#pearlwriting

The audience’s applause could be heard two storeys down, everyone knew the name Caroline Marsden. She stepped from behind the tall black curtains putting on her best smile, she had practised everyday since she was ten for this exact moment. Her sleek black heels clacked on the hardwood floor, she felt as if she would slip with every step she took. It seemed like their cheering would never stop, this stage was so big, it would take at least twenty seconds to walk to the desk. Caroline kept her performed smile on, waving back to the hundreds of staring faces who claimed to know everything about her; who all adored her. Finally, Caroline was on the other side of the stage, shaking hands with an equally, but not quite as, famous TV host. She sat down on the bouncy red couch, feeling the bumpy rhinestones on her dress under her. 

‘Welcome Caroline, it’s so lovely to have you here! Can we all give her another big round of applause?’ Oh god not again. Their hands must be red at this point. Did she even care though? The applause is what she lived for, she needed it. Caroline continued smiling, her face still like stone on the brink of collapse. The clapping slowly faded and Caroline locked eyes with the host once again.

‘So, Please Let Go, huh? Coming to theatres on March 10th; What an amazing piece of work this is!’

‘Oh yes, thank you John.’

‘Why don’t you tell us a little bit more about this film?’

As soon as that question is asked it feels as though everything fades, all sounds are muffled and her vision subsides, Caroline is only able to see her memories and her art.

‘Well, Please Let Go is a drama piece about a girl, Rachael, who is in a difficult first relationship and doesn’t know how to get out of it because she’s afraid of what her partner will say or do. It’s a very important piece of film that I think a lot of young people can relate to and find comfort in.’ she talked so highly of her work it made her want to vomit. Caroline never wanted to be one of those directors who were stuck up and talked freely about how amazing they were. She knew she and her art were perfect but no one was allowed to use that against her, so she had to be perceived as humble. But the applause gets to her, and she can’t help but talk like she’s the only person in the world. 

‘That’s amazing. Now what’s the backstory to this film? How did you come to create it?’

Caroline smiled wider than she thought possible and let out a breath of satisfaction. This was her favourite question. She sat up and fixed her posture, wanting to look her absolute best.

‘Well it’s actually based on the book my partner wrote with the same name. I remember reading it the first time and being so moved by it, I just couldn’t stop thinking about it.’

‘Did you two write this together?’

‘Oh my partner Rose definitely helped me a lot, I mean it was based on their book, of course I’d look to her for guidance.’

There were soft ‘aaw’s in the crowd as Caroline spoke of Rose, someone these fans should be quite familiar with by now. The amount Caroline talks about them online and in interviews was astounding, she was shocked no one told her to be quiet by now.

‘That’s lovely, and where is Rose tonight?’

‘She’s in Seattle on her book tour, promoting her new limited edition version of Please Let Go. I hope they’re watching me in their hotel room tonight.’ Caroline spoke with a less forced and more fond smile, thinking about her loved partner watching her from afar. Caroline looked right down the barrel of one of the huge film cameras on set, ‘I love you Rosey, I hope you’re having a good time over there.’ The audience erupted in cheers once again, Caroline’s ears didn’t respond to it, blocking it out as she dreamt of her partner being here with her talking about their new movie.

The loud applause was cut short by the TV switching off, leaving Caroline in a dark, cold, empty room. Tissues, wrappers, bottles, anything else that would’ve been cleaned off the floor in an instant stayed there in a depressing tableau, almost waiting to be put away, watching in judgement at Caroline's newly found state. Caroline stared at the black screen, just able to see her now rejected reflection. Before she could think too hard on that, she pulled herself up from her chair and dragged her feet to the kitchen.

 She sighed, opening the fridge to find another drink, but she had already wasted them all. She hung her head in shame before turning to the clock on the microwave. ‘7:09AM’ it read, that familiar pit sat in her stomach realising she’s gone another night without sleep. How long has it been now? 75 hours? It was hard to keep track, Caroline had more important things to think about, like her premiere in two weeks, her fitting tomorrow, or well today. And the funeral on Friday. Before she could even stop herself she let out a quiet chuckle.

‘What kind of heartless bastard holds a funeral on a Friday? Like come on Jill, we all have better things to be doing, I’d rather spend my Friday dressed in a bikini on the beach with a drink in one hand and a woman in the other! Not standing around people I hate, mourning a person who shouldn’t even be having this so called fucking celebration!' Caroline shouted to no one, throwing her half empty bottle at the wall opposite her, gasping as it shattered against the paint. She stared at the wet stain on the wall, trying to slow her breathing back to normal but failing completely. She left the glass pile on the floor, too distressed to even think about cleaning it. She slowly walked back to her chair and slumped down, giving a long dramatic sigh. Caroline hadn’t felt like this since college. Excessive depression and nothing to help it, not a single thing could pull her out of her ‘funk’ as her mom would call it. Well there was one thing, but she was gone now.

Valerie carefully waddled behind Poppy though the remains of a city she’s never seen before, taking in her new surroundings.

‘Where is everyone?’ Valerie asked.

‘Down there.’ Poppy pointed down a hill towards what looked like more rubble, ‘It’s worse the higher you are but we managed to make a safe home for us all.’ She said dreamily.

Valerie nodded her head, although Poppy couldn’t see her, ‘Nice.’ She said lastly as to not seem rude. The two of them continued to wander the ruins in quiet, hearing the ambiance of the used-to-be city. Birds chirping out of view, rusted metal creaking in destroyed buildings, the occasional break of glass under Poppy’s boots and Valerie’s slippers, as she was still in her pyjamas she hadn’t changed out of in days. The bright green leaves and flowers of different variants made Valerie feel less afraid. The Afterlife looked almost identical to the overworld. There was no current fire, no one getting tortured in oddly sexual ways. Just a city that was once bustling with life and energy, now reduced to rubble. Valerie felt a kind of sorrow for whoever, or whatever, got caught up in this. But she tried to not dwell on it, as she had no clue what happened.

Poppy continued to swiftly lead Valerie down to her town, only now was it that Valerie realised Poppy was walking on her feet, her skin still shiny and plastic looking. She appeared to look like a ghost of some sorts, with her hollow insides and elegant walk, she could easily pass as your regular thriller movie ghost, haunting an old dirty house scaring delinquent teenagers but she was far from the stereotype. She was a tall black girl who had long goddess braids with small beads and charms all through them. She was oddly thin, but that probably had to do with being dead. Her face was soft and round, an almost perfect canvas of a face, almost no blemishes to be seen, but Valerie was sure that if she got close enough, she’d see her imperfections. 

They continued staggering down the hill, Valerie shadowing behind her new friend, until they were met with a small cliff. Poppy cursed quietly under her breath and began searching for a way down.

‘Can’t we just jump? It doesn’t seem that far.’ Valerie declared, looking down at the drop that, expectedly, led to more rubble. Poppy didn’t answer, instead she continued searching for a safe and easy way to the ground.

My brother in law (blairyvision on instagram) drew the main characters in my book The Haunting of Miss Caroline Marsden!! so with the art I'll introduce you to my absolute favourite people lol

From left to right: Caroline Marsden, Rose Blum, Wren Lawson and Liv Green