i sleep so i can see you

the change

Pieck's tired eyes looked at me with their usual disappointment.

Her leather-gloved arms were folded as she shook her head, her lips pursed. Everything about her screamed pissed off. One would've thought she'd be used to it by now.

"Are you kidding me Val?" She announced when we got into her car. "That's the third time this month I've had to bail you out. The third fucking time. Drunk assault AND battery? You've got to be kidding me." Her big black sunglasses now shielded her eyes, making it difficult to read her face. I had been in this position more times than I'd like to admit.

I sunk further into the front car seat and blew a strand of hair out of my face. "Did you tell my dad?" I turned to her.

Pieck sighed. "No. Magath knows though. Gabi ratted you out."

I rolled my eyes. Now I had to deal with this once I got home.

"Who'd you beat up?" Pieck spoke up after a brief moment of silence. I stared out the window, watching house after house roll past contrasting against the orange sunset.

"Someone from Eldian Emprises. Can't remember his name - Fred? Flynn? Oh! Floch, that's who." I told her. "Got into an argument at the club. Insults were thrown, and so were punches. Guess it just escalated." I told her, keeping my gaze focused out the window.

"Got you pretty bad." She smirked, glancing over at me. I knew he had, but when I pulled down the sun shade too look in the mirror, the bruises on my face had begun to turn a dark purple, and the butterfly bandages on my cheek and chin weren't helping.

"Yeah." I smirked back, "He looked worse though."

"That's my Val." Pieck shoved my shoulder slightly. "Your mother was worried." She added.

My mother worried often, worried my siblings would follow in my footsteps, worried this would impact the company's reputation, worried I would do something that I couldn't get bailed out of. But I'd be dammed if I could recall the last time she asked me if I was okay, the last time she was worried about me. There were instances where I'd be missing for days at a time, but she never called, never sent someone to bring me home unless I needed to be dragged out.

"Okay." I replied.

Pieck knew all too well how I felt about my mother, so she let it go. She had tried many times to change my attitude subtly, but, it didn't work. I was stubborn and I knew it, she knew it, everyone did.

"Just...control yourself when we get home, okay?" She spoke. Last time I think the whole house could hear the screaming between me, my mother, and my father.

"I will."

The Tybur mansion had been in the family for generations, right from my great, great grandparents who established the Marleyean Syndicate, and managed to buy this beautiful house and renovate it, and it had been in the family ever since. My family, the Tyburs, and some of our closest colleagues and relatives all lived here, there was the room for it.

It was something I was set to inherit some day, but tensions with our rivals, Eldia Enterprises, were at an all time high, and to be honest, I don't think I'm fit in the slightest to run a business. The syndicate was currently run by William Tybur, known as Willy to those closest to him, and known to me as dad.

"Valerie!" I heard a voice call from above the grand staircase at the entrance. I sighed and turned around slowly.

"Hi mom."

"We need to have a talk...now."

I turned to Pieck who shrugged. "Hi Mrs Tybur."

"Thanks again Pieck. I'll see you tomorrow." My mother spoke to Pieck. Pieck was basically my big sister, even though she wasn't but a few months older than me. Her father worked for mine, and Pieck was also in training to work for the company. Pieck's father and my father had essentially grown up together, and her and her father lived in the mansion with us. I think my parents wished Pieck was their daughter instead of me most of the time, she was well behaved, charming, business savvy, classy, she knew what to do and what to say to make people like her. No, I know they want me to be more like Pieck, because they compare me to her all the damn time.