What was she going to do? Scold him? He could take it. Lecture him? He would zone out. Threaten him? Well, she was one of the few people who could actually do that. No matter what approach she used, he was not going to get away with it.
"What? Are you going to yell at me?" Luca asked.
"We have known each other for more than a decade. When have I yelled at you?"
"You have yelled at me! Don't deny it."
"I am not denying anything. I asked when."
"When... I made some really bad decisions," he said, lowering his eyes.
"And...?"
"When... I risked my well-being and... life a few times?" he added.
Yes, Chloe, you did the right thing back then. How can I forget?
"And after that?" Chloe asked.
"Well, one or two more times... three maybe..." he tried to count.
"Do you think this is a time like those?"
Of course it wasn't. But he thought that playing dumb would help him. He just shrugged.
"Oh, Luca. What am I going to do with you?"
So, it was lecturing time.
"You met Noelle yesterday and decided she is your biggest threat. And in just a few hours, you came up with a plan. I'm excited by how resourceful you can be! But things went out of hand. Am I right?"
"None of this would have happened if you had listened to me. You know I'm not crazy. I talked it through with Noah yesterday and he..." Luca abandoned the dumb act and went on the counterattack.
"I know. Noah told me your theory. Now that I see what you are up to, I'm going to ban you from here. Consider yourself exiled. You are not allowed to drop by unless invited."
"What? Are you going to play the Lexi plan again?" he asked frustrated.
"You know I don't do the same trick twice. And there would be no meaning in that since you know. What I am doing is protecting her from you. And you from yourself. It's three months. You'll be fine."
"No, no! No way! I am not a child to be told what to do!" Luca protested.
"Oh, you are more of a child than you think! You risked both your and Isabella's reputation. And for what? Do you know how afraid I am of what Noelle is thinking right now? She got attacked at her workplace! This can ruin us, not your potential fears. So please, don't tell me not to tell you what to do. Not when so much is at stake! Do you understand Luca?" Chloe's voice was final, not leaving room for arguments.
Luca suddenly looked the other way. But of course, he wouldn't admit a thing.
"Chloe, I love you. But I love myself more. I will kick her out eventually and get back to our routine," he said.
"Oh... How sweet, Luca! Now go home and think over what you have done. That poor girl has suffered enough from both of you. I have to look after her."
"Yeah, take care of your stray. You haven't seen her true face! I've seen her fighting with Isabella. She's strong and stubborn and crazy!" Luca protested.
"Oh, it reminds me of someone. She is a good pick, then."
"She is a menace! She'll bring us down!" Luca warned her again.
"No, your behavior will bring us down! She is trustworthy. I can feel that. Same way I felt it with you when I took that bet with you. Or was I wrong?"
There was no point in sounding the alarm for Chloe. She was being short-sighted. Keeping his mouth shut, he got up and turned to the door.
"I mean it. Do not come over without prior notice," Chloe reminded him as he was stepping out.
That hurt him more than everything. Chloe was keeping him out. Was she choosing her? How could she?
"I will announce myself so you can hide her inside your little chest where you keep all your treasures but me!" he said, again without thinking.
Chloe only sighed, shaking her head. He wanted to slam the door, but those damn glass doors were not good for the job. He wanted to talk to someone, but Noah wasn't there yet. And even if he could talk to him, that jerk wouldn't understand. The other option was on the floor below him.
He headed for Abby's studio.
When he got there, he found Abby enveloped by a couple of clothes racks full of sequined garments. She loved sequins but didn't get to use them often; she always said, though, that she was inspired by anything that glowed.
When she saw him, her face lit up as she gave him a huge smile.
"Luca! What are you doing here? Chloe told me about your plan for a surprise performance. I am not ready yet!" Abby said as she was stepping out of what seemed like a disco ball.
"Oh, you know already, huh?" Luca asked, thinking that it was too late to cancel it. He had rehearsed a bit this morning, Chloe had set all the necessary mechanisms in motion, appointments were made. He had to pull through with that show.
"Of course. And she told me that I can select Isabella's appearance as well," Abby said excitedly. She was fearless—not being afraid to work with that girl. Luca smiled and sank into a sofa, crossing his arms over his chest.
Abby knew him well enough to realize something was wrong. She had known him longer than anyone, in the end. She sat next to him. "Hey... What's wrong?"
"Let me ask you, Abby. Am I crazy?"
"Yes, you are."
He scowled. That wasn't the answer he was looking for.
"No, I mean insane, mentally ill, cracked..." he tried to narrow down his question.
"It's a very tough industry. A little madness can help you through," Abby pointed out wisely.
"I don't mean that..."
"I imagine where this conversation is heading. And I am trying to stop you."
"You too? Has she charmed all of you or something?"
"Not the same way you charm us," Abby sweet-talked him.
She was always good with that. She could easily disorient him. But not this time. He would be the one to change her mind about that intern. He was certain he had made a crack in Noah's point of view the previous day. He would succeed today as well.
"Abby, you know that many things can't go public. Don't you think we are risking a lot? Bringing a stranger aboard?"
"Listen. The world keeps on turning. Nothing stays the same. Your career is steadily on the rise. You need a lot of good people around you," Abby said.
"I have all the people I need!"
"For the time being. What will happen if someone leaves?"
"I don't understand. Why would anyone leave?"
"Because they decide to. You don't control everything."
"Chloe does, and she won't leave me," he said, sounding pretty sure given their arrangement and the deal they made ages ago.
"She can't control the others, Luca. She will stay, but she can't manage all by herself. That is why she built a team. Let her do her job as she thinks best," Abby tried to persuade him.
Luca felt that he wasn't being heard. Why couldn't anyone else see what was so clear to him? He wasn't the problem; they were. But he needed them, cared for them, and just wanted them to be on his side.
He was their partner, their friend. Not her, that intern. She was just a passing accident that he was determined to eradicate.
"Abby, Chloe knows what she is doing. I don't challenge that. But I'm so afraid. There are some things that scare me... A lot," he said after pondering all the awful things that could happen to his career if they were known.
The debt... That alley... He couldn't say it.
"I know, Luca. I've known you since the first day you came here. A skinny fifteen-year-old boy that couldn't even button his shirt," Abby started narrating her favorite part of their first encounter.
"I knew how to button my shirt! I just was in a hurry and didn't look in the mirror!" he corrected her for the millionth time.
"Nevertheless, you skipped that button and I still have the photo! Ever since, you've been my favorite. No matter how many kids I see, how many of them I work with, I always think you are the special one. I don't know all your fears, but I know you are worth being where you are. And you won't be easily thrown off."
"You said it right. You don't know all my fears..." Luca said.
If you knew, you wouldn't say it so carelessly. You wouldn't look at me with such pride.
But Chloe and Noah knew them all. And they were careless.
"So, is this why you came here?" Abby asked.
"Well... Actually... You'll hear about it. There was a situation upstairs..." Luca explained to her what happened.
Abby was gasping and staring with eyes wide open. Would she scold him too?
"It seems you've gone too far. When you fear something, just protect it better. Don't assault the innocents."
"I am not assaulting an innocent, but an intruder," Luca defended himself.
"She seems like such a kind girl. Give her a chance."
"I don't want to," he said and stood up. He always loved to hang out with Abby, but today's conversation was not enjoyable. "I need to get going. I have to rehearse some lines."
"Go and do your job. And think about what you can do differently," Abby advised him.
That was the only thing he would surely do – think of different ways to kick her out.
Luca left, and as he pulled out onto the street with his car, he checked left and right. Just like the day before, he saw her—this time walking in the distance next to Lexi. She seemed disappointed, sad, and tired. It wasn't a good look for her. He preferred the fighting look she had with Isabella. Why did he keep stumbling upon her? Chloe was right. He had to stay away.
He stepped on the pedal and drove away. He glanced in the rearview mirror—her figure kept shrinking. If only his problems could shrink that easily.