21^st Century Babes: Chapter 2

By Amazon Moon

Disclaimer:

If you liked the story, it would be swell if you could just drop me a note in my mailbox. Or if you are feeling rich, you could send a dinar my way too. Thank you all very much, for your kind support. *Big Grin*

PS: Happy 1^st Year Anniversary Wolfiepoo!

Ashlyn Taylor sat on the stiff chair, her trusty guitar by her side as she strummed a slow, sad melody. A single bright light fell on her, illuminating her on the stage. She was a beautiful woman, blessed with fine features and those eyes… they were a lovely brown, a colour so intense, they looked like liquid bronze that burned and gleamed. But there was also a sadness that could not be hidden that showed in those deep mirrors of her soul.

The young woman seemed lost in her own private reverie as she strummed the chords of the acoustic guitar on her lap. The audiences below were caught in a hush, admiring their goddess as the singer prepared to deliver her last song before the end of her final tour concert.

Tonight was Ashlyn’s last performance. It was so strange, a popular singer like her, so well liked and loved by the world, choosing to end her career at the height of her career. Critics were dumbfounded why she wanted to leave just as she reached her peak. Reporters all over the country scrounged for reasons, made-up or non-fiction, scoops were splashed over every paper and magazine in town.

Ashlyn couldn’t care less. She had a hard time convincing her manager Julius Field that she was sure about her decision.

"All you need is a break, girl," Julius tried convincing her. "I understand that this whole limelight thing can be pretty alarming sometimes but girl- you’d be a fool to end your career now. Not when you are the most famous celebrity living today on this planet!"

"I’m made up my mind Julius," Ashlyn smiled, those liquid bronze eyes of hers searching Julius’ grey ones. Julius always felt a wave of sadness wash over him whenever he looked into those strange sad, longing brown eyes. This talent was hardly twenty but she carried a weighty sadness of an ancient immortal searching endlessly for something she had lost a long time ago.

"Look," Julius sighed as he placed one of his big beefy hands over her shoulder and squeezed it in a fatherly fashion. "If there’s anything, you know you can come to me." He smiled and Ashlyn knew he meant it.

"I’ve always treated you like the daughter I never had. It’s your decision to leave. And I’m not forcing you to stay. Just finish tonight’s concert and you’ll never have to perform ever again."

‘Thank you, Julius,’ Ashlyn smiled as tears welled up in her eyes. She knew he would understand.

The audience below her sat in the darkness, and Ashlyn could hear someone weeping. Still lightly strumming on her guitar, Ashlyn leaned forward to get closer to the microphone.

"This will be my final song for tonight, ladies and gentlemen," Ashlyn said in her soft voice, tucking a stray strand of her dark hair behind her ear as she spoke. Her misty eyes roamed the audience in the darkness slowly. "Thank you all for your encouragement and support. It truly means a lot to me."

A low murmur went through the wide audience. Ashlyn caught a glimpse of her manager Julius standing by the side of the stage, hidden in the dark, showing her his support. He gave her a warm smile to show his support.

"This song means a lot to me too," Ashlyn told the crowd as she plucked the strings of the instrument she was so familiar with. "I’ve never sang this to such a massive crowd like this before. But tonight, I’d like to share this special song which I hold close to my heart."

Her fans settled down, waiting with batted breaths for the young angel to sing. Ashlyn’s slender fingers moved with rhythm, sending sad music floating towards those below her.

Ashlyn heard the expected hushed murmur amongst the crowd but continued, unfazed by their reaction.

Ashlyn felt tears prickle her moist brown eyes, blurring her vision as she sang her song. Strong waves of memories engulfed her but she carried on.

Tears were now slipping down her cheeks and there were flashes from camera hitting her from the audience. Most probably the reporters. Ashlyn couldn’t care less what they would say about her. The best thing would be that they forget all about her and that Ashlyn Taylor ever existed in the first place.

She ended her song on a final note and finally, her talented fingers ceased strumming. All of the sudden, the stage went bright with lights, illuminating her to the audience.

Suddenly facing hundreds of people, Ashlyn felt naked to the world. Blinding flashbulbs from cameras snapped at her startled face, making her want to shrink back and hide. Then she felt Julius’ strong, reassuring arms guide her safely backstage, away from the screaming mob.

Leaving behind the bright stage lights and the blinding camera flashes, Ashlyn closed her eyes, letting Julius guide her to safety. It just had to end.

Three years later…

UNIVERSITI DU SOLEIL

"I looked into your eyes

They told me plenty

I already knew

You never felt a thing

So soon forgotten all that you do

In more than words I tried to tell you

The more I tried I failed

I would not let myself believe

That you might stray

And I would stand by you

No matter what they'd say

I would have thought I'd be with you

Until my dying day."

Jodie Keeper recited the lines of her poem with emotion as she stood beside her desk, clutching the sheets of paper tightly as she looked up at the face at the front of the class every now and then.

The temporary substitute English and Literature teacher, Julietta Scarlett smiled at Jodie, nodding her encouragement.

"I used to think my life was often empty

A lonely space to fill

You hurt me more than

I ever would have imagined

You made my world stand still

And in that stillness

There was a freedom

I never felt before

I would not let myself believe

That you might stray

And I would stand by you

No matter what they'd say

I would have thought I'd be with you

Until my dying day."

Jodie finished her poem and heaved a sigh of relief before going back to her seat. A murmur went through the class after that and Victoria Kelly started clapping for her friend while Corky Noel gave her a grin and thumbs-up sign. "Way to go, Keeper!"

Jodie blushed at the attention but her gaze fluttered to the lovely new teacher who was smiled at her. Jodie felt a warm glow spread and found herself grinning back at the elegant older woman. How could anyone look so great in just a simply black knit top and a long tie-dye skirt? Maybe it’s the gold earrings…

She was just so beautiful, Jodie sighed as she felt her soul being sucked into the deep depths of Julietta Scarlett’s hazel brown eyes. Those red lips were saying something… and that voice… Jodie suddenly gave a start when she realised she just broke her 2B pencil.

"That was an extremely lovely piece, Jodie," Julietta Scarlett praised her best student. "You get an ‘A’ for that one. Don’t you think she did a wonderful job of expressing Princessa and Salvador’s tragic romance, class?"

A low murmur rolled around like waves across the room. Jodie pretended to be busy studying some lines of the book they were currently reading when the young substitute teacher walked over and gave her shoulder a warm squeeze, setting Jodie’s wildly thumping heart alight. A pounding excitement overcame her and the girl found it hard to breathe.

"You’re a talented one, Jodie," Julietta whispered in her ear. "Keep up the good work."

A red blush slowly crept its way up Jodie’s neck. "Thank you Miss Scarlett."

"You know you can call me Julietta," the teacher laughed softly before bending back up and heading back to her table just as the bell rang, signifying that class was over.

Jodie still had her brown eyes fixed on the older woman when her vision was suddenly blocked by a big head that suddenly loomed itself before her. "BOO!"

Spunky, blonde-haired Corky Noel grinned when Jodie squeaked in surprise. Victoria waved five fingers before her. "Why are you always so stoned after English class? We’ve been calling you for the last two minutes."

"S-sorry," Jodie mumbled nervously as she gathered her things. She lifted her head up to look at the front of the class but Julietta had already left. She removed her cat-eye glasses and started wiping the lens to hide her growing disappointment as they started walking out of the classroom.

"When’s lunch time coming?" Corky growled as she tried balancing her books on her head. "I’m hungry."

"I wouldn’t do that if I were you," Vic, the tallest of the trio cast a cheeky smile at her. "… It might just stunt your height growth."

"Why you little… " Corky hid her smile, trying to act intimidating as she chased the laughing brunette down the hall.

Jodie was just about to put her glasses back on and follow after them when she bumped into someone, dropping her glasses on the floor. She was quite blind without them and she panicked, quickly bending over on the floor to search for them.

"I’m so sorry," She heard a familiar soft, husky voice near her ear and a gentle touch on her arm. Julietta Scarlett picked up Jodie’s glasses and handed them back to her, an apologetic look on her face. "I thought I left something back in the classroom and went to get it… I didn’t mean to bump into you like that."

Jodie adjusted her glasses and forced herself to remain breathing. She was so much more beautiful up close! Those brown eyes were now fixed in concern which was all for her.

"Are you all right?" Julietta asked, a concerned hand brushing the side of Jodie’s face, wiping wispy strands of blonde hair away.

"D-don’t worry, I’m fine," Jodie stuttered nervously, her stomache doing flip-flops and her heart racing madly. "R-really."

She was not going to wash her face for the next few weeks.

During lunch that day, Jodie felt like she was on a drifting cloud. Her mind was on Julietta Scarlett. It was a hopeless, hopeless crush. She simply adored her. Everything about her.

"Hey Keeper, want your coleslaw?" Corky’s cheerful voice popped the graceful image of Julietta Scarlett in Jodie’s head.

"Yeah, sure, go ahead," Jodie pushed her plate towards Corky.

Victoria raised an eyebrow when she caught her eye. "What’s up Jodie? You’ve been so weird since English class ended."

"I know," Corky snapped her fingers, as she chewed on Jodie’s coleslaw. "You’re thinking when Mr. Daniels is coming back, aren’t ya? Most of the kids are wondering that too… but not to worry about him. He should be out of hospital in no time."

Jodie sipped her milkshake quietly. She felt sorry that Theodore Daniels, their elderly English and Literature teacher, had strained his back badly while out golfing during his vacation in Scotland. But she didn’t want Julietta Scarlett to go just yet. She liked her a lot.

"Please do not tell me you’ve got a crush on him, Jodie," Victoria winced. She peered at her friend’s face closely. "Jodie?"

Jodie sighed as she pushed her carton away. "It isn’t him. It’s Miss Scarlett."

Ashlyn Taylor walked through the university’s campus, turning around the corners and striding past corridors, heading straight for the Dean’s office in a confident, unhurried pace. The secretary wasn’t at her typing desk, Ashlyn noted as she entered the premises.

"I am just so sick of this job," a muffled voice muttered from behind the door as Ashlyn approached it steadily. It sounded so much like a broken record, a grumpy old man’s constant nagging. "Sick! Sick! Sick! So darn sick of this job I sometimes feel I’m better off dead. Dead and peaceful, playing my harp… Charity! Where’s my coffee?"

The old man was yelling for the secretary who wasn’t at her desk. Most probably she had taken the rest of the day off, Ashlyn thought. Narrowing her eyes, she twisted open the door, entering uninvited.

The dean of the university, Alexander Green, a thin man with a sour face in his greying sixties, looked up from his desk. He sighed irritably as he pulled off his thick reading glasses. "Who are you? Why didn’t you knock? Have you no manners at all, young lady?"

Ashlyn wasn’t sorry. From her sling bag, she swiftly removed a silver pistol with a silencer attached and and pointed it at his head. She cocked her gun and smiled, her brown eyes gleaming. "Assassins never knock."

She pulled the trigger and fired. The old man immediately fell backwards into his chair, lifeless and limp from the single shot to his head. Ashlyn paused, standing still with the gun in her hand. She suddenly felt a slow sadness and a deep pity rise from her chest. She always felt sorry for her victims. But a girl’s got to do what a girl’s got to do, she told herself.

Wiping off her fingerprints from the gun, she skillfully placed the murder weapon in the hands of the corpse. It looked so real- like he had just killed himself. Ashlyn allowed herself a smile to congratulate herself for a job well done. As cooly as she had first came, the assassin left the room, making sure she wiped off all prints from the doorknob before she left.

Corky, Vic, Jodie and the rest of the girls were just changing in the girls’ locker rooms after gym class when Corky came back from the showers. She glanced at Jodie as she toweled her short blonde hair. "You’re not going to like the news."

"What?" Jodie asked, her hazel eyes wide as she felt her heart pounding rapidly in her chest. "It’s not good news, is it?"

Victoria frowned as she did the final buttons of her blouse. "Spit it out Corky."

"Okay," Green eyes looked uncertainly at Jodie. "Well, I just heard the news that Miss Scarlett is leaving tomorrow. Mr Daniels is coming back."

"Oh." Vic sighed. They both looked at Jodie, who kept silent. She just kept staring at the floor. "Jodie?"

Corky pulled on a black T-shirt and Bermudas. "Hey Keeper, you all right?"

Hot tears started cascading down Corky’s cheeks. She wiped her blonde locks from her face and covered her tearful brown eyes. "It’s just not fair! She doesn’t have to leave! She’s a great teacher!"

Vic and Corky looked helplessly at each other. If only they could help Jodie.

"You sure about this?" Victoria whispered nervously to Corky, who swallowed but looked at her with steady green eyes. Corky crossed her fingers for luck. "The only way that Miss Scarlett can stay, is that we talk to the powers that be. And who else but the Dean?"

They entered the office and caught Mrs. Oliver, the Dean’s secretary, filing her nails while reading a beauty magazine. Mrs. Oliver noticed them immediately and dropped the book, raising her nose as she studied them. "Yes?"

"Hi, ugh," Vic started nervously as she glanced unsurely at Corky. "We’d like to see the Dean… we’d like to discuss some matters with him."

"What for?" Mrs. Oliver frowned as she stared at them from her pointy nose. "The Dean is a very busy man with many important matters to attend to."

"Look Lady," Corky sighed, rolling her green eyes impatiently. "All we need is 5 minutes with him. If he chases us out of his quarters, then fine, we know we’re not welcomed. We just wanna see him for a bit. It’s important."

Mrs. Oliver nearly dropped her nail filer at Corky’s attitude. "Why, you…"

"Just let us see him and we won’t think you’re a tight-ass," Corky smiled amiably. Victoria tried hiding the nervousness in her blue eyes and forced a grin on her face as she stood beside her plucky friend. Charity Oliver had never looked so cross.

Wordlessly getting up, the secretary flashed her eyes angryily but showed them the way towards the Dean’s door anyway. Knocking respectably on his door, Charity Oliver cleared her throat. "Dean Green? Two students would like to see you."

No response. Vic and Corky saw her frown and she rapped at the door again, a weird expression on her face. "Dean Green?"

"What, did he die in there or something?" Corky rolled her eyes impatiently as Charity Oliver twisted the doorknob and opened the heavy oak door. She stepped inside and what she saw made her scream.

Ashlyn Taylor was striding cooly down the halls when a sobbing blonde girl caught her attention, holding her transfixed. It couldn’t be, Ashlyn found herself reeling wildly. Fran?

The girl was obviously upset. Her cat-eye glasses in one hand, the other was pressed to cover her mouth. She’s crying, Ashlyn realised. Somehow it was as if the world around them had slowed down. All that mattered, all that had colour and all that moved were the two of them.

Ashlyn watched transfixed as the young woman who looked so much like her lost love, the late Francesca Tadros, push through the current of students, making her way blindly toward Ashlyn.

She fell into her arms and she caught her, holding her safe. The young one looked up and Ashlyn felt her heart ache when she saw those sad tears in those lost soulful eyes. She wasn’t Francesca… but somehow Ashlyn saw her in this girl.

Miss Scarlett? Jodie Keeper blinked, wiping away the tears that misted her vision. Those staring brown eyes… Jodie realised the woman was holding her and she instantly got back to her feet, clearly embarrassed.

Ashlyn looked on at the girl, feeling a heavy fondness for her. "Are you all right?"

"Y-yes, I’m okay, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…," Jodie apologized awkardly. The woman wasn’t Julietta Scarlett. But they had the same eyes. They could have been twin sisters though. Their hair was the same colour but Miss Scarlett’s hair was really more red than brown, when compared to the stranger’s.

"It’s all right. What matters is you’re okay," Ashlyn smiled. Jodie found herself calming down. She didn’t know why but she liked this stranger. Her face looked familiar, like she knew her… or had seen her somewhere before. Jodie tried racking her brain on where she had met her before but her mind drew a blank.

"Why were you crying?" Ashlyn asked as she smoothered the girl’s lank blonde hair. She didn’t push her away, but Ashlyn took her chances anyway. "Did someone hurt you?"

"It’s nothing, really," Jodie gave a tiny smile, wondering why she was so concerned about her. "I’m sorry."

Suddenly, the school bell rang, announcing that it was time for class. Jodie gave a start and jumped. "I’ve got to get back for class. I can’t be late… thank you and sorry for bumping into you!"

Jodie gave a wave before disappearing with the sea of students rushing to go to their classes. Ashlyn gave a small wave, a tiny smile planted on the edges of her mouth. There was just something about that girl…

Ashlyn sighed and looked away. Her keen eyes caught something on the floor. Realising it must have been something the girl had dropped, the under-cover assassin bent forward and picked it up. It was a scrapbook filled with handwritten poetry inside. And Jodie Keeper’s name was embossed on it.

Tucking it safely inside her leather jacket, Ashlyn promised to find the girl and return the small journal back to its rightful owner.

When they were all settled for class, Jodie realised both Corky and Victoria’s seats were empty. Where were they? Quinn Rurfus might be pretty cool. But one thing she hated were late comers.

Jodie drummed her fingers on her desk, worrying for her two best friends.

To her alarm, the History teacher swished into the room solemnly in a purple caftan. She had a very serious expression on her face. Something Jodie never remembered seeing before.

"Class," Quinn clasped her hands together, her eyes looking dark and serious. "You are all dismissed. Everyone is to like, go straight home. No loitering in the school grounds. There has been like… an accident."

"An accident!" Loud-mouthed Henry Urkin blurted from the back of the row. "What accident?"

A chorus of voices followed after, demanding to know what happened. Quinn looked distressed. Jodie didn’t blame her.

"We demand to know what has happened!" Jillian Gordon, head debater, stood up and stared stubbornly at her. "We pay good money to the school. Surely we deserve the right to know what "accident" has happened!"

Quinn gave up. "All right! Apparently the Dean has committed suicide! The police and paramedics will be here shortly."

A huge gasp swept over the class and instantly, murmurings began. Why did the Dean commit sucide? Was it because someone found out he was having an affair? Is it because his wife left him for a younger man? Or that he realised he was going to die of cancer? Quinn Rufus regreted telling them the truth.

"Quiet!" She screamed, obviously miffed. "Now all of you out- no one’s going to say anything now, you understand?"

Everyone left their desks and walked out of the classroom, making sure their whispers were low and soft so as not to upset their History teacher. Jodie frowned as she piled her books together. Where were they?

"Oh, Jodie?" Quinn said, before she left the room. "If you’re looking for Corky and Victoria, don’t bother. The police has to interview them since they were with Mrs. Oliver when she discovered… you know what."

The slim blonde girl adjusted her glasses as the eccentric redhead walked away. Whatever were they doing at the Dean’s office?

Ashlyn Taylor sat in the driver’s seat as her car drove itself on auto, back home to her bachelor-girl pad. She didn’t have to use the wheel to navigate. The intelligent chip built in the machine handled all that. All she had to do was sit back and enjoy the safe ride back.

Pulling out Jodie’s scrapbook, Ashlyn flipped it open to a page and started reading, curious to know more about this girl.

Ashlyn shut the book. She felt guilty for reading the girl’s intimate poem. It was meant to be personal. Not just for anyone else to read. Placing it back inside her jacket, the assassin closed her eyes and tried to forget.

Jodie realised her journal was missing when she reached home. Frantically dumping her belongings out of her bag, she realised it was gone for good. Cursing her luck, she grabbed a sheet of paper and a pen then sat down by her desk, scribbling hard on the sheet before the words went out.

Jodie tossed aside her pen and laid her head on the crook of her arm. There she wept. She loved someone who would never love her. It was hopeless and never meant to be. Jodie never felt more miserable in her life.

It seemed like they had been stuck for nearly three hours before the police were done with them. The questions seemed to have gone on forever. Most the same, just twisted to make it sound different. Vic felt she could have gone mad. Corky declared she needed fresh air immediately and fled outside quickly.

"Remind me not to come near a dead man the next time round," Corky sniffed when Victoria joined her outside. It was nearly seven in the evening and they both felt hungry. Corky adjusted her cap and pulled it over her eyes. "…Especially one who’s screwy enough o commit suicide."

Victoria shrugged as she struggled with her books. Corky helped her with them even before she asked. Vic glanced at her watch. "You going home?"

"Oh naw," Corky shook her head playfully, a cheeky grin on her lips. "I’m going pubbing right now- gonna drink on an empty stomache… like my Irish father."

"Rrrright," Vic rolled her gorgeous blue eyes, nearly making Corky’s heart freeze at the sight of her winning smile. "I believe you."

"I, uh," Corky awkwardly adjusted the weight of the books. "I actually live by myself."

Vic turned around. She lived with a butler. Her parents had always been overseas since she remembered. They sent her money, lots of it, but she wanted to see them. It had been years, believe it or not, since she last saw them. They had become distant strangers. In fact, Vic only had photographs reminding her how they looked like. They were taken when she was very young.

"Where are your parents?" Victoria asked softly, wondering if she might strike a nerve. She looked at Corky and for once, saw a different expression in those green eyes. She wanted to touch Corky, to hug her but refraned herself. But the desire to hold her was very strong. Vic tried waving it away.

Corky chuckled but Vic noticed the bitter quality. "Ever wondered why I’ve got such a… weird last name? Corky Noel… I bet no one else has something like it."

"It’s a nice name," Vic offered, smiling a little as they walked side by side, down the hill. "I like your name. It’s special."

"Truth is Vicky," Corky stared at the ground, her eyes getting misty. "I was an orphan. I was left on the doorstep of a rundown orphanage on Christmas day. I don’t know my real birthday. I don’t even know who my parents are. I don’t have a clue as to who I really am. My mother could be a young whore for all I care."

"Corky…" Vic chided gently as she took her hand and squeezed it.

"All those times I went out to the streets begging, ‘cos the food was never enough," Corky gritted her teeth, her green eyes welling up with bitter tears. "…all those times I saw children with their parents… families together… I hated my mom. I hated my mom for abandoning me. For leaving me with a bunch of strangers I can never call family."

Victoria didn’t know what to do. She was bad at words anyway. And she didn’t want to say anything that sounded too cliché. She just walked beside her friend in silence.

"I was so jealous of those kids with nice clothes to wear, good food to eat… and parents who loved them. Cared for them. Fed them well. Tucked them to bed when it’s bedtime… after a bedtime story," Corky hissed angrily, kicking a stray pebble in her path. Victoria could now see the poor deprived child in her. "I never had a bedtime story!"

Victoria seized the girl and embraced her, wishing she could say something to make it all okay. Corky cried in her arms, dropping their books to the floor as she engulfed herself in Victoria’s warm body.

"All I ever wanted was to be loved. Why was it so hard?" Corky’s muffled voice cracked as she buried her face against Victoria’s jumper. The taller woman pressed her hands on Corky’s back, wishing she could soothe away her friend’s pain. Corky’s small body now racked with sobs. "All I wanted was what the other kids had, Victoria. How hard was it?"

Ashlyn heard her voice crack as she ended her song. She removed the guitar from her lap and closed her eyes. Funny. She hadn’t heard that voice of hers for quite awhile. But then again, she never sang these days. But today was special. She had found her Francescsa again.

To be continued…

February 2000