Clementine had become a wild child. Born in America but raised abroad, she now had little regard for the expectations of high society. But her reckless ways eventually catch up with her when she is kicked out of college in New York City and forced t...
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54
It had been 6 days until she heard from him again.
6 chunks composed of 24 hr chunks but for her it might as well have been eternity or at least 6 years.
In that time she had an appointment with the 'doctor' psychologist, to whom they still weren't on a first name basis and still asked around issued versus directly about them.
When she finally did hear from him, she was out to dinner with her parents.
Her phone buzzed when she was sitting at the table, and the waiter was explain gin to them the specials. It was one of those upperclass places, were mostly it was old people. Or the odd younger couple out on a date.
She wasn't though, she was with her parents, and while going through the different seafood selections, her phone buzzed and she waited until the waiter was gone. Not even thinking it was going to be Zico, she was taking a sip of her white wine and choked on it when - glancing ate the phone briefly - she saw his name pop up.
"Clementine, you okay?" Her mother asked her over the noise of the open table terrace.
Clementine coughed a little and excused herself to the bathroom.
Once inside, she took a deep breath and opened the phone.
We're back. You can come over tonight. We're taking it slower but going to a friend's house after for a little party.
Clementine's head was buzzing with questions.
She really needed time to process this.
Heading back to her parent's table, she was determined to act as normal as possible. Which was relatively easy, as her parents were discussing their business trip and the size of the new deal they just signed, having gotten back a few days ago, which allowed Clementine to day dream a little bit.
How gone was he? How much of a drug user was he? How much of a complete outsider was he? Was this right? It never felt more so? Why hasn't he contacted her at all and now this? Did he think about her at all during his trip, both physical and metaphysical? Were there others?
Ughh, all this uncertainty was making her feel sick. And even though only earlier that day the Doctor discusses with her that uncertainty was an illusion, she still felt strange about it all.
When the food arrived, and hers was put in front of her - raw salmon in poke style - she ate silently and her parents didn't even notice or say anything about her acting strange so, she thought, she was doing a good job.
Of course, she wanted to see him again, no matter how crazy it all seemed.
Of course, there was a hiccup or few.
At the need of their dinner, Salvatore - the new family bodyguard that doubled as a driver - drove them back home.
She had enough courage to text him back, saying
I'm having dinner right now, but I can meet you later, closer to 9
When everyone was heading back inside, Clementine rummaged her mind for the options that were at hand, and she remembered that after all this was Brazil. A country full of corruption for better or for worse, and it was time she started to navigate it herself.
Clementine hung back and came up to Salvatore.
"Hey," she said to him nonchalantly.
"What's up, miss?" He asked her, not fully expecting what was going to come next.
"I know you said I gotta tell you when I was going when I was going out, and I was wondering if you could drive me somewhere, tonight?"
He looked at her parents going inside the house, "you know I work for them, not you, so technically I have to take their orders. And their orders were that you were grounded for the most part."
Clementine saw her parents go in, opened her handbag and casually flashed a wad of cash.
"Would this," making sure he saw what she was offering, "change your mind?"
He looked at it seriously and then at her. For a moment, Clementine thought that she had him.
Then he started laughing, loud.
"Miss, put that away, before you put us both to shame. Your parents pay me more than enough, and I know trouble when I see it," he waved her off jus like that and she was intolerant of it.
She felt her cheeks flushing, embarrassed at what just happened.
She was starting to get desperate, and she hated herself for it. But she had to do it.
"Would this," she pulled something out of her bag, "change your mind?" She arched her eyebrows.
She remembered and she knew that it wasn't money that was the problem, but getting things.
So she pulled out a gold watch, that she got in New York.
Salvatore furrowed his eyebrows, his eyes darting between the watch and the door.
"Fine," he said, giving in, "but I'm doing this for your own good!" He took the watch from her hands and quickly pocketed it.
Clementine remembered hearing that most security and body guards and police men in corrupt countered were just criminals who got to the other side.
