SHIMMER'S POV
When the butler opened the door, I hopefully lifted my eyes, expecting to finally see my son and the ugly duckling; that girl who did not even deserve to be called by name! I knew that Anisha was beautiful, I had seen her beauty ever since she was a child, but I believed that without money, her beauty would not show that much. I also doubted if Anisha was going to be able to carry herself like a lady, considering she had been brought up at the children's home.
I could not help but smile widely, feeling glad that Dylan and Anisha were the last ones to arrive. That way; I felt my plan was going to work out perfectly! Everyone, especially Dylan, was going to get a chance to see the ugly duckling coming in and embarrassing herself among the elite.
My face suddenly fell when I saw a woman who was holding on to Dylan's hand. Blinking uncontrollably, I thought maybe I was not seeing clearly, for what I had imagined and what was standing before me were two parallels. Anisha's dress fit her so well, or rather too well; for it was beyond beautiful. The woman's face was the example of perfection. She looked like she was a work of art put together by the world's greatest artist, for in real life, I had never expected to see a real human being that beautiful.
Iris gracefully led the couple and offered Anisha a chair next to Raelynn, just as I had previously instructed. Immediately, I regretted my sitting arrangement idea, because sitting next to Anisha, Raelynn appeared like the ugly duckling. The sequins on her dress, which before had been shining attractively, suddenly appeared too loud and childish, in comparison to the elegant dress that Anisha wore.
It was difficult for me to believe how perfectly this orphan's dress fit her. I disliked her a lot; yet here she was, proving to have this unbelievable beauty which made me even more irritated. I shook my head and told myself that even if she was beautiful, she would never be a match to my son. I wanted a decent girl from a rich, well-known family; not some orphan who grew up at a home, and was never loved enough to ever be adopted by anyone.
I wanted to look away from her but my eyes let me down. They forcefully trailed back to her, and I found myself fixing my gaze on Anisha again. Her dress hung perfectly to her body, as if she had been born wearing it. Her slender arms looked as beautiful as nothing I had ever seen before. Who would have ever guessed that arms on their own could look that mesmerizing. She had the skin of a child, fair, with no spot, scar or pimple. Nothing tainted that skin, and I had to secretly admit in my heart, for the umpteenth time, that never in my life had I seen anyone that beautiful. Anisha was the most beautiful thing I had ever beheld; perfectly moulded, with no hiccup whatsoever. I felt like I was looking at a goddess.
Raelynn's smile appeared like a big joke, when compared to the symbol of perfection which sat right there next to her. The jewellery that Raelynn wore, which before I had admired greatly, suddenly looked so dull and plain as they hung on Raelynn neck, ears and wrists. The jewellery that Anisha wore looked genuine and matched perfectly with her skin and dress. Her hair shone under the orange chandelier lights. The colour of her dress heightened her own skin colour, making her appear as if she had just borrowed a fake skin to plaster over her face. Her eyes shone brightly, and when she blinked, her blinking was a bit slow, as if her eyes would shut forever, and then suddenly they would open up, exposing the bright eyes dancing and exuding joy and beauty. Anisha had inner joy, and inner beauty too. Her face was devoid of any error; there could not be anything that I could have wished to be changed, removed, replaced or added. Anisha's facial features were perfectly sized and perfectly placed, making her appear like a magazine picture which had undergone a lot of photo shopping by a highly experienced person.
"Anisha! Oh my word! Are you not the most beautiful thing alive!!" Arianna stood from her chair and hugged Anisha tight. She gently pushed Anisha way from her, but with her hands still holding on to Anisha's shoulders. Arianna looked at Anisha up and down, down and up, up and down, and she pulled her in for another tighter hug!
"Beautiful beautiful beautiful!" she said.
Anisha smiled and in a low voice, "thank you."
Ciera stood up, stretched her hand to greet Anisha, and said, "Anisha. It's good to see you good and healthy. When I saw you at the hospital, I really thought we would lose you. Thank God you're alive."
"I thank God too. Thank you", Anisha smiled.
Arianna was still holding her, and she went on to say, "You've always been beautiful, Anisha. But with growing up, you've become like a goddess. You've become even more beautiful! No wonder Dylan is crazy about you."
"Arianna!" Dylan called out to his sister.
"What? Are you not? Should I tell them what you always say? I'm going to tell them! You said..."
"Arianna!", Dylan used a threatening voice, and Arianna laughed.
A lump rose and sat notoriously on my throat, blocking all the life in me. I hated myself for it all.
"I think we must eat now. Tell the chefs that we're ready to eat now." I spoke.
Roderick, seated next to me, did not even hear what I had said, for he too was mesmerized by the angel which had just walked into our home. With his mouth slightly open, he was staring ardently at the girl, and his face seemed to be confirming that indeed, the woman was beautiful.
Raelynn flashed me a stare, and I needed no telling that she was seriously angered by the woman sitting next to her. I had made her believe that she would be the best dressed woman in the house, and yet here we were; feeling all the limelight suddenly drifting to the girl Anisha. The only person who did not stare at Anisha was Pete. He simply nudged Dylan and whispered to him, "you brought your woman home to mum and dad, dude."
"I brought my woman home," Dylan smiled enthusiastically, his voice a rather too loud whisper.
When I saw and heard them, my hand itched to slap them both! Not that I had ever slapped them before; but at that moment I badly longed for that. I was thoroughly disgusted and felt like standing up to cancel that dinner immediately! I hated myself for ever agreeing to have Anisha in my house for dinner.
After all the greetings and introductions, Anisha looked at Raelynn and said, "we meet again!"
Raelynn looked very irritated when she heard that. Looking at her, I could not help but wonder when and where the two of them had met before.
"Oh, you two know each other?", Arianna inquired.
Raelynn looked like she was about to deny it, when Anisha said softly, "we met at the mall, in a boutique."
When she mentioned the mall, I felt a heavy sting welling up in my stomach and moving up. My own son was willing to spend money on that girl? The pain felt like it had temporarily lodged in my chest, before it moved to block my throat. It was anger. My shaking hands needed to be steadied, for I could not bear for anyone to see them shaking like that. Hot tears stung my eyelids, and I fought with all my might to keep them in. They were tears of anger. Tears of defeat. I admitted that at that moment, Anisha might have won; but there were many more battles to come. There was no way I could ever allow that girl to stay close to my only son.
Although I had planned to embarrass Anisha at the dinner table, I suddenly lost all the willpower to do so. While everyone enjoyed their meal, my food became tasteless. I kept stealing glances at Anisha, hoping to see her doing something embarrassing, like chewing loudly or failing to use her cutlery well, yet I saw her chewing gracefully. Her chewing was even enticing, it made me want to also eat the mushrooms that she was eating. She chewed them in a way that made whoever was looking at her feel that maybe mushrooms were the most delicious food in the world.
"Dish for me some mushroom," I found myself sending out an order.
Generally, everyone else except for Raelynn and myself seemed to enjoy themselves. Roderick asked Anisha some questions about herself, and everyone was interested in her answers, listening to her with much love and adoration! Ewwww!! I felt like chasing them all out! Arianna, of course, was the one who spoke the most, and she gave Anisha way too much attention for my liking. Looking on, Dylan and Pete were laughing heartily at the jokes that Anisha kept telling, all in a bid to make that girl feel at home.
Ciera and KJ did not laugh much; but they did seem amused by everything that was going on. It was obvious that they would not laugh much; because both Ciera and KJ had never been loud people. Keith Junior was rather too serious, but I liked him all the same, and Ciera had always been the non-nonsense type. Roderick, seated next to me, was also part of the fun. He too seemed to be greatly enjoying the evening, joining in the conversations and also evidently doing his best to make sure the orphan would feel welcome.
Looking on from the door which led to the lounge as Iris. When my eyes landed on her face, I believed I saw her smiling. I wondered whether or not she had forgotten where her bread was buttered.