Chapter 9 – Cindy’s Party Pt two

Harmoni

The party was going on in full swing. The music was loud—I was surprised the police hadn't been called yet. Some people were making out, others were dancing, while the lightweights were already emptying their stomachs behind trees.

Not even five minutes in, I finally understood why Cindy's parties were deemed legendary. Glancing around, she clearly liked to show her wealth through these parties. I could see ice sculptures, dancers, drinks, food, and a DJ. Basically, anything for a successful party and more. As expected, most of the student body was here.

Some drunk person bumped into my shoulder, making me lose sight of Emily for a minute. I could feel my heartbeat quicken, feeling memories flood my mind. I swallowed hard as my throat tightened. I held my hand on the wall, keeping me upright as I started feeling overwhelmed by the number of people around.

"Hey girly, are you okay?" Emily asked, appearing in front of me. Her face showed traces of concern over my sudden loss of balance.

Although I was starting to feel anxious, the look on Emily's face made me keep this feeling to myself. I could get through this. It's just a party, right?

"I'm fine, Em, let's keep going," I smiled at her. I watched as her worry was slowly replaced by excitement.

If I wanted to get these nerves down, I would need a drink, or two. Hopefully, by the time I would need to leave, I would have mostly sobered up.

When we finally hit the equivalent of the bar, I opted for a Gin Tonic. GT had always been my guilty pleasure. I had always loved how it tasted. I could barely feel the alcohol in the drink, which usually led me to drink too much. I was going to have to be careful this time.

Looking around, I saw Cindy laughing with a group of friends. I rolled my eyes at their attires. Their dresses or shirts were clearly from a luxurious brand, the watches and jewelry were massive and eye-catching. Everything about them screamed money.

I was glad to have been invited, and I would try to enjoy myself, but this didn't change anything about how I felt about them. I hated people that flaunted their money daily. I mean, you could have money, you just didn't need to have the constant need of rubbing it in other people's faces.

We made our way towards her and wished her a happy birthday. She thanked us rapidly before turning her back to us and continuing her conversation.

That being done, it was time to have some fun.

We hit the dance floor. Swinging our hips to the beat and singing the lyrics to the songs we knew. The alcohol was doing wonders to suppress my anxiety, and I was glad to see that I didn't have a panic attack from the crowd. Strangely enough, I didn't mind it that much. It actually felt great, I was having a splendid time. I would probably remember this moment for a long time.

I looked at Emily; she was smiling from ear to ear. I loved seeing her this happy. It was contagious. I realized that I hadn't had this much fun in a very long time. I guess coming to this party wasn't such a bad idea after all.

William

Once we had arrived at the house, we spread out, each covering an angle of the house to be sure we would always have an eye on her at all times. It wasn't easy due to the size of the house, but we had somehow managed. I overlooked the dance floor and a part of the garden as well as their living room while Logan watched over the kitchen and dining room and Benjamin was in charge of the second floor in case she wandered there. Let's hope not.

Luckily for us, she mostly moved from the dance floor to the kitchen and then back to the dance floor.

During the escape, I hadn't looked at her properly because I didn't want her to notice she had been caught, but seeing her now, she looked stunning. Her dress stuck to her body and showed off her curves while complimenting her skin color. Curves she was currently swaying to the music while pushing a strand of hair out of her face. Sexy was definitely a word I would use to describe her. ~Snap out of it.~

It didn't matter that she was legal; I could not be having these thoughts about the person I was put in charge of protecting. This was all kind of unprofessional, and I couldn't afford that. I wouldn't let myself become that kind of person. I took my job seriously. I wouldn't have made it this far if I didn't. This time wasn't going to be any different.

Looking back at her, she seemed happy. I could see she had quite a few drinks already so I was hoping she wouldn't get any more, but I couldn't stop her either.

A blond guy started approaching them on the dance floor and wrapped his arms around Harmoni’s waist, effectively making them dance back to front. Harmoni didn’t seem to mind. She just smiled at him and started dancing more seductively, throwing her hands back and wrapping them around his neck while she moved against him. My jaw clenched and my hands turned to fists. I couldn’t help the growl that escaped my mouth at the sight of them dancing together.

"You okay, man?" Benjamin asked through the earpiece. Just my luck, of course, they had heard that.

"All good. Just wondering how she plans to get back in that state,” I covered up.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there,” I heard Benjamin answer.

Just when I was about to answer, she walked out from the dance floor hand in hand with the boy I had seen her dancing with earlier that evening. They moved to one of the couches in the garden. ~Great.~ Now I had to watch her while he stuck his tongue in her throat. I was glad to be out of earshot. I didn't need the extra sound effect.

On the dance floor, Emily had found her own dancing partner and was currently happily grinding against him.

Soon enough, the garden cleared out as people made their way back to the dance floor, leaving Harmoni and this guy alone. I'm pretty sure they didn't notice; they were too preoccupied. I saw him whisper something in her ear, and her eyes widened slightly. They kept on kissing, but somehow something seemed off. I wasn't exactly sure what it was until he ripped her dress from the top, exposing her bra.

I saw red. What the fuck did this asshole think he was doing?

Within seconds, I was beside her. As I got closer, I could see the tears in her eyes and how terrified she truly was. She kept trying to push him away, but her small frame had nothing on him.

I grabbed the back of his neck roughly and threw him off of her and onto the ground.

"What the fuck, man?" he said, stumbling backward. His eyes landed on me, and he gulped visibly. I was not a student, nor was I in any mood to be friendly. It took everything in me not to beat him to a pulp.

"If I ever see you anywhere near her, I will rip you to pieces," I hissed threateningly, my anger and hatred dripping from every word. Truth is, I was only half-joking. A look of fear appeared on his face as he quickly scrabbled to his feet and rushed back inside.

By now, Harmoni was full-out sobbing. The strap of her dress was torn, and her body was shaking. This was a far cry from the jovial girl I had seen dancing a few minutes ago.