Beneath The Ivy Walls

A'S

a Lennox.... Never let t

ur posture and certain

t had once belonged to my grandmother- "A lady's neck should wear legacy", she used to say. I didn't know

ways had or maybe it just

to behave. My uniform- the customized version, of course, hugged just right : crisp blazer, silk-lined collar pleated

loss. Rose gold No. 5. subtle. Expensive. The k

ect," I told

avy. Like holding you

owed by the familiar voice of C

, your car

ing-just a flicker in the mirror. A thought I wasn't

n't want thi

ike they always did, drow

, the soft clack of them on marble following m

Lennox estate, the car was waiting, engine hu

fe. Sculpted,

seat, crossed my legs

ersity - the place where elite minds got pol

in the mood t

to

g in my chest was

HE CA

A's

ttle s

as I stirred the pot of oats on the counter. Our kitchen was the size of someone else's closet, but it work

ame a soft cough followed by a r

Nana. A

to fight underwater. She'd been sick for months now, her lungs tired, her bones aching

oday. I didn't have t

em to the couch where she lay. She gave me that look again, the on

hard, baby,"

ead. "We do what w

gh

ready old enough to understand sacrifice. She never asked for new shoes. Never complained when lunch was

was trying to keep her in. One that took our parents too ear

ike the

o my university - Roseshire. I'd heard whispers. Rich, cold, untoucha

uld never cross. People like Luna

ing to keep mine f

nvelope in my bag, the one with our unpaid electricity bill. I'd try

nes beneath the early light. My ba

I wa

ne was comin

ave the luxury

US'S

a private jet and stared out at the no

re was

was w

the life we didn't choose - b

ence in Geneva. My mother had hugged me like she was letting go of her legacy. My father barely looked

ected of you," he sa

kn

alth and strategy - not affection. My name on paper looked clean, respectable, powerful.

Lu

n every media draft. Perfect postu

rance. Just for a weekend. She hadn't said

o people who had never really

I was hea

the moment I landed. My team ha

oseshire to join his fiancée, Luna Lenn

an

in headlines. On contract

ress briefing, reintroduction at Roseshire. I'd appear beside her like a polis

ing was of

m her. Not even a reminder

hat s

n't li

in, fingers tapping restles

w I was

lways

he stranges

nox might not be wa

she w

nged eve