--Super duper important note at the end. Please please pleaseeee read it.--
Monica's P.O.V.
"M, hurry up, will you?!" Brandon shouted from downstairs.
"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" I hollered back with an eye roll.
Running down the stairs with my carry-on in hand, I almost crashed against Brandon.
"B, can you please get my suitcase?" I said, panting.
"Sure, Berrycake. Since you said please." He beamed at me, going up the stairs to my room.
I rolled my eyes at him and carried out my bag to the car waiting outside. When I finished doing that, I got inside again to see my smiling mother going down the stairs in heels.
I smiled, it was impossible not to with the look she had. She looked so happy and radiant. I was only fussing about this because I haven't seen that face ever since the divorce.
"Hey mom. You look happy." I mused with a grin.
"Of course I am," then she began listing off things that makes her happy, "You're finally coming out of your shell, you're starting to talk to your dad a little, Brandon's nice, I have a date tonight..." She trailed off with a goofy grin.
"Hold up," I licked my lips, "You have a date tonight and you didn't even tell me beforehand? What kind of mother-bestfriend are you?" I playfully said in an accusing manner.
"I thought I was your bestfriend?" Brandon said, slightly out of breath as he descended down the stairs.
I laughed, "You are."
"Well, better not to keep my date waiting. He's almost here. I'm gonna go wait outside." My mom said, trying to slip out of the moment.
"Uh-uh mom. How about we wait together and you introduce me to the lucky guy, eh?" I smirked.
"Er, okay." She sighed, defeated.
"Do we really have to? Aren't we gonna run late?" Brandon whined.
Mom's eyes visibly brightened. "Oh, right! I don't want to-"
"We have a couple hours to spare, B. Besides, all I'm gonna do is talk to the guy. Ya know, get to know him and all." I said, waving them off.
"If you say so." He muttered.
"Great," I clapped my hands two times with a grin, "-oh and you're free to do what you want around the house as long as it won't cause a ruckus that I have to handle." I told Brandon. He cheered up and started to walk towards the kitchen.
"Now, tell me something about your date, mom."
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Ding dong!
"I'll get it!" Mom jumped up from her seat.
I sprung up, "Oh no! I will. Just go sit down there and relax so you can calm your nerves and all." I said mischievously as I held mom back.
She rolled her eyes but she sat down on the couch, as elegantly as usual.
I walked giddily to the door, my boots making light footstep sounds along the foyer hall.
As I opened the door, I really didn't know what to expect so you can almost imagine my shock when I saw a muscular man standing at my doorway.
I examined the guy. He had this not-so-effortlessly-messed-up brown hair, these mysterious dark eyes, some light stubble, perfect jawline and as I said, he was muscular but not too muscular that will make him look like a replica of John Cena, he had a 'just right' build. He was also wearing a suit, his tie matching my mom's shirt.
How classic.
He cleared his throat. I looked up with a raised eyebrow as he shifted uncomfortably. My scrutiny suddenly turned to approval.
I smiled sweetly, "Well you must be Christian." Grey.
He smiled, a little nervously might I add, "Yeah. And you must be Monica. Just call me Chris."
Well that's a first, a hot guy being nervous about a date.
"Hey Chris. Just call me Mony." I said, my smile getting wider.
"Hey M, let the guy in already. He's freezing." Brandon said, his head appearing at the end of the hall.
My eyebrows shot up in recognition, "Oh, right!" I rolled ny eyes and laughed at my stupidness "Come in."
He walked in and examined the place, I closed the door shut behind me and walked down the hall.
"Follow me," I nodded to Chris, "The queen is right this way."
He laughed lightly making me smile a little, knowing that he was already a little at ease.
I slowed down a bit so I can walk beside him, "Stop being so tense. One of you should at least be sensible enough to calm your nerves in this date." He chuckled, "You know, I'll never really hurt you or something unless you hurt my mom. If you hurt her, don't expect to be able to walk for a year." I threatened in a whisper, making him gulp. He saluted me mockingly despite his slight nervousness.
I smiled sweetly again, seeing as we arrived in the living room. My mom was sitting on her seat, her knee bouncing up and down in nervousness. Brandon --I assume-- is in the kitchen since I hear someone turning the microwave on.
Chris looked at my mom admiringly, holding her hand to help her get up from the loveseat.
"Well, this is my cue to get out of here." I shrugged. I approaced the intercom and pressed kitchen, "Hey B, if you're not out in five, I'm leaving without you."
As I stepped away, I kissed my mom on the cheek after saying goodbye and waved a goodbye to Chris as well.
I got in the car and buckled up before turning up the radio.
A few seconds later, Brandon was already in the car, buckled up.
"You can be really bossy, you know." Brandon said as he started to move out of the spot.
"I can be, if I want to." I shrugged.
And then we drove off to the sunset... Nah, I'm just messing with you, there's no way I'd get all soppy and cliché with this guy right here. After all, he's just my bestfriend, right?
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"Flight CA81702 to Los Angeles, California is now boarding."
Eep, this is it, I'm going to L.A.
Out of the blue, I started humming the tune to Little Einsteins. Brandon looked at me weirdly, trying not to laugh as we walked up to the boarding area.
"You can laugh, B." I rolled my eyes at him as he started to look red from holding back his laughter.
Just then, he guffawed in laughter from beside me. "Why did you even--HAHAHA!"
I rolled my eyes and handed my ticket to the lady when it was my turn. The attendant ripped the stub thing from my ticket and gave me the other half as the attendant on my right side also did the same to Brandon's. They smiled at us and said a mere 'good day'.
After getting settled in our seats, (which were in first class, unsurprisingly) I immediately took out my purple stuffed toy. It was cricle, medium-large in size, fluffy and it had features of a piglet. I carry it everytime I travel on a plane or a boat. My dad gave it to me and I still treasure it even though the person who gave it was a jerk.
Yes, I'm weird, I know.
Brandon looked at me amusedly and shook his head, relaxing it on the headrest and closed his eyes.
I took out a gum pack and chewed on two pieces. I offered some to Brandon but he shook his head lightly. I shrugged, sucks for you when it's time to take, off. I thought as I put away the pack.
When the pilot made the announcement of the takeoff, I smiled and relaxed in my seat.
I'm going to Californiaaaaa!!!
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"Why didn't you tell me it wasn't that cold here at L.A., Brandon?" I whined at my bestfriend who was very comfortable in his clothes.
"I thought you knew." He shrugged.
"Well, you saw my outfit. You could've told me to change." I huffed.
"I thought you were comfortable in those." He shrugged, again.
"Stop shrugging, it's annoying me."
"Stop whining, then. It's also quite annoying. Just change when we get to the hotel."
I huffed again and puffed my cheeks with air.
Brandon didn't even bother to tell me what I was supposed to wear. How was I supposed to know that it wasn't that cold here? Ugh, the hotel's not even near and we-
"The car's here." I sighed in relief at Brandon's statement. I rolled my suitcase to the back of the black Range Rover but before I could open the trunk, a middle-aged man dressed in a black uniform grabbed it from my hand lightly.
I was startled, until he said, "Let me handle this, ma'am. Welcome to Los Angeles." Then he flashed me a bright smile. I realized that he was the chauffeur/driver and returned his smile.
"Thank you..." I trailed off, hinting to his name.
"Henry, miss Anderson."
"Thank you, Henry." I nodded at him, he nodded back, flashing me another smile.
I sat beside Brandon in the backseat of the Range Rover as Henry drove to our hotel.
I looked out the window the entire time, I mean, can you blame me? I've been to a lot of places before, Russia, France, Italy, Ireland, London, Mexico, and others, but I've never been to L.A., as I can remember.
It was different from the environment I usually see everyday. I can't really rate what's better since I haven't seen the rest of L.A. yet and I also didn't have time to explore our place.
"We're here, Mr. Carson, Ms. Anderson." Henry said as he stopped in front of the entrance of a grand hotel.
Judging from the facade of the hotel, it was some kind of a hotel for very rich people. It was obviously 5-star and elegant. The security was tight, assuming from the guards and CCTVs scattered around the area.
I could probably buy three whole barrels of cheetos if I check in on the cheapest room here, I'd rather do the first though.
"You going out any time soon, M?" Brandon asked teasingly, snapping me out of my thoughts. The sound of a car door slamming shut brought me to my senses and I immediately scrambled off to go out of the car.
I approached Brandon at the entrance and asked him about our things.
"Oh, Henry's got it. All we have to do is get our keys and the bell boy's just gonna bring them up to our room." I nodded and walked with him to the counter.
There was a girl looking formal and professional at the counter. She was typing away in a computer with a pair of headphones placed on her ears. It had that mic thing attached to the headphones that call center agents used and she was busily talking into it.
When she saw us, she said something quickly before she smiled warmly at us. "Hello, ma'am, sir. Welcome to Verdana Hotel, what can I do for you today?"
"Good morning. We'd like to get the room keys for two supremo suites under Carson." Brandon said with a warm smile of his own.
The girl nodded, typed out something on the computer swifty and took out two card keys from some kind of automated drawer and handed them to us. She smiled-yet, again- and wished us a good day. I smiled back and uttered a small, "You, too."
A bell boy was carrying a baggage cart containing Brandon and my things. He pushed it down the hall which Brandon pullled me with him to. Brandon and I almost immediately came to an abrupt stop in front of an elevator.
Ugh, I can't wait to go up to my room and bathe... and take a nap.
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I went out of the en suite bathroom, feeling completely satisfied of the relaxing bath in the jacuzzi that made my fingers prune.
I blow dried my hair and quickly dressed up in the clothes that were laid out on my bed. It consisted of a flowy, crème-colored top and a pair of denim shorts. I tucked in the front part of the top and slipped a pair of flip-flop styled sandals. I slipped on a gem-graced bracelet and applied some concealer. I fixated a dark brown (somewhat going on to black) beanie on my head.
In the middle of packing my purse, there was a knock on my door.
"Are you done?" Brandon asked from the other side of the door.
"Yes. Hold up, I'm just gonna open the door." I walked up to the door and opened it up. I carried my purse on the part above my elbow and curled my arm up. As I did, I put my sunglasses on.
"Let's go?"
Brandon nodded. He waited for me to lock the door before he steered us down the hallway.
"You don't know how much you look like a celebrity right now." Brandon said with a snicker.
"Well you look like a beach dude." I stuck my tongue out. He was wearing a pair of khaki shorts that went just above his knees and a light blue polo shirt which he left the two first buttons undone.
He rolled his eyes, "How mature, M."
As we stepped in the elevator, I spun to face him. I fixed the collar of his shirt -which was bugging me since I saw him- and buttoned up the second button, startling him.
"You should've seen your collar a while ago, it looked like you didn't have a neck, and you should also button the two last buttons of your polo shirt, only the first button should be unbuttoned, 'lright?" I lectured Brandon.
He raised an eyebrow, "Got it."
I nodded firmly and turned to face the elevator doors, my heart busily ramming against my chest.
That was such an awkward thing to do, I don't even know why I did that. Ugh, I'm such an idiot.
The elevator dinged as the doors opened, revealing the start of the long hallway. We were about to go to the really large rooftop on the fifteenth height. I really don't know what we're doing there but I felt excited about going there.
I, personally, loved heights. I don't know what the deal was, but I feel really excited and giddy when I'm on top and there's people or things below me.
We were rooming on the sixth floor (don't even get me started why we're there and not on the third or lower floors)with our rooms right across each other's. With the homey interior of the long carpeted hallway, I immediately felt good about this vacation.
"What are we doing here anyways?" I asked Brandon as I trailed off beside him while we walked to the flight of stairs that'll take us to the rooftop.
"We're going to meet someone there."
I nodded and continued following him.
When Brandon opened the door to the rooftop, my eardrums pounded from the volume of the music playing out. As I looked around me, I couldn't help but think that this is not what I expected at all.
I felt something warm clutch my hand and looked down at Brandon's hand enveloping mine. I looked up at Brandon questioningly, nodding my head at our hands and to the party that was obviously going full-out already.
He leaned in and for a moment, just for a moment, I thought he was gonna kiss me, but then, I felt the vibrations of his voice sounding clearly in my ear.
"My dad's company is having a party for the success Aisha had been for the past few months."
Aisha was a nice redhead with a beautiful voice. She was so angelic and humble, quite confident on stage but never arrogant. She was one of the artists under Mr. Carson's records.
"Do they do this all the time for every artist?" I shouted amidst the loud noise. It was impossible to be heard if 'd speak in my normal voice.
"It depends on the artist if they want it or not. But dad is always open about it." I nodded in understanding as he began leading me somewhere.
After wandering for a couple of seconds, we finally found Mr. Carson talking to a bunch of men in Armani suits.
They looked important and intimidating, but -I don't mean this offensively- I think the Summers collection could do better. I mean, sure, Armani is quite big and famous but I seriously think they could've at least made something different about their suits.
I'm just saying my opinions here.
Mr. Carson looked up as he saw us approaching them. He motioned for us to come over and the men he was talking to earlier set their eyes on us. I was getting a little insecure about my clothing until I remembered Brandon's outfit and the casualness of the people around.
"Gentlemen, this is my eldest and only son, Brandon and his friend, Ms..." Mr. Carson looked at me expectantly.
I snapped out of my judging state and speaked hastily, but formally, "Anderson. Monica Anderson."
"Ms. Anderson." Mr. Carson finished, looking over at me with a warm smile. I returned it with my own.
"Brandon, Monica, these are the members of the board. From your left, Mr. Crest, Mr. Dante, Mr. Benson."
We shook hands and exchanged some pleasantries until the man at the center, Mr. Dante, asked me, "Are you, by any chance, related to Richard Anderson?"
"Yes, indeed, I am. I am his daughter to Ms. Dawn Summers." I said curtly.
Mr. Dante nodded, "Ah, the golden heir. You are going to inherit both companies, lass, I gurantee you."
Confused, I asked, "Pardon?"
"You're dad and I are quite close. If he hasn't mentioned yet, we are business partners and we've grown close to each other as we worked together. He has told me a lot of things. Like how you were meant to inherit the Summers Collection and Grand Royale."
Grand Royale was my dad's group of companies and I am quite baffled about how my parents haven't told me about this yet. Perhaps, they haven't talked it through properly yet and they are discussing it now.
"Oh, uh, yes, that." I said, clearing my throat awkwardly.
I glanced at Brandon who talking to his dad and the other two men until Mr. Dante said, "I sense that you will be a great C.E.O. for both companies, Ms. Anderson." With that, he pat me on the back lightly as I smilled at him.
"Shall we join them, Ms. Anderson?" He motioned to Brandon, Mr. Carson, Mr. Crest and Mr. Benson.
I nodded and followed him back to where the four was. When Brandon caught sight of me, he said something to his dad, to which Mr. Carson nodded at.
When I was back to his side, Brandon clutched my hand and interlaced our fingers. He politely excused us from the grown-ups before he pulled me back down to the flight of stairs.
Getting curious I voiced out my thoughts, "What were you talking about?"
Brandon looked at me for a split second before focusing on the stairs, he muttered, "Nothing you should be concerned about."
I sighed hopelessly, "You can be really secretive, you know that?"
Brandon smirked, "I can be, if I want to."
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Mony's outfit on the media portion :)
Heyyaa guyssss!!!
Remember how I told you that I wasn't updating for a long whille?
Looks like I can't stand not updating ASAP so updated (ta-da)!
Actually, I'm somewhere with no wifi (every teenager's night mare, I know) and I'm stuck with nothing to do.
I tried to upload earlier but there wasn't any internet connection so I waited (impatiently, may I add) long and hard.
Oh, and can you guys please help me pick a name for Mr. Carson's Record company? Comment as much as you can so you'll have a better chance of having a dedication on the next chapter IF your idea gets picked out. Please participate on this bc I really don't have an idea for the record company and it'll also be a win-win for us since you might get dedication and I'll have something for the record company.
Anywayysssss, Vommentare (Vote+Comment+Share)
Loveyah baes.
Au revoir mes lecteurs de fantastique.
xoxo~A