Rosemary's P.O.V
The moment I got the chance to, I messaged my friend to remind me of the children's home she went to. Called the home and arranged a time for Violet and I to go. In the meantime, Violet posted on instagram for people to donate children's clothes and toys. Lucy and Rachel helped collect the donations. Around campus, Edgar and Nick drove a golf cart to help collect as well. A high-speed chase took place when the security team tried stopping them from driving it down the hallways. Complete chaos. Only stopped to let Melanie hop in the back. People claim to have seen her flash the security but I didn't see. I could not confirm that. Knowing her, I wouldn't doubt it. Driving crazily, they made sharp turns and zig zagged in the golf cart. Apparently Nick thought he was untouchable with the way he drove.
At the end, a lot was collected. More than I imagined. Part of me was worried that they were going to respond the same way Violet's cousins did. Luckily, many people pitched in. Whether it was because it came from the heart or were only doing it to look good in Violet's eyes, anything was appreciated. The donations were a success.
Apart from that, Violet ordered boxes of toys and clothes.
She wanted to bring in a catering service to feed the children but I recommended to just order pizza and a few snacks. Kinda like a pizza party. They'd really love that.
The dorm room was packed with donations. One last time, Violet and her friends went over everything. Organized the boys clothes apart from the girls clothes. Boys toys from the girl toys.
"I say just separate the clothes from the toys," Lucy suggested. "We don't know what they'll want," she added.
"True. Anyone could wear and play with whatever they want," I agreed.
"Yeah but it'll also make it easier for them to find what they like. Boy or girl, whatever they're interested in, it'll be nice to have it all organized," Violet also had a valid point.
Rachel and Cecily proceeded to separate and neatly organize everything.
"The truck should be here in half an hour," Rachel informed and put her phone back down.
"Rosemary, you're in charge of ordering the pizzas," Violet appointed me the responsibility.
"Anything else, your highness?" I asked sarcastically.
"That's about it for now," she grabbed her phone. "And excellent way of referring to me, keep it that way."
Sometimes I was scared of being sarcastic with her because she knew how to flip it around. How to use it in her favor.
Cecily squealed, "Violet, look at the amount of toys Carina donated!" Amazed, her eyes grew big.
Violet ran over to see, "And she included packs of batteries for them!" More excited, she grinned from ear to ear.
As happy as I was for the children, I couldn't help but to feel jealous. The sad jealousy type. Carina was able to impress Violet. If only I had the wealth to buy so many gifts for them. Not necessarily to impress Violet but for the children. Making Violet smile would be a plus. Anything to make her happy.
I just wish I could do more.
"How nice!" Lucy smiled at Carina's contribution.
"Wow, generous," unimpressed, Rachel commented dryly.
Lucy's forehead creased, "I think it is."
Rachel snickered, "I bet all she did was order them in. How much you wanna bet that she didn't even look at the toys," she sounded confident. "Not like she made multiple phone calls to arrange a date and time to visit the home. Went around telling others to donate. Organized who was in charge of collecting the donations. Got people to help with the preparation," To Rachel, Carina's contribution wasn't all that of a big deal.
Regardless, she donated and a lot, so it was very well appreciated.
Taking her eyes off the toys that Carina donated, Violet softly looked at me. "Rosemary did that," she acknowledged. Inevitably, I felt a tingle start in my heart and explode in the pit of my stomach, making me want to smile like an idiot.
The boys barged in through the door.
"Your carriage awaits," gentleman like, Edgar presented the golf cart right outside the dorm room.
Violet chuckled, "Mr. Hastings catches you, you're dead."
"Have some hoes give me a lap dance and I'll come back to life," Nick's smug disgusted me.
"Load up the golf cart," I hurried since we were running out of time.
Nick explained, "We got Melanie to distract him," he waved off our worries.
"By doing what?" Fearing the answer and grossed out, Rachel's features crunched up.
Exchanging a look, Edgar and Nick laughed.
"Not what you're thinking, she's not that wild," Edgar found the assumption hilarious. "Melanie is doing a strip-tease in the cafeteria as a distraction. He must be yelling at her to stop as we speak," Edgar looked at his wrist watch.
Amused, we laughed and started loading up the boxes. I could only imagine the headache Melanie was putting Mr. Hastings through.
-
At the children's home, the supervisor came out to greet us and give us a mini tour. We were taken into a room where all the anxious and excited children shouted, "Welcome!" And threw balloons up.
Overjoyed with the surprise, Violet smiled from ear to ear and instinctively reached for my hand. Soaking it up, I smiled and grabbed her hand too.
"Rosemary, look at their cute surprise!" Joyful, she squealed, giving my hand a squeeze. Overwhelmed with happiness.
Definitely was going to be a pizza party!
Partying, the kids threw balloons and made noise with the whistle blowers.
"Thank you for coming!" The children greeted.
The children eyes grew big when they saw the boxes of gifts being carried in.
Their happy faces filled me up with joy. I loved it already! More than anyone, Violet was excited to be here. As if this were her Disneyland! I thought that was very cute.
Unable to wait another minute, Violet mentioned for the kids to approach us. Excited, they came up. We opened up the boxes.
"Pick whatever toy you want!" Violet invited.
Wide-eyed, the kids examined the toys in the boxes. In a rush, they pulled toys out. Picked their favorite and went off to play with it. Violet handed out the toys. Gave out ideas and suggested a few toys, based on what they liked. I stood by her side and handed them out as she instructed. Never in my life had I seen someone so invested in making sure that every kid got what they wanted.
-
A little six year old boy was sitting a little too close to Violet. Leaning up against her. Having her color and draw with him. Smiling at all times at her. There was a sparkle in his eyes as he stared at her. Little boy was trying to hog up all of her attention. A few minutes ago, I tried getting Violet to help me serve the pizza but the kid told her to not leave him alone.
Two little girls were drawing together. Giving each other ideas on what to add. They shared a plate of chips. Individually, they chose different flavors and then mixed them up together all in one plate.
One of the girls covered her eyes with a hand and blindly reached for a chip. Her friend paused the drawing and watched her. The first girl ate the potato chip. She uncovered her eyes, "Mmm! My mouth liked that surprise!" She was pleasant with it.
The friend then did the same thing and ate a Dorito. "Too cheesy!" Playfully, she stuck her tongue out in disgust and uncovered her eyes. The girls giggled.
"You try it now!" The first girl invited me to.
"I'd love to!" I scooted my chair closer.
"Close your eyes!" Excitedly, the little girl demonstrated on herself how to. I covered my eyes with a hand. "No cheating, okay?" she warned. As told, I didn't even peek through my fingers.
"I promise," I assured.
Paper plates scuffled and the girls giggled, mischievously. I was not worried at all. They were having fun.
"Get a chip," the little girl instructed.
I reached for one and put it in my mouth. Flaming hot, I made a face but contained myself from spitting it out.
The little girls laughed hysterically.
Another evil laugh made me open my eyes and that's when I saw Violet standing above the girls. I looked at the plate in front of me and realized that it only had the extra spicy Cheetos. They weren't even that hot but I didn't expect them. It's what caught me off guard. Before I covered my eyes, the other plate only had potato chips and Doritos.
"They're not hot for me!" The little girl got a Cheeto. Yet, right away spit it out as she made a face. "Eww!"
I laughed at that.
"She tricked you!" The other little girl snitched Violet out.
"I figured," I smirked at Violet.
The little boy who stared at Violet with heart eyes came running to be by her side. "For you!" He held out a piece of paper.
Violet took it, "Wow! You're an amazing artist!" she congratulated. A grin spread across the boy's face. Violet held the drawing up for us to see. "Marcus' drawing is really good, huh?"
A blue car. At the top, it had written on it, For Violet!
Honestly, that was extremely cute!
Marcus tugged Violet's jacket to get her attention. She looked down at him.
"Can I go home with you?" He gave her the puppy eyes. Awe, my heart ached for him.
Violet paused, seeming to be gathering her response. "I'm sorry but I'm too young to adopt you," I could see it in her eyes that she felt bad.
The boy laughed, "I don't want you to adopt me," he clarified. "I want to marry you!" He had a hopeful spark in his eyes.
Might've been the hot Cheetos still but I started coughing, feeling like I was choking because I was taken back by it. Just as in shock, Violet's eyes widened. I nearly burst out laughing. Barely met her and he was already proposing to her? Little dude wasted no time.
To her rescue, I asked him, "Why do you want to marry her?"
Without taking his eyes off her, he answered with the biggest and sweetest smile on his face, "Because she's the prettiest girl in the world!"
One of the girls looked up at Violet, "You look like a princess," she complimented.
"Your highness, would you like to answer him?" Jokingly, I hinted at this morning when Violet told me to refer to her as such.
Violet scolded me for putting her on the line.
Nervously, she chuckled, "I'm too young to get married."
"Me too. It's okay," Marcus insisted.
"Can I plan the wedding?" One of the girl's asked.
Maybe I could help Violet get out of it without hurting the boy's feelings. "Marcus, you don't have an engagement ring," I stated.
"I don't have money," he frowned. "But I love you!" He turned his attention back to Violet.
"Gross!" Another boy mocked. He was still in the stage of thinking that girls had cooties, I see.
Marcus stuck his tongue out at the boy.
Violet squatted down to be closer at eye level with him, "How about we find you a little girlfriend your age?"
"No! You!" he was stuck on her.
I laughed, "He knows what he wants."
Violet mugged me, "At least someone does." Whoa that indirect hit me like a boomerang.
Another boy came running to us, "I want more pizza!" Impatiently, he jumped in place.
The perfect escape. Violet grabbed the boy's hand, "I'll help you," she walked off with him. Marcus followed them of course.
The little girl asked, "Is she your best friend?"
I had to hold back my laughter on that one. I cleared my throat, "She's my roommate."
"Roommate?" the other girl questioned.
"We share the same room at the boarding school we live in," I explained.
"What's that?" They asked in unison.
Amused, I chuckled, "It's where we live and go to school," I elaborated. How to describe a boarding school? "We have classes there but we also have a room to stay in. We have breakfast and dinner at a specific time. We have to follow rules," on that one I tried to not bite my tongue. No one followed the rules but I wasn't going to tell them that.
The girl's eyes lit up, "Sounds like here!"
The other girl asked, "Your mom and dad live there too?"
"No," I answered.
"We're the same then!" They were so happy about it.
Rather correcting them, I nodded, "I guess we are," I went along with it. Even though we were in better living conditions and were surrounded by luxury, at the end of the day, most of my classmates felt like orphans. In the sense that their parents were never around. Never showed them love or gave them attention.
I was blessed with amazing parents. A mom and a dad who've always given me love and support. They wanted me to have a better future and education, so they signed me up for Montgomery. Mainly because I begged them to. For them and myself, I was going to squeeze every opportunity given to me.
Violet came back by herself. I was surprised to not see Marcus attached to her hip.
"What are we talking about over here?" Violet pulled a chair and sat with us.
"I was explaining what a boarding school is," I caught her up.
"You're the same like us!" One of the girls exclaimed. Violet smiled in response. "Do you wish you had a mommy and daddy?" The little girl asked her.
Taken back, Violet's eyebrows furrowed, "What?"
The girl continued, "I wish I had a mommy and a daddy," she confessed, seeming to feel sad. "I wish I had a daddy to put me on his shoulders and a mommy to hold me," she elaborated. My heart ached to hear that. Suddenly, I felt a knot in my throat and pressure filled my chest. I chewed on the inside of my cheek to help me feel it less.
"Yeah, sometimes it'd be nice to spend time with them," Violet contributed.
The other little girl added, "And to play with."
Violet's voice became softer, "To be tucked into bed," her eyes narrowed down to the table as if she were getting lost in her thoughts.
"I wish I had a mommy to brush my hair," the little girl added.
Violet mumbled out, "To put a bandaid on my scraped knee."
"To cook my favorite food," the other little girl added to the list.
"I want a dad to teach me how to play video games," a little boy joined.
Violet pulled a chair for him, "And to tell me that everything is going to be okay when I'm scared," she added to the list.
"Yeah! To scare away the monsters!" A little girl leaned closer to Violet for comfort.
Taking turns, they continued to list the many reasons they wished they had parents. Including Violet. She got so caught up in it.
I've always been thankful for my parents but it had never hit me and made me realized how truly lucky I was to have them. Not that I took them for granted. I didn't! But hearing these kids and Violet express how much they wished for parents, hit me like a bullet. Made me see how important it was. How many were not as lucky as I was! Whether you were an orphan or had parents, not everyone was blessed with amazing parents who took the time to show their kids how much they were loved! These children did not have their parents. Violet had them but at a distance. Pretty much financially supported her but were never around! She lacked so much love and support.
Basically, she was at a luxury orphanage.
That was extremely sad.
Unable to contain my tears, they escaped my eyes. Once it got started, it wouldn't stop. I stopped myself from sniffling but it only made it worse. Made me want to cry more. I swallowed the lump in my throat but it didn't help either.
A little girl pulled on Violet's sleeve, "I want to look like a princess like you!"
Oh thank god they changed the conversation. Otherwise, I was going to cry a river.
"I brought lots of dresses! I'll help you pick something out!" Violet slid her fingers underneath her eyes to dry the tears off. Seeing that she had cried made my heart ached. I wish I could do something at this very moment to make her heart smile.
"Yay!" All the little girls happy jumped.
Following Violet, they went to the boxes of clothes. Good thing she organized everything. Definitely made it easier to find.
With the boys, Marcus was chugging a juice box. He was on his second one in less than five minutes. Poor kid got rejected. Now he was heartbroken and drinking the pain away.
I pulled a chair next to him, "Little guy, you dodged a bullet," I comforted. Losing Violet was not dodging a bullet. Actually, it was the biggest loss in history! But I was trying to lift him up. "Can I have a drink?" I asked. Marcus nodded. I reached for a juice box. "Listen, you need a girl your age who you can look in the eyes without her kneeling down or you standing on a ladder," I added.
"Violet is the perfect one," longingly and sadly sighing, Marcus sipped the rested of the juice. He grabbed another one.
I face palmed, "You literally have the rest of your life to find the perfect one for you," I stated. If anyone, Violet was meant for me. Perfect for me, I didn't know about that. All I knew was that my heart only wanted her and I didn't understand why. The girl literally got on my nerves and made my heart jump and feel all warm and fuzzy altogether.
Ignoring what I told him, he asked me, "Does she have a boyfriend?" His eyebrows connected in jealousy.
"Look kid, she just doesn't like you like that," at this point, I didn't know what else to say to him.
"Who does she like?" He questioned. I shrugged. "He's lucky she likes him!" Jealous and upset, Marcus slouched in his chair in defeat and crossed his arms.
There were moments when I was positive that Violet felt what I felt for her but then I questioned it. Seriously, it was extremely frustrating! Did she like me the way I liked her? Was she just as confused? I knew for sure that I had feelings for her, even if I didn't understand it. What about her though? That was the scary part.
-
Clothes and toys were passed out. The children were beyond happy and jumping in place because they could not contain the excitement. Seeing them very joyful made me happy. I was lucky to have the opportunity to be part of it.
Two boxes of pizza were left over.
We asked them if they wanted more but they were full.
The supervisor entered through the doors, "We have two more visitors!"
Behind her, came in what-
Carina and Olivia?
My mouth dropped at the sight of them. I exchanged a puzzled look with Violet. Judging by her reaction, she did not invite them nor knew anything about them coming.
Completely ignoring the children, Carina went straight to Violet, "You look so gorgeous today!" She complimented. "As Always!" She added in.
I rolled my eyes at that. Yes, Violet always looked beautiful as a queen. No one else needed to tell her that! Especially not Carina!
Olivia stood directly in front of me to claim my attention, "I'm here to support you!" She grinned.
"Okay well, I'm here to support Violet so..." Anything that Olivia did bothered me. I wanted no part of. Did not want to be associated with. I especially did not what Violet to think that I invited her. If anything, she came with Carina.
"I didn't expect for you to come," Violet was still in shock to see Carina here.
Carina laughed it off, "I know how important this is for you, so I wanted to help!"
Olivia threw an arm around me. Discreetly, I removed myself away from her. The children didn't need to catch a whiff of it.
I could not believe Olivia right now! After everything? The girl needed serious help! What part of me not wanting anything to do with her did she not understand?
"I'm kinda hungry, anything to eat?" Olivia wondered.
Violet moved away from Carina to go to the food table and grab an extra large box of pizza. Before I knew it, she threw the slices to the ground and stepped on them to rub the pizza sauce on the floor. The kids cheered her own. Encouraged, Violet spread tomato sauce across the floor.
She stomped her way over to Olivia, "All you can eat!" And with that said, she pushed her forward.
Olivia went slipping across the floor. The children burst out laughing at her! I kinda felt bad but stopped myself from laughing. The way she tried to hold her balance but failed. Flat on her ass, she hit the floor. Louder than anyone else, Violet laughed.
"We present to you, our onion bitter pizza!" To finish it off, Violet smacked a slice of pizza to Olivia's head. Smudging all the toppings.
Wanting in, the children ran to the left over pizza and played with it. Targeted Olivia. All together, they threw and smashed the slices at her. Instigating it, Violet applauded and told them how much of a good job they were doing.
By no means was this right.
On the other hand, I couldn't get myself to tell them otherwise. Olivia knew this was Violet's plan and that I wanted nothing to do with her, so she brought this upon herself.
Left out, Carina stepped back and stood against the wall.
Olivia tried standing up but slipped on all the pizza sauce. The children laughed their butts off.
Along with the children, Violet joined them in throwing pizza.
Everyone was going to get in trouble for this and we were most than likely going to get banned but seeing the happiness in their faces and hearing their laughter was more than worth it.
Anything to make Violet smile.
Thank you for reading!