The Black Swan's Final Revenge Pirouette: The 99th Game Was Mine All Along by Kylie Homme

Chapter 5

A heavy silence fell over the hospital room, as if time Itself had stopped.

Luigi, who’d been in the middle of ripping into his friends, froze at Derek’s words echoing through the

“Holy shit, man. Tell me you haven’t actually fallen for her.”

Tall for Ariana? What the fuck?

He rejected the thought with almost violent immediacy, as if the speed of his denial could erase the strange emotion crawling through his chest.

He had always been in love with Leila–what was Ariana in comparison? Nothing but collateral damage in his revenge scheme. A means to an end.

But the logic didn’t track. If she meant nothing, why had he lost his goddamn mind when he saw those men on top of her?

Even when drunk frat boys hit on Leila at parties, he’d never gone nuclear like that.

His mental wrestling match cast the room into uncomfortable silence.

friends exchanged knowing glances, visibly

“Jesus, you had us worried for a second. I thought you’d gone and caught feelings or something. Getting played by your own revenge game would be such a fucking waste. Leila would lose her shit if she thought you’d fallen for

happening in his chest and stated. coldly: “I will never have feelings for

finally relaxed, laughing as they headed for the door. “She’s probably gonna wake up soon

out, Luigi slowly approached the bed,

slightly furrowed as if even in unconsciousness

accord toward her cheek, but the moment they

cigarette and taking a desperate drag, hoping the nicotine might quiet whatever the hell was

opened her eyes, Luigi was

of water. Seeing her awake, he leaned

head away, refusing to meet his eyes.

next few days, Larigi barely left the hospital, taking care of her with an attentiveness that surprised even

how his face softened when he returned, a gentleness in

now–those calls

relationship. The mysterious calls he’d always step away to take, claiming “business”

understood

came in