"Welcome to L.A., Miss Dawson." I nodded my head at my Mom's personal driver, wondering why she had to go to such extremes for me to visit her. She'd been wanting me to visit her since I starting living with my Dad, and now she got what she wanted, and more. My Dad had been diagnosed with lung cancer the year before and died suddenly, right after things seemed to be getting better. Mom was happy that I was coming to live with her, although she tried to hide it behind missing my Dad. Sure, they fought, but they once loved each other.
"Please, Lewis. Call me Renee," I chuckled, following him to the limo. He smiled at me, his teeth brighter than his baby blue eyes. I slid onto the leather seats, tugging on the loose strings of my jean shorts. Mom had bought me a whole new wardrobe with skirts and dresses, but that didn't mean I wasn't going to try to smuggle some pants.
L.A. couldn't be that bad.. Could it?
After what seemed like forever, we finally arrived at my new home. It was a two-story brick house, with wide windows and stone accents. Inside was filled with brand new furniture and fancy chandeliers.
Of course, I expected no less from my high-maintenance, cosmetic selling mother. My room, according to my mother, was the only downstairs bedroom and branched off from the den. She'd told me that she'd already decorated my room, no doubt with my older sister's help. Mom knew if she herself decorated my room, she'd throw some pink in there, and I'd throw a hissy fit. What can I say? I'm not girly, no matter what she wanted me to be. She could mold Darcy, not me.
The den was where I would spend a lot of time, I'd already decided. There was a clear sliding door that led to the backyard garden, with sheer white curtains covering the view. A white, woven daybed with honey colored throw pillows sat across from a stone fireplace, a spool side table sitting next to it. Adjacent to the fireplace was a honey colored drawer desk with a hutch, books piled in most of the cubbies, pens & pencils collected in a mug sporting the Eiffel Tower. My favorite section of the den was in the very corner, under a small window where a latte colored ottoman stood, Mom's sky blue silk robe draped over it, as if she'd been too tired to take it to her room. I scooped up the fabric, pressing it to my cheek, the scent of her perfume wafting in my nose. Laying the robe back where it was, I grabbed my only suitcase and found my way to my room.
My room had been painted as if it were fog; light grey with smoky white trims. Both windows were covered with curtains that were white at the top and got darker as the fabric reached the end of the pane. The queen sized bed was sleek, pushed into the corner, the hardwood frame covered in white padding. The duvet pictured a grey wolf in the snow. Next to the bed was a burgundy garden seat, which matched the medium-sized dog sofa at the end of the bed. In another corner sat a grey, tufted hourglass shaped chair, a three-dimensional burgundy rose pillow atop it. Under an oversized iron antique clock sat a vividly hued amethyst chest, color-coordinated with a secretary desk that sat in the last corner.
I gaped as I pushed aside a white wooden sliding door, revealing a walk-in closet. Everything was organized, from the dresses to the belts to the sunglasses to the shoes. As I peered further into the colorful closet, I noticed another door in the back of the closet. It led to my bathroom, my very own bathroom. Porcelain was the main feature in this bathroom. There was a stand-up shower and a Jacuzzi bathtub and two sinks. Why I would need two sinks, I didn't know, but I didn't care. I was still wonderstruck by every inch of the place. My Dad's place had been a run-down shack that had been passed from one generation to the next, nothing special about it. Here, I had my own bathroom, with an antique makeup table with an oval mirror, a small stool to accompany it.
Honestly, I'd never seen such luxury.
Telling myself that I'd have plenty of time to check out the rest of the house, I began to unpack. I'd only packed a few necessities, as they were Mom's orders. She told me she'd buy me anything I needed if I truly needed it, but I could still salvage a few things before my old house was passed on to another relative. Suddenly I heard an annoying ringing, confused as to where it was coming from until I saw a silver wall phone near my closet door.
"Renee, it's Mom."
"Oh, hi." I settled onto the garden seat, finding that it was actually comfy. "I just got here, like, ten minutes ago. Why is there a house phone in my room anyway?"
"It's not the home phone, it's your own personal line. If you look in the drawer of your makeup table, there's a cellphone too. All of the numbers are written on the chalkboard."
Chalkboard?
True to her word, there was a small chalkboard in my closet, and all the phone numbers were written in Mom's loopy handwriting.
"Now, Renee, I want you to get ready. Once I get home from work, we'll be heading out to see your Aunt Kelly. She'll be at work herself, but she says that they only have one client for today. Please try and make yourself presentable."
"Fine, Mom. Love you too," I said sarcastically, slamming the phone back onto the hook. After a quick shower and forever of searching through rainbow frills, I finally found something somewhat decent. The ruffled dress reached mid-thigh, flowers painted in oranges in reds portrayed, a brown belt restricting my waist. The background color, ivory, matched the strappy wedged Toms I'd found. As for makeup, I settled for nude lip gloss and brown mascara & eyeliner, which brought out the green in my hazel eyes. Mom arrived home around noon, something rare for her profession. For the most part, she looked the same, minus the few stray grey hairs that hid in her jet black curls, one of the few things I'd inherited from her. She enclosed me in a tight hug, claiming that I'd grown so much since last October. Once I finally shook her off, she examined my outfit.
"It needs one more thing," she decided, hopping up the stairs. I lingered on the latte ottoman, tracing the fabric with my fingertips. When Mom came back down, she held a necklace in her grasp. It looked like brass, with a very detailed owl hanging from the end. "Open it." She smiled anxiously as I popped open the locket. An old picture of Dad stared up at me, his fingers laced through mine as I sat on his lap. I'd only been four or five at the time. My lips were curled in a devious smirk, but his smile shined brighter than anything I'd seen.
"Thank you, Mom," I whispered, tears pooling my eyes. She closed the locket and clasped it around my neck, pulling back my curls to keep them from being stuck in the chain. We walked out to her car, since I'd convinced her not to take the limo. The last thing I wanted was to be seen riding in a limo in downtown L.A. with my mother.
Aunt Kelly was really the only family on my mom's side that we were still in contact with. Mom was adopted, so she was the odd-one-out on most family occasions. Unlike Aunt Kelly's dark complexion, Mom was cursed with paleness, which accentuated her oddness. Lucky for me, Dad was Native American, and tanned very easily. I was stuck somewhere in the middle of those.
Despite the lack of shared DNA, Aunt Kelly could've been Mom's twin, personality wise. The two of them together was always a sight to see.
It didn't take long to arrive at Rocque Records. Aunt Kelly was waiting by the entrance, tapping her foot as she talked on her cellphone. She seemed upset, which most likely meant she was talked to Gustavo. I'd met him once or twice, and he just seemed angry all the time, for no apparent reason. According to Aunt Kelly, he only got worse with this new band around.
"Hang on, Gustavo! Yeah, Camellia just got here, I'll be up in a minute. Don't kill the dogs, because if you do, we'll both be out of a job!" She slid her phone back into her pocket, opening her arms to us. "Cam! You look amazing!" Mom kissed her cheek and squeezed her tight, like she'd done to me. "And look at you, Ren! You're all grown up! Oh, God, I guess I should've thought this through a little more." Kelly chewed on her bottom lip, looking over my outfit. Mom narrowed her eyes at her.
"What do you mean, Kelly?"
"The client that we have today is Big Time Rush, a boy band. And they're all teenagers whose hormones are probably raging. Crap, I'm sorry, Cam. I thought Ren would be dressed like she normally is! You know, her jeans and sweatshirts," Aunt Kelly sighed, ruffling her hair. I stuck my tongue out at Mom, who did it right back. Gee, what great parenting.
"Well, let's just get it over with."
We headed upstairs, where Aunt Kelly led us to a sound booth. Gustavo was facing us, ignoring the boys fighting in the booth behind him. The sound had been turned off. As soon as we walked in, the fighting stopped, and they all rushed out of the booth. All four of them were built, so I figured right off the bat that they played sports.
"Dogs, this is Kelly's sister, Camellia, and her niece.." Gustavo left it hanging in the air. I sighed as all eyes were placed on me.
"Renee. Call me Ren."
"Hi, I'm James," a brunette said seductively, taking my hand and kissing it. The rest of them rolled their eyes.
"James, you always get the girl!" the small Hispanic whined. He stuck out his hand, and I grabbed it, thankful he wasn't throwing himself at me. "I'm Carlos."
A shorter brunette with big brown eyes stepped out from behind James, tapping Carlos' helmet. "I'm Logan." He smiled a crooked grin and I returned it. Finally the last one stepped up.
This one seemed to be the leader. He was tall, almost lanky, but his build made up for it. His blond hair almost reached his bushy eyebrows, but not quite. His eyes caught me off guard. They were a mossy green, and they caught the light perfectly. My eyes trailed down to his lips. "Don't mind these guys. They've never been anywhere near any female specimen that wasn't related to them, or going to beat them up." He shrugged, and I bit back a laugh as the other boys objected. "I'm Kendall, by the way." His calloused fingers wrapped around my shaky hand, and I couldn't help the smile that found its way onto my lips.
"Okay, okay, enough for introductions. Dogs, get back in the sound booth, and try to sound decent this time!" Gustavo screeched. They scrambled back to the booth. Logan flashed another grin my way, Carlos tapped his helmet and threw a thumbs up, and James blew a kiss my way. But when Kendall just winked at me, my heart fluttered. I bit my lip to keep from squealing as I began to follow Mom out the door, but she stopped me.
"I need to talk to Kelly alone real quick. Just stay here, and I'll be right back." She pecked my forehead and shut the door behind her. I turned my attention to the "dogs," who seemed oblivious to my presence.
Logan began the song, closing his eyes and pressing a hand to his chest.
"You, you walked into the room
On a Friday afternoon
That's when I saw you for the first time
And I was paralyzed
I had a million things to say
But none of them came out that day
'Cause I was never one of those guys
That always had the best lines."
James chimed in, leaning closer to the microphone.
"Time stops ticking
My hands keep shaking
And you don't even know that.."
Kendall stepped up to the plate, meeting my eyes as he sung.
"I try to speak but girl you got me tongue-tied
I try to breathe but I'm f-f-f-frozen inside
I try to move but I'm stuck in my shoes
You got me paralyzed, paralyzed, p-p-p-paralyzed
I see you walking, but all you do is pass me by
Can't even talk, cause words don't come into my mind
I'd make a move if I had the guts to
But I'm paralyzed, paralyzed, p-p-p-paralyzed."
Once again, Logan began to sing again, following Kendall's eyes until he saw me.
"Now I learned a lot from my mistake
Never let a good thing slip away
I've had a lot of time to look back
And my only regret is.."
James took on the bridge of the song again, winking at me.
"Not telling you what I was going through
You didn't even know that.."
Then I was focused on Kendall again, his gaze intense and heavy.
"I try to speak but girl you got me tongue-tied
I try to breathe but I'm f-f-f-frozen inside
I try to move but I'm stuck in my shoes
You got me paralyzed, paralyzed, p-p-p-paralyzed
I see you walking, but all you do is pass me by
Can't even talk, cause words don't come into my mind
I'd make a move if I had the guts to
But I'm paralyzed, paralyzed, p-p-p-paralyzed."
I couldn't take it anymore. I was overwhelmed. Before they could finish, I walked out, making sure to quietly shut the door behind me. I bumped into somebody, crashing to the floor.
"Oh, I'm sorry." It wasn't my mom, that's for sure. The voice was deep, and as I grabbed his hand to be helped up, I met his eyes. "I'm Jett."
"Renee."
"You're not from around here," he concluded. I shook my head, prying my hand from his grasp. There was something odd about him, and I didn't like it.
"Nags Head, North Carolina. Born and raised."
"Never been."
"Figures," I muttered, pushing past him to find Mom. He grabbed my arm, and I turned to face him, circling my fingers around his hand. He cried out as I began to twist his arm in its socket. "Touch me again, and I will break every known bone in your arm," I hissed. He was caught off balance when I shoved him, causing him to stumble and fall to the ground. When he looked towards the doorway, I looked up to see Kendall, James, Carlos, and Logan, dumbfounded.
"What?" I smiled innocently, swaying my hips as I walked out of Rocque Records. L.A. was actually turning to be really interesting..
