The Star-lite Bar was a neon-soaked haven for the city's young and elite, a place where the bass was loud enough to drown out reality. After successfully bribing Winter into silence, Celia dragged a hesitant Amanda through the velvet ropes.
"Cece..." Amanda shouted over the music, tugging at Celia's sleeve. "Maybe we should get a private booth? It's a bit... much out here."
Celia rolled her eyes, leaning against the polished bar and ordering a round of vibrant, high-proof cocktails. "What are you afraid of? It's not like we're virgins to the club scene. Live a little, Mandy!"
"I just feel... dizzy," Amanda lied, though her heart was actually hammering with a mix of excitement and anxiety.
Jasper trailed behind them, looking entirely unimpressed. He caught the bartender's eye and ordered a neat vodka, sipping it with the bored grace of a man who had seen it all.
Celia shoved a glass into Amanda's hand. "Just one sip. This place is incredibly chill once the alcohol kicks in, I promise."
Amanda took a cautious sip. The liquid was sharp and spicy at first, burning her throat, but it left a lingering, honey-like sweetness on her tongue. Her eyes lit up. "Wait... that's actually good!" She took two more deep gulps.
"Right?" Celia laughed, throwing an arm around Amanda's shoulder and pointing toward the sea of moving bodies on the dance floor. "Tonight, my best friend, the drinks are cold and the men are hot. Choose whoever you want!"
Amanda nearly choked on her drink, spraying a fine mist of cocktail into the air. She leaned in close to Celia's ear. "Please! I'm a married woman now!"
"So what?" Celia yelled back with playful contempt. She didn't wait for an answer, grabbing Amanda's wrist and dragging her straight into the thick of the pulsing crowd.
"Wait! My drink!" Amanda cried out, looking back regretfully at her half-finished glass.
Jasper watched them go, sighed, and ordered another vodka. I must have lost my mind, he thought. Why am I babysitting these two ghosts?
For an hour, Amanda and Celia were the queens of the floor, lost in the rhythm and the blurred lights. But the Starlite Bar didn't just attract the rich; it attracted predators.
As Celia was mid-turn, a man in disheveled, expensive-looking clothes reached out and clamped a hand around her wrist. Even through her drunken haze, Celia recognized the type—a low-level thug with high-level ego.
"You're a hell of a dancer, sweetheart," the man smirked. "Come have a drink with me."
Celia forced a smile, trying to pull her hand back politely. "I'm flattered, but I've had enough. I'm with my friend."
She turned to grab Amanda, ready to flee, but the man's grip tightened. His face darkened. "I wasn't asking. Two drinks, then you can go. Don't make this difficult."
"I said no," Celia snapped, her Lugo temper finally flaring. "Let go of me."
From across the room, Jasper saw the shift in the man's posture and began moving through the crowd. But before he could get there, the man lost his patience, snarling a slur and trying to jerk Celia into his chest.
"Let me go, you bastard!"
"Whore," the man hissed. "You want to act noble in a place like this?"
SMACK!
A fist connected squarely with the man's eye. He let out a yelp of pain, stumbling back and releasing Celia. Before he could even look up, a knee flew into his crotch, sending him to the floor in a heap.
"If you're in heat, go find a dog," Amanda shouted, her voice trembling with a mix of adrenaline and alcohol. She stood over him, looking like a pint-sized fury. "Don't touch my Cece!"
The man, clutching his groin and his bleeding eye, looked up at her with pure, unadulterated rage. "You bitch! I'll kill you both!"
He struggled to his feet, raising a hand to strike Amanda, but Jasper arrived just in time, catching the man's wrist in a vice-like grip.
"I'd rethink that if I were you," Jasper said, his voice ice-cold.
The man sneered, realizing Jasper was a "pretty boy" type. He whistled sharply. Within seconds, ten heavily tattooed men emerged from the shadows of the bar, surrounding the trio.
"You want to play the hero, kid?" the man laughed, spitting blood on the floor. "Let's see if you have the guts."
Jasper's expression went grim. He shoved Amanda and Celia back into a corner. "Stay down and don't move!"
He didn't wait for them to answer. Jasper moved like a blur, his lean frame packing a surprising amount of power. With every punch, a junior went down, but there were too many of them. The bar erupted into chaos—glass shattering, chairs flying, and screams filling the air.
Amanda, her hand throbbing where it had hit a table during the scuffle, looked at the man who had started it all. He was circling Jasper, looking for an opening.
Fury clouded her judgment. She grabbed a heavy, empty beer bottle from a nearby table and charged into the fray.
"You want a piece of him?!" she screamed.
CRACK!
The bottle shattered against the leader's skull. Blood sprayed across the floor as the man slumped over, dazed and howling.
"Amanda, you idiot!" Jasper cursed, his knuckles bloody as he fended off two more attackers. "Celia, get her out of here!"
Celia snapped out of her shock and wrapped her arms around Amanda, trying to pull her back. "Mandy, stop! We have to go!"
"No! He touched you!" Amanda struggled, her eyes wild.
But the leader, though bleeding, wasn't out. He dodged around Jasper's flank, his eyes fixed on the girl who had broken a bottle over his head. He picked up a jagged, broken piece of a heavy glass pitcher from the floor.
Jasper was pinned between three men, his eyes widening as he saw the leader lunge toward the two defenseless girls. The careless, arrogant actor was gone, replaced by a flash of sheer, paralyzing terror.
"AMANDA! LOOK OUT!"
The glass flew through the air, aimed straight for Amanda's head.