4. Chloe the Terrible
It's been a little over two weeks since we have stayed in Paris. I think we have made a schedule.
Almost every mornings everyone eats together, Mom and Gabriel leave together, usually accompanied by Nathalie. Adrien has a bit of free time before he is whisked away by Gilles to do several things that are part of his schedule.
Either way, I accompany Adrien since I literally have nothing else to do.
Chinese takes place on Monday. The tutor allows me to help them by adding into the conversation and helping Adrien with pronunciation. I spend my time practicing my Chinese calligraphy. However, the tutor makes Adrien have full conversations in Chinese with me so that he could see his process. (He sees me as a natural native speaker. I would be lying if it didn't stroke my ego and made me blush at the same time.)
Basketball takes place on Wednesday. It's not as fun as I hoped. Adrien has a personal coach and he is the only one practicing. He has the whole court to himself. Though, I did joined him in this week since I brought my sport clothes that consists of my old school's gym shorts and an old t-shirt that was two sizes bigger than me, and of course, with my only pair of Nike shoes.
Adrien doesn't look like he has muscles, but damn is that boy fit. Never imagined he was developing a six pack. It's not as pronounced, but it's still there and noticeable. He was giving me a run for my money as we were trying to take the ball from each other.
It was a tie by the end of our little game.
Fencing takes place on Friday. Now, that's a class that I like to join. D'Argencourt is actually a really great teacher. He one of the few teachers that teaches well and thoroughly and continues to challenge them as there is always room for improvement. He actually reminded me of Master Shifu, but less old and taller.
Adrien invited me to practice with him since his usual sparring partner was out. I put on the fencing gear and when I got out, Adrien gave me a foil, the sword. He explained to me the rules and I caught on quickly.
D'Argencourt allowed Adrien to teach me since it will also help Adrien. I think he was thinking about how if you teach someone, then it will help you learn as well. Something along those lines. I don't remember the saying.
Though, Adrien did beat me in fencing, but I made him work for it. There's just something about using one hand that makes me feel unbalanced. I use dual swords just for the reason so that both my hands are being used. When I use my Bo staff, I use both of my hands as well. It just feels different when I am only holding one thing in my hand when fighting.
But overall, it was a great learning experience.
D'Argencourt actually praised me for lasting as long as I did for being a beginner. He said that he sees potential in me and was wondering if I could officially join his class.
I told him I would think about it.
That was yesterday.
Today though is a fun day. We just came back from a photo shoot in some garden park. I busied myself with going over my French. I'm proud to say that I am getting better. No way fluent yet, but I will get there eventually.
"Ready to swim?" I ask Adrien as I come out of the dressing stall that he has in his back yard.
Both of Adrien's yards are huge, though the back yard is definitely bigger.
The pool reminds me so much of the pool that shows in the High School Musical 2 movie, waterfall included. It's gorgeous. Next to the pool, there are two stalls where you could change clothes and there are towels inside. How thoughtful.
Next to the pool there is a large white wooden gazebo that has red rose bushes growing just outside of it. Two willow trees are beside the gazebo, giving it a tranquil effect on it. Then a little further, the tree closer to the entrance of the French doors leading outside, there is a metal patio table with a large white umbrella over it, providing shade.
Then behind the gazebo, there's a large square space of concrete that have lamp posts every ten feet. Adrien told me that is where parties are hosted when the weather in nice. (He also mentioned that parties are very, very, rare.) Surrounding the concrete it has large bushes that are trimmed to be flat and be as high as the walls that surround the mansion.
It just reminds me that this house is like a cage. I try not to think about it too much or I will have nightmares.
"Heck yeah!" Adrien says as he is already outside waiting for me in his blue and white swim trunks. He then stays quite as he takes another look at me with wide eyes.
"Like what you see?" I tease as I raise my hands and put them behind my head. I'm wearing a modest black bikini along with a baby blue sarong wrapped on my hips.
Adrien blushes as he looks away and rubs the back of his neck. "You look really good in that." He says shyly.
I am no stranger when guys take a second look at me to check me out. I work out and I have a slim hour glass body because of it. Though I do wish my breasts were a little smaller. They get in the way when I try to squeeze into places. Being cup 'C' is not that great…
However, when he looks at me again, his eyes travel to my stomach.
He frowns and points to where my scars are.
"When did you get that?" He asks, his blush completely gone as his eyes show worry.
I ghost my fingers on the three raised bumps at are located at the lower left of my belly. They are two inches in length and two centimeters wide.
"Years ago," I answer simply as I frown at the reminder. "Anyways, we are here to swim and have fun." I told him. I smirk and touch his shoulder and yell, "Not it!"
I ran away laughing, taking off my sarong before jumping into the deep side of the pool.
I could feel and hear as Adrien jumps behind me. I risk taking a look behind me and I see his eyes narrowed in determination as he quickly swims to me.
Internally I smirk and swim faster and went to the shallow part of the pool. I touch the edge and got my head out of the water. When I stand up, the water reaches just below my bust. Looking ahead, I see Adrien floating just a few meters away, pouting.
"I win!" I say cheekily.
He pouts for a while, before he chuckles as he swims towards me at a more relaxed pace.
He stands in front of me a foot away from me and looks at me impressed. "You have a pair of strong lungs."
"Yes, I do. I can hold my breath for five minutes. I've been training." I state proudly.
"Wow, that's amazing. I could barely hold it for a minute."
"Lungs of a singer, hon. You'll be amazed how difficult it is to sing opera, Celine Dion, and Whitney Huston. Just to name a few." I say as I stretch my arms above me. "Up for some racing?"
"Oh, you're on!"
"I definitely want to learn how hold my breath longer." Adrien states as we are now both out of the pool and drying ourselves.
"It's only a matter of practice, but I can give you some lung exercises. That's how I did it anyways." I inform with a shrug.
"How long did it take you do hold your breath for that long?"
"Several years," I reply quickly. "I'm going to take a shower. Pool chlorine is not good for your hair." I frown as went towards the stall where my clothes are.
"I'll be doing the same. I have to take care of my image as a model or else Father would be disappointed." I hear him say as he went to the stall next to me.
"Oh no, Adrien," I start, trying really hard not to smirk as I see his confused expression. "I know that we are best friends, but we are not going to share the shower."
"I-I didn't mean it like that! I swear!" Adrien yells. I can imagine his blushing face right now.
"Hahaha, you are too easy to tease, my friend!" I exclaim.
"Hey, I can tease back you know!"
"I want to hear you try then. But just letting you know, I already have experience. The boys back home love to tease me and I learned not to be flustered. So you got competition to beat, hon." I say almost sassily.
"I will try my best," I heard him say this time with less confidence. I smirk as I continue to dress into my dry clothes.
We both got out and we head inside saying that we will meet each other in the living room. I wonder if we could swim tomorrow. But Adrien has a photo shoot tomorrow and I don't know how long that will take. Eh, if we have time I can suggest it, if not then I will have to come up with another thing to entertain myself or the both of us. Lord knows that I don't particular like to be sitting around doing nothing productive with my day.
"Where do you want to eat? Inside the house or we can do a picnic in the garden." I suggest as I finally see him in the living room.
"Uh… the chef isn't here until dinner today." Adrien informs.
"That's okay, I know how to cook." I state smugly. "I worked in a restaurant before."
"You were a chef there?" He asks amazed.
"Ah, no. I was a waitress. But Mr. Ping, the owner and the chef is a dear friend of Mom and me, allowed Po, his son and my best friend, to teach me some recipes. Plus, Mom is a great cook herself. She learned a lot of homemade recipes from Grandma." I rambled a bit.
"Oh that's cool. What type of restaurant did you work?" Adrien asks curious as he sits down and pats the seat beside him.
"In a Chinese Noodle shop." I answer with a grin. "I have some pictures in my photo albums if you want to see them. I don't mind." I shrug.
"Is that where you learned Chinese?"
"No, I learned Chinese way before then." I say as I then stand up wanting to change the subject. "So, what's it going to be? Inside or outside?"
"I haven't eaten in the backyard for a long while…" He trails off, his face contorting into something somber. Calling this a hunch, but I have a feeling that it has to do with something with his parents. I haven't see Mrs. Agreste, but I know she is a pretty lady. Gabriel has a beautiful portrait of her in his office. And she does look a lot like his son. They share the same gorgeous eyes.
I don't have the heart to ask Adrien where is she. He has never mentioned her, but there is a picture of both of them smiling, nailed above his desk. I know that he loves her and that she loves him. That's all the information I got.
If Adrien wants to tell me, then it will be on his own time. I might even tell him about my Dad if I have gotten to trust him that much.
The crew, Master Shifu and Mr. Ping know about Dad because I trust them and there are my friends. Adrien is a friend, but he is still not one of my closest friends yet.
"I want to eat outside, if you don't mind." Adrien finally answers as he gives me a small smile.
"Okay, come with me to the kitchen. You can help me if you want." I state as I walk towards the kitchen.
Yeah, I now know how to get to places inside the mansion. Mom is almost getting there.
"Oh yeah, I can do that." Adrien says happily as he keeps up with me.
"I'm done with the lemonade. Adrien, could you set the table please?" I ask as I start putting our food in two trays.
"Sure, do you need more help?"
"Nah, I got this. Remember that I was a waitress. I can handle this no problem." I state a bit haughtily in a joking tone. "What are you waiting for? I'm getting hungry." I say as I balance the trays expertly in my hands.
"Okay okay, you get bossy you know that?" He teases as he carries the utensils.
"Oh you don't know the half of it. I get all bossy when it comes to team work and stuff like that." I say as Adrien opens the door for me.
"Oh, for example?"
"Soccer for one. When I play I make sure my team wins." I smirk. "I'm quite competitive."
"I've noticed." He says dryly.
We both chuckle at the same time and calm down after a few seconds. It was silent after that and when we finally arrive at the patio tables, I carefully set the trays down.
"I'm going to get the lemonade. Can you set the table?" I ask again, just to make sure.
"I can manage." He answers. I nod and I quickly scurry to the kitchen, grab the glass jar of the freshly made lemonade and walk out.
However, I stand a little dumb founded when I see a blonde girl, wearing too much makeup (in my books) eating my chicken sandwich. I was gone for one minute...
Who the hell does she think she is?!
Wait, calm down, Samara. It could just be a misunderstanding. Plus, Adrien looks a little flustered. Clearly he needs some help.
Who the heck is she?
"Ahem, ex-"
"Oh, you are finally here with the drinks. Took you long enough. Now give me another sandwich once you get back to the kitchen, maid." The girl says too quickly in French that I barely caught what she was saying.
I frown and was about to say something as I put the lemonade down, but Adrien beats me to it.
"Chloe, she is not a worker here. She's my friend so please do not treat her like that." He says firmly.
"Yeah, and that sandwich was not for you." I state with a frown. "And I am not making one for you." I add.
"Whatever," She says clearly in a dismissing manner to me. "Adrikins, I didn't know she was your friend." She says in an 'innocent' tone to him.
I really don't like her already.
"Well, now you know. Samara is a really good friend to me." He says and faces me with the puppy dog eyes. "I'm sorry about the sandwich. You can have mine instead. I know that you are hungry."
"It's okay, I can make myself another one. I'll be right back. Entertain your…"
"Friend," He says after a second of hesitance.
I nod and leave. So, she is not really a friend, but she is. I think this girl is the only person around his age that he has interacted with, besides me. Why is she here though?
Tch, I shouldn't be nosy.
It took me about ten minutes to wait since I had to cook the chicken again, get out the rest of the ingredients and put them back.
I grabbed a plate and took it with me. However, I sighed and stopped and grabbed a bowl and fill it with fresh fruit and took it with me.
Mom taught me manners and it's considered rude to be eating when the other person isn't. I may not like Chloe, but I'm not petty enough to forget my manners.
When I got outside, Adrien was serving Chloe a glass of lemonade.
I put the fruit in front of her and I took the empty seat next to Adrien. Chloe is sitting at his other side.
I see the plate in front of Adrien and see that he still hasn't eaten his sandwich. It must have gotten cooler by now.
"I didn't order this," She huffs at me with a frown.
"I know. Where I come from it's considered polite to offer visitors food when it's their lunch time. Since you already ate mine and asked for another, I assumed that you were still hungry. So I got you some fruit instead. It's good for you." I inform with a faux smile at her.
Discreetly without Adrien noticing, I switched my sandwich for his. My skills in theft are no way rusty.
"That was very thoughtful of you, Sam." Adrien says with a smile. "What do you say, Chloe?"
She frowns at me, but then she smiles at Adrien, "Thanks."
Before he could say anything else I interrupt, "I'm hungry so let's eat." With that said, I took a bite out of the sandwich. Yeah, just as I thought. It's a little cool, but still tasty.
In the corner of my eye, I see Adrien looking at me after he takes a bite of his sandwich. He was about to say something, but I wink at him and continue eating the sandwich.
"So, Samara," Chloe drawls, "You come from America. Adrien mentioned it." She says quickly.
"Yeah, that's correct." I answer.
"What part do you come from? Hollywood, New York?"
"San Francisco." I answer.
"Then why are you here in Paris?" She asks rudely.
"My mom got a job in Paris to work with Mr. Agreste in his company." I answer simply. "I just came along with her."
"What about your dad? Where is he?" Then she asks immediately, "Are your parents divorced?"
My eyes narrow and I was about the stand up from my chair, but I hold back, take a deep breath and say calmly, "That is none of your business."
"Okaaaayyyyy, so how is your summer going, Chloe? I know that you don't have school since you're on vacation." Adrien changes subjects to keep the peace.
And that was all it took to make Chloe talk as she eats an apple. Adrien and I are quiet as she goes on about how she went to Disney, the one in Paris of course, and then she went to the beach with her friend Sabrina, and shopping. A lot of shopping.
I served lemonade on Adrien's cup and passed it to him. He was about to take a sip, but then he hands it to me. I shake my head.
He still gives it to me and puts it in my hands. I sigh quietly and take a few gulps. I grab a napkin and clean where I drank and give it to Adrien.
He takes it and drinks from it. Chloe is still talking about herself as she goes on her phone going through pictures. She shows a picture of her in the beach wearing a one piece yellow swimsuit that I'm surprised that it is somewhat modest. Shows some cleavage, but not a lot. She doesn't have boobs that big enough to show the cleavage that I can. Though, that is something that I am not proud of…
Eventually she stops talking about herself and asks Adrien if he would go out with her tomorrow.
"I would love to Chloe, but I have a busy schedule tomorrow." He replies sheepishly. Huh, he's not that bad of a liar. But as a liar myself, I know when to spot one.
"Aw, that's too bad." She pouts believing it. "Well, are you busy later today, Adrikins?"
"Actually, yeah. I had a free morning. Gilles should be back soon to pick me up." He lies again. Dude, Gilles in the house watching the security tapes.
"Oh darn, I should have come here earlier." She huffs a bit angrily. "We could have hanged out in the pool in our swimsuits." When she said the last sentence, she was totally checking out Adrien and I could almost certainly say that she was thinking of Adrien shirtless.
I am a girl. I can somewhat tell what another girl is thinking. To some extent of course.
"It's okay, Chloe. I can go to your house for your birthday and hang out if you want to. I know that it's coming up." He says gently as he sees Chloe's 'sad' face. Now, he's feels regret for lying. Yep, he's falls for crocodile tears.
Oh so fast she becomes happy again. "Yay! Thank you Adrikins!" She says as she hugs him tightly around his neck. "I was planning to invite you to my birthday party anyway."
"That's nice to hear." He answers as he gently pushes her away from the hug. "Where is it going to be?"
"Here's the invite." She says as she takes out a sunny yellow envelope from her Channel purse. "There's all the information. Oh and dress formally. Daddy's business partners are coming over to my party." She states proudly. She phones rings and she quickly stands up and answers.
It's her dad. We are silent as Chloe finishes talking to her dad. "I expect to see you there!" She exclaims as she starts walking out.
Adrien quickly stands up and follows her to lead her outside.
I sigh and followed them a few meters behind them to give them more privacy.
When they are just at the main entrance and Chloe is about to get into the fancy black car Adrien asks, "Can I invite someone to go with me to your party?"
"Sure, sure. Sorry, Adrikins, but I got to go." She says hurriedly while texting. "Bye!" She waves at him with a smile and he closes the door for her.
Soon the car drives out of the property and I stare at Adrien. "You are such a horrible liar." I bluntly say. "Why did you lie?" I press, already knowing the answer.
He winces as he leads me inside and to the living room. "I- Chloe- she…" He sighs in defeat.
"Chloe is not the friendliest of people." I state matter-of-factly. "And I said that in the nicest way possible."
My blond friend just groans as he slumps down to the couch. "I know she is not perfect, but she is the only other friend that I have. I can't just… ignore her." He sighs.
"That's very noble of you." I finally say as I put a hand on his shoulder and pat it a few times. "I can understand where you're coming from. It's like the same thing with annoying family members."
"Oh, how come?" He asks curiously. Adrien always gets interested when I talk about my personal life. Or really anything about me. He thinks that my life is interesting. Though, I do agree that some parts of my life are, but others not so much.
"Well, I have a couple of cousins that could be rather mean. But they are still family so I can't just ignore them. We're related after all." I say simply. "But you and Chloe are not, it just shows your nobility and you are just that nice to people."
Adrien blushes as he looks at me. How modest.
"You're noble and nice too, Sam." He tells me with those gentle eyes that remind me of green bamboo.
I just smile sadly and I say nothing else about the subject. "Let's finish eating our lunch. It's going to get cold." I stand up and walk, hearing him following and walking right beside me.
It's dinner time. Like all the dinners and breakfast here, it's quiet.
Though I was surprised who broke the silence.
"Gilles told me that Chloe came here today. Looking for you." Gabriel says once the dinner was served.
"Oh, yeah. She did, but she left soon when her dad called her." Adrien answers.
"Hmm… I see. What did she want?" He asks.
"She just wanted to know how I was doing and she invited me to her birthday party." He answers rather quickly. "I asked her if I could bring someone with me and she said it was okay."
"And that someone would be Samara?" Gabriel asks in a knowing tone as he then looks at me. I stand still in my seat as I slowly raise my hands in surrender. I never asked Adrien who he wanted to bring with him to the party, but come on. It might be a bit egoistical on my part, but I am Adrien's only other friend.
Mom looked between the three of us and asked Gabriel, "Um, sorry, but who is Chloe? If you don't mind me asking."
"Chloe Bourgeois, she is daughter of the mayor, Andre Bourgeois." Gabriel explains.
Of course she is. So that's where her everything-belongs-to-me-and-everyone-should-obey-me attitude comes from.
"And because she is such a prestigious figure," I start out getting everyone's attention, "You do not want me there because I'm not in the social standings of that level?" I ask neutrally. Hey, it was the first thing that came to mind.
"Is that true, Gabriel?" Mom asks in a passive angry tone as she narrows her eyes at him. Whoa, she's mad. She never referred him by his first name.
It took father and son by surprise for sure since they both jerked a bit at her tone.
Gabriel clears his throat, "No, not at all. Esmeralda." He says in a passive tone as his eyes harden on my mother. My eyes slightly narrow at him, but I shake it off. It's best that I don't interfere anymore. Why did I have to open my big mouth?
My eyes wander to Adrien. He looks a bit worried as he eyes go back and forth to Mom and his dad.
"So, there is no problem that Adrien could take Sam to the party?" She asks in a neutral tone. Okay, so things are calming down.
"Not exactly," Gabriel says as he then looks between the three of us before he settles to look at me. "This is not just a birthday party. It's a social gathering of the high class in all of Paris. I was invited to the party as well by Mayor Bourgeois.
"I'm just letting you know that very important people are going to attend there. One wrong word that you meant it or not… you could end up have your reputation ruined for life.
"I just wanted to let you know." He finishes as he fixes his tie.
"I understand," I start. "But you should know better sir." I chided lightly making him raise an eyebrow at me, unimpressed. "I am my mother's daughter. I would never do anything to jeopardize her image."
"Glad to hear that." He says simply. "The party isn't until next week. What are you going to wear? It has to be a dress." He informs.
"I will take care of that." Mom answers with a smile. "It's going to be one of my designs."
"That's good. You're promoting your work and getting recognition." He nods in satisfaction. "You are also going to attend the party as my companion, it's beneficial. Your designs will be roaming France for the autumn season so this party will allow you to get your name out there much faster."
"Never underestimate the power of networking." Mom muses.
"Exactly, now let's eat before the dinner gets cold." He orders and we silently obey.
I peek at Adrien and he gives me a small smile which I return.
Dear Lord, I don't want to mess this for Mom. I have to practice on my etiquette and all that fancy junk that Gabriel warned me about. But I will make sure make my mother look spectacular. She deserves recognition.
