Arriving at her home, Ariana felt the pain wash over her again. "You good? Do you want me to walk to the door with you?" Yvonne asked seeing the expression on her friend's face.
Ariana drew in a breath "Don't worry dear. You've helped so much already. Thank you. You need to get to work soon".
Yvonne felt bad for her friend and deeply wished she could do something. She immediately made a promise to herself to talk to Ariana's parents without Ariana's knowledge.
Ariana was what some would call the perfect daughter, the perfect older sister to Ava and a very good and devoted leader of the Sterling Group, before it was stripped away from her and Yvonne knew her friend didn't deserve anything that was happening.
Ariana entered the house and walked towards the stairs to see her sister Ava walking down the stairs she was also on. Silence reigned between them as the atmosphere grew dense.
Ariana caught sight of her sister's tripod and phone in hand and she shook in her head in disappointment, without saying a word. She was already going her way when her sister said "You didn't come home last night".
"I slept at a hotel" came Ariana's deadpan reply. Ariana wanted to question Ava on why she hasn't dressed up for work yet but didn't.
Ava was still in her pyjamas with a tripod in hand, probably recording her morning routine for her fans online before Ariana stepped in. That in itself wasn't what made Ariana mad but the fact that if she wanted to organize a vlog for a fans before going to the company she'd have done it earlier.
Ariana didn't mind her sister's life online but she hoped Ava would also take the company seriously.
As the new president, Ariana expected her sister to know that arriving the company early was one thing she needed to learn.
"Dad and mum are pissed at you though. Because you didn't come home last night. They're both in their room, just in case you want to talk to them" Ava stated.
"Sure" Ariana said in a flat tone before walking away but midway she turned around and said to Ava "You know you have to set a good example and arrive the company on time".
"Cut me some slack Ari, it's my first day. I deserve a special treatment" Ava said.
"You also deserve to know that being the president is alot of responsibility." Ariana said.
She sighed and walked closer to her younger sister, holding her by her shoulder "Ava, you know how mum and dad are about the company. You don't want to mess it up" Ariana concluded.
"I won't because you'd help me out. Besides, I'm not dumb Ariana" Ava was feeling slightly attacked by her sister's continuous reminder of how important the company is and how she needed to be smart with handling the famous Sterling Group.
Ariana immediately noticed her sister misunderstood her "I'm not saying you're dumb Ava. I'm simply saying take this seriously. I know I don't expect you to abandon your fans online. In fact, I don't want you to do that but now you have something more important to focus on" she explained but the agitated look in Ava's eyes didn't falter.
"Ok" she said as she released herself from her sister's grip before walking away.
Ariana face palmed wondering why the relationship between herself and her sister was the way it was. They weren't really close. Ava was pampered by their parents and that made her act like a brat at times.
Ariana was treated well enough but was mostly given strict rules; not pampered or treated with any special care.
But Ariana felt they only treated her that way probably because she was older.
She continued her walk up the grand stairs till she got to her room. She wanted to look for a job that morning, so she had to gather her important documents.
She had some kept in her room but others were in her parents room. Her parents had demanded that some of her files be kept "safe" with them. Ariana never questioned and she allowed it.
She drew in a breath as she walked out of her room, walking towards her parent's room. She knocked and waited.
"Who's there?" She heard her mother question.
"Ariana".
Ariana waited for a response but all she got in return was silence. After some seconds, she heard the door unlock and it opened to reveal her mother standing before her with her hands crossed.
"Where were you last night?" Her mother questioned.
"Good morning mother. It's obvious you're not pleased with my absence last night but can't I have a night to myself?" Ariana retorted, taking her mother by surprise. The girl seldom spoke rude or with attitude so her mother was taken aback.
"Why are you acting so bitter?" Ariana heard her mother ask and Ariana was left speechless, confused and hurt by her mother's words.
"Mum please, I really don't want to start anything. I'm going out and I want to get my documents you have" She stated but before her mother replied, Mr Sterling walked to the door and his eyes fell on his daughter.
His expression was filled with anger and also laced with questions that he chose not to ask.
"We're going to the company with Ava remember. Let's not waste our time with the irresponsible one" Mr Sterling said to his wife as he walked past Ariana and her mother trailed behind as they were both dressed and ready to go to the company.
Ariana felt like her feet was glued to the floor, she didn't know what to say or how to react as she watched her parents walk past her without saying anything more.
They were usually strict with her and were only soft on her on few occasions but this was new. The disgust and anger she saw in her father's eyes was new.
All because she didn't spend the night in the mansion? Or once again it was about the company? Or both? Ariana asked herself.
Both her parents were already walking towards the grand stairs and her eyes followed them. Confused and wondering why their attitude towards her had become more rigid.
She drew in a breath and entered her parents room. They didn't act like they cared so she was going to look for the documents herself.