Studying The Star Crossed Lovers

❧ Chapter 12 ☙

Come, gentlemen, I hope we shall drink down all unkindness.

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"Claire get a dress on and get downstairs." Shouted Claire's mother as she stormed into her room. Her mother was made up.

"Mum I'm trying to do my homework."

"Sweetheart I could care less. Guess who went bankrupt?" Squealed the woman as she raised her hands in glee.

"Who?"

"Livren and Sons."

When it came to shipping there were three companies that dominated England. They were each run by a family, the Livrens, the Dancys, and the Whitings. The three families had been at war for as long as anyone alive could remember.

While the Dancy family and the Whiting family regularly used their ports to smuggle in a number of illegal things for an extra buck the Livren family had morals. Because of this the Livren family were slowly going broke as they refused to participate in illegal and immoral activities.

"Morals ain't worth anything if you're broke." Claire's father would say when the Livren family was brought up. However, at least the Livrens could sleep at night.

As Claire went down to her house she discovered a large party being thrown with hundreds of the Whiting's employees, friends, and allies partying to their heart's content.

"There is my angel. The jewel of our family, Claire Whiting." Announced Micheal Whiting into a microphone and the audience burst into cheers.

Claire hated this version of her father. She didn't see him often but when Micheal Whiting had taken a cocktail of drugs he would become a certain type of parent that Claire was not used to, a loving one.

"Do you know why we have all this money? Do you all want to know why I never leave that bloody office? For this little girl." Micheal Whiting pulled his daughter up onto the makeshift stage in the family's ballroom. "What is the point of having a fucking empire if you can't pass it on. So go out there and make some babies, make some money, and then come see me when you are done."

The people below Claire cheered as she was presented with a pearl necklace while Micheal Whiting had already moved onto a new topic. Claire was removed from the stage. Stumbling around her house she drowned a few drinks.

Down the street, there was another lavish affair going on at the Dancy house. They too had thrown a party to celebrate the demise of their rivals.

Unlike Claire, James was expecting this to happen. Because he was the oldest boy in his family he was expected to have a hand in the business affairs from the age of fourteen. He had been expecting Livren and Sons to go under for a while.

Claire was kept oblivious to the business affairs as Justin was supposed to run the company. Since he had died her father would have to decide who to make the new heir to his empire. If he chooses to make it Claire he would have to pass his own sexist fears of handing his business over to a girl.

The Dancy party was trying to be classy. Unlike the explosion at the Whiting mansion, the Dancy's guests had the respect to go do drugs or have sex in a separate room.

"Mum, are you okay?" Asked James as he walked into his mother's office where she was sitting.

"Oh, James, of course, I'm fine. I just need to take a little break from the party. You know how these things can get."

"Why don't you go up to your room? Avoid the people?"

"Oh James darling, you know your father would hate that. You should go to bed though. I would hate for you to be tired for school tomorrow and it's one in the morning already."

"I'm good."

"James, please." Croaked James' mother as she clutched her hair. "Just go to bed, you won't miss anything fun down here."

"I'll go now. I'll lock the door behind me so no one stumbles into my room." Agreed James as he hugged his mother tightly, not wanting to leave her to the wolves.

The next morning at school both Claire and James were exhausted. They had showered in coffee that morning in hopes of giving themselves some energy. They were used to the lack of sleep though.

"What happened at your last night?" Asked Claire as she met James during her free period.

"A party. I missed most of it, my mum sent me to bed. How about you?"

"My mum dragged me out of bed for the bloody thing. Just drank and that made it better."

They both fell silent as they heard footsteps coming from around the hallway. Claire let out a cough of surprise when Julietta Livren came into their eyesight. She was accompanied by two large men in suits.

When Julietta opened her locker and the men poured her things into a large designer duffle bag before they began to march Julietta back down the hallway past the pair.

"Are you okay?" Asked Claire sending Julietta and her entourage to a halt.

"Yes, I'm lovely. Mum wants us to move to a Chateau in France since Dad doesn't have to run the business anymore. It's really a blessing if anything. How are you both?"

"Surviving." Replied James as he smiled at Julietta.

"I'm okay."

"I wish you both the best." Consoled Julietta before she hugged both of them. It was a gesture of peace, a show of kindness. Despite their parents, the three had a bond of being in the same boat.

Julietta got to walk away. She was free for the first time in her life. Claire gripped James' hand tightly.

"I've got you." James wanted to reply saying he knew but he stayed silent for Claire's sanity not his own.

It was late that night when Annie picked up her phone to answer her friend's call.

"Annie, remember." Claire took a deep breath. "Remember how you wanted me to call you if I ever had a panic attack?" Said Claire and Annie put down the pen she was using to do her homework.

"Yeah." Affirmed Annie as she tried to keep her voice smooth and calming.

"I had a panic attack."

"Okay, that's okay. There is nothing wrong with that. What do you think caused this panic attack after so long?"

"I just can't cope. Julietta got out and her family was good. We are evil. We celebrate other's failures. I'll never be able to leave though. I'll be stuck here forever." Cried Claire before she began to hyperventilate.

It wasn't till an hour later when Annie could finally hang up her phone knowing that her friend was mentally stable for the night. She would sleep and then when Annie picked her up for school the next morning they would go out for coffee and try to talk things through.

Annie would try to get Claire through the day, then she would get her through the day after that, then before she knew it a week would have passed. Then a month. Then a year. Then soon enough they will both be far away, somehow.