🎶 Yo, on some real things
I need somebody I could chill with
I need somebody I could build with 🎶

Chapter Nineteen

"They want me to what?"

"Yeah, man. It's crazy," Severin had agreed. "But that's what the girls want you to do. They want you to talk to Katari apparently."

Severin, Jordan Francis and DeVante were just outside of the beach house because Jordan Francis and Severin really needed to tell the guy something.

They were now right in front of a bar, and the guys had just told DeVante the news.

DeVante was sitting down with Jordan Francis being in front of him and Severin's arm was resting on Jordan Francis' shoulder.

"But... why?"

"I mean, I'm just going with what Solana told me, and Severin's just going with what I told him," Jordan Francis explained.

"Yeah I know that but I don't know why y'all want me to talk to Katari so bad," DeVante deadpanned. "You just said I should talk to her quickly but you didn't even say why."

Realising that DeVante was actually right about this, Severin and Jordan Francis had argued silently within themselves on who should have told DeVante the news.

Nah, you tell him JF.

No, you tell him.

No— you tell him.

Jordan Francis sighed, before making the conclusion that they should have both told him.

"Aight, DeVante," Severin had started. "Don't get mad but..."

Then they explained it.

Jordan Francis: Basically, the girls were playing a truth or dare game.

Severin: Yeah, and you know how there's spin the bottle?

Jordan Francis: This time there was spin the wheel, 'cause if there was a bottle then sand would have gone everywhere. No one wanted that.

Severin: Long story short, it had landed on Katari at the end of the day. She wanted a truth.

Jordan Francis: Shequoia, aka one of the hosts of the game, asked her if she had a man, and Katari lied and said yes.

Severin: Then Shequoia had kind of conceitedly asked some follow up questions even though she wasn't supposed to. She asked if Katari had a man at the retreat.

Jordan Francis: Then she lied and said it was you. Because think about it, Severin and I are in a relationship, and Katari didn't know anyone else. You were the first person at the retreat she thought of that was single.

DeVante seemed upset at the end of everything.

But that didn't mean he was upset.

It was hard to tell.

He didn't say anything for the longest time, with Jordan Francis and Severin looking at each other.

"She could have just said that she didn't have a boyfriend at the retreat, or she didn't have one at all." DeVante realised.

"True but not caring what other people think is kinda hard and I think Katari fell into peer pressure so much that she had no choice but to lie."

Severin had then mentioned after Jordan Francis that she had literally run to the room because she felt so bad for lying.

DeVante sighed.

"You're not mad are you?" Severin wanted to know.

He didn't reply, he didn't really want to be involved in this but he didn't have a choice.

Okay so yeah, Jordan Francis and Severin wanted him to talk to Katari.

But DeVante wanted things to happen naturally.

Not by force, chile.

"Why would I be mad?" He answered after a while. "There's nothing for me to be mad at. At this point, I'm just indifferent. I don't know how to feel."

He didn't know Katari well enough to have some sort of opinion on her, with both Severin as well as Jordan Francis deeply apologising for bringing him into this.

Even though DeVante didn't want to be involved at all, he had still faked a smile.

"Nah it's fine. We may have never talked if it wasn't for this. Plus wasn't it my 'homework' from you guys that I should try and talk to Katari by the end of the day?"

They nodded.

So DeVante left, with the rest of them wishing him luck, not following him back to the room because he didn't want them to.

As he was going up there, Katari in the meantime was extremely upset.

She had just messed up big time; she had done the worst thing of her life.

Why did you lie, girl?

You should have just told people the truth and that you didn't have a man, especially at the retreat!

What's DeVante going to do when he finds out about this?

It's been like fifteen minutes now and no one had come to see how you're doing. They don't care about you.

She knew it.

Suddenly, coming here had seemed to be a mistake.

Why would you choose hanging out with 5 completely random strangers over your family?

She may have been tired of being famous for a while but at least Lil Kim and Armani had always had her back no matter what, because they were family.

As Katari was just about to call Lil Kim to rant to her about everything that had happened, as she was a seriously good listener...

Her door knocked.

She freaked out.

Awww, so they do care!

If it was them.

"Who is it?"

"It's DeVante."

His voice seemed emotionless and like he didn't want to be here with Katari realising that.

Is he mad at me?

Oh no...

If he was mad at me... he wouldn't be here right now though will he?

"Yo, Katari. I kind of want to get back to the beach party so like... could you just open the door? I haven't got time to waste."

She had listened to him and she had opened the door to her room, with DeVante going inside.

She didn't say anything to him and the other way around as she had just stared at him, wondering what to say to him.

"Are you angry?"

"No."

She smiled, before wanting to know what he was here. DeVante didn't know whether he should have told her that he had gotten forced to come here or not.

In the end he didn't.

Although they did get kind of personal with each other.

"I know what it's like," he seemed emotionless again, and he didn't even look at her. "To care too much about what other people think. But I would never go as far as lying about having a girlfriend or a wife during truth or dare, mind you."

Katari had let a sad chuckle at that, and now she wanted to know how DeVante had cared too much about what other people had thought of her.

DeVante: The thing with being a singer... once you have one good song, you've got to keep it up. And I hate that.

She knew from experience.

Katari: Yeah, I get what you mean. Once my friend told me she had a popping song. When she wanted to write another one, it took her like 20 tries to get there because she kept thinking what if people don't like it? She kept focusing on other people more than herself. The songs she liked, she was worried that other people didn't. I think she forgot the fact that you can't please everyone.

DeVante: Yeah, I've been through that. Jodeci has fought so many damn times because of that. Not just that though. Everyone in Jodeci is in a relationship aside from me. I've been pressured to find a girl from like 100 different people and it gets too much.

Katari had then asked him two good questions.

The first one was if he wanted a girl.

He said yes.

Then the second one was did he want a girl because of what people had said... or because he actually wanted one himself?

DeVante didn't reply.

"Hmmm... both, I guess? Is 27 too old to still be single?"

No, Katari knew someone that was 45 and they were still looking. They had never been married before and they had unsuccessfully had a relationship for about 20 or so years.

That had made DeVante feel a lot better, and even though those two were kind of forced to talk to each other... they were grateful.

They hugged.

"I'm so glad someone finally understands how I feel."

Katari had said the same thing about him.

Then she gasped.

She wanted to play a prank on the rest of them.

She had a feeling that Solana and Serayah had looked down on her whilst Jordan Francis and Severin had looked down on DeVante.

Because they were single introverts.

"Yeah, I did hear the boys say to me as we were going to the party that they don't think I'm fun."

"The girls said that to me!" Katari agreed.

They were about to continue their conversation until they had heard some voices.

The rest of them had come back to get changed for the costume party then they were going to come back out.

"Okay, so what are we going to argue about?"

Katari didn't know.

"Who has better music. You rant about Jodeci, I rant about Lil Kim."

He nodded.

Then they opened the door and they argued.

What do you mean Jodeci has better music?! Your music is trash!

My music is trash?! DeVante had yelled back, with the rest of them just watching him. Lil Kim's music is so bad that it should be a lullaby that puts people to sleep!

You wanna talk about lullabies?! The whole of Jodeci is a lullaby!

Then they started arguing with the rest of them trying to stop them but they didn't.

Katari had ended the fake argument by quoting one of Lil Kim's lyrics:

I'm the one that put the range in the rover
When I'm stepping out the range
Yo, it's over!

Aka Lil Kim's phone ringtone.

Then it was over.

Solana wanted to know what had happened, and DeVante had screamed at her as Katari had stormed into her room.

"If it wasn't for you guys interfering with my love life then none of this would have happened!"

He too had stormed to his room.

The four of them had just looked at each other with Katari and DeVante just texting each other.

You did amazingly.

DeVante smiled.

You too xx