Chapter 3: Crazy Rich People.
1254 Words
♡Been through some bad s**t, I should be a sad bitch
who woulda thought it'd turn me to a savage?- 7rings[Ariana Grande]♡
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STAR.
Just after we had settled into Aunt Sharon's car, she started the engine and it erupted into loud farts first, followed by smokes then finally turning on.
I tried so hard to hold it in but soon I couldn't anymore so I ended up bursting into hysterical laughter. Penny joined me too.
"Oh stop it, you two. Flora here has just gone through a lot these past years, she's just a little bit sick." Aunt Sharon said in a joking manner as we drove off with loud noises.
"You named your car?" I questioned, surprised.
"Oh, wait till you see a whole bunch of other things she named. Her laptop, her favorite heels, her bed, gosh, I can go on and on for hours." Penny responded.
"You exaggerate too much, Pen. Don't mind her, Star, its just an habit of mine that I cannever get over. Let's forget about all of that, I have so many questions to ask you!" She said excitedly.
Looking at her, she was like a total opposite of my mother. Looks, personality and all, she's beautiful, slim, bubbly and carefree. When she spent some days with us when she once visited, people used to ask if she was my mom when we were seen together. She was like the mother I wished to have.
"So how's uh... Amelia doing and your sister, adorable little Angela, I'm sure she must have grown so tall like you now." She asked, dawning my excited spirit, she seemed to have noticed when she looked at me since I was in the passenger seat beside her and she stopped speaking for a few seconds.
"Oh, uh... I don't think we should talk about that." She quickly said, doing damage control and soon, an awkward silence fell upon the car.
I looked up at the skies and noticed that black clouds had sprawled across it, billowing in from the west. The air had grown heavy and the humidity pressed down, suffocating. The scent of rain was dark and heady. A stillness fell over the street, and in the silence came a low crackle of thunder. For a moment, everything stopped, even the wind held its breath. A streak of hot silver split through the sky, and the downpour began.
"I hope you didn't forget to put buckets underneath the leaking roofs before we left home, mom. Else, we might have to sleep in a pool of water when we get home." Penny broke the silence.
Soon enough, the car stopped in front of a house, one that if I were to be honest was looking worn out and haunted. Looking at the neighbourhood we drove into and how expensive looking and pricey the houses and environment were, I would never have thought that we could find such a house at the end of the road of such neighbourhood.
As we got down from the car, I'm sure the surprised look on my face couldn't be hidden as Penny spoke, "I know what you're thinking, what's this ugly house doing in such an obviously rich neighbourhood?"
"Uh.. to be honest, exactly." I replied, truthfully.
"It belongs to my paternal grandfather, he handed it over to my dad after he died and my dad had it in mind to renovate it to fit standards too but he wasn't able to before cancer took him." Penny said, a little down.
"Oh, I'm so sorry."
"No, it's fine. It's a been years already, my mom has been fighting so damn hard to keep this house, you know. The neighbours are stuck up rich and influential idiots and they have signed a lot of petitions to have the house pulled down and us compensated or something but mom won't let go, she says it's a property dad cherished so much and she'll do all her best to renovate it to standard. I just hope we don't wake up one day to a bulldozer destroying it all." She explained further, while I just felt sorry for Aunt Sharon.
"They wouldn't dare to do that, it's private property nonetheless." I said.
"Well, you haven't met these crazy rich people yet."
We stepped into the house while I kept observing every inch of it. Cheesy art prints decorated the walls and stuffs was spread around the low-ceilinged space. The peeling paint and the cracks in the plaster, the warped floors or the faintly mildewy smell was easily noticed. The outdated appliances sit like homages to the eighties in the dingy, worn kitchen. Penny went straight into her room and I followed suit.
"Welcome to my our room, we made sure to get the extra bed set before you arrived. You're like the sister and bestfriend I've always wanted!" She squealed with excitement.
Her room was like a wonderland for comic driven recluses. The walls were a deep red that pulsed in the light, sprinkled with various posters, mostly of strange Japanese cartoon shows. I doubted she could read whatever was written on the poster. Her comforter was pulled over her bed, even though she hadn't cleaned it. The result was lumps of varying sizes and shapes and the comforter was weighed down by her laptop. A desk sat in one corner, littered with wadded up pieces of paper and pens. A few shelves were pushed against the walls and filled with books while some books sat on the floor in front of the shelves.
My bed was exactly the same size as hers, small but comfy enough. I jumped on it with enthusiasm too, while she did the same on her own bed.
"I honestly wish we don't have to go to school tomorrow." Penny broke the silence.
"Oh, speaking about your school, what is it like?" I asked, very curious.
"Well, it's a rich school since your mom is my sponsor, so it's uh... quite stuck up. A lot of things are done differently and the kids there are mostly spoilt brats." She explained.
"Ugh, that sounds so disappointing already. I never liked any of the schools my mother chose for me, so I always threw tantrums and went to public schools cos it seemed to just fit me enough, but I don't have any say in this one and now I'll have to wear some darn uniforms!"
"Oh, the uniforms are actually beautiful, you'll love it. I think they're with mom, she was unable to get them pressed yesterday. The uniforms are the least of the troubles, honestly." Penny replied.
"Hm... really? So how about you, your own life at school, friends and all?" I pressed further.
"Oh, me? I'm okay, I have a lot of friends, teachers love and dote on me and I'm very popular too." She answered, clapping her hands with excitement.
"Oh really! That's so cool! So that automatically gives me a headstart then, since my cousin is the popular girl!" I squealed.
When I turned to look at her face, it was gloomy and I was surprised.
"Uh, what Is it?" I asked, concerned.
"Oh... uh, nothing, I'll just advice you to keep your head really low, that school breeds the best set of crazy people."
I simply replied, "hm," looking away from her.
Well, guess who's crazy too?
Me!
- Writer
