𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗔𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗔𝗦 𝗪𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗥 ⚔︎

4

the sound of edward's silver ferrari pulling into the driveway awakened jesse lavigne from his deep slumber. seconds later, footsteps came, followed by loud and rowdy voices on the outside porch.

he rolled over and tugged his pillow over his head, the same regime he had done for several years now: even though his bedroom was on the other side of the house, he could hear everything. he was used to his father storming in with his friends or companions at all hours of the day.

a minute barely passed and a knock sounded on the bedroom door.

jesse groaned. "who is it?"

the door opened and he lifted his head to see who was disturbing him. "it's me, kid." sal walked into the room and stopped at the end of his bed. he tugged the blanket. "c'mon. your father'll kill you if he sees you in bed at this time."

jesse groaned again. he looked at his alarm clock — 11am. "oh, god..."

"hungover?"

"somethin' like that..."

sal stifled a chuckle. "there's someone he wants you and your sister to meet."

he left the room and jesse sat up, yawning. sunlight shone onto the bed from outside and lit up the whole room. he was shirtless, clothed only in black cotton shorts. he stretched his arms in front of him and got out of bed, putting on a tight-fitting white vest before heading downstairs to greet his father.

once he was downstairs, he walked past the arched windows that looked onto the outdoor pool and the colourful garden beyond. he saw his older sister chantelle sitting by said pool on a white lounge chair, reading a fashion magazine. she wore a cropped lime green t-shirt and denim jeans. jesse knocked on the window and she turned around, putting her sunglasses on top of her head. her hazel eyes sparkled curiously at her brother, and she motioned for him to come outside.

"what's the matter?" chantelle said, looking at him as he sat on the long lounge chair beside her.

"dad apparently wants us to meet somebody," jesse replied, "again."

in a wealthy, upper class neighbourhood on the east side of queens named 'kings point,' the lavignes lived at number 9 on gatsby lane, in a grand georgian house situated on two acres of land. built in 1824, it had a kitchen, a four car garage, two living rooms, a conservatory, a dining room, an office, a wine cellar, a gym, an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, six bedrooms, and four bathrooms. a woman called cecelia tended to tasks such as washing and pressing edward's suits, taking care of the flowers in the garden, cleaning the pool, cleaning the house, and vacuuming the rooms. they had two guard dogs; beaucerons, named charles and dion, and a white turkish angora cat, gigi. edward and his wife marissa had bought the house in 1962 for just under a million dollars. since then their children, chantelle and jesse, had spent their entire lives in it.

born march 22nd, 1965, chantelle lavigne was edward's eldest and only daughter. chantelle was a smart and fashionable young woman — she had the most beautiful, voluminous wavy brown hair you had ever laid your eyes on, always styled perfectly, and she was never seen without a manicure. she often turned heads when she walked down the street. chantelle liked to keep up with the latest fashion trends, but often put a spin on them and made them into something that was entirely her own. she was currently working hard to achieve her masters degree in psychology at columbia in the city, which she poured her heart and soul into every time she attended her classes. she had interests in a lot of things, and was very ambitious when it came to her career; ever since she was a little girl, she had wanted to help people. her father didn't understand her such passion for education, as he had all the money and connections in the world to ensure she married a rich man and would never have to work a day in her life — but, that was not the life that chantelle wanted. she wanted to be her own person, not a housewife cooped up in a mansion like some crazy chicken. regardless, her father was proud of her, and he allowed her to pursue her dreams. she was much like her mother in that way.