The Secret Billionaire At The Commune

Chapter 10

The energy that Alexis was pouring into the bakery was certainly paying off. The farmstand was becoming busier than ever and her goods were selling out daily. Sunny usually worked as a cashier during the day and began to take specialty orders for her, making Alexis busier than ever. She felt guilty that some of her other chores, such as tending to the gardens, were falling by the wayside but Sasha and Megan had urged the other girls living in the yellow farmhouse to pick up the slack. The money coming in from the bakery meant they could spruce up their communal home and their menus, which no one seemed to complain about. Except for Strawberry. Strawberry’s usual day of meditating was interrupted by suddenly having to pull weeds in the gardens, a chore that didn’t bode well for her daily hangovers. It irked her that everyone seemed to be enamored with Alexis and how she fit effortlessly into life at Anavrin, whereas Strawberry had worked hard to cultivate her image of free love yoga goddess and felt Alexis’ presence was eroding where she stood in the community.

Alexis, on the other hand, was blissfully unaware of how Strawberry felt. She went about her day, baking her treats and saving up her portion of the proceeds for something that she hadn’t decided on yet. It felt good to have some security, she thought. She was working on a new standing order for the town’s local AA chapter when Sasha, Megan, Strawberry and the rest of the girls came into the bakery. Megan looked visibly irritated.

“Alexis, what do you think is more important, an immersion blender for the kitchen or Lululemons for Strawberry,” Megan asked her. Alexis choke-laughed on the cupcake she was sampling.

“I mean, I can see how both are needed,” she offered. Megan rolled her eyes and turned to Strawberry.

“See? Expensive ass yoga pants for yourself are not for the common good,” Megan chastised Strawberry, “An immersion blender would benefit everyone.” Strawberry began to protest.

“Alexis just bought herself a few pants,” she said, gesturing to the fire proof kitchen slacks that Alexis had on.

“I got these at WalMart,” Alexis defended herself, “With my portion of the bakery money, not with common pot money.”

“Exactly,” Strawberry snarled, “You come into our community, take over our bakery and make it yours and you’re benefiting from it.” Everyone fell silent. No one else had a problem with Alexis’ baking business - they all benefited from it, whether it be from the extra cash flow or the leftover cupcakes. “What are you going to do when you have enough money saved up, just up and leave? It’s like you’re using us.” Alexis was hurt and shocked. It was never her intention to make anyone feel like she was just using them. She felt guilty all over again for the time she was spending in the bakery and not helping out around the farm or even socializing with everyone else. She had been busy.

“No one feels that way,” Sasha began before Strawberry cut her off again.

“Yes, we do,” she said, gesturing to the group of the younger girls, who were all quietly looking at their feet as if they were there under duress. “If you really wanted to show your commitment to us, you’d be initiated by now.”

“That is completely unnecessary,” Sasha began, clearly upset with Strawberry’s outburst.

“Yeah,” Caitlin chimed in, “I haven’t been initiated and my family has been here for two years.”

“Oh shut it, Caitlin, everyone has seen you and Brian f**k like a million times,” Strawberry snarled. Alexis was growing increasingly uncomfortable with the other women arguing over whether or not she was a real member of the commune or not. She decided to shut it down.

“I’ll do it,” Alexis said. “I’ll do the initiation ceremony. I would never want anyone to feel like I was using this space for my own benefit and I am committed to our community. So I’ll do it.” Sasha rushed to her side.

“Are you sure about this, sweetie,” she said, “Don’t listen to Strawberry, you don’t have to do this.”

“No, I want to,” Alexis continued. “Would that make you happy?” she asked, turning to Strawberry. Strawberry smiled at her. Alexis could see the wheels spinning in her mind but she had no idea what she was up to.

“So very happy,” Strawberry cooed. She knew Charlie would perform Alexis’ initiation and if she could figure out a way for Jason to come see his precious little Alexis getting railed by the de facto commune leader, then Strawberry could swoop in and comfort him to the best of her abilities.

“Fine, set it up,” Alexis said, not backing down to Strawberry.

“We’ll do it tonight,” Strawberry replied. “I’ll personally get everything set up.” She turned and walked out of the bakery, with the other young girls shuffling behind her. Sunny turned her eyes from the ground and looked at Alexis and mouthed, “I’m sorry.” Alexis shrugged and waved her off. It’s not like she was saving herself for marriage anyway; Jason hadn’t and he was nowhere to be found. She figured losing it to someone as good looking and charismatic as Charlie to solidify her position at Anavrin wasn’t a terrible option. The older women surrounded her after they left.

“You really don’t have to do this,” Sasha said, “It’s a silly, old tradition anyway.”

“No,” Alexis protested, “I want to. If everyone else has done it to show their commitment to Anavrin, then I want to as well.”

***

Strawberry sent the other girls to gather flowers for the ceremony while she walked down to the farmstand to collect some things. She knew Jason had been eating from the little shop there and thought it’d be best to ply him with food while inviting him to tonight’s ceremony. She picked up a few sandwiches and a bag of stupid Alexis’ potato chip chocolate chip cookies and began walking to the barn that he was working on.

“Hey there,” she purred to him. Jason looked up from what he was doing. He wasn’t in the mood to be interrupted. He saw Strawberry on an almost daily basis. While everyone else was doing their chores around the farm, he noticed that she told everyone she was meditating when really she was curating her i********: feed with her secret iPhone in an attempt to become a yoga-girl-who-lives-on-a-commune influencer. He knew she was disingenuous but he was there to do a job and didn’t want to create drama amongst the hippies. He nodded in acknowledgement. “I brought you some lunch,” Strawberry continued.

“Thanks,” Jason said, “I’ve already eaten but you saved me a trip to the store for dinner.”

“Do you have any plans tonight?” Strawberry asked. Jason shrugged. “Well, one of our newest members is being initiated into the community tonight, you’re welcome to come join us and see what it’s all about.” Jason was a little curious as to what went on in the yellow farmhouse.

“What’s an initiation ceremony?” he asked.

“Just an old tradition where a new member makes love in front of the whole community, to show their commitment to our principles of free love and openness,” Strawberry answered. It wasn’t everyday that Jason got an open invitation to go watch people f**k. He was a little taken aback.

“Okay…” he began, “Sounds a little cult-y, don’t you think?”

“No,” Strawberry protested, moving closer to him. “It’s sexy to watch sometimes.” Jason knew he had to put her off.

“I mean, I’m just your contractor,” he said, “And I’ve got a lot of work to finish today, still.”

“You’re not just our contractor,” Strawberry protested, “You live here, too. Maybe you’ll like what you see and decide to stay.” Jason gave her a tight-lipped smile.

“We’ll see,” he said. That was enough for Strawberry, she knew she whetted his curiosity and with that, made her way back to the house to help with tonight’s preparations.