A New Beginning

Chapter 3

Sarah and I went to a small café around the corner of the gym. We both were famished after a tough workout.

After placing our orders I asked Sarah if she often came to the gym.

"No , " she said. "It is my first time in London. "

" Oh. Where are you originally from?" I asked sipping my water.

"Oxford. My friend , Gareth, was transferred to this gym for a month. I just came to visit him a bit. There is no way I could afford a gym membership here so he snuck me a pass. "

"What do you do? Still studying or working already?"

"I am a exotic dancer at Luxure in Oxford. "

"You are a stripper?!" I laughed. "No way."

"Yes way." She smirked. "Although I prefer the name exotic dancer."

"So , " she said. " Are you going to tell me why you are so depressed?"

"Is it that obvious?" I asked, my shoulders sagging lower.

She nodded her head vigorously.

"My parents died in a car accident. And they turned out to be just two people I thought I knew but obviously did not. I guess they were probably just very good at hiding things from me. I mean , was I not their daughter," I lowered my head to hide my tearful eyes.

"I am very sorry to hear that." She squeezed my hand. "Maybe you need some cheering up. What about we get a massive piece of chocolate cake instead of the yucky cardboard tasting salads?"

I laughed out loud. "Maybe , yeah."

For the first time in a long while I felt like I had a friend. A real friend. Not someone who claims to be my friend. Someone who I could share my problems with ,who actually listened and cared.

After lunch we went to do some shopping. Sarah said that you don't get to be depressed everyday.

Just as I was about to go in my favourite boutique Sarah pulled me back on my arm.

"Ther is no way I'm going in there. I can sometimes barely afford my rent. No, " she insisted. "We will go to normal priced shops where you can buy at least ten clothing pieces for the price of one in this boutique."

We laughed all the way through shopping. Afterwards we went to my apartment and ordered some pizza. We rented The Notebook on box office and drank my only bottle of cheap wine.

It was a really nice girls evening , which I didn't have in a very long time. I suddenly felt as if I could face the world again.

It was almost midnight when she said she needed to get back to her friends flat or else he would be worried.

After she left I pulled the throw from my couch and fell asleep.

Tuesday came and went by in a haze. On Wednesday morning I reluctantly got dressed for the meeting with the attorneys. Reading the will will only finalise my parents' death and leaves me with all my questions I wanted to ask them.

I stepped into the air conditioned building. It was very spacious and minimalistic. The walls were white and the reception desk was made out of mahogany wood which is polished to prestine. I could almost see my reflection in the shiny white tiles on the floor. There were a few leather couches on the opposite wall where people could wait.
Everything just screamed money.

After giving my name to the receptionist she smiled fakely at me and pushed in a number. When she sensed that I was standing there like a idiot , not knowing what to do , motioned for me to take a seat on one of the couches.

The elevator dinged and there stepped a very handsome looking man off. His hair was shortly cut and ashblonde. He wore a gray suit which was loosely fit on him. Too loose to my liking.

He looked around the waiting area until he saw me.

"Good morning, you must be miss Sophia White , right?" he shook my hand firmly.

I nodded.

"I am Peter Wellington ,pleased to meet you. Now if you'll follow me please ." he said.

The heels of my black suede pumps clicked loudly as I followed him. We stopped at what looked like a conference room where two other impatient looking people sat.

Peter gestured for me to go inside where both a man and lady stood and motioned me to my seat at the head of the table.

It felt as if I was in back at school and in the principal's office.

The two strangers introduced themselves but I was too nervous to hear. By the look of things , it wasn't about to be good.

I gulped loudly and forced myself to listen to what was to say.

" To start of with ,your parents left you with a few problems . Before your parents died they entered a deal which cost a lot of money. The company they owned were already in trouble because of a lack of sales and the economy that weren't well this year. They thought that this specific deal would maybe be the breakthrough they needed. Alas." She looked at me pitifully. I guess the shocking news is about to come.

"Your parents' company is closed down and you are left with very much debt."

She gave me a typed paper. The moment I looked at the amount of money to be paid , my eyes were probably as big as saucers.

When I spoke up my voice were wavering.

"W-where would I get this kind of money?"

"Lucky for you your parents like materialistic things like art , cars and had a few houses and apartments all over the world, which if it was sold , it would cover all most all the costs . But , that includes your apartment." The guy on my right said.

I couldn't bring myself to say anything.

"It also means that you cannot continue your studies anymore." The woman spoke.

"What will I have left?"

The guy looked at me as if he was stuggling to find words. "Other than you clothing -"

"I have nothing," I finished for him.

"No, not entirely nothing , " she said. "Your grandparents left you a small trust fund which will allow you to go through the next few months while looking for a job."

"When will I need to be vacated from my apartment?" I asked shakily.

"By the end of the week."

"Wait , where will I find a place to sleep in such short notice?"

" We are very sorry miss White."

My life is over. Literally over.