✓ desperado ( ethan + grayson )

0.2

0.2 | the pre-show

+ADRIANNA HOSK
THU | 19:00

I ENTERED MY HOME and locked the door quietly, hoping not to disturb Janine who was most likely resting. I popped my head around her door seeing that I was correct and so decided on making something small to eat.

I started to wonder what standards you had to meet to be 'approved of'. Maybe physique, looks, gender? They do come across in photos as typical bachelors so it wouldn't surprise me to discover they were only picking women. I chose to whip up a quick bacon salad with French dressing, and spend my evening in front of the tv.

"Adrianna?" Janine called from the hallway - it was the first time she'd spoken to me since briefly telling me earlier on about her condition.

"Hey. How was your nap?" I asked, getting up to wrap my arms around her. Cancer is never anything you imagine will inflict itself on a family member who is completely healthy in all aspects of life; I certainly couldn't have predicted Jan would fall victim to the disease. Her loud coughs silenced my thoughts, she battled with it a little until she managed to get it under control. Over the past few weeks I thought her coughing was simply a bad cold - it's proven to be more than that.

"It was productive," she smiled weakly towards me with heavy eyelids. Then, I saw her eyes fall on something behind me and I turned around to see my salad from across the room.

"Want some? I made extra," I suggested, walking to the cupboard to get her a bowl. Doing tiny things to help my sister and get my mind away from what she'd told me earlier on would definitely help in terms of coping. I need to assert myself in important areas of my life now; being a good sister, for instance.

"Thank you, Ade," she said grouchily as her cough commenced once again. She took a seat on the sofa and at that moment, I thought it would be an appropriate time to share my intentions of attending the dinner party, provided I was accepted.

"I don't want to get your hopes up, but I might have found a way to earn us some money for your treatment."

"Really?" she questioned, scrunching up her nose at the initial bitter taste of the salad dressing. "How?"

"There are these billionaire businessmen hosting a dinner party tomorrow evening. During the dinner, they will be officiating a game and if I win whatever it is they'll have us play they'll give me one million dollars, Jan," I grinned in pride that I'd even managed to have found out about such an opportunity.

"How many people are playing?" was her only response.

"Hm," I hummed, furrowing my eyebrows, "I actually don't know." Mr. Peterson hadn't informed me on the details of the night, so he most likely didn't know, I assumed it would be a small gathering though.

"Well, you never win anything," she scoffed, walking back to her room grumpily without finishing her salad which, of course, she left on the table for me to wash up.

I shook my head lightly, trying to not let her pessimistic views get to me. She has cancer for God's sake so she was obviously distraught. However, I was trying and it might sound inconsiderate, even though I mean it in no such way, but she wasn't.

"Have a little faith, Janine!" I yelled to her, I'm not prepared to have my big sister lie down and accept a doomed fate.

I heard no reply but instead heard the vibration of my phone against marble. This was it: the call. I ran over to my phone on the counter and looked at the ID. The name Liam shattered my mood into even more shards as I wondered what my narcissistic ex boyfriend wanted this time.