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Emily's POV

Emily! emily!!, i woke up to the sound of my dad's voice which was echoing to my room, i grumbled as i stuggled to get out of bed and robbing my eyes with the back of my palm. immediatly my door opened and i saw my dad standing there with a spatular in this palm, "young lady do you know what time and day it is?" he eyed me still furious " common dad its friday and its..". then it occured to me what day it is, " its my exhibiton day abd i am fucking late, holy shit im going to be scoleded by mrs perkins" i tried to hide my tears but i could not controlled it " relax baby girl, youve got this and i know you will make it" my dad said those reassuring words and i felt relieved a little. "now get into the bathroom and come down stairs for breakfast" he said as he backed the door behind me.

yes, i'm an artist and i have loved drawing ever since i was 5, my dad says i took after my mom, though i never got to meet her because she died will giving birth to me and it broke my dad into a miilion pieces. he doesn't like talking about it but i know he misses her alot. my family is poor and broke , my dad had to work 9-5 jobs every day just to make sure we are ok and all i know is how to draw and paint, yeah i'm good at that but thats not enough to pay the bills, i have tried to give up so may times but my dad would keep on encouraging me to go on since it makes me happy, and ever since then i have loved drawing and this is my chance to shine.

i immediatly got into the bathroom and had a quick shower, i turned on the shower ans the chilled water ran through my body as i went into deep thinking. what if i fail today, its going to be the end of my career and i will not ever want to draw again,ths is a once in a life time opportunity to be reconginsed by the national art association (naa) they are the biggest art organisation in new york and has the power to change life or break your carreer for life, i was brought back to reality by the sounds of my phone, i immediatly got out of the shower and went to answer the phone "hello, its emily how can i help you" "WHERE ARE YOU EMILY DAVIS!!" the person on the other line of the phone shouted at me i checked who was calling and it was mrs perkins " hi, mrs perkins" my voice began to shake " i..m o..n my.. way" i said this time aroung my hands where shaking "if you know what is good for you be here in 30 mins or else the deal is off" and then the phone hung up. " shit, shit shit!!!!!!! i'm in deep trouble" i didn't even have time to cry i quick dried my body with my towel, rub some cream on my skin and wore my usual clothes ,i didn't have time to buy new clothes because all my clothes were worn out and i couldn't care less. i quickly tied my hair in a bun and ran down stairs.

i went down stairs and saw my dad eating toated bread on an avacado spread and sipping orange juice. " bye dad, i siad as i quickly picked up a toasted bread and ran off without even looking back" i could hear my dad calling my name but i did not care to respond my mind was already clouded with the thoughts of what mrs perkins would do to me, i entered the public trasnsport and in 20 mintutes time, i was at the art gallery i took a deep breathe and i entered the building just to see mrs perkins standing at the entrance "look at the time the investors will soon be here and you are late" she shouted and all i could say was " i'm sorry ma'am" ' thats what you are good at, saying sorry but never changes, if not for your dad i would have kicked you out of my gallery a long time ago" she said as she walked away "why are you still standing there" she shouted and i ran after her " i'm coming".

we entered an elevator and she pressed the number '7' i think thats was where we were going but i did not ulter any sound so i won't provoke her. mrs perkins is like a life saver, she came to my rescue when i failed to win an art competition 2 years ago.

FLASHBACK TO 2 YEARS AGO

and the winner for "last days of summer art competiton 2020 is..... i prayed so hard to get picked because i know i have tried my best, infact i was suppose to win "skylar flare" "what' it looks like my life had come to an end,i was suppose to win, infact i'm the winner, the judges are cheating because the hosts of the competition was skylar flare's parents and im sure they were behind it. i prepared so hard for the competition just for the judges to cheat, i expected it to happen but i never knew it will hurt like this. i dashed out from the hall and went outside, i couldnt bear it anymore and i cried my eyes out. i kept crying until i felt someone behind me, i quickly cleaned my tears and turned my back to see who it was, she was tall, slim fair woman who had a red hair and her lips were as red as her hair , she was really pretty and from the way she was dressed, she looked rich, she has a gucci purse which suited her skin, a luis vitton gowns ans some red heels to match."who are you" i said sniffing and cleaning my nose with the back of my hands "are you going to let these minor things get to you" she said as she helped me get off the floor, " that doesnt answer my question" i said, this time with a more serious look. " i can help you" she said, it was as if she cant even hear me, out of all she was saying this part got me intrigued " how can you help, as you can see i'm a failure, i have never won any art competiton in my life" and i burst out crying again, out of anger i threw out my drawings. she picked it up and said " this is amazing, you really have the skills of a good artist but your work is rough" i cleaned my eyes and walked up to her " how do you mean" she pointed out the eyes of my drawing " its not realitic enough, yes you are good at it but i can make it better" she looked at me this time and put her two hands on my shoulder " you have potencial young lady and i can help you win competitons in the future if you are ready to be determined the sky will be your starting point" she smiled at me "ok ma'am" i smiled back at her "emily davis is my name, i figured i should tell you" she smiled warmly " call me mrs perkins" " let me take you home" she took my hands and led me to her car, i hopped on it and gave her directions to my house and found my dad waiting outside our door "daddy" i quickly rushed out of the car and hugged my dad, from the sound of my voice he knew i was not ok " everything will be fine my princess" my dad patted my head "derek" i heard someone calling my dad's name which was unusual, my dad relased me and walked towards mrs perkins " linda" my dad said as he hugged her " am i missing something" i said as i walked towards them "linda and i went to the same school and we grew up in the same neigbourhood while growing up until they moved out" " what a conicidence"i said and smiled warmly at her " its nice to meet you" i streched my hands for a handshake " the pleasure is mine" she smiled back and shook my hands in return " so how did you find my daughter" my dad asked as mrs perkins explained everything to him " thank you linda" my dad said, honestly ever since her mother died drawing has been her bestfriend and has always been a part of her, so thank you" " no problem derek we are family after all and family are supposed to help each other and im glad i could help" they hugged again.

BACK TO REALITY

"emily!!!" my name brought me bsck to reality and i saw the elevator almost closing down on me "where is your head at" she shouted at me again " i'm sorry" she just eyed me and talked away, i could not even notice how beautiful the gallery was, the art that covered the room made it more magnificent. the buldin was painted in yellow and blue with pillars at each side of the building, the arts of diffrent people was placed neatly on the wall which made the room lightened up and the smell of paint covered the room which was very relaxing,and there some people looking at the art, it was the workers because the meseum was not yet opened to the public. " get your head straight in the game" mrs perkins slapped the back of my head which i know deserve because i'm always carried away by my thoughts. " don't even bother saying sorry because thats what you are good at" she said and walked away, i smiled as i followed her like a lost puppy.

JAMES POV

Being the heir to a rich family, many responsibilties are being brought upon you, you literally do not have a say in your life and all you do is say yes to what ever you are told to do, its really tiring but i do not want to fail my parents and all i can do is to make them happy even if i'm not happy.

its7:30 am and my alarm already got off and thats what woke me up and immediatly, i got up and took a shower i knew the maids will be waiting for me in my room to bring my clothes and the neccessary things i need to get ready for work. immediately i left the bathroom i got to my room and saw them there. " leave" i said with no atom of emotions written on my face, i havn't really smiled in a long time and i don't think i will. they all left and i was left alone in my room, i rubbed some oils on my skin and work my HUGO BOSS desinger suit and sprayed some perfume on my skin and did my hair with some side cutting. the only thing i was happy about was my looks, i was hansome and i know it and nobody can tell me otherwise, i smirked and immediatly went to the garage to pick up my buggatti and drove to work. the traffic was terrible and i knew i had to talk to some clients and sign some deals, i was already pissed off. few moments later the traffic was gone and i was able to reach my destination in 10 minutes. i enterd inside the thornton's empire which was written outside the building. as every saw me they all stood to greet me " good morning mr thornton" thats all i could hear, i could not even reply them so as not to be unserious. i entered the elevator leading to my office, after some time i got off the elevator and went straight to my office ehich was down the hall, i opened the door and saw my assistant waiting for me "good morning james you are late" he said to me checking the time on his watch. david was my assistant and also my bestfriend, he has been through thick and thin for me and i was glad he was there, i wondered what i would have done without him, he is an incredible person and i always tend to be my self around him. ' yeah i know i'm late" i walked towards him and gave him a big hug ' hey, stop with the reminence bro, we have work to do and you are going to be super busy today and we have less than 10 minutes before our clients from china comes , and you know we have to seal the deal for thornton distribution" " yeah i know and i know we habe to move fast hey did you bring.." david immediatly replied and brought out a brown pack that contains what i feel is my favourite snack " thank you bro, you know me the best and i love you" i pecked him on the cheek " ewww, thats disgusting" he wiped his face with his hands " i figured you will be hungry and thats how you always do, i got your back bro" he patted my back. " holy shit!!!" we are late, we have less than 5 minutes to go" we hurriedly walked out of the office while stuffing my face with my club sand wich.

we immediately enterd his car and drove off " tell me my schedule for today" i said trying to remove some bread crumbs from my body " you have a meeting with the china investors in 2 minutes time and have a meeting with some potencial clients later and lastly by 1 we have an art exhibit to attend" he concluded " cancel the last one, i'm not going" " you have to, your dad specially odered you to go" my face changed because now that my father was involved i had to go " you know i hate art galleries" i said trying not to remeber what happened. " youve got to let go bro, its been 2 years since it happened, a nd i think its finally time to move on" david replied and put a comforting hands on my shoulder, reassuring me that everything will be ok. but it still feels like yesterday.

FLASHBACK TO 2 YEARS AGO

Sitting outside the a building where an art competition took place, i met a girl crying, she was crying her eyes out with her drawings on her hands, its weird but i found her really pretty crying, she wore a pink shirt with a black joggers, she sort of looks like a tomboy but i doubt she is, her her perfectly tied in a pony tail, it looks like it was packed by a professional hair stylist, but some strands of hair was sitting on her wet face, i saw her looking at me and i turned away, she had the perfect lips to kiss, forgive my manners but she was pretty, her eyes were really blue like the occen and i could get lost in it. my younger brother came and brought me back to reality. " hey bro" i stood up from where i was sitting and gave him a pat on his back, my little bro was my bestfriend and only friend, i was older than him with just 2 years but we behaved like twins because it was really hard to separate us, he was my companion. " hey" he said back, but his face said otherwise, he was looking sad and pale. "how did it go, jay" (short form for jason)" i looked at him and saw tears in his eyes, my brother was a lover of art and loves to draw, he hasc been paticipating for art competitions and sometimes ends up losing which would break him and he will end up being sad and depressed for a very long time " i failed james" his voice was shaking as he burst into tears. he was really devastated and it broke me to see him that day. " its ok jay, other competiton will come and i can assure you that you will be the winner, you are a great artist and if others cant see that, thats their loss, because i see it and i know that you are the best" i hugged and and let him cry for a long time. i turned to my side to see if i could see the pretty lady, but i guess she was gone.

After a while we both went home and saw my sitting in his sitting room with some of his friends, i think they were his business partners, we greeted them and procceeded to go our rooms when my dad called "jason my boy come here, james you can go to your room" he said to me, i could not leave jay with my dad because i know he will get scolded for not winning the competitions. so i stood at the corner of the sitting room and the next time i was was a slap across jay's face, i could see jay holding his cheeks and staying strong not to cry " how mant times will you fail" my dad said this time standing up from his chair, i could not see anyone rescuing jay from my dad's wrath and i know it would get worse if i don't step in " that's ok dad" i came out of my hiding place and took jays"s hands. " we will leave now" about to leave " two of you are both failures you are both good at nothing, is this how you guys will handle the thorntons companies?" he said and i did not even reply him, i waled out of there without even looking back " dont walk out on me!!!" my dad shouted behind us, i did not even care and we went to my room. i shut the door behind us and ran my hands through my hair because i was furious "why the fuck would you answer him when you know how he is like" i walked up to james and sat on the bed with him, my brother was really scared, i could tell from the expression on his face. i could not even shout for him and just hugged him tight and tears ran through my cheeks. my family was rich but the people living in it are not happy, having a very demanding dad, and a non caring mother, your relatvies are scared of your parents and cant even help you, my only sister was forced into marriage because of tghe business. in the business world, the children are just puppets in the hands of their family, you are used for business gains and influences, you dont have a say on your own life as things are being dictated for you, it sucks but you have no choice but to live your life according to their wishes.

i woke up to the sound of my phone ringing and i picked it up " hello" i said, but my eyes were closed " bro!, bro!!, bro!!!" the shout from the other side of the phone brought me back to my senses, i loked at the screen and saw it was david " hey david, stop screaming, my hear is going to burst if you keep shouting like this. now talk to me whats up" "where is jason" david said " jason is..." i looked at my side where jason was supposed to be sleeping on and couldnt find him. " jay!" i shouted and stood up from the bed and went oout of my room to look for him. "what happend to jay" i asked david who was still on the line " ummmm..." " talk to me dave, i'm not in the mood for that" i continued searching for jason until i got to the living room and saw eveyone crying, including my mom, repoters were every where " jay is dead james" i stood still and my phone fell to the ground causing everyone to look at me "hello, hello, james can you hear me" i could hear him but my body became numb, i was trying to process the whole scenerio but i couldnt because i was not thinking, i just wanted it to be a lie. my whole world came crashing down in just a few minutes " JASON!!!!!!!!!!!" i shouted at the top of my lungs and saw all the repoters taking pictures and asking me questions. i could not hear anything or see anything because my eyes were blurred due to the tears in my eyes. then i blacked out.

Later in the day i woke up in my bed, i was numb, tears still rolling down on my cheeks. suddenly a notification popped on my phone and i managed to get my hands on it. the headlines was "the second son and last child of lewis thornton was killed in a fire outburst, some sources said he was seen in the national art gallery with petrol and a match stick, he burned down the gallery and also burnt himself along side" "LIESSSS!!!!" i screamed as maids rushed into my room trying to calm me down "they are saying shit about my brother, he would never do that" i cried my eyes out and blacked out again.. ever since my brother died, i have never smiled, my brother took a part of me with him and i dont think i will be able to recover from it. with the help of david i was finally ok but that part of me will forever remained vacant.

BACK TO REALITY

" where is your head at!!" david shouted and brought me back to reality, i cleaned the tears in my eyes and smiled at david " sorry i paced out, are we there yet" i asked sitting straight. " are you ok " dave asked and put his palm on my shoulder " yeah , i'm fine" i smiled at him reasurring him am ok but i knew he wouldnt buy the story but just for peace to reign he nodded his head. " we are here" he said as the car came to a halt. it was a chinese resturant, i could have guessed right because that's the only place we can meet up with them. we got to the traditonally looked place, it was like every typical chinese resturant in the 80s, a fine woman who i believed would be in her 30s ushered us inside telling us that they are waiting for us. we got in and saw them waiting " i'm sorry we are late there is a lot of traffic on the way" i said sitting down on the floor like them. " so mr thornton, why do you want to do business with us" one of the clients asked," umm, merging your technology with our skills and money, we can make delivery of goods from your country faster, cheaper and easier, we are not only merging our business together but also bring coporation between two countries" i concluded and i saw them debating among themselves and finally a response " i like your idea mr thorthon and we will be glad to do business with you" they said as we shoocked hands and signed the contract papers. " thank you again" i said and we all stood up and shoocked hands again and we left the building. immediatly i got out of the building and adjusted my tie so i could breathe because i felt suffocated. "you did great out here you know, you killed it bro this will surely increase our stock price" david said tapping my back and smiling, sometines he acts like a kid and reminds me of my brother. ' so, where next" i said entering my side of the car, next is the meeting with the client, we have to hurry because we are 5 minutes late" " ok, lets go, we need to hurry because i'm already tired" i sat at the back of the car and rested my back to take a nap. i had a dream about my brother. we were plaing basket ball in the court at our house, he was smilng happyily as he dribbled me with the ball, all of a suddenly he suddendly disappered into thin air, i called out his name and started crying. " jason!!" david's hands was on me like he was trying to wake me up. " still the same dream?" he asked as i cleaned the tears from my eyes. " are we there yet" i asked trying to look at where we are from my mirror. " almost, and you havent answered my question, no matter how you try to run away, i will still be here for you" his voice sounded sad as the car came to a halt and he came down without waiting for me. i knew i have been locking up my feelings from him which was wrong, he is my bestfriend and i could not bear the thought of losing another brother, i think its finally time to tell him about the dream. " hey man, you got time"i walked up to where he was with my hands in my pocket. "we've got 2 minutes" he said checking his rolex watch for the time. " i'm sorry man, i just cant bring my self to tell you the dream" " its been two years james and you haven't let anyone into your heart not even me, how can you call me your bestfriend when you cant tell me anything" he said almost with a teary eyes, i felt so bad " its my brother, every time i sleep i dream about him, and how i failed to protect him, its my fault he died" i said and i could not stop the tears from pouring on my cheeks, immediatly, david hugged me and also started crying "its not your fault bro, you just have to let go, you cant keep blaming yourself for hs death, its already been 2 years and its time to let go, he would not like his big brother crying like a baby" we both laughed and stopped crying. " thank you bro" i said and gave him a big hug. "2 minutes is up we have to go now" we entered the building and met with client 30 minutes larer we were done and its time to head to the art gallery. now its time to face my worst fear.

As we approached the gallery, my heart was beating so fast that i could hear it. i was sweating and had to adjust my tie to be able to breathe well. "are you ok, bro, we can turn back if you want" david said to me and helped me drink the water that was close to me "im fine, i can manage,besides i must go, if not, dad will be mad. "ok, but if you need anything, i will always be here for you" he gave me a reassuring smile.

Few minutes later we arrived at the gallery and the thought of my brither buring in this gallery pisses me off. i wanted to run away and disappear but i couldnt. i just stood there at the enterance. " let me go park the car, wait here for me and dont go anywhere" david said as he drove off with the car. All of a sudden, reporters were eveywhere and my head started spinning, i don't like to be in the spot light and i dont like reporters but they kept bombarding me with questions i didn't want to answer and the reflection of the light coming from the camera was also adding to the pain. I was sweating profusely, it looks like a dream but i saw someone in their midst running towards me, when the figure got closer that i found out she was a girl, she helped me pass through the reporters and took me to a quiet spot inside the gallery.

EMILY'S POV

After setting up my drawing in the gallery, mrs perkins was talking to some other artists and i was tired of looking at the paintings on the wall and was really bored. so i went outside to recieve some fresh air so i can calm my nerve before the exhibition starts. when i got outside i sawin the midst of a lot of reporters and he seem very uncomfortable " he clearly needs help" i said to myself as i rushed through the midst of the reporters " excuse me , excuse me ,no comment" that was all i was saying before i successfully brought him inside the gallery. i looked up to him and saw an angel, i mean an angel in human form. He was beautiful because handsome was an understatement for this kind of beauty, he was light skinned, tall and well built, he had the perfect set of green eyes and pink lips, i could not help but salivate at the thought of me kissing him, his brown hair suits his skin and the sun was doing no justice because he was glowing. " can you stop staring now" His angelic voice brought me back from my imagination. " uhh.. sorry" i smiled " are you ok?" i aked him who was sweating profusely and i was busy salivating at his half buttoned shirt. " emily common, not now" i whispered to myself " excuse me" he waved his hand across my face to see if i could see him. " thanks for helping me out there, i don't know what i would have done without you" he gave me a warm smile giving me his hands to shake " you are welcome" i said taking his hands in mine.. fuck!!! his hands are so soft, he released my hands and walked out. " how can someone be so handsome" i tried my best not to scream but i couldn't, i had to get it off my chest. " you have been wandering about again" i turned to see mrs perkins coming to my direction. " get your head in the game young lady, the investors and sponsors are here already, we need to move fast" she said as she walked in front of me and i followed her like her minion. i stopped for a while " i can do it" i gave myself some words of encouragement before i continued walking.