V A N E S S A
"So who's picking me up again?" I ask my mom as I head to grab my luggage.
"Chauncey, Faust's Butler." She speaks softly through my phone.
"Okay, I'm just getting my luggage now, so I'll be there soon."
"Okay honey, he's holding a sign with your name on it, so you can't miss him."
"Okay, I'll be there in a few."
"I love you."
"I love you too." We hang up and I grab my luggage off the luggage line. I head towards the exit of the airport, when I spot an older gentleman dressed in all black, besides his white dress shirt and gloves. He holds a sign that reads: Miss Ridges. We make eye contact and I hasten my footsteps to keep him from waiting on me.
"Hello, Miss Ridges. My name is Chauncey. I will be taking you to Mr. Ryder's estate." He bows and starts to reach for my luggage.
"Oh, I can take those." I try to stop him, but he already grabs them.
"It's not polite for a gentleman to let a lady carry such heavy bags." He intones and I just smile awkwardly. We exit the airport, and he takes me to a matte black limousine. He puts my bags in the back and opens my door for me.
"How long will it take to get to the house from here?" I ask him before he closes the door.
"About fifteen minutes, why?" He asks.
"I have to use the restroom, but I can wait."
"Are you sure? I don't mind waiting until you're done."
"That's alright, but thank you though."
"Of course." He closes my door and gets behind the wheel. I notice people are staring at the limo, gawking at it's beauty. If I wasn't the one being driven around in it, I would gawking like them as well.
I whip out my phone and start coloring on the new Sandbox app that everyone is going crazy about. It's actually quite fun, it helps me relax. I color my giraffe to help distract me from the fact that my bladder could explode at any given moment.
I ended up grabbing a sparkling water from the mini fridge along with some chocolates. It was nice to eat real food and not crappy airplane food.
"We're here, Miss Ridges." Chauncey announces. I gather my things as he holds the door open for me. He grabs my bags and I step out. My jaw immediately hits the ground as a white mansion with a blue roof enchants my eyes. Palm trees stand tall on either side of the black glass front doors. The garden is flourished with white, red, and black roses, with fountains and statues placed in between.
I didn't even realize that Chauncey was holding the door open for me, I was too much in awe of the mansion. But, I force myself to snap back to reality, walk up three steps and went inside.
My eyes are met with blacks, golds, and marble. The walls are black, with the rim of the baseboards gold. A marble crystal chandelier hangs down in the middle of the living room, illuminating the whole space.
"Vanessa!" My mother calls out to me. I follow the sound of her soft voice and find her in the kitchen.
"Mom!" We embrace tightly, I take in her scent of vanilla extract.
"I missed you so much, sweetheart." She clasps the sides of my face in her delicate hands. I take in her facial features, she still looks young.
"Mom, you look stunning." I beam.
"Thank you honey, you look beautiful as well." She hugs me once more, before guiding me back to the living room to sit on the couch.
"Are you excited for the wedding?" I ask her.
"Yes. Faust and I are very happy. I just can't believe I'm getting married. I'm just so nervous, I've never been married before. I don't know what to expect." She twiddles with her nails nervously.
"It's okay mom," I lightly squeeze her hands, "whatever comes up during your marriage, I know that you and Faust will be able to get through them together." I reassure her.
Ever since my low-life father took off and left me and my mom when I was only five, my mom has been a wreck. It was only us, with no help from anyone. She had a few boyfriends here and there, but they always left and broke her heart. So, for me to see her glowing and as happy as ever, it melts my heart.
"Where is Faust?" I ask her, noticing my soon-to-be StepFather's absents.
"He'll be here any minute now." My mom tells me.
"Faust doesn't have any kids of his own, does he?"
"No, so it's just you."
"Sweet." We laugh and continue catching up.
"Dear, I'm home." Suddenly, a man dressed in a black suit with a grey tie steps into the living room. My mouth waters with drool as I find myself infatuated with the way he held himself. He just looks so powerful. Do I bow? Do I kiss his hand?
"Faust, this is my daughter, Vanessa." My mom introduces me.
"Well, Vanessa, you surely do get your beautiful face from your mother." Faust smirks, his hazel orbs staring into my atman.
"T-thank you." I fumble my words, not knowing what to say to such a handsome man. He holds out his hand, and when I grip it to shake, I could say I had a cliché moment of my heart stopping. But that wouldn't be enough to describe the feeling I felt when our hands collided. My body electrified, my knees were wanting to give out under me—but again—too cliché.
"I'm so sorry to leave this quickly on you both, but I have a meeting in twenty minutes. I just dropped by to say hello." Faust explains, his eyes on my mother.
"It's alright honey." She smiles up at him.
"I'll be here for dinner, I promise. It was nice meeting you, Vanessa." Faust turns to me, a charming grin printed on his lips.
"Nice meeting you as well." I hide my pink-tinting cheeks by looking down to the polished floor, staring at my reflection.
"A shy one, isn't she?" Faust chuckles.
"She is." My mother softly laughs back. They share a quick kiss, and he was quickly back out the door, Chauncey shutting it behind him.
Woah....