SEBASTIAN
"Come dance with me." She smiled slyly, a dance of devils in the fires of her eyes.
I looked over to Audrey, she squeezed my hand lightly, giving me a small smile, one that told me she'd be alright. I slowly let go of Audrey's hand and took even more time to take Rachel's. The walk to the middle of the dance floor felt like a century, I felt the eyes of the people around me, following my every move.
She placed her hand on my right shoulder, her other hand holding my left, slowly we began to dance. Everyone around us murmured, it was like the buzzing of a fly; and just as annoying.
"Are you enjoying the party, Sebastian?" She asked politely. I knew how Rachel played, I've known her since we were young. She would act polite but really, she was planning and thinking up strategies. She moved her pawns wisely, she loved chess, she loved games and I've watched her come out the victor many times.
"Yes, congratulations on your debut. It's successful, even before the movie is released." I challenged, my guard stayed strong as I gazed into her eyes, daring her to concede.
"Thank you very much, I guess you were right, about my acting skills. You did say I would be a good actress." She hummed, her eyes pierced me, the first stab wound.
I smirked, the music had picked up to a faster rhythm, encouraging us to dance along to its tempo. "I knew you had it in you, you were always acting; especially when you got into trouble." Her fake smile still holds, but her eyes deceive her. Anger, it seems I hit a nerve, ignited a flame.
Her fake smile widened, her eyes darkened and her voice became sickeningly sweet. "I guess I have you to thank. Not only did you show me my talent, you showed me how to last on my own, especially when I am thrown aside."
"When were you cast aside? I hope you were alright, I would be worried if you were hurt, we are childhood friends after all." I replied sarcastically but honestly. Even though I was telling the truth, it was another strike, her eyes glistened with tears, anger, sadness, betrayal, jealousy, I could see it all.
Before another word could be said, the music stopped. I bowed, she curtsied, throwing me a determined look, letting me know full well that this game wasn't over.
I walked back to where my parents stood, Audrey was still there, Libby had disappeared and Margo took her place. I stopped, watching them talk, something wasn't right and I couldn't place my finger on it. I observed the scene, my parents were laughing along with Margo, Audrey was the only one who didn't but that was normal for Audrey. She had a small smile playing on her lips and listened attentively to my parents. She glanced over to me, looking worried.
I held out my hand to her, offering her the next dance. She excused herself and walked over to me, I held my breath, watching her. I solely focused on her, the rest of the world a blur. She gently took my hand, and let me guide her to the dance floor.
"How did it go? Rachel wasn't too harsh on you, was she?" She worried, placing one hand on my shoulder, the other held my left hand, just like Rachel did.
"I took care of it, although, I don't think she'll be giving up anytime soon." I chuckle, nodding over to Rachel's direction. Audrey follows my nod, smiling at a glaring Rachel.
We begin to dance, the music drowning out everyone else, I kept my eyes on hers. Only her. Her eyes were warm and inviting, caring and calming. Her smile was small, but it made me happy, it made me feel safe, a feeling I rarely ever felt. The only person I could see was her, she was the only one I could feel, it was like I was stuck in a trance with her, and I didn't want it to end anytime soon.
Every time we took a step, turned or even breathed, it felt like the air around us was charged with electricity, if we moved too quickly, sparks would appear. It was a dangerous game that I was willing to play. I felt myself drown in her eyes, in her being. It was a new feeling, a strange feeling, but somehow, I wasn't scared.
AUDREY
As we danced, everyone around us stood in awe, I could feel their stares piercing me, but when I looked at him, I forgot. The music came to an end, the banquet had finished and the guests yielded, giving into their exhaustion. We parted, the air hummed, the electricity began to fade.
We said our goodbyes and I met up with Margo. We walked outside, avoiding conversation with any remaining, eager guests, dipping into the limousine. I sat on one side, Margo sat opposite me and my parents sat adjacent to the both us.
George Parkinson sat proudly, next to his wife and his eldest daughter, making conversation with them. They talked the whole ride, occasionally laughing and jumping from topic to topic. I turned and stared out the window behind me, my back to the happy trio. I jumped and was pulled out of my trance every time I heard my father's booming laugh, but nevertheless, quickly settled down and continued to stare at the passing scenery.
I didn't think my father would show up at the banquet tonight, he didn't need to be there, but he was. I recalled the panic I felt when he approached Sebastian and I, I thought he was going to attack Sebastian, but he couldn't care less about him, instead, he settled on me. Better me than Sebastian.
We pulled up in front of the huge oak doors and the happy trio clambered out of the limo as gracefully as they could. I waited a moment before getting out myself, making sure they had already entered the mansion.
As I exited, I gazed up at the mansion that towered over me. It was a traditional mansion passed down from our ancestors, except my father had made renovations. On top of the traditional mansion, which had two floors, sat two more levels of the new mansion. The large planes of glass glinted in the starlight, the lights inside were dimmed to create a homey feel; not that it felt homey to me.
I sighed, rolling my shoulders, and walking inside with my head held high. I entered the brightly lit home, frowning at the silence that surrounded me. I stalked through the hall, making a beeline towards the grand staircase. My bedroom was on the top floor, everyone else's on the second floor, the top floor of the old mansion, we had a full floor between us.
My father assigned me this room when I turned twelve, telling me I needed a floor of my own for training and business because I was the one taking over instead of Margo. When I asked him why he told me that it would put too much pressure on her and it would stop her from achieving her dreams, but he never considered mine. I became used to the silence that grew before when I lived on the same floor, it was still silent but I could hear my father, my mother and Margo have their family moments.
I envied Margo, she got to be anything she wanted, she could do anything she wanted and my father would support her. My fate was sealed by the time I was five despite my grandfather's protests. I was frustrated that I had to learn etiquette when she watched movies in our home cinema, I had to learn business techniques when she went out with mother.
I was chained to my future, I didn't have a childhood. I didn't have dolls but calculators, I didn't have friends but potential business partners, I didn't have stuffed toys but strenuous training in maths and science and I didn't have loving parents, instead, I had spectators that created me and sat back to watch their work.
I envied Margo, but she was the only one by my side, my mother tried to help but she was always too busy being one of the top lawyers in the country. Margo was there for me, she hated how I was given such a huge weight at a young age. When I tried to escape, I was punished. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore, I was so stressed that I forgot my name, all I knew were numbers, charts and business. I forgot to eat, I was too busy to sleep and I had no time to talk to anyone. I was locked in on my floor and only went out for school, working until the early morning; I guess nothing's changed except the fact that I eat now.
The darkness claimed me more times than I could remember, I blacked out so many times but when I came to, my first priority was work. So, when I blacked out that time, I didn't think anything of it, just that when I wake up, I need to work. I was so confused when I heard sirens, we don't live near the city so the only sirens we have is the home security alarms.
I could hear voices all around me, a constant beeping in the background. I could feel pricks in my arms, but they were numb, I couldn't move anything. I asked myself if I had finally fallen asleep for the first time. It was my thirteenth birthday, and I lay in what I concluded was a hospital. It took everything I had to open my eyes, wanting to see who the cries belonged to.
The hospital room was that of a standard hospital, not any from my parent's branches. I glanced to my right to see my mother hunched over my bed, sobbing, with Margo beside her, rubbing circles on her back.
"Miss Parkinson, you are awake." A tall man stood at the door, closing it behind him. He had rectangular glasses that framed his eyes, but they couldn't conceal the dark circles under them. His smile was small and tired, he looked exhausted.
At this my mother's head shot up faster than lightning, her eyes wide and overflowing with tears. I looked over to Margo who had a stern look on her face, it was unusual for her but I had met the face of my father before so I didn't faze me.
"You had collapsed from over-exhaustion, not eating properly and not sleeping. Dare I say it but, whatever lifestyle you were living, it was killing you, another two weeks and it would have been even more fatal than it is now." At this my mother released a loud sob, quickly clamping her hands over her mouth, her body still violently shaking.
The man looked over at my mother in pity, wincing at a quiet sob. "I'm going to talk to you in private later but I think you need some time with your family." He smiled again and left quietly, gently shutting the door behind him.
"Where's father?" I croaked, my voice was hoarse, I haven't spoken to anyone in days, not even in school. At this question my mother released yet another sob, so I looked to Margo for the answer, instead, all I got was a fiery second-hand glare.
"He's not here. When I called him to tell him what happened he said to not take you to one of our hospitals claiming that, since you couldn't handle the business even with all the training you had, that you didn't deserve the luxury of our hospital because you're apparently a failure." She replied coldly, her voice dripping with hatred. "You're eleven, twelve today, and he expects you to be able to handle the business at this age, he expects you to do his job at this age? That man is barbaric, he can go fuck himself."
My mother bolts upright at this screaming "Margo!"
"No! I stand by what I said. This isn't fair, he let me live my life the way I wanted but Audrey was paying for my freedom? She's isolated, she lives on the top floor while we live together on the second. If I hadn't checked up on her who knows what would have happened. I regret not checking up on her sooner, I could've prevented this, she wouldn't have to be in a hospital on her birthday, and it's not even our hospital." She shouted, her cheeks soaked with tears of anger, her voice was low.
"Margo, I'm fine really, I'm fine, I was just tired I guess."
"Look around you, Audrey. You are in the hospital!" She growled, "You fainted due to over-exhaustion, poor eating habits and an unidentified problem that the doctor won't tell us about. Look, we are worried and we don't, I don't ever want to see you in the bed with drips in your arms and an oxygen mask on your face. I can't and won't go through this again."
We sat in silence interrupted by the beating of my heart and the occasional drip. Margo slumped in her seat, releasing a heavy sigh. As for my mother, she silently sobbed, letting the tears roll down her face. Outside the door was a different world entirely, the bustling of doctors and nurses could be heard among the murmuring of visitors waiting patiently.
The heavy silence was broken by the loud click of the door knob, followed by the deep laughter of the doctor when we all jumped. "Visiting hours are over but feel free to visit tomorrow." He smiled brightly, lightening the mood. He watched as my mother and sister hastily stood and left, throwing me small waves. He shut the door behind them and walked over to the seats at my bedside.
"Now Audrey, as was mentioned before, you fainted from overexertion. Why is that?" He asked softly, his right ankle resting on his left knee.
"I guess, it was because I kept working. I just worked and worked and worked. I forgot to eat, I didn't have time for eating, or sleeping I guess. I never really slept much anyway, even when I was a child." I played with the blanket, feeling the soft cotton material between my fingers.
"Why didn't you sleep as a child? My son is always sleeping, the little rascal has already mastered being a cat." He laughs, I chuckle along with him.
I sighed, looking up from my hands. "I'm afraid, of the monsters. I, when I was a kid, I would tell my father and he told me to grow up. I told my mother and she told me to tell my father. I told my sister and she said that she believed in them when she was little but father always scared them off." I admitted, I shrugged my shoulders, giggling at my stupidity.
"I thought so. I see I was right." He blurts out, holding his chin and looking off into the distance. He should be an actor.
"Right about what?" I ask as I go back to looking at my hands, watching them fiddle with a couple loose threads. I could feel his gaze on me as he sucked in a deep breath.
"I'm a father, I have a hunch. When I have a hunch, it's usually right. My hunch is that your father isn't acting like a father to you. Instead, you see him as a creator, a mentor, someone who is expecting high results, no, inhuman results from you. My hunch is-" His next words caused me to grip the blanket tightly, I began wringing it in my hands. Every word, every word that he spoke was true, it was all true. I couldn't deny it.
I could feel his grip on my hand, tight enough to comfort me, to let me know he's there, but not tight enough to scare me away.
Numb. I couldn't feel my fingers. Numb. I couldn't feel my toes. Numb. It felt so hard to move, it took too much to move. Numb. My head began to run a mile a minute, all because it was true.
True. Every word.
True.