One in A Bil~ion // B.E. agere

10

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~+~ Author's Note ~+~
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That moment when summer break ends up somehow being busier than the school year-

Sorry for the um... 20-ish day wait

Anyways... enjoy a chapter filled with annoyance at the beginning but also fluff at the end WOO👏

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Reality...

The state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them.

Billie's perception of Blaire is skewed, especially since they've only known each other for a few days. Everything about Blaire's existence and life appears dream-like... perfect even. But reality is, of course, very much imperfect.

Everyone, even Billie herself, wears a mask —one that is carefully constructed with the intent to garner some sort of approval from all of those who view it and prevent anyone from seeing what truly lies behind.

As is the case for many other people, Blaire's mask hides her pain.

For her specifically, it is pain that has slowly built up over time and is derived from feelings of abandonment and lack of care from those who's sole responsibility is to provide the love that she is missing.

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After the short walk from Billie's house, Blaire reaches hers. She freezes, however, after noticing a particularly familiar, navy blue vehicle parked in the driveway.

The car unmistakably belongs to her parents and it's presence alone is the source of the brewing dread in the pit of Blaire's stomach.

After mentally composing herself from the initial shock, she walks up to the front door and slowly opens it.

As soon as she enters the household, she is greeted by her 2 younger brothers. They immediately sprint up to her upon hearing the door's distinct creak as it is opened.

This was a daily routine for the three.

"Hey lil troublemakers! How was your day?"

"Good Ma! Mrs. June was over but she left early cuz mommy and daddy comed home!" Tyson, the shortest one explains with his signature bright smile that never fails to warm her heart. Jace, the taller of the two, nodded in agreement with a quiet smile of his own.

One might be confused upon first hearing Blaire's nickname "Ma".

As explained previously, her parents are almost always out of town on sometimes month-long business trips, leaving Blaire to take care of the twins alone. It's to the point where Blaire has earned such a nickname from her 6 year old brothers because she acted more like their mother than their older sister at times.

She honestly deserved the title too—more so than her actual parents at least. She was the one that changed their diapers and made sure they had food to eat every day when they were infants. She even helped potty train them.

The only contribution their parents made was paying for a babysitter while Blaire was in school and paying for any food or mandatory expenses when asked.

The most infuriating part is that her parents come home from god knows where and pretend to actually give a shit about the boys and herself. They act as though they care about things that occur in Blaire's life and even try to offer their opinions on her lifestyle as if they even have a say in what she choses to do in the first place. But in Blaire's opinion, they lost that privilege years ago when they stopped being parents.