starlight, luke hemmings

vivian hemmings.

It was slowly approaching the month of December in the two story house. Christmas was around the corner, Thanksgiving was in a week. And people around the world had begun decorating their houses for the upcoming holidays. It was the month where Vivian's relatives wouldn't stop asking for her Christmas list,  which she had put no thought to.

The dark blonde teenager set down her phone on her unmade bed and carefully pulled on her white converse. She was yawning, and was slow with her actions. 

Vivian Hemmings' was hardly ready for the school day ahead of her, which was sure to exhaust her completely. Her backpack slung around her shoulder and she exited her bedroom- walking down the carpeted staircase.

"Mom?" Vivian shouted out as her feet were placed on the wooden floor. Her eyes unconsciously scanned the room.

"In the kitchen!" A voice shouted back to her. 

Vivian strolled into the small kitchen, fully expecting to only see her mom— but froze when she saw a second person, a man, standing next to her mother. She brought her eyebrows together.

"Honey!" Cassandra greeted her daughter, putting her hands on the unknown man's shoulders. "Meet Benjamin. He and I are going to be hanging out a little bit more."

Vivian's lips pressed into a fine line and she nodded slowly. "Right." She trailed out, "I'm Vivian."

The man named Benjamin smiled lightly. "I'm Benjamin." He extended his hand over the counter for the girl to shake– expecting a polite handshake back.

Vivian flickered her eyes down to his hands and blinked a few times before looking at her mom. "I should be going." She voiced. "See you after school."

Vivian quickly left the two story house and began her walk to school. Vivian lived in a small outskirt town of Rhode Island— where her mom decided to move her 2 years before, when she was 14.

Cassandra Goldstein, Vivian's mom, happened to be a sex therapist who helped people relieve their troubles in the small office of her home. Vivian would be lying if she said she didn't mind the noises.

Vivian's parents, Luke and Cassandra, have been divorced for a while now— 5 years to be exact. Vivian saw her father during Christmas and one month out of the summer, which they both agreed wasn't enough time.

However, Cassandra only cared for 3 simple things.

One. That Vivian always gets above a B+ or else it would be considered a failure in Cassandra's eyes— anything Vivian did, it was never enough.

Two. Cigarettes, drugs, and anything end up in her hands— no matter the cost. She could sell her child, but at least she had drugs.

Three. That Vivian never ends up like her father. Which was odd, because Luke Hemmings happened to be one of the most respective doctors in the nation.

Cassandra Goldstein did not have her priorities straight, that is for sure.

Luke Hemmings definitely did regret the whole custody court case when it came to seeing his daughter— because no matter what grade she got, he would always be proud of the young woman she was slowly becoming.

But Cassandra did have the power in her hands for where Vivian ended up, and they both knew.