Bruno:
"Come on, Jenna. Let’s go. It’s your party," I told her as she slowly lowered herself onto a chair in the hallway.
"There’s no need for me to go back in there. It’s just a facade. We keep telling ourselves everything is normal, but it’s not."
There was so much pain in her voice that I slipped my hands into my pockets and released a deep breath I had been holding since I arrived at the party.
This place never used to feel so suffocating, but now it did.
"Don’t let one crazy man ruin your party. It’s such an important night," I told her, genuinely feeling bad for her.
I had heard what happened to Jenna. It was cruel and completely unacceptable.
"You know, many of my friends in there have seen the videos."
The moment she said that, a strange pain tightened in my chest.
"Ask them who sent the videos."
I tried to stay logical for her because emotionally, I had already been damaged beyond repair.
She gave a bitter chuckle and shook her head.
"That’s the problem. They say no one sent the videos to them. They were shown the videos on someone else’s phone."
Before I could ask another question, Jenna glanced up at me and gave me a faint smile.
"And when I asked who showed them, they said they couldn’t remember. Then, when I pressured them, they admitted they were lying. They’ve never seen the videos."
I understood Jenna’s frustration. Her friends had not even tried to be honest with her. That was the real problem.
"You know, your friends are part of what’s wrong with society," I muttered.
A small smile touched her lips as she rose to her feet.
"Well, I’m not sure about that, but you’re right. I have a whole-ass party full of people who have seen me naked and in suggestive poses, waiting for me to walk in there and make their night lively."
She held the side of her gown and gave me an exaggerated, mocking curtsy bow.
I saw tears forming in her eyes, but she only shrugged before walking ahead of me.
I could understand what she was feeling, but only partially.
That man had treated her horribly. He had been unbelievably cruel.
But the real question was, how cruel would I look when the truth about me resurfaced?
I sighed, lowered my gaze, and followed her inside.
The minute we returned to the party, I noticed Jenna was smiling.
She had perfected the art of faking it, and honestly, for a moment, it almost looked genuine.
If I hadn’t spoken to her earlier, I might have believed it was real.
Grandma gestured for me to come over.
She was probably the only person here I could sit and talk to comfortably.
There was no negative energy around her. She disliked it as much as I did.
I approached her with a smile, but just as I was about to sit down, she motioned for me to keep moving.
"Go ahead. Have a dance with Jenna," she insisted.
Jenna turned toward her before shaking her head.
"No, it’s okay," she replied, waving a hand dismissively.
After the Royal Beta’s earlier comments, I could understand her hesitation.
She was probably afraid of getting too close to another man and giving people something else to talk about.
I hadn’t come here intending to dance either, but one dance with her wouldn’t hurt.
"Come on. I don’t think I’m that bad of a dancer," I teased.

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