Yes, Sir

7.9

•- Laine Bennett -•

Walking around the disheveled shop with a yellow bar had secured atop my head was one of the most exciting moments to date.

There was never much to go on in my day to day until employment at Wood Enterprise. And I knew damn well that Austin Wood was to blame.

We rode the car ride in complete silence, and for the first time in our entire relationship, I rose by his side with a certain tenseness to my body.

We were openly public despite our promised wishes at his birthday. Understandably, that was the day he was born and I should do nothing more than to celebrate to the complete fullest through the entirety of the night, but open romance in front of my colleagues was the last thing on the agenda.

I dreamed of the day Austin and I could be vocal about where we stood with one another. I saw myself with him when I glanced into my wishful future, and I had no intentions of losing what I wanted to see because of the opinions of thousands of people. I, like everyone else who was severely insecure, I was incapable of not caring what other's thought of me. I did not need their confirmation in the slightest and that was not what I was seeking, but being in the presence of a high socialite brought my name and tragic past into the limelight at a time where I was just growing comfortable in a romantic situation that I never believed to be remotely possible.

I wander aimlessly around the decluttered location that I had once called my home away from home. There was always that magnificent feeling of walking into grandma's shop and messing around with mannequins and the endless junk that scattered the floors and walls. It was truly a blessing to have grown up with a guardian who provided for her family even when financially it was deemed impossible.

My grandmother was offsite today and would only see a few bits and pieces when brought in for her personal opinion of progress. But I wished to have her by my side to guide me through the hardships that came with growing up into the person you were supposed to be.

I had stopped in my tracks in front of a beautiful picture rested on her desk. Her office would be the last to be touched because it had been renovated to the best of my grandfather's abilities while he was alive.

The picture in question was of my mother and her father on her wedding day. It amazed me how beautiful of a young woman my mother was. Thea resembles her like a perfect reflection. Their noses held the same crooked bump that was only noticeable through close inspection, and their bright blue eyes were reflective of the ocean. I had taken more after my father in terms of appearances and although he was never the most hideous man to greet, I never found the appeal of our shared looks.

"She was beautiful you know," Austin says from behind me, causing my foot to turn against the wooden and aged floor below me.

I nod my head, a small nostalgic smile creasing on my lips.

"Yeah, her and Thea look more alike than I think I ever came to realize," I laugh awkwardly, trying to conceal the awkward tension I allowed to fill the room.

Austin takes a small step closer to me, causing the floorboard beneath his foot to creak slightly.

I glance up to meet his eyes. He held an enthused and excited expression deep behind his eyes, but his demeanor spoke of this unspoken density to the air.

"So, have you given my proposition any thought?" He asks, raising his eyebrow ever so slightly that the small twitch was nearly missed by the naked eye.

I glance down briefly and exhale a large puff of air. How could I have not given this idea a thought? It was racing on my mind every waking second. I could either ask my family to pack up and move for my benefit, or I could leave them to their unsanitary dwelling in the wrong side of Brooklyn.