I woke up to cold silk against my skin, a feeling foreign to me. I stayed in the bed for a while, unable to move, unable to get up as I wake up to reality. I'm never going to be with Simon again.
I would have stayed there all day if it weren't for a kind looking women in her 30's. She walked through the door in a maids outfit, holding a note in her hand. A girl around the age of 16 walked in behind her, her brunette curls bouncing as a light pink dress complimented her complexion.
"Excuse me Miss Grace but your father sent me to give this to you." The older women spoke, her voice wielding kindness as the younger girl strides over to my closest and looked through the many outfits.
The older women left silently as I couldn't muster the words to thank her. The brunette then turned around to me, the perkiness she had when she walked in leaving her statue. "I'm Alyssa...and you are....?" She trailed off, looking at my bed-shed figure.
"Luciana Grace...but call me Lucy" I spoke quickly. Alyssa nodded her head, turning back around before taking out an outfit I couldn't see. While I waited, I picked up the note my father had sent me.
When I read it, it said to look impeccable because I'd be meeting the staff today. Alyssa laid out a black and white fancy dress. "Do you work here?" I asked before she could disappeared through the door.
"No, my mum does but your father promised me I could live here, like a normal child."
"Then why are you helping me and not doing something rich, this place looks like a bloody fancy mansion" She smirked at my British curse, she obviously wasn't from around here.
"Because I'm not a rich kid, I'm simply just someone who's trying to help out. So from now on, I'll be your personal stylist and guider." I nodded, trying to take everything in. Alyssa seemed genuine but I missed the Brown's, I missed there mischievous personalities and their childish fairy-tale minds.
I got dressed quickly into the loosely fitted dress but it still looked somewhat normal. While Alyssa was doing my hair, I ripped the note from my father up as much as I could. I then got dragged around the huge mansion, meeting the staff and the servants. Alyssa was being really helpful to me but I didn't dare tell her about where I came from. When I had met everyone and it was late afternoon, she was brushing her hair while I wrote down things into the notebook.
"What's with that look?" She spoke up after a long moments of silence. I learnt she was a very straight forward girl, and she was honest even when it hurt.
"What look?" I ask, looking up and frowning at her. She just puts the the brush down on the table calmly and walks over next to me. "That look in your eye, I've seen it enough times to know your heartbroken. You can tell me about anything." I look at her, unsure.
"Is it a guy?" I pull a face, like a disgusted one without realising. "Is it a girl?" She gasps clapping her hands together happily.
"What? No! It's my best friend. " I mutter quietly, looking up into the mirror reflection of me. How did Alyssa manage to make me look so beautiful when I truly felt the opposite.
"Before John took me back in, I use to live with this other family. The eldest sibling was named Simon Brown and...I became best friends with him but recently had a liking towards him. I didn't mean too but...never mind, it's really just nothing."
"Doesn't seem like nothing. Love, you need to tell your father." She says, her eyes looking down at me sympathetically.
"I can't! Not yet anyway, I need to just talk to him...'' I trailed off slightly, weighing my options. I should start to warm up to my father first, I haven't seen him in more than 7 years.
After dinner, I walked towards his office through the many hallways and knocked on it firmly. "Come in." I heard him mutter from inside. When I opened the door I saw him leaning against his chair with many weapons and badges around the room.
"Father...I need to talk to you.." I whispered as I sat in the chair opposite him. "Luciana, I'd be honoured to listen." And with that weird comment, I continued.
"You said that a contract had been signed when I went to live with the Brown's...what did it say?" My voice was no more than a fragile whisper, and if anyone was paying attention they'd know I'm heartbroken by talking to me. But my father didn't pay attention to me.
"Your mother had been friends with The Brown's mother for a long time and when she knew she was dying, she asked them to take care of you if anything happened to me. Of course when I went to the army, they took you in but the government gave them limitations. They had to take care of you and make sure you didn't die otherwise they'd loose there money."
"But why would you agree to that?" I cut him off "Why would you allow them to loose their house if something happened to me, when mother was friends with them?"
"Because I was trying to protect you. That's all I've been trying to do since you were born." I knew that wasn't true, but I couldn't dare to talk to him anymore. I stood up quickly, nodding before turning on my heel and walking out.
