Third Person
The outside was filled with a fine dining.. everyone as usual sat down to eat breakfast.. Breakfast was one way to see faces and know people around..
April happens to be there, sitting next to Abigail and Katie who unexpectedly joined breakfast after becoming friends with Abigail..
Plates clattered softly against the tablecloth as servers moved quietly between the long l tables set up under the open sky.
April held her fork tightly, taking small, cautious bites of her eggs while Katie reached over to steal a piece of bacon from Abigail’s plate.
"I heard you work in a library close to the university.." Madam said to April.
Her sharp eyes on the poor girl who was peacefully eating..
"Yes I do.. I started working there during my third year in the university.." April explained..
She adjusted her round glasses with her thumb, keeping her shoulders square and her voice steady as she answered.
"That is good... you are a graduate unlike your step sister who never bothered pursuing her studies after high school..." Madam said
She flipped a page of her morning paper, her tone flat and dismissive as she brought up Angel without a second thought.
"But Mom, she has two certificates in Arts and Computer science.." Abigail said trying to defend Angel and having April think negative of her
"Online... and fabricates..." Madam said she was reading a magazine...
She didn’t even look up from the colored pages, waving her thin, manicured hand casually through the air.
"No it’s not, she took the classes for the certificates..." Abigail said..
Abigail set her glass down with a firm thud, her eyes narrowing in frustration.
Everyone in the district sees Angel as the Morningstars heir but Madam just see a fails product.
"Quit trying to defend that girl.. defending her is not going to be any good..." Madam added
The older woman turned another page, her voice growing cold and clipped.
"I think that’s what is happening nowadays.. people study online instead of attending physical classes... if it were up to me I would have also done that..." April said.. she wasn’t trying to defend Angel it was the fact that Angel got a choice..
That was one of the things she envied about Angel.. she got free will..
April looked down at her plate, her fingers tracing the handle of her butter knife. Angel could wake up, decide she didn’t want to attend a physical lecture hall, and simply take her courses from a laptop without anyone successfully forcing her into a box. April had never possessed that kind of freedom.
"So Angel, I heard you like working in the library so much... with the last name you have you could have applied for a job in higher companies..." Madam said
She lowered her magazine slightly, her gaze returning to April’s quiet face.
"The library reminds me of my dad.. he is a librarian..."
A soft, faint smile touched April’s lips for a fraction of a second, her voice softening at the memory of wooden shelves and the smell of old paper.
"I see... is he dead?"
"No... he lives in his hometown... still alive..?"
"I heard your mother tell the boss that he wasn’t much of a provider..."
"He may not be rich, or have big cars and estate but my dad is a kind man. He has a big heart and I love him for that..." April said..
April straightened her back, her posture turning firm as her green eyes flashed behind her lenses.
"And he hasn’t reached out to you in years..."
Hearing Madam said that, made a total silence.. April couldn’t say a word after that because Madam was right..
The clinking of cutlery around the table instantly stopped. Katie froze with her juice box, Abigail looked away toward the ocean, and April felt a sudden, sharp coldness sink straight into her stomach. It was a painful, undeniable truth that she carried around every single day.
Her father hadn’t called, hadn’t written, and hadn’t checked on her since the divorce.
"You are a Morningstar now... Ms Morningstar and your mom are always busy with other projects and even before you enter the family I am the one who has been responsible for that wild girl... I also would like to know you better and perhaps open a bookstore here in the District and you can manage it..." Madam folded her magazine neatly, placing it beside her plate as she offered a polite, practiced smile.
April smiled politely..
She took a slow breath, forcing her expression to stay pleasant and calm.
"That is a very tempting offer ma’am but I’m happy with my current job and I work at the Sister’s Orphanage by the weekend.."
She declined smoothly, keeping her tone respectful without giving up an inch of her independence.
Definitely not ready to trade a prison for another..
"Sister’s Orphanage, that reminds me how your niece at the Orphanage Javier?"
She turned her attention down the table toward Javier, who was sitting quietly in his sharp suit, slicing his morning steak into neat, even pieces.
"My niece is doing great there... your donation to the orphanage is being used to build another hostel for the kids..." Javier answered
He set his fork down, dabbing his mouth with a linen napkin as he spoke in his smooth, low voice.
"That is good if they are in need of anything you can inform me... your niece should have been here for your wedding..."
"The sisters there are always devoted to God and she took a vow never to step foot outside the orphanage... but um Abigail and I will pay her a visit.."
Javier offered a small, polite nod, his posture relaxed as he addressed the head of the table.
Madam asked no further, she only told April to think about her offer and the opportunity she was going to be getting..
Everyone finished their food and continued their daily activities... celebrations were still going on and Abigail with her two new friends decided to go for cycling..
A row of sleek, colorful bicycles was parked right near the edge of the paved boardwalk, waiting for them under the shade of the tall palm trees.
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