Carmen - H.S

Chapter 10

Carmen watched as the elderly man shuffled out of the sleek black car to greet her. Blue veins stood out on his pale, translucent skin, and his snow white hair was ruffled slightly by the breeze. He coughed vehemently for a few seconds before stepping around the vehicle and opening it for her. She smiled gratefully and climbed in, crossing her ankles delicately.

"Thank you, Hugo," she said sweetly.

"Not a problem, miss," he replied in that indistinct accent of his. He made his way over to the drivers side and clambered in slowly. The creaking of his aching bones was almost audible. Carmen watched him worriedly.

"You ever think about retiring?" she asked casually.

He laughed richly and scratched the back of his head. "Of course not, miss. I'll work here until the day I die."

Carmen feared that day was coming very soon. Hugo was the ancient man who drove her wherever she needed to go. Her own personal chauffeur. He'd been a driver to the stars for forty years, and apparently didn't plan on stopping anytime soon. He was becoming more old and sickly by the day though, and no one had the heart to fire him.

Carmen was certainly fond of him. He always had a kind word to share and seemed to understand her brazen attitude better than anyone else. After all, he'd been surrounded by celebrities for most of his life. Carmen's behavior was nothing new to him. He also reminded her of her own grandfather, who had passed away shortly before she'd moved to New York. He was one of the few people she couldn't stand being rude to.

"How was your day?" he wheezed. His thin hands gripped the steering wheel as firmly as possible. They set out on the road, and she listened to the sound of the wheels gliding across the pavement.

"It was fine, I guess," she sighed. "But Ron was being an asshat again."

He blinked slowly. "How so?"

"He won't stop bitching about Daniel. He says our relationship is unhealthy," she scoffed, putting air quotes around the last word.

"Is it?" Hugo had met Daniel several times and didn't think that remark was very far off.

"No!" she exclaimed indignantly. Then she paused and looked thoughtful. "Well, at least not for me."

"Maybe you could explain it to me," he suggested. He leaned forward and turned on the radio, adding soft background music to their conversation.

"The thing is," she began hesitantly. "We're not in an actual relationship. We just... have fun. And there's no commitments."

"That doesn't sound very healthy."

"But it works for us. It's not like we're in love or anything."

He kept silent and waited for her to continue.

"You know, Hugo, sometimes, I don't think I'm capable of love." She looked at him almost nervously, but he simply nodded in encouragement.

"I don't want to be in a relationship with just one person. That's so... restricting. I wanna be free and do whatever I want."

She bit her lip and gazed out the window at the rapidly passing scenery. It became an indistinguishable blur in her eyes, but she couldn't look away.

"I can't imagine myself being in love. The thought kinda disgusts me actually."

Hugo kept his eyes on the road but listened attentively. He could understand what she was feeling. He had felt the same many, many years ago.

"Is that normal?" Her voice was tiny and soft, like a small child's quivering with the fear of getting in trouble.

"Of course, dear," he soothed. "You're still young. No need for serious relationships now."

She smiled wanly and shifted her gaze to her hands, which were folded in her lap. They seemed so small, swallowed up in the vast expanse of her violet dress. She felt like a tiny speck, sitting here in this huge car in a massive city in an enormous world. For the first time in a while, it was as if she was insignificant. This was something she was utterly unused to, so she tried to fill her swirling head with the music instead.

It was an old song by The Beatles. Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, she recalled. Her mind flashed to days in her crowded kitchen listening to this song and dancing around pots and pans while her father crooned the lyrics. She remembered her delight when he'd told her what the song truly meant. And she remembered that it'd been too long since she'd heard it.

She missed her family back home. Of course, she'd always hated Bloomville, Ohio, but her parents had made it bearable. Now, they were hundreds of miles away, only able to love her from afar. They visited when they could, but it wasn't enough for Carmen. She wanted them to live here with her, for them to be by her side. But she knew her simple, small town parents wouldn't last very long here.

And on the other hand, her parents would only get in the way of the lifestyle she'd worked so hard to maintain. They both despised smokers, had never touched a drink in their lives , and only attend boring office parties. Having them here would be like Lucy times ten.

The only family she really had nearby was Lucy, but they never seemed to be on the best of terms. Carmen knew that it was her fault that their relationship was so terse. For some reason, she could never just listen to her stern sister. They were opposites in every way, and it had begun to show long ago.

The car quietly squealed to a stop. Hugo tapped him fingers on his bony knee, humming the song under his breath.

"See you tomorrow, Hugo," she called as she stepped out.

"Bye, Miss Willows," he returned in that shaky voice of his. When she was completely out of the vehicle, he started it up and pulled away with a slight wave. As he drove away, he shook his head sadly. He hoped Carmen would get her life together soon. He'd seen this happen to too many young ladies, and it never ended well.

He saw right through Carmen and her impertinent facade. She lived in perpetual fear of being forgotten. Back home, she'd always been the star, the little girl with the big voice. People had showered her with praise and adoration, and she'd eagerly soaked it up. Now she was receiving exponentially more attention and it wasn't helping matters at all.

She loved to be on people's minds, to know that they admired her. She had to stay on top. It was the only place she'd ever been. It was horrifying for her to imagine herself falling from the pedestal she'd been placed on into a dark abyss of obscurity.

So she lashed out in fear. She was rude and harsh to everyone so she could stay relevant. She had to control them and make them fear her, for if her power diminished for even a second, she would slip and fall and fall into nothing.

And in a way, it worked. Carmen was on top. She was one of the brightest young stars in music and could do virtually whatever she liked without restrictions. She listened to no one and remained wild and free. She was as pretty and delicate as rose. And if you tried to brush your fingers against her, you would only get pricked by thorns that pushed deeper and deeper the more you struggled.

Hugo sighed heavily and cleared his throat. Carmen was spiraling downwards as she rose to the top. He feared what would happen when she reached the end of either path.

woot woot boring filler ha ha. And sorry for taking so long to update but on the bright side, school just ended and now I'm free to do whatever I want. I've mainly used that freedom to eat french fries but that's just how I live my life.

Tell me what you think of the story so far :)))