Harper's Hill, Chapter 8: The All-Black Maybach

Something exciting was going to happen today, and Nicole didn't know how she knew, but she just knew.

Ever since she had awoken that morning, she had this tingly feeling going throughout her body. It would start in her stomach and then crawl through her body, reaching her toes and fingertips and causing them to feel numb. But this wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It just meant that the universe knew something that Nicole didn't. And she was okay with that.

Being an online student could be hard sometimes, mostly because you had to be consistently self-motivated. With no physical classes to go to, Nicole was grateful that the West side of Harper's Hill had more than one library (three, to be exact) that she could go to in order to feel studious.

For some reason, just being in the library among the books helped Nicole feel more focused. She was in the last year of her business management course, and was very excited to graduate, but she knew that it would kind of be a let down. Nicole had been looking forward to going to college or university her whole life, and then because of a global pandemic, she was stuck in an online program. Her graduation ceremony would be on the computer, and her parents would probably plan a party, but she wouldn't even get to walk across a damn stage and smile for all of the cameras.

As the clock hit 4pm, Nicole realized she should probably head home and get ready for her evening. Though she still lived with her family, she had a lively social life. Tonight she was going to an art show with a woman named Catherine. She was a new friend, and Nicole couldn't even remember how she met her. One of the only things she liked about online school was that she could have ultimate freedom, and this meant she had a lot going on. Not only did she volunteer at the recreation center, but she was also in a variety of clubs. Maybe she had met Catherine through Student Leadership Council that the town ran, or the Women in Business Organization meetings that she frequently went to. She also went jogging with a group every Sunday morning (yes, even in the Winter).

It didn't matter. She gathered her belongings and left the library, catching the bus barely on time. Nicole felt optimistic because of stuff like this, which happened to her all the time. She would walk into a coffee shop when it was empty, and then a huge line would form behind her. She would get the last two tickets to the performance, and because it was so close to show time, they were half off. She wasn't religious but she believed in a God, and she believed that there was someone looking out for her.

Once she got home, she called throughout the house, "Hello?"

No answer. "Hellllloooooooooo," Nicole called again as she closed the front door behind her. Again, no answer. She liked when no one else was home, because she would blast music from her room as she got ready. The art show tonight called for a bit more formality than what she had in her own closet, so she searched her mom's and found one of her favourite pieces — a vintage silk wrap dress. The dress was a deep burgundy and she knew it looked better on her mom than on her, but she also knew she wouldn't mind Nicole borrowing it for the night.

About an hour later, after a shower and the usual adornments, Nicole was ready. She got outside and locked the door just as Catherine was pulling up. Catherine wasn't just rich, she was rich rich. She pulled her Maybach into the spacious driveway, but you could still tell that Catherine wasn't in her neighborhood. Yes, Nicole's family had money, but they were nowhere near as affluent as Catherine's family. All Nicole knew about Catherine's father was that she was "an important part of this city's burgeoning government" and it kind of seemed that that was all she wanted to know. She didn't like sticking her nose where it didn't belong.

She felt like she would tarnish the beautiful obsidian black mercedes just by touching it, but she opened up the passenger door and got in. "Hey, thanks for picking me up!" She said with a smile, looking over at Catherine after she had sat down and closed the door.

"You're welcome," Catherine said, though Nicole could detect a bit of annoyance in her voice. "It was not on the way, but what can you do?"

"I can give you some gas money if you want," Nicole offered, pulling out her wallet. Catherine stopped her by putting her hand up.

"No, no. I couldn't take your money. I offered to pick you up," She said, which was totally true, so Nicole didn't really understand why this conversation was happening. "Plus, I don't think you'd be able to afford the gas for this car anyway. It can't just take any old gasoline, you know?" Catherine sneered subtly, and then patted the steering wheel. "She's special, deserves to get treated as such."

Nicole couldn't tell if Catherine was insulting her or if that was just her personality, or maybe both, but she tried to brush it off as best she could. However, she had a bad feeling about tonight.

Walking into the art show beside Catherine was an... experience. Though Nicole knew she looked good, it was hard to look the best beside someone like Catherine. From her sleek black bob to her ultra-fitted leather midi dress to her black stiletto heels, Catherine matched her car. She was the shit, and she knew it.

Nicole just tried to appear confident. She usually had no problem with confidence, but when she did, she just pretended. She tried to pay attention to the speaker at the front of the room, but Catherine's long black nails tapping on the screen of her black iPhone were distracting for her, so she made her way towards one of the walls.

Looking at some of the art, she understood the point of the show. The concept was "My Own Funeral", and the photographer recreated and shot scenes from their own childhood to display during the show, which had now turned into a really long eulogy about how great the photographer was... from the viewpoint of the photographer.

It wasn't really her type of art, but she came because Catherine invited her. She looked over at Catherine, still with her phone in one hand, but now holding a drink in another. All of a sudden, the speaker started sobbing hysterically, which startled Nicole and caused her to bump into someone. It was a man with deep brown eyes and very nice hair, but she couldn't speak to him right now, so she just smiled politely and waved her hand in apology before walking towards Catherine again.

Back with Catherine, she couldn't stop looking over in the man's direction, and she noticed that he was watching her, too. There was definitely something there, Nicole could tell. After another 20 minutes, the show ended and everyone clapped, bringing Nicole out of her trance. She clapped as she stared at the man and he stared back, but then was shocked to see Catherine glaring at her.

"What?" Nicole asked once the clapping had died down. Their conversation was cloaked by the gentle hum of the room's crowd.

"You know him?" Catherine asked, looking down at her phone again, but nodding in the man's direction.

"No, but..." Nicole said slowly, "I think I'd like to. I might go introduce myself."

"Why?" Catherine asked. "You know nothing about him or his background. I mean, look at you, obviously not every person in this room is actually meant to be here, don't you think?"

That was it. "Yeah, you're right," Nicole said. "I am definitely not meant to be here. Hopefully he feels the same way."

As she started to walk away, Catherine said, "Oh, so just use me for a ride in my Maybach?"

Nicole stopped and turned around to face Catherine with a smile. The Aries in her was starting to rise to the surface and by now a crowd had formed around them. Catherine was clearly entertained, but Nicole wouldn't let anyone disrespect her. "Thanks for the ride," She said as she walked slowly towards the woman dressed in all black. "I hope I never have to get in that car again," She smiled sweetly. "Bitch."

She spun on her heel and walked toward the mysterious man she had been eyeing all night. "You wanna get me out of here?" She asked, sensing that the crowd would turn on her any second.

"You got it," He said with a smile, holding out his hand. She took it and he led her out of the room.