Chapter 16
Secrets…Unmasked
"I remember your mother's music as if she had performed them yesterday." Stephanie said closing the oven. The roast beef was nearly finished. Melanie was preparing the mashed potatoes.
"Really? You listened to my mom's music?" Melanie asked. Stephanie smiled.
"I was a big fan. After Brock was born, I couldn't get him to sleep. He would cry and cry and lord knows if I would sing to him, he'd cry some more!" She said wiping her hands on a towel. "All I had to do was put your mother's music on. It was so soothing. Put him in a good mood. Helped me sleep many nights." Melanie smiled.
"Umm, Ms. Lesnar, can you tell me about Brock? I mean, when he was growing up? He told me he lived on this farm, but he never really told me about his personality." Melanie asked. His mother gave a sad smile.
"You can call me Stephanie. We're all people here." She said kindly. "And no, Brock wouldn't tell you much about himself now would he? Brock's very…different." She said quietly.
"Brock has always been very aggressive. He would always treat others like trash. Very confident." Stephanie said taking the beef out of the oven. Melanie nodded. Sounded like he hadn't changed.
"He was always a tough kid. Anytime he would fall and hurt himself, he would never cry. He kept all his emotions bottled up inside, I wasn't so sure if it was healthy for a young boy to be so full of pride with his own mother." Stephanie began cutting the beef and Melanie kept crushing the potatoes.
"What about with other kids?" Melanie asked. She sighed heavily.
"That was even worse. Especially when he was a teenager. He was always bullying others." She whispered. "Taking their lunch money. The worst part was, he wouldn't always beat them up you know. He would just psychologically break them." She fought back some tears. "He was just so controlling, I didn't understand him! Anytime anyone would get even a little close to him, he would just push them away." Melanie listened closely as she described the things Brock would do. His mother peeked into the living room from the kitchen. Brock was sitting on the couch with his dad and uncles watching a movie. She slowly closed the door leading into the room and locked herself and Melanie in the kitchen. Their only source of light was the oven.
"I wasn't gonna say anything, but I think you ought to know." Stephanie whispered. "I swore I wouldn't tell anyone, but since you're going to be spending some time with your client…" Her voice trailed off as she took off the scarf she was wearing. On her neck, there was a large flesh wound. It looked fresh and was covered with stitches. Melanie looked at her face.
"Brock?" She asked quietly. Stephanie nodded.
"I told him, I told him he should have listened to you, about Mysterio." She said. A tear rolled down her cheek. "We had a huge fight about who he was and I asked why he was so egotistical. I wondered how you, as his manager, could stand such a conceited person. I must have struck a nerve. Next thing I knew…" Her voice trailed off again as she tied the scarf around her neck and unlocked the kitchen door.
"Don't get too close darling." She said stroking Mel's hair. "You don't deserve this kind of treatment. Brock is too dangerous. Sometimes, I think he is just destined to be alone." Melanie sighed. She knew he was aggressive, but his was not what she expected. Maybe he was like this with others, but not his parents, not his own flesh and blood. Suddenly the door opened. Brock was standing there; the light from the fireplace was streaming into the kitchen.
"Everything ok Mel? Mom?" Brock asked. Melanie tried to wipe the sad look on her face. Brock's mother came up behind her, holding the roast beef.
"Just fine Brock. Mel, would you be a darling and grab the rest of the food? Dinner's ready!" She called. Melanie was amazed that she had turned from a miserable wreck to a perky housewife in such a short amount of time. Melanie grabbed the food and headed into the dining room with Brock.
"So, what did you two talk about?" Brock whispered to Melanie. Stephanie had heard him and turned toward her son.
"Brock, you know better than to interrogate our guests! Besides, Mel and I were just having a little 'girl talk'." She said placing the food on the table. Brock nodded and sat down at the table. Melanie noticed the little girl still sitting in the corner, by the window. She walked over to her.
"Hey there Kristen." She said cheerfully. The girl made no effort to acknowledge her. Melanie sat by her, following her gaze out the window.
"You don't feel like eating do you?" She asked. Kristen shook her head. Melanie began pulling locks of hair away from her face. "I lost my mommy too." She said softly. The little girl looked up at Melanie.
"Really?" Kristen asked. Melanie was startled by the sound of her voice. It was weak and small. She reminded Melanie of herself.
"Yes. My mommy died when I was about your age, maybe a little younger." She said holding her hand.
"What about your daddy?" Kristen asked. She sounded interested. Melanie shook her head.
"I don't know where he is." The little girl lowered her head.
"I miss my parents." She said calmly. Melanie nodded.
"And I miss my mom. But I bet your parents would want you to eat and have fun. Just because they're not here, doesn't mean they don't still love you." Melanie said with compassion.
"But I'm still sad." Kristen said. Mel smiled sadly.
"So am I. Maybe if you come to the table, we can be sad together."
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