Chapter 4: Milly's mysterious past
It was early in the morning. The dew on the grass was slowly dripping off each blade as Jessie, James and Meowth walked by. The sun peaked over the horizon, as they heard leaves gently scraping against the pavement.
Slowly looking for the right address, they stopped at one mailbox to see a rather large house, protected by a solid, steel fence. It had beautiful green grass, growing everywhere. A garden of daisies completed the perfect picture.
"This must be it…", said Jessie looking impressed. James crossed his arms. "It's not as big as my old house." He gave a smug smile, and Jessie glared at him. "Don't remind us. Please". Meowth agreed.
Jessie walked to a speakerphone placed right in front of the gate, hesitantly pushing the red button on the device. She heard it beep, and leaning forward, she started talking.
"Uh… Mr. Nilson? We're here." She let go of the button, scratching the top of her head. What else was she supposed to do? Slowly, the gate opened, and the trio walked the long path of the driveway.
Approaching the door, Jessie took hold of a shiny, golden door-knocker. Knocking twice, the door opened and a man dressed in a tuxedo greeted them.
"Miss Jessica, Mr. Nilson is expecting you.", he said wrinkling his nose. The three of them walked inside, gazing at the paintings plastered across the wall. Jessie, James, and Meowth smiled as they kept walking.
"Ah, Jessica.", Mr. Nilson said, seeing all of them approach. "Please, please, sit down."
As they all sat, Mr. Nilson looked confused. "I didn't know you were bringing them…" He said, sounding puzzled.
Quickly replying, Jessie said, "Oh, we're always together. We're a team." This made the man's eyebrow raise, as he carried on.
"Oh, you might as well introduce yourself then.", hinting that he was a tad annoyed.
"Um, I'm James.", James said clearing his throat."
"Ima Meowth… But you can call me Meowth.", Meowth said, sitting back on the couch.
Dropping the papers he was holding, Mr. Nilson's eye twitched. "That thing TALKS?" he said, startled.
"I can also sing! But I tink dat's why Jess came here."
There was an awkward silence.
"Uh, Okay, carrying on…", Mr. Nilson began as he picked up the dropped papers. "You sound like you're fully qualified for this job, so all you need to do is read this contract, sign on the dotted lines, and provide some of the needed information.", he said smiling at Jessie. Clicking a pen, Jessie began to read the contract.
The first question asked for an address. "Um, James and I really don't have an address…", Jessie said looking up at the man.
"You… Don't?" , Mr. Nilson raised another eyebrow. "Where did you sleep last night then?"
Meowth chimed in. "I don't think a park bench qualifies for an address…"
Mr. Nilson put a hand to his head. "Y-you're homeless?" Jessie and James laughed nervously. "Homeless is such a harsh term…" James began.
"But, I'm right, am I?" Mr. Nilson questioned. "I guess so…" Jessie said, sounding embarrassed. Hanging her head low, Jessie expected to be kicked out of his mansion, however, she heard a sigh from him.
"Just leave it blank. As for tonight, you can stay in our guest bedroom, alright?" Jessie looked at James and Meowth and smiled. The three of them bowed in appreciation. "Thank you!", they all said simultaneously. Jessie continued filling out the form.
~*~
Jessie finished the last part of the contract, clicking the pen once more. She stretched her hand, placing the pen on the table.
Shaking hands with Mr. Nilson, it was a done deal. Just as they finished, A shadow approached from the spiral stairway. Milly had come downstairs. Rubbing her eyes, she spoke. "Hey, you're here! What time is it? I must have overslept…"
"9:30.", Jessie said looking at her watch. Milly ran downstairs to sit in between Jessie and James. "Uh, I don't think we've met…" Milly said, turning to James.
"I'm-", he was cut off by Mr. Nilson. "Oh, that's just Jack."
"Um, you mean James…", he corrected him.
"Yeah, whatever.", he said, rising from his seat. "Now that we've got the contract out of the way, how about a nice hearty breakfast?"
Jessie, James, and Meowth licked their lips a the thought. "Sure!", they all said. Everyone headed for the dining room to see Mr. Nilson's butler setting the long, clothed table. As everyone sat down, Milly began talking to Jessie.
"So, you're talking my dad's job offer?", She said smiling. "Yeah, It's all final. I'm sure I can handle being famous", Jessie said flipping her hair back. Milly snickered, and folded her hands.
Tapping her finger, Milly spoke once more. "Would you like to see my room after breakfast, Jessica?"
Mr. Nilson cleared his throat in a suggestive manner. "I believe I still have some things to go over with Jessica, Melissa."
"Dad, don't call me Melissa. You know how I hate that name…"
"I've always called you Melissa. It's your real name, dear." Milly's father protested. A sigh was heard from Milly as she crossed her arms.
"I'll come up to your room after your father talks with me.", Jessie whispered with a wink. "And just call me Jessie.", she finished.
Milly smiled at her as the scent of fried eggs filled the room. The family butler was holding a platter of eggs. As he placed it on the table, everyone immediately started digging in.
~*~
About an hour later, Jessie and Mr. Nilson were sitting on a couch discussing her new career. "So, we've already gone over your wardrobe… What will you call yourself?", the man questioned.
She thought-She couldn't go by her full name… She had to travel incognito just in case anyone were to recognize her by name. "How about… Rocket Girl?" Mr. Nilson held his hand to his chin, and thought. "Rocket is my last name, after all.", she lied.
"That sounds perfect!" He gave her a thumbs up. "Shall we sleep on it?"
Jessie agreed. That was enough talking for today. It was almost lunch time, and she had yet kept the promise she had told Milly. "As for you and Jake, make yourselves at home!", Mr. Nilson said in a welcoming voice.
James, half asleep, perked his head up. "The name's James…" He said with a sweat drop.
"Oh, yeah.", the man said, almost ignoring him. "There's a pool, spa, and exercise room near the main corridor and a game room upstairs.", the man said pointing in their directions. "If you need any help getting around, just ask Hubert, our butler.
James smiled as he heard the word "spa". Jessie, however ventured upstairs to Milly's room.
The door was clearly labeled as hers, so she knocked. "Milly? Are you in here?", Jessie said in a soft voice.
She waited a few seconds to see Milly opening her door. "Come in, Jessie!", she grinned. Walking inside, Jessie was amazed. She would have done anything to have had a room like Milly's when she was a child. Milly even had a set of Pokemon Princess dolls!
As her eyes sparkled, Jessie cupped her hands together. "You've very lucky to have all of these things…"
Milly lied on her bed. "I guess so", she said staring up at the pink canopy above her.
"I'm serious. I didn't have any of the things you have when I was your age… You and I grew up totally different. Can't really say that things have changed for the better, as well.", Jessie admitted.
"Things will, Jessie. If this job works out for you, you could really end up as wealthy as you want to be." Jessie grinned at the thought.
Walking through Milly's room, Jessie examined various things on her dressers and vanity. Milly sure kept things clean and neat, she thought. Milly didn't seem to mind her rummaging though her stuff, but when Jessie had picked up a picture, she jumped off her bed. Grabbing it our of her hand, Milly held the picture close to her heart.
"I'm sorry for being so rude, but you… You can't see this picture.", Milly said with a serious look on her face.
"Why not…?", Jessie said with a curious smile.
Milly started blushing. As her heart beat faster, he throat dried, and her eyes got moist. "No, no…", Milly said with a weak voice. Trying to hold back her tears, she fell to the ground.
Jessie realized she had hit a soft spot in Milly's emotions, she put her hand on the girl's back. "I'm so sorry for hurting your feelings, Milly. I didn't mean to be so nosey."
Looking up, Milly wiped her wet cheeks. With sad, puffy eyes, she looked at Jessie. "It's… Okay. I shouldn't have left the picture around. You-you might as well know who it is." She handed the Jessie the photograph.
As she carefully looked at the picture, she saw a happy woman with short black hair, holding a little girl in her arms. "This must be your mother, right…?" Jessie approached the question cautiously.
"It… Was.", Milly said weakly. "She passed away when I was 8. Cancer.", she continued nearly breaking into another crying fit. "I still can't forget her after a whole 7 years."
As she continued her sad story, Jessie realized that she and her hadn't grown up as differently as she thought. As tears began to roll down her cheeks, Jessie took Milly by the hand. "My mother passed away when I was young too.", Jessie said hesitantly.
Words couldn't explain the remorse both of them felt for each other. As they both sat there, silent, something unexpected happened. They cried together, they felt each other's pain.
They hugged each other.
As they slowly let go, Milly and Jessie began to talk again. "I never thought that I'd meet someone who knows exactly what I went through.", said Jessie, recovering from her short spurt of openness.
"Me neither.", Said Milly. "I was always attached to my mother… I never really interacted with my father that much, so when she passed away, I went through a stage of depression. Now that I think about it, my father didn't really pay much attention to me either. He was always so caught up with work, that he never had time for anything else. It's amazing how quickly he got over my mother's death…", Said Milly in a sad, monotonous tone.
"I know the feeling.", Jessie said leaning back. "I never saw much of my father either when I was that age."
As their conversation continued, it seemed that they were growing closer and closer. Both of them had shared a part of their past with each other, and shared the pain with it. Milly was happy that she finally had another woman to look up to and to share feelings with.
~*~
After a nice dinner, Jessie, James, and Meowth decided to go up to the guest room. As they opened the door, they saw 3 comfortable looking beds complete with warm blankets, and fluffy pillows. The three of them looked at each other and smiled.
"It's not even the first day of my new career, and I'm beginning to like it already…", Jessie said, plopping onto one of the beds. She looked up at the ceiling, and slowly closed her eyes.
Just 4 doors down, Milly was looking up at the ceiling as well. Hugging one of her stuffed, plush Pokemon dolls, she shut her eyes, knowing that she had made a new friend.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Aww, so corny, ne? I love extremely long chapters that are filled with emotions and dramatic stuffs. ^_^ I'll be continuing the story asap!
It was early in the morning. The dew on the grass was slowly dripping off each blade as Jessie, James and Meowth walked by. The sun peaked over the horizon, as they heard leaves gently scraping against the pavement.
Slowly looking for the right address, they stopped at one mailbox to see a rather large house, protected by a solid, steel fence. It had beautiful green grass, growing everywhere. A garden of daisies completed the perfect picture.
"This must be it…", said Jessie looking impressed. James crossed his arms. "It's not as big as my old house." He gave a smug smile, and Jessie glared at him. "Don't remind us. Please". Meowth agreed.
Jessie walked to a speakerphone placed right in front of the gate, hesitantly pushing the red button on the device. She heard it beep, and leaning forward, she started talking.
"Uh… Mr. Nilson? We're here." She let go of the button, scratching the top of her head. What else was she supposed to do? Slowly, the gate opened, and the trio walked the long path of the driveway.
Approaching the door, Jessie took hold of a shiny, golden door-knocker. Knocking twice, the door opened and a man dressed in a tuxedo greeted them.
"Miss Jessica, Mr. Nilson is expecting you.", he said wrinkling his nose. The three of them walked inside, gazing at the paintings plastered across the wall. Jessie, James, and Meowth smiled as they kept walking.
"Ah, Jessica.", Mr. Nilson said, seeing all of them approach. "Please, please, sit down."
As they all sat, Mr. Nilson looked confused. "I didn't know you were bringing them…" He said, sounding puzzled.
Quickly replying, Jessie said, "Oh, we're always together. We're a team." This made the man's eyebrow raise, as he carried on.
"Oh, you might as well introduce yourself then.", hinting that he was a tad annoyed.
"Um, I'm James.", James said clearing his throat."
"Ima Meowth… But you can call me Meowth.", Meowth said, sitting back on the couch.
Dropping the papers he was holding, Mr. Nilson's eye twitched. "That thing TALKS?" he said, startled.
"I can also sing! But I tink dat's why Jess came here."
There was an awkward silence.
"Uh, Okay, carrying on…", Mr. Nilson began as he picked up the dropped papers. "You sound like you're fully qualified for this job, so all you need to do is read this contract, sign on the dotted lines, and provide some of the needed information.", he said smiling at Jessie. Clicking a pen, Jessie began to read the contract.
The first question asked for an address. "Um, James and I really don't have an address…", Jessie said looking up at the man.
"You… Don't?" , Mr. Nilson raised another eyebrow. "Where did you sleep last night then?"
Meowth chimed in. "I don't think a park bench qualifies for an address…"
Mr. Nilson put a hand to his head. "Y-you're homeless?" Jessie and James laughed nervously. "Homeless is such a harsh term…" James began.
"But, I'm right, am I?" Mr. Nilson questioned. "I guess so…" Jessie said, sounding embarrassed. Hanging her head low, Jessie expected to be kicked out of his mansion, however, she heard a sigh from him.
"Just leave it blank. As for tonight, you can stay in our guest bedroom, alright?" Jessie looked at James and Meowth and smiled. The three of them bowed in appreciation. "Thank you!", they all said simultaneously. Jessie continued filling out the form.
~*~
Jessie finished the last part of the contract, clicking the pen once more. She stretched her hand, placing the pen on the table.
Shaking hands with Mr. Nilson, it was a done deal. Just as they finished, A shadow approached from the spiral stairway. Milly had come downstairs. Rubbing her eyes, she spoke. "Hey, you're here! What time is it? I must have overslept…"
"9:30.", Jessie said looking at her watch. Milly ran downstairs to sit in between Jessie and James. "Uh, I don't think we've met…" Milly said, turning to James.
"I'm-", he was cut off by Mr. Nilson. "Oh, that's just Jack."
"Um, you mean James…", he corrected him.
"Yeah, whatever.", he said, rising from his seat. "Now that we've got the contract out of the way, how about a nice hearty breakfast?"
Jessie, James, and Meowth licked their lips a the thought. "Sure!", they all said. Everyone headed for the dining room to see Mr. Nilson's butler setting the long, clothed table. As everyone sat down, Milly began talking to Jessie.
"So, you're talking my dad's job offer?", She said smiling. "Yeah, It's all final. I'm sure I can handle being famous", Jessie said flipping her hair back. Milly snickered, and folded her hands.
Tapping her finger, Milly spoke once more. "Would you like to see my room after breakfast, Jessica?"
Mr. Nilson cleared his throat in a suggestive manner. "I believe I still have some things to go over with Jessica, Melissa."
"Dad, don't call me Melissa. You know how I hate that name…"
"I've always called you Melissa. It's your real name, dear." Milly's father protested. A sigh was heard from Milly as she crossed her arms.
"I'll come up to your room after your father talks with me.", Jessie whispered with a wink. "And just call me Jessie.", she finished.
Milly smiled at her as the scent of fried eggs filled the room. The family butler was holding a platter of eggs. As he placed it on the table, everyone immediately started digging in.
~*~
About an hour later, Jessie and Mr. Nilson were sitting on a couch discussing her new career. "So, we've already gone over your wardrobe… What will you call yourself?", the man questioned.
She thought-She couldn't go by her full name… She had to travel incognito just in case anyone were to recognize her by name. "How about… Rocket Girl?" Mr. Nilson held his hand to his chin, and thought. "Rocket is my last name, after all.", she lied.
"That sounds perfect!" He gave her a thumbs up. "Shall we sleep on it?"
Jessie agreed. That was enough talking for today. It was almost lunch time, and she had yet kept the promise she had told Milly. "As for you and Jake, make yourselves at home!", Mr. Nilson said in a welcoming voice.
James, half asleep, perked his head up. "The name's James…" He said with a sweat drop.
"Oh, yeah.", the man said, almost ignoring him. "There's a pool, spa, and exercise room near the main corridor and a game room upstairs.", the man said pointing in their directions. "If you need any help getting around, just ask Hubert, our butler.
James smiled as he heard the word "spa". Jessie, however ventured upstairs to Milly's room.
The door was clearly labeled as hers, so she knocked. "Milly? Are you in here?", Jessie said in a soft voice.
She waited a few seconds to see Milly opening her door. "Come in, Jessie!", she grinned. Walking inside, Jessie was amazed. She would have done anything to have had a room like Milly's when she was a child. Milly even had a set of Pokemon Princess dolls!
As her eyes sparkled, Jessie cupped her hands together. "You've very lucky to have all of these things…"
Milly lied on her bed. "I guess so", she said staring up at the pink canopy above her.
"I'm serious. I didn't have any of the things you have when I was your age… You and I grew up totally different. Can't really say that things have changed for the better, as well.", Jessie admitted.
"Things will, Jessie. If this job works out for you, you could really end up as wealthy as you want to be." Jessie grinned at the thought.
Walking through Milly's room, Jessie examined various things on her dressers and vanity. Milly sure kept things clean and neat, she thought. Milly didn't seem to mind her rummaging though her stuff, but when Jessie had picked up a picture, she jumped off her bed. Grabbing it our of her hand, Milly held the picture close to her heart.
"I'm sorry for being so rude, but you… You can't see this picture.", Milly said with a serious look on her face.
"Why not…?", Jessie said with a curious smile.
Milly started blushing. As her heart beat faster, he throat dried, and her eyes got moist. "No, no…", Milly said with a weak voice. Trying to hold back her tears, she fell to the ground.
Jessie realized she had hit a soft spot in Milly's emotions, she put her hand on the girl's back. "I'm so sorry for hurting your feelings, Milly. I didn't mean to be so nosey."
Looking up, Milly wiped her wet cheeks. With sad, puffy eyes, she looked at Jessie. "It's… Okay. I shouldn't have left the picture around. You-you might as well know who it is." She handed the Jessie the photograph.
As she carefully looked at the picture, she saw a happy woman with short black hair, holding a little girl in her arms. "This must be your mother, right…?" Jessie approached the question cautiously.
"It… Was.", Milly said weakly. "She passed away when I was 8. Cancer.", she continued nearly breaking into another crying fit. "I still can't forget her after a whole 7 years."
As she continued her sad story, Jessie realized that she and her hadn't grown up as differently as she thought. As tears began to roll down her cheeks, Jessie took Milly by the hand. "My mother passed away when I was young too.", Jessie said hesitantly.
Words couldn't explain the remorse both of them felt for each other. As they both sat there, silent, something unexpected happened. They cried together, they felt each other's pain.
They hugged each other.
As they slowly let go, Milly and Jessie began to talk again. "I never thought that I'd meet someone who knows exactly what I went through.", said Jessie, recovering from her short spurt of openness.
"Me neither.", Said Milly. "I was always attached to my mother… I never really interacted with my father that much, so when she passed away, I went through a stage of depression. Now that I think about it, my father didn't really pay much attention to me either. He was always so caught up with work, that he never had time for anything else. It's amazing how quickly he got over my mother's death…", Said Milly in a sad, monotonous tone.
"I know the feeling.", Jessie said leaning back. "I never saw much of my father either when I was that age."
As their conversation continued, it seemed that they were growing closer and closer. Both of them had shared a part of their past with each other, and shared the pain with it. Milly was happy that she finally had another woman to look up to and to share feelings with.
~*~
After a nice dinner, Jessie, James, and Meowth decided to go up to the guest room. As they opened the door, they saw 3 comfortable looking beds complete with warm blankets, and fluffy pillows. The three of them looked at each other and smiled.
"It's not even the first day of my new career, and I'm beginning to like it already…", Jessie said, plopping onto one of the beds. She looked up at the ceiling, and slowly closed her eyes.
Just 4 doors down, Milly was looking up at the ceiling as well. Hugging one of her stuffed, plush Pokemon dolls, she shut her eyes, knowing that she had made a new friend.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Aww, so corny, ne? I love extremely long chapters that are filled with emotions and dramatic stuffs. ^_^ I'll be continuing the story asap!