Star City Starlets

Episode 20

By Krisha Chachra

Published in the January 2008 issue of Bella Magazine

Summary of the Storyline:  Disheveled Jasmine reveals the torrid state of events about Austin and Stella to who she thinks is an unsuspecting waitress just to learn later that the waitress is Austin's mother.  Meanwhile, David has more trouble on his hands: the DC police believe he is involved with Austin's stabbing and are holding him in jail.       

You never know what people are thinking. That's all that David could conclude as he sat in a stone cold cellblock waiting for someone to decide he didn't belong there.  After all this time, how had he overlooked Jasmine's feelings for Austin? David now wondered if Jasmine had ever really loved him.  Had she been pining for Austin the entire time David was with her?  David was just too tired to think about his grave miscalculations. Forget that; how did he end up in jail without even committing a crime? David knew he was innocent. He knew his only crime was drinking a little too much in the pit at Mandalay Bay, growing an impulsive desire to do something out of character and fly back to Virginia to win the girl of his dreams. What an idiot. He clasped his hands as if praying for answers and pressed his thumbs to his eyes. The pressure helped relieve his splitting headache.

"David Camden," one of the officers marched in with a clipboard. "Mr. Camden, is that you?" David stood up and grabbed the bars of the cell thinking how he had always been on the other side, reassuring his panicked clients.

"Attorney Camden, you are free to go. We checked with our boys in Roanoke, Virginia.  You're not the crook they are looking for. So I'm letting you out of here but don't go too far, you might be required to answer a few questions for the Star City police."

David didn't say a word. He knew who had actually stabbed Austin. But Stella had other problems to deal with besides paying for her actions. She had a son and a weary father to reunite, a violent ex-husband on the loose to hide from and a best friend who she had betrayed. David didn't know what to think about Stella, but he sure knew that she didn't need him to voice any thoughts.

***

Meanwhile, Mattie Majestic was cleaning her tables before ending her very unusual shift at the Fork in the Alley. She had been a waitress for over thirty years and had never had a conversation like the one she had just finished. She also had never taken two shots of liquor on the clock either. But the circumstances had called for the indiscretions. She smiled a little as she suddenly felt lightheaded.  Her son Austin would tease her relentlessly for getting tipsy at work if he knew.

She had recognized that exotic beauty the minute she had walked in. Even in the midst of sorrow, Jasmine had a coloring to her that brightened up the room. Mattie had only seen her a few times when Austin would bring her around the house. He never would invite her in and Mattie would peak from the kitchen window and watch Jasmine wait in the car, her black cascading hair falling over her shoulders. Mattie thought it was a pity that her Austin never believed he was good enough for Jasmine. Mattie had not raised her son to be ashamed.

But this girl was an addiction for Austin. Instead of using his extra cash on equipment for his music, Austin would buy suits and new ties. His appearance sharpened and so did his manners. Mattie thought he polished up well and knew Jasmine was a good influence. She was worried that Austin would tarnish under the weight of the withdrawal if Jasmine ever left.

And she was right. A mother's instinct always is. Jasmine did leave for medical school and Austin had stayed behind. She watched her son chase after that girl like a moon in orbit, flying around in circles never catching anything. When he took money out of his savings to find her in Asia – not once, but several times – she knew he had to be stopped. She hadn't wanted her son to turn to the bottle, but it was something he could grab on to, unlike her.

So when that girl who had broken her son's heart walked in all weepy, Mattie didn't have much sympathy. It was when she realized that Jasmine didn't recognize her and was crying over the loss of her son that Mattie's heart warmed up. Jasmine had felt pain too. Her love for Austin hadn't died; it had just been put aside. Instead of drinking to cope, Jasmine had thrown herself in medical school and found another relationship with someone named David Camden. She had suffered too, but in a different way than her son. And Mattie realized she had underestimated what Jasmine was thinking.

But Mattie told Jasmine to forget her son. Jasmine was better off chasing the stars in her trajectory, stars like David Camden who were going places outside of this climate.  If Mattie encouraged Jasmine to stay and win Austin back, her son would just end up broken again. And Mattie wasn't going to allow that.

***

Back in the DC jail, David walked down the hall to the bursar's office to pay his exit fee. When he got to the counter to collect his personal belongings, he was surprised to learn that he didn't owe anything. "Don't worry son, you're all good. That lady outside took care of you."

Confused, David peered through the glass doors.  Outside, with her hands deep in her pockets wearing a scarf to cut the cold air, Jasmine looked back at him. She had come for him, driving all day from Roanoke, finding him in jail. What could she possibly be thinking this time? 

Star City Starlets is an on-going fictional narrative of four single young professionals – Jasmine, Stella, Austin and David - whose lives intersect and intertwine when they all find themselves back in the Star City for different reasons.  For previous episodes and to read the past storyline of Star City Starlets, please visit www.socialtalkers.com