Chapter fourteen

**Two Weeks Later**

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Life was going well at the moment. Sandra was adjusting to this lifestyle easily, seeing as she had always loved fashion and glamour. She followed trends every chance she got, so unlike me, she had a good idea of how things were done on the "upper side" of life. This made it easier for me since I didn’t have to spend too much energy showing her everything.

The only thing that consistently gave her trouble was directions, which was very understandable. It had taken me almost a month to learn my way around this place. But fortunately for Sandra, Nicole and Nicholas had taken a liking to her, and they had been patiently showing her different parts of the house.

She had been given the room next to mine and was provided with everything she could possibly need. That was another thing she was constantly in awe of. The mansion itself intrigued her endlessly, especially its size and beauty. We often took walks around the gardens in the evenings after our daily routines. Sandra was really happy. She was grateful for the opportunity and never missed a chance to thank my parents.

Since Sandra joined the family, I hadn’t seen much of Mason or Gabriella. I’d been too busy helping my friend settle in, and they hadn’t crossed my mind much. Actually, I only thought of them when I saw them through my window, taking selfies and laughing.

I felt a tug on my heart but decided to ignore it. They were adults; they had the freedom to do whatever they wanted. But that was just my perspective. Sandra had a different one.

“Hey, girl, you’re going to wear the outfit I choose for you, and we’re going to go out there and show him what he’s missing! We’ll show them who the real divas are!” she said, trying to muster as much sass as she could. Yep, crazy—told you!

But no one ever disobeyed a determined Sandra. She went out of her way to choose the shortest shorts she could find! Well, she was comfortable wearing anything, but that didn’t mean I was. She didn’t leave me any room to argue, so I had no choice. I put it on, paired it with a crop top and some sneakers.

She grabbed our phones, and I carried my camera. Instead of arguing, I decided to take her on a nature walk. I loved taking nature pictures since I had a special connection with it.

When we reached the gardens near Mason and Gabriella, Sandra let out a dramatic laugh. She was obviously looking for attention—and she definitely got it. But it only made me embarrassed on her behalf.

When I looked at them, Mason had a dazed look on his face, and Gabriella didn’t look too pleased with the interruption. She snapped her fingers in front of his face, bringing him back from whatever reverie he’d been in. Then he blushed! He actually blushed, and I couldn’t believe my eyes. What made him blush? I wondered to myself.

Sandra took her phone and struck a ridiculous pose before taking a selfie. This girl was something else.

“Hey, Gabby, can I take a selfie with you?”

Gabriella, who loved attention, hesitated, but then pulled Mason along with her. Well, here goes nothing...

Sandra took selfies with her, then some with Mason. She even offered to take pictures of Gabriella and Mason together.

I was curious about what she was up to because, knowing Sandra, she always had something planned. Gabriella was obviously stunned by Sandra’s attention. They didn’t get along well, as expected, since Sandra couldn’t tolerate anyone’s nonsense. She was always quick with witty, sarcastic remarks and spoke her mind without second thought.

“Mason, I’d love to take a picture of you and Andrea too.”

And there it was. That had been Sandra’s plan all along, and I was freaking out. Gabriella didn’t look happy again, but she couldn’t say much since she’d already gotten her share. I mentally cursed Sandra. I’d been right to omit the part of the dream from her. I didn’t want her scheming with Mason. I’d never hear the end of it.

Mason walked over and held me close, a smug smile on his face. I knew he was mentally thanking Sandra right now. He whispered as low as possible so only I could hear, “Mmm, guy of my dreams.”

He knew exactly what he was doing, and I was squirming. I wanted this to end already. Sandra asked us to smile and pose, and I did my best, considering I was dying of embarrassment while Mason snickered under his breath.

“Great legs you’ve got there,” he said casually.

I didn’t react immediately. Then I felt my face flush. But thankfully, just as I thought I couldn’t take any more, Sandra announced that she was done.

I walked away as quickly as I could, hearing him snigger as I let out a breath to cool myself down. I really needed to do something about Mason and his smugness. I had to hatch a plan to get him off my case.

A very satisfied Sandra sauntered towards me with her signature proud smile—the one she wore whenever she achieved something I hadn’t been on board with. Trust me, that happened a lot.

“I told you we were going to show them who the real divas were! Look, Mason was looking at you with obvious appreciation for what he saw. His attention was on you the whole time.”

She showed me the photos she’d taken. But I knew exactly what had made Mason look like that—it wasn’t “appreciation” as Sandra put it. It was his smug look, but I wasn’t about to tell her that. I just smiled, and that was enough for her to wear a triumphant grin.

I didn’t know how Sandra would react when she found out about my situation with Mason. I knew she wouldn’t be too happy, but I couldn’t risk her knowing. She’d just make my life harder with her crazy ideas. I only hoped she’d understand and forgive me.

We talked about how we were looking forward to joining school. Yes, we were joining the same school on the same day. And yes, it was the same school Mason and Gabriella attended. But at least I had Sandra. We’d navigate school life together. I was glad I didn’t have to rely on Gabriella. I was sure she would have made my life hell.

Even though we were majoring in different things, Sandra and I promised to be there for each other. She was going to pursue a course in business administration, and I was going to study linguistics.

We shared our dreams—how we hoped to one day own money and help those who were less privileged. Seeing how normal my life had been, I had forgotten the events that had led to my presence here. Well, that was until what happened next.

Sandra was walking backward, telling me about her big future plans, and I was listening intently. She didn’t notice the pothole behind her and tripped, crying out in pain. She held her hand out, and I noticed blood on her wrist. She must have cut herself on a twig.

Without thinking, I grabbed a twig and scraped my skin just a little. When I drew blood, I held her wrist and intertwined our hands. As the blood mixed, her bleeding slowly stopped, and the cut gradually closed up. As expected, my wound healed too.

Sandra stared at me, a mixture of fear, curiosity, wonder, and amazement in her eyes. She had now seen for herself what I had told her. We stood there silently, breathing heavily. I had done it again! And this time, it was even more confusing than before. I had healed Sandra!

After what felt like an eternity, we were snapped out of our daze by a falling twig. My heart raced as I waited for her reaction. But Sandra, being the crazy person she was, exclaimed,

“Wow, that’s really cool! You can work miracles! My bestie can do wonders! Well, I’m freaking out right now, but it’s awesome. I can’t believe it! I think I’m dreaming, Chloe. Can you slap me to make sure?”

She called me Chloe, which was a sign she was at her wit’s end. And she was ranting, confirming that was the case.

“Sandie, stop! I need you to calm down, because I’m freaking out too.”

Sandra touched me like she expected me to vanish, and I was exasperated. I hoped she wasn’t going to start treating me differently, because I couldn’t handle that. I needed her strength.

Sandra happily suggested we head back since it was getting dark. I knew she just wanted to retell the experience to the others, but at least she wasn’t avoiding me. I was glad.

I just hoped nothing else strange would follow—nothing like the bizarre occurrences I had already experienced. But I had no way of knowing. We’d just have to wait and see.

And so, we headed back at a brisk pace. Sandra even had a bounce in her step. Someone was really excited...