They stopped after being a couple of episodes in, to only then turn around and see me.
"Violet, what's wrong beautiful?" Arin said.
"Nah, nothing. Just remember what I said. I'm not here." I reminded him. "Just get on with it, I have control over my ugly cries, so you're good to go."
They continue on with the recording session and I slip out of the room without them realizing. I left a note on the table saying 'Goodnight, boys." And made my way to the office making them believe that I was asleep. No-one else was awake and Barry was gonna pick Danny up later in the night. I sat in the office making my dress after wiping my eyes clear from tears. I heard Barry pick up Dan and Arin go to bed. I turned on the office lights so I could see without choking on my small torch. Suzy always went to go and check on me through the night, I know this because I'd pretend to be asleep so I could check Instagram more. Obviously I wasn't there and she finds me making the dress in the office. I don't think I'd mentioned that my eye sight was poor and I usually wore blue contacts. At that time in the night I wore my glasses because contacts were too much of a fuss. My purple-ish eyes were clear now.
"Violet, why are you wearing glasses and purple contacts, not to mention being down here at this time of night." Suzy questioned.
"My eyes are naturally purple and I usually wear blue contacts. I'm just wearing my glasses tonight 'cause they aren't too much of a pain in the ass to adjust. I'm making the polka dot dress because I can't sleep, at all." I explain.
"Why do you wear contacts all the time if you have a really rare eye colour?"
"Because I don't like to be viewed as different." I say while changing the thread colour in the sewing machine. "I will be viewed weirdly, no matter what anyone else says."
"Come on, it's two in the morning and your meeting Barry and Dan for six." She convinced me because I was slowly starting to drift off to sleep. Suzy went back upstairs while I finished up the last part of the waist band. I was packing up my things and remembered that I had to go and buy some more contacts sometime tomorrow. Luckily I had my dark sunglasses and it was gonna be hot and sunny straight away tomorrow.
When my head hit the pillow, I grabbed my phone and set my alarm for 3:00am so that I could find what I needed and get ready before Arin was awake. That dream was re-occurring, I wonder whether it was hinting something to me.
In the morning I wondered in to the bathroom with my stuff, and since I was gonna be wearing sunglasses all day tomorrow, I found it pointless to do my eye make-up. I noticed my tattoo on my thigh when I was changing. I hadn't looked at it in a while, 'the purple flower with a petal missing' was its official name but I nicknamed it 'Azalea'. I don't know why, it was just simple, I guess. My outfit was one of my 'shop bought' items, so that it would go with the sunglasses. I brought the beanbag close to the window so that I could look out of the window, waiting for my male colleagues.
Soon, I got bored, Arin was fiddling around with the cupboards in the kitchen so I put Hatsune Miku's 'Electric Angel' on and danced to it like I was 14 again, messing on with my "friends". When the song ended, it transitioned to 'Everything's Alright' from the game 'To The Moon' but my studio cover version. The song always reminded me of how I felt the day my mother and sister left for America, leaving me with my dad. I quickly turned it off when realising it wasn't the original. Lucky Star was an anime that I enjoyed a lot, its theme was epic, and when I found the full theme I ended up learning the song. 'Motteke! Sailor Fuku!' was its name, although my 16 year old self didn't believe enough in herself to learn it, she did it and when I was 18, I was able to do the dance fully along with singing.
Arin walked in with 2 cups of coffee and a glass of water, along with some toast and eggs, when I was in the middle of it. I didn't really mind as it was just something, I thought, if you were a talented women, who was interested in anime and spoke Japanese should do. My skinny jeans didn't rip either. Suzy walked down stairs to the smell of coffee and then realised what I was doing. After Arin put the tray of food and drink on the coffee table, the pair began to clap along. The breakdown in the song was extremely difficult but this was the first time I did it to perfection. When I finished I looked up to find a round of applause for me from 4... people...? Shit. Suzy must've let Barry and Dan in when I wasn't paying attention. I grabbed my purse, bag and phone and the men led me outside to the car after breakfast. It was really awkward.
"Nice performance there, Violet." Barry said as he hopped into the driver's seat. Dan sat next to him in the passenger seat while I hopped in the back. My sneakers were a little loose so I had to slide one back on before shutting the car door.
"It was pure boredom. Definitely not any type of planned performance. That was extremely off beat for me at this hour." I try coaxing them in to believing me.
"Yeah, off beat." Dan smirks.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" I shout.
"We've known you for a month, that's not off beat for you." Dan smiles. The car pulls out of the drive way and we were on our way.
"Yeah! You've known me for a month!" I boast. "By the way, do you know a shop that sells cosmetics near here?"
"There's a Boots not too far from the apartment complex. Why do you wanna go?" Dan asks.
"Umm, I need some more- err- foundation, and concealer. I ran out." I lie, they couldn't tell, well, at least I don't think they could.
"Ok, so, are you excited?" Barry askes fiddling on with the glove compartment.
"Yes, definitely." I say. "If I can pay upfront, I will go and get some money out of the nearest hole-in-the-wall." They weren't supposed to hear that, but they laughed and Dan tried to be clever.
"You aren't just gonna walk up to a random hole in a wall and get money from it." Dan laughed.
"You're really fucking stupid." I fold my arms and shake my head at them. "Hole-in-the-wall is another way of saying ATM, that's what I've called it all my life. That's what we call it in Newcastle."
"No, no Violet, you're the one that's fucking stupid." Dan insults.
"Excuse me!" I shout. "Just because you are foreign to my way of speaking doesn't make me stupid!"
Barry starts laughing.
"What's so damn funny?" I ask.
"Yeah, what's funny?" Dan asks.
"I-I've recorded this whole thing." Barry announces.
"What?! You know what? I'm just gonna shut up now." I say looking down with my arms now tightly folded. The guys talk and talk about every shitty thing there was and then, they ask the question I'd been trying to avoid for so long.
"What's with the sunglasses? You can take them off you know, they aren't bound to your face." Barry says.
"You'd better not laugh or call me weird." I say as we stop at some traffic lights.
"Why? Did you mess up your make-up this morning or what?" Barry asks.
"Just wait and you'll see what I mean." I move my curled black hair away from my face on either side and slowly removed the sunglasses. The guys had turned round after I spoke. I put the sunglasses back on not too soon after.
"Whoa, you've got purple contacts!" Dan shouts.
"They aren't contacts. They are my eyes, Daniel. I am actually very short sited so I wear strong contacts when I am in public so I don't get called weird. And yes I do class Suzy and Arin's house as in-public." I explain.
"Why aren't you wearing them now?" Barry asks while continuing to drive again.
"I ran out and that's the real reason we're heading to Boots, I try to avoid the subject of my eyes, you see." I say looking out of the window.
"9 out of 10 people on Youtube that we know will say your eyes are awesomely unique." Dan says. "Don't hide special features from your friends. Never do that, because you will regret it."
"Thanks Dan," I smile. "So, I suppose you wanna know about 'Azalea'." I say.
"Who's that?" Barry asks.
"It's more of a thing than a person." I say while putting the purple of my hair behind my ear. "'Azalea' is actually the tattoo I have on my thigh."
"The more you know," Barry awkwardly says as we pull up. I quickly tighten my shoe laces so that my sneaker doesn't fall off again. I remove my bag and myself from the car and stare up at the apartment.
"There are stairs, right?" I ask.
"Yes and elevators." Danny looks at me as if to say 'Why would you wanna take the stairs?'
"If I like the place, the stairs shall be one heck of a new gym." I say.
"There's no need, we go to the gym together every week, the whole of the grump family. Do you wanna come with us 'cause we go later?" Dan asks.
"Nah, I've fit my Halloween outfit to my shape. I'll just look after the house for Suzy and Arin." I say as we go through the doors of the apartment complex. "I've never liked going to the gym with a group, I guess I don't find it comfortable."
"Fair enough." Dan says in a disappointed manner. We get to the elevators and one boy is either side of me. Dan's to the left and Barry is to the right. When the elevator doors open, an old women that looks as if she's in her mid-70's, greets the two men after stepping out.
"Well, if it isn't young Dan and Barry." She says.
"Oh, hi, Mrs Cranbury." Dan says smiling.
"How are you boys?" Mrs Cranbury looks at them both.
"We're good." Barry says.
"And who is this beautiful young lady with you today, gentlemen."
"This is Violet Blackwell, Ma'am. She's a new colleague of ours and she's looking to buy the spare apartment on the floor below us." Barry explains.
"Now, Violet. Treat these two with some respect. They're really nice boys and don't go breaking their hearts, missus, are we clear?" She asks me.
"Yes, Ma'am, crystal." I say.
"Don't be fooling around with Violet for no good reason, boys." She was kind, very kind.
"Yes Ma'am." Both men said.
"See you later, Mrs Cranbury." Barry said letting the old women past him. We entered the elevator and Barry tapped the floor number into the keypad on the side of the shut elevator doors.
"So, why is apartment 69 empty?" I ask to break the silence.
"It's because it's expensive to rent considering it is very big and takes up the whole floor." Barry announces.
"How expensive is it?" I ask.
"Round about $1320 a month in total." Barry says as I turn that in to £'s in my head.
"Pfft, Nah. I used to pay that for my dad's house all the time." I brag. "I have enough money to buy the apartment in cash and have $100 left over."
"You can do that, you know." Barry said. "Mrs Cranbury owns the whole complex. When you're friends with us, it'll be easier."
"Alright, it won't be so hard. But I wanna earn some pay before I buy it." I say as the elevator doors opened. Since it was up for sale, apartment 69 was open, so you could take a look inside. I loved it. There was 2 bedrooms, a walk-in closet, a kitchen, a living room, obviously a bathroom and a little office. It was basically everything I could need for a Youtube career.
"I think this is an option." I say leading the guys out. "But I need a little more money before I look at buying it. We should probably get going now. I'll race you down the stairs."
"Fuck it, we'll just take the lift, but yeah, race ya!" Barry said while my colleagues step in to the lift. I run down 17 flights of stairs and reach the bottom before them. I waited by the front desk for them.
"Holy shit! You're fast, Violet." Danny shouted.
"Yeah," I say panting. "And out of breath." We walk out of the complex doors together and make our way to the car but my mobile rings. "I have to take this." I say after looking at the caller ID and realising it was the army.
I turn away and begin to walk away.