Jacqueline

      "What are you doing here?" I asked Stanislav as I cracked the front door of my apartment open. It was three o'clock in the morning and I had to get up for work in a couple of hours.

      "I can't come and see my girl?" he asked with a slight slur letting me know he'd been drinking.

      "No you can't," I told him as I pulled my satin robe closer over my gown.

      "What?" he asked shocked at my statement.

      "I'm sick and tired of this bullshit Stan," I told him.

      "What are you talking about?" he asked with a frown.

      "I'm sick of being the only one of us in love. I'm tired of having my heart ache because you don't consider me and my feelings when you decide to break plans, when you forget our anniversary or when you have me waiting up for you at all hours of the night while you're out with the boys. I shouldn't be an after thought Stanislav," I told him and it felt like a weight had been lifted as the last word came from my throat.

      "What are your saying?" he asked.

      "We're over," I told him before closing the door and locking it.

      He banged on the door a couple of times and rang the doorbell but I ignored him. It wasn't until I was half way up the stairs that I saw Omari staring at me from over the banister. I stopped short and held my right hand over my racing heart before lightly saying, "I'm sorry about that."

      He didn't respond...just glanced at me with this weird look before backing up and heading back into his room.

      I sighed knowing I wouldn't be getting any more sleep so I headed back to my room and made my way to the bathroom so I could prepare to start my day. The cool porcelain of my tub caused shivers to run through my body as I sat on the edge closest to the faucets and adjusted the running water, allowing my fingers to quickly tap the heated flow to make sure the temperature was hot enough before pulling the stopper and heading over to my sink. Jo Malone products lined my sink neatly and I quickly thumbed through the various scents before picking up the Orange Blossom scented bath oil and shower gel before heading back over to the tub and tossing two caps full of each product into the hot water. When the bubble filled floral scented water was at a certain height, I cut off the water, pulled off my clothes and eased into the hot liquid. My eyes closed automatically as a long sigh released itself from my throat.

      An hour later I left the bathroom relaxed and ready to start my day. After quickly towel drying my body I grabbed my Orange Blossom scented body crème and smoothed a coat over my semi damp skin before wrapping my silk robe over my body and heading into my closet to find something to wear. The weather forecast had said there was supposed to be a storm today but I'd scheduled two showings today so I had to work something out. Once I'd had an appropriate outfit picked out, I pulled out my underwear drawer and slid into a black dot corset top and matching v-string panties before grabbing a pair of sheer control top thigh highs and carefully slid them up my freshly waxed legs. Before grabbing my black Daryl K skinny pants I turned on the radio and switched to a smooth jazz station and mellowed out to some Kenny G, Sade, and Chris Botti as I got ready. When I was dressed in my pants and corset I shrugged back on my robe and headed over to my vanity so that I could apply my make up and fix my hair.

      Just as I finished twisting a silver and black beaded hair tie around my tightly pulled back ponytail thunder cracked in the air. Sade sang along to The Sweetest Taboo as droplets of rain hit my windows. I began to sing along as I quickly buffed on my foundation and applied a bit of bronzer to give my tan complexion that extra golden glow. After brushing on a couple of coats of black mascara I smoothed on my golden brown lipstick before lightly spraying on my Chanel no.5 perfume. With that done I grabbed my gray Ya-Ya sweater and fastened the buttons securely before slipping my feet into my gun metal colored ankle boots.

      Once I was dressed I glanced at the clock before grabbing my black umbrella and heading downstairs to grab a croissant and a bottle of orange juice before leaving my house for the first house I planned on showing that morning.

Omari

      It was eleven o'clock in the afternoon and it was pouring outside. It was a dreary day but I didn't care because I was in a fucked up mood. I knew I needed to get out of my funk; that it was only a matter of time before Chris started calling about booking me studio time so that I could get back out there but I just wasn't in the mood to be scrutinized. People tended to forget that even though I was a 'celebrity' I was still a human being who had feelings and right now they were hurt. Thinking back on all the warnings my friends and family had given me, I felt like I fool. That girl had me blinded and at this moment I had no one to blame but myself.

      I should have taken into consideration that my family only wanted the best for me and wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt me. Maybe if I did I wouldn't be looking like boo-boo the fool right now. Hell, I know I wouldn't be feeling all miserable and depressed and whatnot. After staring off in space and contemplating some of the stupid shit I'd done and took for that girl, I headed into the kitchen to get me something to eat before heading back to my bedroom.

Nicole

      "Girl it's horrible outside," I said as Jacqueline and I jogged into the house she was showing me to.

      "I know but what can you do?" she asked me rhetorically as she unlocked the door and led me inside.

      Jacqueline began going through the motions of showing me around the house. Honestly it was breathtakingly beautiful and would most definitely be one I could see myself living in in the future but it was just too big to be in by myself. The house was just under ten thousand square feet and had five bedrooms and six and a half bathrooms. Included was a home gym, something I was looking forward to, a beautiful outside pool, and an incredibly large master suite. It was just a magnificent home...just too much of it. Currently I lived in a nice two bedroom apartment and while it had been the perfect space for me during the last five years of my life, I'd out grown the space and needed something more. Something that was my own.

      "So what do you think?" she asked me after she'd shown me every square inch of the property.

      "I think it's just too much space for me right now. Maybe you can show me a slightly smaller house?" I offered.

      "Sure. We have a property on West Elm. It's three bedrooms, four bathrooms and only about five thousand square feet. It's nice and homey...I think you'd like that," she offered as we left the house. "I have a couple of hours until I show my next house. I can pick up the keys from the office and swing by."

      "I would if I could but I actually have to get back to work myself," I replied with regret.

      She nodded in understanding and locked the door before popping the alarm to her car and jogging over. Honestly I had about two hours before I was needed to be at work but after being drenched by the rain, I was in need of a change of wardrobe. Because I knew I would be heading home to rectify that, I wasn't too stressed on get rained on.

      "Listen, we haven't had a girls night out in a while. Why don't we head out to a club tonight?" I asked.

      She paused for a moment, using her umbrella to shield her from the pouring rain before saying, "I'd like that. Is nine-ish good for you? We'll meet at Sin's?"

      "Perfect," I replied before giving her a wave and heading back to my own car.

Jacqueline

      By the time I got home I was tired and starving. The house was completely quiet and all the lights were off. If it wasn't for the fact that my SUV was still in its space, I would have thought it was only me in the house. I figured that Jamila's friend was still in need of solitude so I didn't bother knocking on his door to see if he was in the mood to socialize. Instead I headed up to my room and changed into a pair of comfortable cotton sweat pants and a simple white tank before heading back downstairs to the kitchen. I washed my hands thoroughly before opening the fridge and taking out the ingredients I would need before starting on my sweet potato ravioli with asiago cheese sauce. It was one of my favorites and I'd cooked it often enough to make it without much thought.

      Once the meal was complete, I cut the stove off and headed up stairs and stopped at the guest bedroom where Omari had been stationed. I hesitated for a bit, contemplating whether or not I wanted to actually disturb him. He was a grown ass man and I was sure he'd leave the room when he was hungry but the fooddid taste better freshly made. After a moment of going back and forth with my decision I finally decided to just knock on the door; the worst that could happen would be that he either didn't answer or told me he wasn't hungry.

      "Yes?" he slightly hardened voice asked.

      "Um...I finished cooking dinner. I made sweet potato ravioli with asiago cheese sauce," I called out evenly trying not to let him know how uncomfortable I was with this situation.

      "I'm not hungry," he answered.

      "Okay. I'll save you some and put it in the fridge," I spoke before leaving him to himself.

      I enjoyed my dinner, sipping on a bit of red wine, before retiring to my room so that I could take a nice soaking bath before getting ready for a night out on the town.

Marques

      "Have you heard from Omari?" I asked Jamila after about a week without word.

      She shook her head in the negative before speaking, "No, but Jacqueline called and told me that he'd made it safe so I just assume he's spending some time to himself; just trying to regroup."

      "Are you sure this Jacqueline can be trusted?" I asked. Sure that was a question I should have asked before we sent Omari on his way but better later than never right?

      "Yes Marq. She's good people," Jamila replied simply before asking me to go pick her up some ice cream.

Jacqueline

      I jammed along to Maxwell's smooth voice as I smoothed my lightly scented body oil over the skin uncovered by my white triangle bra and low riding briefs. With that done I smoothed on my clear deodorant and shrugged on my silk robe so that I could apply my make up. An experienced motion buffed Guerlian's pure radiance over my even skin to give me that extra glow. Once that was done I sorted through my make up kit before carefully pulling out my shadow primer, the pigments I wanted to use, liner, and black mascara as to not ruin the manicure I'd recently gotten.

      A groan of appreciation emerged from my throat as Something, Something merged into A Woman's Work and I suddenly wished that Maxwell would come back from whatever self imposed hiatus he was on to bring forth another album. Once the expertly blended egg-shell white, pale lilac, and silver eye shadow was complete I brushed on a coat of mascara before smoothing on a very light semi sheer pink gloss courtesy of Bourjois cosmetics. I wiped my hands off on a moist napkin before taking in my reflection. The look was simple and enhanced my features without being overly dramatic an piling on the make up.

      As A Woman's Work morphed into Alicia Keys' Diary, I walked over to my white chaise lounge and grabbed the white Genetic Denim skinny jeans that I'd placed there earlier in the evening. While I loved the jeans and how they looked on me, it was a bit of challenge getting into them because I actually had a shape and the jeans were meant to fit closely to the skin and outline the curves of a woman's body. Once I'd managed to get the jeans on and a thin belt, which was made of strong leather, enclosed throughout the loops I grabbed the white an silver semi sheer embellished shift tunic I'd pulled out for the outfit and pulled it on, being careful as to not get any make up on the beautifully delicate garment. I was just sliding my freshly manicured toes into my silver Le Silla jeweled boots when the starting notes of Ne-Yo's So Sick resounded lightly throughout the room. The song had quickly become one of my favorites, so I turned the volume up a bit before resuming the chore of pulling on my boots and making sure that my jeans were smoothly tucked into the slightly slouched material of the boot.

      Once I was dressed I headed into my connecting bathroom and lightly combed whatever tangles may have developed before brushing my hair back into a low classic ponytail. I secured the style with a beautiful crystal hair clip before heading back into my bedroom to add a few accessories to finish my look. With a well practiced motion I clipped my pave David Yurman earrings in my ear before fastening the matching necklace around my delicate neck. I checked the clock quickly before fastening a bangle over my right wrist and grabbed a jacket (and my purse) before leaving my apartment to meet Nicole at the club.

Lydia

      Jacqueline, Nicole, and I were at Sunny's looking good and having a great time. The three of us had been dancing within a group for the last hour and were just enjoying each other's company. It wasn't often that we had time off from our busy lives so we were just enjoying the moment. Several guys had approached us throughout the evening but we'd all passed; Jacqueline and Nicole were just out having fun and I was engaged to a wonderful man and wasn't even trying to ruin that. The song we'd been dancing to morphed into another song and Jacqueline begged off saying that she was thirsty. She turned to head to the bar and paused slightly and I saw the flash of hurt pass over her face.

      "What's wrong?" I screamed over the music as I tried to follow her line of vision. It didn't take me long to see her prick of an ex chatting up some red head at the bar. "Don't let him get to you," I told her in support.

      "I think I'm going to call it a night," she started.

      "Don't let him run you out of the club. Shit, we came to have fun and we were until he showed up," I pointed out.

      She gave me a look and just shook her head. She motioned headed over to Nicole who had separated from us after we stopped dancing and told her she was leaving. Jacqueline gave me a hug and told me to call her more often before digging her valet ticket out of her purse and heading towards the club's exit.

Jacqueline

      The night had started off well enough but Stan had ruined that shit for me. We haven't even been over a week and he was already dating other females? Talk about realizing just how unimportant I was in his life. It was becoming more apparent of how insignificant I was to Stan and that hurt because I was genuinely in love with that man. When I got home all the lights were off, which was just as well because the lighted buildings made my view that much better.

      I walked over to the windows and looked down at the city before pushing back the cover that rest over my piano keys. My finger caressed the ivory keys for a moment before I took a seat on the bench and just played a melody. It was a slow mellow tune that had been in my head for a while now and had yet to get out.

Omari

      I was up an sitting on the terrace just breathing in the crisp air as I had a conversation with O'Ryan. He'd called to check up on me and while I appreciated the fact that he cared, I just wanted to be alone. He was trying to tell me of the latest happenings between our baby sister and our mother when I heard a soothing melody coming from downstairs. Ryan was going on about something but he didn't have my undivided attention at the moment. Just as I got to the first floor I noticed Jamila's friend sitting at her piano with her fingers running over the black and ivory keys to create a very jazzy melody.

      "What are you listening to?" O'Ryan asked.

      "Let me get at you later Ryan," I told him before ending the call.

      Just then Jacqueline started singing:

      I sat there amazed; not only by her voice which sang the song soulfully or the sad melody but the lyrics that fit my situation so perfectly. As she ended the note she'd dragged out, her fingers stopped moving and she braced herself against the top edge of the piano and I heard her sniffle a bit and I knew she was crying. It was at that moment that I remembered that she was going through it too. I watched her for a moment before heading back up stairs. I figured that she needed some time to herself. The last thing she needed was to find her houseguest imposing on her personal time.