Liberty
1208 Words
I was proud of Alexander, he had spoken to his manager who arranged for us to be taken around the city via private car AND the record label was taking care of everything.
The first place we visited was the Statue of Liberty; the boys gasped when they realized how tall she was. The ride to the top felt neverending with them, but the view was magnificent. We looked out at the harbor and counted the boats and spent a good hour and thirty minutes up there.
It was still early in the day, but I was surprised when Alexander turned to me in the car to tell me that they had arranged for three nannies and two housekeepers to come to our apartment to be interviewed today. I grinned. He had heard me about wanting a little help around the house since he couldn't as much. We used to split the household duties, but since he was busy recording, I was maintaining the apartment and feeding and taking care of the boys, basically, on my own. I hadn't been able to run much or do anything alone recently.
The boys wanted to watch a movie when we got home, it worked out well since the first nanny was set to arrive shortly. I changed into a blue tank top and khaki shorts and pulled my hair into a bun. Alexander changed into jeans and a black NIN tshirt. We sat on the couch with the boys until Peter (our daytime doorman) rang that Sylvia was in the lobby.
Sylvia tapped on the door lightly and greeted us with a smile. She was in her mid-50s and had gray hairs highlighting her brown hair. Her bright brown eyes sat behind blue rimmed glasses and her bright pink lipstick stood out. She looked a little nervous, as I'm sure we did also.
Alexander led us to the family room and pulled her resume out of the binder. The label had done background checks, fingerprints, applications and organized them for us. These women were all highly recommended from other artists and clients.
"We've never done this before," I whispered. "We only ever left the boys with our families in Florida."
"Definitely not my first interview, but I'm an open book - ask me anything," She smiled at me reassuringly.
"Lennon and Bas are our sons - aged 6 & 3. They love to play and we homeschool Lennon for now." I told her.
"We need someone that the four of us see as family," Alexander said.
"How do you feel about living in the apartment? Or do you prefer to live at your home?" I inquired.
"I prefer to go home and see my husband," she answered slowly. "Our kids have grown and moved out, I would hate to leave him alone."
I looked at Alexander, we hadn't thought about this, but it made the decision easier - we needed someone on-call due to his schedule, for now. We asked her a few more general questions before ending the interview.
"Sylvia, we appreciate it. We will let you know," Alexander extended his hand, after shaking hers, he walked her to the door.
I sat back on the couch and thirty minutes later, Peter rang and said our next appointment was downstairs. I opened the door when she knocked.
Her thin black hair was pulled back into a tight, low bun against her neck. She wore a white button down blouse, a black knee length skirt, white sneakers hid her tiny feet.
"Hello, I'm Louise," she croaked with a heavy New York accent.
I smiled and motioned for her to come in and join us in the family room. After introductions, she looked around the apartment and slowly sat on the antique chair. She looks like she is meant to sit there, I thought.
"We homeschool our son who is 6, I am a musician so my hours are crazy, and my wife takes a jog every afternoon," Alexander cut straight to the chase. "How flexible is your schedule?"
Louise looked us up and down before answering, "I believe in public school and strict schedules for children. I am probably not the best fit."
She stood up and walked out, leaving us with our jaws on the floor.
"Well, that was quick," Alexander chuckled.
"Well, that was awkward," I added.
Maybe this wasn't going to be as easy as we had hoped. These were all women that came highly recommended, so we thought we would have a difficult time choosing just one out of them.
An hour later, Peter rang, Wendy was in the lobby. She was the final appointment today, we had decided to reschedule the others.
The soft knock on our door alerted us that it was time. We looked at each other and pretended to pray to the sky. Alexander opened the door. Wendy was beautiful - a 20 year old, part time college student, recently moved from Kentucky. Her blonde hair was cut short in a pixie style, her blue eyes sparkled and she wore jeans and purple blouse - very normal. She grinned as we welcomed her into our home.
"Wow! This is incredible," she complimented. "Mr. Grant, your song is one of my favorites!"
Alexander and I looked at each other, knowing she might be the one.
"Well, thank you, Wendy," he said. "Mind if we ask you a few questions?"
"Sure thing!" She beamed.
We went on to ask questions about her major, how she planned to spend her holidays, if she felt comfortable staying in our home, and more. Her answers were well thought out and thorough. She had a slight accent but it felt homely (as I had grown up in Ohio).
I stood and went to bring the boys in to meet Wendy. Lennon started gabbing immediately, but Bas hid behind my legs. Wendy nodded at Lennon, then reassured Bas by asking to see his toys. He grabbed her hand and led her to the playroom. Lennon followed close behind - talking the whole way.
We gave them a few minutes while we made the decision to hire her. We looked again at her application to find out what she wanted to be paid. Her living with us would be perfect, she could take the front room with an ensuite bathroom.
"Wendy, we would like to give you a tour," Alexander half whispered when entering the playroom. She was sitting on the floor and reading the boys their favorite insect book.
She looked up, smiled and nodded. The boys wanted to be the guides, so we let them. We ended the tour in the front guest room. It was all white - from the walls to the tile, the towels to the duvet.
"This will be your room - if you accept our offer," I grinned.
"Oh! I would love to! Lennon and Bas, is it ok if I hang out with you everyday?" She beamed. "Thank you for this opportunity, Mr. and Mrs. Grant!"
The boys gushed, "Yes!"
"Please call me Sophie. And him, Alexander," I said pointing to my husband.
Once Wendy left and the boys returned to the playroom with Alexander. I took this moment to check Twitter.
- Writer
