Daddy’s Little Pet

RENEE

As I walked into my apartment, the soothing sound of SYML’s “Girl” played from the small stereo in the corner.

The song brought with it a sense of peace and calm that I rarely experienced these days. It helped me relax, even if only for a short time.

And that was precisely what I needed right now-to relax. To let myself breathe without being weighed down by my worries. The previous few days had been… trying. Trying and more challenging than I could’ve imagined.

“Damn!” I muttered, shoulders slumping as I closed the door behind me, sighing exhaustedly against it.

My body sagged in front of me. My hands pushed my long hair away from my face before rubbing my tired eyes and pinching my nose. I knew my sleep-deprived appearance wasn’t doing me any favors, and I wouldn’t say I liked thinking about how I looked.

Instead, I tried to distract myself by recalling everything that’d happened today.

From scouring the streets of Orlando in my fruitless search for another job-since I was currently jobless and living off my meager savings-to the paparazzi and their never-ending harassment. The whole day just seemed unreal.

My stress level was through the roof, and more so when I thought about how my job search went; I felt sick with worry about my future and job prospects.

Why was I worried? No one was interested in hiring the media’s newest obsession and hot gossip topic. Despite my academic credentials, they would shake their heads at me, saying, ‘We wouldn’t want any more scandal associated with the reputation of this beloved company, miss. We sincerely apologize.’

With so many rumors and scandals surrounding my name, employers were on the lookout. They didn’t want anything to tarnish the company’s image, and I couldn’t blame them.

The entire ordeal left me exhausted and made me feel more useless than before. My inability to find a job made me doubly hopeless.

With another sigh, I dropped my bag to the floor and collapsed onto one of the nearby couches.

I looked at the wall clock and noted that it was 4:30 p. m. I’d been out longer than I should’ve been.

I’d planned on scouring for jobs until two, then returni home for lunch. Apparently, I’d missed both deadlines.

Oh well… So much for getting my life back on track.

My stomach growled, rumbling in hunger, but I ignored it and began to close my eyes and sing along to the music playing softly.

‘Today… And all of your days. I’ll wear your pain. Heal what I can in your troubled mind. Sometimes our bodies will hurt for some time…’

I relaxed through the rest of the song, lulled by SYML’s sweet and melodious voice. I reflected on the lyrics I was belting out, and my chest tightened instinctively.

Even though my life seemed to be heading in the wrong direction, this song managed to put me at ease, and for that, I was grateful.

I kept singing quietly, letting the words flow freely from my heart until a loud banging noise caught my attention. A loud crash followed, and I jumped to my feet quickly, fear shooting through my body.

I looked around for the source of the commotion when my bedroom door flew open, revealing Nicole in all her messy glory.

She was looking for something because her raven hair was plastered to her sweaty forehead and cheeks, and her eyes darted around.

“Oh, my goodness!” I huffed. “You scared me half to death, bitch!”

“Renee? Is that you?” Her voice was slightly breathless as she asked, and her hands ran through her hair while she panted heavily.

“Yeah, I just came in a few minutes ago. The door was open, and the stereo blasted loudly, presumably thanks to you.” I scoffed. “You look like hell.”

She responded with a heavy sigh and an exasperated look. “Oh, my goodness! Renee, I should be better and not in this mess.”

“What happened?”

“Pffft…. I saw a mouse! A mouse scurried under my bed. They were two. Then I noticed another scurrying around my closet, gnawing on my nightgown. Oh, my God! I grabbed a stick intending to hit it but tripped over some loose floorboard, and some things fell. Oh jeez…. Renee, you wouldn’t want to go into the bedroom right now.”

“Of course not. I don’t want to see the mess you made because of a rodent.” I scoffed, chuckling under my breath, and she laughed along with me.

“I didn’t hear you walk in. I was so preoccupied with my phone, and then there was the incident with the big rodents…” She trailed off sarcastically. “How are you, though? Any luck with finding a job? Is there any good news?”

Her eyes searched mine, hoping for a positive response, but I just shrugged and shook my head no.

“What?!” Don’t tell me this issue with Robert is still rubbing off and making it difficult for you to get a good job?” She snapped, anger and disappointment in her tone.

“Yes, Nicole. It is, and I’m tired.”

“Oh, God.”

“I’m at a loss. Because of the scandal and gossip, no one wants to hire me. I can’t blame them. Okay, I got one offer. But when I met with the manager, can you believe he wanted to sleep with me?”

“No way!” Nicole exclaimed, her eyes widening as she listened.

I told her everything about my meeting with the manager and his intentions, leaving nothing out, and I sighed deeply when I finished. “He was so smug about the whole thing, and I felt so irritated and ashamed. He wanted a taste of the whore that billionaire Robert Clarke was fucking, according to the delusional old wimp, and-”

“Damn… It’s all right, Renee. You don’t need to say anything else.” Nicole’s voice cut into my rant, but I shook my head and said, “No, it’s okay. I just… I wish that all of this would stop. I want my boring pre-Robert life back. Not just him but Dylan as well. All I want is to feel normal and free again. But that’s not going to happen, is it?”

Nicole stood there staring at me. Her eyes were filled with sympathy and rage, too.

“I’m so disgusted. I want to meet with that manager and snap his neck. How dare he make you feel this way? Just take a look at your…” She cursed under her breath.All content © N/.ôvel/Dr/ama.Org.

“I won’t go looking for white-collar jobs again, though. That’s one thing I learned from today’s scouting expedition. I should stick to menial jobs because, despite my qualifications. No company wants to hire me.”

“Don’t say that.”

“I have nothing else to say, Nicole, so let me pour it out. Don’t you think it’s for the best? I could work in a downtown bar or restaurant again. It’s not a new thing for me. I’ll continue searching again next week and see if I’m lucky.”

“Whatever you say, miss. Have you had your lunch? And what about breakfast? Did you get something to eat outside like you said you would like this morning?” Nicole chastised, concern etched on her features.

“No, but I’m not hungry, and-” My stomach growled loudly, interrupting me. My cheeks flushed.

A knowing grin spread across Nicole’s face.

“Go freshen up. I’ll whip up something fast. It’s the least I can do.” She offered, taking my wrists and pushing me toward the bedroom.

A knock echoed through the apartment as I was about to open the bedroom door. I came to a halt. My body became stiff, too.

“Are you expecting anyone?” I asked Nicole.

“Not at all. Change your clothes and take your bath. I’ll answer the door, and…” She paused as I released my wrists from her grasp, and before she could finish her sentence, I yanked open the door to reveal a young man dressed in… delivery clothes.

He smiled or smirked at me unprofessionally, his eyes glinting strangely.

Everything about this delivery man screamed trouble, and I couldn’t help but take a step back in surprise, carefully eyeing him.

“Who are you?” I began to speak, but he abruptly cut me off.

“Wow! Aren’t you the infamous scandal woman. The one who made headlines. Am I right?” He asked with amusement, his tone cocky, while my mouth hung open, and I stared at him, perplexed. His question caught me off guard, and my mind also went blank.

“What… why are you here? Who… who sent you?” I stuttered, ignoring his questions as I shakily asked, waiting for him to respond.

“I have a delivery for… for a…” He paused, his gaze fixed on a card, “A Miss Renee Micheal.”

When he mentioned my name, I straightened up and took the card from his trembling hands, scanning the contents.

And then the world seemed to slow down as a strange sense of dejavu washed over me.

Robert.

Robert had sent the package.