Authors: Bethany Walkers
Chapter Fourty Six
Finding out what happened
It was the next day after yesterday’s events. Jazz, Gina and Amber went to Sophie’s old work studio.
“Can you tell us about Sophie Steele? She used to work here. What happened to her?” Jazz asked, shaking hands with Mr. Sandalwood.
“Well, she was here one time with her boyfriend Adam Attenborough, but then at one point she never came back.” Mr. Sandalwood didn’t really seem to have much information.
“Hmmm,” Jazz nodded, her voice vague.
“Why, what brings you here?” Mr. Sandalwood asked.
“Just a project,” Jazz explained, “that I’m doing with my mates, Gina and Amber.” Her tone of voice was casual and informal.
“Well, I can’t help you with anything here. I don’t know what happened to Sophie. Thanks for coming by anyway.” Mr. Sandalwood shrugged.
“Been a pleasure.” Jazz smiled, and the three best friends left the studio.
Since Mr. Sandalwood couldn’t help them, they decided to see Chloe the orphan.
“Hi, receptionist. Can we see Chloe please?” Jazz asked.
“Come right this way,” she smiled, leading them to Chloe.
Chloe was playing and skipping with her friends, singing girly songs like
I’m a Barbie Girl.
“
I'm a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation
Come on Barbie, let's go party!
I'm a Barbie girl, in the Barbie world
Life in plastic, it's fantastic!
You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere
Imagination, life is your creation
I'm a blond bimbo girl, in a fantasy world
Dress me up, make it tight, I'm your dolly
You're my doll, rock'n'roll, feel the glamour in pink,
Kiss me here, touch me there, hanky panky…”
She stopped singing abruptly when she saw adults walk over to her. She blushed deeply in an awkward embarrassment.
“Erm, can we talk to you for a few minutes, in private?” Gina asked.
“Of course, ma’am.” Chloe immediately put on her formal voice.
Jazz led them to a bench, nearby the fields of the orphanage.
“Can you talk to me about Sophie Steele?”
Chloe began to cry.
“She saved my life from the hijackers. After she sent me to the orphanage, I didn’t know where she ended up. I wanted to thank her for helping me, but she was nowhere to be found.”
“Thanks for telling us,” Gina smiled, patting Chloe on the back for being so brave. “We’re going to have to leave now.”
“OK.”
“I think we’d better visit the library, see if we can find anything there,” Amber suggested later.
“Sure thing,” Jazz agreed.
So they set off.
Chapter Fourty Seven
Looking for a newspaper in aid of research
Jazz, Amber and Gina decided to look for books on Sophie as she was quite famous because of the ‘dating Adam Attenborough’ scandal. She did TV adverts, anyway, even though they weren’t shown anymore.
They searched and searched but they couldn’t find any.
“Don’t give up, girls. I’m sure we’ll find something,” Jazz said confidently.
They asked the librarian for some old newspapers, so she suggested they looked at the articles section of the library.
Gina went there and took a heap of newspapers, piling them on to the table.
They searched and searched for something to do with Sophie, and finally they found a photograph of her staring at a flash camera. They began to read the article.
Part Five – Flashback
I thought that I'd seen beauty
I thought I'd witnessed grace,
I thought that I'd known love
'Til I gazed upon your face.
I thought I'd felt my heart beat
I thought my knees were weak,
I thought I'd heard a songbird
Until I heard you speak.
I thought the rose was fragrant
I thought the sky was blue,
I thought nature wonderful
'Til I first laid eyes on you.
I thought the sun was shining
I thought I'd seen it all,
I thought that I was standing
Until you made me fall.
I thought my eyes were open
Yet now I'm not so sure,
I think that I may be in love
Like I've never loved before.
I'll hold on to these feelings
And keep them safe within,
Until the time they're needed
And true love can begin...
Chapter Fourty Eight
Down with the press
The news had spread on how Sophie saved the little girl’s life. She was on TV unintentionally, just by visiting the shopping centre with Bessie. Journalists pushed their microphones right under her nose.
“WHY DID YOU RISK YOUR OWN LIFE FOR SOMEBODY ELSE’S?”
“WERE YOU SCARED?”
“HOW WERE YOU FEELING?”
“ANYTHING YOU’VE GOT TO SAY FOR CHLOE?”
“WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT CHLOE?”
“WHAT SENTENCE DO YOU THINK THE PLOTTERS DESERVE?”
“WHY ARE YOU SO BEAUTIFUL?”
“ARE YOU STILL ADAM ATTENBOROUGH’S BOYFRIEND?”
“WHAT DOES ADAM SAY ABOUT YOUR ACHIEVEMENT?”
“ARE YOU AND ADAM GOING TO GET MARRIED ALREADY?”
“SPEAK TO THE CAMERA!”
“ARE YOU PROUD OF YOUR ACHIEVEMENT?”
“SMILE ALREADY!”
“YOU’RE SO GORGEOUS!”
“CAN YOU GIVE THE PRESS SOME WEIGHT LOSS TIPS?”
“HOW DO YOU GET YOUR HAIR SO ENVIABLY NICE?”
“IF YOU COULD GET ANOTHER HANDSOME, GOOD LOOKING BOYFRIEND WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE?”
“DO YOU WANT TO SEE CHLOE AFTER ALL THIS?”
“OK, OK, I get the story,” Sophie snapped at the shouting photographers. “I saved Chloe’s life because she was only a child and she was being held under the hijackers’ demands. They could have killed her. That’s all I’m saying. No more comment.”
The journalists sighed imperiously.
One of them leaned forward and tried to kiss her. Sophie didn’t let him. She jumped back and gave him a double kidney punch in the stomach.
“I’ve already got a boyfriend, thanks very much. Now go away!”
“You’ve got the looks but you certainly aren’t kind,” he shot back. He was ugly from his head to his toes, looking a bit like Rhys Downend, Adam’s taxi driver. “I would fight for you, but there’s no point. You don’t know how much I’d like you to be my girlfriend.”
“Yeah, right,” Sophie said sarcastically, and gave him another shove. “Leave me alone.”
“I only said something and you hit the roof,” he said. He touched her arm, and then regretfully ran off with the other journalists.
“Serves him right,” Sophie muttered to herself, and walked off.
Chapter Fourty Nine
Kiss Me Under The Mistletoe
Many, many weeks later, it was Christmas. Adam had come back long ago. They decorated the Christmas tree, and invited a bunch of kids over to help. A star hung on top, and the Christmas tree was racked with decorations; different coloured tinsel: blue, red, green, yellow, purple, pink, electric blue; sparkly baubles; chocolate coins …
Then Sophie began to sing the
We Wish You A Merry Christmas
song, opening presents and and Christmas crackers. She invited her dad over as well.
Sophie’s mum had died, plus her mum’s mum and dad, and her Dad’s mum and dad. Adam couldn’t invite his family over. They didn’t have enough money to take the plane to London. As Adam was so successful, he could have sent the money over, but his earnings had not yet been deposited to his bank account, and he didn’t want to give away to Sophie that he was rich. He had to cover a lie with yet more lies.
Anyways, Adam bought the little girls each red dresses specially made, and the boys some mini suits. (He told Sophie that he decided to stretch his budget.) Sophie’s Dad just had his turkey whilst sitting down. He couldn’t be bothered to stand up and walk around – he’d put on so much weight recently and he asked for an inhaler after he’d reached the kitchen door from the living room door.
They enjoyed their Christmas celebrations as much as possible, and then Adam asked to see Sophie in private.
“I, err, well, I wanted to talk to you. You do like me, don’t you?” Adam said awkwardly. He wasn’t very good at handling a romantic situation.
“Well, obviously. We’re getting married soon, remember?” Sophie smiled at him, as if she knew what was coming.
Adam just wanted to say everything he’d ever wanted to say to her now.
“The moment my lips touch yours, it will be your first kiss. Because if you've never felt anything when someone's kissed you, then no one's ever really kissed you. Not the way I plan on kissing you.”
She deserves to be kissed by someone who loves her. Someone who spends every waking moment trying to do everything right by her. Someone who would rather die than see her hurt. She doesn't deserve to be kissed by anyone other than me.
Adam thought.
Adam smiled at her, and then they both stared at the mistletoe that was hanging above them. He always wanted to find the right moment to do this, and the time right now seemed perfect. Adam leaned over and his lips brushed against hers. His hand tangled in her hair and Sophie’s arms slid around his neck. She closed her eyes and as soon as their tongues made contact she felt every cell in her body feel like it was on fire. Adam deepened the kiss, continuing to explore her mouth. He had never had this feeling before. “I love you Sophie,” Adam said against her lips, his voice desperate. “I love you so much.” He ran his hands down her back, sending shivers down her spine. Sophie tightened her grip around him, fighting to get closer still. Her hands ran down his chest, feeling his muscular body as they continued to kiss. The stubble on his chin scratched hers. “Mmm,” Adam murmured against her mouth.
“Please don’t stop,” Sophie breathed into him, gasping. “I want you. I want you so much.”
Adam ran his fingers on her cheek, and then his lips slowly moved to her neck. He kissed her neck all the way down to her collarbone, before his mouth pressed against hers once more, more firm, and even more desperate. He continued to groan, and Sophie felt sensational. His lips moved to her ear frantically, as his hand moved to her hip and their hands continued to explore each others bodies.
When they finally broke apart, they were both smiling. They talked for while, but then they couldn’t help but kiss each other again.
She moved closer to him, looking up at his kind face that was now bathed in the glow of the evening sun. She felt a powerful outburst of affection overcoming her. She compulsively reached out and placed her hands on his smooth cheeks. He didn't resist. Her heart beating heavily, she slowly elevated herself by standing on her toes and stared into his eyes, almost pleadingly, trying to communicate her desire to be consumed by him. He stared back, and apparently understanding her feelings, drew closer to her. She closed her eyes, her lips parted slightly, awaiting that which she had been longing for. A few seconds passed before she finally felt his warm lips brush against hers. At that very moment, she felt her passion for him course through her body, causing her to shake uncontrollably. She raised her hands above her head, allowing him to wrap his arms around her waist and hold her tightly as he began to kiss her lips. She moaned softly, kissing back to the best of her ability. Moments later, she felt his wet tongue slide between her lips. She greeted it with her own tongue, feeling his moist breath in her mouth. As they rubbed their tongues against each other, she felt his hands slide down her back and to her bottom. She squirmed playfully as he squeezed her bottom lightly and wrapped her arms around his neck. They kissed passionately, holding each other in their warm embrace, expressing their unspoken love. After what felt like eons to her, their mouths finally parted, and their eyes finally met. They continued to hold each other, silently staring into each others eyes. After giving him a watery smile, she placed her head against his chest. The beating of his heart was audible, an indication that he felt the same way she did. He stroked her hair gently, planting a loving kiss on her head and then nuzzling his nose against it.
It had turned out to be a great Christmas after all.