No Secrets Allowed

Maia's surprise visits were as exciting as holidays were to Lorraine. Since their days in college, the duo had always fantasized about exploring the real world together, getting jobs, apartments, exchanging keys, matching tattoos and whatever it was that best friends did. Their small circle of friendship quickly expanded when Donna and Alex joined the duo in their second year, and their friendship quickly blossomed from then on.

As Lorraine rushed down the stairs, her feet flopping excitedly at the arrival of her best friend, she was met with shock when she opened up the massive front door, and Maia had come bearing surprises. Holding a tiara and a box of chocolates to the left was Donna, and on her right was Alex, looking like she was fresh out of comic con. Maia squealed with delight when she saw Lorraine and Donna placed the tiara on her head. Lorraine looked puzzled and uncomfortable.

She wasn't sure how Clay would feel about her best friends inviting themselves to his place without his permission, but she surmised that he owed him that, at least after taking care of him the previous night.

"What's this?" Lorraine questioned with a puzzling look,

"What does it look like?" "It's your bachelor's party, darling", Donna said and squealed; immediately, Lorraine hushed her and furrowed her eyes at Maia. She could only be the architect of this entire situation. Her marriage with Clay was supposed to be kept a secret, at least she thought so, but if anyone was to know, Lorraine knew she could count on her friends to keep her secret.

They brushed past Lorraine and stared at the massive interior of the estate in awe. Since the last time Lorraine had voiced her opinions of how empty the place looked, Clay had bought every furniture piece, artwork, kitchenware and decor he could find, turning his lifeless mansion into a classic contemporary home.

Lorraine was under the impression that he had done that at her beckoning, but he coldly reminded her that she was just a guest in his home, and the least he could was make her feel comfortable.

When he heard the loud ruckus downstairs, he rushed down in his grey suit pants and half-buttoned shirt, wondering if his apartment was broken into. When he saw the girls that had crashed themselves at his mansion, he called Lorraine aside, and the girls giggled amongst themselves.

Lorraine was sure she was about to receive a scolding, after which she would be forced to kick out her friends, but as she walked towards Clay, his concerns were clear

"Who are those, and what are they doing in our home?" He said, trying to seem empathetic, the last time he had claimed the house as his, he was not particularly fond of Lorraine's reaction, and the guilt followed him like a bad itch throughout the day with the silent treatment Lorraine had given him. Another downside of being in a marriage he had heard from his colleagues and wasn't exactly looking forward to.

"Those are my friends, and they're here to throw me a bachelorette party", Lorraine answered carefully, and Clay seemed more frustrated. He heaved exhaustively and rubbed the space between his forehead,

"Bachelorette party?" He questioned again, almost as if he needed clarification for what she had just heard

"Yes" "We've been friends since college, and figuring I got married without a bachelorette party, they decided to throw me one", Lorraine replied, maintaining a confident stance that made Clay understand he could divorce her, but she wouldn't kick them out.

Feeling defeated, he asked, "Do they know about our situation?" "About the conditions of our marriage?" He emphasised, staring keenly at her face like he could detect a lie the moment it came out of her mouth. Luckily Lorraine didn't have to, the only person who had known about her bizarre and sudden marriage to Clay was Maia, and of all her friends, Maia was the last person who'd ever betray her trust

"Maia knows", she answered, and Clay stood confused, wondering if she expected him to know who Maia was. Understanding his troubled look, Lorraine pointed at a girl in a blonde wig, downing shots of mimosas.

Clay took one look at Maia and sighed exhaustively,

"Don't worry, she won't say a word to anybody", Lorraine reassured

"She better not", Clay said, buttoning up his sleeves, turned to leave and then stopped abruptly

"And oh Lorraine, my family dinner is coming up shortly," he said

"My family is tough, so don't be swayed easily", he added and walked out. Lorraine felt confused about the need for the warning. Meeting your partner's family was always tough, but she was a people person and didn't think she'd need to be warned about that. Little did she know, she would be dining with a family of billionaires.

As Clay walked back up the stairs to prepare for work, Donna yelled, "What? No kiss?!" "Disappointing", and Lorraine furrowed her eyes at her. Maia slapped Donna's hand. "They're newlyweds; they're probably shy."

Lorraine walked back to her friends in the living room,

Unlike Alex, Donna was the spirited one in the group, a trait which was widely uncommon with the rest of them.

At sixteen, she wanted to work in aviation; at eighteen, she wanted to work in business; and now, at twenty-three, Donna wanted to stay home, eat cookies, and binge-watch her favorite shows all day. Her job in real estate was not as flattering as she wanted. Frankly, none of their jobs were.

As they readied her for her bachelorette, Alex, a green-haired emo girl, walked towards her kitchen and quickly reappeared with a plate of hot steamed cookies and a bottle of milk. Unlike Donna, Alex only wanted to be one thing since her days in college - married to a rich man, and she worked hard every day just to become a graphic designer.

It felt like Lorraine was living her dream as she surveyed the interior of the decorated mansion, she seemed like she had a thousand questions, but only one would answer the rest,

"What does your husband do?" "Is he like a top CEO or something?" Lorraine stared at Alex without uttering a word. She didn't know what her husband did for a living or how much he earned; her goal in their marriage was only to get the money needed for her brother's treatment, and she didn't care about her husband's wealth.

Although she earned comparably less than she assumed he was worth, Lorraine felt motivated to make her wealth and name for herself. Unlike Alex, her dream was quite the opposite; she didn't have any intentions of elbowing her way into the upper-crust society; she just wanted to be able to take care of herself and her loved ones.

"Uhm, he..." she struggled to find a convincing answer, and Maia quickly chimed in, knowing her secret

"He's a realtor" "There's a lot of money in real estate these days, as you can see", she interjected, looking around the room admiringly.

Through the corner of her eye, Lorraine mouthed, "Thank you", and they returned to set her up on the chair.

Alex looked at her phone and announced to the group, "Guys, there's this exclusive party going on tonight and don't ask me how, but I got us in" "It's not your average party, Manhattan's top one percent are going to be present at this event and I think it is just fitting for Lorraine's bachelorette" she squealed, spinning her seat around

"Come on, Alex, we all know you're only asking us to come so you can find your perfect billionaire CEO at this thing", Maia interjected. It was no secret that Alex believed only in marriage if it was to a rich man, and she wouldn't settle for anything less. The group wasn't worried, any man who could tolerate their friend would have to have a lot of patience and probably a billion dollars sitting in a Switz account.

"Ugh, would I invite you guys anywhere if it wasn't for that reason" "Please, you guys are embarrassing", she teased her friends, and they all burst out in laughter.

Maia pulled Lorraine aside; she was curious about the missed calls she got her last and what had happened

"Hey, are you okay?" Maia asked, and finally having a moment to herself, Lorraine confided in her best friend

"Shawn got me fired",

"Okay, that asshole has crossed a line. What do you want me to do?" Maia asked and was shocked by Lorraine's reply

"Nothing"