It has been raining since 3 in the morning. The grease tinted glass of my room has made it almost impossible to distinct the shabbiness of the sky. But all I know is that we both have one thing in common : the melancholia. And it seems not to fade away any sooner.
An illuminating blaze of crackling thunder sends shivers run up through me as an inevitable outcome of my unwanted forsakenness which now has become a persisting nightmare in my life.
Constant bizarre feelings have gathered intensely in my mind resulting in the enclosure of my usual self. My mind is hollow but rather darker than the cumulonimbus outside. I don't know why I'm suddenly feeling this way; so gloomy and so sullen.
The street across my window is a bit drenched as the pouring is quite heavy. But if it is to make an analysis, the ninety-nine point nine-nine percent area is stark parched. And even now I can see a woman running away playfully from the arms of her rich boyfriend perhaps; and without getting drenched.
A thin parabolic layer of Hymetra is looming over their heads and body surface preventing any kinda permeation of water droplets. And to be said in easier way, it is indeed an umbrella which is produced by applying a cream on both of the wrists of an individual.
Well, modern-day technology and this generation are what I don't fancy at all, because they defy the natural process of evolution.
Moreover the state has made sure that every single road, street and alley of our city must be under the fine cover of hygroscopic elements that works just like the grooves of a thorny dragon that soak up the water then on instant with the help of excessive radiation, emitting off their bodies.
It's just one of the same boring features of our daily city life. Nobody cares anyway.
If one looks for any soaked up things other than a few skeleton like trees getting preserved for years like some antique sculpture, then either he has gone insane or must be still living in the delusional dreams of an utopia. The latter is prohibited here. Any thought of alternation may even extend to dreadful execution.
*****
I get out of the coziness of my messy wall bed at 6 sharp after a good deal of tossing and turning in the bed and observing cop cars and flying drones supervising the whole city all night long. Today's gonna be a very long day for me. And that's for sure.
Somehow, I manage to get inside the washroom while rubbing my droopy eyes caused by another sleepless night, and scratching my head continually to help myself access through.
I mistakenly press the red button in the digital screen on my left and a computerized male voice comes through making me jump despite my drowsiness. "Morning, Ms. How may I serve you?"
"Oh Jesus, Lawrence! Shut up! I'm no retard," I literally snap at that thing.
Okay...shut up?
"Order denied."
"Do me one favor. Please just shut up and go away." This machine is so capable of missing no shots to get on my nerves, and even it makes me swear.
And I guess, I keep up my restrain while pouring out on it all the cussings coming from the hatred, buried deep inside my chest.
"Order denied."
Who even invented this stupid machine?
Jeez!
"No order. No order. No order, please," I chant all while shaking my head in an approving denial.
"No order protocol, Ms?"
"Yes, please." I huff in annoyance and the astray strand loose from the back knot of my thick brown hair swing up in the process.
Finally getting rid of the provoking automated voice, I press the green power button and perpetually a surface catalog opens up, occupying the free space in front of me.
Surfing through the catalog with my bare fingers, I opt for the settings where the option,'mirrors' appears in the third row of the grid. I go for it and promptly the brass shelf, in my front, tear apart to reveal the eclectic styled streamlined wall mirror. The mirror reveals a slender worn out girl whom I have least idea of.
The girl has dark circles all around her eyes; her skin ain't reflecting any glow; her mid length brown hair is in a perfect tousled mess with astray impromptu strands all over the face; her 5 ft. 7 inch. towering frame seemingly has reduced to make a fool out of herself; and lastly her eyes are like as if they are retelling the sore chapters of her life, just like two blue sapphires in the midst of the bloody ocean. But unfortunately and probably that girl is none other than one sheer reflection of mine.
Pulling out my half-used pack of gello, a small pearl blue colored blob, from the right part of the brass shelf and cautiously taking one fine fiber out of it (gello), I pop it inside my mouth. Instantly a fresh odor of mint fills up my nostrils. The more I chew on it, it gets bigger and foam forms up inside my mouth.
I sneak a quick glance at the screen clock on the catalog and the moment I saw the minutes getting past quarter, I bet, my eyes got out of their sockets. Damn! I'm late!
Screening the familiar password on the catalog, I unlock the small cubical germ-free transparent case of my electronic toothbrush.
"Uhh, c'mon! Damn it." I bet, I literally snatch the brush out of the half-opened case.
I hate such technology that are turning us into deliberate sloths.
Told so!
Brushing in the least worst way and checking out all the chores I have to do for the morning , I hurriedly get under the shower. A tsunami of nostalgia passes through me and tries to shatter the rest of the courage I've got inside. I can feel my shoulders getting burdened out and my eyes getting heavy. Two impromptu feeble lines of water roll down my cheeks as I close my eyes.
After a quick warm shower I put on a slouchy stitch pinstripe trousers and a grey funnel neck sweatshirt.
Comfort comes first!
It's the beginning of November and I am overly intrigued to witness the first snowfall of this year 'cause last two times I've utterly missed the chance. So this time I won't allow anything to get at my way.
I brush my hair and dry them off with the dryer in the dresser. Somehow putting it to a subtle light bun and taking a quick glimpse of my own self in the glass window of my dinky round glass room, I make my way towards the door.
The moment, I open the open the screen lock on my one-way glass door, that very moment, the electric bell at the far corner of my spherical room, peals through causing a mini quake in the process.
Then as if on cue, the glass on the ceiling, just above my bed, slides apart, revealing a gigantic blob of water which then already gets dumped right over where my bed was a few moments ago. I cringe at that and my lips instinctively perks up to form a full smirk.
Stupid Princeton ladies!
Now this has become a very familiar part of my daily life and I'm absolutely okay with that. I knew this was exactly what was going to happen. So I folded my bed earlier or I would have to dry it off myself and be late for my first day at school.
Don't they ever get tired of these stupid tactics?
A couple of ear piercing screech follow through the intercom. Wishing not to get deaf at this young age or lose the least sanity of my life, I leap off the room with a stupid smirk on my face and head for the Princeton princesses' rooms.
My room is at the tail end of the house, in a different smaller part. A small oblique passageway connects my small sector to the bigger one of the house. The passage is more like a one-way glass tunnel. From outside it appears as a shiny rod with mirrors.
I came quite running down the moving glass stairs through the passage.
The escalator stops at a glass door, highly secured with modern locks. Stepping out of it, I pressed the power button on it and a hologram lock appears before me. I draw the familiar patterns and the screen disappears the moment, signalling the approval. The glass door opens, revealing the ravish party place inside the house.
I cross the big rectangular hall, now dimmed with cold blue lights on the ceiling. Faint glint of gloomy morning light tries in vain to radiate through the thick glass walls of the room.
The whole ground place is left for arranging frequent parties, swarming with the high and royal class.
I come across another security lock. And moreover, it's a face lock.
As soon as I touch the screen, infra red light waves surge through my body from both sides, matching my DNA in the process. Another green wave comes out of the screen, scanning every detail of my face minutely.
"Access granted," the automated voice confirmed. I sigh in annoyance, shaking my head slowly.
That very moment, the glass stairs start to move and the LED rods light up. I quickly take the stairs and run upstairs without waiting for its slow flow.
I knock at the first door on the left, only to get a blow of a tyrannical shriek. I roll my eyes at that and check the mood-meter at the side of the lock which is open by now. The meter box has completely dropped and I bet, it'd be because of another guy crisis.
I place my hand over the lock-screen and it accesses my identification. Then on instant the double-handled modernly, erected , frosty glass door slides open, revealing the ravish glass room inside.
The room is dark and there are expensive cloths scattered everywhere on the glass floor. The first thing that strikes me up, is that there's no tiny bot squirming around the place, taking the disheveled cloths properly at one corner of the room.
Inside there upon a large fluffy multi-functional bed, is Ashley Princeton, the elder daughter of Tiffany Princeton as well as my noisy step-sister. She's leaning back and forth against the headboard and shuffling through a number of photos of a guy and a girl in her insta profile. The screen being transparent, her every move can be clearly seen through the surface.
I step inside the room. The door closes behind me.
"You did a terrible mistake, Miles. You are gonna regret that you chose that bitch over me. You will regret. I'll make you regret," she rants through her gritted teeth while darting daggers to the screen where there displays a happy picture of the alleged Miles.
She was so engrossed in her tantrum that she fails to notice my presence inside her room.
I press the power button beside me and a catalogue appears like always from where I opt for the curtain option. Instantly the curtains, covering the glass walls, slide apart. And the sun rays fill up the room, illuminating it brightly in the process.
"Ugh-ahhhh!!" She screeches so loud that it almost reached a deafening crescendo. "What the hell is your problem, Carter? Tell me when I asked you to open the damn curtains."
"Sorry, Ash, but I efficiently lack excessive rods in my retina like any other normie, so I need some light since I'm here to take up your orders," I exclaim calmly with a charming smile tugged at my lips.
"Oh God! I'm so sick of you and your pointless nerdy talks." She runs her long slim fingers through her strawberry blond hair. "Don't you get how much pathetic you sound?"
"Not really." I chuckle and smirk perpetually. "You can't expect me to apologize for being the smarter one in this room."
"It would be better if you just stop flapping your mouth so uselessly," she warns.
"When I've ever listened to you that it made you believe I'll listen now?" I chuckle hard.
"You are never gonna change, would you?" She chuckles darkly. "But you know what? The truth?" She makes a face of pity. I ball my fingers inside my palm. I know where she's trying to go.
"You are our attendant; just a pathetic poor homeless orphan. And we are your boss, so you'll do whatever we ask you to, nothing more, nothing less. You get me?", she says while looking at her perfectly tanned, manicured fingers.
"And," she pauses and takes her time to get up and look at me with a mean look, marred all over her face. "Don't try to act cocky and over-smart all the time. It's so annoying."
I roll my eyes. "You think I really care?"
"Jeez! You never learned to shut up, do you?" She runs both hands through her hair, turns around to the side a bit and then again looks at me. "But you know what? I really, really, really hate you. I hate you to the point that I can't stand mama paying for anything for you. It's a total wastage. I don't know why she's still keeping you around."
My temper start to raise. I close my eyes for a bit.
Inhale!
Exhale!
I reopen my eyes. "That's for her to decide, not you. So I suggest, you don't worry bout that. Cause worries will give you wrinkles," I retort calmly, looking at her directly in the eyes.
I wanted to give a proper reply to her audacity, but decided against so. Her mother or to say, my step-mother pays off my education bills, so I literally can't ever go against her, even though I want to. But neither I'm going to let her get away with what she just said to me now. I know how to bruise people's ego without even putting any effort.
"What did you say Carter?" She seethes through her clenched teeth.
I have had of it enough. Now it's time to turn the tables.
Yesterday I just turned 18; the age of being legally adult. Mama Princeton spared me off the household errands for yesterday. I celebrated the day inside my room, turning the old dusted pages of family album and watching the spectacular weekly fireworks from the glass of my room.
Sigh!
"Your mother is a business person, so she knows why to keep me around. But alas that one of her girls inherited not a single trait of hers," I state as I can feel a smirk growing wider on my face.
"You !!!!" She yells at me and was about to make a move when my words stop her on track.
"Uh-uh. Don't even think about it," I chime in. "You remember the last time when you tried to pull my hair out, caused a scene, broke things and I cut my arms badly at the broken shards of the vintage wine glasses, huh? I could've bled to death. Ah! And your dear mother threw a fit at you two, just because you risked my life. And after that, you two were absolutely forbidden to touch me. Physically. Remember?" I cross my arms over my chest.
Her face drops and she blinks her eyes as sweat pop out on her forehead despite the overbearing cold outside. I smirk at how priceless her face looks right at this moment.
"I guess, your mama will be least happy to know that her elder daughter tried to cross her forbidden line. I get shudders just to even thinking about what she'll do to you. God!!" I feigns concern. "Just think."
Well I guess, she's having a good time, getting the taste of her own medicine as she gulps down hard, caress her arms and like that way, she walks away from me. Stopping near the bed-edge, she takes her pink dotted knot headband from the nightstand and puts it on unconsciously. Poor thing! She's still overthinking.
I almost burst into laughter. She looks at me, her eyes narrowing like she is going to murder me right away. Another surge of laughter ripples through me. But I stifle it with one hand covering my mouth.
"I guess, you are being way too noisy, Carter," she seethes through her gritted teeth.
"Likewise, Ash." I throw a sarcasm at her, blinking my eyes and smiling wistfully.
She stomps her feet on the frosted glass floor and I still wonder where are the cleaning bots, trying to stay oblivious to her frustrations.
Scoffing off in annoyance, Ashley makes a round of her large king sized bed in the middle of the large conical glass room, reaching the other side she takes the controller chip of her room and makes her way towards the bathroom. The door opens as soon as her thumb gets in contact with the middle of the comparatively larger frisbee-sized chip.
Before stepping inside her luxurious grand bath space, she looks over her shoulder with pure annoyance, splayed all over her face.
"Shit ! I almost forgot," she starts. "Servant, would you mind if I place a few orders?" I feel a muscle in my jaw twitch in rage, as I grit my teeth.
"Oops! Sorry, sorry! Untouchable servant! " She laughs at her own words. "Take out my orders, please." She laughs again, making me fume up inside.
"Carter," she states with a serious face. "Clean my room and wash all the cloths on the floor. I don't wanna see my room this messy when I get out of shower. And today make some different stuff. You know, I'm sick of your strawberry pancakes and banana yogurts. Ew! I think, I'm starting to hate strawberries."
How ironic! She's starting to hate herself.
I scoff mentally.
"So make something less sweeter and more edible. And don't forget to bring my apple juice and perfectly brewed hot latte with exact half cube of sugar," she informs with her signature smile.
Ashley Princeton is the perfect definition of a high school gossip. She's got ears all around the school. Boys lust after her, and she loves to play hard to get with them. Those countless suitors line up outside the mansion waiting for her, and then I have to scare them away from here. It's a daily life scenario. No biggie.
Note the sarcasm, please!
She's more interested in fooling around than dating. And this Miles guy must be something else that he got her all worked up on him. I take a mental note to go into details.
Why? I can't mention properly. I just feel like I should.
And this girl talks way too much; whenever she opens her pretty little mouth, she makes sure to tip me over the edge.
Little does she know, how much efforts I have to put into to get myself all calm and controlled before her. "Anything else?"
"Oh, yes please," she chirps batting her lashes at me. "Please close the door before you get lost." I scoff while rolling my eyes at her.
"Sure. I have no fancy to latch at your door," I whisper under my breath as anger boils up inside me and rapidly daring to turn into a blazing fire.
"Oh! One more thing for your own good, Carter," she states while twirling her blond curls in her finger.
"Now what?"
"Well last night, mama was saying that the cleaning and serving bots and all the AI pagers would be sent for the annual check up. Phoenix might have already took them with him, so mama wants you to cover for them," she informs with a pity face, which I hate the most. "You were so busy enjoying your 'oh b-day', so you didn't know."
Now great! Absolutely stupefyingly great! Is she even for real?
"Sweet! Really," I state, being totally exasperated.
"Great to hear that you find it sweet. Really." She chuckles while getting inside the bathroom and closing the door behind her.
"And you look real clumsy, Carter." Her muffled voice comes over the closed glass doors of the bathroom.
Well I guess, I have no other choice. I have to do all these things by myself.
One the top of that, the Princetons are always here to get under my skin. There won't be any moment that they ain't commenting on my looks, my cloths, my state. I hate the most when they go on pitying me and my poor fate, whereas they are the sole reason of this.
Huffing in defeat, I gather her scattered fancy cloths and put them inside the automated laundry box with mecanum wheels stuck under its body which makes it move at any direction with the help of a the controller. Now all I need is the chip to send the box over to the laundry.
Damn it! She took it with her intentionally.
I close my eyes for a moment.
Inhale!
Exhale!
Pushing the box over the floor, I step out of her room and keep it beside another adjacent transversely cylindrical large glass room with specific concrete walls at sides.
Placing my hand over the lock screen, I wait patiently. The door opens eventually. Unlike the previous room, this one was preoccupied with suffice sunlight; enough for me to access through.
"Brittany, hurry up and tell me what you have stacked for me. I don't have time today," I inform with a straight face.
Brittany Princeton, the younger daughter of Tiffany Princeton Carter as well as another step-sister of mine. She's obsessed with robot culture and system and an blind follower of them. Her room is pretty well-equipped with 4D posters of those things. I can't say she's smart, but indeed she has some brain. At least, she tries.
I pay attention to her freckle-covered white face, one side of her face still covered in that white mask. I see blood rushing up to her cheeks, her grey eyes throwing poisonous darts towards me.
Okay, she is pissed.
But the real question is why on earth she's like this. I bet, it surely has something to do with her mother. Whenever they had a petty mother-daughter fight, she acts like this way.
Lifting her duvet aside, she storms off her bed and dashes straight in my direction. Stopping in front of me, she takes a fistful of my hair and drags it down in a forceful grip.
"Ah-ah-ah!" I hiss in pain.
Damn! This one hurts.
How dare she!
Taking her lips near my ear she whispers, her voice dangerously low.
"Keep your loud mouth to yourself, Carter! Especially when you are talking with me. I'm not really your friend. Let alone sister." She elongates the word 'sister'.
"And don't take me as stupid as Ash. I know how to deal with a vermin like you. One more word and you are so dead. And if you have a memory so poor that you can't even remember your place in our lives, then I can't be more than happier to show you, your true place."
A loud thud evokes as she throws me on the floor. "And that, at our feet."
Uh-oh! Big mistake !!
Promptly raising myself on my feet, I grab her wrist in a fierce grip and twist it behind her back in such a way that she can't even budge a single nerve on my hand. Moving behind her back, I whisper near her ear, "Have you forgotten that this vermin can fight, huh?"
She struggles under my hold, trying to get rid of my clutch, but to no avail.
"And you know what, Brit? I really thought you have some brain, but guess, I'm wrong." I scoff, making her hiss as she still goes on struggling.
"Don't you know why your mama need me intact?" My tone grow serious and grave. "Don't you know why she pretends to be the perfect step-mother before everyone else? Are you oblivious that she needs the rest of the money that my dad left for me? Huh?" My throat goes dry at the mention of my father. I try hard to control my wayward emotions.
She groans and hisses in pain.
My eyes itch with unshed water. I can't just heave off the strong hatred that has been stuck at my chest for years.
"You know, yet still you acts childish. It's pathetic!"
I release her hands, throwing her forward as I bite the inside of my cheek and redo my hair.
She snatches her hand away as soon as I released, rubbing it with a pure disgust hovering all over her face. She carefully tucks the wayward strands of her ginger colored hair, behind her ears. Her sweat-drenched face strikes against the faint light which makes her ivory complex glow like white snow.
"You'll regret, Carter. I'm telling you, it's all about time. Just mark my words," she seethes through her gritted teeth, scoffing as she looses the tie at the back of her head, letting her short fall over her shoulder. "Mama will better take care of you. And I'd love to see the day when you would be crying and begging to save you, in front of me."
"I'd love to see it coming," I inform with a flat tone.
She scoffs. "Don't mope around, causing trouble for everyone. Go and put yourself in something worthy."
"Are you perhaps talking 'bout yourself?"
Her cheeks turn redder, maybe in rage or embarrassment perhaps. I can't tell. Deep down, we both know who the real troublemaker is here.
She hasn't graduated the high school yet, and already she's meddling in the shabby businesses, providing drugs and information to bigwigs along with other people, and her mother has to clean off the messes she has created. That's why mostly they got into fights more than often.
I got to know a bit and that while quietly working around the whole Carter Mansion.
"Fuck you, you pathetic sneaky bitch!"
She grabs the corner of her robe which has been lying previously on her bed, and throws it on my face, before disappearing behind the doors of her bath.
I drag the robe down my face and sigh defeatedly before taking her controller from the bedside, and power up the laundry bag to take it out of the room.
With the help of its omnidirectional wheels, it crawls out of the room. I put Ashley's cloth inside this box as well and direct it to go straight inside the laundry room with the help of the controller. Then on instant, it squirms off the place.
I place Ashley's laundry box inside her room, dragging it along with me. I can hear her singing so roughly, as the pitter-patter of the shower floats along. I leave her room quietly. The door closes behind me.
Sighing deeply, I make my way towards my step-mother's room. Her room is on the left corner of the house. This room once belonged to be my parents. Now that both of them are no longer here, Tiffany Princeton Carter has taken the claim over it.
I hate her with every ounce blood in my veins, not only for her craftiness and greed, but for the reason that she now wants to salvate over my father's company, the one he has watered and reinforced with his own hard work and wit, without any inherited allowance.
Approaching her room, I stop in front of her door and press the announcer button beside the mood-meter, knowing well that the lock might be activated. The mood-meter is almost filled with the yellowish fluid, which means she's in a good mood.
And it's only the calm before a storm.
"It's open, dear." Her voice somehow reaches out to me from inside.
I place my hand over the lock and the door opens right away.
"Come on in," says Tiffany Princeton with her fake soft motherly voice.
Walking inside the room, the first thing I notice that, she's lying on her couch with a few cushion to support her head and back, her legs crossed upon each other, a cover upon them to save her some dignity as she has put on a nightdress that barely covered herself.
She's looking at her digi-top, while sipping on her mug.
A digi-top is one of the coolest things, the robots have ever made. The screen is made of fiber glass, half transparent, while the keyboard is so thin like a cartilage that it can be folded easily.
It's quite portable and resizable. The screen can be separated from the keyboard and the former can float in the mid-air and can expand in size. Then one can type from anywhere across the 200 meter radii around the screen.
I have one in my room. Dad got me that on my 12th birthday, the last birthday I celebrated with him.
Sigh!
Inside the dark rectangular glass room, there is only a little dim lamp glowing faintly in a sulking glory.
"Ah Elle dear, good morning! I have been expecting you. Sorry, I didn't wake you up earlier to get a cup of coffee. After all, it's your first day at med school, right? You, too, need to start worrying for your sleep from today on."
She straightens her back and places her digi-top in front of her, on the solid frosty glass table.
A slight amusement grips her appearance as she smiles to herself.
And I'm certain, it's indeed the silence before a disaster.
"What do you mean?" I wait for her to drop whatever reward she has prepped for me.
"Oh honey, don't be so rude." She looks at me this time and her face glows dangerously from the light illuminating from the device in front of her.
"You definitely lack some social skills, and I'm the one to blame. I should've been more careful with you." She feigns a concern as she makes a long face.
"Anyways, I have some news for you," she starts with utter enthusiasm, her voice bubbling with contentment. "Guess what? I'm finally going to be the rightful CEO of your father's company. Ah! It feels so good to walk all over you."
Wait! That's important!
I'm eighteen now, so I definitely hold the right over half of the shares of his company, as per his will.
I was about to argue, when she gestures for me to stop, and cracks a nasty smile.
"We had a stockholders meeting yesterday and the board members considered you to be still incompetent to handle the voting rights and the big sum of share your father left for you, since you never had a proper degree on business, and I approved of that."
The heck is she talking about!
She walks up to me and places her hand softly on my cheek. "Honey, you are unaware of this evil domain. I have been in this business world for over eighteen years and my experiences are telling me that I must protect Sebastian's little flower."
My eyes water up and I retract from her touch. Her touch burns my soul.
How one person can be so loathsome!
"You stay away from me. You hear me?" I yell on her face. "And don't take dad's name in your mouth. You never worth it."
"Shhhh," she hushes while covering my mouth with her hand forcibly. "Don't shout, little Elle. If so, what would your father think? That I'm not doing my part raising you? Oh! I can't let that happen. It's my responsibility as your legal guardian to keep you safe from all the harms. And guess what? The board agreed with me. I got over his company. And that also...legally."
I yank off her hand from my mouth.
"You can't, as long as Mr Hardwin is there."
My voice cracks. I bite on my lips to restrain myself from crying in front of her. Her words seemingly to get stuck at my head like a lump and I just can't believe what I'm hearing.
She breaks into a bitter cackle.
"Oh dear!" She smirks and looks at me mockingly. "Don't think too much. He was just like a pawn in my game. I just waited for 5 years, so that I can prep my game-room properly, with no loophole to escape through. I'm too ambitious, you must've known, no?"
"I framed that old smut with the accusation of larceny of our new virus from the lab, and running it in the black market, unbeknownst to the board. Though he never did it, of course." She chuckles sickly.
"That stupid friend of your father's just fell perfectly for my well-built lair." She scoffs. "But you know what? Not a single soul will know about this...but you and I and these four walls of this room. Isn't that spectacular, dear?", she says as if nothing has happened.
I feel the lump growing wider inside my throat as I find it hard to gulp.
I feel truly sorry for Mr Hardwin. Only that guy used to support me emotionally after dad's death. His words used to soothe me to cope up with the sudden loss I was dealing with. Now with him behind the bars and Eric off shores, I feel like a real homeless, a real orphan like Ashley said.
I have lost my safe heaven, my security and all my hopes to find the truth out. I wish my best friend would be here with me. I wish, Eric would he here.
And here her each win, each smirk leaves a scratchy bruise every time on my face. And I'm so much tempted to return each one of them back to her. One by one.
"It's said that...even every dog has his day. I'm a human, and so I'll definitely get mine. One day," I reply her calmly.
"Ah! I'll make sure, that one day never comes." She smirks.
I can't hold back my tears. Those grim drops break down relentlessly. Now she's going to ruin my dad's lifetime hard works, his dreams, and his everything that he has ever cherished on his own.
I promise that one day the tables will be turned, and I want to who is going to have the last laugh then.
I close my eyes to gain composure and rub away those rolling water harshly and curtly asked,"Anything else?"
"Ah yes. I guess, Ash has already filled you in 'bout the bots, so I'm afraid, you have to take care of it on your own." She yawns before rolling on the white velvety bedsheets.
"Plus, I'm gonna skip breakfast today. I got a long night ahead. Chanteuse Ball. I guess you remember... It's today. I've been prepping for this day since last week and already it's here," she says, before leaning comfortably against the headrest. "We won't be coming back till tomorrow eve. Make sure to not rob the house tonight."
"Why do I have to rob my own house?", I retort calmly.
She looks at me, with sarcasm filling in her eyes, as she nods with her lips plucked.
"Mhmm. You have a point. But you see, I don't even trust my own daughters, so you know, right?", she shrugs.
"Like I really care!", I mumble on my lips.
"And if you're done staring at me, so you can get lost. I'm off to sleep," she concludes with a tight smile, before lying down on the other side, turning her back to me.
The antique clock in the room strikes seven, while the pendulum oscillates erratically, matching my heartbeat at that very moment.
Hate will be an understatement for what I'm feeling right now.
She can go and buy down the whole plaza, or wear fancy dresses at party, ball or wherever she wants, or sulk with her trust issues. I don't care, and I will never do. But if she even try to ruin Carter Enterprise, the pay-off of dad's sweat and untold sleepless nights, I will no longer sit back and play victim.
Picking up her clothes, I vacate the room mutely. I still can't believe my own ears. But right at this moment, I need to be more strong and more determined. I can't just let them see me cracking inside.
Shaking my head, I head down towards the kitchen and quietly starts making brunch for the Princeton sisters.
I wish that dad and Eric would be here with me, to support me, to give me the strength I lack each and every day.
©Shena