I've always longed to experience this day. Since my first year it was my biggest dream to just leave this horrific thing we call School but I never expected this day to come so soon.
But there it was: My graduation day.
I woke up and immediately smiled. This has never happened to me before. Not in all those thirteen years of school have I ever woken up with a smile on my face. But this time it was different. It was the very last time that I would ever wake up and have school on my mind, although today it wasn't even a regular school day but actually my graduation day.
Today I was going to get my certificate from Richmond High School and I couldn't wait to look at all my teachers and tell them to kiss my f****** ass!
After I got ready I went downstairs to get some breakfast but my mother already left for work and there was no breakfast waiting for me on our kitchen table like all those years before.
Yeah, she is working hard and I know that she does it for me and my little brother Michael. But since my father left us five years ago it's all up to her and she works every single day to get us through.
I never asked her for anything. I had my job in a little coffee bar and I saved all my money to spend it on my biggest wish after my graduation: A year as an Au Pair outside of the UK.
This country was pissing me off. I had no real friends since the last one I thought I had, took advantage of my boyfriend. And all the other guys and girls at my school and in general in my town were just douchebags and sluts.
You could definitely say that I was a loner but I wanted to change that, just not here.
I yelled for Michael so that I could drive him to school and waited for him to come downstairs. Meanwhile I glanced at the mirror.
School has left dark circles under my eyes for years now and today I just looked as fresh as ever. No dark circles and no toussled hair. I felt great to be honest.
My light brown hair was in a high ponytail and for my last day I chose a special outfit. All those girls would show up in a dress and highheels while I just wore a normal pair of jeans, my black TOM'S and a grey v-neck with a black and white flanel. My green eyes literally stuck out of my head and I turned around as Michael jumped down the stairs.
"Woah, not so fast champ." I urged him.
"I'm sorry, I'm just so excited for summer holidays!" he exclaimed.
He was the cutest 5 year old ever and I loved him to death and he was the only reason why I sometimes regret to have joined the Au Pair program. Today was also the day were I was supposed to be getting a letter from the organisation telling me which family I was going to join.
I told them on the phone that I preferred a family with five year old boys and girls because of Michael. I knew exactly how to distract them and how to make them listen to me.
We got in my Ford Fiesta that I got just recently with the money I earned in the past years and drove to School. I dropped him off and made my way to my school were everybody was waiting. I was late. Very late ,but I couldn't care less. It was the last day and there was nothing that I wanted but my certificate.
When I got home I just dropped the certificate on the table and opened the post box. There was a letter from the Au Pair organisation and I couldn't wait to see who matched with me.
Immediately I ripped the letter open.
Dear Ms Miller,
We are happy to announce that you've matched 99.2% with one family. You are going to start your Au Pair year in one week. Your ticket for the flight will be sent to you within the next few days. You are going to stop in New York City on the 27th to have three orientation days with other Au Pairs from all around the world. There, you will learn what your exercises will be and how you can reach us when there are problems. You are going to get your own car and your host family will pay you 60$ per week. This money is free to be spend on anything.
Your family will be Josh Kingsley with his five year old son Dan.
They live in Washington D.C. Dan really likes ToyStory and Pirates. You can reach your host family with the phone number on the bottom of this page. If there are any questions, don't mind calling us 24/7.
Annie Marlo, APT-Organisation
Wait. what? I will be living with a father and his son? No mother? Well okay.
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NEW YORK CITY
I arrived yesterday. I've never been to New York before. Cornwall was all that I have ever seen from the world , so flying to America was the most exciting thing I've ever done in my life. The flight was exhausting but I managed to get enough sleep before the orientation days started.
It was hard leaving Michael and my mum alone at home. I knew that she wouldn't manage it to take care of him whatever she did. She had to work, care for the house and care for Michael. You may say it was rude and regardless of me to leave them just now but it was time to think of myself now. All these years I've never cared for myself. I felt so lost and just useless and now , another part of my life will begin and I can't wait for my life to change.
When I come back in a year, maybe things will be better. Maybe mum will find someone during the next months. Someone who loves her, someone who cares for Michael, someone who is not going to leave us for his assistant. I still got hope.
But I already called Auntie Clara and told her to stop at our house some times just to see if everything is really alright.
Now since we're in NYC all I've seen was my hotel room. I'm sharing it with Milkman. I have no idea what her real name is but everybody just calls her by her surname. She's nice and I'm glad I got to go in to the room with her because the other girls seemed kind of weird.
You already see I'm kind of judgmental sometimes but I really can't help it. Until now, I've never been proven wrong in my judgement.
We just threw our stuff on the beds and changed clothes because the program was about to start right away.
We did not talk much at first. Just the casual :
"What's your name?"
"Milkman and yours?"
"Brooke."
"Ah, nice to meet you."
"Same."
The orientation days went by fast and Milkman and I got along very well. I learned her real name was Emily Milker, but everybody just said Milkman because she likes it.I really don't know why though. It sounds weird but her personality is great.
She is the first person ever to have my humor and laugh about my jokes. Nobody at my school ever got them which is why I stopped talking to them because we weren't on the same level anyway. Sounds egoistic but what am I supposed to do with people who talk about me behind my back anyway just because they don't accept me as I am. I knew that people talked about me since my father left and since I had no friends. But I had the feeling that Emily would be a great first friend.
Her mother left them when she was 7 so we kind of have the same childhood experiences. Emily is also in Washington D.C but she is an Au Pair for a 10 year old girl and her 12 year old brother. We planned on meeting us every week to talk about our families and exchange stuff so that we don't feel so alone.
There were even some boys in the program that looked nice. One of them was called Jamie and apparently he got an Au Pair job just next door to my family. So Milkman him and me had to take the same car to get to our families on the last day in New York. The other guys had to hop back on their plane to get to their families in Florida, California and Texas.
"Alright Milkman. I hope you don't have any bitches or assholes in your families. Else, just come to Jamie and I'll fix your problems." he winked when Emily had to leave the car first.
"Text me!" I whispered as she was about to slam the door. She nodded and gave me a thumbs up.
Jamie smirked. "Well, I guess it's now only you and me, Miller."
I rolled my eyes. "You know what? At first I thought you were sympathetic but meanwhile you're just getting on my nerves!"
I regret my words the moment they left my mouth when I saw his expression. "I-I'm sorry."
"I'm just so nervous. I promise I'm not like this all the time. I've just never left Australia before. This is all so new to me and I just want to make friends." he stuttered.
He was kind of cute, to be honest. He had brown eyes and the typical australian surfer hair. Blonde of course. You can definitely say that Jamie was eye candy. But I had other things to concentrate on. Who knew what the time would bring when we were neighbors anyway.
We reached our street and then the moment was there. We had to leave the car. Jamie's family was on the right, mine on the left. The two houses were incredibly huge. They were almost like mansions. They program never informed me that I was about to babysit a millionaires son. My hands started to tremble and just then Jamie slung his arm around me.
"Alright Miller. We'll rock this now. Text me as soon as you have the chance to. And don't worry. If your family are assholes just come to my house and we'll break out and backpack through Washington together , okay?"
I smiled.
"Or else I'm just gonna come over and kick is balls." he added with his smirk.
"Good luck, Jamie." I said and hugged him tightly. Then I took my cases and made my way to the entrance.
There was a huge metal gate that I had to pass. It looked like in one of those movies where you have a party at the rich kids' house. Just without the party. Two fountains were right next to the entrance and I was dead wrong thinking that the Main door would be right after I'd pass the gate because the next thing I saw was a huge garden with trees, bushes, a big pool and many many flowers.
I felt like a little girl being pushed into a hidden garden. I knew the Gardens of Heligan from Cornwall. Me and mum spent so much time there when dad was still there and she used to take me there so many times when she had a day off but I haven't been there since my father left. This garden had no sculptures but it was similar to the splendour in Cornwall.
I was flabbergasted and I couldn't avert my eyes.
"Um, excuse me? Madam?" a voice interrupted my plain fascination. I turned around to see a little, fat woman standing in front of me. She had to be in her late sixties and she wore a housekeepers uniform.
"Huh?" I answered, completely dull.
She came closer and pointed towards my cases.
"You must be the new Nanny. Ms. Miller?"
"Actually I am the Au Pair for Mr. Kingsley." I said, not understanding she meant the exact same thing.
She just chuckled and pulled me with her. "Don't you want to go inside. It's freezing here. You don't want to get a cold on your very first day, do you?"
I just shook my head and hurried after her. She had little legs but she was as fast as a speedtrain. She kind of reminded me on the usual housekeepers you had in Disney movies and my very first impression of my new family was not that bad. Just the fact that I hadn't actually met the family kind of disturbed me. What if everything here is nice but the father is a complete douchebag?
"Stay here!" she ordered and pushed me softly into a blue velvet sofa. "I'll carry your cases to your future chamber. Mr. Kingsley will welcome you any minute."
"Thank you." I answered politely and waited for my new boss to come while the housekeeper took my two cases.
Time passed and there was still no one to welcome me. The housekeeper did not come back and I actually felt pretty lost sitting on this posh sofa for like ten minutes without someone being there.
Great Start, I thought to myself. I turned my head to see the rest of the room. It was like a big entrance hall. There was this sofa that I was sitting on in the middle of the room. Huge golden windows with white curtains. The floor was blank like a mirror and you could actually see yourself. There were some pictures on one of the walls but I was too far away to see who was on them.
There were shelves on one side of the room with 1000 of books in them and a huge piano standing next to my sofa. All in all there was only one word coming to my mind : RICH
Everything in this room seemed to be screaming POSH.
I chuckled to myself because this needed to be the biggest contrast to my life back home. But suddenly the doors opened and a man stepped inside the room leaving me with my mouth open.
I did expect a lot, but this .....never in a million years.