Paparazzi

By the time thirty minutes had passed, the ever so punctual Vivian wasn't the only one outside Soleil's apartment unit. Through her window, Soleil could see about a dozen press hyenas waiting outside with their cameras, hoping to get a juicy scoop of her.

"Getting through the greedy pack of paparazzi out there was all the workout I needed for the week." Vivian dramatically placed her hands on her knee to steady her breathing the moment she stepped into the apartment.

"I didn't realize my address was that public." Soleil sighed, still staring at the men and women lined up outside her house, armed with all sorts of cameras and mics.

"Oh darling, anything is possible with the press, you'd be surprised at how much power they hold. Having the right media in your pockets can do wonders." Vivian winked, trying to lighten the mood with that gesture.

"So I take it that we don't have any media personnel in our pockets because this story doesn't seem to be fading out, if anything more articles keep popping out by the second." Soleil pinched the skin between her brows out of frustration.

"You'd be surprised at how easy it is to buy people out. Most of our contacts have been bribed by our sweet step-mommy dearest and the articles posted by the loyal ones to clear your name are currently being drowned out by bad press."

Soleil's mouth went sour at the mention of her stepmother- the witch of the West, as she liked to call her. She knew Logan wasn't smart enough to pull this stunt on his own, so definitely, his greasy and plastic mother was the brains behind the operation.

Soleil desperately wanted to hear the good news that her name was cleared and everyone would realize she was in fact the victim in this story and not the villain they painted her to be but absolutely nothing seemed to be going her way.

"How long are they going to camp outside my house?" She asked, pointing to the press who seemed to have made themselves more comfortable outside, not at all bothered by the fact that they were actively stalking her and trespassing on private property.

"You tell me. We both know none of them will give up until they hear from you." Vivian walked toward Soleil and stood at the other end of the window. "How are you holding up?" She warmly asked.

"I'm holding up as well as an ice cream scoop would in the heat of summer."

"I'll take that as a no." Vivian slowly made her way closer to Soliel and laid a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry about last night... what you- what you lost and went through in that room."

Although she didn't clearly address it at face value, it was clear to both of them what Vivian was referring to. Soleil didn't want to think about it, she'd been avoiding that thought for as long as she could, simply hoping if she ignored it hard enough, it would be like it never happened, like she never lost anything...

"I'll be fine." Soleil gave a short reply and went to grab her keys from the kitchen island. "Let's take the emergency exit at the back, I have a spare car outside we can use."

Vivian wanted to speak more on the matter because it was obvious that Soleil wasn't fine but she decided against it, finding it wiser to let her talk at her own time. "I've never been more grateful for your paranoid behavior and backup plans."

Soleil just rolled her eyes at the comment as the two made their way to the back exit, leaving the paparazzi waiting outside at the front like utter fools. 

"You drive." Soleil tossed Vivian the key as soon as they got to where the car was parked before getting into the passenger seat herself.

"Soleil," Viviam found herself calling out after a few minutes of silence in the car, "I don't want to force you to talk or anything but I hope you know this incident doesn't define you as a person and neither does it change who you are... as long as you don't let it."

Although she heard the words loud and clear, Soleil gave a slight nod and turned to face the window. Vivian on the other hand took that as a sign that she shouldn't take the conversation any further, she was just glad to have said what she did because although she didn't show it, her words were somewhat comforting to Soleil.

Within no time, they were already on the road, headed for the manor where Logan and Dianne stayed- her childhood home.