"This is what she had become."
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Cleopatra Banks' last week in the small town of New Chelsea is nothing like she would have imagined it, but nothing could have prepared her for the stinging betrayal she's faced with and suddenly the prospect of...
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"I was thinking we could go to the spa tomorrow, or the mall. We can even do both which one do you want to go to first?" Mom asks me from where she's going through a stack of papers on the other side of the coffee table.
I turn my attention away from the open chat on my phone with Lexi and pay attention to her instead.
I've never seen mom look this busy.
She scratches her head a little. "And make a stop at the salon as well, maybe I should get my hair braided, you think your dad will like it?" she peers her eyes away from her papers and looks up at me.
I stifle a smile. "Of course he will," reply with a raised eyebrow. She looks down at her nails. "Should get my nails done too," she smiles at me.
"You should also get your nails done."
She always has a way of steering the conversation towards me.
"My nails are fine mom, they're clean" I reply. I removed the red nail polish I had painted over them because it had started chipping. They're easier to maintain when they look like this.
She doesn't say anything for a moment and I can tell she's thinking up something diabolic. This should be interesting.
"So...Susan tells me that Ethan's single."
A loud gurgle like noise sounds at the back my throat when I fail miserably at stifling a laugh. "We did a bleep test for PE today and I didn't die," is my response. I laugh out loud when she gives me a disapproving look.
I don't understand why she's so obsessed with Ethan. I'm not going to be his friend just because she says I have to and besides Ethan wouldn't want to be my friend.
The guy hates my guts. I'm still surprised he waited until the end of our PE session to give me the phone I forgot on my table in our Business class.
Not even a withering glare my way. Nothing.
It's all so confusing.
Is he secretly planning my murder?
"Come on Cleo, you need to make friends," she replies. I pretend to not have heard her and turn my attention back to my phone where I'm waiting for Lexi to reply, she's still typing.
It's not my fault that nobody wants to associate with me.
"Did something happen?" she asks. This is getting annoying.
"Yeah we came here mom," I finally reply with a shrug of my shoulder. She knows exactly what I mean. I don't want to pull that card but I don't really have a choice now do I?
A disappointed look washes over her face before she turns her attention back to the stack of papers, scribbling on some of them with a little more force than necessary.
