Chapter Text
Coming off the ferry, Kate was grinning with a bunch of cash earnings that were stuffed in pockets or any storage space on her person, from wiping the table clean of all earnings. Penelope, on the other hand, was energised from talking to the fan and was ready to take on the world.
On the other side of the dock was Sophie posing confidently like a superstar holding a microphone at a world tour concert. “Well, look at what the tidal wave washed in.”
When Kate and Penelope saw her, they immediately struck a pose with their back against each other.
“FOR ONE NIGHT!” Penelope yelled from across the dock.
“AND ONE NIGHT ONLY!” Kate joined in.
“SOPHIE AND THE SOPRANOS!” As they both came running towards each other like a pack of hyenas, laughing madly and manically.
When they were physically met, all of them started to chant their band's motto, “Sopranos, Sopranos, when they go low, we go lower.”
“We need to fix that chant; it contradicts who we are,” Kate said.
Penelope chimed, “We always do, but then we forget.” Making them all burst into laughter.
As they got all their chaotic greeting energy wrapped up, Sophie showed them to her convertible car to place their luggage, with Kate having only one suitcase with the purpose of lasting her for the weekend. Penelope, on the other hand, looked like she was bringing a whole house with her with the crazy amount of luggage she had on her, though Sophie and Kate teased her relentlessly that it was an unnecessary amount, but she insisted that it was an appropriate amount, considering that she was going to be there longer than Kate.
Riding uphill in the car towards the hotel, with the wind blowing against their face and trying to avoid and dodge the dust and debris that is going towards their facility.
“It’s a beautiful island, full of gorgeous people…” Penelope innocently comments on the charisma and charm of the island.
“Here we go, the wheels are turning. Book number 27, coming to your local Barnes and Noble in a few months.” Kate teased, interrupting Penelope’s train of thought.
“No, no.” Lightly whacking Kate’s shoulder. “My publisher told and begged me to go on a holiday because I’ve been overwhelming them with the amount, I’ve been churning them out,” Penelope explained.
“You think that would be a good thing.” Sophie was puzzled.
“They still have ten books to process and publish, and I’m in a bit of writer’s block.” Penelope was trying to sound modest and humble, but in the end, they ended up sounding a little bit like a brag.
“Well, there’s no stopping this writing machine.” Kate is trying to lift Penelope’s spirit.
“Who knows, maybe when you place the pen down, you’ll find someone who fancies you.” Sophie shimmering her shoulders and raising her eyebrows. “And you can get over the crush that you have.” Sophie was trying her best to console her friend and see the best outcome of this writing situation, knowing that it was her passion.
“Yeah, perhaps.” Penelope’s voice dropped at the end, and she picked at her fingers.
Though she’s told the pair about the long-time crush she had, she hadn’t revealed the fact that the man had rejected her confession of love that she had been building for years. Though the rejection was dealt with in a sensitive manner, he essentially told her that he sees her as a little sister.
“What about you, Kate?” Penelope is trying to shift the focus over to Kate.
“What about me?” Kate is trying to act all innocent.
“You met anyone yet?” Sophie asked and was intrigued, though she knew the answer she’d get from Kate.
“It’s… complicated,” Kate replied.
Sophie and Penelope glanced at each other for a brief second before Sophie's eyes were back on the road. This was more of a response they usually get from her; usually Kate doesn’t open up about relationships, but today was once in a blue moon opportunity for the girls to question Kate if they played their cards right... with alcohol.
“Alright, if you say so.” Penelope, immediately on the defensive because they knew if they were going to get something out of her by just asking, she would quickly close herself like a clam, they would need alcohol.
With idle chatter and catch-up over lost time that was spent on driving uphill, and the hike up the steep and continuous stairs. When they reached the top, they were greeted by Vivian with a warm smile and lots of hugs.
“Aunt Pen, Aunt Kate!” Vivian is embracing these two important women, who essentially helped raise Vivian and saw her blossom into the young woman that they see before them.
“It’s been so long since I’ve seen you, and you just get more gorgeous every time I see you.” Penelope embraces Vivian back, suppressing the urge to pinch the cheek of this young woman before her.
“Leave some beauty for the rest of the island.” Kate opened her arms and waved her hands as a signal to come to her, waiting for her turn to be embraced by the young woman.
“Alright, enough spoiling her.” Sophie comes right up to her daughter and gently places her hand on her forehead. “She gets enough from me and that lucky fiancé of hers.” Now replacing her hand with a gentle kiss.
“Now, your place shouldn’t be that far from here. It’s just a little bit of walk.” Sophie gestured to Kate and Penelope to follow her through the maze of clothes and sheets on drying lines.
During their weaving in and out of the laundry maze, they were met with Jesse, who introduced themselves to Kate and Penelope, showing off his chivalrous manner, making them swoon and Vivian a tad bit jealous, dragging him off to have a ‘discussion’.
“Use protection, hon!” Sophie shouted out, teasing and embarrassing her daughter.
Vivian playfully flipped off her mother and sarcastically replied, “Love you too, mum.”
When they finally reached their destination, they all fell onto the couch, which then collapsed underneath from their collective weight and jump, putting them all in a giggling fit.
“That couch has been sturdy for 20-plus years, and I decided today was the day. Welp, I’ll just put that on my long list to do.” Sophie laughed tiredly at the never-ending list of jobs that she had to do.
“So, um. Just a few things about the living situation. If the toilet doesn’t flush immediately, just leave it for a while, then come back and flush it again, because this place is broken. The whole hotel is broken, except for me.” Hearing the frustration in her voice, Kate and Penelope were a bit concerned that Sophie was overworking herself to exhaustion and burnout.
“Hey Sophie, why don’t you relax for a bit? You deserve a bit of it; we all do with that journey back there.” Kate was trying to get Sophie to sit back down on the broken couch, but was distracted by the closed window panel and wanted to bring light and air into the room.
“Been running this hotel for 15 years and I have never had a day off in my life…” As she opened the window panels, one of the panels broke off and fell, nearly hitting the people below.
“Oh my god.” Sophie covered her mouth in shock then then realised another broken thing to the list, and one of her hands moved up to pinch the bridge of her nose. She tried to take a deep breath, but Sophie exploded with frustration, as if that was the last straw that broke the camel’s back.
“I work all night, I work all day to pay the bills I have to pay.” Sophie feels an overwhelming sense of tiredness from the endless work with very little pay, blaming capitalism as a blanket blame for all her issues.
“Ain't it sad?” A choir of people below her, where the window panel fell, sympathised with her situation.
“And still there never seems to be a single penny left for me.” And even if Sophie did save up, she was a selfless woman and would spend the money elsewhere, like on the hotel and or her daughter, never herself.
“That's too bad.” Penelope and Kate are growing more concerned for their friend.
“In my dreams I have a plan, if I got me a wealthy man.” Though Sophie was opposed to the stupid patriarchal society, she did often ponder if her issues would resolve if a rich man whisked her away.
“I wouldn't have to work at all, I'd fool around and have a ball,” Sophie sighed and laughed cruelly at that fleeting thought of luxurious life, it beats working. Though the thought burst when she realised that she had to pick up the window panel that had fallen.
Walking down an alleyway, crowded by people who have either jobs that were minor or took Sophie a while to fix, “Money, money, money, must be funny, In the rich man's world.” Though there were tons, Sophie’s eyes were B lining for the window panel.
“Money, money, money, always sunny, in the rich man's world.” Picking up the window panel, looking up where it came, and then continuing to walk forward through the crowded alleyway.
Sophie, belting out a run that was full of tiredness and whinging, looked up to see Penelope and Kate holding up a line of debit and credit cards. They really want to help Sophie in her situation, but she doesn’t want any pity money; she wants money that was earned with her time and effort.
“All the things I could do, if I had a little money.” Sophie had a ray of false hope, just thinking about whether she had money and how it could benefit the hotel and her life a bit, though she realised that it was…
“It's a rich man's world,” Sophie rolled her eyes at the hypocrisy of high-class society.
“A man like that is hard to find,” Kate explained
“But I can't get him off my mind” An image of Benedict appeared in her head but was instantly swatted away, too painful to think of him.
“Ain't it sad?” A choir of people, who were familiar with Sophie’s love story.
“And if he happens to be free, I bet he wouldn't fancy me” Though the thought of Benedict appeared again, Sophie thought that if he wasn’t married and still single would he still be interested in her, but she swatted that thought away again because if she thought to much about it, a sense of hope and delusion would develop and she did not want that and especially right now with the wedding.
“That's too bad” A choir of people cheekily chimed. Sophie laughed a bit.
Sophie thinking of another hypothetical situation “So I must leave, I'll have to go to Las Vegas or Monaco and win a fortune in a game, my life will never be the same.” Then she realises that she has the worse luck in history so that plan wouldn’t work as well.
“Money, money, money, must be funny in the rich man's world” Going off to get her utility belt with all of her tools as she was going to work again.
“Money, money, money always sunny in the rich man's world” Going through the maze of laundry again because Sophie left something in the car and her next was towards that direction.
“All the things I could do If I had a little money, It's a rich man's world” Sophie and all the women that she was passing, all thinking about what that little extra money would benefit them.
“It’s a rich man’s world” All the women all agreed with Sophie’s statement, making the village burst full of feminine laughter and camaraderie.
While Sophie was focused on fixing the hotel, on the other side of the island Sophie’s problems is now rearing its head on the other side of the island, as they just arrived.
Oh boy.