Esther wore a white t-shirt and joggers pants. She was finally grocery shopping. Her car was parked outside the store, ready to assist her in conveying the items. Her list was pretty long, and she ran around the store, picking out her things and throwing them in the cart.It was mid-afternoon and surprisingly there weren't many people in the store. She wasn't complaining as it allowed her free reign, access and speed all through her shopping spree.It was nice to shop when there weren't as many people and Esther found it almost enjoyable. Keyword being almost.Having gathered all she needed, Esther was ready to go and trudged towards the counter to get her check. There was no line, and she immediately got checked and packed.Taking two trips to her car, Esther was finally good to go and mentally hi-fived herself for a job well done. Unknown to her, someone was carefully watching her with unbelief clad in his hooded eyes. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. That person was Daniel
Aaron was in his apartment on campus, packing a bag when Tony walked into his room." Hey man! Where are you off to? "He plummeted himself on the made bed in the center of Aaron's room." None of your fucking business."Aaron continued packing his bag, nonchalant to Tony's presence. He didn't sleep through the night, and spent the whole time thinking about the deal.As a result, he was crankier than usual." What crawled and died up your ass? Don't tell me you're still touchy about yesterday. "At the mention of the day before, Aaron's jaws clenched." Shut up and tell me why you are here. I don't have all day." He said with gritted teeth." Bullshit. You're cranky. Something's up.""Yeah, something's up, I'm two seconds from decking the shit out of you." Aaron announced in a warning tone."Easy, Tiger. I heard a little gossip and I figured you'd be in the best place to tell. " Tony stood up and walked towards the window mane, not the least bit threatened by his friend."News has it
" Meeting tomorrow by 10am. Office of the Director, Royal Arts Academy. "The message was sent to the selected candidates for the production that evening, and the recipients were excited, hoping to finally get Intel on the status of the project after a while of silence.Amongst the recipients of the invitation were Stella, Aaron and Deloise. On Stella's side, she prepared herself, going through the script once more in case they decided to begin filming. The role was hers after all.Meanwhile, on the side of Aaron, he proposed to talk to Mr Austin about his decision to continue with the job. He didn't know how he was going to feel about it and hoped it wasn't too late to retract his previous demands.Deloise didn't know what to expect. It was the first time she was receiving word from the management since her settling in. Early the next day, she got up very early, had her bath and prepared herself for the ' meeting ' with the director. By the time she was done preparing, Layla was on
Aaron stood dumbfounded. His shirt was ruined and his mood soured. He felt angered at himself for letting her have the last words. At the back of his mind, he knew that he wasn't the most innocent in the situation but he felt angry nonetheless.No one, not one person had the right to speak to him like that. Pretty or not. He was going to teach her a lesson. Something to remember him by." What's going on in that smart head of yours boy? "The familiar voice of Mr Austin jerked him out of his reverie." Are you sweating or something? Did you run all the way here?" He asked, looking at the drenched chest with his hands in his pockets." I ran into a situation." He winced, "long story short, I have to talk to you."" Okay? Let's head on to the office then."Aaron shook his head at the request before speaking." There's a lot of people there. It's about the project."" Whatever it is, we can always talk about it later. I'm late for a meeting. "With that, Mr Austin led the way to his offi
Deloise was overwhelmed with joy. She couldn't stop smiling on her way back to the dorm room. She'd been congratulated by people she didn't know and couldn't wait to actually share it with someone.She hoped Layla was home and stopped by a cafeteria to get some burgers and soft drinks. She was going to eat it as a celebratory meal for her first movie role.After getting the meal, she committed to taking care of herself more in preparation for the filming. She wasn't about to look funny in her first role in a movie and made a mental note to hit the gym as soon as possible.One thing she loved about her body was the fact that it could fit Into almost anything. With the right conditioning that is. She was never one to complain about weight due to her fast metabolism.She couldn't go wrong with some facial and skin therapy and all she wanted was to look and feel good. She'd previously searched up some popular actors' rituals in preparation for a new role and ever since then, itched to hav
Deloise was on the phone when her mother's call came in. She hesitated to pick it, not quite in the mood of lying so blatantly to her. On the third ring, Deloise swiped to the green button and slowly placed her phone on her ear. Half expecting the screaming voice of her mother." Baby, how are you doing?" The still voice of her mother spoke instead." I'm alright mum, sorry I didn't pick up earlier, didn't hear it ring." She said smoothly." No problems. It's fine. Talk to me about school. What's been happening? I heard that the exams are around the corner."" Oh yes! Sorry I didn't tell you. With the coming exams I've been really swamped up trying to prepare."" I understand. Take all the time you need. Don't hesitate to tell me if anything comes up okay? No matter how little, anything at all."" Definitely. I'll be back for the holidays with Anna after the exams. " Deloise said, making a mental note to inquire from Amanda when the exams were beginning and the time frame for the hol
The meeting soon drew to an end and the esteemed guests were escorted out by Mr Austin. Deloise didn't move, she hoped to leave when the room was at least halfway emptied out. She felt lucky to be ignored the whole time by Ms Ema after the lashing she received.This experience wasn't the prettiest for her but it sobered her to the fact that she needed to take her job and life more seriously if she was going to last. It was a rude awakening - the fact that she could be dropped at the slightest misconduct.She had to be extremely careful and conscious of slip ups because this was the last chance at her dreams and life. She didn't have anything else. She couldn't fail at this.While pondering these thoughts, Deloise didn't notice Stella approach her. She jolted in surprise when she heard the sharp voice of Stella." What? Aren't you leaving?" She asked with a smile which Deloise detected as faux and mocking.When she didn't reply, Stella tutted and with graceful steps encircled her while
Aaron was in the male restroom of the building. After being rudely asked out by Mr Austin, he figured he might as well relieve himself before leaving the building.On getting out to the hallways, he witnessed Deloise rush out of the office and after a few steps, plopped shakily on the floor with her head bowed." Was she…crying?"Aaron thought, unsure of what was going on. He carefully took steps forward, not knowing how to approach the situation. As he got closer, her sobs got louder and the fact she was crying became glaring.He knew that Mr Austin was pretty angry at the situation and the fact she was a no-show. But he felt it couldn't have been that bad.Knowing Mr Austin, it was going to be a warning at most. It wasn't something he expected his firecracker to be bawling her eyes over.Aaron stood in a standoffish stance before Deloise. A part of him wanted to move on with his business like he didn't care but something within him hindered his movement. He couldn't stand seeing her
It was finally the WBA Awards show. People from various parts of the world expressed their excitement to see their favorite celebrities on the red carpet and eventually on the stage - hopefully with an award. The World Best Acts award show was an event that was held once in four years. It was the most anticipated event of the entertainment world and year after year, people- celebrities and fans alike - worked towards being on the stage or being a part of the show. The WBA’s was a prestigious event that was star-studded, well attended and publicized worldwide. Its stage was every star’s dream, and a WBA award was something remarkable to say the least. For Deloise, she was lucky to be invited for such an event, a feat directly credited to her debut movie that managed to break records in its time, emerging as one of the best movies created at that time. Deloise was seated in front of a mirror while they prepared her for the appearance. Doris was nowhere to be found, busy with ensuri
Two weeks later, the Magazine issue with Deloise went out. The first few days were a bit slow, but as time proceeded, more people got hold of the latest Focus Magazine starring a retired actress. Soon enough, the magazine became the most talked about on the internet. Albeit, most of the conversations around the issue weren’t the most favorable, but publicity was publicity. In the entertainment world, getting spoken about in a bad light was better than nothing. Not that she cared anyway. It was the weekend and Doris relaxed home with Deloise. “Tony is requesting dinner,” She said from the couch and Deloise sighed. “Why the hell is he bombarding me with messages and not you?” “Because I may have ignored him.”“Get him off my back, will you?” she asked, exasperated, “And just so you know, that guy never gives up. Better to get things over with now than later.” “Tell me about it.” Deloise grumbled, shooting off a text back at Tony. Later that evening, in a cozy restaurant, Deloise
Safe to say her first day at work wasn’t ideal. Doris couldn’t make it back to pick her but sent a driver to do the job. Deloise sulked all the way back, trying and failing to contain the fury that brimmed within her. Stella had won for the day, but it was just the beginning. If there was one thing she learned from her stay back in France, it was to never let anyone trample upon her. She was a way different person and if it took a lesson from her to make that clear, then she will dish out one. Lets see how well she does with a taste of her own medicine. Deloise dropped down the car and made her way into the house determined to find every dirty detail she could on Stella. With the coding skills she acquired, she could almost hack into anything. A plan hatched in her heart and without a second thought, she headed for her room and shut the door behind her. Deloise took out her laptop with a cynic look on her face. “Senior huh? let’s see what other skills you have up your sleeve.”Her
Doris saw to her promise because the next day, very early in the day, she woke up Deloise, urging her to get prepared for their day out. Sluggishly, Deloise got out of bed and worked around getting ready for an audition she was yet to know a word of. They got into the car and a script was passed along to her. “Finally.” She muttered, “Couldn’t have given me any sooner?” Doris laughed, “You are in a mood. Just so you know, the audition isn’t until-” she glanced at her watch, “One hour.” she finished with a shrug, “Surely that’s enough time to get into the height of things.” “How long is the drive?”“Thirty minutes?” “Great. You expect me to ace this audition or are you trying to test how rusty I am?”“So whiny,” she tutted, and pulled out of the driveway, “Who is this and where is the Deloise who aced her audition on the first day of resumption?” “Rusty as hell.” “Definitely in need of some breaking in.” Doris stepped on it.They proceeded on the journey and Deloise went through
THREE YEARS LATER.A lady with fair skin and long wavy hair stepped out of the Airplane with black shades on. The nostalgic feel of the country hit her in the face with memories she’s rather left unsaid. Dragging along her luggage, she walked out of the airport, checking the time for her designated driver. She might have to call a cab if they took any longer. She held that thought and like magic, a Mercedes appeared in front of her. The car revved and its windows rolled down, revealing a smiling and barely aged Doris who unlocked the door. “I can’t believe my eyes. Is that really you?” She gasped and got out of the car.“Doris Gates. You haven’t aged a day.” Deloise remarked with an equal smile on her face. “You look way too good on that ride.”“Hard work pays off, get into the car.” she said as she stored her luggage in the boots, “We have a lot to talk about.” “It’s good that I’m not in a hurry.” Doris got into the car and they sped off the road. As she drove, they conversed abou
“Just this morning, Evolve Talent Management has put out a statement regarding their newest intake's retirement from the movie industry. In a PR release, they expressed their surprise at her actions, citing how she has refused to retract her decision despite every effort, and as a result breaking the managerial contract signed with the company.”“Hours after the Press conference, an emergency board meeting was called and they came to the conclusion that the now-retired actress would be made to pay a fine (undisclosed) for breaking the contract, and shall be added to the company’s blacklist, effective immediately...”The television was turned off by Doris after the last statement, she watched Deloise stare into the blank screen, worrying at the state of her mind. “I’m sorry...I tried all I could to prevent this but-”“How much am I required to pay?” Deloise asked, “What’s the fine?”“There’s no fine. We settled that using your payments from the appearance at Chicago. What is your next
“How do you feel?” Doris asked Deloise as they got prepared for her conference, “I don’t know.” She muttered, “I just want things to go smoothly.” Deloise felt a hand sweep her back, “Stick with the script and we’ll be done in no time.” “That’s the easy part.” She muttered, spraying a minimum amount of perfume, “I’m worried about what comes after. The people were almost done with judging me, this will reopen that door.”“Unfortunately, this is a world of constant judgment. Even the best actresses get a bit of it too.” She hands over the script, “You’ll get through this.”Deloise goes through her statement in silence, she was supposed to tender an apology, formally announce her separation with Aaron and affirm Daniel’s identity as her father. It seemed like she was accepting every allegations meted against her. She couldn’t find it in her to care anymore, and nodded through the tips Doris gave her on public speaking and answering questions. “You’ll be on in five.” Doris said at the
Deloise woke up to a gloomy cloud. It was time to face everything. She had a press conference later today but before that, she had to meet her mother. It wasn’t news that since that dreaded morning, they hadn’t spoken a word to each other. Matter of fact, she made it a point to avoid her, and any related conversation. Three days ago, that streak was broken by the visit of Ms. Karen who showed up unannounced. That very day, she remembered getting into it with the woman who thought it right to defend the evils of her mother and expose her in one breath. She was prepared to pay her no heed until she went her way but at the mention of the sorry state of her mother, she reconsidered.At the end of that meeting, she had an appointment with her mother, which happened to fall on the same day she was to formally address the world. As a result, she got up early and prepared to leave the house, pondering the future of the meeting with her mother. She didn’t know if she was ready to look her i
Deloise and Amanda were finally having a video call after many failed attempts.“How are you doing? Where are you?” Amanda asked, the worry on her face couldn’t be hidden. Deloise pushed back a hair loft as she replied. “I’m alright.”“I feel so terrible being unable to help. I’ve replied to a tonne of hate comments on the internet but that’s barely enough.” She sulked, “You don’t deserve this. How were you meant to know he was your dad if your mom didn’t say a thing about it? I can’t believe how stupid people are, believing anything they see.”“I’m alright.” Deloise reassured her with a smile. “I appreciate your efforts, but that’s not necessary.”“Still. I can’t look past anyone badmouthing you when they don’t even know you.” She hissed, “If I can defend Anna- who isn’t my biggest fan at the moment, best believe anyone who breathes wrongly about you will be getting a lot more than a few stitches.” That brought a laugh out of Deloise. More so because she meant every word. “Don’t ge