Mask of A Legend (22 page)

T
housands upon thousands of pain-stricken women sat in an auditorium listening to the M.C. give a speech about abused women, and how they are not alone. They watched with saddened eyes as the M.C. said that they shouldn’t stay in a home where their husband is causing them pain physically and mentally. “This is the first annual event where money is raised for abused women who have nowhere else to turn,” the M.C. announced in the microphone. The audience clapped, but they still had discomfort engraved on their faces. “Some of the top modeling magazine distributors and agencies are coming together tonight, and bringing hope, through their beauty, to those less fortunate to have a home where spouses don’t abuse them.”

The audience clapped louder.

She continued. “Tonight, the viewers at home, as well as some of the audience members, could and should help those women who are abused, or neglected, and give money to this charity to help these women escape the saddened life of always being hurt physically, and allow them to leave that life behind, and begin a new one. The first speaker, whom we have the honor of hearing tonight, is very well known when it comes to her beauty. And tonight, she will share her inner beauty with you.” The audience members clapped even louder with excitement in their minds while three television cameras went up onstage, and went closer to the podium. “First, I would like to explain to you all about this young woman, and also about all the other speakers who will be giving their time to helping this charity raise even more money than it possibly could. . . .”

As the M.C. explained a little about the charity, Legend was sitting at the back of the stage, having make-up put on her, and going over the speech that someone else wrote for her. “Is this all I have to read?” Legend asked.

William and Stephen stood by her and a make-up woman blotted lipstick on her beautiful, sensuous lips.

“Yeah, and then after you say this, just add that you’re wearing a Jack Fronter ensemble, and then walk off the stage while waving your hand,” William replied.

Four other models walked past Legend, giving her a dirty look. Legend looked at them: misunderstanding took over her eyes. Subsequently Stephen saw her puzzled look and grabbed her hand instantly.

Stephen stared at her eyes and said, “Don’t worry, those models are just jealous of you.”

“Why?” asked Legend. The make-up woman started to put mascara on her.

“Because you’re the only model who was chosen to speak at this event. Those models are just here with their agencies, sitting in the audience and listening.”

The make-up woman gave out a sigh and tapped her foot in an aggravated way. “Listen, could we please go to a mirror? I need a mirror so I can put on your make-up better,” the make-up woman explained with a strenuous nature. Legend looked at Stephen in dread.

“No, you’re doing fine as it is, Shaunna,” Stephen said.

Shaunna gave out an even greater sigh. “Fine, but if your make-up looks crappy, it’s not my fault,” Shaunna said.

“Hey, Legend, how was your photo shoot with
MG
? Did you enjoy it?” William asked.

“Oh, yes, it was great. You mean the one two days ago?”

“Yeah, that’s the one, did you enjoy it?” William asked. Shaunna finished putting make-up on Legend’s face and started to put her things away in a box that resembled a tackle box.

“Yes, I enjoyed it a lot, John was very kind to me. So, when is that photo coming out anyway?”

“It’s coming out in the June issue,” Stephen said.

A man walked up to them and grabbed Legend’s hand. “Alright, Miss Conaway, you’re up in two minutes,” the man said. Legend put the paper, with the speech on it, inside her pocket on her dress. She got up from her seat, nervousness still showed through her make-up, and proceeded to follow the tuxedo-dressed man to the side of the stage. She looked beyond the curtains, at the audience, and then at the M.C. on the stage.

“Are you nervous?” Stephen asked, standing behind Legend, and looking out at the M.C. also.

“No, I know everything I have to say, it’s right on this piece of paper.” Legend smiled and patted her pocket on her long, white dress.

The M.C. turned to Legend, smiling toward her beauty, and said, “Now I would like to introduce the girl whom everyone is talking about. Legend Conaway!”

The audience clapped while Legend slowly turned to Stephen and he winked his eye. She faced the M.C. again, and walked on the stage. Everyone stopped clapping and gave widened eyes toward her beauty. Her beauty stung them, like they were seeing a savior, an angel getting ready to speak to them. She walked up to the podium, and the M.C. went up to her ear and whispered, “Good luck.”

Legend then turned toward the audience. Television cameras stayed on her beauty, and she slowly gave a smile. “Hello,” she said, the audience members still staying silent. She reached into her pocket, and said at the same time, “Well, abused woman–”

She then paused, feeling her speech wasn’t in her pocket. Nerves flushed over her already make-up-covered, panicked flesh, and the audience members were just staring at her silence. “Um, well, um, I had a speech to give, but it seems like I’ve lost it,” she announced. She turned toward Stephen and gave widened eyes. He shook his head, he didn’t know where her speech was. “Um, well, they asked me to come up here and give a speech about abused women. Well, I guess I have to give my own speech, um, because I lost the one they gave to me.” The sweat formed on her mask, her beauty, and the audience still stood in calm.

“Father, she lost her speech, where is it?” Stephen asked. He ran up to his father and frantically searched through his pockets for him.

“What do you mean? She has her speech with her,” William said, but Stephen still kept on searching his pockets.

“If she doesn’t get that speech right now, then she’s going to screw up with her words. Father, this could seriously stop her career, it could end it.”

Stephen and William ran up to the side of the stage and stared at Legend with terror. They didn’t know what to do, say, they almost forgot to breathe. They were so used to being Legend puppeteers, that once the strings were cut from Legend, all they could do was soak in their anxiety.

“Well, I know she has it. But if she lost it . . . then it’s all up to her,” William said.

Legend looked out at the audience, nervous, afraid, scared, fear-stricken, and she didn’t know what to do. Her mind was silent, reminding her of the ironic peace she used to have in her noiseless bedroom back in Chicago. Her words were hidden. She wasn’t prepared to give her own speech on abused women, because she’s a model, and a speech was already written for her. Legend realized she had to do something, give her own views on abused women, but she was afraid. Legend looked up at the audience even more and said in a shaky rhythm, “Um, well, my theory on abused women . . . is that they’re stupid.”

The audience made an appalled noise and William popped an aspirin, no water, just swallowing it whole.

“Oh my God,” William hummed.

The audience booed her.

“What the hell is she doing?” Stephen asked.

Legend heard the boos, and realized she had to go deeper into what she meant by that. “I was abused,” Legend announced. That shut up the audience, silencing them again, and looking at her with shocking eyes. Legend continued. “They printed it in this latest magazine issue that I pose on the cover for that I was an abused child, and that’s true. . . .” She became silent, she didn’t want to tell her past to the people that looked up to her, and the people who recently booed to her. But then, she knew that she had to go deeper into her past, and tell them about it.

“When I was younger, my father would physically, as well as mentally . . . abuse me to the extent of causing me to go to the hospital. . . . He would always do that, and I didn’t know why.” Her eyes formed a shield of tears. “He would always hurt my mother, and after he left, my mother would abuse me. It was like she took his role, and for that, I had to face the consequences. . ..

“I was stupid, stupid because I stayed in a house where I was hurt, where my ambitions and self-confidence were destroyed.” A single tear fell on her mask of beauty and shined its wetness toward the audience. “I was abused because I was ugly, to them at least.” She paused for a moment, too honest, and saw she had to develop a lie in order for them to not realize her mask. “I mean, I was ugly to them, I guess, um, because it was in the eye of beholder. . . . I mean, I was constantly reminded of my looks, especially by my mother. . . . We, as women, want someone to love, we want someone to love us. But what we want is a perfect love, a perfect man who could love us for our inner beauty, as well as the outer. . . . Yet, when they hurt us, they are shattering our beauty, they are causing are inner character to be transformed into nothing but shallowness,” she announced, another tear escaping from her eyes.

She waited again, tried to keep in the rest of the tears, but failed. “When we’re hurt, we feel like we’re nothing, we feel like we deserve to be hit, only because it’s our fault for looking like we do, or for not saying the right words to him. . . . But, the thing is, it’s not our fault, it’s theirs,” she announced. The audience listened closer, watched more tears fall from her shields.

“I lied to you, my mother was never abused by my father, I was the only one abused by them. And I’m going to explain to you why. . . . You see, throughout my life, so far, all the women who were ugly were abused. At least through my eyes they were. But why is it that men never abuse a woman who is beautiful? Why is it that they buy them expensive gifts, and spoil them with expensive love? And with the ugly ones, they hurt them, and give them nothing that would describe their love for them?” she yelled.

Her tears fell faster than her words could come. “Because those men are the ugly ones. Those men, who abuse women, are the ugly ones. . . . All women are beautiful, and for that, we do not deserve to be mentally, as well as physically, struck by a man who we thought loved us. It’s our right! That’s why many of us are stupid – we stay with these men, and allow them to hurt us. But, in the end, when we do realize we’re beautiful, that’s when we become smart, and leave the ugly man behind.”

Her tears showed her inner beauty to millions who watched on their television sets, and the audience members who sat and listened to her, and to her tears. The women in the audience felt Legend’s pain, and for that, they all cried.

“I was discovered last November at a modeling event, and I never thought I would be called a supermodel. . . . I’m a perfect example of a girl who finally realized she was beautiful. And for that, I left my mother, whom I made up with before I left to go on my modeling career. I never called her since – I still have with me the memories of her abuse toward me. . . . I got smart, and realized that forgiveness is not always the best policy. . . . Sometimes it takes more than just a simple ‘sorry’ or apology. . . . Actions speak louder than words, and for that, hopefully this charity event will raise enough money for those women who want to get out of that situation, as I did.

“Hopefully, those of you viewing your television, and watching me, as well as these women in the audience, will pick up your phones, and give money to those who need it, to those who want to escape the physical and mental abuse, and go on to live a life where they realize they’re beautiful,” she announced.

Stephen put his hand against his chest, and gave an expression of love. “Father,” Stephen said, still staring at this beautiful sight of an angel that was called ‘Legend’.

“What?” William said. He, too, stared at Legend, and his face gave an expression of happiness.

“I love that girl,” Stephen replied. He still listened to Legend’s voice, showing her inner beauty to the world, and her outer beauty that was only a mask.

“These women built their lives around their abusers. They’re afraid, lost, fearing financial losses if and when they leave. Help them know there’s nothing to fear,” Legend said.

Legend explained more about beauty and the audience still stayed silent and watched, listened to a girl who shined her beauty toward many. “I know that most of you are thinking, ‘Well, Legend’s beautiful, and she has it all, what does she know about being an ugly woman who was abused?’ Well, let me tell you that I know a lot, and for that, if you find me beautiful, then all of you are beautiful also – we share the same memories of abuse, and the same feelings of our looks.”

“We are all the same mentally, but we get confused when we see each other’s physical appearance. Don’t judge a book by its cover. Many women, who have it all, share memories of abuse, and for that, we shall overcome it, and kick the men, who cause us pain, out of our lives!” she shouted, her tears falling from her beautiful, blue eyes, hearing the audience clapping and standing up. The claps were heard by Legend, and the smiles were seen by her as well. “By the way, this is a Jack Fronter ensemble that I’m wearing,” she laughed.

Stephen and William laughed also.

“Well, at least she mentioned his clothes,” William said with laughter.

Legend began waving her hands toward the audience, while they continued to clap theirs.

She walked off the stage, with nervousness still on her face, and approached Stephen, asking, “How did I do?”

Stephen gave her a gentle kiss on the face. “Well, put it this way, every woman will look up to you now. You did fabulous!”