” Ding! dong!”, I heard as I rang the doorbell. ” Hwwww”, I exhaled slowly through my mouth. Then Janet held my hand.
” Don’t be nervous, okay? It’s gonna be alright”, she said to me with a reassuring flare in her eyes. ” You can do this”, she encouraged. I nodded and pressed the doorbell again. ” Who is it?”, a voice asked from inside as I heard footsteps approaching. I could feel my heart racing as the footsteps drew closer and closer. Janet tightened her grip on my hand. Then the door swung open, and there she was, my mother who I hadn’t seen or talked to for almost two years. There was a silent shock on her face as she saw me.
” Hey Mom. Sorry I showed up like this but if you’d let me, I’d like to…”
” Oh my baby”, she said as she ran to hug me. ” Where have you been baby? I’ve missed you so much”, she said as she put her palms on my cheeks. Tears welled up in my eyes.
” I’m sorry Mom”, I cried, ” I never wanted it to be this way. All I ever wanted was to make you and Dad proud”, I said in a teary voice.
” It’s okay baby, come inside. Let’s talk inside”, she said as she led me in with her hand on my back, ” you too”, she said to Janet, who also came in.
” Chanel! your brother’s back!”, Mom yelled out to her.
” Really?!”, her excited voice yelled back from upstairs as I heard rapid stomps heading downstairs.
” Don’t run, you’ll hurt yourself”, Mom said. Chanel got downstairs and stood frozen on seeing me.
” Where have you been, you big jerk?!”, she said as tears welled up in her eyes. She ran to me and hugged me. Tears gushed out of my eyes as I held her in my arms.
” I’m sorry I ever left”, I said to her.
” Quick Chanel, go make something for them to eat”, Mom said. Then my mom’s attention drifted to Janet. ” You’re so pretty.”, she said with a smile,” Are you Jeremy’s friend?”, she asked her.
” Yes ma’am and Good afternoon also”, Janet said , ” You’re quite the beauty yourself and I can finally see where Jeremy got his good looks from”, she joked, which made Mom laugh.
” Oh don’t flatter me”, Mom replied as her cheeks turned crimson from embarrassment, which made everyone including Chanel, laugh.
” Where’s Dad, anyway?”, I asked, interrupting their laughter as I scanned around with my eyes.
” Where else do you think he’d be by this time, besides the bar?”, Mom asked.
” Oh yeah. Almost forgot about that”, I said with a chuckle. Just then, a really beautiful lady walked down the stairs. She wore a blue gown with white flowery patterns, which flared from her waist down to her knees.
” Good afternoon”, she greeted I and Janet as she got downstairs.
” Oh, where are my manners?”, my Mom said as she smacked her palm on her forehead. ” Jeremy, meet Isabelle. She’s been staying with us for a while”, she said to me.
” Nice to meet you”, I said as I stretched out my hand for a handshake, which she took.
” And Isabelle, this is my son Jeremy I’ve been telling you about”, Mom said to Isabelle.
” Oh that’s nice! How are you?”, she asked.
” I’m alright”, I responded just before she turned sideways to look at Janet.
” Wow, you really pretty”, she said to her, ” I’m guessing you two are an item”, she quipped with a smile. Janet’s face turned red with embarrassment.
” Doo… do we rea.. rea.. lly make it look that obvious?”, she said in a stuttery voice and awkward smile.
” Yeah kinda”, everyone responded in unison making everyone laugh.
” I missed you guys”, I thought as I looked at all of them laughing. I was glad to see them laugh together. No one even reminded me of Dave, just to make me feel comfortable. ” I miss you a lot bro”, I said somberly within myself, as thoughts of our time together flashed through my mind.
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Janet’s POV~
* Two Hours Later***
” Yes!”, I exclaimed as I won, retracting my elbow in celebration, ” I can’t believe you won again”, Mom said as she stared at the chessboard. ” Where did you learn how to play?”, she asked me.
” I think my brother Tristan, was the one who taught me”, I said, ” he used to always call me to play as a kid and thought of chess as more than just a game”, I explained.
” Hmmm, I’m really impressed that you could beat me three times in a row”, she said, ” I guess you’re pretty and smart”, she quipped with a smile. As we kept chatting, I and the ladies, Jeremy stood up from the sofa and walked up to where we were.
” Alright Jane, we should get going. It’s getting a bit late”, he said.
” Awwwn, do you guys have to leave now?”, Isabelle asked him.
” Yeah, what’s wrong with spending the night?”, his Mom supported.
” She’s gotta be home before seven and she lives quite far away, in the city, so we gotta catch the train”, he explained.
” I guess that’s understandable”, his mom said. Even I was reluctant to leave. They were so fun and cool. I liked Isabelle the most. She was really caring and had the most endearing smile ever.
” Humph!”, I sighed as I got up from the chair on which I sat, ” I guess I really should be going”, I said.
” Oh I’m gonna miss you sweety”, his Mom said as she gave me a warm hug.
” Same here”, Isabelle replied and she joined in the hug.
” Yay! Group hug!”, Chanel yelled as she ran to join the hug.
” Urrh.. urrhm”, Jeremy cleared his throat, ” we don’t have all day”, he said as he stood there waiting. So we let go of each other and I began to walk towards the front door with Jeremy. Jeremy opened the door for me as I walked out.
” Alright kids, stay safe , okay?”, his Mom said as she stood in the doorway, ” And Janet baby, do take care of him, okay?”, she requested of me.
” He’s in safe hands”, I reassured her and I held both her hands patting then gently.
” Alright mom, we’ll be going now. I promise we’ll come back really soon”, Jeremy assured his mom who then let go of my hands. ” Alright kids, have a safe trip back”, she said as she waved. I waved back as Jeremy took my hand and began to leave with me being tugged along. ” Man they are fun”, I commented.
” I know right?”, he replied with a smile on his face as we walked towards the sunset.
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*** Kelly Medicals****
” Hmmm it’s a lot bigger than I remember”, I muttered as I got into the elevator. I got to the top floor, where I got off the elevator. The classical music that permeated the air, at such low volumes that would almost make you forget they are there, and the pleasant fragrance of air fresheners created a sort of relaxing ambience. I walked up to secretary’s table. She was on a call, so I had to wait especially since she had her back facing me.
” ….. Alright, maybe later this afternoon….(* muffled chattering from the phone*)… No problem. I’ll let him know… yeah…. Okay bye”, she said and spun around in her swivel chair to face her desk.
” Oh!”, she exclaimed, which made me take my eyes of my phone.
” Whoa!”, I reacted and then smiled, ” I didn’t know you worked here”, I said to her. She giggled.
” I guess I really shouldn’t be surprised to see you here”, she said, ” anyway, what brings you here today?”, she asked.
” Oh nothing much really. I just came to have a little chat with Tris”, I responded, ” besides, I’ve missed you. Hey, wanna meet up tonight?”, I asked.
” Well sure, why not? But I’m at work now so no flirting”, she said.
” It’s really hard not to, especially after what happened that night”, I said with a smirk. Her face turned red in embarrassment.
” Don’t say something like that in the office!”, she yelled in a whispery voice, as she looked left and right to check if anyone heard it.
” Okay okay fine. I won’t talk about it, at least not here, but when we meet tonight, it’s gonna get nas….”.
” Shut up!”, she yelled in a whispery voice as she covered my mouth with her palm, looking around. ” You know what? I’m gonna let you in now so you can stop bugging me”, she said and then picked up the landline and dialed Tristan’s office.
” Good evening sir”, she greeted as I kept staring at her.
” Yeah what is it?”, Tristan’s voice replied.
” There’s someone here who wants to see you”, she said.
” Who is it?”, he asked..
” He says his name is Jared Kelly”, she responded, ” should I let him in?”, she asked.
” Urrghh”, I heard him groan, ” Fine! let him in”, he said and then hung up.
” Alright, you heard him”, she said as she gestured with her eyes that I go in.
” Fine fine. I’m going already”, I said as I reluctantly went in.
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*** Tristan’s office***
” You finally came”, Tristan said as I walked in, ” I was beginning to think you were avoiding me”, he added as he reclined in his chair.
” Avoiding you? Pffft”, I scoffed with a smug smirk on my face, ” you flatter yourself kid”, I said as I walked over to his desk and took a seat, crossing my legs as I reclined.
” Would you like some coffee?”, he asked with a fake smile on his face, ” I can get my secretary to get you some if you like”, he offered.
” Nah, I’ll pass”, I replied as we glared at each other, with tension brewing in the air.
” You sure you don’t want some? My secretary is a genius at brewing the best coffee”, he bragged, as his hostile glare intensified.
” Nah, I’m pretty sure I’m fine. I wouldn’t want to be a bother”, I said to him, my eyes still locked on his.
” Alright, if you say so”, he said with a shrug. ” Anyway, how’s Janet? it’s been quite a while since I last saw her”, he said.
” Oh she’s fine. I’m sure she feels much better with you gone”, I said to him.
” Oh so you think she feels better around you? Pffft”, he scoffed, ” she’s probably already tired of watching your sorry ass do nothing but drink and spend money “, he said.
” Hmmm, maybe you’re right, who knows? but we sure do have a lot of fun together without you, the lying, scheming, lowlife brother, who’s still not the heir after all the scheming and manipulation”, I said as I shook my head in disappointment.
” Shut up!”, he yelled, stomping his hands on the table as he got up in agitation, ” You don’t know anything about this company. All you’ve ever done is travel around, drinking everything you can find! Meanwhile, I’ve been here, working my ass off, making sure this company grows into the largest medical institute in the country. What fucking right do you have to be the heir?!”, he yelled at me.
” Geez man chillax, it’s not my fault I was chosen to be the heir”, I said as I laughed at him tauntingly. His face turned red in anger as he glared at me threateningly.
” Okay okay, for real chill out”, I said as I tried to hold myself back from smiling, ” It’s my bad for only stating your flaws. I mean, I oughta give you credit for the good stuff you’ve done too. Uuu! uuu! like the present you sent to I and Janet that night. Sheesh, that was something. In fact it was so generous, I just had to return the favor. I’m sure you loved my gift”, I said to him.
” Fuck you Jared! Fuck you!”, he yelled at me.
” Geez man, and here I thought we were trying to reconcile with each other. I mean I saw your new gifts this morning right outside the hotel and judging from what I saw, it seems like you’re a bit more generous this time than before”, I said. ” Just keep in mind that this time, I won’t just send you a box, I’ll be a lot more generous to you”, I said as I got up from my seat, adjusting my jacket.
” Well I gotta run now”, I said, ” Janet will probably be wondering where I went, so toodles”, I said waving at him with my fingers, before I walked out of the office.