Balance

4:Layla

Layla

    It was official, I was my mother's biggest disappointment. When Aidan finally dropped me off at the club twenty minutes late for dinner with the Chester's my mother was shooting daggers at me from across the table with a promise of punishment, that made me shiver. I silently folded myself into my designated seat and waited for the salad to be served while my father sat to my left at the head of the table and spoke to Mr. Chester about business and my mother chatted with Mrs. Chester about the upcoming Fall Ball. The Fall Ball that I would inevitably be forced to attend once again and for the third year in a row I would be forced to go with the Chester's' slightly nerdy yet sweet son Miles, Miles who was surprisingly missing from this weekly dinner. With Miles absent I had all the time in the world to just think and unsurprisingly my thoughts turned to Aidan.

    "Melissa where is Miles this evening?" My mother asked, daintily sipping from her wine glass. I looked at Mrs. Chester who was glowing with pride at the mention of her son.

    "He's in Seattle on a weekend trip at some tech company his uncle owns. They've been looking at him for an internship this summer and he's so excited." Mother hummed in acknowledgment and then turned the conversation to the Fall Ball and some problem she had with the caters. I politely tuned her out and instead read over the menu and tried to see how many words I could make from the word 'salmon'. I was so lost in my little game that I didn't notice an additional person arrive at the table.

   "Please excuse my tardiness." My head snapped up and there was Aidan. Aidan was at my table at the country club, dressed in casual khaki dress pants and a crisp baby blue button up with the top buttons left open and his red hair brushed back away from his face.

    "Oh, Aidan you made it!" Mrs. Chester exclaimed, while pressing a kiss to Aidan's cheek. I, on the other hand was in complete shock. "Oh, Lydia, Ronald this is my dear nephew Aidan. He'll be staying with Adam and I this year, and I do believe he'll be going to school with you Layla." Mrs. Chester was looking at me at this point, I composed myself and smiled at her.

    "Yes, ma'am. We have English together."

    "And Advanced Biology." Aidan added with a small grin in my direction.

    "I didn't notice you in there." I countered recalling my class from earlier. Aidan was ushered into what was usually Miles' seat, which just so happened to be right next to me. Aidan slipped into his chair, with surprising grace for someone his size. I could feel heat radiating from his body, I could also feel my mother watching me and how I interacted with Aidan. Male attention and interactions were almost completely dictated and directed by her.

    "I had to rearrange some things in my schedule so I missed my first two classes." He responded looking down at me, still towering over me even while seated.

    "So, Aidan was it?" My mother asked, casually swirling her glass while looking Aidan up and down. It was no secret that my mother liked younger men, and when I say younger I mean barely legal and it seemed like Aidan was right up her alley. Big, broad, and not black, it also wasn't a secret that my mother held some type of distain for our race, it was an even bigger shock that she married my father, who while light skinned was still black. It was something that I could never understand no matter how much my mother criticized me for being 'so dark' or tried to drill it into me that I wasn't as pretty because I was darker, it was one of the things I had managed to fight her on and ignore.

    "Yes ma'am." Aidan responded with a tight smile in my mothers direction.

    "What made you decide to move to Ridge Rock in your senior year?" she pried with an almost predatory grin, it made me uncomfortable because I had witnessed my mother do this dance many a time. She wanted Aidan. She wanted him the same way she wanted our old chef, my chemistry tutor, and even my old dance instructor. I found myself brisling with a tiny amount of jealousy, mostly because I knew my mother was beautiful and no one had ever refused her advances.

    "Well mostly because my parents were moving to Sweden and I decided to stay state side and Aunt Melissa and Uncle Adam were kind enough to let me move in with them. Also Pemberton Academy is a great school." My mother nodded and grinned all the while sizing Aidan up in that strangely seductive way of hers. Aidan much to my surprise didn't look interested though.

    "Well, I hope you enjoy Ridge Rock and all it has to offer. I'll arrange for you to have the grand tour if you'd like." She said, seeming a bit put out by the fact that Aidan wasn't falling at her feet.

    "Actually, Lydia, I meant to ask you if it would be alright if Layla showed Aidan around, I want him to get to know people his age." Mrs. Chester suggested looking equal parts nervous and determined. My mother looked irritated but agreed.

    "Looks like we'll be spending much more time together Dollface." Aidan whispered to me when no one was looking. I looked up at him and caught the sly grin on his face that made my heart flutter a bit.

Oh Boy.

//

    The ride home was for a lack of a better word tense. I was seated in the back seat of our Range Rover, nervously twisting my hands waiting for my mother to say something about my tardiness, or my interactions with Aidan. However, she did neither, we simply rode home in silence and I was able to quietly slip upstairs for a shower.

    I allowed the water to nearly burn my skin as I scrubbed my skin with my favorite mango scented body wash, I was in the middle of washing my hair when the water turned ice cold and I opened my eyes and was met with the sinister brown eyes of my mother.

    "Don't think I didn't notice you being a little whore with that boy." She whispered as she held me against the wall and turned the water scalding hot causing me to cry out in pain. "I know you want to fuck him, you little slut. That's probably why you were late, too busy whoring yourself to any dick available huh?" The water went ice cold again, the constant change in temperature had my body in shock. Mother gripped my hair and whispered in my ear.

    "You will not be alone with that boy any more than necessary, and all activities regarding him will be checked through me. Understood?" I nodded as much as I possibly could will trying not to burn my face under the water.

    "And under no circumstances will you fuck him. You leave that to me." With that she let go of my head and gave me a small shove and exited. I turned off the water and stumbled into a pair of sweats and a T-shirt. My body was aching and I was fighting back tears, I knew things would only get worse if my mother passed by and heard me crying. I snuggled into my covers ignoring my homework only comforted by the fact that tomorrow despite my mothers wishes I would be able to see and talk to Aidan.