(A/N: I'm back! Another chapter that took me one day to write… Hopefully you like it. Mel does her usual crazy and random things again. Disclaimer: you already know what it is, so I won't even bother writing it anymore.)
Chapter 3: The First Day
Finally I got through all those chores…watering all those stupid plants all over the house with a small watering can… Isn't Van rich enough to buy a larger watering can? This thing weighs nothing at all even if it was filled to the top. I bet Van was laughing at me, seeing me run to and from the faucet millions of times. The plants look kind of dead though…I don't think anyone was taking care of them before. With all the things that have to be done to maintain the house, I wonder why he keeps it anyway. He's the only one living there anyway. There can't be something that special…can there?
I plopped down onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. Of course it was white, just like everything in the room except the door and the small desk by the windowsill. The shelves in the room were all white, sparkling clean and empty. There was also a dresser, pretty empty and strangely…out of place. It wasn't there yesterday but then I don't remember the desk either…maybe it was moved there for me. Opening the dresser I found a few things in there…a mirror, empty hangers, and underwear in the bottom drawers. Okay…hopefully my clothes can dry by today so I have something different to wear tomorrow…something that fits maybe.
Closing the doors to the dresser, I stepped back, suddenly hearing footsteps. What the heck? Looking around, I thought I must have been dreaming, but they didn't go away, instead becoming louder and louder as if they were coming towards me from behind the dresser. Curious, I put all my strength into my hands as I placed them on the side of the dresser. With one gigantic shove, I was able to push the dresser a few feet, revealing a dark passageway. That dresser…it was way too easy to move. Was it supposed to be that way? Figuring I could get the answers later, I headed down the cold staircase. It was kind of hard to see without any light, which I should have brought with me but didn't think about it, and soon I bumped into something like the idiot I am, grabbing onto…him or her in order to stabilize myself.
"Whoa…are you okay?" asked the person, a male who sounded like….Van?
"Van? What are you doing here?" I asked. He shrugged my hands off him suddenly, almost making me lose my balance again.
"Mel?" he said, surprised.
"Yeah, it's me," I replied. Well, I couldn't think of anything else.
"Let's go out in the light before we tumble down together," he says, taking my hand and leading me up. It was more like dragging me up, the way he tugged at my hand. Fortunately it was only a few steps, and once we reached the top, he immediately let go. Rhonda was there, like she was always when things happened.
"I've finished the laundry, so would you mind if I borrowed Mel a while so I can make measurements of her? She really needs some new clothes," said Rhonda. "Unless you were busy with her," she added, smirking a bit.
"Of course NOT!" vehemently protested Van. "Please take her away. She almost killed me, falling into me like that."
I was about to say something when Rhonda said, "So she found the secret entrance already, I see. Told you she had some brains."
"I never thought she was dumb," replied Van. "Just…not smart I guess…"
"NOT SMART?" I shouted. After pummeling him to the floor, I added, "Well you know the truth now. It was kind of funny seeing you guys talk about me while I was right here."
"Yeah…" muttered Van. "And not so good looking either." My foot came threatening close to his chest, and I wouldn't have minded smashing it, but Rhonda restrained me first. Actually, she scooped me up from the ground, leaving me to struggle in her arms.
"Let's not squish the master. He gives us the paycheck, by the way," added Rhonda before taking me down the stairs to her own bedroom, hidden crazily behind one of the doors of the house.
*****
"Gah…you're KILLING ME!" I shouted as she squeezed the measuring ropes tightly around my waist. Rhonda didn't seem to care as I almost fainted from lack of air, pulling it even tighter.
"You've got such a nice, small body," mumbled Rhonda as she recorded the measurements on a piece of paper. "I used to be so pretty, when I was your age."
"What happened?" I asked, not trying to be rude, but I was curious. I think she knew I wasn't trying to imply that she was fat or anything, just wondering what had changed her.
"I lost my husband and became a maid here, that's what happened," replied Rhonda. "Van and his father were awfully nice, giving me lots of food to eat and a nice place to stay. And I've always thought of Van as my own son."
"What happened to Van's mother?" I asked Rhonda, seeing that she was not mentioned. "Well, I know she died, but how?"
"I'm not really sure, because before they were not rich enough to hire a maid. I think she had some kind of cancer that they couldn't pay to get treated. I don't know," replied Rhonda. How sad. Maybe that's what changed Van's father into a businessman. I don't remember Pa much, but I know Ma loved him a lot and still misses him.
As I was thinking, Rhonda made the last measurement around my hips. "There you go," she said as she wrote the last number down. "I'll send these to the tailor and hopefully they can make you some nice dresses."
I was about to move when she added, "Wait. I think I might have some clothes that may fit you over here." Huh? As she left me wondering whose clothes they could be, she opened this enormous storage closet, which was like a bedroom stuffed from floor to ceiling with shirts, pants, socks, and more. As she pulled out a few things, I noticed that they were shirts tailored for a young teenaged girl, not Rhonda or Van.
"I remembered seeing something your size in this closet a while ago while I was trying to sort through it. The previous owners of this house were sure rich. I could open my own store with this much stuff," rambled Rhonda as she threw the shirts at me. "Try them on," she shouted as she continued to dig through the piles of clothes. "I know they are a bit old-fashioned, but they'll fit."
After shrugging off the incredible mass of shirts that landed on me, which were enough to bury me so not an inch of my body could be seen, I picked up a blue shirt. It had a lacy collar and cuffs, and was a bit itchy, not to mention a little low cut and tight around my body, but otherwise I guess it was all right. It wasn't falling off or killing me…maybe I should restate that. It was almost plastered to my skin, and it bothered me that it almost forced my stomach to go in and my chest to stick out. Very uncomfortable indeed.
"It looks good on you," said Rhonda, carrying more loads of shirts and now skirts too. "Lets try this one next," she said, throwing me the next one of a thousand or so of scattered shirts.
I don't think I left the room until dinnertime.
*****
"So when am I going to get my first art lesson?" I asked Van at the dinner table. Dinner was turkey, corn, and potatoes. It was as scrumptious as always…I should ask Rhonda to teach me how to cook like this. But then when would I ever get those ingredients without being a rich person like Van?
"Tomorrow right after breakfast. I feel like going to Opassa Beach," said Van, taking a sip of his tea. "It's always feels good to be there in the morning," he added.
"Plus he can avoid people if he goes there early enough," added Rhonda. "Don't think to sleep in," she warned. "He'll have breakfast at 5 o'clock so he can avoid people."
Looks like I'll be having a lot of fun tomorrow. "What about getting me a weapon? I know there are monsters in Lizard Grotto. Although they are easy, I'd still like to play it safe."
Van thought a moment, before he replied, "All I have are boomerangs." He seemed at a loss, which was quite hilarious, knowing that I told him that I used the boomerang. As he saw me start to laugh at him, he put on a quite perplexed look, a very great sight indeed.
"You totally forgot, didn't you. I use the boomerang too," I said, pretending to swing mine with my right hand. "Maybe you'll have something better than the one I had home."
Looking at his face, I saw that he remembered. "I didn't believe you then," he confessed, making me glare at him, "but now I do." My glare immediately disappeared.
"That's good…because you wouldn't want to test my wrath, would you?" I asked, feigning innocence.
"Maybe I will," joked Van. "But let's finish dinner first."
I happily obliged.
*****
At least we walked towards Van's storage room of junk instead of running, because I filled myself to my maximum capacity. Van was so surprised when I had one more serving of potatoes then he did, probably thinking that I couldn't fit so much into my stomach. But now I feel a bit…sick.
He had such a great collection of boomerangs that as soon as he opened the door, my eyes almost fell out. Even the one in the farthest corner, with cobwebs all over it, was better than the one I had at home. Brushing off the webs, I found it to be really light, despite the shell that made up it. I could probably handle the next grade up; it would help me with my muscles anyway.
"Like it?" said Van from behind me. I smiled at him, but also took a look at his. It had a much sharper edge, but looked a lot lighter. Seeing that he had a few others of the same kind hanging behind him, I reached to grab one, almost cutting my fingers off while I did so.
"You have good taste," I commented as I easily held the boomerang in my hand. "Light but deadly…very nice."
"Yeah, just like I am," said Van jokingly. I had to laugh.
"I rather face the edge of the boomerang than face you," I added in jest. Tilting the blade ever so slightly, it glimmered even in the dim light. I guess he liked the compliment very much, as he smiled proudly at me.
He replied, "I like it that way."
(A/N: La…my next chapter. Looks like I didn't have to break my promise. Well I hope you enjoyed. Please review!)
