I ruffled through my clothes, finding the black hostess dress for the evening but was unable to find it anywhere. Sighs and grunts left me as I emptied my closet. A knock appeared on the door, and I turned to find Aunt Carol holding a large cup of coffee in her hands.

My fingers reached to my throbbing head, "I can't find the black dress anywhere." I whined while looking at the scattered mess on my bedroom floor.

"I had given it for laundry earlier. It must be in one of the bags downstairs. Let me fetch it for you. Meantime, have something to drink." She said, offering me the coffee.

I shook my head, "I just need the dress. I'm already getting late." Indeed, I was. Waking up with a wolf's bite in my waist was one of the painful things I had ever dealt with. It took me hours before I dragged myself off the bed and took a cold shower, hoping it would heal the wound quicker. Over that, I had taken more than three painkillers but wasn't able to keep the agonizing pain away.

"I'll get it for you." She placed the coffee on the side and rushed downstairs to find the dress that was required for tonight's event.

It was an important event that I was hostessing in and right now, the only thing important was bringing in the cash to my debts to several dealers. I couldn't hoard on any more debts without getting threats and that was the last thing I wanted to deal with. Threats. One threat would lead to another, and I'd be doomed.

Aunt Carol returned with the black dress in her hands. I quickly removed my shirt and wore the dress without wasting another single minute. During that act, Carol noticed the big, white bandied around my waist and questions rose.

"What happened?" She gasped, placing her hand over her mouth.

"Nothing."

"What is that, Eos? When did you get hurt? Why didn't you tell me? Did you go to a hospital?" She bombarded me with the questions I had been avoiding all day long from her. Since it was the weekend, she was home the entire day and bugging me since morning.

"It's nothing," I repeated as I zipped up the dress myself and covered my body with it. The dress was small, reaching just above my knees and with the slightest movement, it began riding up to my thighs. "I just fell from the stairs yesterday morning. Just a small injury." I lied, hoping she would believe in me.

"Did you go to the hospital?"

"Yes, yes, I did." I reached in front of my mirror and applied a little more powder over the makeup I had done a few minutes ago. "Don't worry. I'm fine. I just need to get this event on time. It's really important."

"Do you want me to drop you?"

"I'll drive."

"Are you sure?"

Every fiber in my body itched, forcing me to return to bed but I didn't want to. I had to go to the event and cash in whatever was the payment. I wasn't going to let a wolf's bite weaken me in any way. I needed to heal and move on.

Turning around, I found worry spread across Aunt Carol's unflinching face. She had been more concerned about me for the past few weeks due to all the trouble I had caused.

"Drop me." I said with a smile.

She sighed heavily and nodded, "I'll get the car started. When do you want to leave?"

"Just in a few minutes. I'm going to grab my things and come downstairs." I replied with a cheerful expression while my hands moved quickly over my bag and the other things I needed for the night.

After Carol left the room, I returned to the mirror and used a few eye drops over my eyes to calm the itch in them. Once my vision was restored, I packed up my bag and slowly threw it over my shoulder while avoiding the pulsating bruise.

The important event was taking place at the mayor's house. All the big, rich families of the town were invited to tonight's event. It was also a welcoming event for one of the guest's that was going to appear in town after three long years. I wasn't bothered much about what was happening or what was not. My only concern was going through the night without crying, seeing Bryce, or getting drunk on anything.

Once Aunt Carol dropped me to the mansion at 34L street, I stepped out of her car and headed in. There were two other hostesses apart from me and a few waiters spread across the house. The event itself was hosted by the great Mayor Harden and his lovely wife who greeted me and the other hostesses when we entered their house.

She went through the little details and informed us about the special guest that needed to be taken care of well along with the dances that were taking place tonight. There were going to be a few fundraising shows, focusing on raising money for the community and the town.

I listened to everything with a clear mind and kept my attention divided on the event.

The special guest arriving in town tonight was King Emerson, a very known man in the country. He was returning to the town after years and was desiring to see the best of what his hometown had become. It was in his interest to stay at Mayor Harden's mansion for a few weeks and Mayor Harden's interest was only upon raising the charity money from him in the next upcoming weeks.

The name, King Emerson, was heard and talked about a lot.

But it was the first time I was going to see him.

"Everything clear, girls?" Mrs. Harden asked as she pushed her hands together in front of her chest. She raced her eyes across all three of us until we nodded in response. "Great! Don't disappoint me. You all look lovely. The event will be starting soon so be prepared." She continued. Her words faded as she walked out of the room.

We didn't leave the room until our names were called. Drinks were served to us, but I avoided drinking as once I started with it, I couldn't stop, and I didn't want to mess up the night.

"Eos denying a drink. That's first." The girl beside me said with a glass of champagne over her long, prissy fingers.

I leaned back on the couch and rolled my eyes. A lot of people in the town knew about me and my horrible addictions. The knowledge was widely spread among the same age group as I was. When I dropped out of school last year, I was ashamed by my classmates for months before the taunts died down.

It was also because by then I had gotten in a relationship with Bryce who was greatly known among us, youngsters. We broke up exactly a week ago and nothing had gone right since then. I was spiraling again and losing control of everything—including myself.