ꨄThe Debutanteꨄ

12.

...

Tuesday

...

Cookie examined herself in her bathroom mirror this morning. She released a sigh, almost as if she was ashamed. She thought back to how her and Anika talked on the phone for hours last night. Anikas voice seemed so calm while talking to her, like all her stresses melted away the moment Cookie answered the phone.

Anikas voice seemed to calm Cookie down as well. But, it shouldn't have. Cookie shook her head roughly. "No. Hell no." She said, walking towards her front door swiftly, leaving out and slamming it behind her.

...

10:30 AM

Andre nodded as he listened to his father speak. "Yes, and they said they would pay the 150,000 settlement today. But yet it's not here." Said Andre. Examining paperwork sheets that he held in his hand, more being sprawled out along the table. "Those two-faced pale bastards. You know what, I want every investment company in New York to get up his ass!" Said Lucious. "And is Tianna back from tour yet?" Asked Lucious. "She comes back tomorrow. So far she's sold out every performance. She was bold to take a solo tour." Said Andre.

"Naw man, she knows what it means to strive for what you want. Now I need to get hardheaded ass Hakeem and pansy ass Jamal to do the same thing." Said Lucious. Andre let out a sigh. "Pops, come on- What? Look. The boy makes great music. He's taking over the world. But in the household he's still a- Alright, pops I get it. You don't like homosexuals. Now can we please get back to what we were discussing?" Said Andre.

Andre sometimes got frustrated with the constant slander his father gave to his younger brother. He brought it up at times that were irrelevant to the good work that Jamal produces. Lucious stared at him for a second. "Fine." He said, getting up to begin thinking and pacing around. "You know who will get them to hand it over? Cookie. Get your mama on the phone. I need her to do exactly what she did when we dealt with those scamming ass pretty boys." He said.

"I did call her about 15 minutes ago. Twice. She's not answering." Said Andre. "Huh?" Asked Lucious. "Speaking of which, what time is it?" Asked Lucious. He checked his watch, seeing it was 10. "It's ten. Where the hell is she at?" He asked. He thought back to what they were discussing in his office, him wondering why she kept being so late to work.

He reached into his pocket, beginning to dial her number. It went straight to voicemail. He called twice more, then two texts. "What the hell is going on with her?" He asked.

Suddenly, Anika entered the room. Her hair slicked back and a blue dress covering her body. "Turns out Treasure is getting ready for her first stage performance. She's already got a song written down." Said Anika. "Baby, have you seen Cookie today?" Lucious asked, not paying any attention to what news she brought. Anika began to look confused. "She's not here?" She asked. "No. You haven't even heard from her?" He asked. "Well, we don't text often. But no, I haven't." She said.

"Is she not feeling well or something?" He questioned, looking down at his phone.

...

Cookie took multiple deep breathes as she stood outside of the white door. Her stilettos seeming to dig into the rug. Her hands clutching her purse, while her heart raced a mile a minute. She checked her watch, then looking around her at the empty room.

She let out a breath, then reaching forward to twist the knob. She left a small knock, and heard a woman's voice say "Come in". She slowly opened the door, and was met with a nicely mellow yet decorated room. A couch sat near the entrance, while a dark skinned woman with glasses sat looking up at her with a friendly expression.