Chapter Text
There was loud music, flashing lights, smoke rising and alcohol flowing freely. It was supposed to be the perfect weekend for Manon.If only her ex hadn't come back from her two-year sabbatical in India today. And if they weren't part of the same circle of friends. Not to mention that they had been best friends before they started dating and had one of the worst breakups possible.
Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!
She cursed silently when she spotted her ex, Lara Raj, greeting and hugging people at the door of the large mansion. Why on earth was she there? Had Daniela known and not warned her? Ok, she had to get to the bottom of this.
Dani was easy to spot in the crowd, after all, she was the owner of the place and the host of the party, and she made a point of standing out. Manon spotted her sitting on the large couch near the bar in the middle of the room. Sophia was sitting on her lap, and they were practically having sex in public.
The girl approached the couple and cleared her throat until they noticed her. Dani, who hated being interrupted, which was ironic, given that she could just go to a room if she didn't want to be disturbed, rolled her eyes and turned to Manon, patting Sophia's thigh twice to indicate that she should sit next to her.
“Manzanita!” she exclaimed lazily, opening her arms on the sofa. It means that she wasn’t happy about being interrupted, but she wasn’t pissed off either. That’s good. “What’s up?”
“Lara’s here and you didn’t tell me?! What the hell, b-” She got straight to the point. Just seeing Lara near her irritated her deeply.
“Whoa. Chill.” Daniela raised her voice slightly, her expression hardening as she stood up. Sophia immediately followed her, standing up and holding her hand. Daniela hated it when people raised their voices at her, especially without good reason. “First, calm down. Second, I just found out about this from you. You know I would’ve told you.” She said firmly. Manon was lucky she wasn't just anyone else.
As the tension mounted, Sophia hurried to speak. “She had already told me.” Manon stared at Sophia in disbelief and was ready to complain, but she continued. “We started talking again a little while ago.” She looked a bit guilty.
Daniela turned to her girlfriend and asked sweetly "Mi amor ¿Por qué no me lo dijo antes? Sabes que Manon aún no lo ha superado".
Manon rolled her eyes. She wanted to disagree with what Daniela said, but unfortunately it was an irrefutable fact, just like the certainty of death someday.
"She didn't tell me she was coming to the party today, she just said she was coming back to LA” Sophia said looking up at Manon. The woman with her arms crossed looked away. “Sorry, Manz.”
“Alright, alright. I get it.” Manon was nervous. She was clenching her arms too tightly. “My bad for coming at you like that, Dani. But can you, like, ask her to leave?” Manon abruptly uncrossed her arms and put her hands in her jeans pockets, trying to contain her anxiety.
It had been like this since they broke up, and even after two years, nothing had changed. Her aversion to her continued. After Lara went to India, Manon returned the apartment they had shared to the Rajagopalan family, despite Lara's parents' insistence that she stay there as long as she wanted, free of charge.
It wasn't that she couldn't find another place to live; she just couldn't stand living alone. Luckily, Manon always had a place at the Avanzini mansion, which was her home, too. Daniela was basically her sister since their dads were friends and business partners, and they grew up together. They both grew up well off from the money that came from the illegal drug trade their parents managed.
Manon's father died when she was 12, so Dani's father took her under his wing, then as soon as they turned 18, they started participating in more serious business activities with Mr. Avanzini. Thanks to the parties Dani organized and the right people Manon knew, it didn't take long for them to own a good part of Hollywood Hills. In a short time, the parties at the Avanzini mansion became the center of entertainment and business for Los Angeles's young elite. Manon was the perfect link between clients and first-class products. She knew everyone, and everyone important knew her.
Despite the authority she had established with her sister, her influence and focus on business vanished at that moment. Lara's presence distorted her reality, pushing her back to her most vulnerable and bitter self.
Sophia raised her eyebrows at Manon's bold request, and Daniela let out a tired sigh. “Lara's not just anyone, Manon. She's Kavita's daughter, and Kavita is our dad's business partner in, like, a ton of deals. The Rajs move a lot of money through here, and you know that.”
“Is it always just business with you, Dani?” Manon spit out the words, disbelieving that Daniela was taking that attitude with her at that moment. When it came to these damn businesses, Daniela and her father were identical, and that irritated Manon deeply. But damn anyone who made that comparison out loud in front of the latina. She was capable of just doing the biggest fuck-up possible with some of the weed just to prove she wasn't like her father.
“Yeah, when we're in my spot, at my party, it is.” Her reply came sharply.
Another similarity.
However, as soon as the words came out, she immediately regretted the way she had spoken and approached her sister, who was just a few days older, holding her face with both hands. A firm and familiar gesture for both of them.
And that's where they were different. Daniela wasn't afraid to show regret for her actions, she knew how to apologize and knew when she needed to talk.
“Hey, Manzi… Look at me” Her voice had softened to a tone she reserved for a select few. “You know it's a no-go. If that kind of disrespect gets back to her mom… it's not gonna be pretty. Plus, she probably rolled up with Rhea and her whole annoying friends”
“Typical” Manon closed her eyes and took a deep breath, feeling her sister's touch. That was how they usually dealt with stressful and anxious situations.
That's how it was when they were ten years old and Daniela was about to perform her dance solo for the whole school. It was the same when Manon lost her father two years later. It was also like that when Daniela got the first and only time she was beaten because she was caught driving drunk by the police, and her father had to pick her up at the station. It was also like that when Manon found Lara's letter on her bed and experienced one of the worst moments of her life.
“I know” She whispered hoarsely “I know, Dani. It's just… seeing her. Out of nowhere. After all of it.”
Daniela rubbed her thumbs on Manon's cheeks in a gesture of pure affection. “I get it. But you're the toughest person I know. No one's gonna knock you down. Not in our house.” Her eyes sparkled, showing a mixture of determination and loyalty. “Now, you've got two choices: either you head up to your room and crash for the night, or…”
“Or you can show that you're not the same person you were two years ago.” Sophia appeared softly beside Daniela, a joint between her fingers, offering it to Manon. Dani stepped back with a smile and a gentle look at her sister, and Sophia continued. “You're Manon Bannerman. Half this town owes you a favor. The other half wishes they did. You run this place just as much as Dani does”.
Manon accepted the joint from Sophia's hands, nodding silently in thanks. Her irritation at Sophia for not telling her about Lara disappeared in part, because before all this confusion they had all been friends and she couldn't expect Sophia to choose sides in this situation.
“The room is out of the question,” she said, her voice regaining its usual firmness. I need some air. And I gotta go check on Yoonchae”
Daniela nodded, pleased to see her sister feeling better. That's my girl. Tell her to come find me later, I need the numbers from the last drop.”
Manon headed for the mansion's large garden, holding the joint between her fingers. There was a glass greenhouse that had been converted for sales on party nights. The music faded, replaced by the soft murmur of the night. She found Yoonchae at her usual spot under the greenhouse. The table was set with glass pots of different varieties of weed, each properly labeled. She looked even younger than her recently turned twenty years, serious and focused, illuminated by the string lights.
“Wassup Manzi” Yoonchae said, greeting her with a rare soft smile when they saw each other. “You good? Need something?
“Just checkin’ in, Chae” Manon replied, leaning against a pillar. “Dani wants the numbers when you're done here”.
“All good on this end. Sour Diesel is flying! They’re grabbing grams and up.” Yoonchae said excitedly. The type of weed she mentioned was the most expensive and ten grams was equivalent to a hundred dollars, so she would get a great percentage. “Hey, I know it's a banned topic but I spotted Lara inside earlier…”
As she spoke, Yoonchae turned to grab more packs of rolling papers from a small box behind the counter. That's when Manon saw small stacks of plastic envelopes with white substance inside behind the box. They were unlike anything else they sold.
Manon reached out and took one, rubbing it between her fingers.
“Yoonchae.” She ignored what the girl had said before, losing the causal tone she had had a few minutes ago. "What is this?"
The young Korean girl turned around and froze when she saw the envelope in Manon's hand. Her face paled even more. “That’s...” Her voice faltered. When she was nervous, she tended to forget all the English she had learned years ago.
“Yoonchae, just breathe. You're not in trouble. I know this wasn't your idea.” Manon said still in a serious voice, trying to reassure the younger girl.
“It’s… a new product. Your dad wanted me to test run it at the parties. Said to keep it quiet, to not bug you or Dani about it.” She said everything in one breath, her accent thick with nervousness.
A creepy chill ran down Manon's spine. Her father was doing things behind their backs. He was selling coke at his daughters' party without their knowledge. This was a clear violation of their agreement.
She and Dani had an unwritten agreement since they took over the party scene: cannabis for sure, some hallucinogens occasionally, and nothing else. They kept this line for their own sense of control and to avoid attracting more dangerous attention. Old Man Avanzini always had bigger ambitions, but he promised to give his daughters space to manage their territory.
Dani's gonna freak out when she finds out.
She closed her hand around the envelope. “Get this out of here. Stash it all. None of this shit moves tonight. Got it? I'll deal with Dani later.”
Yoonchae nodded while collecting the coke “Yes, Manon. I just-”
“Just answer me one thing” Manon approached her very seriously, unaware that she had interrupted the younger girl. “How did he get to you? Did he send a middleman, or was he here himself?” She needed that answer. She needed it to be the first option. Because she didn't want to believe that he had left his vacation in Atlanta with his new wife to go there and deliver a box of cocaine to Yoonchae. She refused to believe it.
“But before Yoonchae could answer, an excited voice rang out. “Yoon! Finally I found you!”
Megan appeared in her colorful dress, stopping at the entrance to the greenhouse. Her dark hair with pink highlights swayed as she approached, completely oblivious to the tension that hung in the air. Yoonchae was taken by surprise and seemed to freeze in her tracks again, her ears turning visibly red. She quickly hid the remaining envelopes under the table.
“Megan.” she said, her voice louder than usual. “Hi”
“You’re not just gonna stand here all night, are you? The party’s lit! Come dance with me!” Megan said as she took Yoonchae's hand in a natural, unpretentious gesture.
Yoonchae looked down at the hand holding hers, seeming to struggle for words. “I… can't. I’m on the clock, babe.”
“Oh, c’mon!” Megan insisted, shaking her hand. “Just for a little while!” She looked at Manon with her big eyes, ready to beg if she didn't let Yoonchae go.
Manon was still upset about what she had found a few minutes earlier, but she hid her discomfort and smiled at Megan.
“Go on, Chae. I've got this.”
Yoonchae looked at Manon, still hesitant. “But what about the-”
“It's almost closing time. You can go. Enjoy it. Dani won't mind”
Megan celebrated with a few jumps. “You're the best, Manzi! C'mon, let's go!”
Yoonchae allowed herself to be pulled toward the party, glancing back at Manon with gratitude and concern before Megan dragged her away.
Finally alone, Manon let her smile fade. She looked at the packet of coke in her hand, then stashed it in her pocket. Over the next few minutes, she attended to a few more buyers and decided to end the sales early. They had sold enough for today, so she hurried to put the drugs away, violently throwing some of them into the boxes.
Rafael Avanzini, the man who was her second father figure and whom she grew accustomed to calling dad, had always been like that. She still remembers the times she heard arguments between him and her real father before he passed away. He would usually say that Rafael was taking too many risks in business or overstepping boundaries. Years have passed, yet nothing has changed. He continues to cross any line as long as he gains something from it.
After the party, she needs to talk to Daniela about this unless she is trying to breed Sophia with her fingers.
When she finished putting away the official merchandise, about to pick up the other to throw away, Manon felt a presence behind her.
“Manon.”
She turned slowly. She couldn't tell if her heart was beating faster or slower.
Lara stood a few steps away, the soft garden lights illuminating her calm face. Her sharp eyes scanned the area inside the greenhouse. Then her gaze fell on the small box where Yoonchae had stashed the remaining packets. One of them, white and discreet, was partially visible.
Lara took another step closer, her red bindi looked like a seal of disapproval. She tilted her head slightly toward the box.
“Didn’t know you and Dani were messin’ with that stuff now,” she said in a soft but judgmental voice.
Manon's answer came quickly. “That's all Rafael.”
An almost inaudible sigh escaped Lara's lips. “Typical,” she murmured. “He never knew when to stop. And you're letting him.”
Manon closed the cooler lid with a sharp click. Lara's words opened an old wound. “You know nothing, Lara.”
“Just from the look of this, I know the score.” Lara retorted, finally meeting Manon's eyes. There was genuine concern in them. “You guys think you're running things, Manon. Or, Dani thinks she is, anyway. But you, more than anyone, know that's a lie.”
“I know the stakes.” Manon replied, crossing her arms defensively, a reflex she'd always had. “We've got this. We always do.”
Lara took another step, closing the distance between them. “He's putting you in danger. Again.”
“Why do you even care?” The question came out harsher than Manon intended. “You dipped out. Remember? You made it clear in that fucked-up letter you wanted me out your life, so why the hell are you even here?” With each word, her voice gradually distilled all her anger and frustration.
“I care, Manon.” Lara said firmly. “Please believe me.”
At that point, Manon could already feel Lara's breath. Her scent, her eyes, her hair, her body... everything was too close. She felt as if she had thrown away all her years of sobriety with Lara.
“You gave up the right to care, Lara.” Manon took a step forward, aware of the dangers of that physical proximity. “You gave up the right to have an opinion ‘bout my life, ‘bout Dani, ‘bout Megan and Yoonchae and ‘bout anything that’s related to me the minute you walked out and didn’t look back." Lara just accepted the words, waiting for Manon to finish releasing all her anguish. “A note, Lara? A damn note on the bed after four years together? That was foul. Straight coward shit.”
Lara didn't back down at any point. She didn't shy away from Manon's hurtful gaze, even though she was also hurt. “You think I wanted that? You think that was easy? We were tearing each other apart, Manon!” Tears threatened to spill out without warning, but she managed to hold them back. “Do you even remember the last time you told me you loved me?”
Manon was hit by that.
But she remembered.
It was exactly six months before they broke up. They were no longer on good terms. At the Avanzini New Year's party, in that same mansion, in that same garden, watching the fireworks while embracing, Manon held Lara's face with one hand and told her she loved her. Lara responded with a kiss, and right there, under the light of the fireworks in the sky, they comforted each other in an attempt to confirm to themselves that there was still something that could be right.
“Don't give me that shit, I was still holding on!” Her voice faltered. “You didn't fight, you didn't try, you didn't even talk to me. You just disappeared!”
“I did try, Manon! God, I tried so hard!”
“You should've tried harder, then!”Manon shouted, now only an inch away from Lara's face. Her anger was evident in her voice, face, and movements, but her eyes conveyed a raw pain that Lara understood all too well. “I loved you, damn it! And you threw me away like I was nothing!” Her hands began to shake, so she clenched them into fists.
“I loved you too!” Lara exclaimed, her tears finally breaking through and streaming down her face. “That’s why I left! I’d rather walk away and hurt than stay and watch us burn each other to the ground, Manon.”
Manon could feel Lara’s body heat and see each tear tracing a path down her face. A heavy, charged silence hung between them. The only sounds besides the muffled music coming from the mansion were their heavy breaths. Manon’s eyes were fixed on Lara’s trembling lips.
Lara stared back at her with her dark eyes, begging and defying the same inner storm that flooded both their minds. Manon's heavy breathing buzzed in her own ears. Lara's teary eyes, still fixed on hers, seemed to see through all her defenses.
Without any command from her brain, her body leaned forward. Her chin nearly touched Lara's.
“Loved?” The word came out in a hoarse whisper, accompanied by a hot breath against Lara's lips.
Lara's gaze, still filled with pain, shifted away from Manon's eyes for the first time. It slowly moved down until it rested on her mouth. She finally closed the distance that had lasted two long and torturous years.
Manon's hands clung to Lara's hips, pulling her closer, making sure that this was real and that it was really happening. In response, Lara buried her hands in Manon's shoulders, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss with an urgency that seemed to consume the time they had been apart.
Lara bit Manon’s lower lip hard enough to get a low moan out of her. Manon then pushed Lara against one of the greenhouse pillars. They were both breathing heavily, in a fast and chaotic rhythm that revealed their desire for each other and was also a way for them to vent their frustrations. Lara broke the kiss for a second, her eyes seeking Manon’s.
“Manz…”
She didn’t answer. Instead, she pressed her face against Lara’s neck, near the pulse beating rapidly on its side. Lara arched against the pillar, her fingers tightening on Manon’s shoulders and her nails digging through her loose shirt.
They kissed again, each taking turns exploring the other’s neck. All of this was growing inside Manon. After all, it had been two years since she had been with the only person who made her feel complete in every way.
Apparently, Lara was also going overboard. At the height of the tension, when Lara’s body was already arching against Manon’s, they suddenly let go of each other. They weren’t sure who let go first or if they had pushed each other away. But both felt the same burning sensation on their skin.
With swollen, red lips and dazed eyes, Manon moved away from Lara. "I...no… I can’t" she gasped, backing away toward the greenhouse exit.
But before Lara could say anything, Manon turned and practically ran toward the mansion, leaving Lara alone and leaning against the pillar. Her body was still vibrating, and her heart felt like it was going to jump out of her chest.
Lara slid down the pillar until she was sitting on the cold floor, her legs shaking. Damn it! You had to ruin everything. Stupid, idiot, moron! She hid her face in her hands, torturing herself mentally for kissing Manon. It wasn't supposed to happen that way.
But she was so close to Manon that she could smell her characteristic sweet, fruity scent. Missing that scent, she found herself getting closer and closer to her ex-girlfriend, completely mesmerized. However, when she came to her senses, Manon was already running away from her, just as she herself had done two years ago.
Guilt haunted her so intensely that not even a hundred years away from Manon and everything that reminded her of her could make it go away. The truth was that Lara ran away because she saw no way out. Waking up every day with a knot of anxiety in her stomach while waiting for the next fight turned her into a ghost in that relationship. The note was cowardly, yes. She knew that. But facing Manon and seeing the despair in her eyes would have destroyed her completely.
Just like what happened now.