|
|||||||
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
|
|
|||||
|
|
|||||||
|
Billy Joel Hits Harmony: You May Be Right(Note: This is one vignette of three by Twig in this series. You can find this one, and the other two at Ashley's Passions Fanfic Site)
Friday Night Ivy sat glumly in the living room of the Crane Mansion, listening to other members of her social class babble endlessly on about this and that. Ordinarily, she would have been right in the thick of things, monopolizing the conversation and amusing everyone with her outlandish stories. But tonight Rebecca Hotchkiss had the undivided attention of everyone in attendance, and they were enthralled as she rambled on and on about how her daughter was just too stupid to see that her fiance was about to be stolen out from underneath her. Frankly, Ivy was sick of it all. She didn't want to hear about how her son was bound to stray from the path that had been set for him. He loved Gwen, of that she was sure. And no matter what Rebecca babbled about, he was not about to call off the wedding to run off with the housekeeper's daughter. Yet arguing with that woman was like attempting to share a meal with a hungry lion. One was apt to get injured. And all she wanted was for the wedding to go off without a hitch, so she could stop worrying about all the things that could go wrong. "Honestly Rebecca," she finally piped up, her face assuming the standard expression of amused annoyance, "I hardly think that Ethan is going to call off the wedding!" Rebecca narrowed her eyes, but instead of addressing Ivy directly, she turned her attention to the whole group, "That little gold digger has them all blinded!" The group chuckled in agreement. *Mindless idiots* Ivy thought glumly, glancing at her watch. She briefly considered excusing herself and calling Eve Russell. At least if she was threatening Eve, it would give her something to do. Not like she ever intended to carry out her threats. God, she could never be *that* cruel. But it did give her something to do, and it forced Eve to have some sort of social contact with her, which in turn forced Ivy to leave behind her self-imposed prison. If Eve didn't hate her so much, Ivy thought that they could actually be friends. Funny how things work out.
She wondered idly if she could get away with sneaking out of the mansion and going to see Sam. She doubted he'd be very happy if she showed up on his doorstep at eleven-thirty at night, but she fancied herself a welcome relief from that sickeningly saccharine-sweet wife of his. Her biggest problem with trying to steal Grace's husband, was that it was hard *not* to like Grace, unusual cooking habits aside. Grace was just so damn nice it was sad to see how hurt she'd be once Sam realized who it was that he *really* loved. Oh well, Ivy thought to herself, Casualties of war… "…and then she saw Ethan actually KISSING Theresa," Rebecca droned on, as those in her presence gasped with shock. "Please let this damned thing be over soon," Ivy grumbled under her breath, her thoughts drifting to Julian. Where the hell was he? As much as she loathed the man, she had to admit that he could keep her amused from time to time. And she sure could use a laugh right now. But the damn idiot was probably out getting drunk somewhere and plotting evil deeds with his father on his cell phone. Either that or cooking up some new deplorable plan to keep Luis and Sheridan apart. Or… Ivy scowled, suddenly worried that he may have had another suspicion about her "secret" and had gone to search for it. If he found that attache case…
"Oh my," the woman to Rebecca's left, Ivy thought her name was Zunith, exclaimed loudly. Everyone turned to stare as Julian burst thought the front door, brandy glass in hand, and grin on his face. "Oh good lord," Ivy said out loud, watching as Julian sauntered over, not bothering to hide the fact that he was gawking at the other ladies in their nice dresses. "Julian!" Rebecca said sweetly, hurrying over with a large grin. Julian smirked and kissed her hand with a flourish. "Rebecca," he said, raising his eyebrow. "Julian, where were you?" Ivy snapped before she could stop herself. Then he turned to face Ivy, his merry expression disappearing. "I was out looking for your secret." Ivy felt her heart drop, "Secret?" she squeaked, before recovering, "Julian how many times do I have to tell you, THERE IS NO SECRET!" Everyone else in the room fell silent and turned to stare. "Well," Zunith said uncomfortably, "Perhaps we'll come back tomorrow." Rebecca was smirking evilly, "Yes, tomorrow night. We should leave Julian and Ivy alone for now." "Bye!" the other rich idiots said uniformly, hurrying out the door with muffled giggles. Rebecca was the last to go, shooting a malevolent glare over her shoulder before disappearing outside. "Guess I crashed your party dear," Julian said merrily, hurrying off to his study, knowing that the phone would be ringing any second. Ivy harrumphed with frustration
@----8----
Saturday The next morning dawned bright and cheery, although the shining sun and chirping birds did nothing to improve Ivy's mood. They reminded her of something that Grace would appreciate, which only reminded her of Sam, and how she could have been married to him instead of Julian. Oh, if only she'd had a backbone all those years ago… "Ivy?" She turned to see Julian standing in the doorway, an odd expression on his face. "What do you want?" her voice took on the same impatient tone it always did when she was dealing with him. "I'm sorry I crashed your party," he said with a contrite smile. Ivy narrowed her eyes, "Julian, what do you want now?" He raised his eyebrows, "Ivy, I simply wanted to apologize for ruining your evening. And Rebecca called earlier. They'll all be over Sunday night to finish finalizing the wedding plans." And with that he flitted out the door, humming to himself. "Now what is he up to…" Ivy muttered to herself, pinching her arm to make sure she hadn't just dreamt up the entire conversation.
@----8----
Sunday Night
"…So my naďve daughter thinks that Theresa, conniving gold digger that she is, is actually her FRIEND! Can you believe the foolishness…" Ivy shook her head, amazed that Rebecca was still whining. That woman just didn't quit… The rain pounded against the windows, casting an eerie setting on the interior of the mansion, as the group of socialites sat around and…socialized. And once again, there was no sign of Julian. "God help him if he confronted Pilar again," Ivy harrumphed, wondering how much money it would take to convince Eve to leave TC and run far, far away with Julian. More money than the Cranes would ever have, she suspected. That was when the door opened and Julian exploded in, wearing a leather jacket and leather pants, water pouring off of him, and clutching a motorcycle helmet in his hands. He presented such a ridiculous image that the other women present in the room giggled madly, before moving towards the door and their limos without exchanging a word. Rebecca smiled at Julian before she too left the house.
"Julian," Ivy was shaking her head, "What in god's name are you doing?!" "I was riding my motorcycle," Julian said matter-of-factly, pointing to the helmet he clutched under his arm. "IN THE RAIN?!" Ivy exclaimed, not bothering to ask him where he got a motorcycle in the first place. He was always a limousine type of guy. Julian shrugged, dropping the helmet on the floor and heading towards the brandy. "Julian, you're crazy," she said finally, stomping off in the direction of her room. Not to mention that this was the second time he'd ruined the wedding planning party- "You may be right," he conceded with a Cheshire grin, "I may be crazy." Ivy cocked her head to one side, uncertain as to where he was going with this. "But it just may be a lunatic you're looking for," he finished, raising his eyebrows and grinning wider. Then he poured himself a glass of brandy. Ivy shook her head in amazement. The wonders never ceased. -<-<-<---@
Friday night I crashed your party
Remember how I found you there
You may be right
"You May Be Right" By Billy Joel
|