╢Only The Strong Survive ╢Elvis Presley╢

♪ 7. Nearer and nearer ♪

May 26th, 1965.

Patti looked in the mirror and looked at the new version of herself. There was no trace of her favorite blond - now her hair was brown.

This is one of the steps that was to mark her cut off from her former life and give her a new start. She knew it would take a while to fully regain control of her life due to the situation she was in.

Anyway, she started with the simplest thing - changing your hair color is quite a nice change.

Patti took a deep breath and as she came out of the bathroom she found Welma in the hallway.

— Patti — Welma was surprised with the new look of the girl. — What a change.

— Just a different hair color — Patti smiled politely. — I needed that.

— You look nice — Welma returned the smile. — Do you want to drink iced coffee in the garden? I'm on a break now and I'd love to sit down for a while. 

— I'd love to — Patti was glad to hear the offer. Gladys was due to sleep another hour, so she had a moment to herself. She and Wema went to the kitchen, content as ever. 

She was supposed to go out with Jay to Bruce and Linda Lee today, and her joy grew at the thought. She hadn't been anywhere for a long time, and being in Jay's house all the time, while nice and safe, reminded her a little of the time she was imprisoned in Graceland.

Here I am a prisoner too, but in a different word. Here nobody wants to hurt me and help me. Maybe I am doomed to hide, but I can do whatever I want, I can feel relatively free. Nobody is watching my every step and I'm starting to appreciate the benefits of privacy again.

Going out somewhere will be a nice prospect. Jay was a lovely man, and such a casual step out would be good for both of them. Jay will have a break from the work he has been practically all the time, and Patti will finally leave his home.

She will also meet Bruce Lee, whom she saw in a film episode, and who sometimes taught martial arts actors on behalf of the studio. Jay mentioned that Bruce is serious about a career in Hollywood.

Hollywood ... Patti frowned - the average American dreams of entering this magical - it seems - circle of famous and rich people.

Jay said that yes, Hollywood offers great financial opportunities, but few people are honest and kind. According to him, Hollywood is a rot of debauchery, megalomania and the rat race. He himself only had a few real friends here, including Sharon and her partner, Roman Polanski.

Elvis belonged to Hollywood too, just not as he would like. He wanted to play an ambitious role, but unfortunately so far he kept repeating the same pattern - he played the role of a nice boy who sings and breaks the hearts of beautiful ladies.

In the movies, Elvis was a gentleman and a knight in shining armor, literally perfect. Too bad it wasn't so crystalline in real life.

Patti felt a pang of regret - Elvis was aware of his problem, but was doing nothing to change it. As if he were denying the fact that he had his own demons and just lived. Only instead of living a healthy life and some stability, he more often escaped into mania and a self-destructive loop.

If you really cared about us, me and Gladys, you'd ask for help, Elvis. I wouldn't come back to you, but we could stay friends and strive together for the best life for our daughter.

Perhaps thanks to therapy you would understand where you went wrong, and maybe your future partner would be the lucky one to witness your inner transformation into a better, less toxic person. Everyone deserves happiness, and yours is in your hands, but only when you act.