Chapter 23

The next day, Marcella woke up early so that she could get ready for work and make breakfast. When she was done, she went to the kitchen and put on her apron, then made some pancakes, then spread some nutella and teasers. When she was done, she covered their food, then went to wake Joshua up and have his bath. She tried not to splash water on herself and succeeded.

When she finished with him, they went downstairs to eat and she put his lunch in his bag, which was bacon, toast, his juice box and an apple. When he finished his food, she put their plate in the sink and drove him to school.

"All right, bye, I'll see you later."

"Bye, mom" he said and she kissed his forehead.

Then she went to meet Kendall at her house and Hailey. So after they finished talking about the fashion show, which was the time they should get to the location, what order they were walking in and then they went for fittings.

During their fitting, Marcella called Marilyn and said.

"Hey Marilyn Sorry to call you on such short notice. I was hoping you could help me pick Joshua up after school today, and we will meet you up later "

"Yeah sure, who are the Others?"

"Just Kendall and Hailey"

"Oh okay, see you later. I got ta go"

"OK bye I love you"

"I love you more, kisses" She said and ended the call.

After a while, they had both finished their fittings and they went to get lunch at a fancy restaurant, which was covered with fans and paparazzi, but their security was there, so they really didn't worry, After they ordered what they wanted, minutes later, the waiter brought their food.

"How's your love life going, Marcella?" Hailey inquired.

"Yeah, how is it?"

"He is so handsome, like every single day he is always on my mind, like I miss him already," Marcella said.

"We already know that you love Joshua so much, Marcella" Kendall said and put some salad into her mouth.

"Yes, tell us, like have you met someone," Hailey said.

Marcella took a sip of her drink and said.

"I really haven't thought about it, like I have been so busy lately with Joshua and my business, so I doubt I have the time to be in a relationship"

"Oh come on, we need to set you up. It's been years, and don't you want someone to hold you at night and warm your bed and reassure you that everything will be fine? I mean, don't you want someone to love you?" Hailey asked as she popped some meat into her mouth.

"Yeah, I have this friend and I think both of you would be really good together, and he is really cute and caring, at least just try," Kendall said.

"I guess, but don't expect anything," Marcella said after a while.

"Yay, finally" Kendall said and they laughed. After lunch, they went to meet Marilyn at home. When they got to her house, Hailey and Kendall carried their gifts that they got for Joshua and went in.

"Hey you guys, I missed you so much. It has been a long time since we got together like this," Marilyn said as she hugged them.

"We missed you too. Where is Joshua?" Kendall asked.

"Yh, where has he gone?"Hailey asked.

"Oh, he's in the movie room watching spy cat," Marilyn explained as she led them to the room.

"Mommy!" Joshua squealed when he saw her.

"My baby" she said and hugged him.

"Hi Aunt Kenny,"

"Hey Josh, how are you?"

"I am fine, Hi Aunt Hailey"

"Hey, you are such a big boy now," Hailey said and he blushed.

"They brought gifts for you," Marcella told him.

"Oh really," he said, and they nodded before handing him over.

"Thank you, I love them," Joshua said as he looked at them.

"You guys get comfortable. Let me get more popcorn and wine for us," Marilyn said and left.

Marcella followed her best friend out. Marilyn is like a sister she never had. She had been with her at her lowest, and never once judged her decision. If not for her, she had no idea where she would be now. And that made Marcella love her more.

"Hey, how was your day?" Marilyn asked as she made some more popcorn.

"You know, busy busy, we actually went for their fitting today"

"Cool"

"And last night my mum called, so we talked and my father's birthday is coming up next week, and he was asking if I could come and I don't know, I don't want to see the look on their faces, or them thinking of me as a disappointment" Marcella said.

"Look, Marcella, I'm saying this to you as a friend. There are some things in life you have to do not for yourself but for your family. Joshua would love to meet his grandparents, uncle and aunt husband as family, so you should keep Joshua in mind and make that decision, but if you want my opinion, he should visit them, I'm sure they would love to meet him," Marilyn said as she took some glasses out.

"Perhaps you're right here; I'd love to meet them; I have a child now, so my decisions must be for his benefit."

"Yes, so when do you plan on going this weekend?"

"Yeah, maybe I should get there earlier because fashion week is in two weeks," Marcella suggested.

When the popcorn was ready, they went back to the room and watched a movie, then they left.

"Okay bye, see you later," Marcella said.

"Yh bye"

"Bye aunties"

"Bye guys"

When Hailey and Kendall left, Marcella stayed for a while to get some work done, then she called her assistant.

"Hello, Lisa, have you double-checked that the models are over the age of seventy, because I only want one model person to look?"

"Yes I have, and I just checked the guest list and made sure they would come and told them the time," Lisa said.

"That's good," Marcella said, because she had to invite the correct people to promote her show. Because in terms of social media, all she needs is a tag from them and her clothing line is good to go.

"And you know the event doesn't end after the show, we need to provide themed catering that goes in line with the concept, to continue the guests' journey and make it fully immersive."

"Yes, I have done that," Lisa said. "There would be live dessert stations where the chess would create wonderful pieces of art."

"Okay, thank you" Marcella said and ended the call.

When she finished, Marilyn came downstairs.

"I am so proud of you; you are working so hard." "Thank you; you will be there right away."

"Of course, I would not miss it for the world," Marilyn said.

"I better start going home, JOSHUA!" Marcella shouted.

"Yes, mommy," Joshua said as he entered the house.

"It's time to go home," Marcella said and carried their bags to the car, while Marcella took him outside.

"Thank you for today," Marcella said as she walked into her car, unbuckled Joshua's seat belt, and sat in the driver's seat.

"I had fun, so no worries, we need to go on a vacation some day."

"Yeah, OK later" Marcella said and drove out the gate. On her way home, she asked Joshua.

"So what do you want for dinner?"

"U mm mm..., penne pasta with cheese and chicken" Joshua said as he wiggled his legs.

"Okay, chicken pasta is"

When they got home, she did the usual: she bathed Joshua, dressed him in his pajamas, and took him downstairs while she cooked dinner.

She took out some chicken breasts and flattened them, then cut them into little pieces, then seasoned them. She also thanked some cheese and minced some garlic.

She poured a little oil into the pot and threw the chicken in and added the garlic. Then she added some heavy whipping cream and some chicken broth, then the pasta. She set her timer for fifteen minutes. When the time was up, she added Parmesan cheese, then gave it a mix.

She transferred it into a baking tray and added some mozzarella cheese, then baked it in the oven for five minutes. When she was done, she put some on their plates and added some parsley.

She also blended some veggies because Joshua won't eat them raw, and he won't know, then she poured them into their cups and set the tables.

"Joshua, food is ready"

"Okay," Joshua said and ran to the dining room.

"It smells so good"

"Thanks" Marcella said and they sat to eat after saying grace.

After they had eaten, she washed the dishes and helped him with his homework. When they were done, they started talking about his school.

"Yes and Noah invited me to his sleepover tomorrow. Can I go?"

"Sure babe, I have something to tell you. How would you like to visit your grandma and grandpa?"

"Really? When? " Joshua asked, excited.

"This weekend"

"Yay, we need to make cookies for them"

"Okay buddy, come on let's go to bed"

Marcella read him a book and he dozed off just half way through. She kissed his forehead and dumped the lights.

She went to her room and had a shower, then put on her nightie and laid down on her bed and slept off.

When she woke up, the next day, she packed some clothes for Joshua in his sleepover bag and had a shower. Then she made breakfast for Joshua, and packed his lunch. After she was done, she woke him up to have his bath and wore his clothes. When they were through with breakfast, she took him to school and went to the office.

Hours and hours later, she went to pick up Joshua from school and took him to Noah's house.

"Good evening Blaire, how are you?"

"Marcella, hey long time"

"Yeah, Joshua told me Noah was having a sleep over, so I figured why not"

"Thanks, Jason's not back yet"

"It's okay to tell him I said hi"

Marcella said her goodbyes and went back home to change so she could go to the spa and have a time with Marilyn. Thank God it is Friday, she thought.

She had a massage and, due to Marilyn's convincing skills, she also exfoliated her vagina and had a Brazilian wax. To say her vagina was on fire would be an understatement

She felt relieved when they were finished, but she still waddled to the car with Marilyn who said,

"Oh fuck, my pussy is on fire."

Me too" Marcella started the car and drove which was funny because how she drove was a miracle

When they got home, she microwaved the remains of last night's food and made coffee.

"So Joshua is at his sleepover"

"Yes, he is. When he gets back tomorrow I will pack our bags, then on Sunday we will leave for Italy."

"I am sure he will be excited like it will be his first plane ride"

"Yes it is"

When they were done eating, they both fell asleep, but Marcella awoke before Marilyn so she could book some tickets and first class. When she was done, Marcella figured she should pack the bag now and she did.

She just hoped everything would be fine and would go smoothly because she didn't want drama. And for a minute, he crossed her mind.

Carlos.