Above The Fame

T w e n t y

Miracle's fingers glided across the passenger seat window as the car sped steadily down the road. The houses were all whooshing by but it was still noticeable how each of them were almost duplicates of each other. It was a gated community where every aspect of each house was doted upon. The lawns were perfectly mowed, the picket fences were the color of snow.

Even as the holiday approached, no one put out decorations, they weren't brave enough to compromise the look of their houses with a fake skeleton or a yard ghost. Miracle spotted a few carved pumpkins, placed daintily at the porch of a couple of houses.

She pulled her jacket around her in an attempt to get warmer. The weather was getting chilly as the year ran on, the autumn breeze blowing away the heat and humidity. Miracle had always preferred the cold; there was just something peaceful about it. It was harsh in its own way but the cold brings serenity. People still want to go out when it's hot but the winter forces everyone indoors. Her parents don't spend long hours at the office, although it's not as if they spend the extra time with her. No, they spend it with each other, something Miracle thought was beautiful and hoped to have.

"Ethan, turn on the seat warmer, please." She beckoned, and he hummed in return, eyes strictly on the road.

"You're awfully quiet, are you okay?" She glanced over at him, knowing Ethan, a car ride is never this quiet unless something's up.

"I'm fine," He tried to sound convincing but failed miserably. His voice was strained, as if he hadn't spoken in a while.

"Just spill it already."

"It's not a big deal, honestly."

"Ethan," She warned, dragging out his name carefully. She did care about him, a lot more than an employer should care about an employee. He was more than a driver to her, he was a friend.

"I've been thinking…" He started, turning on his right. "Maybe I'm not the best option for Leila. I mean, look at me, all I do is drive a teenage girl around. No offense, Miracle."

"Okay, offense taken." She glared playfully. "It's not even like I have so many places to go."

"My point exactly. I feel like I'm not doing enough if I want to give her a good life."

"You can search for other jobs, Ethan. You're not a prisoner."

"I can't do that. You know your parents need me to be available all the time."

"Well, I don't."

He sighs, "I wish it was that simple, Miracle. Truth is, it's not. They hired me. They're paying me. I have to do as they say."

"They're paying you well enough, right?"

"It's not about the pay. It's just not a very glorious job," He stated. "When I first came into contact with your parents, I had applied for a job at the company but they didn't need any more workers at the time. I wasn't in a good place, so I needed a job. I asked if they had anything I could do and well, I was introduced to you."

"I didn't know that." She said, "Can't you apply for the job you wanted again? Or at least a different one in the company."

He didn't reply, focusing on the road and carefully pulling into the driveway. As soon as the car rolled to a halt, seatbelts were removed and they just went their separate ways. Miracle was starting to feel bad too, brainstorming about what she was to do.

After a long day at school, all she wanted to do was to clean up and settle down for a bit before working on her literature project. Chris has basically been carrying the entire thing alone but now, she was going to pitch in her ideas and try to edit it a little.