A troubled-looking Esther sat in her study, contemplating on how the night might end for her. She knew she may have crossed a line with what she did, but a greater part willed her to believe it was for the greater good.The only problem was Deloise may not look too favorably on her honest efforts to help get her life on track. Her growing obsession with pursuing the filthy lifestyle of an actor had forced her hand to do what she did as a mother.After all, she was her child and knew nothing of the world she so desperately wanted to be a part of. Esther knew how cruel, betraying, and borderline evil that lifestyle transformed people into. She was determined to never let her daughter slip through her hands the way he did.Papers were spread on her home office table, which served as a space to run the paperwork for the little baking business she had going. But now, it littered with the official papers that had the power to break or make her relationship with her daughter.Esther tapped
Royal Arts Academy, New York.The sun was out and bright, portraying shades of trees and leaves littered in the quiet school compound. The prestigious school was yet to open for academia and prepared to open the year's session in three weeks.The director of Arts, Mr. Austin walked hastily towards the school gates, checking his Rolex watch as his eyes nervously scanned the empty area. Meanwhile, far to the right, a black Lexus Jeep parked horizontally, with its glasses tinted and exotic. A man in his late forties sat inside the car, leisurely looking through a news magazine. His deep brown orbs, effortlessly scanned through the content of the magazine. While his long baby lashes and deep black eyelids gave a beautiful touch to his round eyes, perfectly arched brows, and glass skin.Dressed stylishly, his magnificently sculpted body was donned in a black tux which accentuated his model arms and body structure - arms desired by the majority of the female populace.His poise screamed ro
The atmosphere felt tense and the wind from the windows chilled the apartment. The windows rattled, momentarily distracting Deloise from her mother's gaze.It didn't take long before their eyes reconnected, each trying to read the other's motive. Deciding to take the softer approach, Deloise finally spoke. " What is this, Mom?" " Pick it up and open it dear," Esther replied tenderly, holding her breath as she watched Deloise pick up the envelope and take out the enclosed paperwork.Deloise paled at the contents of the documents. As she continued, her expression grew worse. She vehemently shook her head, showing her stance on the situation. " I can't, you know that." She opposed, " why would you–"" NO. I don't want to hear whatever it is you are feeling, my stance on this matter is that you are going." She stated, upset at her daughter's refusal to see reason." How could you apply for me? I never consented to pursue admission to the States school of law! " " Now you listen to me,
" Today, two things are bound to happen," Anna spoke firmly, her hands on her waist. " It's either you tell me what's going on or you tell me what's going on." She said to Deloise- who groaned in return." Don't even think about playing moody with me or you are going to have to leave." She threatened. " I refuse to spend my last days with a moody person who has refused to speak to her alleged best friend on whatever the problem is."By the look on Anna's face, Deloise realized that she may have pushed it with Ann and almost spoke up. She made to speak but the memory of that miserable night came rushing back, effectively shunning her to silence.Anna noticed her internal conflict, but refused to back off. She couldn't let her go back into the slimy shell she's been in for days. " No, you're not doing that, not today. Speak." She urged firmly, while silence engulfed the room.The silence got broken by the incessant sobs of Deloise. Witnessing her best friend in a state of immense pain,
Royal Arts Academy.It's a resumption day, and senior students of the academy trooped into the school compound. Some were brought in by their parent(s) in vehicles while the rest were dropped off by chauffeurs.The compound was rowdy with the majority of the people stylishly dressed and pulling on their belongings, headed towards the school's hostels and accommodations area.Some people were caught up in conversations and situated at various sects of the school compound. The summer events remained a topic in the conversation of students." I heard he's as beautiful as he was when he started!" " Not just beautiful Darlene. He is the most outstanding and talented actor in the entire state! " Another girl gushed with a swoon." The whole state?! He's a recognized international actor, at this point, he's a world-class top star! "The girl group chatted excitedly on the topic that buzzed the entire school and entertainment world at large.Amid the chaos, a luxury car drove into the school
It was a sharp noon and Mr. Austin took note of the fact he had two hours before his next meeting and submerged himself into work.In his search for new faces, he's seen over seven thousand audition videos, in which he selected two ladies he felt could have some prospect in the acting field if brushed up a little.The job took a major toll on him, and the fact he was yet to see an outstanding audition video sent him to despair. Mr. Austin tiredly scrolled down the mail, he decided to sort them from the latest received, and got ready to bin applications as he had been doing forever.Usually, he went five seconds into every audition. Surely, five seconds was enough to get him to feel something. Matter of fact, he deliberated the thought of reducing his torture to a three seconds mark before judgement.After the sixth video, Mr. Austin was gradually losing his mind. The confidence of people, sending in poorly done videos made him cringe. The sixth video wasn't even an audition video!App
Royal Arts Academy.Mr Austin and Daniel headed straight to his office as soon as he arrived. It seemed like they were in a haste, and immediately they got into the office, the conversation took off." I have great news for you." Mr. Austin revealed after exchanging pleasantries. He couldn't wait to see the look on Mr. Daniel's face after sharing his discovery with him." I'm glad that today someone has good news for me," Daniel muttered, " Let's get right into it."Mr. Austin gladly opened his PC and went straight to the folder where he saved the videos selected from the auditions. He took a glance at the content of the file, and without a blink, clicked on the very clip he couldn't get enough of. Daniel saw the girl in the footage, and knew he had met his main character. Nevertheless, he patiently watched the clip till it was over and couldn't put into words how he felt. His spirit resonated with that of the actress in a way that he had never felt with anyone else before. Her deli
" I didn't want to come here." Deloise started, " Matter of fact, I was ready to never speak to you again."Esther observed her daughter speak very calmly and shook inside of her. Unconsciously, she readied her heart for an unknown impact she felt was coming. " But I couldn't.." Deloise's words triggered a wave of relief, " these past few days I've spent hating you, but last night, I couldn't bear the fact that I left you home alone despite my anger." Esther's stoic stance cracked at her daughter's words." Mummy I don't know why you do not want to support me, I don't know why you are so against the idea of me being an actress, I don't know what your reason forced you to even contemplate disowning me in regards to this issue." Deloise sniffed, " I've been so consumed with thinking these past few days. I thought of a time when you weren't there for me and I came up empty. A time when you didn't love, care and cater to me while being a single parent and- "Anna couldn't hold back 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