12. Forget-Me-Not

What seemed like a romantic, beautiful night takes a turn for the worst as Brooke has her last argument with her father.

Brooke flattened the long waves of her dark brown hair and she smelled the heat from the plates holding the thick strands. She had Rogue’s bathroom smelling like a woman’s domain, perfume, and feminine like. Madam Moon gave her sweet scented perfume as well. That woman was a big help. She even had the generosity to give her a pair of white heels. She mashed her glossed lips together and started on the next strand. Once she was done, she combed her hair and it fell straight against her round cheeks. She peered into the mirror and smoothed out the dress, loose against her slender waist. Rogue knocked at the door. “Are you done in there?”

“In a minute,” Brooke replied. She took one last glance at herself and exited the bathroom. Rouge gazed at her, his eyes widened and amazed. Brooke blushed. “What? Do I have something on my face?”

“Yeah.” Rogue smirked. “Beauty.”

“You think so?” Brooke said. She twirled and the ruffles of her skirt followed in a round motion like a gust of daffodil petals.

Rogue stepped inside the bathroom and his nose crinkled. ”What the hell is this stench?”

“Uh, a woman’s touch?” Rogue playfully rolled his eyes and closed the door. Brooke sat on the couch. She waited for a few minutes before she heard the knock at the front door. She jumped in her skin and suddenly her stomach flushed. Was nervous the correct word to describe how she felt? There she was, she and Shawn. Was this considered a date? Brooke never had a love life or much thought about one with the constant training. After school every day she went to Rogue’s place. She had no time for anything else. Brooke felt a little bad for not making an effort to have one, but this was now, and she had to answer the door. Another knock and fumbled to answer it. Shawn looked so handsome. He had on a tuxedo that showed off his broad chest and his hair was combed, but shaggy as always. He smiled at her and said, “You gonna let me in?”

She nodded, her cheeks flustering. Of course, she had to let the guy inside the house. Brooke opened the door wider and stepped aside.

“Granddad!” he called. Rogue came out of the bathroom. “I just wanted to let you know we’ll be on our way; you sure you don’t wanna come?”

Rogue laughed, glancing from Brooke to Shawn. “Nah, I’ll leave the night for you two to have.” Brooke tried to hide her red face. Why did he have to say it that way?

“Okay then, ready to go Brooklyn?”

Brooke nodded, her face feeling too solemn. Her heart froze at each hard beat, magnified, too loud. Was it possible for someone to hear a heartbeat? Shawn opened the door and a brush of mild air came upon her. Shawn gestured his hand for her to walk ahead; he was a gentleman after all. Shawn followed behind her, tossing his keys up and catching it. “Have her back by twelve!” Rogue blurted, standing in the arch of the door, holding his stomach, and laughing. Brooke frowned, but knew he was playing. Sometimes, though, she wouldn’t have minded if Rogue was her father instead of Benjamin Keeper.

Shawn drove out of the mountains, through the city, and to the palace. After parking, Shawn helped Brooke out and they entered the palace. A royal attendant guided them to the ballroom in which a rainbow of dresses and jewelry dazzled Brooke’s eyes. The chandelier glimmered and made the angel pictures upon the marble floors dance. The room had a majestic quality to it. Shawn clasped his hand over his head, smiling at Brooke. “Oh, right, how does this go, I get you punch, right?”

Brooke chuckled. “Why yes, I am quite parched,” replied Brooke, lifting her hand to her forehead dramatically. Shawn went to go get the punch and Brooke looked around the room. Many people were here and of all races. Brooke saw a couple of giants stretching halfway high to the ceiling. She saw elves, elegant and beautiful, and even a few anymalis dressed nicely. Then there were the human girls looking just as pretty. Brooke found the couples to be the most interesting. Some elves had their arms around giants, giants kissing humans, and humans kissing elves. She even saw one giant dance with an anymalis. Brooke thought that would be too awkward for her, but it was interesting to watch. Brooke found herself enchanted by the festive mood

Brooke’s ears perked as she listened in to a conversation between two elves. “Is Princess Catalina really going to perform, or are they pulling a rabbit out of a hat again?” said a male elf.

“Now, now, you know Princess Catalina suffers from Sytosis; it leaves the poor child ill for about all her days,” said a concerned female elf. It was true. Princess Catalina was a sickly girl and the king spent a lot of money on her treatments, but none helped her any.

“I suppose that is a tragedy,” admitted the male elf. “Everyone knows that her music is magic, I promise.”

“You are not wrong my dear; I’m just asking you to be sympathetic if it turns out she cannot perform.”

“You are right.”

Where was Shawn with the punch? Brooke decided to find the buffet table and him. Brooke’s eyes widened when she saw Shawn and some elfin woman talking. Brooke’s fingers rolled into a clench. The woman was indeed beautiful with short, ruffled black hair and a red silk dress that made a red puddle behind her. The back part of her dress revealed porcelain skin. She looked better than Brooke in every way. Brooke was only human, and she hated to be only that. She bit her bottom lip and released her fingers. Shawn was a nice person. He brought her here to cheer her up and it did, but she wished… Brooke should have known this wasn’t any kind of date. Shawn was half-elfin, half-human, and a third of giant. Naturally he would be attracted an elfin kind of girl. Why was Brooke thinking this way? She shook her head, and turned away. He probably had women flock to him all the time. Brooke stood there awkwardly, not sure what to do. Shawn and the elfin woman departed. Shawn went to the punch bowl, filled the cups, and arched his brows when he saw Brooke had come. “I’m sorry, Shawn, I’m not thirsty anymore.”

“What a waste.” He drank the punch and Brooke’s punch as well. Their attention turned towards the stage. The lights dimmed, the chandelier seeming nothing more than a desolate, large light bulb in the middle of the room. King Victor stepped onto the stage and everyone applauded him.

He had on a golden royal robe labeled with Alagracia’s insignia all over the satin cloth. His crown sat on his head, lighting the dimness and he spoke into the microphone. “Good evening, Kingdom of Alagracia!” The crowd responded. After the response, the king went on to say, “I know you all have been anticipating this wonderful evening to see my daughter perform, but I am sorry to inform you that she is too ill.” The crowd responded with a mix of sighs and disappointment. “I know, I know, therefore, Princess Meredith will perform in her place.” The crowd gave a half-assed applaud. King Victor left the stage and Princess Meredith stood in his place. She wore a dark green strapless dress with a golden tiara on her curled up hair. She began to play and couples began to dance. Brooke was surprised that she hadn’t become depressed by seeing the royal family that she desperately wanted to work for. Brooke noticed the master guardians and her shoulders started to slump.

“Well, wanna dance?” Shawn offered. She stared at his hand. He was asking her to dance? Shouldn’t he ask the elfin woman? She nodded despite her internal objections. She placed her fingers into the soft texture of his hand, and he pulled her close to him. She smelled all of him a lovely mix of cologne and aftershave. Brooke’s heart started to beat really fast and really hard again. Then came the fear that he would hear it. Fire fluxed through her body. It was as if she was in battle during a snowy day, but the battle was internal and no one prepared her for this kind.

Shawn waltzed with her. Her hand rested upon his left shoulder and his hand at her waist, firm and never willing to let her go. What about the elfin woman? Was he not talking to her? Maybe she misinterpreted. She felt a sudden embarrassment to ask him. She just wanted this feeling to last, him, and her on the ballroom floor.

She paid no attention to the master guardians. The sting of her rejection had waned and all she cared about for now was losing herself in this moment. He spun her around and she landed right back into his arms. He positioned his hands to where both of them held her back waist. Brooke wrapped her arms around his neck. She hoped he hadn’t seen the shake in them. She was supposed to do that, right? His eyes showed a little fire in them and they seemed amber for a moment, a perfect blend of earth, nurturing and soft, and fire, passionate and love…was it love? Was it love for her? And only her? She leaned her head against his strong chest. She heard his heart beat and it sounded like hers, fast and hard. Was he as nervous as she was? It would be nice to know that in another way she was not alone. If he did love Brooke, why? She was a human woman who suffered a great pain, but that’s about it. He barely knew her. She knew him through stories. Who knew if they were true? That’s crazy of her to think. She full-heartedly trusted Rogue. Was that enough for her? Was she in love with this hybrid creature that held her so passionately?

Princess Meredith finished the song. The lights brightened and everyone clapped. Princess Meredith bowed, holding the violin by the neck, in one hand and the bow in the other. “Thank you for listening,” she said. “The party’s not over yet, so enjoy your evening and have a wonderful night.”

“Um,” Brooke started. Shawn looked at her. “Who was the elfin woman you were talking to?” The question made Brooke seem like some crazy stalker person. He had every right to talk to whom ever he chose.

“Oh, her, that’s Princess Meredith’s magical arts trainer; she was talking to me about the sword, sorry I took so long.” Brooke felt embarrassed now. She shook her head, laughing at herself. “What’s so funny?”

Brooke winked and the laughter turned into a  childish giggle. “I’ll never tell.”

Shawn smirked and Brooke saw the features he shared with Rogue, his sturdy, round jaw pulled back and low cheekbones that made his smirk appear wry beneath his short nose. “Secretive are we?”

“Maybe.”

“Brooklyn?” Brooke turned around to see her father, Mary’s arm around his arm. He wore a dress shirt and black slacks. Mary wore a sparkly black dress. Fannie had on a silver gown and Lucy a white cocktail dress. Brooke instantly gave them a weird look. Her father grasped her by the shoulders and pulled her into a rough hug as if it had been long since they’ve known each other. How much time had passed since she’s seen him anyways? Sitting on Rogue’s couch depressed as she was passed time quickly. She lost track. “Where have you been, Brooklyn?”

“Uh…” What an absurd question to ask. Rogue’s place wasn’t a hard place to check. Was it possible that her father forgot about her. Her eyes widened as she tore away from him. “You say that like you were worried,” she said bitterly.

“I was.”

“If you were so worried about me, then why didn’t you just check Rogue’s place?” Brooke asked, and her father clasped his hands within one another.

“I thought you had gotten accepted into the academy or something.”

“Oh, Dad, just admit you forgot about me, just like you forgot about Mom, memories of her, and everything!” Her father sighed and Mary gave an actual look of concern. “I don’t even know you anymore, Dad if for once we can be honest with each other.”

“Brooklyn, who is this?” Shawn asked. She knew he was confused.

Brooke blew a hard breath and clicked her tongue. “This is Benjamin Keeper, my father, and that’s Mary, his lover.”

“Wife now,” cooed Mary, flipping her hand and the ring on her finger.

Fannie and Lucy ogled at Shawn. Brooke didn’t like it. They scrambled over to him and introduced themselves. “So, who are you, I’m Fannie.”

“And I’m Lucy,” she said, pushing Fannie aside. Shawn nodded. “We’re her stepsisters.”

“I’m Shawn and I’m her date.”

“Get away from him you roaches!” yelled Brooke.

“Hey!” Mary started. Fannie and Lucy frowned at Brooke, but continued to ogle at Shawn.

Brooke saw her father’s jaw clenching. “You think I forgot?” Her father’s voice trembled and drew everyone’s attention. “What makes you think I am able to forget?” His body shook as he spoke, emotional and angry. “About her, about how much I loved that woman; I loved her so much, Brooklyn, so much!” Brooke had never seen her father this alive in a long time. “I loved her so much and I would’ve done anything in my power to make her happy, but you know what, it wasn’t enough; I loved her and it wasn’t enough. I gave her every part of me. I gave her my best, my all; I would have given my soul for that woman, but it wasn’t enough.

How am I able to forget all the countless nights she cried and I wasn’t able to console her? How am I able to forget the mornings she played on Gloria, huh?” Brooke didn’t think her father remembered the name of Mom’s piano. He destroyed it after she left. “How am I, the man who married her, loved with all his being, only to wake up and her gone, to forget about her, Rain Sevede, the woman I loved and always will love?

But you know what, apparently that didn’t matter to her. It didn’t matter to her that she had a husband who would do anything for her and a daughter. If anything, Brooklyn, she forgot about us.”

Brooke’s eye sockets burned intensely and she stormed out of the palace ballroom. Tears rolled down her cheeks and she ran blindly through the palace corridors. She ran until her legs hurt and she stopped, tumbled on the carpeted floor, and sobbed heavily. She didn’t want to think. She didn’t want to believe her father. Each thought had a chance to gravitate towards her father’s emotional outburst. It was a possibility that she was wrong in some way. She had not considered her father’s feelings. Mom and making her happy was his dream, which was crushed just like her own.

 

Author's Note

Dear Reader,

Okay, the last drama between Brooke and her father before they won't see each other for a long long time. Next will be the beginning of her journey from and to home. You will see. There's bloodshed and twists coming up ahead.

Also, tell me if I presented the love moment between Brooke and Shawn. Did I go to fast with these two or is it fine? I didn't want Brooke to seem like a stalker type person.

I chose that picture because it looks like her mother the night Rain left.

Sincerely JazzSoulKeke,

God bless