CHAPTER 35: NEW

On the other side of town and in the Mush household.

"Thank you for coming, Ava," Abi smiled warmly at her. She and her husband were unable to sleep a wink the previous night because of Brianna’s issue. Her husband, Abram, wanted to get Brianna out of the locked room, but this time, Abi was adamant.

As a woman, she understood what her daughter wanted to do, and she didn’t like it one bit, but she was still a bit inclined to her daughter’s requests. The older couple had a rare argument because of their spoilt child, and Abi was getting restless about it. Their daughter was almost twenty-three, and Abi knew that they could not continue to indulge Brianna’s whims like they had been doing since she was a child. But old habits are indeed hard to change.

"Hello, auntie," Ava greeted politely and saw Abi nod.

"Help me talk some sense into her this time."

Ava smiled and nodded. This was not the first time Ava had been called to the Mush residence for something like that, but she wished she could have declined this time.

"Did she eat her dinner?" Abi asked one of the maids.

"No, ma’am. She hasn’t taken any food since yesterday."

The distress on Abi’s face grew two-fold.

"Get Ava a meal tray to send up to her!"

This is how Ava found herself with a breakfast tray in front of Brianna’s room a few moments later. The door was unlocked from the outside, and she entered.

"Bri? Brianna?" She whispered and set the tray down on her dresser. Ava sat by small covered form on the bed and slightly shook her.

"What are you doing here? Aren’t you on her side too?"

"Brianna, come on! You know you’re being insensitive about this ... and putting me in a tight place. You, of all people, should know and understand how difficult life has been for Shelby. Why do you do this to her? I am sure that if she could, she would have ’given’ Ian to you. But he is not a thing that can be passed around!"

"I don’t care! Ian is mine!"

"Then, I guess you never considered Shelby your friend then. Instead of supporting her, do you also want to be a stumbling block in her life? Hasn’t she had enough of those people?"

Brianna sat up on the bed suddenly and glared at Ava.

"When have you ever seen me care about things like that? If you were my friend, you would also know that I always get what I want. Shelby is just a dangling person in her household. She should be beneath me in everything!

Even look at the clothes she wears. She only has that witch-like beauty, but she still cannot compare to me! Why does she get to have something that I, Brianna Mush, likes? It should never be! Do not worry yourself. It is mum who is uptight about these things. Daddy will get it done for me sooner or later!"

Ava’s mouth dropped open. She was speechless!

Like a robot, she got up and headed out of the room. ’My work here is done!’ she thought.

"Don’t forget the tray! I am on a hunger strike!"

Ava turned back and picked up the food tray, but not before she saw snack wrappers sticking out of the covers under which Brianna lay. She shook her head and left the room without turning back!

"What a know-it-all all!" Brianna huffed.

***

Back at the Thornston estate and in Shelby’s room.

"Miss Shelby... You can’t be serio-"

"Cut it off!"

"Yes, Miss."

Suzie started trimming the end of the hair, asking periodically if it was okay. After some time, Shelby lost patience, picked up a pair of scissors herself and cut her hair to just below her chin.

Suzie gasped, "Oh my! Miss Shelby!"

She looked at the long chunk of hair in Shelby’s hand with an aggrieved face as if she had been wronged. Shelby dropped the hair and reached out again; this time, Suzie stopped her,

"Miss Shelby, I have the perfect hairstyle in mind for you with this length. Let’s leave it like that for now, okay?"

Shelby dropped her hands and the scissors and stared blankly in the mirror.

’Am I overreacting?’

Suzie walked around her and then trimmed the crooked end of the just-cut hair. In a way, she understood her mistress. She brought out a small part of the hair to the front and cut it just around the eyelids for bangs.

She applied a bit of oil and moose and brought out a curling iron. Suzie concentrated on curling in opposite directions for the tussled-like look. After a while, she stepped away from Shelby and looked in the mirror at a totally different-looking Shelby.

Short chin-length hair with bangs all curled up loosely. Suzie nodded at her handiwork and ran her hands through it.

"Miss Shelby, you look beautiful either way. I dare even to say that you look even more charming now!"

’- and nothing like they described Miss Aliya like!’ she added in her thoughts. Even though Suzie did not understand her mistress, she loved her new look!

After breakfast in the room, Shelby stepped onto the balcony and picked up a painting brush.

’I miss this so much!’ Her hands started doing the work that she loved above all. She mixed paint and drew strokes on the easel, forgetting the time and focusing on her inner world.

Suzie routinely came in to check on her and marvelled at the talent she saw. After hours of this, Shelby put down her paintbrush and stepped back to take a good look at her work, only to hear wild clapping behind her.

With her hands, clothes and face stained, she turned to look at her audience: Little Gabriel and Suzie.

"If I hadn’t seen you do this, I would never believe it!" They both examined the painting in admiration. For little Gabriel, he did not know what to admire, his mother’s new looks or the exquisite painting she had drawn!

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