Every person has a story. What it's about is up to the person. Each person's story is different. Some involve life experiences and the way they've affected that person. Sometimes, it's the person that affects the life experiences we face as humans. We all have a story indeed. My Name is Alexia Bender, and this is mine.
"Alexia. Alexia dear? Where is that wretched child hiding?" muttered a middle-aged woman.
Out popped a little girl with big blue eyes and long beautiful blonde hair surrounding her round face with ringlets. " I'm right here and I am not wretched," she argued stomping her foot.
"Well if you're not wretched then why are you hiding from me when you know very well that I asked you to help me fold the laundry? Don't you know very well that when your mother asks you to do something you do it?"
" I'm not your servant. Plus you're not my mother." yelled the little girl.
" We'll see what your father has to say about that!" stammered the woman.
Alexia wasn't always as adamant as she was now. She was 8 years old and bright for her age. When she was 6 her mother had died. When she was 7 her father remarried to a woman named Marie and they moved from Brooklyn to Manhattan NY. Alexia was always humming the same tune- a tune her mother used to sing to her when she was a bit younger. She had also taught herself to play the piano. Alexia had a talent that not many 8 year olds did. Most her age were outside playing and going to school to learn or working in factories. Instead of doing just that, Alexia would study at home on her own. She would spend the majority of her day playing the piano and making up new pieces to play. She picked up playing at the mere age of 5. Her father used to notice her remarkable skill, but ever since her mother had died he was occupied with so called "more important" things. He became too busy to spend time with his only child.
Mr. Bender was a businessman. He was rather rich and well known. He was a fun loving man who enjoyed spending time with his family. But when his wife died, he lost the heart to do anything with his remaining family. He had trouble looking Alexia in the eye. He partly felt guilty, but had no reason to. Ever since he remarried he let Marie, his new wife take care of Alexia.
" Alan, your daughter has decided she won't take care of her responsibilities. Would you please tell her she must do her work or else she will not be able to play on the piano?" stated Marie.
" Now Alexia, are you misbehaving? Remember what I told you about that?"
" But Papa! She treats me like I'm hers. She asks me to do everything just so she won't have to! It's not fair! Mom wouldn't have allowed this!" Alexia whined.
" There will be NO talk of your mom. She's dead Alexia. Dead, you hear me? Marie is your new mom and she is whom you will listen to. Now you either start behaving or I'll make sure that piano is nowhere in sight!"
For 8 more years that was the way of life. Alexia knew her father would never take away the piano. It had been her mothers and he would never have gotten rid of it. Even when Marie insisted on removing it from the house or selling it, he refused.
Now 16, Alexia was her own person. Even though she never truly listened to Marie, she was now more grown up and her father started to give her freedom. She was still writing songs and playing the piano at least once a day.
She had gotten a job at Medda's waiting tables. She was hoping to move out and get her own apartment and share it with her three friends from work.
Alexia walked over to a table with a couple of Newsboys and Newsgirls who regularly came in.
" Hi, my name is Alexia and I'll be your waitress today. Can I get you something to drink?" Alexia went through the same old spiel.
One of the boys with black hair and who looked Italian spoke up. " Yea, we'se all gonna have sarsparilla."
" Will that be all?" asked Alexia.
" Yea, we'se not rich enough to be orderin more den dat." Said a girl with red curly hair and green eyes.
" You'se gonna have to excuse gambler heah, she's a little pushy" said the Italian boy glaring at Gambler. " I'se racetrack and dat dere is Jack, Rosepetal, Mush, Mockin' Boid, Spot and you know Cricket." He said pointing to each as he said their name.
In protest Gambler replied, " I ain't pushy!" she crossed her arms.
Laughing Alexia nodded. "Nice to meet you all. I notice you come here often. Do you know Medda?"
A boy with brownish hair answered. " Yea, we'se good friends a Medda's. Alexia, right?"
" Correct" replied Alexia.
"Ain't you one of da goils who sings heah besides Cricket?" he asked.
" No, that's my other friend Sugar Plum." She replied smiling.
" Oh yea, dats right! My mistake!" said Jack smiling and putting his arm around Rosepetal.
" He's not too good wid names and putting them to people's faces as you can tell." Joked a girl with chestnut brown hair down to her shoulders. " Rosepetals da name, making fun of my sweet Jack is my game." She smiled and kissed him.
" Uh right." Remarked Alexia.
Jack glared at Rosepetal but everyone knew he loved her way too much to take her remarks to heart.
" So you just wait tables? Why don't ya sing?" asked a boy with curly hair.
" I guess I just never had the guts to let anyone hear me sing."
" Why not give it a shot? I mean I ain't too bad at singin and I was hopin maybe our friend Cricket would talk ta Medda foah me." Said Mockin' Boid as she winked at Cricket.
" Oh no, dats something you do if you want it. I ain't doin your dirty woik!" replied Cricket.
" Ah shut up. I nevah really wanted to come heah and hang out tonight anyway?" Replied Mockin' Boid to the insulting Cricket.
" Cause you love us and can't resist my charming pleas to come out so I wouldn't be left alone wid d'ese weirdo's!" said Mush.
" Hey now! Who you callin weirdo's chia head?" joked Race.
" Chia head? Hah, good one Race." Said Spot putting out a hand for a high five.
" Like I said, dere weirdo's. Lets go out on our own adventure Mockin' Boid. Dey can joke awl dey want but I ain't letting it get ta me."
" I'se jokin Mush, you know I don't mean nothing by it."
Just then Medda walked in. " Hey Alexia, you're Step mother is here and she wants to speak to you. I warn you she doesn't look happy."
" I'll be back in a minute with your drinks guys." She said as she walked over to Marie.
" What are you doing hear."
" Your father is in the hospital. I intend to keep you away from him till' he's healthy. Seems someone poisoned him this morning. Something tells me you're the culprit."
" What? First of all Marie, I have every intention and right to go see my father. Second, if you for one second believe that I'd do that to my own father you've got a nothing for a brain. Something tells me you're the culprit."
Just then a man walked up to Marie. " I need to talk to you in private"
" Can't you see I'm busy talking to the sorry excuse for a step daughter? Here is NOT the time to discuss what happened. I told you what I wanted and you messed it up!" she whispered. She turned to Alexia. " I'll be back. Don't Move!"
Alexia had heard what Marie had said about messing up. Wondering what the evil Stepmother was up to, she listened to the conversation.
" I told you I wanted it to be a done deal. Poisoned and Killed. Not laying in a hospital on his way to recovery. If you want your money you're going to have to finish the job. I married him for his money and the longer I have to deal with that brat and that man, the longer you have to wait till' we can run away together. Now get on it!"
" Yes Marie." Said the man kissing her on the cheek and walking out of the Bar area.
" Shit, she's the one that poisoned him! I knew it! Now how the hell am I going to convince my father she's just in this for the money."
Part 2:
Marie walked back over to Alexia and put on her usual fake smile. " Now where was I?" she asked and thought for a moment. " Oh yes, now I remember. You're father would never in a million years believe that I would do something like that."
"Oh yea want to bet on that? I'll prove to him that you're the reason that ever since my mother died, I've been a troublesome child. I'll also prove to him that you're the one that did this to him- and that's not a threat, it's a promise!"
" Go ahead, try and prove it. You have nothing on me!" yelled Marie as she got stares from everyone around them.
" And so the evil Stepmother is wrong again. I actually think you may have accomplished something in your life for once." Said Alexia glaring straight at the woman.
" And what might that be?" asked Marie in a bossy tone.
" You've motivated me to become a good daughter for once", said Alexia storming out of the room and back over to the bar area. "Cuddles, I need 7 sarsparillas. What time is it?"
" Five o'clock. We're both off for the night." Replied Cuddles.
" Thanks" said Alexia grabbing the drinks and pulling off her apron. She walked over to the table and sat down. " There you go, 7 dri- drink" she couldn't get the word out as the tears welled up.
" Somethin da mattah Alexia?" asked Mush
" N- no. I'm fine. I- I just gotta go!" she said waving to the group and running out the door.
Shoot, how am I going to convince my father that she did it. Or much rather, her soon to be significant other did it. He already thinks I just hate her. If I just tell him she did it, he'll yell at me for it and tell me I'm not being fair and I'm making accusations. I'm going to need people to help me catch her and her boy toy in the act. But who can I ask to help me besides Cuddles, Cricket and SugarPlum. I mean, they work with me and they're my best friends but can just the 4 of us do this alone. Wait, my new friends! I can ask them. But wait, they don't know Marie and they might not want to. I have to go ask them to help me!" thought Alexia. She ran back into the restaurant.
" Guys I know I said I was fine but the truth is I'm not- or at least my father's not. He's in danger and I need you're help. Cricket knows how evil my stepmother is. Well she's up to no good , and if I don't do something soon I won't have a father anymore."
" Wait, so Marie is up to something again? Last time you said that she was just being her normal self. What's all this nonsense about your father being in danger." Asked Cuddles walking over to the table.
SugarPlum walked out and saw everyone crowded around the table. " What's up with the crowd? Why is everyone huddled like it's a secret and why am I not involved hmm?"
" Marie's done something and Alexia is worried. You know how much we all hate Marie" said Cricket.
The four girls were all close friends so they knew Marie all too well.
" What did she do now?" asked Cuddles.
" She's blaming me for poisoning my fathers drink this morning. I overheard her talking to this man and she told him to finish the job."
" So you're saying she poisoned him?" asked Gambler
" That would be what I'm implying. Why else would she say that stuff for. I mean, she acted like it was a secret and she didn't want me to hear her."
" So that means that if you don't warn your father he's gonna die. We gotta do something" said Sugar Plum.
" Who's in this to help me?" asked Alexia.
Everyone looked at everyone else before someone finally spoke up. Cricket raised her hand. Cuddles and Sugar Plum followed. The newsboys and newsgirls looked a little reluctant but one by one they raised their hands.
" Then lets make a pact."
" And what would that pact be?" asked Spot.
" That we all stick together through this and we not only save my father, but put that evil woman Marie in her place. If you're truly in put you're hands in the middle and on the count of three say Kill Kill Kill"
" Ain't dat a little too mean?" asked Rosepetals " Yea I mean, we don't wanna kill `er just damage her ability to think." Said Gambler laughing.
" Are you guys in this or not?" asked Alexia putting her hand in the middle. She waited and once again one by one a new hand joined the previous ones.
" One, Two, Three" said Alexia
" Kill, Kill, Kill!" yelled everyone.
" So whats da plan?" asked Jack.
" Yea, I mean, we can't do nothing till we get the plan set."
" I could create distractions!" said Gambler raising her hand.
" Gambler, you already do dat" said Mush
" Ah shut up!" she said.
" No no, guys. I have a plan, just give me tonight to sort it all out. I have my eye on my stepmother tonight and I don't have to worry about my dad cause he's in the hospital under supervision. But he's being released soon and this needs to be done as soon as possible."