33. Chapter 33

Instinctively, Jayna reached out to catch Sid. His arms flailed wildly as he tried to regain his balance, and her fingers grazed the sleeves of his jacket before he tumbled backwards into the fountain with a splash.

Jayna stared in shock as Sid floundered in the water. She hadn't meant for him to go into the fountain, but as she watched him scrambling to his feet, she felt a sense of satisfaction.

Their eyes met, and there was shock and anger on his drenched face. The fountain thundered in her ears, and the weight of the gown threatened to crush her. It all suddenly became more than she could handle, and she turned and sprinted towards the exit.

Jayna had worried Sid would eventually break her heart. But not so soon. Not like this. She was disgusted at the thought of him stalking her for months in a twisted scheme to manipulate her feelings for him.

And when she called him on it, he responded with wild accusations about her and Kalani.

Jayna was furious. She pushed her way outside, not knowing or caring where she was going. She passed several security guards, but they didn't move to intercept her. She felt certain that if she hadn't already been leaving on her own, they would be escorting her out.

But as she walked through the grounds, she reached one of the back lots and saw a small bus with the SAPP logo on the side. Without a second thought, she ran towards it.

When she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the glass door, she was struck with a reminder that she wasn't a performer at the event, and she worried the bus wouldn't let her in. To her relief, the door popped open. She hesitantly stepped inside, and the chatter immediately died as every head turned towards her.

A moment later, someone in the back began to applaud. Soon, everyone on the bus was cheering. Confused, Jayna turned to see if there was someone behind her. This applause couldn't be for her.

Someone tapped her arm, and Jayna looked down to find Rani in the front seat. Rani moved to the window seat and motioned for Jayna to join her.

Jayna hesitated. "Are you sure?"

"Of course," Rani said. "It's not every day I get to sit next to a celebrity."

Jayna scoffed as she slid into the seat. "You have some low standards for what counts as a celebrity."

"Those aren't my standards," Rani said. "Those come from the list makers. Look."

She swiped at her phone before showing it to Jayna. She had officially made it onto the "zed-list." Sure, it was the lowest of the lettered lists, but by definition anyone on a lettered list was considered a celebrity.

Rani swiped again. "It probably has something to do with this," she said and offered Jayna her phone.

Jayna reluctantly took it, and her stomach clenched when she realized it was playing a video of her fight with Sid. How had this video already made it out into the streams?

She swiped and scanned, confirming that her argument with Sid had generated a ton of attention. And while some of it was negative, the bulk of it showed Jayna as a wronged everywoman delivering comeuppance to a wealthy jerk. Her ranking had soared while his had fallen off a cliff.

After everything he had done, she should have felt some satisfaction at seeing his reputation score tank.

Instead, she felt sick.

Her anger was justified. Everything she'd said had needed saying.

But had she needed to say it in such a public venue? Would it have killed her to wait until they had moved someplace a little less conspicuous?

And why did so much of the coverage have to claim Jayna had pushed Sid into the fountain? He had fallen in on his own, and she had tried to catch him. Yet most of the videos making their way through the Myst sure made it look like he had been pushed.

Jayna returned the phone to Rani just as the bus began pulling away.

"What are you going to do now?" Rani asked.

Unless she wanted to go back to the hotel, her options were limited. "I guess I'm going to the SAPP house and hope there's a room I can use for the night."

"I have an extra bed in my room. And we're about the same size. I can let you wear something that's a little less showy." Rani grinned.

Relieved she wouldn't have to go crawling back to the hotel and risk running into Sid, Jayna gave Rani a hug. "Thank you."