Chapter Nine - Wonka

                                    

                                          
Wonka POV
"I'm Veruca Salt," the little girl whose father almost pushed Charlie off of the stage spoke up in an overly sophisticated accent. It was almost like she was trying to sound more important than she actually was, and I had to fight the urge to roll my eyes at the display. As she handed me her golden ticket, I glanced at y/n out of the corner of my eye and saw her making fun of the silly little girl in front of me, much to the delight of both Charlie and the other young lady dressed in blue. I believe her name is Violet.  I couldn't help the chuckle that escaped my lips at y/n's spot-on impression of dear, little Veruca. 
"My dear Veruca, what a pleasure. And how pretty you look in that lovely mink coat." I brushed my hand against the front of her coat. The texture was smooth and easily rolled in between my fingers. 'Yup, it's definitely real. Shocker.' "I've got three others at home," she bragged. 'Oh yes. Please continue to brag about how many animals died to give you your collection of mink coats.' 
I needed to get both her and her father off to the side quickly before I snapped. I had to remind myself that it is important that I make each and every one of my guests feel comfortable enough so that when the time came, they won't be so reluctant to sign my contract and that meant stroking their ridiculously large egos...well apart from y/n and Charlie. 
I turned to Mr. Salt and had to really put forth all of my energy to not strike him for his previous behavior. "And Mr. Salt," I said in what I hoped was an amicable voice. "Overjoyed to meet you sir. Would you just step over there a minute?" Finally, they both moved to the side and I turned to face the next little rotten child: the Gluttonous Augustus Gloop. 
"Augustus Gloop," he introduced himself in a thick German accent. I paused, taking note of his expression.  He's looking at me as if I was a walking, talking chocolate bar.  Oh dear...I am most certainly NOT edible, thank you very much. I hid my discomfort by smirking at the round boy and said, "Augustus, my dear boy, how good to see you...and in such fine shape." I remarked and patted his large, flabby stomach. I'm fairly certain that neither he, nor his mother understood that I was making fun of him which just speaks volumes as to their own ignorance of their unhealthy appearances. I heard a delicate snort and glanced at y/n who hand her hand over her mouth in an attempt to suppress a giggle. My chest swelled with pride at the thought that I made her laugh. "And this must be the radiant Mrs. Gloop. Just over there, dear lady." The Gloops shuffled over to where the Salts were standing and I turned to greet my next guest, which was apparently little Miss. Violet. 
She seemed nervous and turned to look in my sweetheart and her brother's direction. Charlie gave her a small, encouraging smile. 'Huh, that is strange,' I thought to myself. It seems like she has taken a shine to both y/n and Charlie. Which, I can't blame her for, but what is surprising is that my sweet little angel and her brother have taken a shine to her as well. I'll have to keep my eye on this new development because if Violet fails her test, the aftermath of her punishment might hurt both y/n and Charlie deeply. 
Violet cautiously approached me and nervously handed over her ticket. "Violet Beauregarde," she said, meekly. 'She is...definitely not what I was expecting.' I stared at her intently trying to determine if the shy nature she presented was just a façade or actually genuine.  She fidgeted under my gaze, and I determined that she was genuine. I did my best to appease her nervousness by speaking to her in a soft tone. "Darling child, welcome to Wonka's." Surprisingly, it didn't work because she looked even more uncomfortable than she had before. She leaned away from me in unease before blurting out, "What kind of gum you got here?" I could tell that she was just trying to hide how nervous she was by filling the void with mindless chatter, but I wanted to get to the bottom of why she was nervous. Can she see behind my own façade?  If she can, then color me impressed because it's taken me years to build up this persona. As impressive as it was, I needed to find a way to put her more at ease so she will be more than happy to sign my contract.