Young And Beautiful

Chapter 4

The first rays of sunlight shined through the curtains, gently warming my face. I fluttered my eyes open and sat up. Matthew was still fast asleep beside me. I yawned, everything that happened the previous night sinking back into my head. It all seemed like a dream, but it wasn't.

I rolled out of the queen sized bed and went downstairs to the living room where Nana was still asleep on the couch. She looked so peaceful. A little too peaceful.

"Good morning."

Startled, I spun around to the kitchen. Grace smiled at me, a cup of coffee in her hand. She looked much calmer and friendlier than the previous night.

"Good morning ma'am, " I mumbled back.

"Grace. It's Grace, sweetie. Come. I made breakfast."

I followed her into the kitchen and sat down at the table. There was bacon, eggs, spinach, mushrooms and sourdough bread laid out. There was a jug of apple juice as well.

"Help yourself," Grace said as she sat down across me.

She ran a hand through her unruly but somehow, still perfect hair. Grace was easily the most beautiful woman I had ever seen with captivating hazel eyes, plump pink lips and an enchanting smile.

"Where's your son?" she asked suddenly.

"He's still asleep. And thank you again for letting me and Matt sray. You don't know how much this means to us..." I trailed off, my voice cracking.

I couldn't even imagine what would've happened to us if Grace had not taken us in.

"Eat your food," Grace smiled sympathetically.

I nodded, taking a plate and dishing for myself the small portions I was accustomed to.

"How old are you?"

I looked up at Grace. "Nineteen. I turned nineteen yesterday. "

She nodded, taking a sip of her juice. "And you already have a kid that grown?"

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Grace noticed my uneasiness and sucked her teeth.

"I'm not prying. I'm getting to know the stranger in my house," she justified.

I found it fascinating how she could be both gentle and fierce seconds apart.

"I umm...I was...sexually assaulted when I was fifteen. I got pregnant and now I have Matt."

Regardless of the clear regret of asking in her eyes, she just nodded.

"Well, on the bright side, you have someone who will always love you and give you purpose. "

"I love him more than anything. He's the reason I wake up in every morning..." I smiled.

"Well, here it's just me and my Nana. It's been this way for a very long time. " There was a note of sadness in her voice. "I work at a publishing company. It's a very hectic job so I need someone to watch my Nana whenever I'm out."

"I can do that," I suggested immediately and eagerly. "Please. I don't even need payment. Just a place for my son and I to stay. "

I couldn't keep the desperation out of my voice because that's what I was. A desperate dumb bitch.

Grace smiled, resting her chin in the palm of her delicate hand. "I'm not that evil. Here's the offer; you stay with Nana and I, you do your job as a caretaker and you can stay with your son here, free of charge.  I will pay you $250 a week. You don't need to pay for food, water or electricity. All you do is take Nana on walks, make sure she eats and sleeps. Deal?"

She held out her hand and the bangles in her wrists jingled. I outstretched my arm across the table and shook hers. We smiled at each other for a moment before turning back to pur food.

Grace was my first real friend ever and in my eyes,  she was perfect. From the way she accidentally snorted when laughing, to her confidence and sassiness, to the way she went out of her way to make sure Matt and I were comfortable; it was all perfect.  By the end of the first month of us living together, I was completely in love with her as a person. Not romantically, but I loved spending time with, and I hated when fucking Todd threatened to take her away from me.

I remember how excited I was for her to come back home. For the past four weeks I'd been living with her, she always came home on Friday evening, and we'd watch something on her TV, together, just the two of us. As the doorbell rang, I ran to answer the door. As I swung the door open, my smile fell when I saw a tall handsome man with Grace, his arm around her waist. Grace was still giggling at something he had said.

"Ciao caro!" She grinned at me.

She took the man's hand and they both walked past me. I shut the door and turned to them.

"Rosie, this is Todd. Todd, this is Rosie," she introduced us. "She's my Nana's caregiver."

The man, supposedly Todd, smiled down at me. My stomach turned in disgust.

"Nice to meet you Rosie, " he said politely in a deep voice.

I just smiled. The violent thoughts that swirled in my head as I looked at him scared me.

"Is Matt still up?" Grace asked, kicking her heels off.

I had given both Matt and Nana their dinner early and sent them to bed so that we'd be alone. Of course I just shook my head in reply.

Grace pouted. "Aww. He would've loved this little surprise I brought him today."

She took out an action figure from her purse and placed it on the table. 

"Well it's Todd who picked it out but whatever, " she smiled.

I took the action figure. "Thank you. I'll make sure he gets it first thing in the morning."

I squeezed the action figure hard. My emotions and feelings confused me, but I just suppressed it and moved on.

Months went by. I spent my days with Nana because Matthew started going to school. I would wait for him to come home, and hurry to sleep before Grace and Todd came home. Yes, fucking Todd.  He moved in after only a month of them being together, and I hated him with every fibre of my being. Grace spent every spare second with him, and so we barely saw each other, maybe on some extra late nights if i had to wake up and check on Nana.

"I never see you anymore. You sleep really early," Grace said to me on one of these late nights. "Like sometimes Todd and I  try to come homes earlier but you're always fast asleep. "

I just smiled. "Yeah well, after a whole day of sitting around and doing nothing, you still get tired. "

"Ah," she smiled back. "Well, maybe I'll get an off in the next couple of weeks and we can all go out? "

By "we" she meant Todd too of course. I smiled though with gritted teeth.

"Of course. Goodnight."

As I went back to my room I bumped into Todd in the stairway. I didn't like Todd, but I had to admit. The man was good-looking with dirty blonde hair and fair eyes.  He was well built too, with broad shoulders and a lean torso. He wasn't wearing a shirt, something I had never been exposed to. I had never had any sort of casual relationship with a man so living with Todd was definitely a new experience. 

"Oh, Rose-Marie. Hey," he smiled as he walked past me.

"Hello, Todd," I mumbled back.

"You know Rose-Marie,  I really can't shake off the feeling that you really hate me for some reason," he said, suddenly stopping and turning to face me.

I stayed quiet for a momemt, not knowing quite what to say.

"I know you're very protective of Grace, but I'd never hurt her. I want to be with her forever. She makes me happy, unlike the way anyone ever has."

And there it was. That twisting and disgust. I didn't hate Todd.  No, I just hated the fact that any moment, he could take Grace away from me. She was the reason my life changed forever, and I never wanted to lose her, however if her and Todd worked out, she'd soon leave me.