Chapter Eight

Hey there! I've been busy since we last chatted. Check out my new profile. I've added fun little facts about myself and a picture. It's not the best picture; I was freshly off a transatlantic flight on a layover in Frankfurt, Germany on my way to India. I'd showered and applied a bit of makeup, but there is just no way to look fresh as a daisy after sleeping on an airplane - Ambien or not. Now, you may ask why I don't pick a better picture... Well, I just don't take that many pictures of myself alone. Me and the kids, yes. Me alone, no. So, when you ask me for a picture of myself, you get a crappy one of me taking a picture of myself in the Frankfurt airport.

I've also added created a Twitter account. We'll see how that goes, but there is a way to directly post your BLOG link to Twitter. I thought I'd try.

I'm still at 4 followers. There have been people looking at my profile, though, which is good news. Please remember to post my BLOG link to your Facebook, Twitter, email your friends... I'm relying on all of you to help me out. Thanks!!

Chapter 8. Now that we've met Logan (Wasn't he great?! If I could, I'd wait for Logan to grow up another 10 years or so and grab him for myself!), we get to know Savannah. Savannah should be easily recognizable. She's not one specific person really. It's more that she's meant to be the stereotype embodied by the Paris Hiltons and Lindsey Lohans of the world. Just think of how fascinated they would probably be by our very non-glamorous lives. The Simple Life tried to show the idea to the extreme, but dial the idea back and sit Paris Hilton on your couch. She wouldn't know how to react. Kate's sort of like that couch. Savannah isn't quite sure what to make of her.

Love you all! Talk to you tomorrow! Ciao!!

Chapter 8

Overly bright sunshine woke me too early the next morning. Unaccustomed to waking anywhere but in my own bedroom, the sensation of not knowing where I was threw me for a minute. Although I knew I wasn’t in my private sanctuary back home in Mapleton, I couldn’t quite remember exactly where I had fallen asleep.
It all came suddenly rushing back to me … Mom, the movie, LOGAN, Savannah, LOGAN, the media……….
“Oh, God!!” I groaned loudly and literally rolled out of bed, hitting the floor with a thud. Ouch!!
“Smart, Kate! You already look like a simple farm girl. Go ahead and add a few bruises to the mix. Then you’ll look simple AND clumsy,” I mumbled to myself as I stood and staggered towards my bathroom.
At least the impact finished what the bright Texas sun started; I was completely awake. Still, it took me a while to realize the house was completely silent. The only sound was the muted white noise of the air conditioner buzzing overhead as it worked to combat the hot Texas weather.
I was surprised Mom hadn’t woke me hours ago. This was supposed to be one of only a couple days she had available to get me settled before filming started. We were going to have “girl time”. It was all planned, and, believe me, I was looking forward to it. Mom began weaving fairy tale dreams of shopping at the Galleria last week. It was supposed to be Houston’s version of shopping Nirvana. My heart beat a little faster as I imagined the happy sound of the credit card machine spitting out receipts. Ahhhhh……… It was any girl’s dream.
“Mom????” My call echoed off the high ceilings of the huge house. When Mom didn’t respond, I padded out of the room and headed downstairs. Maybe she was still asleep. It was unusual for Mom to sleep in, but not unheard of.
“Mom???” I called again as I peeked my head into the master bedroom. The bed was perfectly made, showing no signs of Mom.
“MOM????” I yelled loudly, getting impatient at her disappearance. Where could she be?
Finally, I turned and stumbled toward the kitchen. If I was going to have to play hide and seek, I required caffeine. When the glorious smell of freshly brewed coffee didn’t welcome my arrival, I frowned. Mom always made the coffee.
Then I noticed the note and two large boxes on the kitchen counter.
Kate-
I had to leave so early this morning. I’m sorry. I know this was supposed to be our day, but Jackson needed me to sit in on some meetings. We’ll definitely do it tomorrow. I promise. I thought you might like a couple of things now, so I had someone deliver these this morning. Hope you like them. See you later.
Love,
Mom
Mom was gone. I was alone. A new city, no friends, and now apparently no mother either. My head dropped onto arms while unfamiliar anger flowed through my body. Damn It! How could she do this to me?
I brightened a bit when I remembered the presents. Presents were good. Not as good as my Mom, but possibly a start. I grabbed for the top box that was marked “Open Me First”.
Hmmmm….. maybe I could do without Mom for the day????
The packages were wrapped in heavy silver wrapping paper with bright red bows sitting directly on top. They looked like something you see in one of those home and garden magazines when they try to teach a normal person how to wrap. Since Mom was incapable of wrapping even the simplest present (I’d been wrapping my own Christmas gifts since I was old enough to not believe in Santa.), it was easy to see this was the work of someone far more gifted.
I’m not typically one of those odd people who carefully removed wrapping paper, lifting the tape to preserve the wrapping, but for a minute, I was tempted to convert. The packages were that pretty. Fortunately, the bizarre instinct passed quickly, and ignoring the card under the bow, I began ripping the wrapping paper aside like an enthusiastic six year old.
Inside I found a beautiful, shiny cell phone. Not just any cell phone. It was one of those combo phone/text/email/movie/music devices. I was pretty sure it could have cooked my breakfast if I asked it to. I’d been begging for one for the past year, but Mom stubbornly insisted a basic cell phone, like everyone else owned, was sufficient. I could never understand how Mom, with all of her millions, could be so stingy. She always claimed she was trying to keep me grounded, but I just considered her cheap. Until now! Thank goodness!
I dug the accompanying card out of the wrapping paper debris before opening the second gift.
Kate-
I know you’re going to miss your Dad, Erik, and Melanie. Use present number one to keep in touch. At least when you’re not too busy with present number two…Enjoy. I love you.
Mom
Holy cow! If this was present number one, I tried to briefly imagine present number two. Enough waiting! I hurriedly grabbed the second box, noticing how much lighter it seemed from the first box.
The second time I didn’t even pause to consider preserving the wrapping paper. To heck with the paper, I wanted the present!
Which was a second, much smaller box with a small card taped to its top. Okay……
Kate-
I hope I remembered which one you liked best. I trust you to be safe and responsible. Just not too responsible! Have fun!!
Love,
Mom
My eyes widened in anticipation of what was inside the small box. I was suddenly sure I knew what it would be.
A large key filled the small space of the box, and underneath, was a shiny credit card. There was a God, and today she was named Bridgette Broucheriou! I grabbed the key and ran toward the front door.
In the driveway sat the most perfect, absolutely magnificent, supremely spectacular, shiny vivid blue sports car ever built. I begged Mom and Dad for months before my sixteenth birthday for just this car. I printed out brochures touting the safety statistics and maintenance records. I performed an economic analysis of resale values. I even promised to work on the farm and at Chic to earn a portion of the payments, but nothing worked. No. It was too much for Mapleton. It would set me apart. I was suddenly very glad for Jackson Michaels, the movie industry, and Houston, Texas. Where nothing else succeeded, they got me into this prime piece of German automotive engineering.
And a credit card just for me. I could do some serious damage with the credit card. If Mom’s note was to be believed, it seemed as if she meant for me to do just that. Right now, I loved my life.
I couldn’t resist. I needed to drive my baby right away, regardless of my scraggly hair, morning breath, and holey pajama t-shirt. Although I did get odd looks from several impeccably dressed joggers and one old woman walking a dog, I didn’t care. The car was everything I knew it would be. By the time I got home, I was floating on a cloud of pure ecstasy.
The ecstasy followed me upstairs, into the shower, through a fruitless investigation of my totally Minnesotan clothing, and downstairs where I turned on my new phone. I followed the phone’s directions to connect to my email and logged into my account. There was already an email from Dad, two from Melanie, and three from Erik.
I read Erik’s first, missing him more with every word I read. I could imagine his beautifully handsome face as he wrote. I could feel his emotion; the way he missed me. The way he worried I would forget him. A wave of guilt hit me as I realized he was right to be nervous. I wasn’t even gone 24 hours, I’d come way to close to forgetting him last night.
Melanie and Dad’s emails were happier and less emotional. Both wrote about strictly upbeat subjects. I suspected Melanie’s enthusiasm was real. Dad, on the other hand, seemed overly careful. We’d hurt each other far too badly for him to risk anything but strictly happy topics. I was certain it’d pass. It was just going to be a bit uncomfortable for both of us until it did.
Having slept through breakfast, my stomach was growling anxiously for food, but I made it wait as I shot off a short email to all three, ignoring any discussion of my social awkwardness, Logan, and Kyle’s odd closeness with Mom. Instead, I opted for a discussion of my new car and planned shopping spree. The rest of the stuff was unimportant – or at least that’s what I told myself. Okay, maybe not unimportant, but embarrassing, guilt inducing, and sure to cause a fight. It was self-preservation. What they didn’t know couldn’t hurt them or me.
My stomach was overjoyed to see that the Food Gods had conveniently left little silver packages of food in the previously empty refrigerator. As a package marked “Spaghetti and Meatballs” heated in the oven, I idly wandered into the living room and turned on the TV, flipping through the channels until I located a station broadcasting the local news. The news might be boring, but I wanted to get to know my new home while I ate. There would be plenty of time for the Food Channel and Home and Garden Network later. When the oven timer beeped, I returned to the kitchen, grabbed my pasta, and walked back into the living room.
“And in entertainment news, the legendary Bridgette Broucheriou made a splash when she arrived in Houston for the filming of the sequel to the ‘90s blockbuster hit Midnight’s Dawn. Also rumored to be in town for the filming are Bridgette’s former leading man and beau, Kyle Thomas, heartthrob Logan St. James, and party girl Savannah Sears. Welcome to Texas! All I can say is it ought to be an interesting summer with that crew here in town.” The blond anchorwoman was enthusiastically perky as I watched my Mom’s face fill the big screen TV. The camera pulled back to show a wider view of the baggage claim area where Mom and I had exited security yesterday. I was horrified to see myself hiding in the background. On TV, my hair looked even worse than I had feared when I got off the plane and my eyes were heavily bruised with dark circles.
Oh, God!!
“So, Donna, wasn’t Midnight’s Dawn one of Bridgette’s last films?” A grey haired anchorman questioned.
“That’s right, Richard. Bridgette caused quite a scandal when she married a Hollywood unknown and then disappeared shortly after having a child. She made only one more movie after Midnight’s Dawn. Her daughter, Kate Broucheriou, is now nearly seventeen and accompanied her Mom to town yesterday.”
“If that was her behind Bridgette yesterday, I’d have to guess she takes after her Dad.” The anchorman laughed and the blond joined in with a chuckle of her own.
“Well, sixteen is an awkward age….. Now with the weather, Mario can we expect rain any time soon?” The camera switched over to focus on the weatherman.
I stopped listening. Instead, I concentrated on not throwing up. I know I don’t take after Mom, but awkward? These people were cruel. I would have liked to have seen them at sixteen! The nerve. I was still staring blankly at the TV when the click of heals across the kitchen floor and the unexpected sultry tone of Savannah Sears’ voice caused me to jump.
“Ignore them, darling, they’re just jealous.” Savannah’s slender body settled on the couch beside me. She lifted her legs up underneath her to casually perch on the soft cushion. Gone was last night’s sarcastic tone. In its place was a light sweet drawl. “You’re Kate Broucheriou, Bridgette’s daughter, and they’re rotting their lives away on the local news.”
“Kate Swanson.” I corrected.
“What?” Savannah looked at me with a puzzled expression.
“Kate Swanson. I’m Kate Swanson.” I couldn’t pinpoint why I was making the distinction, but somehow it seemed important. I was Kate Swanson.
“Oh, whatever….. Honey, here you’re Kate Broucheriou. Don’t forget it, and those jerks will never dare talk about you like that again.” Savannah’s hand waved in dismissal.
“But, I….”
Savannah waved her hand again and interrupted. “Let’s go, Kate. Come on. Get up. I saw your sweet little blue car out front. We’ll take it. Let’s go find somewhere to spend all of your mom’s money!”
“But, I promised Mom I’d wait for her. We were supposed to have some “girl time”…..”
For a third time she cut me off. “Moms are moms, darling. We don’t do “girl time” with our moms. Trust me. You’re better off with me. Plus, your Mom will be tied up straight through the start of filming. I’m almost glad Jackson pulled me from the role of Anna. Way too much work! I’m too fun loving to work that hard.”
Mom promised she’d have some time before filming. But Savannah seemed so certain. Of course, Mom promised she’d be around today too.
“Okay….. if you say so,” I reluctantly agreed before grabbing my new phone and sending Mom a quick text message. She wouldn’t mind. She’d understand. I did need new clothes, especially if I wasn’t going to continue to be the butt of newscaster’s jokes.
Plus, when it came down to it, how could I say no to shopping with Savannah Sears? She was so nice – most of the time at least. Maybe I just imagined she didn’t like me. But, what about the hate filled look she gave me when I walked off the elevator with Logan? I’d been tired. That must have been it. Today she was kind and helpful, almost like a big sister. I was feeling better already.
“Where to?” I stood up and smiled. I could already tell this was going to be fun!“Why first things first, hon! I know just the place. It might not be LA, but it’ll do. Let’s go fix your hair!”

© 2008-2009 Elizabeth Johnson