Nouveau

Chapter 2: Finite

Internally, Laive was relieved that Chelle forced her into agreeing to pick her up. Grateful that to not have to take a two-hour bus ride home, she could sleep in until her team mates met up for the game around 12:30 pm tomorrow. Thank God it was Friday! Laive smiled at the fact she would be able to get some decent hours of rest. Fridays were the only day out of the week to catch up on sleep. A two-hour bus ride home after work, with the 15-minute walk back to her apartment, a quick shower, and cooking herself a decent meal left her with about 2 hours of studying and reviewing course work.  That would only leave about 3 hours of sleep daily. And Laive would wake up and do it all over again if it was Monday through Thursday.

Talk about determined. Being a full time, Double Majoring Pre-Med student involved in on campus activities and organizations, working three jobs: Work study, a clothing store on South Claiborne, and a shoe store in Lakeside Mall (After all, a girl had to pay $725 monthly for rent) stretching herself thin was putting it lightly. Laive was surviving. With each check biweekly amounting to $325 and her monthly work study stipend coming in at $320 a month, the only $245 left paid the $80 Comcast high-speed internet bill. The remaining $165 was for Laive to get her life with. Of course, she was responsible. Laive would use about $60 for house hold needs in bulk, and a 30-day transit pass for RTA.

So truthfully, after the first of each month, Laive had a staggering $100 dollars. She qualified for food stamps because of the extra job and work study grant. So that was definitely a blessing, a few months back that last $100 was spent on groceries at Rouses.

"Did you hear me?"

Laive tuned her mother out and shook back to reality amused. How could a fact of being a struggling Med School Student with the credit score of a dozen mice continuously be disregarded? Her mom's ranting interrupted that train of thought.

"All your sisters have their own place to stay, and you have way more credentials than them."

The second oldest of her mother's children, Laive's mom had all girls and was married to their father when they were younger. Now remarried, her mom always swept Laive to the "you're strong, you can handle it" pile. Her 2 sisters were both mothers, one was married while the other was always in serious long term relationship.

The two never asked twice for anything from the family. They could get support and financing right out of the palms of each parent and their Grandmother's bank account if they willed it. But here Laive was, single as a dollar bill, no children, and no car.

Well...she had a car. It was a non-operative Honda that drained money dry. Even after paying thousands of her savings to have the transmission and motor rebuilt, the piece of shit still needed a new motor head after a month. Laive could not afford to put any additional funds into a failing car once she got accepted to university.

So again, here she was, trying to figure out where everything went wrong.

"They also have full time jobs mom. They can afford to have newer cars and somewhere to stay. I have two coaching jobs that I pay my own bills with. It's not like I'm not doing anything. I'm in school."

"I'm not the one who decided to go to Medical School, YOU did." Her mom's temper was rising.

Laive unconsciously swallowed a few breaths. Unaware that air was trapped closed in her chest while tears rimmed each eye.

That shit hurt.

The conversation was suffocating. She remembered being in the same space with her Grandmother a couple years ago.

"You keep telling me to accept help from my friends, teachers, and mentors, when I shouldn't have to do that. I should be able to depend on my own family. I should be able to ask you guys to help me" Laive silently cried, while raged in frustration.

"GOT DAMMIT LAIVE! You are stronger than all your sisters and It's just YOU taking care of YOU. They have children, they need our help more than you do. That's it." Her Grandmother yelled through the line.

"That's not fair, and it's not right either. I AM NOT a charity case. I am not going to walk around here like I am either!" Laive was screaming through sobs she was so fucking fed up.

"Well that's life, life's not fair."

Call ended flashed across Laive's IPhone screen as she pressed the red icon and powered the mobile device off.

Lying on the living room couch, Laive sobbed herself to sleep.

"Ok." Laive said.

Apparently, her mom hadn't heard her.

"I said OK" Laive asserted, done with the conversation. She walked out of the kitchen, made a right, went down to the end of the hallway, and locked the bedroom door.

It was so frustrating. Her mind kept replaying how some childhood friends would always joke that Laive should've just had a baby and dropped out of school, that way her family would help her. Hell no. Laive had life plans plans and goals to keep. Keeping that promise to herself, Laive wanted to be a wife before becoming a mother. It was just what she wanted for her life. She didn't hold herself to a higher standard because of it.

"That's it. No more doing everything for everyone and not getting anything in return. It's time for me to live my life for me."

An email notification sounded off on the vintage style dresser causing her iPhone to ding and vibrate.

WC Publishing

All Artists and Songwriters:

Please make sure to send updated lyric sheet in with mastered song submissions.

When recording with collaborators and outside producers, IT IS MANDATORY AND FOR YOUR OWN PROTECTION, that you fill out the split sheet. It should list prices, percentages, and the designated party that the values will be allotted to. Make sure all parties and their signatures are obtained and dated.

No one knew Laive was a signed singer/songwriter for a major music publishing company. She got signed when she was 19, and didn't focus much on it to finish school. The publishing company never pressured Laive because they believed in her talent, and the contract had been negotiated for a certain number of songs and didn't have an expiration date. That was something she did for her. That's what she kept convincing herself of anyway. Her family had always drilled that singing, dancing, acting, tumbling, drawing, and writing would not be lucrative in the long run. Those fields were for people chasing a never-ending dream. Laive was blessed to be equally right brained and left brain. She had the abnormal and natural intelligence to be a doctor or obtain a doctorate. Early on, she skipped a grade. also had outstanding creative abilities. To draw, paint, write, sing, act, design, photograph, model, you name it---she did it. And did it well.

However, she was going toget her life back her way. It was Laive mother's dream to be a doctor but opted out to become a nurse while raising a family. Laive wanted to be the next big well-rounded entertainer. That's what she always aspired to in the back of her mind. It was the only thing that kept Laive daydreaming at night. Being a doctor could be revisited later on in life if she chose to pursue it. This year, in 2018, it was time to walk in her own purpose. Laive smirked into the illuminated screen of the hand held Apple device.

"No more waiting. Let's go."