This choice: Ian doesn't want to play this game anymore • Go Back...Chapter #38Dealing With Rejection by: imaj   “I’m not sure,” says Ian, his hand squirming in your own. He pulls it clear and turns round to look out into the garden again. Alyssa is still out there, walking further and further away. He turns back to you. “I think I upset her,” he says unhappily. He edges out away from you, taking great care not to touch you. “I should go speak to her,” he adds before slinking out through the door and into the garden.
You half fall into the space he vacated, leaning heavily onto the kitchen worktop and suppress a scowl. The Kendra part of you rankles badly at the rejection, and a half dozen or so far fetched schemes for revenge worm their way inside your head. With an effort you push them to one side. After all, Patterson only specified that he wanted you to acquire a basketball player, he never said which one.
You slip your smile into gear again, pasting a sunny countenance over your disappointment. Jon Straussler is still here. Not only is he a basketball player as well, but his family are fabulously wealthy. A better catch by far than Carpenter then, from Kendra’s point of view.
You turn round to look at Straussler. “She has him all twisted up doesn’t she,” you ask with a wry little smile.
He looks at you coolly. No doubt stories of Kendra’s behaviour have made their way out to Eastman. “Maybe he’s better off that way,” he tells you not meeting your eye.
“I was just trying to help,” you say, with a little less insincerity than Kendra would normally use. He looks you in the eye now, a cold hard stare that almost makes you flinch. “He’s a cute guy. I could see myself having fun with him.”
Straussler sighs and relaxes a little. “I, we – the whole team – are fed up of him mooning round after Alyssa. We all know that it’s not going to happen and his game is suffering because of it. If he fucked someone else,” he explains. He’s quite blunt and matter-of-fact. “He’d get over it.”
“But he’s so hung up on her he wouldn’t even notice if someone else was served up on a plate in front of him.” Straussler shakes his head sorrowfully. “I usually don’t take rejection very well.”
“Suck it up,” he says. “Ian might need to get over Alyssa, but I’m not sure you’d be any better for him.”
The sudden surge of anger is easily controlled. Kendra is practiced enough at not letting other people rile her up and that skill is now yours to use. Instead you pout at him. “What about you Jon,” you ask twisting your body a little to better display its curves. You lay a hand on his shoulder. “Would you miss something that was laid out in front of you?”
He stands absolutely still, his breathing very shallow. Jon’s eyes flicker, briefly looking down the top of your dress before desperately trying to fix themselves on some point behind your head. You wriggle a little and let out a soft little moan. His willpower is draining away in inches, your stolen Kendra instincts tell you as much.
“Jon sweetie,” coos a voice behind you.
You turn and look at the interloper, a little slip of a girl to your Kendra-tinged mind. Oh she’s pretty enough if you like that sort of thing: A tight, petite body, a pretty face and lustrous brown hair. She’s no match for you though.
Her intervention seems to break the spell though, when you turn back to Jon he seems to have moved away from you. Involuntarily your fingers curl into ragged claw shapes and you grimace. Jon doesn’t see it though, he’s already moved past you and is heading for the girl. You manage to force the smile back into place and turn round to face the pair.
“Hey Monique,” says Jon. He towers over her as he wraps his long arms round her. They press close to each other, hugging tightly. Monique lays her head side on onto Jon’s chest, he in turn kisses the top of her head. Their embrace leaves her positioned able to stare straight at you, and the cold venom in her eyes leaves you in no doubt as to her feeling regarding you. You scowl back at her ineffectually before stomping off.
*****
The rest of the party is something of a washout. The various Eastman students are never anything other than polite to you, but it’s clear that Alyssa holds sway over everyone here. Though no one says as much, you are unwelcome: conversations draw to a close, people close ranks and the basketball players disappear at your approach.
You make one last circuit of the house, hoping to catch one of the ball players alone, but luck seems to be against you. As you walk through the now seemingly abandoned upper floors, you hear a voice talking as you pass the library. You creep up the door and peek round to see who it is.
Disappointingly, it’s Monique, Straussler’s girlfriend.
She is sat with her back to you, talking quietly on a cell phone. You regard her with a certain disgust, as she essentially stopped you from completing the task Patterson set. You were this close to getting Straussler alone and using the blank mask in your purse on him. Now you are going to have to go back to Westside and explain to Patterson why you failed.
And yet…
Monique is Strassler’s girlfriend. If anyone would be able to get him alone it would be her. If you used the blank mask on her… Well, you might not be able to get an Eastman ball player today, but as Monique it would be a simple task next time. That might be enough to keep Patterson happy. If it ended up damaging the bitch’s relationship with Straussler, well that would be a bonus too.
You reach inside the lime green purse Patterson gave you earlier, feeling for the mask. It is cold to your fingertips. Grasping it, you slide it out and double check you have picked the right one. Though Monique would probably make a good addition to the girl you are building for Chelsea’s benefit, you’d prefer not to spend the extra time you’d need to make a second copy. It’s the blank mask though, so you sneak inside the library.
You stalk up behind Monique, the blank mask gripped firmly in one hand. She has enough time for an abrupt yelp of surprise. Her struggles only last for a few brief moments before you place the mask on Monique’s face. Then her body goes slack and lifeless as the mask sinks within. You walk round to the front of Monique’s seat, picking up her cell phone from where it has dropped to the floor. A tinny little voice can be heard from the phone, but you end the call and drop the phone on the seat beside Monique.
You smirk as you stare at her unconscious face. It’s no less than she deserves. Still, you have to wait as the mask does its work. You walk back to the door out and check the corridor outside, not wanting to be interrupted. There’s no one there, so you close the door and return to beside Monique to wait for the mask.
As you stand beside her, a treacherous thought forms in your mind. Just how much did Kendra’s personality influence you here? You felt her anger when first Carpenter and then Straussler rejected her. Is Monique’s face really going to be useful in getting close to one of the basketball players later, or did you just convince yourself that was the case to satisfy Kendra’s need for cheap revenge.
You gulp nervously as the mask emerges from behind Monique’s features, momentarily twisting them impossibly. It rolls from her face and you grab it quickly before it falls to the floor. She moans, and her eyelids flutter. It won’t be long before she wakes. You shove the mask into your purse and half run out the room.
No one gives a second glance as your walk rapidly down the stairs and out the front door. In truth they are more than happy to see you leave. Your own thoughts are consumed by having to report back to Patterson. He isn’t going to be happy when he discovers you have wasted a mask on the Kendra’s whims. Then again, it might be better to be upfront about it, go and tell him right away. Alternately you could return to the elementary school basement and test out the mask that combines Tina with Andrea and Maria.
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