"I hide behind the scenes! And cry! You don't hear me! But I sing! For you!" The Fifth Octave boys sang on stage to the BOOMS of the music, all smiling and full of energy. "I hide behind the scenes! And fight! For a love! That might one day! Happen!"
The people in the pool area were going crazy, jumping and cheering for the new band.
"Hey, can I stay and watch the show?" Melody asked.
"No! Walk!" Jade pushed her hard. "This is what you get this for trying to scare me and trying to keep me away from my boys."
"Your boys?!" Melody asked, walking forcefully with every push Jade gave her, "You are such a fool, Jade! I don't even know what they saw in you." Melody said, looking at Jade defiantly over her shoulder. "You're a blank page. You can't even be true to the boys,"
"I have never..."
"I saw you with the handsome bodyguard back there, the one who was talking to you by the pool." Melody stopped walking, and so did Jade, "You're not looking for love, Jade. You are only looking for empty relationships. A handsome face, a muscular body and that's enough for you."
"You're just jealous." Jade crossed her arms, "You just want them for yourself and you know it."
"What? Those boys are my life! They saved me indirectly, made my life perfect," Melody said.
"You have a perfect life already with or without them."
"I'm the perfect shadow of my twin brother," Melody grumbled, "My mother is more a sergeant than a mother and my father is never home."
"And what does all that have to do with my boys?" Jade growled, literally, like when Alex got angry.
"I owe them my life, Jade. I care about them being happy, and you're going to hurt them." Melody said matter-of-factly, "If you're not going to be with them and you're going to fall for whatever man you think is handsome, do me a favour..."
"Let me guess, let you date them?" Jade laughed, looking away, "No! They are mine!" She roared, she growled, and Melody took a step back.
Jade was surprised of herself, looking at her hands.
What the hell was happening to her?
"No. I was going to say: Let them be happy with the fearless bodyguard out there," Melody replied, eyeing the glass doors, "She knows them well, we all saw it. Even Zeth said she was the first person he told who his parents were."
"What?" Jade blinked rapidly.
"You can watch it on my YouTube channel when I upload the video," Melody said, eyeing her phone in Jade's hand.
"You are joking."
"No! I'm serious! I've only been here for a few hours and it's obvious they are not interested in you, Jade," Melody insisted, but when Jade pushed her again, she refused to walk, "Just look at you! Playing bodyguard! This isn't you, you're just pretending to be someone else!"
"I am improving to be a better me."
"No, you just want to pretend you are the black-haired girl who looks like a model, the bodyguard who fell from above quite literally. I've watched her all night." Melody insisted, "You're a new you, but you're in the wrong business for the wrong reasons with the wrong people. Self-improvement is good, there's no doubt about that," Melody said, sighing, looking at the floor with numb eyes, "You didn't know me before, Jade. I suffered from depression, I used to blame everyone for my failures, the system, society, my mother, my father and brother. I let myself be influenced by everything I saw on the internet and above all, I always tried to be someone else. Monster Mash taught me that I was already the one and only me without having to copy anyone, but I could be much more than just me. I could be the best version of myself. And what are you doing? Oh! You're..."
"Enough with the mind games, Melody!" Jade threw up her hands.
"Then try to deny that you are trying to be the black-haired bodyguard. I mean, she's beautiful, sensual and elegant, very cool," Melody looked Jade up and down, "This outfit, this job... You just want to imitate her. Or maybe you're competing."
"You don't know anything," Jade replied, "And you're wrong. I'm not interested in being mysterious like Evie, nor elegant or serious, I don't want a tragic past, I don't want to look like her. I am me, but stronger." Jade pointed accusingly at Melody, "You envy me, it makes you angry to know that my effort has brought me here, to have this job and to be independent and have a relationship with six guys who..."
"Do you have a relationship with them? And actual relationship?" Melody narrowed her eyes, "Let's say I envy what you've become. But could I envy you for having a verbal relationship?"
"What are you taking about?"
"You want to copy that bodyguard because you want what she has with the guys." Melody nodded with a grimace, "And yes, I think it bothers me to know that you came out of your shithole life. It makes me angry to know that my brother is still better than me, that everyone fulfils their dreams except for me. But your relationship with the boys? I don't envy that."
"And that's why you paid Kasey to scare me," Jade rolled her eyes, "Your words and actions contradict each other."
"It's just that, for a moment, I thought your thing with them was real," Melody laughed, shaking her head, "What a fool I was to pay the blonde to get you away from them! I just had to wait before everything collapsed on its own!"
"Why would we collapse?" Jade frowned, "Monster Mash is at its best, I'm at my best, we've all moved on, even your brother, but you're still the same envious girl that..."
"I'm envious, of course," Melody rolled her eyes, "Well, I'd rather be a genuine fan than a verbal girlfriend or the third wheel."
"Third wheel?"
"You don't know it yet, but this whole time you've thought you're Bella Swan," Melody looked her up and down, "But you're just Jessica Stanley."
Ouch. That hurt.
"Am I?" Jade looked down.
"Maybe," Melody moved her shoulders, "Just get out of the way and let someone who does have feelings for your 'boyfriends' be happy."
"No, they will be happy with me, with no one else," Jade insisted.
"Tell me something you know about them that no one else knows," Melody cocked her head, "Tell me. Why do they love you? What did they see in you?"
"I have no idea," Jade admitted.
"Having an empty relationship is just as toxic as being in an abusive one," Melody said, smiling slightly, "But of course your relationship is not empty. You know everything about your boyfriends! And they know everything about you!"
Jade remained quiet, thinking about her relationship with the boys.
Jade knew almost nothing about the guys if she was being honest.
In fact, she knew almost as much about them as any other fan, perhaps her knowledge was a bit above of the regular Masher but nothing else.
And perhaps she had interfered with a genuine love story.
Jade didn't even remember the name of Draco's father, nor did she know which hospital Frank was in after the incident. She didn't know what beach Finn worked at or even the name of Alex's ex. She didn't even know why Everett had been exiled or if Zeth had any brothers or sisters!
"You're not going to keep me away from the boys," Jade clenched her fists, "Fate took me to them, there is no one but me in their eyes."
"You can't see beyond your nose," Melody scoffed.
"And who do you think you are to talk to me about that?" Jade clenched her fists, "Are you calling me selfish? Because they are mine! Only mine! And if I want to be with the handsome bodyguard back there, he'll be mine too!" Jade's eyes glowed a deep green for a brief moment, "I'm the protagonist of this story, and no one will ever take them from me. I am not selfish, I am just fighting for what's mine!"
"Your selfish side has spoken," Melody chuckled, "It wasn't me who said they are mine, as if they were trophies."
Jade blinked rapidly, and held her temples. What the hell was that? What was happening to her? What was that sudden possessive tantrum?
"Jade!" Cadence entered the hotel quickly, with her heels clicking on the floor, dressed in a beautiful black dress with roses embroidered on it, "Jade! Where are you taking my daughter?!"
"I... I just..." Jade swallowed hard. She hated confrontations and problems, she didn't know how to handle people's anger, she never knew how to say no and she always trembled and felt a void in her belly when facing adversities.
Maybe it was true. Maybe this wasn't her ideal job. Maybe... Maybe she had always been jealous of Evie and...
Maybe she was not ready for this.
"What's happening here?" Cadence crossed her arms.
"Your daughter sent a huntress to threaten Jade," a voice said, and there she was. Evie, with a tablet in her hand reviewing the list that Jade did not, walking elegant, imposing and almost as tall as Cadence, "Jade, show her the evidence," Evie nodded and Jade handed the phone to Cadence, who quickly checked the messages and shook her head.
"Oh, Melody," Cadence looked down, "What did I do wrong with you, Melody?"
"I'm not pressing charges against Melody, although I should," Jade said, and Evie looked at her from the corner of her eye.
"And if you do, I agree," Cadence looked down at Melody, who avoided her piercing gaze, "She must learn. People only learn when they bleed."
"Jade, please go out and resume your position," Evie said, her eyes fixed on her tablet, "I have to watch the boys from below the stage, the show is about to start. Mrs. Christensen, one of my men will come talk to you and we'll see how we will proceed against Melody."
"Well, that's only fair," Cadence looked at Jade, and although she was a hard-faced woman, she seemed to beg with her eyes for forgiveness, "I'm proud of you, Jade. You've become a strong woman. It's admirable."
"I guess it isn't like that, Mrs. Christensen," Jade glanced out of the corner of her eye at Evie as she scanned the list with a frown, "I guess I just became a copy of someone who actually is."
"Jade, go back to your post," Evie said as Hellena entered the hotel, "My asset is here, Cadence. I have to go."
"No," Jade shook her head, "Evie! Wait!" Jade chased after her, holding her arm tightly. Evie looked her up and down. "Come here! I need to talk to you!" Jade said, tugging on her arm, "We need to talk, now!"
"What are you doing?! I have to look after the guys! Jade!" Evie yelled, but Jade grumbled and pulled her out of the hotel, towards a hidden part of the pool area behind some bushes, "Jade! Stop it!"
"Ladies and gentlemen, Give a round of applause for Fifth Octave!" Egor's voice echoed everywhere. There was applause and whistles, "And now! please welcome to the stage, Monster Mash!"
There were shouts and applause, and then the melody of 'Monster in Love' started playing, but for the first time ever, Jade didn't get excited at all.