"Well heah we are. Home sweet home." Slingshot broke her thoughts.
Looking with newborn eyes, Hailey blinked at her surroundings. Sure enough, the familiar green hedges and wrought iron fence stood majestically in front of her. Despite her constant loathing for everyone inside, the comforts her huge house inspired brought her immeasurable relief. The crackling fire, the soft blankets, clean clothes, light.
"Thanks Slingshot," she said with genuine gratitude.
"Naw..." the girl started to say, but was cut off when Hailey gave her a quick hug. Slingshot looked taken aback for a moment, unused to the foreign show of affection. Before she could say anything though, Hailey darted through the gate and up to the glowing warmth of the house.
Silence resonated through the spacious house, betraying the end of Mrs. Tanager's party. Whether or not the Donovan's were still there was an entirely separate matter. The whole family was like a plague, crowding her days and haunting her dreams with no intention of letting up in the slightest way. Still, for the warmth of hot chocolate and a bed, she'd stand their suffocating presence, for once night at least. Hushed murmurs filtered lazily from the parlor.
Words weren't quite understandable, but she could pick the high shrill of her mother and the bass of her father in among the jumble.
'Time to sink or swim,' she thought, glancing at herself in the hallway mirror. The pale figure staring back at her greatly resembled a tattered rag doll. Her once perfect pinned up brown curls now hung in chaotic disarray and all the makeup had been washed away completely by tears. Even in the dress and heels, her ghastly blanch face looked nothing like that of an upper class young lady.
' It'll have to do,' She didn't even bother to push some of the curls back into place. Taking a deep breath, she walked the last few feet to the parlor door and pushed it open softly.
Whispers of ancient ones could've been heard in the silence that followed her entry. All the eyes in the room turned to her with shocked expressions; she simply stood placidly in the doorway with her hands folded, looking back at them. Both her parents were there, Marcus and his parents. even Mr. Pulitzer himself! Oh, how she hated that man with a passion.
Everything from his overly-opulent black suit to his stubbly little goatee. All at once the silence was shattered.
"Oh my baby girl!" Mrs. Matthews cried out, rising to her feet and mauling Hailey in a clinging embrace. "We thought you were dead! We were so worried."
Confusion was the first thing that struck Hailey's mind. Not only at the warm welcome, but at the extent to which her mother took the fawning. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and ragged sobs tore continuously in a wailing testimony of her innermost emotions. This coming from her normally cold and snooty personality was very odd indeed. Then it clicked. Mr. Pulitzer was here, and she was attempting to portray a concerned mother to impress him.
"Did he hurt you? Poor girl, we should have him arrested. loser class scum." Mrs. Matthews continued to blubber, and had somehow managed to maneuver Hailey onto the fainting couch.
Right next to Marcus.
She grimaced, as if in physical pain, as his hand snaked around her back in a mock display of comfort. Mr. and Mrs. Donovan probed her gently with questions; her own parents did the same with melodramatic undertones. All the while Marcus's slimy hand rubbed up and down her back. Through all of this she stayed completely silent, staring down at her hands in her lap.
Silence was the best answer. It was neither a yes or no, and threw no accusations. People simply thought what they wanted with silence, which could easily be corrected later if the occasion arose.
(A/N = okay, since none of you have decided to review in the past two weeks, you all get a SHORT snippit of the story, and I won't post any more until I get 5 reviews. 5 whopping big ones baby, so press the purple button and type!!! Muahaha, I'm evil cause lizzie is only 5 days away and I can't control the rabid shipper in my brain. Its eating me alive! Ahhhhh! (wow, okay, breathing..) so review I tell you. REVIEW!!!)
Looking with newborn eyes, Hailey blinked at her surroundings. Sure enough, the familiar green hedges and wrought iron fence stood majestically in front of her. Despite her constant loathing for everyone inside, the comforts her huge house inspired brought her immeasurable relief. The crackling fire, the soft blankets, clean clothes, light.
"Thanks Slingshot," she said with genuine gratitude.
"Naw..." the girl started to say, but was cut off when Hailey gave her a quick hug. Slingshot looked taken aback for a moment, unused to the foreign show of affection. Before she could say anything though, Hailey darted through the gate and up to the glowing warmth of the house.
Silence resonated through the spacious house, betraying the end of Mrs. Tanager's party. Whether or not the Donovan's were still there was an entirely separate matter. The whole family was like a plague, crowding her days and haunting her dreams with no intention of letting up in the slightest way. Still, for the warmth of hot chocolate and a bed, she'd stand their suffocating presence, for once night at least. Hushed murmurs filtered lazily from the parlor.
Words weren't quite understandable, but she could pick the high shrill of her mother and the bass of her father in among the jumble.
'Time to sink or swim,' she thought, glancing at herself in the hallway mirror. The pale figure staring back at her greatly resembled a tattered rag doll. Her once perfect pinned up brown curls now hung in chaotic disarray and all the makeup had been washed away completely by tears. Even in the dress and heels, her ghastly blanch face looked nothing like that of an upper class young lady.
' It'll have to do,' She didn't even bother to push some of the curls back into place. Taking a deep breath, she walked the last few feet to the parlor door and pushed it open softly.
Whispers of ancient ones could've been heard in the silence that followed her entry. All the eyes in the room turned to her with shocked expressions; she simply stood placidly in the doorway with her hands folded, looking back at them. Both her parents were there, Marcus and his parents. even Mr. Pulitzer himself! Oh, how she hated that man with a passion.
Everything from his overly-opulent black suit to his stubbly little goatee. All at once the silence was shattered.
"Oh my baby girl!" Mrs. Matthews cried out, rising to her feet and mauling Hailey in a clinging embrace. "We thought you were dead! We were so worried."
Confusion was the first thing that struck Hailey's mind. Not only at the warm welcome, but at the extent to which her mother took the fawning. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and ragged sobs tore continuously in a wailing testimony of her innermost emotions. This coming from her normally cold and snooty personality was very odd indeed. Then it clicked. Mr. Pulitzer was here, and she was attempting to portray a concerned mother to impress him.
"Did he hurt you? Poor girl, we should have him arrested. loser class scum." Mrs. Matthews continued to blubber, and had somehow managed to maneuver Hailey onto the fainting couch.
Right next to Marcus.
She grimaced, as if in physical pain, as his hand snaked around her back in a mock display of comfort. Mr. and Mrs. Donovan probed her gently with questions; her own parents did the same with melodramatic undertones. All the while Marcus's slimy hand rubbed up and down her back. Through all of this she stayed completely silent, staring down at her hands in her lap.
Silence was the best answer. It was neither a yes or no, and threw no accusations. People simply thought what they wanted with silence, which could easily be corrected later if the occasion arose.
(A/N = okay, since none of you have decided to review in the past two weeks, you all get a SHORT snippit of the story, and I won't post any more until I get 5 reviews. 5 whopping big ones baby, so press the purple button and type!!! Muahaha, I'm evil cause lizzie is only 5 days away and I can't control the rabid shipper in my brain. Its eating me alive! Ahhhhh! (wow, okay, breathing..) so review I tell you. REVIEW!!!)