Chapter 10 – Lucy

The next day

I sat in my lone hotel room, sixteen floors above the lobby opposite Kensington Garden's sticking a brush through my long, brown hair as I frowned at my reflection in the mirror. I became almost hypnotised with the brush pulling through my relatively dead ends. Each stroke, the way my hair flows in the small breeze created by the movement caught my eye's fine focus. Truth be told; I was scared for the award ceremony tonight. Social events were never my forte. I was too scared of being by myself, and I always found talking about myself tricky. I had gone to pubs, where guys tried to chat me up. They always go "tell me about yourself," but what could I say? I was beaten to a pulp for fifteen years? I'm a freak? I can go invisible? No – I'd live my life in orange overalls being sectioned to see how or why I could do the things I could do. Or, it could draw attention from Him, and He would want me back in Kingdom without hesitation. So I had to remain silent about my past. I couldn't try anyone with those kinds of secrets. But then, without them, what was I? I was nothing to start with. I had resulted to trailing around Dixon and Mara at these events, staying behind the at all times so when they engaged in conversations I could remain a silent spectator. That was my plans for the night; there was no way in Hell I would receive an award, so if I was silent it would be best.

Sighing, unwilling to go and socialise with the 52 people who worked at the Bournemouth unit, and the two hundred odd skilled Savant's who work in the Guildford base who could easily expose me to my Father and cause my departure back to abuse and back to Kingdom, I pulled the dress Matthew brought me from the bag. It was a beautiful thing; a white and black sweetheart dress, highlighting my breasts, crunching into a 3cm waistband at my ribcage and flowing to about five inches above my knee. The shoulders were covered with white lace, and had a low back done up with three buttons. Matthew had accessorised it for me as well, quickly changing the waistband to a metallic rose gold colour, which matched the three inch heels he brought and my clutch bag. I wish Matthew could be here with me, but he wanted nothing more to do with Maui. No personal reasons, but it just brought back bad memories for him. He was against the Net, and would bring it up for an argument with anyone involved. For me, it was the only way I could help people like me.

Rubbing body butter into my pale legs, the lack of tan from where I wear jeans whenever I go outside, I slipped my shoes on. From here, my vantage point of my wide open window showed me the large lights outside the building, Savants in their black tie event clothes walking up the stairs – they were fashionably late. I was just procrastinating going. The event had already started two hours ago. Dixon and Mara was there for the opening, I was in my pyjamas watching from the ledge of my window seal.

I pulled the dress over, loving the way it sat on me perfectly. Matthew had always been brilliant with fashion fulfilling the gay stereotypes. I had issues with how dresses sat on me, with having no figure and being incredibly underweight but this dress was altered by Matthew perfectly, without me even trying it on. I grabbed my bag and my phone and saw a message from him.

Have a wonderful night, beautiful x

With a spurt of confidence from the message, I put my phone and bank card in my bag, slotting my room card in as well before heading out for the night.

The room I entered was heaving, but spectacular. The ceiling had been painted with fat cherubs, looking down on everyone talking and dancing, helping themselves to a large finger buffet which had chefs cooking up more food as the night continued. The main colour of the room was black, with aspects of different colours which poked out from the crowed which continued to shift constantly. Over two hundred people milled around the room, highlighted and framed by the large spotlights that drifted around the floor. Straight in front of the two sets of double doors where I entered, a large staircase sat centre stage. The stairwell met a flat platform, and split off into two more staircases, one stretched out to the right, one to the left. There was a live DJ on the platform, which had a small black stage for the musical set to perform on at any given stage, and a microphone turned off for when awards were being handed out. The buffet sat under the right staircase, with popcorn machines, to candy floss machines to crepe markers and a hog roast, all food tastes had been accounted for. Immediately, my eyes fell on a large pick and mix stand, with bags available and I wondered if I hid my phone and cards in my bra how much of the sweets could fit in my large clutch bag. On the left side was an open bar. To the left and through another marvellous arch I could see a bouncy castle with about three or four kids happily playing in there. There was no need for them to be attended; the security at this place was tight. Two security bounced triple checked my invite and even held it up to check the watermark they had placed on the bottom left corner with a seven digit code which had to line up to my name and ID. Children within Maui were rare; normally you would be advised to leave or stay on permanent maternity leave for the protection of your child. Only if the main busy, Susan McGrant deems you sturdy enough to have a child and continue work you can. I was surprised to even see four kids at this event. I stepped forward into the room a bit further as songs from the mid 2000's started playing, and I recognised the current song as Busted's Year 3000. I scanned the room trying to find Dixon peering from above the crowd but instead felt a tug on my dress.

I looked down and a adorable kid, who must have been about three or so, looked up at me. The girl had the brightest green-blue eyes, blonde hair plaited back and a sprinkling of freckles. The toddler who appeared out of nowhere was wearing a knee length white dress and matching pumps but was constantly swaying as she waited for me.

'You okay?' I asked her softly, looking around for her parents.

'Are you a princess?' The little girl asked up at me.

'Er, no. I'm not. Why, are you?' I asked back, crouching down to speak to her as she shook her head dramatically. Where were her parents?

'No, I'm not a princess. You must be, though, you look like a princess,' The girl said to me, poking my nose as I grinned at her and blushed. This girl, whoever she was, was completely adorable. I knew three year olds words can be very harsh at times as they can't filter what is rude and what it not, so will be brutally honest to you but the little girl made my heart falter. 'Do you have a name?' She asked me, swaying again.

'I do; my names Lucy. Do you have a name?' I asked back to her.

'That sounds like... my name!' The girl exclaimed, hugging me. I hesitated slightly, before hugging the girl gently. I didn't know who she was, or where her parents were but the girl was melting my heart and I knew, whoever her parents actually were, they had raised her in the best manner possible. She was adorable and ever so polite.

'My names Lily.' She told me, offering her hand to shake. I laughed slightly, shaking her hand. I guess our names did sound alike; both starting and ending with the same letter. Half of the letters were correct, so the girl wasn't wrong. 'Have you... have you tried the sweeties?' She said, giggling.

'Er, no,'

'Mummy said I shouldn't have too many, Daddy said the same but Uncle Jason is looking after me and I keep losing him, so I can have all the sweeties I want!'

'Oh, are you lost?' I asked, realising that should have been the first question I asked when a three year old randomly appeared next to me.

'No. Uncle Jason is lost – not me.' She said and I frowned.

'Lily, what are you doing running off like that? You know your Mum would kill me,' A man in a suit ran over, scooping her up to sit on his hip. I took a step back, frowning at the man who had appeared before me. He was good looking... very good looking. His brown hair flopped in every direction but he pulled it off, and his blue eyes shone brightly and could have taken the focus away from the amazing room and onto him. There was a slight cut on his cheekbones which looked fresh, and was surrounded in a bruise too, but it didn't subtract from his model like looks. If he didn't win the award for best looking guy I would be entirely confused and will say the awards are rigged. Not only that; we was in a tight fitting suit, his blazer unbuttoned but with grey waistcoat showing, giving him a slight model-like feel.

'Uncle Jason isn't lost now,' The little girl told me, and the man – Jason, his name must have been looked up, noticing me. I noticed the double take he did as I backed away from him slightly, scared he would dob me in to everyone but I felt safe in his presence. That was weird – I still was hesitant around Mara and Dixon, Matthew too, because my body never felt safe. But with this stranger, I felt... safe?

'Hey, sorry about my Godchild, she gets a bit overwhelming after she's had sweets.' He said to me, 'I'm Jason,' He said, offering me his hand. I shook it nervously.

'Lucy,' I whispered, my voice seizing up but the beautiful Greek God of a man heard me, and smiled and my soul melted. Soul, and I think my ovaries did as well.

'Lovely name,' He said softly, not once breaking eye contact even though Lily was looking everywhere apart from me, her eyes focusing on the pick and mix stand.

'Lily, you are not having any more sweets, love, I don't want your parents to disown me like they've threatened to do before.' Jason added, touching the toddlers arm and Lily visibly started to sulk.

'You're not her Dad?' I asked Jason, wondering what resemblance Jason had to the toddler. Lily called him Uncle.

'No, she's my best friend's kid. I agreed to babysit her, telling me to wear her out. However, I think at this rate it'll be me who's worn out way before her.' The guy said, adjusting the toddler on his hip and the little girl started staring longingly at the pick and mix stand. I continued to look at him for a second, and his bright eyes looked back. After a second or two, I looked down at the floor awkwardly shifting my feet. I watched out the top of my eyes, through my eyelashes as Jason knelt down.

'Lily, do you want to go find Mummy or Daddy? I won't tell them if you take a brief detour to the pick and mix stand,' Jason said sweetly to her, and she nodded before wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging her tiny frame. Any more cute ass moves from the Greek God man, and my ovaries would exploded and I would have to excuse myself to the bathroom to clean up the mess. I watched shyly as the toddler whispered something to him and he nodded.

'Yeah,' He said back and the kid nodded at him, before running into the throng of people and heading towards the pick and mix stand. Jason stood back up again and I was just aware how tall he was.

'Is she going to be okay? Is she safe?' I asked immediately losing her in the crowd. I looked back up at Jason – was that his name? Johnson maybe? – and he looked down at me with a slightly weird look on his face.

'She'll be fine – are you okay, though? You've gone really pale,' Jason said and came a tiny bit closer to me.

However, in that moment everything went slow. Jason raised his arm – to do what I have no idea – and I was forced back into the memories of Kingdom. My Father's angry face as he raised his hand, slapping it across my face. The pain was incredible whenever he done that and not in a good way at all; my face was red raw from all the other slaps and beatings but I had to stand and deal with it. Flinching, hiding or covering my face only led to more beatings. So did arguing back. So I just had to stand there and take every hit, punch and kick that he could muster. But it wasn't Father in front of me, it was an incredible gentle and beautiful man but my body couldn't help the reaction.

I flinched away, dancing a few steps back to avoid him, and immediately covered my face. The room fell silence – or at least I blocked everything out as I embraced for the hit. But it never came. Three long seconds later, I cracked opened my eyes to see Jason standing in front of me, hands now down by his side looking baffled.

'Lucy?' He asked gently as I started to freak out.

I was so, so stupid for thinking I could do this, wasn't I? The first social even I had been too since I was rescued from Kingdom. I thought, I honestly thought, I would be fine going out and talking to people. I thought I had got over my immediate reaction to any sign of potential human interactions but that had been a lie to myself. Why would I assume that I would be alright? I had remained in a glass bubble, a bauble in a way, of my own three friends and that is it. Every day, I'd head to work, sit in my own little room of the third floor overlooking Bournemouth beach where no one would interrupt me, eat my own home made lunch which consisted of a meal deal that I had bulk-brought online once a week and maybe a chocolate bar, and head home. The only people I ever spoke too was Mara, Dixon and Matthew. And I thought I could do this? Go out and socialise with people?

'I'm... I'm sorry.' I whispered, turning and heading to the door, already snivelling as I realised how much of a failure I was.