I've had this chapter in works since February. I was literally writing a Valentine's day themed chapter (which included Wolf bashing commercialized capitalist holidays, Thorne making stuffed animals do inappropriate things, and also had Iko and Thorne argue over who could ask out Scarlet) Then I realized that it didn't fit my time frame, and I really didn't want to mix around my endgame, so here's this. Filler-ish, some slight Kaider, and in regards to the guest who asked if bi!Iko is a thing, why yes, she's bi, because that's my fond headcanon :) I've also been wanting to incorporate Winter and Jacin somehow...my boyfriend bought me Stars Above for Valentine's day and I was glued to "The Princess and the Guard", honestly. Anyway so here's this chapter, which is sorta shitty, I got writer's block, I've had to write so many essays because I'm taking two English classes but I did that to myself...I've also been dedicating my time to other sites like YouTube, and Tumblr, and I have a bunch of scholarships I've been applying for, too. Besides my boring life, thanks to the people that left reviews and want me to update, if it wasn't for you all this would follow the same fate of my ROTBTD stories and be unfinished, but I plan to keep at this one, but at the same time, I have soooo many stories I started with TLC at this point, and a lot of them are WinterxJacin actually lol also Iko/Kinney someone shoot me

Thorne waltzes past the cash register, whistling nonchalantly, hands stuck in his pockets.

Naturally, Cinder assumes he's done something wrong.

"What did you do this time?" Cinder asks, eyes glued to the bills she's counting in her hand.

"Me? Do something? What a ludicrous idea. I haven't done anything wrong in my life."

"How about when you went to jail?"

"...grand theft is hardly wrong."

"Thorne."

"Alright, alright, fine- I sorta followed Wolf home last night when he left. Y'know, before the sun went down?" Thorne says, raising both of his hands in surrender.

Cinder groans. "You know he probably saw you."

"I was very clandestine!" Thorne protests.

"Clandestine enough for a man who made it his life goal to stalk political candidates?"

"...point taken. Do you want to know what he does when he's not at work or not?" Thorne asks.

"That's his business," Cinder replies.

"But you have to at least be curious," Thorne presses.

"Not enough," Cinder says.

"I'm curious!" Iko pops into the conversation, beaming widely and holding a stack of magazines. "What, exactly, am I curious about? Does it involve Kai?"

"Better," Thorne says, "It involves Wolf."

Iko makes a face. "He's not as cute as Kai."

Cinder aggressively starts counting bunches of quarters.

"Haven't you wondered why he always shows up to work with cuts, bruises, bloody face, the works?" Thorne's voice is positively gloating in an I-know-something-you-don't way.

"Yes!" Iko gasps, and then she lowers her voice. "To be honest, I hope he's not in an abusive household. That would be horrible."

"He's not, relax," Thorne waves a hand, "But he is in..." here, he pauses for dramatic effect-"...boxing."

"Boxing?" Cinder echoes.

"Boxing!" Thorne exclaims.

"Boxing!?" Iko repeats, aghast.

"Boxing!" Thorne tosses his arms above his head, comically and dumbly.

"He willingly lets people beat him up?" Iko muses over the new information. "That's just...weird."

"Maybe there's a lot of money in that," Cinder says, putting her coins back into the register.

"You're right," Thorne says, and his eyes positively light up. "Think we can get him to cut us in?"

"Isn't unorganized fighting illegal?" Iko wonders aloud.

"Why would it be? It's fighting, and everybody's adults," Thorne says, waving around one hand.

Iko shrugs. "I watched that movie Beverly Hills Chihuahua and the dog fighting was illegal."

"Why the hell would you watch Beverly Hills Chihuahua?" Thorne raises one eyebrow.

"...don't judge me, I had to," Iko snaps.

"You had to watch Beverly Hills Chihuahua?" Cinder quirks one of her eyebrows, too.

"...stop judging me!"

"Anyway," Thorne trails, "I feel like we should ask Wolf if we can tag along. Become a support team."

"Become a support team in illegal fighting?" Iko exclaims. "Do you want to get arrested again?"

"Hmm, good point, I'd rather like to stay away from jail, thank you," Thorne says, after a pause to consider the pros and cons.

The door to the mini-mart opens, and Cinder jumps, looking at the door frantically, but it's only a teenage girl walking through the aisles.

Iko catches Cinder's nervousness, and she gives a knowing smirk.

"Cinder," she says, sneakily, leaning against the cash register. "You look jumpy today."

"I'm not jumpy," Cinder says, stubbornly, and then she tugs at the gloves that cover her hands.

"You look jumpy." Iko grins.

"I'm not," Cinder stresses. "I'm perfectly calm and I'm not jumpy."

"Did Kai ask you anything?" Iko asks, that smirk still there. "Ever since your date-"

"Not a date..."

"You've been acting really weird. This past week." Iko crosses her arms. "I bet Kai kissed you and you've been holding out on me. Not telling me the gritty details, are you?" She gasps. "Did he kiss your hand? I've seen that in movies. That seems romantic."

"No," Cinder deadpans, "I'm wearing gloves. I wouldn't let him kiss my hand anyway."

"He didn't try to put any moves on you?" Iko sounds disappointed.

"No."

"Lame," Thorne interjects from where he'd been ignoring them before, looking at Cinder's stack of outdated magazines. "If a guy doesn't try to get a kiss from the first date, then he's got no game."

"He's got more game than you," Iko challenges. "You haven't been on a date."

"Yeah, but I've touched base more than he has, I'll bet," Thorne says, giving a smug grin.

"Touched base? Don't be crude," Iko swats at Thorne's shoulder.

"I'll have you know I can get a date anytime I want one, thank you very much," Thorne says. "There's this girl at the computer store that's giving me the eye."

"The eye?" Cinder gives Thorne a confused look. "You mean the eye where she's watching you to make sure you don't steal anything?"

"Of course not!" Thorne snaps, looking mildly annoyed, but hardly so at the same time. "She wants this. I can tell."

"She wants a deadbeat?" Cinder shoots back, a small smile on her lips.

"Don't be getting jealous, Cinder," Thorne gloats. "I know you're still hung up over me..."

"Oh, yes, I'll be very jealous of her," Cinder says sarcastically, with an eye roll added for good measure. "I don't know what I'll do without you."

"What were you doing at the computer store?" Iko demands, hands on her hips.

"Got a virus on my laptop," Thorne says. "Apparently, she's a software expert or something. I don't know. She's fixing it though."

"Is she pretty?" Iko asks, getting interested.

"Yeah, sure, of course she's pretty," Thorne says, and he leans against the cashier counter next to Iko. "But the point is, she would date me. In a heartbeat. I'm sure about that."

"You're sure about that," Iko mimics with a smile.

"Yes, I am!"

"I still think you wouldn't be as suave as Kai," Iko claims.

"Oh, yeah? Want to make a bet? I bet that I can kiss computer store girl faster than Kai kisses Cinder." Thorne is facing off Iko now, a smirk that matches hers on his lips.

"I'm right here, dumbass," Cinder rolls her eyes, "And I'm not going to be part of your stupid bet because I'm not going to kiss Kai."

"What? Why not?" Iko screeches, eyes wide.

Cinder's face heats up (involuntarily. She tries not to blush on top of everything). "I dunno, it's just...very weird. I haven't been kissed, and he's not going to kiss me."

"He could!" Iko cries out, getting so excited that the braids she'd been twirling idly around her fingers start to get tangled in each other. "I'm sure he wants to, Cinder. If he didn't, he wouldn't have been coming here at all. I mean, think about it. What would his ulterior motive be? He has to want to kiss you."

"No he doesn't," Cinder refutes.

"What else is he trying to do if he's dating you?" Thorne inserts himself into the kiss debate. "If a guy dates you, he wants something in return. And that something has to be your...womanly charms."

"Oh, yeah, my womanly charms," Cinder drawls (sarcastically. very sarcastically). "I wonder what he finds more enticing- my unbrushed hair or the grease on my face."

"C'mon, Cinder, don't you want to make things exciting?" Iko gives a weird little jump/hop of excitement. "This could be fun! And, it would speed up your first kiss. Think about it."

Cinder's not thinking about it. At least she won't admit it. Instead, she side-eyes Thorne. "He's going to cheat."

"We'll make sure he doesn't!" Iko says. "I mean, he can't kiss computer store girl at the computer store. We'll just have to chaperone their dates."

"Hold on," Thorne frowns, "How is there going to be any action if all we would do is double date?"

Iko perkily gives an array of claps. "Double dating!" she gushes. "Ohmygod, I don't know why I didn't think about that! You and Kai," she turns to Cinder, "Can go on a date with Thorne and computer store girl!" She looks at Thorne now. "What's her name?"

Thorne blinks. Then pauses. "Huh. I actually don't know."

"Kai can't do that," Cinder raises her argument. "He's too well-known. And what if computer store girl is a fan? This isn't going to work. And, there's the fact that I refuse to participate."

Iko pouts. "Please, Cinder? I mean, it's not turning into She's All That. You and Kai like each other, and it's only a matter of time when you guys would kiss. There's nothing wrong with a meaningless bet in my boring life."

"Cinder's just scared," Thorne declares, crossing his arms. "Yup. She knows she'll lose."

Cinder's eyes narrow. "I'm not scared."

"Then prove it and kiss Kai Prince," Thorne grins.

"I'm not going to do that," Cinder raises her voice.

"Ahem." The group whirls around to face the teenage girl from earlier, who's holding a pack of gum and looking annoyed. Wordlessly, Iko and Thorne step aside to let Cinder check out the girl's product.

Once the teenager's gone, though, it's back to the discussion that makes Cinder roll her eyes. Again.

"I'm not going to agree on the whole chaperone thing," Thorne says, "But I'll let you guys meet her, and then you'll understand that she's head over heels. It'll be perfect."

"Perfect?" Iko gives a giggle. "You don't even know her name."

"I'll prove it!" Thorne pointedly avoids the last part of the sentence. "I'm going to pick up my laptop and then I'm going to ask her out on an actual date, where I will kiss her. And learn her name. Not necessarily in that order."

"Where will this actual date be?" Iko asks with a toss of her her head.

"We're going to have us a little get-together in your apartment, Iko," Thorne says, and then he turns to Cinder. "When's the next day this place closes?"

"The day Adri dies," Cinder blandly responds.

"Aww, come on, Cinder, there's got to be one day she won't be open."

Cinder shrugs. "Christmas?"

"Adri won't close," Iko says, slowly. "And our apartment is small, Thorne. We can't have a get-together."

"It'll just be us. You two don't have any friends, and shockingly, all my friends are still in jail, so we can invite Wolf! He's practically our friend." Thorne leans against the cash register. "I mean, he's going to be the only other person besides us, but it'll make it seem casual and not like a date. Otherwise Iko would be the fifth wheel."

"But then I'll have to talk to Wolf the entire time," Iko complains, but then her eyes light up. "What if I invite Scarlet?"

Thorne looks interested at that suggestion. "Is she hot?"

"You forget that we're not doing this bet thing," Cinder inserts with a scowl.

"Cinder," Iko whines, "We never have any fun. Let me have this."

"This wouldn't be fun."

Thorne snaps his fingers. "I've got it."

"Got what?" Iko asks. "Is it chlamydia?"

"Ha ha, you're very funny...no, leave the 'closing' problem to me," Thorne says smugly. "I can take care of it."

Cinder knows he's going to do something morally wrong, so she doesn't even listen to what he's about to say next.

Iko's perched in the tiny bathroom, practically sitting on the counter by the sink as she slathers on a deep red lipstick. Cinder's leaning in the doorway, very upset.

"I can't believe you invited him." She's glowering, her knuckles growing white by the way she's gripping onto her forearms.

"He sounded like he really wanted to come. Well, through text," Iko waves one hand. "Besides, he said he's going to cut his filming early so he can hang out with you! I think that's sweet."

Cinder still refuses to even sound mildly happy. "I'm not going to kiss him, so get that through your head."

"Oh, Cinder," Iko coos, trying to speak in an accent as she continues, "I think the lady doth protest too much."

Cinder doesn't even blink. "Please don't ever try to speak like Shakespeare again."

Iko thins her lips into a thoughtful purse. "Is that Shakespeare?"

"I don't know," Cinder rolls her eyes, "I don't really care."

"Thorne came through, okay?" Iko changes the subject, running a finger by the corner of her mouth. "The mini-mart is closed and Scarlet says she'll stop by. Essentially, I'm living a dream."

Cinder groans. "Please don't try to flirt with Scarlet all night long."

"Why not?" Iko asks. "I mean, I'm pretty sure she's single." Suddenly, she gasps. "Do you think she's dating that waitress from the tavern? I always see them talking."

"I don't know," Cinder repeats. She runs her hands down the gloves she wears. She feels out of place, since Iko's insisted that she dress semi-nice. Her head thunks against the doorframe.

Iko's moved onto her mascara, carefully applying it to her lashes. "Ugh, what if she's straight? Do you think she's straight? I hope she's not straight."

"If she is," Cinder says, "Then at least you guys can be friends."

"Ehhhh," Iko trails off, capping her mascara wand. "I'm not really looking for more friends."

"Because you have so many," Cinder quips.

"Oh, shut up," Iko responds, sourly, stashing her makeup into the drawer of the sink counter. Then, she's turned to Cinder with a mega-watt smile. "So," she says, overly excited, "When are you going to tell Kai that you'll go to his awards show with him?"

"Never," Cinder replies, "Because I'm not going."

"What do you mean, you're not going?!" Iko exclaims. "Cinder, need I remind you that he's the most famous person on this side of the planet?!"

"He's actually not," Cinder refutes. "Besides, I'd have nothing to wear. And, I wouldn't want to go."

"You wouldn't want to go to a fancy awards show on the arm of Kai Prince?" Iko looks like she's about to have a heart attack at Cinder's refusal.

Cinder sighs. "Iko, I don't know him. He doesn't even know me, and I'm not-" she gestures to herself with distaste. "I'm not pretty enough for something like that. I have no clothes or anything that would look good at an awards show. Besides, it's weird."

"Of course you're pretty enough!" Iko scolds. "Don't say you're not. I think Kai really likes you, and I think you might like him back."

Cinder doesn't respond, but she knows Iko is right. About maybe liking Kai, anyway, but she's not sure about the rest.

Iko looks over at Cinder and gazes up and down. "Eh," she shrugs, "You could look worse."

"Thanks," Cinder says (sarcastically, as always). "Is it too late for me to hide away, forever?"

Iko beams. "Yes, it is." She takes Cinder's arm in her own, walking with her towards the living room. "Think about, an hour from now, we're going to have our very own and very first party."

"It's not a party," Cinder says, "Because you're going to promise not to do anything stupid like drinking, right?"

"I won't do anything stupid like drinking," Iko promises.

An hour later, she's stupidly drinking, and Cinder blames Carswell Thorne for supplying the booze.

Cinder also feels sorry for Carswell Thorne's date, who happens to be named Crescent Moon, but she goes by Cress, because she's got a blush on her face constantly as she stands by Thorne and tries to laugh at his drunken jokes. (and, he has really, really bad drunk jokes).

"Whatd'ya call a fish with two knees?" Thorne slurs, his arm around Cress as he sways, practically having her support his weight.

Iko, who's standing next to Thorne and Cress, widens her eyes in shock. "Fish have knees?"

"A two-knee fish!" Thorne exclaims. "Get it? Like tuna fish?"

Cress forces out a laugh, but it's very strained. Iko laughs like it's the funniest thing she's ever heard.

"Tuna fish!" Iko squeals, the beer in her hand sloshing as she writhes in mirth.

Cinder is massaging her temples and trying not to focus on the fact that Kai is currently in her tiny kitchen, getting them both non-alcoholic drinks, with that winning smile directed at her at all times.

"Hey," Kai returns- speak of the devil- and hands her a cup of juice, which she assumes must be for Thorne's mixed drinks, not that Thorne'd notice in his intoxicated state. "Pineapple okay?"

"Sure," Cinder says, gratefully, "Thanks." While she's never had an affinity for pineapple, it beat tap water all the same.

Kai looks over at Thorne, Cress, and Iko, who are currently talking very loudly (Thorne and Iko are. Cress looks like she's trapped). Then he gives Cinder that award-winning smile of his. Again. "Do you want to go somewhere more private?" he asks.

Cinder can't help it, she laughs, nervously, fiddling with her gloves like she always does. "Umm-"

"That came out wrong," Kai starts, ducking his head and laughing, too, making his hair fall into his eyes in a way that's boyishly cute. "I just meant somewhere quieter. Maybe with more light. And, without drunks."

Cinder looks over at Iko, and she knows she shouldn't leave Iko alone if she's drunk, but at the same time, Cinder would like to be free from the blaring, tacky techno music Thorne'd managed to hook to an ancient booming speaker.

"I'll keep my hands to myself. Scout's honor. Well, actually, I was never a Boy Scout, but I do have some integrity." Kai beams, and locks his hands behind his back.

Cinder laughs, and damnit, Kai makes it even easier to like him- maybe Iko was right about him being a perfect human being- but Cinder's not so willing to let her carefully constructed walls come down either, even if Kai Prince is attractive, smart, playful, and very out of her league.

"Not a Boy Scout, huh?" Cinder beckons for him to follow her to the doors that lead to what could almost be considered a terrace.

"Yeah, I didn't really have time. When your dad's a millionaire, shockingly, you can't do anything without your nannies supervising."

"A millionaire, huh?" Cinder can't help that another smile starts.

"Not bragging," Kai says quickly. "Just stating a fact."

"Oh, I'm sure you are." The air outside is calm, and hardly cold; it can't be under seventy degrees, yet Cinder has goosebumps. She's- potentially- alone with Kai Prince, considering nobody else has spilled outside. (also, she hadn't seen Wolf or Scarlet in the past hour, which was sketchy).

Kai takes a deep breath of the night air, and then he's gazing at the stars, just smiling. "This is nice," he says. "I haven't had a night to myself in such a long time. I like this." He looks over at Cinder, and he's smirking. "I have some stellar company, too."

Cinder averts her gaze and takes a long sip of pineapple juice, wishing she didn't have to come back up for air. She makes a noise like hmfpgh and then she oh-so-attractively almost chokes, which was great.

Kai doesn't notice, though, he's looking at the stars again. "When I was little my dad taught me all about the constellations," he says. "You know, he was an astronomer before he became a politician."

"Your dad's a politician?" Cinder asks, trying to make small talk, and also trying to soothe her burning throat, cursing the pineapple juice.

"He used to be." Kai runs his hand over the rusty metal of the terrace balcony. "I mean, before everything...now all he has is his business, and I don't think he'll go back to astronomy."

"Before what?" Cinder asks, genuinely curious.

"Before the cancer," Kai explains, almost sheepishly. "Sorry. I forgot- I'm used to people knowing."

Cinder's eyes grow wide. Shit. Absently, she thinks back to when Iko had told her not to mention Kai's dad, which is exactly what Cinder did.

"I'm sorry," Cinder says, truthfully, embarrassed. "I didn't meant to pry. I'm really out of things."

"It's fine," Kai says. "I should have explained, but, it's okay. My dad's doing the best he can, and I'm hopeful. I'm really hopeful."

Cinder closes her mouth before she can say something else that's dumb. Then, she takes another drink of juice, just to focus on anything other than her humiliation. Christ, Cinder thinks, I'm worse at talking than Thorne is.

"What about your parents?" Kai asks, turning to look at Cinder with a reluctant smile, because he's thinking of his terminally ill father, something that Cinder is still (internally) wincing about. "If that's not too invasive."

"Oh, no," Cinder says, thinking that nothing could be more invasive than her own comment, because try as she might, she's pretty sure she'll be mortified forever. "I'm adopted. My adoptive mother, she's-" (a bitch), "-she's the owner of the mini mart. That I work at."

"That's pretty cool," Kai says, and he sounds intrigued. "So I guess- both of our parents have businesses."

"In a way," Cinder replies, and then she gulps down the rest of her pineapple juice. She'd never been drawn to liquor, but she was certainly wishing she had some kind of buzz to get rid of her anxiety. Just thinking about Adri was giving her a headache.

Kai notices Cinder's now-empty cup. "Do you want me to get you some more juice?" he asks, and Cinder wishes that he wasn't so doting because she feels inadequate in comparison.

"You know, it's fine, I can just get some mysel-"

A loud crash cuts off the end to Cinder's sentence, the noise of shattering glass ending all conversation.

"FUCK!" a voice roars from the inside, a voice that Cinder recognizes as being Iko. Oh, God.

"What happened?" Kai looks concerned, bless his soul, but Cinder already knows what's happened.

"Um, it's just Iko," Cinder makes the excuse and rushes inside to see Iko furiously sweeping, the mirror that had once hung in the foyer on the floor in pieces. Thorne was also on the floor, not in pieces, but laughing about something. Cress is standing over him, with a grimace and red cheeks.

"Cinder!" Thorne sees her, chuckling. "You won't believe what just happened. We were playing truth or dare-"

"Why were you playing truth or dare?" Cinder asks, confused.

"-we dared Iko to make out with her reflection but she knocked over the mirror-" Thorne continues, not pausing to answer Cinder.

"Why would you agree to make out with your reflection?" Cinder crosses her arms. Kai comes into the living room and sees the mess, and his own eyes grow wide.

Iko is wobbly in her movements, and Cinder suspects she's truly and actually drunk. "B'cause I'm hot, Cinder."

Kai goes to help Iko clean up the mess, with Cinder and Cress following suit, because Thorne just lays there, laughing and shaking.

When the spectacle is over, Iko is asleep, right next to Thorne, who's also snoring.

"Sorry," Cinder says, and then she offers Cress a ride, which Cress shakes her head at.

"It's okay," Cress says, failing to look unaffected by Thorne's drunk behavior. "I'm going to take an Uber."

"I could drop you off, actually," Kai pipes up, his jacket over his shoulders. "I'm leaving, too."

Just then, Wolf and Scarlet come out from the kitchen. Cinder's met Scarlet now, she's a feisty redheaded girl who speaks with a French accent and also threatened to kill Thorne in a span of two minutes- but she's okay.

"Is everything okay?" Scarlet asks, looking confused, and then back at the clock. "It's not even ten yet." In her hands, inexplicably, is a cake. It's already been cut into, and Wolf's got crumbs around his mouth, which explains the missing part.

"It's late," Cress mumbles as an excuse, averting her gaze.

"I hope you don't mind that I borrowed your kitchen," Scarlet then directs her statement to Cinder.

"Um- It's fine?" Cinder says, uncertainly, raising the end of the sentence like it was a question.

Scarlet and Kai then strike up a conversation about baking, with the both of them exchanging culinary tips. Cress ends up going with the Uber, though the use of any of the party's vehicles are presented, probably because of Thorne's drunkard behavior, which makes Cinder "accidentally" step on his leg as she moved to open the door for everybody else to leave.

"This was fun," Kai tells Cinder as he lingers behind, once Wolf and Scarlet have left. "We should hang out again."

"Yeah," Cinder agrees, with a frozen, forced smile on her face, because the evening was far from fun. "We should."

Once he's gone, she does the only natural thing she can do, which is throw herself on the couch and groan for about five minutes. Then, she eats a piece of the cake Scarlet baked (it's really good) and falls asleep, grumbling about the idiocy of booze.