CHAPTER 1: JULIENNE POWERS

★SYNOPSIS★

A little cattle ranch girl working in the farm of The Robinson with my poor single mom goes through tooth and nail for daily bread. Despite the maltreatment in a city where the bourgeoisie dominated the proletariat like us, we still found our peace in hay. Fell over heels for the heir of The Robinsons as our love story was tested through burning furnaces. What does tomorrow holds for us?....

....JULIENE POWERS....

At a corner milking the cows at the field when I heard some footsteps from behind. I hastily turned my head backwards in gapse. I felt a strong grip on my throat as I cried out for help. It was Mr Patrick Robinson's men at the field, tormenting the workers of the ranch again. I gazed my tender eyes upon the hefty man infront of me and my eyes were filled with fear. He must be wondering the reason a girl of eighteen would be at a cattle ranch without her guardian. Mother had been missing since morning and I had no clue where she went to. If she was at the ranch right now, she would have put her place in mine for my safety.

"What the hell do you think you were doing to those cows? Who assigned you to do that? Poor wretched child of the slums." He questioned me with insults.

"Uhm...I...I....I..."I stuttered in fear, not knowing anything to say or the slightest way to get myself outta this mess.

He threw me aside while I fell on both knees. I screamed out in pain after having some deep scratches of the sprouted grasses on my knees. I thanked almighty that he let me go or else mother would have been tortured again. Some of the workers were being flogged at different corners, while some were forcefully ripped off their hard earned coins. The maltreatment on the poor was too much and we were voiceless citizens as long as we weren't bouyant like the likes of our masters.

"Julienne! Julienne!! Julienne!!!..." Rachel called out to me running towards my direction.

Getting there, she brought forth her hand while I placed mine on hers as a support to stand up on my feet. My knees were bleeding but that wasn't my concern at all because I am already used to get so many bruises since I was a kid.

"Hey, you called me." I replied her, dusting off the bloodstains on my knee.

"It's your mum, she's been looking for you round the ranch. She told me she was feeling you might be in some sort of trouble." Rachel said to me in a heavy voice.

I placed my both hands on her shoulders, as tears rolled down my cheeks. I closed my eyes so tight letting the tears pour as they wanted while my lips mumbled. After I was done letting out my emotions, I opened my eyes beaming a smile as I would always do whenever I let out a tear. Rachel felt pity on me but that wasn't my problem right now.

"I only need a promise from you right now..." I said to her, while she raised up her brow widening her eye balls at me.

"My mum shouldn't know any of this. Julienne Powers is a strong girl that's the personality I have shown to my mum. She would cry again if she finds out those bastards hurt me today."....I told her, removing my hands from her shoulders.

"How long would you continue to act like you're strong? As long as we are mere workers to these rich brats, we are considered weak." Rachel replied me while I turned deaf ears to her words.

I heaved out a heavy sigh shaking my head to heavens. Rachel gave me her words not to tell mother any of it and that made me so much happy. I am Julienne Powers daughter of Miranda Powers and we were known for our bravery in any situation we find ourselves in. Mum became such a cry baby overnight because of me but I didn't want any of that for her because her happiness was my happiness. She's all I care about since I had no dad. He abandoned me since I was a kid and I grew up watching my poor mother play the role of both a mother and a father to me.

**Home**

Mother was knitting a bag when I returned home and her face was filled with worries. I tiptoed towards her from behind hoping she doesn't notice my entrance. I hugged her from behind, as she poked her knitting needle on my face thinking I was an intruder. Seeing my blooming smile, she gave out a sigh dragging my arms round her. She pulled my face forward kissing my left cheek.

"Julienne you're really too much I must say. Why would you scare your mum that way? Silly girl." She asked me smiling now.

"Yike....that should be my question to my mother that sneaked out of the house like a wet cat in the early morning leaving her poor kitten all in fear." I replied her sitting down on the arm of a couch she was seated on.

"My bad...visited your aunt at oak town. She gave me some food items."

I glanced at my mum after listening to her reason for doing so. I could stop staring at such sweetness before me. I hugged her again, amazed at her kindness. I assured her that I was okay and I got to know about her being worried about me through Rachel.

I left for my room, my privacy and my own real world. I climbed my mat reaching out for an old basket hanging around my room. Those were old 90's cassettes that I still play even in the 20's now. I love to play mum's favorite musics and she had good taste for musics to be honest. While listening to those musics, mum stood at the door of my room carried away by the good tunes of them. The stamping of her feet caught my attention which made me bring her into my room. We danced all day to those musics and that's our way of escaping the cruel reality of the lower class.