Fearless.
(heavily unedited)
Hidden behind steel gates, inside his castle, the King wallowed. Nursing his despair about his mother's rise from the dead with a glass of whiskey, the bottle not too far from his reach for when he sought out a top up. He was haunted by an endless, traumatising loop of his childhood that refused to leave his mind, no matter how much alcohol he consumed. He wanted, no needed, to think about something else...anything else. But his mind was stubborn, refusing to stray away from painful memories. He heard her heels clack against his marble floor and smelt her expensive Chanel No.2 fragrance before he saw her. Cookie Lyon's presence was something that never needed to be announced. He always felt her. Everywhere he turned, even if she was nowhere near him. She had sunk her claws into his soul a long, long time ago, and imprinted on his heart a way no other woman would ever be able to replicate no matter how hard they tried.
Anika being a good example.
He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard her condescending voice ring out; "I don't think that whiskey is a part of your juicing cleanse," He rolled his head in her direction for a moment before turning it back to continue staring into the oblivion. He knew where the conversation was heading from how she stared at him; pity hidden behind playful judgement. She was about to mother him, tell him off or lecture him like she was one of their boys. And Lucious was going to hate every second of it, and guess what? Cookie wasn't going to care. "What are you afraid of, huh?" She questioned, approaching the couch with curious brown eyes. "She's just a feeble, fragile little old lady."
Cookie took a seat beside her ex-husband. She wanted Lucious to understand that mentally sick woman couldn't hurt him anymore. He wasn't a small child getting the best years of his life snatched away from because of his mother's illness. He was a grown ass man in control of his life, and those in it. Cookie, despite how hard she tried sometimes, couldn't see the full 360 of her baby daddy's mind. She slightly understood why it was easier to let people believe his mother was dead. He was never good with facing his emotions. Telling people his mother was dead ended any hard conversations he didn't want to have with curious people wondering where his parents were. But surely Cookie wasn't just 'people'. Afterall that they'd been through, she had foolishly expected him to be honest with her...let her in, for God's sake! But maybe she was expecting too much from a man that kept his real name a secret for over thirty years. Way too much.
She tipped her head to the side, wanting to look into his eyes. His face was expressionless, but his eyes...they were the windows to his soul...the little fragment of it that remained, that is.
Lucious chuckled, bitterly, as he looked Cookie up and down like she was foolish. "That's what you think, huh?" He shook his head. "That's what she wants everybody to think." He mused like he was the smartest man alive as he lifted the whiskey glass back to his lips. She hummed, assessing him slowly. Who would've thought Lucious Lyon would have mommy issues? Maybe whatever demons Lucious continued to fight about his mother had redirected onto Hakeem because goddamn that boy used to hate her like she'd beaten him up in the womb.
She watched her ex-husband drink himself into a deeper depression and twisted her lips. "Hmmm, you're afraid that if this gets out it's gonna be a scandal," She mused. After that video, it would come as an unpleasant surprise to his fans to find out that his mother was still alive and breathing, calling him 'Dwight' in a quivering voice that feigned innocence. Lucious scoffed, looking at her like she was stupid. Cookie was far from stupid. "Yeah, you're afraid you're gonna lose all that love you've got for Boom Boom Boom Boom?"
He shook his head. "Trust me, if this gets out...it's not good for nobody." He grunted out.
"It's not gon' get out, Lucious." She assured. Her lips were sealed. She and Lucious were on good terms, getting...closer. She wouldn't fire such a deadly shot without her opponent drawing their weapon first. "As long as you do right by your sons." She smiled, brightly.
