"So much has happened in one day, you for real dated Cullen?" Peaches whispered as she poured all of them a drink. She had invited them to the kitchen with her, and being here, Renee was starting to understand why Peaches enjoyed spending her leisure time in the kitchen so much.
The warmth here felt more homely in comparison to other places in the house. Naya and Levana were seated opposite her, sipping their drinks mildly while waiting for Renee to gist with them about how that even happened. Cullen Von Stein was more of a player, he never really settled with one woman, never, and to think Renee fell into his trap, well, he was painfully handsome, and a good actor, so they weren't really sure about why they were still taken aback by it.
"Can we not talk about it?" Renee didn't hesitate to chug her drink in one go, and she grimaced at the bitter-sour taste.
"First timer?" Naya tilted an eyebrow, noticing her expression, and Renee didn't need anyone to tell her that she just took a drink containing alcohol down her throat.
She coughed from the aftereffect, hitting her chest lightly, but none of that matters now, cause in the end, she was a fool, both in this life, and her previous one. It didn't taste good to be honest, she always wondered how people even drank this every day, but tonight, they seemed like the perfect drink to go with her current emotions.
"One more." She offered the cup to the reluctant Peaches, asking for another shot.
"Okay, but you really should slow down on the intake, you could get… wait!– what did I just say?" Peaches managed a concerned frown when she emptied the cup again, her face contorted once more from the taste.
"Girl, you have it down bad." Naya sipped her drink and shifted her gaze to the dummy Peaches, "and will you stop giving it to her? If she tells you to cut off her arm and make arm soup, will you do it? Don't give her more, or she'll get drunk, and you'll have to take care of her if she does."
"You don't have to say it so strictly," Peaches grumbled as she kept the bottle aside.
She turned her attention to Renee who was leaning against the table now, and she had to admit that she felt bad to see her in this situation. Lord Cullen was not a good person, and if Robinson hadn't stepped in, she couldn't have imagined what scheme Cullen would have orchestrated for the innocent lady tonight.
"Are you okay?" She asked softly, "I know we're still trying to familiarize ourselves with each other, but you'll feel a lot better if you let some of that pain out with us, even better when you do it with strangers." She added with certainty.
"I just…" Renee ran her fingers into her hair as her voice cracked, and she tried to laugh it away, but it faltered even before she could try, "I'm a fool."
"No you're not."
"How blind was I to trust him?" She blinked back her tears, sniffing it into obscurity, "we've known each other since college, he made me believe his name was Caden Warnace, and he said his parents lived overseas. We were friends for more than a year, and dated for a year after that. Cyrus warned me but, God, how could I have been so blind to his true nature?"
"Lord Cullen has multiple identities, It's not your fault you didn't know about the Von Stein mafia lineage, it's a name filled with many dark untold secrets, not everyone knows, I didn't until a few days ago." Naya used herself as a reference, and Levana quietly took a sip of her drink.
"Here is some advice from someone who has been in, well, multiple toxic relationships. Don't waste your tears for men like them, they aren't worth a single drop." She whispered, "I know it'll be difficult to face him, as he's the leader and all, but don't give him a chance to see you like this, he's gonna think he still has some effect over you, and you don't want to pleasure him with that disadvantage, do you?"
"No, but these past few weeks have not been easy for me." Renee shook her head, doubting she can still hold on to this grief, "I've been having it rough lately, even before the chaos and now, my brother won't even talk to me, but he needs to understand that I had no choice at that point."
"Ladies, sorry to interrupt." Lysander's quiet voice interjected the moment, and everyone adjusted when he stepped into the kitchen. A concerned frown settled on his face upon noticing Renee's condition; empty cup, the faint smell of alcohol, flushed face, drooping eyelids.
He quickly moved to her table, picking up her glass and sniffing it.
"How bothersome." He muttered underneath his breath, then proceeded to hold her wrist. "Get up, I need you to come with me."
"No." She freed her hand from his grip and picked up her cup. Ignoring his presence entirely, she turned to Peaches with her index finger raised, "just one more shot, one more and I promise I won't ask for more."
"Don't listen to her nonsense, Renee, up." Lysander tried to make her listen to him, but she wouldn't budge.
Peaches was conflicted, but she didn't dare give more to Renee, not after seeing what three shots had done to her already. However, the three lady's mouths hung agape when Lysander picked her up from the chair after her constant refusal to go anywhere with him. Clearly, he's had enough of trying to convince her and just swooped for the win.
Their eyes followed as he carried her up the stairs, despite her struggle to free herself from his relentless grip.
"I'd do anything to be hoisted away like that." Commented Levana, and Peaches immediately bought the idea.
"Maybe if I get drunk too, Bobby will carry me all the way upstairs like a princess."
"Delusional," Naya rolled her eyes as muttered the word 'fools' inwardly, "let's just hope she'll be alright by morning, it's not easy for her, neither is it easy for us so in the meantime, everyone should use tonight to pour out their feelings and mourning and whatever, cause I don't need this emotional shit starting tomorrow."
"You sound so cold when you say the most sweet things." Peaches rose from the table to arrange the kitchen.
"I'll help." Levana joined her in cleaning.
Upstairs, Lysander successfully brought Renee to her room. He dropped her to her feet and closed the door so she wouldn't walk out on him. He assumed she was going to put up a fight, she seemed like the type with that particular kind of habit, but to his thwarted expectations, she just moved to her bed and sat quietly.
Lysander strolled to the lamp table where a jug of water and a glass cup was placed. He poured some of it into the cup and made his way to where she sat, handing her the cup of water.
"Here, drink this."
"Drinking water alleviates the symptoms of alcohol," she answered, sounding unusually not like herself, and she shook her head, moving his hand away, "I don't want it."
He could see she was fighting back tears, and once again, she proceeded to do as she pleased, getting on the bed fully and curling herself like a newborn baby. She closed her eyes, feigning sleep, and Lysander refused to leave, not until she answered him.
"Are you sure you want to play this game with me? For your information, I can do this all night." And he grabbed a chair, making himself comfortable while watching her, but what he didn't expect was to hear her quiet sobs, and that threw him off-guard.
She pressed a pillow to her face, attempting to hide it, but the way her shoulders shook and trembled told him more than enough.
"Just leave me alone." Her voice was low and dispirited.