Chapter 40

Clara's POV

"So," she began. "I want to know what happened last night. I want to know all the details but not too much detail because I don't want to be grossed out." She rambled.

"Nothing happened," I answered dismissively.

"Please, you smelled his perfume. Thank goodness your clothes were wet when you walked in. Otherwise, if Mom had hugged you, she would have smelled it too." She answered."You are exaggerating," I dismissed her again.

"I was standing next to you, and I smelled it off you." She insisted. She skipped to the next question. "So, are you guys dating now?" she asked.

"No," I answered unsurely. It was never something that we discussed. This thing just sort of happened between us.

Katy managed to decipher my puzzled expression. "So, you guys are busy sucking each other's faces off, but you still don't know your relationship status?" she asked. "This is why you need me," she noted.

I sighed. "You know what, you are right. I'll ask him that the next time, and then I'll tell him I'm not pregnant." I said.

Without warning, the door swung open as Mom peeked through the door. I hope she didn't hear me. "Katy, I need you to get out of here now. Your sister needs to rest." Mom spoke.

Katy sighed. "But Clara and I are catching up," she insisted.

"She probably worked the whole night. She needs to rest now. She must be really tired." Mom said.

I faked a disappointed smile as Mom dragged Katy out.

Then she tucked me under the blankets after opening my bedsheets.

"I'm not five anymore," I reminded her.

"But you are still my baby." She smiled back. "Sleep tight," she whispered.

She left my room, followed by a loud bang as the door closed.

I lay in bed and stared at my ceiling. I wasn't even tired, and I slept through the whole night.

In my boredom, I started making sounds with my mouth, but that wasn't enough to entertain me.

My phone rang on my nightstand. Yes, finally, something to do.

I slipped my phone underneath the cover as I answered the call.

"Thank God you are alive. Your mom would have killed me if you ended up dead somewhere," Ivy said.

"Why did everyone think I was dead?" I asked.

"Because you are Saint Clara, you hardly do anything wrong. At least not before." She answered. "My mom would have loved to have had you as her child instead. She told me to leave you because I'm a bad influence." She joked.

I chuckled.

"Anyways, I'm glad to know that you are alive. I guess we can talk later." She said,

With our work arrangements, we barely have time to catch up anymore.

"No, don't go," I pleaded. "I'm bored. How is it going with you?" I asked.

"If you question whether I have found a crazy rich boyfriend, the answer is no." She answered. "How is it going for you? Your life sounds more entertaining." She asked.

I sighed as I began to tell her everything that had happened, including Leonardo finding out about this whole thing. The drama with Madison took nearly ten minutes to explain.

"Wow!" Ivy exclaimed at the end of the story. "Looks like things are getting more complicated." She answered.

"Can you guess who I saw leaving my house today?" I asked. "Leonardo," I answered.

"No way," Ivy muttered in astonishment.

"What if he was here to tell my mother the truth?" I sighed. "I'm so scared that everything is just going to keep piling up, that one day I won't be able to lie or handle it anymore, and it's all just going to blow up in my face," I said. I lowered my voice, so Mom wouldn't know I was awake.

I told her the rest of it.

"Are you sure? Is that really what Katy said?" she asked.

I nodded, almost expecting her to hear it.

"Looks like your mom has a game." She laughed.

I didn't answer. Till this point, I hadn't fully realised what a mess my life was now in. I was dealing with a psychopath, and I was telling too many lies than I could count, and way too many people than there should have known about this.

"You know, what if Leonardo is your father?" She asked. "Think about it; you don't know who he is, and he said he would be staying to catch up with an old friend. Suddenly, your mom is talking to a mysterious person on the phone, and boom, he shows up at your house. This all makes sense!" She exclaimed.

She sounded like she had solved the world's greatest mystery.

"That would be too far-fetched. Who in their right mind would hide a rich dad?" I asked.

"You don't know what could have happened." She insisted.

I shook my head, doubtful. "No, Leonardo seems like the nice type. Besides, we don't even look alike." I answered.

"Stranger things have happened." She said,

I wish Mom would tell me that I wouldn't have to result in speculations.

I heard a soft knock on my door.

"Someone is here," I whispered into the phone.

"Okay, I'll call you later. I have to get back to work." Ivy answered. She hung up the phone.

Wait, we've been speaking for over an hour. It wasn't even her lunchtime yet. Why was she entertaining me for so long?

"Come in," I yelled, placing my phone on my nightstand.

The door opened, and Katy walked in with a sweet smile. She was also holding a mug in her hand.

Since when did she start being so courteous?

"I just thought I would bring you some hot chocolate to warm you up," she smiled innocently.

She sat at my feet as I sat up straight.

She wanted something.

"So," she began her story. "There is this really cute boy at my school. He is having a birthday party. Only a few people were invited, and even some celebrities will be there." Katy said, her voice filled with enthusiasm. "I happen to be among the few people that were invited." She paused. Since the kids at my school only wear designer clothes, I thought you could buy me a new dress." She ended her story.

She added another innocent smile.

I sighed. I knew exactly how this kind of story ended.

"I'm not buying you a new dress," I answered.

Her smile dropped.

"Please, you have to. The kids there already think I'm a loser." She pleaded.

"Those dresses cost an arm and a leg. Besides, it's not worth changing yourself to fit into a group." I answered.

"Well, good thing you were born with two arms and two legs." She replied with a smile. "Besides, you have a rich boyfriend now," she added.

I looked at her in astonishment.

"Firstly, that's his money, not mine. Secondly, I haven't even been paid yet." I continued listing my reasons.

She moved in to hand me the cup, but then she backed away. "I think I'll keep it," she said, pulling the cup to her lips.

"Fine," she sighed. "Your boyfriend is on TV. It's your decision whether to show up or not." She stood up from my bed.

She turned to leave but then stopped in her tracks.

"One more thing, don't be surprised if I show up at your work pretending to be an orphan. I'm sure Derek would gladly help me out." She said, She brushed her hair off her shoulder before stepping out of my room.

What a drama queen.

Wait, did she say Derek was on TV?

Without hesitation, I pushed out of my blankets and went downstairs.

Walking down, I could already hear the TV in the living room.

Katy threw herself onto the couch right next to Mom. Mom barely had her attention on the screen as she paged through a cooking book.

I stood behind them, my eyes focusing on Derek, who was on the screen.

He stood there, tall and elegant, on a podium.

It looked like he was outside the hotel. They used tents to shield the paparazzi from the rain. There were too many people to count. The camera operators changed their angles to show people standing outside, with some people even waiting in the rain to get a few pictures of the event. At least the weather seemed a little bit better now.

The camera operators returned their attention to Derek. "I'm here to confirm that the rumours regarding one of our guests at the hotel being robbed are nothing but lies." He read the statement from a page.

Mom glanced over her magazine and asked, "Isn't that where you work?".

"Yes," I answered.

I continued watching the TV.

I popped a blood vessel and gripped the couch when the camera operators changed their angle, giving a broader view of the podium.

Madison was standing right next to him, her hands in front of her and a wide smile on her face.

"Instead, we have a special announcement to share with all of you." Derek continued. He seemed very hesitant with his words.

"We are getting married," Madison interjected. She raised her hand to flush the huge rock on her finger.

I blinked as Katy looked over her shoulder to stare at me with a questioning look.

What just happened?