The Ugly Duckling

Chapter 16

The following day, Ben returned to his office to have a short meeting with his boss and partner about their plans. Mr. Kong took a sip of his black coffee as he looked at his two favorite talent scouts “So Ben, how’s the progress?”

He nodded almost hesitantly “It’s going good. I think it could be better.”

“There’s always room for improvement.” Mr. Kong said. He turned to the normally outspoken girl who was now quiet as can be “What’s the matter?”

She looked up at her boss with a slow smile “I think it’s wrong to hide the truth from Ivy. She would be furious if she found out the truth.”

Ben rolled his eyes “How would you know? I personally think she would be thrilled to find out that she was recruited by the top Talent Agencies in the Entertainment business.”

“I think it’s a mistake. Ivy is not some simple minded person you can manipulate. I think Tyler has a bigger chance for cooperation. Trust me, it took me a whole month just to gain her trust, this would blow her over the top and she would never trust me or you again.” The young girl was wiser beyond her years.

“Vicki-” Ben began only to be stopped by Mr. Kong’s hand.

“Ben, she does have a good point. We need someone that should be cooperative. I know you like challenges and this is definitely your biggest challenge, but I can’t help but agree with Vicki, this girl sounds like she’s not a forgiving person. Not only will the plans be ruined, but you might even lose a good friend.” Mr. Kong said logically.

Vicki nodded in agreement “I think so too. She’s become one of my closer friends. I don’t want to ruin this relationship because you failed to tell her who you really are.”

“Well, how about you? She doesn’t know about you. And don’t get me started on Tyler…” Vicki squirmed uncomfortably as she sat straight up while Ben scrutinized her “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re trying to do. Tyler is your backup just in case Ivy goes wrong. But let me tell you this, she will be great!” He had too much confidence in her.

Vicki shook her head “I’m just thinking for the both of us. We’re partners, it has to be teamwork. If your plan fails, mine will work.”

“You told Tyler?” Ben sounded a bit shock.

She smiled at her partner “No…but I’m planning to.”

Ben let out a sigh of relief “Thank God. You can’t tell Tyler. You how close he is with his sister, I can guarantee that he will tell Ivy. Nothing can go wrong with this plan.”

Vicki turned her head away “It’s already too late. If I know Ivy, she will take this as an insult. She admires loyalty in friends and as much as you want to stay in your little perfect bubble, Ben. No one will live happily ever after in this fairytale.”

Mr. Kong once again raised his hand to pause the arguing, “You both have good points. But I do want to see how this girl does before we make any hasty judgments. Ben, you say she has a special charm? What other abilities does she possess?”

“She’s very funny…in a sarcastic kind of way.” Ben began as a smile formed on his face “Ivy is the kind of person you want to be friends with. She’ll protect you from everything and everyone. She makes me laugh like a kid at times. The contour of her face is so perfect, it’s a shame she’s not a model and her smile…dazzling.” He nodded firmly.

Vicki lips pursed upward “Oh my God…you’re in love with her.”

Ben’s smile dropped in a second “What? That’s absolutely absurd!”

She saw it in his eyes, he was dodging her look “You are so smitten by her. Look at you… describing every personality trait that you find adoring. Why didn’t you mention the fact that she’s rude and brutally straightforward. Not to mention the fact that she acts like a tomboy and picks her armpit like a gorilla?”

“She is not as bad as you make her sound.” Ben said in Ivy’s defense.

Vicki turned to Mr. Kong “Isn’t there a rule against falling in love with a talent that you discovered?”

Mr. Kong smiled in return “Ben, I think Vicki’s got a point.”

“I am NOT in love with her!” he cried suddenly. His normal calm stature was suddenly replaced by impatience “How many times do I have to say it? She’s definitely not in my league…”

“Ben, calm down.” Mr. Kong advised patiently “What time is it? Maybe you two should get back to where you should be. But before you two leave, I have a last request. You have to tell this girl the truth.” He saw Ben widened his eyes and Mr. Kong shook his head “No, I don’t mean now. But you must tell her before the New Talent Ball. I don’t want her to make a scene in the middle of the party. There will be a lot of producers and directors present…not to mention the stars will be swarming. She cannot lose her cool.”

“Don’t worry, Mr. Kong…I won’t let you down.” Ben said with much confidence.

Vicki on the other hand was more cautious “It depends on if she will agree to come.” She ignored the dirty look Ben threw her as she turned to their boss “Is it okay if I have a Plan B?”

Mr. Kong nodded “A prepared scout always has a Plan B.” Vicki beamed at his answer “Okay you two. Back to work. I have a meeting with Mr. Fong today. So I won’t be back at all, have fun and Ben…be careful. The heart is not something you mess with.” Vicki stifled a laugh as they walked out together.

Vicki returned home to stay out of the picture since she knew Ben was taking Ivy up to the office. Instead of picking her up though, he called her and gave her directions to the office. She wasn’t excited about the news but she was willing to cooperate. Ben was working on some paperwork in his window office when his secretary knocked on the door “Come in.” he called.

“Mr. Lam, there is a Miss Ivy outside waiting for you.” She said with a timid smile.

“Can you take her to the conference room? I’ll be there in a minute.” Ben smiled as she walked out. He said a silent prayer, hoping she didn’t figure out that the company was a Talent Agency. It was a chance he was willing to take if he wanted to break her open. The test he was about to put on her would be the mother of all tricks.

Ivy was sitting on one of the many leather chairs with her leg propped up on the table when Ben walked in. She was wearing her skirt/top ensemble, the one that he found for her. He cleared his throat when she didn’t notice he was there. Ivy turned her head around the side of the chair “Hi.” She said grumpily.

Ben’s smile faded “What’s wrong?” he figured his prayer wasn’t heard.

She moved her chair in a circle but her legs were still propped up. She saw Ben turn away suddenly and she laughed “I have shorts under.” She pulled up her skirt to show him.

He frowned “Why would you wear a pair of shorts underneath a skirt?”

Ivy rolled her eyes “So I can do this!” She pointed to her legs dangling on the table.

“So what happened?” he pulled out a seat next to her.

Ivy dropped her legs as she leaned on her thighs with the palm of her hands “Some jerk downstairs ran into me…I was gonna punch him out but I remembered that I had a skirt on and blood would be hell to wash out.” Ben smiled with a nod while she continued “Well, he was lucky cause he said sorry.”

“So? It doesn’t sound too bad.” Ben said casually. He wasn’t sure where her story was getting at.

“He…” Ivy took a deep breath “He called me…” she looked around eventhough there was only the two of them in the room “The ‘B’ word.”

Ben widened his eyes in horror “No…who was that? I’ll go down right now and give him a piece of my mind!”

She pulled him down the seat when he began to get up “Hold on, speedy…If I wanted to beat him up, I would have done it myself. I’m going to let that slide though.”

He looked at her with pure admiration “Wow…that’s very big of you.” He shook his head with a laugh “If someone called me a bitch, I think I’d pu—”

“He didn’t call me a bitch.” Ivy said, “If he did, I would have thanked him. He called me… beautiful.” She whispered the word. Ivy’s face wrinkled with disgust “I mean, talk about insult!!”

Ben let out an exasperated sigh “Sweetie, that’s called a compliment.”

Ivy arched her left brow upwards “No, it’s an insult. Call me ‘sweetie’ again and I’ll make sure you lose a tooth.” She pointed at him.

He laughed despite her serious tone “I was being ‘sarcastic’. Are you familiar with that word?” Ivy’s lips curled up into a smile “You should do that more often, you look very cu—” he had to stop himself “cool…” he finished.

Ivy nodded while her eyes narrowed “Yeah, you better say cool.” She got up and walked towards the windows, she had the perfect view of the bay “Wow…I’ve never seen the city like this.” She pointed down the street as her face pressed against the window “Look, it’s Yeung Bak in the cart!” she turned to Ben “I would die for a fried fish stick right now.”

“No!” He said sternly “That is bad for you. No more fried food, only steamed or boiled vegetables.”

She snickered “You’re not the boss of me. I can eat whatever I damn well please!”

Ben smiled “I was kidding.”

“Hey…” she walked over to him “I was meaning to ask you. What kind of company is this? I saw all these movie star posters on the walls down the hallway. I thought it was an image consulting company, but the sign said Talent Agency?”

He waved his hand nonchalantly “Oh that…it’s because we’re two companies in one. I work on the consulting side.”

Ivy nodded, taking his explanation “Hey…do you ever see stars in here?” she asked with sudden interest.

“Always.” He smiled “Is someone a little star struck?”

“Hell no!” Ivy shook her head but a sly smile was plastered on her face.

“Really?” he asked with special interest. He glanced at his watch and looked up earnestly “I forgot I had a phone meeting with one of my clients at 11:30. It shouldn’t take long. I’ll be back in about 30 minutes. Why don’t you watch some TV?”

Ivy looked around the fancy conference room “You guys have a TV in here?”

Ben chuckled at her shocked face “Yes. Here…” he got up and reached for the control in one of the drawers by the corner of the room “Just relax in here.” He pressed a button and the flat screen appeared from a box on the top left corner of the room. She didn’t even notice it was sitting there.

“This is so freaking cool!!” she was already lost in her own little TV land and didn’t notice that he was gone.

Chapter 17

Ivy was watching a cartoon channel and laughing to herself when the door opened. She didn’t bother looking up, figuring it was just Ben “Hey, you gotta see this. I almost snorted up a loogie!” she turned only to be faced to face with Julian Cheung, the actor/singer. Ivy was in shock as her smile faded “Hi…” she managed to say.

Julian smiled his perfect smile with the perfect row of white teeth. His dimple sinking into his right cheek “Hello…I didn’t get your name.”

“I didn’t give it.” Ivy said while her brows furrowed “What are you doing in here?”

He laughed casually “This is a waiting room.” He leaned on the table next to her seat “So, what are you in for?” he began the small talk.

“Robbery and murder of a middle age man that tried to touch me…and you?” she asked. His smile began to fade and Ivy laughed “What’s wrong? Scared?”

Julian shook his head with a forced smile “No…not at all.” He turned on the charm machine as he tilted his head to the side and looked at her with a flirtatious crooked grin “Are you an actress?” Ivy shook her head with a look of disgust “A model?” he tried and again she looked repulsed “A singer…” he snapped his finger “Yes, that must be it.”

Ivy rolled her eyes as she snapped her finger, imitating him “No. I’m not. I’m just a below average person.”

“Aww…you are not!” he argued,“You’re absolutely gorgeous. I’m surprised no one’s discovered you yet.”

She paused for a few seconds as she pushed herself up and looked at him in the eye “Thank you…now get your nose out of my ass!”

Julian was taken aback by her response as he strained his ear towards her “Excuse me?”

“You heard me.” She shook her finger at him “I’m not some girl you can call that. Anyways, aren’t you dating that one chick actress?” she scratched her head to think of the girl’s name “Tall, bony, big eyed…a little wacko…” Ivy’s arms flared to the side while her head shook back and forth.

“Anita Yeun?” Julian answered.

“Yes!” Ivy nodded “Does she know you go around flirting with girls? If I was her, I would have dumped your ass by now.”

Julian was a bit insulted as he cleared his throat and prepared to leave “Well, I’m sorry you were offended. I guess I should leave.”

“Bye bye.” She said mockingly while returning to her cartoon. She heard the door close as she mumbled “Freak.” After another 10 minutes or so, the door opened again. She thought this time it had to be Ben “Dude, you cannot imagine who just hit on me earlier.”

“Who?” an unfamiliar male voice asked.

Ivy slowly turned herself around and was face to face with Louis Koo, the famous heartthrob of romantic comedies “Oh my God!!” she yelled.

Louis chuckled shyly with his head tilted to the floor “Thanks…”

“Ah, shit…” she mumbled while getting up and walking around him in circles. Suddenly, he felt uncomfortable but kept his cool.

“Are you a fan?” he asked.

Ivy rolled her eyes “Yeah, right.” She shook her head “Vicki would shit in her pants if she knew I was in the same room with you!” Then her eyes lit up “Do you have a cell phone?” she asked and then laughed at herself “Of course you do…what am I thinking?”

Louis pulled out his brand new Nokia2390 “Who are you calling?”

“Vicki!” Ivy said exasperatedly “You don’t listen too well do you?” she snapped. She dialed Vicki’s cell phone, which she memorized by heart. Her friend picked up in two rings “Hey, it’s me. Girl, you will never guess who’s in the room with me!!” Louis crossed his arms with a smile while Ivy continued “No…no…no…keep guessing!” she yelled roughly.

Vicki sighed “Look, I don’t have time for this game.”

“You’re no fun!” Ivy frowned “It’s Louis Koo!!” she yelled.

“No way!!!” Vicki pretended she was in shock “I hate you…hey, how do I know you’re not lying?”

“Okay…I know how...” Ivy laughed as she gave the cell to Louis “Here, talk to her.”

“Who is she?” he asked hesitantly.

“Vicki!!” Ivy groaned, “Man, you need your head fixed. Do you have short term memory or something?” she shook her head at him “Tsk, tsk, tsk…such a shame.”

Louis widened his eyes at her but answered the call “Hello? Hello?” he frowned at Ivy “There’s no one there.”

Ivy yanked the phone from his hand “Hello? Vicki? Vicki!!!” she heard gasping on the other side of the line “She’s just hyperventilating.” Ivy hung up the cell and tossed it at Louis. He caught it surprisingly while she returned to her TV.

He wasn’t about to give up that easily as he walked around to Ivy’s other side and took a seat. Louis reached out coolly for the remote as he turned off the TV. She turned to him, ready to pounce on him “Let’s talk.”

“What about?” she asked without interest.

“You. Where are you from? I’ve never seen you in here before. Are you a new talent?” he started the small talk.

“Yeah…I’m a new talent.” She snorted with sarcasm that he didn’t catch.

Louis tilted his head “Let me guess? You’ve got a talent for stealing the attention right out of the room.”

Ivy frowned “Is that suppose to be funny?” she asked angrily.

His face changed as he began to shake his head vehemently “No…I didn’t mean—”

“Just because this room is empty doesn’t mean I can’t beat you up!” Ivy snapped “What is the matter with you people? Can’t you see that you are WAY out of my league?”

Louis looked confused as he tried to explain “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you…really. I was just implying-”

“So what? You’re going to use big words on me now?” Ivy snapped again. She pulled herself off the chair “Get out. Get out! NOW!!!” she yelled at the top of her lungs.

Louis stumbled to get off his seat as he walked out of the room. He ran into Ben in the hall “Man, she’s got problems.” He muttered.

Ben’s greeting smile faded “What happened?”

“You mean you didn’t hear? I thought the whole building could hear her!!” Louis said with exaggeration.

Ben watched him storm off as he let out a sigh. Maybe his plan to woo her with the help of the most charming stars didn’t work. She was a tougher cookie to break. He took in a deep breath before entering the room. Ivy was fuming, her face was red “Hey you.” He greeted lightly.

“Shut up!” she snapped.

“Wooh…you need to chill.” He said with his hands up in defense mode.

Ivy stopped her pacing abruptly “Did you just tell me to chill? What the hell are you, some blond hair surfer dude?”

Ben couldn’t help but smile at her “What happened? Tell me.”

“Is this like a male escort center?” she asked “Two guys just walked in and totally hit on me!”

“Who were they?” Ben asked innocently.

“Louis Koo and Julian Cheung!” Ivy said incredulously.

“Oh…that’s all?” Ben asked teasingly “You should feel special, they’re two of the hottest young actors today. Any girl would die to be in your shoes right now.”

Ivy rolled her eyes “Fine, they could have my shoes. They hurt like hell.” She said sarcastically “I don’t like to be hit on. It makes me feel cheap…and isn’t Julian Cheung engaged?”

“Yes…” Ben began “Maybe they were just being friendly.”

“Friendly?” Ivy asked in shock “They had the corniest pick up lines. One freak calls me the ‘G’ word and the other says I can stop eyes when I walk into a room.”

“But you can.” Ben argued.

“Thank you.” She said without realizing it “Seriously, I don’t think I have ever felt so insulted.” She noticed him smiling at her as she turned her head strangely “What? Crap! Do I have a loogie on my face or something.” She began wiping her nose.

“No, no…” Ben was laughing as he pulled her hand down “It’s just that…I just complimented you and you said thank you.”

Ivy frowned “I did?” she shook her head after a moment “No I didn’t.”

“Yes, you did.” Ben laughed “You said one of the guys said you can stop eyes when you walk in a room and I said ‘you can’ and then you said thank you.”

She realized that she had said it and quickly brushed it off “Well, you don’t count. You’re not a normal guy.”

“I’m not?” He raised his brows “You mean I’m special?”

“You wish.” Ivy snickered “You…you just don’t count. I know you…well not that well… but you can say we’re kinda friends. I don’t take it personally.”

Ben let out a sigh “Looks like we need a lesson on what is a compliment and what is an insult.”

She arched her brows up “And looks like you need a lesson on how to stop these stupid LESSONS!!!”

“A lady never raises her voice.” Ben began.

Ivy slumped down onto the chair as her face lowered to the table “Kill me now. Please…” she mumbled.

Chapter 18

Ben had the entire lesson written out as he treated her like a client. Speaking to her in his professional voice. Every so often he would clear his throat when Ivy began to get more comfortable and her leg would automatically be propped up on the chair “…don’t ever take advantage of common courtesy. If someone compliments you, simply say thank you and never forget to smile. It goes a long way, people will think ‘oh, she’s friendly’ and they will be more opted to speak to you. I’ll give you a few scenarios…let’s say if someone says something you don’t want to hear. How would you react?”

Ivy raised her hand like an eager student. Ben smiled despite the fact that there were only two people in the room “I will punch him in the nose.” She replied like a wise student.

“No!” Ben let out a sigh “After a full hour of lessons and you still can’t get the common courtesy one down. Do you want me to repeat it?”

She dropped her jaw “One hour? Only?? Damn, it feels like a week had past.”

He pointed at her with his pointer “Okay, that’s it. No more cursing, young lady. Every time you curse, you have to put $100. into a jar.” Ivy opened her mouth to say something and was quickly interrupted “I’ll provide the jar.” He added.

“Lam Sir, are we done? Can I go home now?” Ivy pleaded.

“Not until we have lunch.” He said firmly.

She looked liked she was contemplating the idea “Hmm…Done!”

He laughed as they gathered their stuff and walked out the door. She forgot how busy the environment of the office was as she bumped into a tall guy. She turned to yell at him when she noticed it was Daniel Wu. He threw her a dazzling smile “Hello there, beautiful.”

Ivy’s face turn beet red “Look Bozo, I don’t care who you are, I’m not going to do it with you in the copy room!!!”

Daniel was easily embarrassed as he backed away while Ben stifled a grin “Are you taking her back to the zoo?” he whispered. A few people heard her outburst as they looked over at them.

“Are you gonna stop flirting with my friend? He’s straight!!” Ivy announced.

Ben tapped Daniel on the shoulder “She’s a charmer isn’t she?”

Daniel rolled his eyes “Yeah, a beast charmer.”

*************

Ben took Ivy out to the beach again. They ordered fast food and sat along the sand while they ate lunch. Ivy dug into her burger “Mmm…fat.” She moaned.

He laughed, “You are one of a kind, Ivy.”

“Thank you!” she smiled with her mouth full of food.

He winced with disgust “Don’t do that.”

“Okay.” She agreed and he turned to see her mouth opened all the way with the food chomped up in bits.

Ben’s head whipped away again “How does your father put up with you?”

“He doesn’t. I put up with HIM.” Ivy said.

“How about Tyler? You two are like apples and oranges.” Ben said with interest.

Ivy shrugged while she played with her pickle “I don’t know. Tyler’s always been like that. I think the girlier he got, the tougher I became. I always wanted a brother to pick on but instead I got a sister.” She joked.

“You think he’s…”

“Gay?” Ivy asked “Nah.” She shook her head “He’s not the type to be in denial. I just think he’s just confused on how to act.”

“You think it has to do with his tomboyish sister? So in order to stand out, he has to be the ‘perfect daughter’?” Ben was trying to get her to open up more.

Ivy put her burger down “When did you get all this psychology bullshit from?” He lifted a brow at her and she closed her eyes “One hundred.” She nodded.

Ben laughed “I got all the bullshit from my shrink.” He ignored her dirty glare because he was allowed to curse.

“You’ve got a shrink? What’s the matter with you?” Ivy asked “Besides the obvious.”

“I don’t have a mental problem, I just have a lot of issues that I don’t like sharing with people.” He explained.

“Like what?” Ivy pressed. He tilted his head at her “What? You started it. It’s only fair that I ask too. I’m all about being ‘fair’.” She nodded in explanation.

Ben smiled as he turned to her “Okay. I have a girl problem.” She pulled herself back while her eyes widened, her finger pointing to his manliness. He shook his head vehemently “No, I don’t have a problem performing.” Ivy let out a sigh of relief as she began eating her lunch again “So what if I do?” he suddenly asked “What’s it to you?”

“Trust me. It’s none of my business but if you had a problem, you would be prone more to my teasing. Look at Tyler. I probably turned him into a girl after all those years of teasing.” She laughed at the memories “One time I told him he was adopted and he cried for days.”

“That’s horrible!” Ben shook his head at her but eventually laughed, “That is funny though.”

Ivy nodded “He believed me too. I told him his parents were killed by these barbarians and my old man felt bad so he took him into our home.”

“How old were you two?” he was curious.

“Probably around 6 and he was about 4 years old.” Ivy nodded as she continued “I even told him he was a Prince from this exotic island that no one goes to. Only natives on the island were allowed to live there.” Her head thrown back with laughter “He bought it for years.”

Ben shook his head again “I’m so glad I don’t have a sister like you.”

Ivy pushed him roughly “Hey! I’m a great sister! Damn it, I baby that kid until he was 20 years old!”

He pointed at her “Two hundred.”

“Shit!” She cursed and quickly covered her mouth with her hand “Okay, I’m gonna stop talking now.” She began stuffing her face.

Ben flinched at her manners “You might want to chew once in a while.” He said with sarcasm.

“Your turn.” Ivy said as she pushed the food to her cheeks. Ben looked at her strangely “Share something. We were talking about how you’re incompetent.”

“Big word.” Ben raised his brows.

She nodded “I heard Ty use it the other day.”

“Yeah, that explains it.” Ben smiled “And no, I’m not incompetent. I just have a problem finding the right girl. I was engaged about a year ago. She was the most perfect girl in the world…beautiful, smart, charming, funny and she loved me…at least that’s what I thought.” He added sadly, his head tilted downwards to his burger “I caught her in bed with her ex boyfriend.”

“Wow…that’s harsh.” Ivy said, he had her full attention.

She could tell he was still hurting from the pain because he refused to meet her eyes “Harsh? Try heart-tearing pain. We were going to get married the following weekend. I guess I should be glad that I found out sooner.”

“Oooh, you know what you should have done?” Ben looked at her oddly “Go through with the reception and then announce into the microphone how she slept with another guy a week before your wedding. Can you imagine the look on her parent’s disgraced faces and not to mention she’d be embarrassed in front of all her friends and relatives?” Ivy concluded, “That would have been my icing on the cake.”

He laughed, “I suppose I could have done that. But I didn’t think about revenge. Have you ever heard of the word heart breaking?” Ivy nodded “Well, I literally lived it. It hurt so bad that I refused to see anyone. I didn’t even go to work for a whole week. I just sat home and cried.”

“Wow…” Ivy sighed, “I can’t remember the last time I cried.”

Ben snickered “I thought you didn’t know how to cry. How about the time your mom died?”

“I might have shed a few tears.” She said casually.

“Have you ever been in love?” he asked out of the blue.

She turned to him awkwardly “No…well…I don’t know.”

Finally, they were getting somewhere! He couldn’t give up the chance “What do you mean, you don’t know? It’s either a yes or a no.”

Ivy let out a sigh “But what is the definition of ‘in love’?” Ben shook his head “Everyone has a different answer to one question. There was this guy that I met. I knew I liked him a lot.” Her eyes moved to the ocean waves crashing “It was my senior year in high school. This guy named Bryan, he was the coolest guy in school, the guy every girl wanted to date. But I was the only lucky girl that he chose to be with. He overlooked my crude personality and the way I was always cursing at everything. I thought he was an angel. He never got mad at me, always made me laugh even when I had the roughest day. He even told me that he loved me and I couldn’t return the words but it was okay. Because he understood.” Her eyes were brimming with tears “And at that point, I thought… wow… a guy that was understanding in every aspect possible. I guess it was too good to be true. We dated for about 8 months and I knew I had fallen for this guy. We went to Prom together, but he said it was boring and he only wanted to be with me. He took me to his friend’s house, which was a huge mansion…when I got inside, my heart was floored to the ground. Inside the house was a banner that read ‘Biggest Freak Contest’. I was just a freak…” she whispered while a tear fell from her eye “Apparently, who ever got the ‘freak’ to sleep with him, he would be crowned as the King of Freaks.” She paused to remember the moment “I wasn’t hurt that he considered me a freak or the fact that he dated me only to be crowned as the King of Freaks. Heck, I wasn’t the least upset when he tried to get me in bed after he told me what the game was about and he begged me because he wanted to win really bad. But I was the most hurt when I realized the only person that ever accepted me for me was never real to begin with. It was like a horrible nightmare that I could never forget…” her eyes were dazed away in a distant land in her mind. She didn’t have a peaceful place in her mind, only dark and angry places.

Ben was surprise and sympathy quickly over took him “I’m sorry…I don’t know what to say…” he was for once at lost for words. Her story compared to his was a hundred times more painful. At least he got over his ex, but for a girl to have been used like that. It was beyond him that a guy could ever be that cruel “Don’t cry…” he coaxed gently while his hand smoothed her hair away from her tearing face.

Suddenly she remembered where she was as she practically pounced on him. Her fingers wrapped around his throat “Don’t you dare tell anyone that I cried!!! I’ll kill you and chop you up in pieces and throw you to the fishes. Then I’ll use your bones as a hammer!!”

His eyes wide with fear since he didn’t expect the sudden attack. Ben’s head nodded slowly “I promise…I won’t tell anyone.”

Ivy slowly leaned back but then she pointed at him as his head whipped back “Swear it on your manliness. If you ever tell another soul, you will be incompetent.”

Ben looked at her straight in the eye “If I ever repeat this to anyone, I will never be pleasured in bed.”

She nodded and sat back in her seat “Okay.”

He smiled even though it was a serious matter “I feel so special.”

“That I threatened you?” Ivy asked teasingly while she reached for her cold burger.

“No, that I know this dark secret of yours that no one knows. I don’t care if you won’t admit that I’m special. Ty called me special.” Ben said smugly.

“I wouldn’t be doing the touchdown dance yet. Ty called the hobo down the street ‘special’.” Ivy snickered.

Ben looked at her with rolled eyes “You can’t let me have one can’t you?”

“Well, someone’s gotta put you in your place.” Ivy said matter-of-factly.

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