Hey everyone! A new chapter is up so enjoy! :) Sorry for the hold up, i've been at my lake house for the last two weeks where we get no internet so i couldn't update until now...
I decided to add in some moments with Jane and Klaus so i hope you like them! :)
Anyways, as usual, R&R!
Chapter 3: Life In Squalor
Life at the penthouse was going quite smoothly for me. In the mornings, Esmé had to leave for work so Jerome would take us out around the city. The city was the Baudelaire's hometown and so they liked to revisit some of their favorite places. We went to Violet's favorite place, the Verne Invention Museum. She was excited to see that the museum's exhibits hadn't changed much. I even found myself enjoying all the cool inventions. Sunny liked to visit the Pincus Hospital where she was born. Klaus took us to the Akhmatova Bookstore. When we entered the small, but cozy bookstore, where I realized I had purchased a cookbook, Klaus was beaming with excitement as if we were at Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory rather than a typical bookstore. It made me smile too.
One day we were looking at all the hundreds of books stocked on shelves, stretching up towards the ceiling. I followed Klaus over to the encyclopedias. I picked one off the shelf and ran my fingers along the smooth surface. I weighed the book in my palm, feeling the heaviness of it.
"These books are huge," I said, "how do you manage to read such a big book?"
"The same way you managed to read The Host," Klaus muttered, chuckling.
His referral to Stephenie Meyer's very long book, The Host, made me laugh too. I put the heavy book back in the spot I'd taken it from. I moved down the row of books until I found the fiction section. I felt Klaus tap me on the shoulder and I turned to see him holding two of those encyclopedias.
"Can I show you something?" he asked.
"What is it?" I asked, "Did you find something interesting in one of those books?"
"I haven't opened them yet so no," Klaus said, "it's something else. Follow me."
Klaus walked towards the back of the bookstore, past rows and rows of fresh books waiting to be read. I followed him and when we got to the end, Klaus reached out and pushed against the wall. It opened like a door. As I looked more closely, I realized that it had been a door, sort of like a secret door. Behind the door was a small, carpeted staircase.
Klaus began to climb it, his pace quickening. I bounded up after him. He reached the top and disappeared into a room above. When I finally reached the last step, I looked up at my surroundings. More bookshelves lined the walls, but what made the room so special weren't the books. For around the room were groups of large comfy red chairs, cute little wooden tables, and some beanbags.
I looked around the room for Klaus. I found him sitting in a small alcove in one of the corners. A window seat had been built near the alcove and I sat down on the soft red cushion someone had laid on top of it. Two golden pillows were placed on either side.
From where I sat, I gazed down at the city. I hadn't realized we were so high up. Of course, the view and height was nothing compared to the Squalor's penthouse but the window did give a good view of the baby, blue sky and the bright sun, shining down at us like a jewel.
"Is this what you wanted to show me?" I asked Klaus.
Klaus nodded. "Do you like it?"
"Yeah," I said, "it's nice and cozy. I think I could curl up with a good book right now."
"My dad used to take me here a lot," Klaus said, "It was our special treat. He liked to bring me up here and read for a little bit. He liked to sit right where you're sitting right now. Sometimes he would read to me, sometimes I would read to him, or sometimes we read silently to ourselves. Either way, I had a good time. After he would buy me an atlas or an encyclopedia." Klaus stared at his feet, shifting them ever so slightly.
Klaus' recalling the importance of this place gave me a weird feeling. I felt as if I was intruding on something by being in here. This place was clearly made for memories between Klaus and his father when he was alive. It also made me wonder why he wanted to bring me here. Why not Violet or Sunny? Surely, they had more memories with Klaus in this place than I ever will.
Klaus looked up then, and shook his head as if trying to clear it. "Sorry," he said.
"Don't be. It's okay to be sad," I said, giving him a small smile, "I don't mind it when people cry, though, sometimes it makes me cry too."
Klaus just smiled as tears glazed over his eyes. He blinked and a tear escaped down his cheek. I got up from where I was sitting and walked over to the alcove. I sat down beside him, taking his hand, and wrapping a comforting arm around him. Klaus let a few more tears escape and I stayed by his side while he let out the sorrow that was probably a burden to him. Sometimes I teared up when I thought about my own parents, but it was different because I didn't have many memories of them. Still, seeing Klaus cry made a few tears pour down my cheeks too.
"I'm really glad you're with us," Klaus said, wiping his eyes after a while, "It's bad enough that Olaf kidnapped the Quagmires. If he had gotten you again, I—"
"It's okay, Klaus," I said. The last thing I wanted was for Klaus to waste his time worrying about me. "Don't worry, I escaped, didn't I? So there's no reason to dwell on the past. Now, we need to focus on rescuing the Quagmires. Olaf might still be on our tails, if he isn't put to a stop in the process, but at least we'll be together. Then, we can work on trying to find out what V.F.D. means. Besides, he won't get me again." I said, though I wasn't sure if I really believed that was true, "He can't just snatch me since I'm never usually by myself anywhere except for when we're in the penthouse but he won't be able to get in even if he tried without Esmé or Jerome stopping him. And if he tries to bribe me by threatening you or making more promises like last time, I'll know not to listen."
"Good," Klaus whispered.
"You were the one who told me not to worry," I added, cocking my eyebrows.
"I know," Klaus said, "but it doesn't mean that I still don't worry about it happening."
"Well, it's not going to," I said. I was going to say 'I promise' but I held back my words. I didn't want to make a promise that might just be broken.
In the afternoons, we hung out around the enormous penthouse apartment. The penthouse apartment was as enormous as it was at first glance. As great as it was to have a big home with lots of room, it was also a bit of a nuisance since it was easy to get lost. I would leave my room to play the piano or use the bathroom and not be able to find my way back. Klaus had a habit of putting his glasses down on the kitchen counter but he could never remember which kitchen. So he would sometimes alert me if I was nearby and we would spend the entire afternoon trying to find them.
"If this keeps happening," I said, after we found them again the second time it happened, "I'm going to have to call you Velma."
"Like from Scooby Doo?" Klaus asked, amused.
"Who else?" I said, "She always loses her glasses. If I don't call you Velma, then we'll at least have to duct tape or super glue them to your nose."
Klaus laughed. "I'll try to not lose them again."
Not only was the penthouse an easy place to get lost in, the Baudelaires and I were constantly worried about the Quagmires. We knew they were enduring much worse. It didn't seem fair that we were living in such a luxurious home while the Quagmires were living in Olaf's home and probably doing chores. I just hoped they listened to me and went to find Monty Kensicle. At least, he would be of some help, if they needed it.
Otherwise, things were going smoothly, for me, at least. For the Baudelaires they found themselves really bored. Violet had the room with the bench, which was great for keeping tools, except she didn't have any tools. The penthouse didn't even have a pair of pliers. Esmé explained to Violet that tools were out. Sunny had the room in between Violet and Klaus, but she had nothing to bite. The only toys she was given were much too soft for her four, very sharp teeth. Klaus was even bored of the nice library near his bedroom. When I asked he told me the only books in it were about fashion.
I didn't encounter many problems with the piano near my bedroom. However, Esmé strictly told me that I wasn't allowed to play classical music, especially Mozart, Beethoven, or Bach. When I asked why, she said that she had to go and would explain it later. By the time later came, I'd moved on to other things and didn't bother asking again.
So in the afternoons, I would sit on the bench of the Squalor's grand Steinway piano and play all my favorite tunes. The only problem was that the Squalor's didn't have a lot of songbooks so I could only play songs that I knew off by heart and maybe the choruses of songs I didn't know too well. Klaus liked to sit with me sometimes and listen. I even taught him the chords and a few easy songs I knew. He was disappointed that I was banned from playing classical music since he wanted to learn how to play Mozart's 14th symphony. It was the only symphony of Mozart's that I learned. Though, I did know a few of Beethoven's quartets.
"I haven't heard you sing in a while," Klaus said, suddenly as I was playing the first bar to 'How To Save A Life' by the Fray.
"Are you trying to get me to sing?" I asked, cocking my head.
"Maybe," Klaus said, sheepishly.
"Alright fine," I said, unable to refuse. I felt like I owed Klaus, since, he helped with my Company performance to make me look and sound as best as I could. I also felt guilty, since I'd been so caught up with Christina and Kate.
I stopped playing the previous song and instead launched into Keep Holding On by Avril Lavigne:
"You're not alone
Together we stand
I'll be by your side, you know I'll take your hand
When it gets cold
And it feels like the end
There's no place to go
You know I won't give in
No I won't give in
Keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Just stay strong
'Cause you know I'm here for you, I'm here for you
There's nothing you could say
Nothing you could do
There's no other way when it comes to the truth
So keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
So far away
I wish you were here
Before it's too late, this could all disappear
Before the doors close
And it comes to an end
With you by my side I will fight and defend
I'll fight and defend
Yeah, yeah
Keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Just stay strong
'Cause you know I'm here for you, I'm here for you
There's nothing you could say
Nothing you could do
There's no other way when it comes to the truth
So keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Hear me when I say, when I say I believe
Nothing's gonna change, nothing's gonna change destiny
Whatever's meant to be will work out perfectly
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
La da da da
La da da da
La da da da da da da da da
Keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Just stay strong
'Cause you know I'm here for you, I'm here for you
There's nothing you could say
Nothing you could do
There's no other way when it comes to the truth
So keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through
Keep holding on
Keep holding on
There's nothing you could say
Nothing you could do
There's no other way when it comes to the truth
So keep holding on
'Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through…"
I finished playing and we both were wearing smiles on our faces. Despite the Quagmires being in Olaf's clutches still and the fact that the penthouse was incredibly huge, we couldn't help but smile as this moment took away all our misery for just a few moments. I hadn't realized how much I missed spending times like this with Klaus.
A few weeks went by and despite some of our issues, i managed to stay in good spirits here. The Squalors were very nice gardians, though, Esmé wasn't around all the time. Sometimes she insulted us or acted rudely toward us, but it was always with good intentions...I think. One time I was playing the Squalors' piano by myself and when I looked up from the keyboard, I saw Esmé Squalor standing in the doorway as if she'd been listening. She held an aqueous martini in her right hand and smiled when I glanced at her.
"Hello, Esmé," I said, adjusting my skirt.
"What were you playing?" she asked, coming over to sit beside me on the piano bench.
"Someone Like You," I said, my cheeks turned slightly pink, "by Adele."
Esmé frowned. "I don't know that song," she said.
"Don't worry," I said, quickly, "It's not classical music."
"Oh, I know that," Esmé said, she ran her hands along the keys, "I used to play the piano all the time when I was your age. In fact, I was quite the actress too. I performed in tons of theatrical shows."
"Really?" I said, brightening, "That's really cool."
Esmé smiled so I could see all her straight, pearly, white teeth and her eyes twinkled. I noticed her eyes were blue like the sea with flecks of green. Her dark brown hair hung around her face in an elegant way.
"You have the prettiest hair," Esmé said, pushing my hair back behind my shoulders, "I used to have hair just like yours when I was a little girl and I spent hours brushing it. It seems we have many things in common, right?"
I nodded.
"Which is why I wanted to ask you something," Esmé continued.
"Okay," I said, when she didn't speak again.
"There's an In Auction coming up this week," she said, "and tonight an auctioneer is going to come over here for a little meeting. Of course, I'm the innest person on this street so he wants to go over the items with me. I've told him all about you children and he wants one of you to join us. You're probably the most fashionable out of all you orphans and I was wondering if you would accompany us."
"Me?" I said, "Are you sure?"
Esmé nodded. "Of course, since you've been an orphan all your life it's been difficult for you to properly follow fashion trends," she said, "that's why I'm glad I became your guardian so I could show you how to be stylish. In fact, I know just the thing to really get you on track with fashion. I've got a little present for you. I'll be right back."
She got up and hurried from the room. Esmé appeared again a few minutes later carrying a shopping bag with the words, In Boutique,scrawled on it in fancy letters. Then she reached inside and pulled out an outfit including a blazer, pants, and a pair of black classy shoes with a closed toe and a small pointy heel.
"It's a pinstripe suit," Esmé said, excitedly. She held up the clothes so I could see them better. "I couldn't bear to have you going around in such out clothes."
I reminded myself that Esmé was right, no matter how harsh it sounded. So instead of getting upset at Esmé, I smiled broadly.
"Thank you, Esmé," I said, "That was very kind of you."
Esmé smiled and handed them to me. "Why don't you go and try them on?" she asked, "I was thinking you could wear it for tonight." She lifted up the shoes and I took them too.
I hurried to my bedroom and put on the blazer and the pants. They didn't fit me perfectly; they were at least two sizes too big, but it wasn't too much of a big deal. I tried on the shoes next and wobbled as I took a few small steps forward.
I came out of my bedroom and found Esmé waiting outside. She came over and adjusted my outfit a bit, smoothing down the collar. Then she led me over to a mirror.
"Look how in you look," Esmé pointed to my reflection. Despite the outfit being big and maybe a little too professional looking for a kid, I had to admit, I didn't look too bad. I spun around to look at every inch of it.
"It's great, Esmé," I said, "I really like it. Thank you very much."
Esmé looked thrilled.
"And you'll wear it tonight to help with the In Auction?" Esmé asked.
"Okay," I said, "but what about the Baudelaires?"
"They'll be fine," Esmé said, "I've arranged for them to go to dinner with Jerome at Café Salmonella. Besides, they probably aren't really interested in fashion."
I shrugged. "I guess so," I said, "well, thanks again."
"Alright," Esmé said, "Now, if you don't mind, I've got to start preparing dinner for tonight."
"Can I help with anything?" I asked, politely.
"Actually," Esmé said, "I was thinking you could give the Baudelaires their own pinstripe suits to put on."
"Of course," I said, "I'll be back as soon as possible."
"And why don't you get them to put on the other suits?" Esmé asked.
"Alright," I said, and went off to find the others.
"Hey Klaus," I singsonged as I knocked on his bedroom door.
I heard him going to answer the door and I quickly put on my best professional look. The door swung open and Klaus was hit with a wave of bewilderment. Then, he smiled, looking amused.
"Why are you wearing that, Jane?" Klaus asked, chuckling to himself, "I had no idea you liked to wear pinstripe suits."
"I'm wearing it because it's in, obviously," I said, faking a scoff, "and it looks smashing." I placed my hands firmly on my hips. Then, I smiled sheepishly. "Ever since Esmé used that word, I've been waiting for an excuse to use it myself."
Klaus chuckled. "Well, you sound like Esmé," he muttered.
"She's the one who bought it for me," I said, "And look." I reached for the shopping bags that I had placed outside the door. "She got them for you, Violet, and Sunny, too." I handed him the bag. "Go try it on."
"Alright," Klaus said, holding the bag like it was going to bite him. "Though I kind of wish it was a book." He closed the door to his bedroom I waited outside while he changed.
When he came out wearing the pinstripe suit identical to mine except the cut was a little different., I couldn't hold back my laughter. The suit was so big that it covered his hands and went past his feet.
"Whoa, Klaus," I kidded, "I didn't ask you to make your arms and legs disappear. You look like you're skiing."
Klaus looked at himself and cracked a grin.
"I do," he said, laughing at himself, "except my skis are made out of cotton rather than aluminum alloy. How come mine is so much bigger than yours?"
"I have no clue," I said, "my suit is at least two sizes too big but I didn't really make too big of a deal out of it. I can't expect Esmé to know my exact size. But now that your suit is…well…huge, I think Esmé forgot that we aren't adult sized."
Klaus sighed. "Maybe I'll just roll the sleeves up," he said, beginning to roll up the cuffs on his sleeves and then, decided to do the same to his pant legs.
"How do I look?" he asked.
"Redonculous," I said, winking.
Klaus gave me that same half-odd, half-amused look. "I don't think that word is in the dictionary. I've read the entire dictionary and never came across that word once."
Now it was my turn to give him a half-odd, half-amused glance. "You've read the entire dictionary?" My eyes were wide. Klaus looked down, embarrassed, his cheeks turning red. "Don't be embarrassed," I said quickly, "I actually find it interesting."
"Really?" Klaus asked, brightening. I wasn't lying, either. At first, it sounded like an odd thing to do, but Klaus wasn't an ordinary person and that was one of the reasons why I liked him.
"Yeah," I said, "I've never meant anyone who's ever done that before. I guess I should've known since you know so many big words. Anyways, we should probably go break the news to Violet and Sunny."
"I think they're both in Violet's room," Klaus said.
"Come on then." I grabbed the other two bags and we hurried to Violet's room. Klaus knocked on the door.
"Make your best pose," I told him, quickly, as we waited, "Hurry."
Klaus gave me yet another mixed glance but posed with his hand on his chin, deep in thought. "Like a lawyer," he whispered to me. So I placed my hands on my hips and tossed my hair back to pretend that I was a big movie star. I mimed putting on sunglasses and put my best haughty look on my face.
Violet opened the door and Sunny was behind her. When they saw us, they wore the same expression as Klaus did when he saw me earlier. Then, they cracked grins and started chuckling. At that, Klaus and I exploded into laughter too.
"What are you two doing?" Violet asked when we stopped laughing.
"Pipia," Sunny said, which meant, "Why are you wearing those outfits?"
"Esmé bought pinstripe suits for all of us," I explained. I lifted up the two shopping bags.
"Klaus's suit is huge," Violet said.
"I had to roll up my sleeves and pants," Klaus said, "but I think they're all big like this."
"Oh, my," Violet said.
"Esmé told me you were supposed to wear them tonight," I continued to explain.
"We'll wear them, I guess," Violet said, "but I hope she'll take us to get them tailored, at least."
Violet and Sunny went back into their rooms to change into their suits, while Klaus and I waited outside. When they came back out, their suits were just as big as Klaus's. Violet's fit her better than Klaus, since she was at least four feet taller. Still, she had to roll up the pant legs and cuffs. Sunny was probably the worst. Her suit was so big that she looked like she was a lump in the carpet.
"How can we wear these to dinner," Violet said, staring down at herself, "when we can barely move in these? Even rolling up our sleeves and pant legs don't really help."
I shrugged. "There isn't much we can do," I said, "maybe Esmé and Jerome will clear it up when we see them. They want us in the living room as usual."
So we went to meet Jerome and Esmé in the living room for drinking aqueous martinis and discussing tonight's events. Esmé told the Baudelaires, and apparently, Jerome too, about the upcoming In Auction. She explained that the Baudelaires were to go out to dinner tonight with Jerome at Café Salmonella and I was going to stay here. The Baudelaires were reluctant to go and leave me here, and Jerome wasn't too comfortable with the idea. However, Jerome didn't want to argue with Esmé so he agreed. Esmé ordered us to get ready for tonight. Since the Baudelaires and I were both ready, we decided to wait for the Squalor's at the front door.
That was when I had an idea...
We borrowed a camera from Jerome. It was an old Polaroid camera that produced the photos right away, though we would have to wait for a few minutes for the pictures to show. Esmé didn't want us using a new camera so we had to stick with the old one since it was less expensive and we wouldn't have to go to a store to get the photos afterwards.
We only had a few minutes to take photos so we took it to the front door and placed it on a table across from the front door. We set the timer and took our places for a group picture. First, we took a nice photo with all of us, though; it was hard to get something truly 'nice' because of our outfits. But we didn't mind it. After taking two with all four of us, we took two more of just the Baudelaires. Then, Violet took the camera and took a few pictures of me. After taking a full-length photo of me, she took two close ups. Finally, we decided to take a group goofy photo.
"Gangster poses!" I cried and I took the hat Jerome had lent us. I place it on my head and then popped my collar. Violet and Klaus stood on either side of me with their arms crossed and making the stereotypical gangster sign with their hands. Sunny sat in the front-center position and crossed her arms, too.
Click, the camera snapped a photo once and then twice. Violet collected the photos and put them on table to dry. We studied the other photos while we waited for the rest of them to clear.
"I like this one," Klaus said, pointing to the one of the close-up pictures of me.
"Really?" I said. I didn't really agree with him though. I thought my face looked too pale, probably from the lighting or the resolution of the camera. I didn't usually have pale skin, instead, it was just medium-toned. My golden, blonde hair looked dull and I had dark circles under my eyes.
I haven't slept well since before the fire that almost killed me in that shack. I keep having endless nightmares. Before I was thrown into this mess, my nightmares were only filled with replays of that night when Carmelita tried to kill me. Those dreams were more peaceful than the nightmares I have now. All of them have to do with Count Olaf and with each new location and scheme, they keep getting worse. Now, they're the worst they've been so far ever since I escaped during our time at Prufrock Prep.
"This one looks good," I said, pointing to the group photo that was meant to be 'nice'. Except, our suits made us look almost like we were doing some kind of Vaudeville show. It was probably as good as it could get though.
"I think they all look great, please," A raspy voice, adjusted with some accent came from behind us.
The voice caused a chill to run up my spine as if someone had dropped ice down the back of my shirt. It felt like all the air had left my lungs and I was struggling to breathe properly.
I squeezed my eyes shut. 'No,' I kept thinking, 'Not now. Not while I'm happy.' I'd known ever since he swore it back at Prufrock Prep that he would return. As much as I tried to convince myself it wouldn't happen, I knew that when he did return, his scheme would get me back in his clutches somehow and then…I didn't want to think about it…every time I did it made me shudder and I broke into a nervous sweat.
In my nightmare, I was always running somewhere, being chased by him, and then, he'd gain on me. Sometimes I wasn't running, but hiding. He would stalk the place I was hiding in, knowing I was there. At the end of those dreams, I would wake up just as he grabbed me. But I realized, that this was worse than any of those nightmares. It was much, much worse, because it was real. I couldn't wake up from this nightmare.
I opened my eyes and slowly turned to face the person I feared most, staring down at us with those shiny, shiny eyes.
Guess who it is? Count Olaf of course is back which is bad news for Jane and the Baudelaires.
Also, i kind of have some bad news because i won't be able to update for the next three weeks because i'm going to camp :(
But i promise to update as soon as i get back!
