NICOLE'S POV
"Why can't you hold me in the street?
Why can't I kiss you on the dance floor?
I wish that it could be like that
Why can't we be like that?
'Cause I'm yours ...."
I am just walking towards the kitchen when I hear Ava's voice singing in one of the rooms. When I tried to peek, she is looking at the bookshelf and searching for something.
This girl can sing! That's what I think when she repeats the same verse over and over again. There's a slight part of me wanting her to sing that to me, but ... it would be weird to suddenly demand those things right? She might think I'm such a weird woman.
I slowly close the door again and continue to the kitchen. A group of maids greet me when they walk passed carrying a lot of clean sheets. I smile at them before I go to sit on the stool and wait for my food.
"Morning Lady Nicole." Greets the head maid. Is it just me, or did her breasts get even bigger when we were gone? What happened to her? Did her breasts go to a physical therapist or something?
"Lady Nicole? Is something wrong?"
I watch as her breasts jiggle while she tries to act innocent in front of me.
"Nothing. I'm just thinking of how unlucky I am."
She is weirded out but doesn't ask any further. "Anyway, Lady Nicole, did Lady Avalynn tell you about today's schedule?"
I shake my head as I enjoy my breakfast.
"Since you agreed to announce your marriage to the press, you shall have a fitting after class today. She said her wife needs a beautiful dress to compliment her appearance."
For real? She said that? I can't imagine her saying anything good about me.
"Oh ... morning." I hear Ava's voice behind me. She takes a seat next to me before she rests her elbow on the counter. Her eyes lock onto me with a smile.
"What?" I ask with my mouth full.
She shakes her head. "Nothing. I just love to watch you eat. It's cute."
I am about to retort when her phone starts to ring and kills the mood.
"Yes, hello?" She finally removes her gaze from me. "Yes." She replies into her phone.
It seems like this is how we shall spend our morning today, huh? Work always comes first in her eyes I guess. Why do I have the feeling of being neglected? I sigh mentally while swallowing my food.
"Your going back to the university today correct?" She hangs up before asking me that.
I can only nod.
"Do you want me to send you or what?"
She's offering to send me huh? Maybe I should accept the offer. This shall be the time for us to bond and get to know each other. "Nah. It's fine. I can ask the driver to send me. You seem busy." Curse my mouth for saying no! I want you to send me!!
"Are you sure?" She asks.
No! I want you!
"Yes I'm sure." Ugh! Mouth! Shut up!
"All Right then. I'll ask the driver to prepare the phantom for you."
Phantom? She wants to prepare a ghost for me? What is the meaning of this? Do I look like Danny Phantom in her eyes? "Phantom?"
She nods at my question. "It's a car brand from Rolls Royce. Why? It's not luxury enough? I can ask the driver to bring the limo for you if you want. Or the maybach."
I know what is a limo, but what the hell is a maybach?! "Whatever is fine with me. I don't even know any types of cars except for a Lamborghini."
She chuckles. "I have one of those as well. It's yours if you want. The keys are with the driver as well. Feel free to use anything in this house. What's mine is yours." She winks! She actually winks. "Please do remember your schedule for today after class. I'll be waiting at the office for you."
Huh? The office?
I thought we're going to a dress fitting. "Your office? Why there? Let's meet at the destination together." I suggest.
"That won't be necessary. The fitting shall be done at the office. I am in the line of fashion business, so don't worry. I always get into anything."
I don't know if that's assuring or not.
I notice a maid place a suitcase near the door. "Where are you going?" I ask.
"Nowhere."
I point at the suitcase. "What's with that then?"
She goes to look at what I pointed to. "I asked the maids to pack some of the new stuff I picked out for you. Be careful though, there's something inside that's very fragile." She stands up after she finishes her breakfast. "I'll see you later." She is about to go when she turns back to me. "The Bentley's key is inside your dorm. I'm sure Mary took good care of it while you were gone." She smiles.
Wait, hold on, Mary's back?
The head maid smiles at me when I look up at her. "We've been working for Lady Ava for quite some time now and she hardly came home from work. Now that she's working in the office and you're coming home to this mansion, I expect she's going to be here a lot from now on."
Hmm. That means she must know what kind of person Ava is Huh.
"What type of person is she? At first, she was always so cold towards me, but now, it's different for some reason. It's weird."
Ugh! Why do I say it's weird?! It's lovely actually. I never got so much attention before. Not even my ex-boyfriend ever gave me lots of thoughts.
"Lady Ava is a kind and passionate person. She admires the arts and she has the talent to sing, dance and even paint. She's the ultimate nobility, if she decided to embrace the life of a noble."
Noble? She's nobility? I hardly can believe that since her parents seem so .... weird.
"Well, enough from me. You should get to know her yourself. It's about time for you to head out."
She's right!
I don't want to be late.
***
When I arrive at the university, I can't shake the feeling of being watch as I walk out of the car and get greeted by several maids and butlers who are on undercover.
"Jackson Smith, at your service, Milady." He bows, and so do the maids.
Seriously this man is too hot for this. Such a gentlemen as well.
"Stop embarrassing me! Please act normal in school. I don't want to be the campus's new joke fest."
As I walk onto the campus building followed by the servants, every single set of eyes land on me.
"Nicole!" Mary waves at me.
I can't stop the tears from flowing when I run towards her before hugging her body.
"Stop crying will you!" She chuckles. "Ava told me everything and she even sent me to London for my recovery. I got a free ride to the other side of the world!"
Wait, I knew she was helping Mary to recover but in London?! That's insane!
"I'm just so glad you're okay. I'm sorry for not being able to visit you. I know I'm such a bad best friend."
She chuckles. "It's fine! Your wife prepared a nurse and a maid for me, so it's cool."
" A nurse and a maid huh? Ava you sneaky little bitch.
"Hello Jackson." Mary greets the butler who's waiting behind us together with the maids. I blush when our eyes meet.
"Lady Mary, it's nice seeing you again." He bows, and so do the maids. Seriously they need to stop doing that.
I'm glad that Mary looks like her old self again.
From the stories Ava told me, Mary was on the verge of suicide when she met her in the hospital after what had happened.
"Did you hear what happened to Chris?" She asks while we walk towards our first class.
I don't know if I want to know about him anymore. I shrug as my response.
"His parents came to my home to apologise and told my parents that he's in prison for what he did. The thing is, it's a prison outside of Maestropolitan. It's in Siberia."
Siberia?! Why do I have a feeling Ava has something to do with this. I heard his family is in politics, but this is too much for even her to do. Now, I'm even more curious to know what she can do.
"Lady Nicole, Lady Mary.." Jackson offers me a and Mary a seat.
Ugh Nicole! You should stop blushing around him.
"Hold on, Jackson, what's up with you? Why are you so formal?" I ask.
"I have specific orders from my Lady that I should treat Lady Nicole and her friends like a Noble. I'm simply following orders." He smiles before he goes to his seat.
Class goes well with, of course, the staring game among my other classmates and even the lecturers.
It's finally time for lunch and I am thinking I should buy some food, but Jackson and the rest of the maids have something else planned for me and Mary.
"Oh my God." Mary is gulping down her saliva upon see a table in the cafeteria filled with food I didn't even know existed.
"A noble should eat the finest food." Jackson says when he offers us a seat. The other maids attend to us as well.
I can't take the staring game any longer with this treatment. Was Ava always being treated like this when she was in the university?
"I could get used to this." Mary chuckles before she tries a taste or two of the food prepared for us. "I feel like I'm becoming like the people we used to joke around about. You know, snobs."
I sigh before looking up at the maids and Jackson. "Please join us. I don't want to be a snob."
They all smile. "I thought you'd never ask, Lady Nicole." They all take a seat, and we eat as we please.
"Nicole Bonavich. You have some nerve for doing whatever you did to me for the last week." I am surprise to see Gerrard Newman appear before us. "So, it's true, huh? You married a Grimaldi? I never knew you were into women before. That makes me sick!"
Is it just me, or does his nose kind of look like it's out of place?
"You have no privilege to speak to our lady like that, Mr ..... tilted nose." One of the maids makes fun of his nose.
Both Mary and I stifle our laughter. He is mockingly laughing with us before he raises his hand and goes to slap the maid who made fun of him, but that maid grabs his hand before it could slap her.
"Tsk tsk tsk .... bad move, little boy. You're too young to land a smack on this beautiful face. We're graduates from Volin after all."
Huh? They're graduates from Volin? Where and what the hell is Volin?
"Are you from Volin as well, Jackson?"
He shakes his head. "Volin is an educational place for women. Before I went to this university and worked for the house of Grimaldi, I graduated from Audra, a school in Russia." He smiles.
The maid pushes Gerrard away and places her hands on his waist.
"Don't you think every woman is as weak as those who followed you around. I don't expect money from a man. I expect a responsible and hardworking man to come and take my hand. If you think you can be someone I admire like, Irina Volin, my former teacher, that's a gentleman with a face of a woman."
We all watch him suffer from embarrassment. That's truly badass!
The maid faces me with a smile on her face. "And ladies, that's how you teach a man who uses women for his own selfish desires." She ends it with a bow in front of us.
I chuckle, and so does Mary. "We should learn something from these women. They look so dignified and strong." I agree with Mary on that.
***
"Mrs Grimaldi? Welcome to Grimaldi Empire. Please have a seat while I call for Kelly and tell her that you have arrived."
I give her a nervous laugh before she walks away.
Jesus Christ! Even the receptionist looks like a model! I am so out of place here. On every corner I land my eyes,, there's always a picture perfect human being either walking or being interviewed by the press.
A few minutes of self pity come to and end when Kelly comes to fetch me. "I'm sorry for being late. I was in a meeting with several investors and possible business partners." She must have it rough now that Ava's the CEO. "Follow me please."
I stand up and follow her to a super luxurious room. "What room is this?" I ask.
"It's a room for entertaining VVIPs and their guest. We just have to go through that door to meet Ava and a team of stylists."
Stylists?
She opens the door for me, and now, I'm actually inside a studio like room. People are running around. Some are carrying lots of heavy fabrics while the others seem like they don't have enough sleep to get through the day!
"Now where is this?" I ask.
Kelly doesn't get to answer me when someone cuts her off. "This is a studio for indoor photo shoots. Hi there." Ava smiles at me.
Is it just me, or is she in different clothes from when she left home today. "You were in a shoot?"
She nods and points at the white screen. "I'm on the cover of Modelica Magazine for their next issue." She takes a seat on a couch that I didn't even notice was there before. "Wine?" Again with the wine.
"No thank you."
She raises her glass before she takes every single drop in one go."Right, meet the stylist that will be handling your new look. The interview starts at 8P.M.. I hope you will do a good job for my wife, Yes?"
The stylist nods with a smile on her face.
"Good. I have some errands to do. I'll be back when you're all done." She gives me a smile before leaving me in the hands of these people I don't even know.
"Don't worry. We will take good care of you." They say that, but I can see their sinister smirk forming slowly.
After hours of countless dress fitting, I finally find the one I've fallen in love with. Like the stylist said, 'If you don't like the dress the first time, you will hate it for the rest of your life.'
"Now, for the foot wear. Wedges? Stilettos, or platforms?"
What and what and what?!
"These are wedges."
"This is a stiletto heel." It looks like something that I would obviously fall from.
"And, these are platforms." Too high!
"Can't I just use this?"
They give me quite a look."If you wish to wear those sneakers, we have to change your looks again. Do you want to be in the fashion Don't section for the rest of your life, Lady Nicole?"
Whats a fashion don't?
"That means we have to change Lady Ava's look as well right?"
Wait what? Ava needs to go through the fitting again? I don't want that. "It's fine. I'll choose the platforms."
They all turn to me. "Are you sure? Like we said earlier, 'if you hate it the first time, you will hate it for the rest of your life.'"
I nod. "I'm sure. Besides, I can't let Ava be trouble with such trivial things."
"If you wish to wear the sneakers so be it. There's no need to change your fitting just for a shoe." Ava appears with a smile on her face.
"But Lady Ava ...." the stylist is cut off.
"It's fine. She won't be in the list of a fashion don't at all. It will fit her ... the theme, rebels." Ava seems like she's in her own little world.
The stylists look like they hit a jackpot. "Genius. Why didn't I think of that!"
Ava smiles and twirls me around. "Nice dress. Love the colour choice."
I wonder what kind of fitting she chose.
"That's mine." She points at a mini dress. Isn't that a little too exposed?! "What? Don't you like it?"
I face her. "Too exposed for me to like. For you, sure, but for someone who has a figure like mine, it would look like everything is out of proportion everywhere. It would not look beautiful at all."
"Nonsense. Everything you wear would look amazing on you. How was school?" She asks when she goes to sit at the makeup station.
"It was okay. But, you know, I gained more attention just because you went to the university and declared our marriage to everyone."
She laughs. "I'm proud of myself. I just showed them the wild side of Avalynn Grimaldi. They should be proud."
I'm not sure which part to be proud of.
"While we're here, I have some news to tell you. Yes, this company is all glamorous and everything, but I want to change the setting. Of course, I need to talk to you about it first since you're the second largest share holder in the company."
Wait, come again. When did I .... "Hold the fucking phone! What? I never recall agreeing to being the share holder."
She laughs again. "You really need to read the marriage agreement that my parents prepared for us when we got married."She faces me. "Veronica has 20% of the share while I have 50% of it. Now Sherlock, you have 30% of it. So, that makes you the second largest shareholder."
I .... have power in this company? I can order everybody around?!
"You look like an evil mad scientist after knowing they achieved something sinister. Are you okay?"
I give her a nervous laugh.
"Anyway, I want to make a new department. A department where you are the head of it. If that's all right with you, of course. You can choose your own workers and how you handle it, will be to your liking."
For real? She wants me to handle it alone?
"Grimaldi Relief Centre or GRC. I was in a conference not long ago about the dire situation of Maestropolitan's younger generation and how some of our people live in the streets. Even though Uncle Harvey force me to participate together with my cousin, I earned some knowledge about Maestropolitan's not so luxury parts of city."
Is that why she wants to form this relief centre? For the unfortunate?
"So, how about that? Will you do this with me, Nicole?"
It doesn't take long for me to agreed on doing something so noble.
"Good." She asks me to lean in towards her. I do as told because I thought she wanted to whisper or something. But to my surprise, she is actually kissing my cheek out of the blue.
I freeze right there when she pulls away and chuckles away.
"Let's do our best in making others feel welcome." She whispers.