Fat Chance

Poor Mans Riches

It took me a good 5 minutes to get the courage to go up and knock on the door, but I finally did  it.

As soon as I knocked on the door, a tiny woman who looked to be in her mid 60's opened answered my knocks. She looked me up and down and smiled warmly. Without me having to say a word, she looked at me and said, "I bet you're here for Stella. Come on in." The woman stood aside to allow me to come in, and when I finally did, she shut the door lightly behind me. 

She smiled at me again. "It sure is a nice day outside isn't it? Probably one of the warmest January days this town has had in awhile. Can I get you anything to drink while I go get Stella for you?"

The woman pron was short and of a small build, but looked like she could hurt somebody if she needed too. She was dressed in dark skinny jeans, a black tank top, and a cream colored chevron print cardigan. Her hair was a light brown color with just a few strands of grey in it. Her eyes were a warm brown color and her smile was bright and genuine. 

"Um," I said looking around. We were standing in the entry way, giving me a perfect view of the living room, which looked to be very clean with new looking yet warm, old looking furniture in it. I could just imagine paintings and pictures on the wall and a bookcase with many old classics in it. 

I looked back at the woman. Looking and dressing so nice, making a trailer ( in SUNNYSIDE FOR FUCKS SAKE) look so homley, made me wonder why she and Stella were even living here anyway. It looked like she was well off enough to live in another house, with all the furniture and what not. But then again, looks could be deceiving. 

"No thank you", I replied. The woman looked at me again and smiled. "Alright, I'll go get Stella. Feel free to wait in the living room if you want. She waited for me to nod in agreement before turning down a long hallway and disappearing. 

I walked into the living room to get a better look at the decor and set up. It was even better then the little sneak peek from the entryway had led me to believe. 

There was a huge bay window that overlooked the backyard, complete with  beige colored drapes hanging to each side. The couch was huge, made of leather and looked super comfortable. There was a huge flat screen TV sitting on a table in the front center of the room, and at the very back of the room, there were bookshelves lining the whole center wall. The shelves appeared to be handmade and were a chestnut color. Pictures of smiling people lined the tops of them, huge colored landscapes and other paintings covered just the perfect amount of the wall.

The carpet and wall colors were neutral, making all the other colors stand out. The throw pillows on the couch were brown and cream colored, a fuzzy blanket laying on the couch, purple. An open MacBook sat atop a throw pillow, waiting for its owner to return 

I sat thinking for a moment. How the hell could someone who  could afford things like MacBooks and leather couches and huge flat screen TVs live in a trailer court, let alone SUNNYSIDE? I didn't know, but I had a feeling I would soon.

"Hey"

I jumped nearly ten feet and let out a sharp squeal. Turning around, I saw Stella standing there in the living room doorway.

I let out a sigh of relief. "Oh", I laughed. "You nearly gave me a fucking heart attack." 

Stella laughed and motioned for me to follow her.  "C'mon man, we have shit to do." 

I followed her down the same long hallway that the woman had disappeared down. We passed two rooms that I barely got to look at, the bathroom/laundry room and another bedroom, before reaching the end of the hallway. 

Stella stopped and turned towards the very last door. She leaned over and pushed the door open. "Welcome to my safe haven." 

I walked in and instantly took note of the clean-messiness. There were clothes and other objects somewhat strewn across the floor, but her Queen sized bed was nicely made. The walls were covered in pictures and posters and collages and awards. There was a bookshelf overflowing with books in the left corner of the room and right on top of that sat a set of speakers and picture frames filled with pictures of happy people. Her closet was neatly organized, a little dresser fitting perfectly inside. The carpeting was fuzzy and blue and the walls were a plum purple. 

I sat there in awe taking it all in. This was the kind of room that teenage girls SHOULD have. Something unique to match their personalities. Stella's room TOTALLY matched her personality. It was bright, colorful, loud but subtle, and clean and messy at the same time. My room, once again, said nothing about me except that I had a shitty sense of room decor. 

My awe apparently sat unnoticed, because Stella was talking a million miles a minute. 

"So, I just want to clear things up, since I'm pretty sure I know what you're thinking. 'Oh, Stella's pretending to poor, living in a trailer court while having all these nice things.' Well guess what? We wouldn't live here if we didn't have to. I'm pretty sure both me and Martini would rather live in a nice house downtown. But that's not how it's gonna be, and I'm not ready to tell you why." 

Stella stopped talking for a moment and looked over at me for the first time since entering her room. "So you can either be judgmental and stuck up about this or you can think about it's really no ones goddamn business why or how anyone lives their life."

I instantly shook my head. "You have me all wrong. Yes, I was wondering what wonderful people like you and your mom-"

"No", Stella interrupted.

"I'm sorry?"

"She's not my mother," she said "She's my aunt Martini. Cool name, I know. Anyways, you were saying?"

I so desperately wanted to ask why she lived with her aunt, but decided against asking anything personal until she brought it up. "I was just wondering what wonderful people like you and your aunt are doing in a dump like this. And yes, when I saw the nice furniture  and decor in the living room, I started wondering even more, but I never thought anything nasty about either of you for a second. Besides, like you said, I told myself it was none of my business, so I stopped thinking about it." 

We both just sat and stared in silence for a few moments. 

Finally, Stella broke the ice. "Let's just forget about superficial crap like money for a few hours and have fun. Want me to play some music?"

I nodded.

'Rihanna's 'S&M' started playing from the speakers, and I instantly relaxed and focused on having a good time with a good friend.