie game."
plum — 06/29/2020 2:55 PM
"Oh, I forgot that came out last week."
peach — 06/29/2020 2:55 PM
"Miz hasn't let me forget." she rolled her eyes. "But whatever, it looks fun and I like shooting things."
plum — 06/29/2020 3:51 PM
"Let's go kick some zombie ass, then!"