The Queen Back From Hell - Chapter 34: Chapter 34

Meredith's trembling, fearful little act made Perla and Mya furious. Arielle wore Meredith's clothes, used her stuff, even took over her room. She was truly shameless.
They'd never seen anyone so thick-skinned.
Mya stepped in front of Meredith, shielding her like Arielle was some kind of thug bullying three helpless girls.
In the past, whenever Meredith and Arielle had clashed, Meredith's little circle of friends always leapt to her defense, making a show of standing up for her.
All Meredith ever had to do was stay behind them and keep up her innocent, kind, sweet, and thoughtful act.
Those lovestruck rich boys—no matter how badly they got hurt—would fight tooth and nail just to clear Meredith's path.
And Meredith's so-called girl gang? They were self-appointed crusaders for justice, always out for revenge on her behalf.
Arielle thought, 'Yep. Same playbook, same performance, starting all over again.'
Perla leaned over the table, hands flat on the surface, towering over Arielle. She said, '"People like you, crawling out of the gutter, have the nerve to eat steak?
"Do you even have shame? Just because you're wearing a knockoff designer dress, you really think you're somebody now?"
Arielle calmly picked up a napkin and wiped her mouth. "You've got 'Customer is King' written all over your walls. Who exactly is that for?
"I came here to eat, so that makes me a customer. But I'm not getting treated like one. Instead, I'm getting yelled at. So tell me—what do you think should be done about that?
"Didn't your parents teach you that if you want respect, you need to show it first? Even three-year-olds get that. How old are you guys?"
Arielle leaned back in her chair, her tone calm and unhurried. She stared straight at Perla, not the slightest bit embarrassed or afraid.
Perla laughed out of sheer rage, like Arielle's ignorance was beyond words. She shouted, "You? A hick like you? Talking to me about manners?
"Do you even know what the word means? I went to college. What about you? You barely recognize half the alphabet. Now you're trying to lecture me? That's f*cking hilarious."
"Get out. You've got one minute. If you're still here, I'll have security throw you out," Perla said coldly.
Arielle gave a short, cold laugh. "Wow, someone thinks you own the whole building."
At that moment, Mya stepped out, casting a cold glance at Arielle, her sarcasm practically dripping. "Funny you say that. My family owns this building.
"People like you really shouldn't be showing your face around here. Go back to your sidewalk food stalls."
Then Mya turned to the manager. "Throw out everything she touched. All the plates, the utensils, everything. Disinfect the whole table. Who knows what kind of diseases she's carrying. She's a damn jinx."
Meredith stood off to the side, watching Arielle get torn apart by all three of them, feeling absolutely thrilled inside.
And Meredith was hoping Perla and Mya would keep going, say something even crueler. Best-case scenario? They pissed Arielle off so badly she dropped dead on the spot.
But on the outside, Meredith looked like she was in total panic, wanting to speak but unable to form the words. Her hands fluttered helplessly.
"Please don't do this," Meredith said, voice trembling, eyes welling up, looking like she was seconds from crying.
Meredith's body even shook ever so slightly. It was a flawless performance.
Meanwhile, Perla and Mya were still ranting like sailors.
Arielle glanced down at the steak she hadn't finished. She muttered, 'This woman basically spit all over it with how much she was shouting. No way I'm eating that now.'
Just as Perla opened her mouth again, the remains of the steak were suddenly flipped upside down—right onto her face.
Arielle thought, 'What a shame there's only one plate. I'd dump one on each of their heads if I could.'
"What the hell!" Perla screamed, her shriek echoing through the entire restaurant.