Chapter 154: Reconsile The Both Of Them

That loudmouth!

Trisha glared at Brittney with enough intensity to burn a hole through her. What the hell was she doing? Aria had nearly suffered a breakdown over the thought of having one mate, and now Brittney wanted to stress her further by bringing Dragon Prince Man-Whore into the conversation?

"Rhydian is probably fooling around," Trisha said sternly, shooting Brittney a pointed look that clearly warned her not to say anything stupid.

But she should have known better. Brittney listened to no one.

"And what if he’s serious?"

"Well, Aria has a mate now, so no, we’re not letting some dragon come between them."

"Or Aria could date him too. Isn’t Maverick’s family big on multiple partners? What if fate already has something like that arranged for Aria too?" Brittney argued.

"Thank you, universe, but that is so not happening." Aria’s mind was already made up. "I’ve barely agreed to give Maverick a chance. I’m not adding some naturally occurring arsonist nuthead to the collection. I’m not that kind of person."

Brittney shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, I’m not the one accepting expensive jewelry from him either."

Just like that, Aria was rendered speechless.

"Okay—" Alek started, but Trisha cut her off before she could continue.

"This is how it’s going to be. Aria will speak with Maverick tomorrow, and hopefully, the two of them can spend some time getting to know each other without any dragon interference. Rhydian Drakhar nearly got us killed, which already makes him a terrible idea. So no, Aria is not entertaining anything with him. Simple as that."

At that statement, Brittney’s brows furrowed. She didn’t appreciate being brushed off by her relative, especially when Trisha was speaking as if she had any authority to decide what Aria did with her life.

"Aww, look at you making decisions for Aria already. Why don’t you spend some of that energy finding your own partner?"

Trisha froze, unable to believe the words that had just come out of Brittney’s mouth.

"Brittney!" Alek and Aria shouted at the same time.

"That was honestly uncalled for," Aria rebuked her openly.

But the damage had already been done, and from the look on Trisha’s face, she wasn’t about to let Brittney get away with it.

"No, let her be," Trisha said. "She thinks everyone is like her, with terrible taste in men and willing to sacrifice even her own family for the idiot she fell in love with." She knew exactly where Brittney’s deepest wound was, and this time, she deliberately struck it.

Aria had no idea what the hell Trisha was talking about, but whatever it was, the effect on Brittney was immediate. The humor disappeared from her face, and for someone who was almost always loud and cheerful, the coldness that settled over her features was unsettling.

"Seriously, Trisha," Alek said, clearly disappointed. "You didn’t have to go that far."

"No, no, no. Don’t look at me like I’m the bad guy here," Trisha snapped. "Brittney has to learn that she can’t be the first person to run her mouth and then act like the victim when someone gives her exactly what she asked for."

"I don’t know what the hell is going on between you two, but this ends here. You’re not tearing into each other under my watch. I won’t allow it," Aria said firmly.

"There won’t be a fight." Brittney’s voice was unusually low when she finally spoke, but there was enough bitterness behind it to make Aria uneasy. "She’s already won."

She turned to Trisha then, and the look on her face made Trisha’s anger falter. There was no sarcasm, playful comeback, or the usual fire Brittney carried around so easily.

"Congratulations, Trisha. I’m sure the same family your grandfather wanted nothing to do with must be incredibly proud of you right now."

And with that, Brittney turned her back on them and walked away before anyone could respond, slamming her bedroom door with enough force to rattle the walls.

Alek and Aria exchanged a look before sighing. To think Alek had called everyone together to help Aria sort through her problems, and somehow, they had ended up with an entirely new problem on their hands. Now the two of them would have to figure out how to reconcile Brittney and Trisha before this ridiculous fight became something neither girl could take back.

"She started it first," Trisha said defensively when she caught Alek and Aria staring at her.

"Just because she started it doesn’t mean you had to stoop to her level. Two wrongs don’t make a right," Alek lectured her.

"This is Bestiaris Academy, Trisha," Aria reminded her. "We don’t have the luxury of fighting among ourselves, especially when we never know where the next attack from the beasts will come from. Sticking together is probably the biggest reason we’ve managed to survive this long compared to some of the other girls, and we can’t afford to lose that because you two keep trying to hurt each other whenever you’re angry."

She added, "And I understand why you’re upset. Brittney crossed a line, and hopefully, she’ll learn to think before opening that mouth of hers next time. But sometimes you have to be the bigger person, especially when the other person clearly has a lot of growing up to do. You two are practically family. Do you realize how lucky you are to have that in this shithole of a program? Out of everyone here, you already have someone connected to you by blood. You should be protecting one another, not using what you know about each other as weapons whenever you fight."

From the look on Trisha’s face, Aria knew her words had struck home. The anger that had fueled her only moments ago was gone, leaving behind the unmistakable discomfort of someone who knew she’d crossed a line.

"You’re right," Trisha admitted reluctantly. "What I said was childish, and I’ll apologize to her. But I know Brittney. The last person she’ll want to talk to right now is me."

"Don’t worry, I’ll talk to her," Aria assured her, giving her hand a comforting squeeze.

With that, Aria got up from the couch and headed toward Brittney’s bedroom while Alek and Trisha remained behind, watching her approach the closed door.

"Brittney Thorne," she called, rapping her knuckles firmly against the door. "Open up right now."