'Mhhm' Susan huffed when she saw Joey's face on a massive billboard while she was en route to her aunt's house from the airport.
'Pure girl indeed' She yelped and briefly laughed out loud. That was the slogan that the brand Joey was advertising on behalf of chose to call her.
Michael glanced at his mom and made a face that seemed to ask what the drama was about.
'Mom you are always in another world' the wise Michael said innocently and continued to look out the window, taking in the splendour of the new country he was in. Susan looked at him with lovable eyes. His advanced gimmick always took her by surprise. Anytime Susan felt that Michael had reached his elastic limit in blowing her away with his magnificence, he would strike again with something else that would only raise the bar.
Thinking back to Joey, Susan realized that she had not heard anything about her throughout the five years that she spent out of the United States. She had completely forgotten about Joey. Susan wasn't surprised anyway to see that Joey was a celebrity cover girl, she knew Joey had it in her, although at the time when she was in the States before she ran away, Joey was an ordinary art student. Typical, everyday pretty girl. About the 'pure girl' part, that was not true about Joey at all. If Susan could remember clearly, Joey used to change boyfriends in high school a lot. At a point, she dated an elite student in a lower class in school than her. That was her first taste of an extravagant lifestyle, now all of a sudden, to the same boys turned men that slept with her in the days when everyone was unassuming, she was a pure girl. Susan shook her head at how unfair the world was. She grasped her kids, pretending to be concerned about whether they were tired from the long journey they had embarked on, but deep down she was consoling herself with them, they were her only reward from the unfair hand life had dealt her.
'Well, I didn't come all the way back here to indulge myself in things that are passed and bitter' she muttered the words out of her mouth in affirmation, so that the past will never haunt her the way it was currently trying to, rearing its ugly head. Her kids were her priority, and that was how it was going to remain for her by all means.
The time she held her kids close to her, she noticed that they were tired quite alright. Judy had already even slept off, as expected, but Michael, the man of the house, tried to keep himself awake, and he was succeeding. He needed to be awake just in case his mom fell asleep with his sister, he would look out for all of them.
Michael's eyes were suddenly glued to a skyscraper. The wonder in his eyes was so contagious Susan turned to look towards the direction his eyes were glued at, and then she saw it too, the edifice that grasped Michael's attention.
'Mom, look at that building, I didn't know buildings could be that tall' the boy exclaimed in genuine wonder.
'Yes my love' Susan replied, trying to sound as light as possible, but her wonder too was slowly giving in to the magnificence that they were staring at. The fact that it was not just one skyscraper was another thing that blew her mind, and to think that they had their own air space mapped out for them, no air crafts were allowed to fly by that space, it was interesting to think of.
As grand as those buildings were, Michael dared to ask his mom if they would visit soon, as part of their welcome tour to America.
'What?' Susan gasped, breaking into laughter. 'Son, those are offices, likely government executive offices, you can't just show up there without an invite, or being an important person' Susan explained. A disappointed Michael folded his arm in protest. His eyes remained glued to the building until it was out of sight, he wished on his stars that he would get to access the place.
The building they had just passed by was called the ICON PLACE CENTER. It was a major landmark in the country and a stamped signature of wealth and sovereignty.
As at the time Susan and her kids passed by, there was a lady, a dainty lady with auburn hair, long enough for it to get wrapped in several kneads, and hang tilted towards a part of the lady's shoulder, exposing her clear skin. She stepped out of an expensive sports car, a Lamborghini Messiah to be precise. Her flowing red dress followed behind her while she walked into the building, stealth-like that of a cat. The building, expensive as it was, had an expensive skin carpet spread towards the direction of the President's office. The President of the ICONIC PLACE CENTER, Mr Richard Williams. This mysterious, rich lady was Joey. She was going to invite Mr Richard for her birthday dinner. Joey did all the usual rituals that females who were interested in a man would do when they were about to see this said man, and the fact that she was in the show business, made it easy for her to determine what he would like.The door of the sixty-sixth-floor penthouse office was swung open by Mr Richard's assistant after Joey had taken the elevator upstairs. She walked in gracefully. Joey smiled at the majestic, yet eerily mysterious man that sat behind an expensive mahogany desk situated in the middle of the spacious room that had an interior with an aura as cold as Alaska. This noble king had to have a penchant for anything grey because that was the colour that dominated the office space, with a sprinkle of black scattered here and there. The room was the perfect fit for his melancholic temperament.
'Hello Richie' Joey cooed at the abrasive man that sat behind the expensive desk. 'Do me the honour of being my guest at my birthday dinner, please?' she informed President Williams.'What?' the egocentric man asked her in a humdrum tone without lifting his eyes from the work he currently had his attention on. As if he didn't hear what she said the first time. 'Today is my birthday, I have a dinner party later at...' Joey was saying when the man interrupted her. 'Happy birthday Joey, but I am not showing up for your party' he replied abruptly. Joey was silent, waiting for him to state the reason for his decision, and he did when he felt she had stalled her own reply, or abrupt exit from his office long enough.'I have a lot on my plate, there's too much to do to be attending any parties' he said in a cold, harsh tone that sent a chill through Joey's spine.Joey could not understand why Richard would not ever bring himself to accommodate her into his reality the way she wanted. Every
Susan was taken aback by the number of onlookers that were at her dad's house.'What in Jupiter's name is going on here?' she muttered, the closer she got to her former house. 'I LOVE YOU JENNY CALANDA' one of the spectators yelled into the air passionately. Susan made a confused face. Who the hell was Jenny Calanda, and what was he or she doing at her house, receiving cheering from strangers? It was not until she got close enough, that she realized that her dad's house was the venue for some sort of red carpet event. There were a lot of celebrities flashing heavy smiles toward the paparazzi, and lots of cameras took several hundred shots per second at these said celebrities. 'Excuse me' Susan said confidently while she tried to pave way for herself through the clustered crowd that blocked the entrance of the house.'Hey, not so fast woman, where the hell do you think you are going?' one of the onlookers dared question Susan, blocking her off from continuing her manoeuvre towards t
'Stop pulling me as that' Susan barked at Joey, forcing her wrist free of Joey's grip while they advanced towards the garden, away from the crowd of other celebrities that had graced the event.'Did you hear that today was my birthday and I was having a celebration, so you came to ruin it?' Joey asked Susan angrily. Eyeing her with contempt. Susan's dressing irked Joey a lot, she was indeed distraught.'You didn't have to show up looking like this, you look like a damn pauper' she added. 'I don't care what you say, or think of me. I just want my mother's items, and then I'd leave your so-called event' Susan replied in a cold tone, eyeing the entire area with a nasty glance to match Joey's sting. She was hurt. Years had passed and Joey couldn't even be nice to her, at least for the first time she had seen her in four years. She called her a pauper. How nice of Joey, but Susan didn't expect any better from her. As unpopular as Joey was while they were growing up, she still managed to b
'Oh, the nerve of you Joey. You don't cease to amaze me with your stupid guts' Susan snapped at her stepsister after Joey threatened to burn her mother's clothes. The closer Richard Williams approached them, the more fire burned in Joey's belly, to enable her to say all the nasty things she could think of to Susan.'You are a bastard. Sorry to break your sorry ass bubble, but my dad told me about you when he was drunk one night. He told me this grave secret. You are a wanderer, a wild pig without anyone out there to own up to bringing your sorry ass into this world. So when I tell you that you are below my maid and that you can't even clean my bathroom, you should know that what I'm talking about is for real. You are way beneath me, Susan' Joey barked, her eyes looking towards Richard Williams from time to time while he approached them. Throughout the entire argument since it started, however sharp Susan was with her words at Joey, she maintained a sense of calm, but now that Joey had
Susan was full of resentment.'I know you heard me tell you to leave me the hell alone' she repeated at Richard. The fact that he had just concluded that what Joey claimed about her was true. It pissed her off like nothing else in the world. She used to think that since she became a mother, it was easier for her to curtail her temper, but this scenario she was having with Joey and Richard was proving her assumption wrong by far. She was losing her mind. 'If you touch her again, I'm going to have your hands cut off since you can only afford to be a mad bully with them' Richard warned Susan. An enraged Susan bit Richards's hand, the hand which he held on to her wrist with and refused to let go, she bit him so hard, that bite marks sprung upon the area that her teeth had dug into.'Mad fucking dog' Richard barked at Susan, letting go of her hand and sneering at her. 'I thought you'd hold on to me forever Susan said scornfully at him, rolling her now free wrist around to ease the pain t
Susan's aunt Mabel was grooming Judy's hair when Susan arrived. The little girl's hair, as young as she was, had the texture of someone that had been grooming it carefully for ages. The hair complemented Judy's face a lot, making her look like a rare gemstone. She was perfect to look at. Michael, on the other hand, was playing with his toy. They had both taken a bath and were waiting for their mom to return.'Mom' Micheal yelped happily when Susan walked into the house. He gave her a warm hug that made Susan's eyes fill up with tears at how much better her kids made her feel. If only they knew what she had just been through, Michael especially. He would be mad.'Mom, have you had dinner yet?' Michael asked her with obvious concern in his voice.'Yes, I have my love' Susan lied. 'You both go in and get some rest, I have to enrol you in a nice kindergarten tomorrow. You have had a bath, right?' Susan asked. Her kids nodded. By now, Mabel had tied up Judy's hair behind her in two straigh
Moonlight poured into the room while Susan cuddled her kids jealously to herself. The lights were off, although Judy, as usual of the twins, wished she could sleep with the lights turned on. All that playing and activity all through the day, now the kids were tired. They clung to both sides of their mother, holding her as if she was going to escape if they dared let her free. The day's activities flashed across Susan's mind. She had to go back to her family's house again. She needed those clothes.'I will go there when dad is around' she muttered while she thought of the possibility. Hopefully, her dad being around will make a difference to her, if not, she might do something that no one would expect, not even herself. She shook her head at the thought of her stepsister and her stepmother. The joy Joey felt from humiliating her still made Susan wonder why she was so mean, and to what end. and what did Joey ever hope to achieve? she had no idea. The bed the three of them lay in, a me
Susan started to groom Michael for the day. She fetched a wet towel and wiped his skin clean. His face, the back of his ears and all over his entire body were wiped clean. Then it was time for her to groom his hair. It was usually her favourite thing to do for Michael in the morning because his hair was long and perfect. She liked the feel of it against her palm. She had a comb by her, so she combed out his blonde long hair, every single strand that was originally hidden, she combed it out to expose Michael's full hair. It poured on his shoulder like a waterfall. 'Wait a damn minute' Susan yelped, standing back to take a more observant look at her son. She styled his hair in several ways, just to confirm if what was on her mind was correct. Michael looked exactly like the asshole that almost broke her wrist, all because he was trying to save Joey. 'No, no, no. This can't be. This is unbelievable' Susan muttered, gazing at her son, Michael in surprise. She zoned out on him.'Mom, wha