Courtney stared at Jae with wide eyes.
She wasn’t the only one.
Emily stepped forward, alarmed by his choice of words. Alex froze in her place. Jae’s immediate response to the situation startled her. Out of all the reveals she had so far, this proved to be the most unique.
Courtney slowly shook her head, “I can’t believe this! You’re taking their side? I thought you’re better than that, Jae!”
Jae took a deep breath. He really didn’t want to do this but the circumstances had his hands tied, “I will explain this to you slowly. If it still doesn’t register in your brain then, I’m sorry but it is my job to keep students like you from spreading Alex’s secret.”
“They brainwashed you too” Courtney mumbled.
“I don’t care what you call it, Courtney, but you have no idea about the kind of game you’re trying to play. I am giving you a chance to walk away unscathed BUT… if anyone at school—anyone at all—talks about Alex’s gender, I’ll take that as your doing. You know what happens then? Your family fortune would be burned to the ground. Your father would have no one to blame but you, his precious daughter who couldn’t even keep her mouth shut. Not just him, of course. The others who find out about Alex’s secret would hate you too for ruining their lives because their families would also take a hit.”
Jae watched as the blood from Courtney’s face drained away. He didn’t hold any power to do this directly but his father wouldn’t hesitate to take action. Even if his father didn’t achieve it, no doubt Alex’s father would. He never thought he’d have to go to this extreme in keeping Alex’s secret from the student body. For the sake of the situation, he needed to think of the best way to solve the problem.
This happened to be it. Courtney had a strong desire to please her father—to be more accurate, NOT to displease him. A threat created around this and her reputation in campus seemed to be the most effective way for her to cooperate.
“You… you wouldn’t…” Courtney stammered. Sweat started to drip down on the sides of her face, “You’re just a student! What can you do?”
“You think Alex’s family would be the type to let her come to this school unprotected?” Jae scorned, “You are one step away from living life on the streets. If you actually know what’s good for you, you’d forget this night ever happened. Don’t take this lightly. I’ll be watching.”
He stepped back, releasing Courtney’s neck. She remained pressed against the wall, trembling from fear. No one had threatened her that way before. Her heart hammered like crazy from the turn of events. She knew Jae’s family had a significant influence among the elite class. If his family collaborated with Alex’s, they’d be done for. Her family didn’t have enough power to go against two households.
She looked at Jae then, at Emily and finally, at Alex. The last one was the only person who stared back with sympathy. The first two had their poker faces on, offering no room for compassion. It didn’t matter what Courtney’s intentions were. To these people, what mattered was her actions. Good or bad, in the end, she made decisions that placed their own at risk.
“You can go” Alex spoke up. She didn’t move from her spot. She worried that it would only scare Courtney further, “We won’t chase after you.”
“Yeah, as long as you keep Jae’s words in mind, I won’t slice you” Emily smiled sweetly.
Courtney gulped. The level of sweetness looked too sickly for her to stomach. Hesitantly, she stepped away from the group. When none of them made a move, she ran for her life.
Alex let out the breath she didn’t know she had been holding. The danger had been contained for the time being. She’d need to keep an eye on Courtney. They probably would never be close but she couldn’t abandon her.
On the other hand, Emily switched her attention to Jae. This guy had been suspicious from the beginning. Then, he just blackmailed someone right in front of her. Just who was he?
“Yo, Mr. High and Mighty” she called him, “Explain yourself. What do you know?”
Jae dusted off the dirt from his blazer. He had been in a rush to leave the house that he grabbed a random suit from his father’s closet. A navy blue combination with an inner button down shirt that was two shades lighter. Since he just snuck off, he’d have to put the suit back later. He couldn’t let it stain or his father would notice.
When he heard Emily speak, he tucked his hands inside the pants’ pockets. His feet faced Alex while his head turned towards the blonde baby lion.
He titled his way, betraying no emotion, “You and Alex aren’t a couple.”
“Well, no s***, Sherlock” Emily snapped, “We’re both females.”
“You talk like same gender relationships don’t exist.”
“You talk like you just didn’t find out that your friend isn’t actually a boy.”
Jae couldn’t resist smiling at her sharp tongue, “That’s because it’s not.”
“What’s taking you guys so long?” Logan said, walking up to the group. He stopped a foot away from them and noticed a familiar person’s back.
Jae whirled around at the sound of his twin’s voice.
He raised his eyebrows, “Logan.”
He almost forgot why he came here in the first place. Wait a minute… if Logan came here for the girls, did that mean he also knew about Alex’s secret?
“Jae?” Logan exclaimed. What was his twin brother doing here? Why was he with Emily and Alex? Ah, s***, did he find out Alex was a girl? That didn’t sound good.
“Are you kids alright?” Angeline asked. She had followed Logan when they noticed the girls had been missing for a while. It didn’t take that long to use the restroom. They figured something had kept them from coming back.
“What happened here?” Her husband stayed hot on her heels. He hadn’t forgotten that they were still in Woodlands. Despite the isolation of the restaurant, it didn’t completely eliminate chances for his daughter to be spotted. He feared the worst had happened.
Ethan’s eyes swept the place. Nothing seemed to be out of order except for a young man that hadn’t been part of the dinner party.
“Jae” He greeted the older twin Parker, “I didn’t know you were coming.”
Jae responded with a polite bow, “Mr. Greenwood, it has been a while.”
“The two of you know each other?” Logan asked. He looked at Jae then at Alex’s father. Never had he heard about his family being associated with the Greenwoods. If Alex hadn’t mentioned her situation, he didn’t think it would have happened at all.
“We have been acquainted” Jae answered him. He smiled tightly. He didn’t know how much to reveal about the arrangement.
Alex woke up from her daze. A minute ago, her life had been in the hands of a girl from her school. The next, Jae found out about her gender and scared off the same girl. Now, her father acted like the situation seemed normal.
If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought everything had been a dream.
Alex raised a finger. It still trembled but not out of fear but out of uncontrollable emotions flowing in her veins.
“Someone explain what the hell is going on right now. There is clearly something here that I don’t know but should know about.”
Everyone glanced over towards her direction but her eyes only fell on one person.
Her father.
“Very well” Ethan sighed, “Do you remember the day I went to Woodlands Academy to negotiate with Principal Parker?”
