2012

"Sapphire! Time to get up!"

Dorothea climbed the spiral carpeted staircase, her slim hand coasting up the iron worked railing as she got to the second floor. It was a beautiful early summer morning and sunlight streamed in through the large bay windows of the mansion. Dorothea, dressed in a long flowing burnt orange sundress and shall walked in her sandals to her daughter's bedroom. Coming to the door, Dorothea turned the crystal doorknob and smiled as she slowly swung it open.

"Wake up birthday girl!"

Sapphire's room was like any other teenage girl. Her large canopy bed was in the center of the room, surrounded by colorful plush pillows of blue, pink, and lime green. Her walls were covered in rock posters and photographs of her friends from school. Her desk was littered with junk, papers, makeup, her I-pod, and somewhere among the rest of the litter her laptop. Her dressers had clothes bulging from them along with her closet. Wrapped around one bedpost was a pink feather bower. The sweet smell of vanilla and perfume filled the air as Dorothea smiled and walked in. Sapphire was sprawled across her bed in a black tank top and pink Pj shorts. Her long brown hair, now tinted almost a ruby red fell over her deeply tanned back. She slept with her face buried in one of her pillows. Dorothea smiled before going over and sitting on the edge of the bed. Ever since school let out Sapphire had been spending her nights texting and sleeping until twelve. Gently she shook her.

"Wake up birthday girl…it's you're special day."

Sapphire moaned and turned over, grumpy in the morning as usual. Dorothea smiled before shaking her again.

"Come on hon, we got things to do."

"Five more minutes please!"

Sapphire mumbled as she tried to hide underneath her pillows. Dorothea laughed and gave her a playful slap on the shoulder.

"Come on!"

Standing, Dorothea crossed her daughter's room before drawing back her light baby blue curtains that were slight moving back and forth by the warn breeze outside. Looking out at the balcony, Dorothea could see the caterers all ready setting up outside. It looked like another beautiful day out, the sun was shinning, it was warning up, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

Sapphire sat up, her face puffy and her hair sticking up. Rubbing her eyes she blinked and looked over at her mother.

"What time is it?"

"Nine-thirty, come on Gladys made pancakes, you're favorite…strawberry."

Sapphire reached over at her nightstand, which had hair ties and tissues scattered about and pulled her long hair into a tight ponytail. Reaching over she grabbed her black and green cell phone and all ready began typing away. Dorothea rolled her eyes before walking over. Taking the cell phone out of her daughter's hands she snapped it closed.

"Hey!"

Dorothea smiled.

"Come on, we got tons to do."

Sapphire made a face at her mother before smiling. Dorothea then felt completely overwhelmed staring down at her. She looked so much like her father. She had Caribbean greenish blue eyes. Her skin was deeply tanned, and her natural hair color was brown like his. Her features looked so much like him it seemed scary. Trying to smile, Dorothea told her she would race her down to the kitchen. Sapphire made some cocky comment before darting out of bed gigging and running down the stairs. Dorothea listened to her running footsteps and smiled before following.

Seventeen years, seventeen whole years. Had it really been that long?

Thinking back at all this time it really did seem to have flashed before her very eyes. Living in the very same mansion, Dorothea couldn't believe how much had happened, and how she had really moved on. Standing there, looking around her daughter's room she eyed one of her dressers, which was covered in different picture frames. Most of them were of her and her friends from school, at prep rallies, or on vacation. One was of Dorothea and her just taken last year, standing by the pool, their arms around each other and wearing sunglasses smiling. There was a few of Harry and her, the biggest was the one taken in New York at Times Square. Then there was one of her father.

It was a photograph Dorothea had given her just a few years ago. A photograph Sapphire seemed fascinated with. It must have been taken either in 83 or 84, just a year or so after Philip had taken Dorothea in. He still had that beautiful long hair of his and was leaning against his old Thunderbird, hands stuffed in his pockets and a slight smile on his face. Dorothea remembered Philip was forced to sell the car a year before they went to Vegas to make rent. Dorothea begged him not to, knowing how much he loved the car but he insisted. He told her it was just a stupid car and that they would need the money later on down the road. A few days later she remembered he had brought her home all new clothes and shoes, telling her the ones she had were getting too small. Dorothea thought back on how much she knew she loved him then, wrapping her arms around him tightly and thanking him as he nervously and stiffly said your welcome to her. She had taken the photo a few months before hand with an old camera she got at a junk sale at one of the trailers down the road. She had learned how to develop the film by an old neighbor of theirs who paid Dorothea to walk his dog. Dorothea had kept this photograph close to her all those years, each night whenever Philip was working she would stare at it for hours, knowing he was the man of her dreams and would always protect her.

This photo was framed simply and sat there among all the others that documented Sapphire's life. Looking at the photo and feeling her heart dully ache, Dorothea turned and walked downstairs to meet her daughter.

Meeting her in the kitchen, Sapphire sat at the long Mexican marble style center island and was in the middle of thanking Gladys their housekeeper as she slid a well stacked pile of pancakes in front of her. Dorothea watched as her daughter drowned them in syrup and chased down three huge bites with a tall glass of milk…all the meanwhile still texting.

Today was Sapphire's 17th birthday. Dorothea had been planning this day for the last couple of months. There would be a pool party. Dorothea had invited fifty of her closest friends from her prep school to come over. Dorothea meanwhile was inviting a few of her own friends, and know more then likely the adults would spend the entire party inside with the central air blasting as they mixed cocktails and gossip.

Looking at her daughter the same overwhelming and almost dangerous feeling of love overcame her. Sitting there was her baby, now beginning to become a beautiful young woman. For a split second she felt very lonely, a feeling she had pushed away with self medicating and focus on Sapphire. The feeling that nearly made her kill herself when she was still pregnant with her. The same feeling that she had gotten even back when Philip was still alive after the first baby…the feeling that Harry had promised would go away within time.

Sighing, she tried to think of something else when the doorbell rang. Sapphire's eyes looked up before Dorothea smiled, knowing right away who it was.

"I have a surprise for you."

"What?"

Sapphire asked, her bangs falling in her eyes making her even more beautiful in this morning light.

"You'll see, come on."

Sliding on stool, Sapphire gave her mother a confused look before following. Walking down the cold marble floors, and towards the front door, Sapphire was nervously smiling.

"I'm not going to open the door and see a brand new car with a bow on it am I?"

Dorothea laughed.

"In your dreams…"

Dorothea then opened the front door, standing there with flowers and sunglasses on was D'Amour. His hair now almost entirely gray. Sapphire's eyes grew huge before she squealed with delight.

"Oh my God!"

Sapphire ran into D'Amour's arms, nearly tackling him before squeezing him tight. D'Amour laughed while Dorothea stood back, her arms crossed and a pleased smile on her face. Sapphire started talking a mile a minute while D'Amour laughed.

A half an hour later, before Sapphire had to go upstairs and dress, the three of them sat in the huge living room on the white plush sofas and D'Amour handed Sapphire a huge brightly wrapped box.

"Picked this up in New York for you…thought you might like it."

Dorothea and him exchanged a look smiling as Sapphire tore the wrapping paper and tissue apart. Within seconds she screamed again.

"Harry! This is amazing!"

Sapphire held up a sea green leather designer bag that looked as though crystals were stitched onto the sides. Dorothea knew right away it was the bag Sapphire had had her eyes on since their last visit. It was also the same bag that had a seven-hundred dollar price tag on it.

Sapphire wrapped her arms around D'Amour, thanking him over and over again. D'Amour smiled telling her he was glad she liked it. Showing it off to her mother, Sapphire never looked so happy. A few minutes later Dorothea saw things were almost finished outside and eyed the clock.

"Your guests are going to start coming, better start getting ready."

Sapphire jumped up, kissing D'Amour on the cheek and thanking him again before running upstairs with her bag and saying something about posting how she got the most amazing gift on her 'wall'. Now alone Dorothea and D'Amour looked at each other and right away laughed. Gladys came in and served coffee as the old grandfather clock in the hallway chimed. Sitting there Dorothea asked how his flight was and D'Amour said fine. They talked a little bit, two old friends who had known each other for a very long time. D'Amour was staying the weekend here and was going to help Dorothea out with the party. Both laughed a few times, catching up until D'Amour stared down at his coffee cup and sighed.

Dorothea sat forward on the sofa.

"What is it?"

"If I tell you…your going to have to promise not to get upset."

Dorothea nervously smiled.

"Of course, what is it?"

D'Amour stared at his hands for a few seconds before meeting Dorothea's eyes.

"I had a dream last night…a dream about him."