Vindictively Yours,

Suspending Lies and Talks

Wynter closed her bedroom door shut. She made it just in time. She huffed a breath. She came home before that...guy reached here. Nigel. She shivered, remembering how he looked from the first time she saw him and the second time. Two different faces. In class, he was the total golden boy. The brightest, the smartest and yes, the most beautiful. Everyone probably had drool on their face. It wasn't the attraction that was magnetic to everyone, it was this image of perfection he had that made everyone fall in love with him instantly. He cared for the planet. Talked about hunger and poverty like it was personal to him. Delivered poetry like he suffered from love lost.However, it was different for Wynter. She had seen his other face. The bad boy. The sight which didn't once come out when he was in class, answering left and right. It was interesting and curious and uneasy. He isn't who he says he is. A mask, she would call it. The ultimate mask where the real and fake merge and you can't tell the difference.

The way he brushed off his fringe from his forehead making her sweat behind the knees. His golden pen he uses to write no doubt the flawless answers. Everyone was talking of him. Everyone wanted to talk to him. It made it into the editorial of the school's newspaper.

A rapid knocking sound made her jump. "Wynter! Come down, quickly! There is a surprise!" Her mother. Wynter rolled her eyes. She was aware of the surprise. She strategically ignored Nigel for the remainder of her maths class. The only other time she saw him was during lunch where he was already swallowed by a huge crowd of people. Parker hadn't stopped talking about Nigel either, asking her non-stop questions which she had no answer to. She barely met him, let alone could talk about him with her absentee step father.

"I am coming! Gimme a minute!" She threw on a fresh pair of crop top and tights. Stepping out of the door, she heard her mother laughing. Her heart started to beat faster. Will he tell his father that he saw me at school? Then it just hit her. She lied to him about her name. Oh god no! How embarrassing!

Entering the den room, she saw her mother sitting next Riley, who had no expression on his face. You think he would be happy to see his son after all these years? Speaking of son, Nigel was sitting across from them. Proper. He was still in his uniform. Pristine and clean. He was laughing at something her mom said when he looked over and spotted Wynter. Again, her breath hitched. She kept feeling something was wrong with this guy.

"Look who it is! Wynter, darling! Come and meet your step-brother, sweetheart! This is Nigel. And this is your uncle Reggie. They both have come back after such a long time. Meet my daughter, Wynter." Her mother was wearing a low cut bag. Wynter thinks it's a bag and not a dress because everyone's eyes goes to the low cut territory. She was nothing like her mom. Catherine was an intelligent woman but her intelligence was limited to and only men. She thinks when a man wants something, always expect something in return so that transaction you made is successful and you have and are the profit. Wynter can never associate with her mom's thinking because even though her mom does a lot for them to survive, she is always on the run. Running from responsibility. From struggle. While Catherine loved expensive low-cut Dior dresses, fast cars and rich old men, Wynter was the opposite.

Her eyes floated to the other man present across the room. He had the same kind of eyes as Nigel but they were slightly sad and had this fake smile in them. He came forward, offering his hand to shake. "Hello Wynter. So nice to finally meet you! I have heard so much from Riley."

She nodded, unable to think of anything to say. Then, she was pulled into a hug. The expensive cologne smacked into her face as Nigel hugged her. Her body tightened. "Great meeting you, sister!" He said out loud but then whispered, "I am guessing everyone here calls you by the wrong name. Should I correct them or will you?"

She tried to let his threat slide and not see it as bait. She maneuvered herself off him, politely keeping that smile on herself because everyone was watching them. "Hi Nigel."