Fame

Chapter 1

I sighed heavily before bringing my tousled brown hair to the left side of my head. I bit my lower lip as my eyes squinted over the messy board game. Hearing a light chuckle, I looked up, my eyes glaring at my opponent's content face, before settling my gaze back over the seven letters that stood in front of me. Scratching the side of my face, I groaned in frustration as I searched the perfect word that could potentially lead to my victory and, ultimately, assert my dominance over the chirpy middle-aged women's literacy.

"C'mon, dearest. We don't have all day. I can feel myself getting older by the second," Maureen said, a small smile plastered on her lips. Even though the mockery was real, her voice was still gentle and soothing, totally devoid of malice.

Maureen had been admitted on the compound a little over a year ago. She had arrived in the middle of the night, dishevelled, and completely alone. Even with her sickly thin body, her overly dyed platinum hair and her smeared mascara over her hollowed cheeks, she had looked amazingly gracious in her expensive light pink suit. Admitted in the establishment due to alcohol abuse, the first few months had been rough not only for her, but for the rest of the staff members too. Rare were the days passed without tantrums and more often than not, her screams and cries were heard throughout the whole yard. Day or night. I had spent countless sleepless nights because of her crisis as my room was the closest to the alcoholics' dorms. As the effects of withdrawal slowly dissipated, Maureen had taken a liking for my presence to her side, claiming I reminded her of her twelve years old daughter. With time, we bonded over a fair share of activities, one of them being board games, where we could let our competitive streaks out.

I gave her my best unimpressed look and was about to retort when some angry vociferations and yells were heard from the other side of the big blue doors of the common room.

"I don't need to be here! I am fine. Completely fine!"

There was a muffled sound and some more slurred aggressive screams before the doors opened on four people, one of them being my superior, Danielle.

Danielle was a very intimidating woman, always sporting a frown on her face. Her auburn her were cut to her shoulder, enhancing her squared jaw. Her face constantly held a severe look, a beneficial trait to detain when you were the Head of a rehabilitation centre. With her arms crossed over her chest and dressed in the light blue uniform of regular staff members, she was scrutinizing the newcomer with her lips in a tight line.

"I don't fucking need help! What's so complicated to understand 'bout that, uh? I am fine. Fucking. Fine!" screamed a tall guy, his British accent becoming stronger as he harshly spoke. Wearing the light blue patient's uniform, his back was turned at me as he held gaze with a crying petite woman.

The latter stepped forward and put her small hands on each side of the young man's face, making him hunch over her frame.

"Yes, you do. You need help. It can't go on like that. You're going to kill yourself. It's for your own good. Please, understand that," her desperate voice was pleading.

The newcomer grabbed the woman's hands and rudely swatted them away before taking a step back.

"I hate you," his deep voice was unaffected as he turned his body around and went to sit on the closest chair with his head directed to a white wall. He held his head in both of his hands as his elbows were on his spread knees.

The woman brought her right hand to her mouth, trying to hold back a sob, while her other hand went to her chest. Her head hung low as the words hit her and her wavy sandy hair got stuck on her soaked wet cheeks. She stumbled back a bit before turning around and leaving through the door with shaky legs. Spotting me, Danielle nodded her head before following the lady out of the common room.

Left behind was a tall man in a black suit. He had been standing there the whole time during the dramatic scene, seeming totally emotionally detached from the entire situation. He picked up his cell phone from his trousers and lifted his sunglasses from his eyes in order to read whatever was on his gadget. A few seconds later, he looked up from his phone and walked up to the boy who was still sat on the chair. The man bent down and said something in the ear of the younger one. It must have been worthy of a listen because the latter lifted his head and answered, his face still broody. Without any form of affection, the old man left through the doors, his steps loudly resonating.

I glanced at Maureen whose face was one of surprise. The arrivals of newcomers always had an impact on her as if she relived her own every single time. Granted, not every arrivals were done in a screaming manner, but those that did were mostly the ones that stuck around the compound. Even though the common room was practically empty, I knew that the young man's appearance in the establishment didn't go unnoticed and would be the talk at dinner time. I heard Maureen chuckle slightly as she flicked her red fringe out of her eyes before scrutinizing the faintly platinum ends of her hair.

I gave her a small smile before glancing back at the new guy who, once again, had his head in his hands. Probably feeling my gaze on him, he looked up, staring back at me. With his eyes locked on mines, I shuddered under the raw intensity of the hatred they carried and averted my gaze back on to the board game. I felt a blush swiftly creeping on my cheeks as I recognized the newcomer. It would have been hard not to as his attractive face was plastered on every billboards and magazines there were.

Will Parker was the teen heartthrob of our generation. With his blond hair, deep blue eyes, dimples, and sharp jawline, he had every girls at his feet due to his good looks. Former member of a globally famous and successful pop boy band, he had abruptly cut ties with his old management before becoming the insanely popular rock solo artist that he was today. Two albums later and a third on the way, it was nearly impossible not to hear his music on the radio. Throughout the years, he had earned quite the reputation with his partying habits and his one night stands which were splashed all over the medias at every moment of the day.

Sighing, I covered the sides of my face with my chestnut mane in hopes of calming my flustered self. Even though I was not a big fan of his, Will Parker and his dashing smile had the ability to melt the harshest hater into a puddle of hormones. I shook my head, feeling watched as I put down my last letters on the board game. Satisfied, I offered my best coy smirk to Maureen, savouring the taste of victory at the tip of my tongue. The latter simultaneously groaned in dejection as the bell signalling the start of dinner rang across the room.

"I'm just really impressed by the fact that you've been able to come up with a word, since all you've been doing is ogling the newcomer to the state of distraction," said my opponent, laughing sweetly.

"You are just a sore loser," I replied. Repressing the desire to stick out my tongue at her, I added," And I was not ogling him."

"Sure, Millie. Now, hurry up. I'm getting hungry."

I rolled my eyes at her, earning a chuckle from her. I slowly started to pack up the game and putting it away, but Maureen grabbed my wrist and rapidly dragged me to the blue doors.

Defeated, I just followed her,looking back at our seats that were being tidied up by other staff members. Beforethe doors closed on me, the only thing I saw was Will Parker sat alone on his chair in the empty room, still staring blankly at the wall.                

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