Chapter 19 Chapter 19 Green-Eyed Monster
Bella's POV
I stood with Kai and a few friends we'd come to watch the race with outside Chipotle. I'd just made Kai accompany me inside to buy a burrito bowl, and we'd finally finished.
To be honest, I'd noticed Kai had been wearing an uncomfortable expression the whole time, which annoyed me. What was he thinking about? Was he thinking about that bitch Aria again? Just the thought of that possibility made me uncomfortable.
"Aria!" Kai called out toward someone in the distance.
What?! My heart jumped violently, and I immediately turned around. Sure enough, I saw that bitch Aria walking past up ahead! What was she doing here?! What made me even angrier was that Kai was so excited to proactively greet her:
"Aria, what are you doing here? Did you come to watch the race tonight too?"
Watching Kai look so excited, I was seething with jealousy inside. No, I couldn't let her just walk away like this! I had to make sure everyone here knew just how shameless this woman was!
I saw Aria's footsteps pause, her face turning slightly to look in our direction. Her expression was very cold, clearly not planning to acknowledge us.
Hmph, trying to act aloof? I won't let you have your way!
I immediately stepped out from the crowd, directly blocking her path, deliberately raising my voice: "Oh my God, Aria! You're here too? You should've said something! I mean, we go to the same school and everything... and you used to have that huge crush on Kai, remember?"
I wanted everyone here today to know that Aria, this shameless woman, used to chase after Kai. But in the end? Kai still chose me! She was just a loser, a complete failure!
Sure enough, my friends all cast strange looks at Aria. I was secretly pleased, but before I could feel too smug, I heard Aria say coldly:
"Of course. I should actually thank you for that. You helped me realize that trash belongs with trash cans."
What?! She was calling me a trash can? Calling Kai trash?! This bitch! I was trembling with rage, wanting nothing more than to tear her mouth apart right then and there! But I had to maintain my image, couldn't lose composure in front of my friends.
Calm down, Bella, calm down! I took a deep breath and decided to change the subject. Right, that race we just watched at Badlands Circuit! The guys had been praising that female racer for how amazing she was. I could use this to show off in front of Aria, let her know we were no longer on the same level!
"Aria, you went to watch the race at Badlands Circuit tonight, right?" I immediately changed the topic.
Thinking about that thrilling race we'd just watched, and the boys' praise for that female racer, I felt confident. An outsider like Aria definitely wouldn't understand anything about racing!
"You saw that female racer, right? Oh my God, she was SO cool! The way she drove... I can tell you have no idea what was going on. Here, let me explain it to you..."
I launched into a detailed explanation, repeating everything the guys had explained to me earlier: "She was definitely falling behind Tyler on purpose at first... She did that so she could..."
As I spoke, I felt every cell in my body vibrating with excitement. I'd never seen such an thrilling race before! Now telling Aria about it, I wanted to see her look surprised and envious, see if she'd still dare to be arrogant in front of me!
But when I finished speaking and looked up at Aria again, I froze.
Besides coldness, there was no other expression on her face! She wasn't surprised at all?!
How could this be? Was she deliberately pretending not to care, when she was actually shocked to death inside? It must be that! She just didn't want to show weakness in front of me! What a fake bitch!
Just as I was thinking this, Aria let out a cold laugh.
Then, she lightly brushed a strand of hair aside, that exquisite, beautiful face carrying mockery as she slowly said:
"Thanks for that."
What?! Thanks... for that?!
My brain went completely blank. What did she mean by that? I'd clearly just been praising that female racer, so why would she say "Thanks for that"? Unless...
No. No way. That's impossible!
I stood frozen in place, feeling cold sweat break out on my back. Kai and my friends beside me also showed confused expressions, clearly also shocked.
But Aria didn't care about our reactions at all. Without even saying goodbye, she just turned and walked away.
"Ugh, whatever! She's totally bluffing!" One of the cheerleaders snapped out of it then, rolling her eyes at Aria's retreating figure.
Right, it must be that! I tried to calm myself down. How could someone as young as Aria possibly be that female racer! We totally got played. She was just showing off!
"Right, Bella?" The cheerleader seemed to want to please me, turning to ask me.
Inside, I hated Aria to death, wanted nothing more than to destroy her! But I had to maintain my gentle goddess image, could only nod softly at her: "Yeah... totally."
Aria, you're forcing my hand! Since you dare treat me this way, don't blame me for destroying you!