To Caress My Day

Twigs eyes widen in not just surprise, but also in distress. Her roommate, Simone was asking her to loan her some money so that she could pay for a plane ticket to California and attend an audition for some woman who was interested in her singing. As supportive of a friend as she was, Twigs simply didn’t have the cash on her to loan her close friend that could help her take the first step to starting her own music career. Feeling her delight of her friend’s wonderful news of finally being discovered sink low, Twigs brows furrowed together in anguish. “Oh honey, you know how much I wish I could assist you on reaching your dreams and generously would give you all the money in my account if it’ll help you in the slightest, but…” Shaking her head forlornly, Twigs watched the hope in Simone’s face perish. “I can’t. I don’t have any money to spare on your dream and my own survival. I’ve got nothing left.”

“R-Right…” Simone tried to nod in complete understanding, but just like that all of Simone’s hopes and dreams went up in a cloud of smoke. Feeling the tears of despair rising again, Simone quickly turned away and wrapped her arms around herself. She knew Twigs was doing the best that she could do for her, and that it wasn’t her fault that she didn’t have the extra cash to spare for her dream, seriously, she understood that 100%. However, it couldn’t change the fact that her one shot at making her dreams come true was now going to pass her by because she, like every normal citizen in the world, was struggling to make ends meet. Covering her face with her hands, Simone couldn’t hold back the tears any longer and allowed them to spill. For Twig’s sake, she at least tried to be silent in her weeping. The last thing she wanted was for her roommate to feel guilty for not being able to assist her…but of course that didn’t work.

“Oh no, honey, don’t! Please!” Twigs cried out hopelessly before rushing over to her and wrapping her arms around her too in an attempt to comfort her pain away. “Don’t cry, Simone, please! I’m sure everything will work itself out somehow. Just you wait and see!”

“GOD, I JUST WANNA BE A STAR!” Simone wailed behind her hands. “Is that too much to ask!?”

“No, it’s not!” Twigs implored, laying her head against the side of Simone’s upper arm. Her voice was just as desperate as her distraught roommate’s. “I promise Simone we’ll find a way to get you to California, okay? I promise!”

In an instant, Simone stopped crying and went completely dead still in Twig’s arms, causing her to become even more apprehensive. Lifting her head, Twig’s studied Simone with troubled eyes as her roommate lifted her head abruptly from her hands and stared at her open window with eyes wide with a renewed hope. She parted her lips to release one word that had Twig’s heart racing in her chest. “…Seth…”

Twigs let go of her roommate and stepped back, suspicion and dread in her eyes. “What about my boyfriend, Simone?”

Spinning around, Simone had a look of frantic faith consuming her face, and thick tears brimming the very edge of her eye lids, ready to drop at any second as if in a form of a threat. “He can pay for my trip to California, so I can go to my audition!”

“What!? No!” Twigs exclaimed and then shook her head, not liking the idea of using her boyfriend’s wealth to make any of their life struggles disappear like magic. If they couldn’t make it to her audition than they simply couldn’t make it, and that was the end of it!

Simone looked like she had been slapped across the face, but quickly recovered herself a minute later to slap her palms together and began to beg for not only her dream, but her future. “No, wait, Twigs! Hear me out first before you throw your hands up and quit on me!” When Twigs remained silent, Simone went on to plead her case. “Look, I have never asked you for anything, Tahliah. NEVER! If you can just do this one thing for me it’ll be the first and last thing I’ll ever ask you again, I swear on everything! I just need this one wish to come true, Tahliah, just this one fucking wish and I’ll be set for life!”

“I…I don’t know.” Twigs murmured softly, afraid that if she says it any higher it’ll send Simone right back into a fit of tears. She lowered her eyes to her feet and gave her a small shrug as she wrapped her arms around herself. “I’m not sure if I should…”

Simone let out a soft sigh in defeat in response. Her eyes down casted to the floor as she tried with all of her strength to latch onto the dwindling hope that Twigs hadn’t said ‘no’ yet. “I understand. What I’m asking is a lot from you, I get that.” She lifted her brown eyes to meet her roommate’s and gave her one more look of desperation. “Will you at least take some time to think about it first, please?”

Twigs gave her a nod in response before silently leaving Simone’s bedroom with her phone and entering her own. She had just shut the door behind her when her phone rang in her hand. Checking the contact number, she saw that it was Seth calling. Even with the emotional day she had just been having, he could still make her smile, even if it was just a little one. Pressing the green button, Twigs lifts the phone to her ear. “Mr. MacFarlane.”

Ms. Barnett, whom I’m happy to hear from.” Seth answered in a husky voice that held the hint of a smile. “How is my beautiful Pixie doing today across the sea?”

“I’m happy to hear from you too.” Twigs sighed as she sat down on her bed, propping her pillows up to relax against them. “And I’m doing fine today, thank you…well, as fine as I can be.”

Seth hesitated in responding for a second. “What’s wrong, love? I can hear sadness in your voice.”

“It’s…” Twigs sighed again, not wishing to tell him. If she did, she knew he’d make all their problems go away with just a swipe of his card, which is great and all, but…she didn’t want to ever come off that she was with him for his money. No, she was madly in love with Seth MacFarlane, and that was the only reason why she was with him. But at the same time, she loved her roommate Simone, and she was in desperate need of help that she couldn’t provide, but her boyfriend surely could. Would it really be that bad if she asked for his help? “It’s Simone. She really wants to become a famous musician in the music industry and…well, she hasn’t been having that much luck in reaching that dream until a few minutes ago when she got a call from some lady that wants her to audition for her. Unfortunately, the tryouts are in Los Angeles, and neither Simone nor I have the money to get her there.”

On the other line it sounded like Seth was crunching on some chips. “I’ll pay for her flight then. It’s no problem.”

Twigs sighed for the third time and closed her eyes in guilt. “But I don’t want you to have to do that! You shouldn’t have to pick up anyone’s responsibilities, especially when it has nothing to do with you.”

“It’s fine, Pixie. I got money to spare. It won’t hurt my bank account none.” Seth assured her, not all bothered with having to lend his money to help others.

“Yeah, I know that, but…” Twigs sighed for the fourth time and placed her palm on her forehead. She didn’t know what her issue was other than the fact it looked like she was using him for her own selfish gains. In reality, that was far from the case! She loved this man like no other, but the world would never be able to see it that way, so why was she bothering to deny his help in the meantime? Simone needed her to a point that was borderline frightening, and she’s never behaved in such a way over anything before. She truly needed her. “How can I ever repay you for all of this, Seth?”

“Tell me you love me.” Seth ordered her softly.

Twigs couldn’t stop herself from grinning and pulled her hand from her face to let it drop onto the bed beside her. “I love you, Seth MacFarlane, you already know I do.”

“And that’s all the payment you could ever give me that’ll suffice my lonely heart.” Seth assured her theatrically.

She smiled even wider and sunk down into her pillows in euphoria over this man and all that he was to her.

“Now, go and tell Simone that I’ve got everything covered for her and to sing her heart out for me, okay?” Seth encouraged her playfully.

“I will.” Twigs promised as she sat up, excited to tell Simone the wonderful news. “I love you, baby!”

“I love you too, Pixie.” Seth called to her before she hung up on him and hopped off her bed.

She didn’t bother knocking and just busted up into Simone’s room with a smile, spotting her friend strumming lazily on her guitar. “Simone, I have wonderful news!” When her roommates head shot up, Twigs ended her response in suspense. “I was talking to Seth on the phone a minute ago and I told him about your dilemma. He offered to pay for your ticket to Los Angeles, but he expects you to sing your heart out for him!”

Simone did not waste a minute jumping up onto her feet and screaming with excitement to the top of her lungs. “OH MY GOD! ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS!?” She ran over to Twigs and tackled her onto the bed where they both burst out laughing in joy. “Sing my heart out for him!? I’ll sing a whole goddamn album dedicated to that amazing man!” The duo broke down in raucous laughter before Simone lifted her head to look down at her roommate. “Girl, we should celebrate! Let’s go to that Karaoke bar that just opened a few streets down!”

“Hell yeah!” Twigs agreed, totally down for some karaoke. “Let’s go!”