the 1 | chaennie

2. Melbourne

"I was born on December the thirteenth," Rosie said, a glazed look in her eyes as she spoke, staring at the grey sky outside, thinking about how best to explain the beginning of her life. There were very few people who knew the truth about her birth, and the circumstances surrounding the early years of her life, and it was most definitely not public knowledge, which left her feeling a little uneasy as she spoke about it.

"In nineteen eighty-nine, right? Your album ..."

A quick smile flitted across Rosie's face as she focused on Nayeon for a moment, "yeah, exactly."

Softly sighing, she closed her eyes for a moment, before drawing in a deep breath and opening them again to face the view outside her windows. It had been a long time since she'd spoken about her childhood, although much of it was documented in her earlier albums, before she'd been dealt harsh life lessons and learnt a little bit about love. She'd changed a lot since then, and in a way, it was because of the childhood that she'd had that had led her through the series of events leading to the big changes in her life. If it hadn't been for the way her childhood had played out, she would never have become famous. Sure, she would've written - songs, poems, stories - but she wasn't so sure she would've become famous. That alone stood on the shoulders of the fact that she'd been raised by the Park's.

She hadn't been born into the family, although she was her father's daughter. For the first four years of her life, she'd spent it with her mother - the one that had given birth to her. Mason and Clare had known about her existence, of course, and paid off her mother to keep her quiet when she'd shown up with a baby, but four years later, she'd died. They'd been visiting relatives in Gold Coast when her mother had drowned, and her father had come for her, taking her back to Melbourne with him. Clare had accepted the arrangement, and that had been it. As far as everyone they knew was concerned, the Park's had adopted her, and no one knew of her father's affair with another woman. To the rest of the world, she had been born to both of her parents, a decision that had been made at the start of her career to protect her image.

It was a well-kept secret, one that had never been questioned. Out of both parents, most people would agree that she took after Clare. It had become such a hushed-up fact, that it had never been spoken about outside of their family, and Rosie felt almost guilty as she revealed the fact to Nayeon, as if she was snubbing Clare as her real mother. Aside from a few snatches of memories, she couldn't remember the woman who had given birth to her at all. All she had were vague recollections of water splashing as she watched her drown, the smell of her perfume, and a fuzzy image of a woman giving her a teddy bear.

For all intents and purposes, Clare had been her mother, and it had never made a difference to Rosie. Growing up, she'd wanted to be just like Clare. Over the years, her mother had been her greatest comfort, although there were times when they disagreed on things, argued and fell out. But her mum was her mum, and she always had Rosie's best interests at heart. Even before all the fame, the invasion of privacy, the rumours spreading lies about her, smearing her name and painting her as the villain. Clare had always been there, kissing her bruises better when she was younger, holding her close when she came home from boarding school, crying her eyes out because of her friends who were mean to her, encouraging her when she'd play the guitar for so long that her fingertips were bloody and calloused from practising. Clare was an ever-present supportive figure in the shadows of Rosie's story, and her heart was full of love for her. The unwavering love her mum had for her had been one of the only things that had gotten Rosie through some of the worst parts of her life. Clare had always been there to pick her up and set her back on the right path with a stern word and an encouraging push.

She turned to glance over at her mother, taking in the impassive expression on Clare's face as she watched on, listening to Rosie talk. Blinking slightly as she realised her daughter was looking at her, Clare's lips curled up into a slight smile, and she nodded encouragingly. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Rosie turned back to Nayeon, a tentative look on her face as she ran her palms over the thighs of her jeans. It was more nerve-wracking to talk about her personal life than she'd originally thought, and she was beginning to wonder if perhaps she'd made a big mistake, thinking that she could come clean about everything. It was too late now though, in Rosie's mind. There was no point cancelling the interview when it had already begun, so she steeled herself for the next question.