Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Synchronising my phone with my car Bluetooth, I scrolled through the music section and soon 'Never give up' by Sia filled the air while I wait for the traffic light to turn green.

I hummed along to the song, swaying my head from side to side as the feeling of liberation spread its warmth inside me.

God knows how long I have felt caged in that relationship.

When I confessed my feeling to Paul, I had been mentally preparing myself for rejection, knowing I have a low chance of getting his attention with all the stunning women flocking around him. So, imagine how surprised I was when I got his positive response the next day.

Thrilled was an understatement. I felt like the universe had given me what I want on a platter of gold like I had won the lottery even though I didn’t deserve it.

My mom and my only best friend Kira thought I had gone crazy when I went shopping even though I am struggling financially. I took my time getting everything Paul loves and even got groceries so I can go to his house at any time to cook meals for him.

Now that I have the time to think about the event of the past year, I realized everything is my fault.

The thing is, I was so excited to be Paul’s girlfriend that I let my emotion get the better of me. I let him see right through me, let him see how I desperately need a shoulder to lean on and he took advantage of that.

Paul has never taken me out on a date, he didn’t treat me like he treated all the other girls around him. Even though Paul’s monthly income triples mine, he made me spend everything on him. From the clothes, he wears to the food he eats and the dinner dates.

Yes—I am the one who pays for all the dates we’ve been to.

I confronted him one afternoon and asked him why he hasn’t asked me out on a date or even try to take me out just once, even though we are dating. He excused his actions by telling me he is saving his salaries to give us a better future and I was gullible enough to believe him.

Looking back now makes me realize I have been nothing but a fool, I let my emotion get the better of me.

The loud, hooting sound of cars honking snapped my attention back to the road, the traffic light had turned green. Muttering an apology to the angry drivers behind me, I ignited the car and speed away before I can hear them curse at me.

The street is bustling with activities, parents driving their children down to school before going to their places of work, some students getting into public buses, others walking in pairs, laughing, and joking about all kinds of stuff as they made their way to school. Hence the reason for the heavy traffic.

Workers hurry to catch up with the buses, so they won’t be late for their places of work, and street shop owners open for the day while some are still shut. Exhaust fumes from cars tainting the air, and voices of people screaming, calling, and laughing once again fill the streets of Dravilsberg.

I wouldn’t say I live in the worst part of the country, but it is also not the best part of it.

Dravilsberg is a small country on its own, having just ten states and seventy-eight cities and I live in the parts of the city called ghetto.

You see, each city in every state is classified under three classes. We have the slum, ghetto and upscale. The slum is where poverty-stricken people live. People like me who can afford to get some kinds of stuff themselves live in the ghetto and you know those who live in the upscale part of the city. The rich ones.

Taking one last bend onto Cavern Street, weird name, right? I pull up in the garage of my parent’s little villa and stepped out of the car. Delivering two rapid knocks on the door, it swings open to reveal my mom’s smiling face.

‘Did something good happen?’ I stared at her in confusion.

‘Yes,’ she is so breathy, her eyes darting everywhere all at once.

She is acting like a teenager suddenly and it is weird. Since the moment we received that call of dad dying in an accident, I saw the light in her eyes dwindle until they no longer exist. I had no choice but to be the shoulder for her to lean on.

It has been five years now, so seeing her excited brought a smile to my face.

‘Well, I also have good news for you,’ I told her, and her face brightened even more.

‘What is it? Did something good happen at work? Did you find someone interested in investing in your father’s construction company? Is that why you left the house so early?’

My stomach rumbled with laughter, and I doubled over by the force of it.

‘That is so many questions,’ I stopped laughing to stare at her. ‘You are right, I left home early for it, but it has nothing to do with the company.’

‘So, what is it?’ She raised her eyebrows, gazing at me with so much focus.

‘I broke up with Paul,’ I announced.

It takes a while for the news to sink in, but then her eyes widen, and her left hand move to cover her mouth as she screams into it.

‘Oh, my God! I can’t believe it finally happened,’ she says, pulling me into a hug.

‘Me too, I feel so happy knowing I don’t have to put up with that bastard anymore.’

‘I am so happy for you baby, you don’t know how much I hate what that guy is doing to you,’ she swallows. ‘The fact that he keeps making you doubt yourself and keep putting you down makes me so angry.’

‘Well, it's over now,’ I told her. ‘Now tell me what good news you have for me.’

I don't know if I imagined it or not, but mom's face lit up like a bulb, I knew without being told that the reason for that is what she is about to say to me.

‘Come on— I'm dying with curiosity here.’

‘So, the thing is—I’ve been seeing someone for a while now, we fell in love with each other and decided to get married.’ She wiggled her left hand in front of me, displaying the golden ring that is wrapped around her ring finger.

‘What?’ I felt like a bucket of cold water just smack me right in the face. ‘You’re getting married?’

Of all the things I expected her to say to me, I didn't imagine it would have anything to do with marriage.

‘Yes, baby. Balthas and I have decided to start living toge...' she trailed off when she noticed the expression on my face, her eyes darting to the ground and refusing to stare at me.

I feel the ground shift beneath me, the air in the room is suddenly not enough for two people.

‘Baby,’ mom called but I pay her no attention.

How could she do this to me? How could she betray her daughter in this manner?

‘When?’ That was the only thing I could think of. ‘When did all these start? I asked.

‘Lexi—’

‘When!? My voice took on a hard edge, startling her.

‘It has been over two years now,’ she says, still not looking at me.

Christ! Over two years

My mom has been in a relationship long before my first boyfriend asked me out on a date, and she didn’t think to tell me.

‘Say something, honey,’ mom urged, her voice shaky.

‘What? What do you want me to say? Do you want me to say congratulations on your engagement or I should tell you that the shock from the bombshell you just dropped on me still hasn’t faded?’

‘I didn’t mean for things to happen this way, honey, you’ve got to believe me,’ she pleaded.

‘I can’t believe this,’ I pushed one hand into my hair and ruffled it. ‘All the time I thought you were going through so much pain because of dad’s death, you’ve been seeing someone instead!

‘You’ve been busy having fun, going on romantic dates, and having the best time of your life while I put my life on hold just to support you and help you get back on your feet.’

‘No, no, that’s not what happened,’ she says, stepping forward to hold my hands but I moved out of reach.

‘And while you are having so much fun, did it occur to you that I was also suffering from losing one of my parents?’

‘Oh, honey,’ she wanted to say something else but decide otherwise.

‘Did it ever occur to you that I have my dreams as well? Did you try to think of what running dad’s company alone and at such a young age would do to me?’

She said nothing and just continue to stare at the ground.

‘Of course, you didn’t even have the time to think of that, you were too busy having fun with your boyfriend to care about your miserable daughter.’

‘Don’t take that tone with me, Lexi, I am still your mother,’ I scoffed at her warning.

‘Oh! Now you remember who the mother is between us when you neglected my feeling and left me to deal with my pains and that of yours alone,’ I seethed. ‘You should have thought of that when you left me to shoulder everything while you hide away like a coward.’

I turn around then, and rushed into my room before she could see the tears in my eyes. Once I slide the door shut behind me, my knee buckled under me, and I fall to the ground. Desperate for a break, I tried to remind myself that my mother didn’t think of me or my well-being after my father left us in this cruel world.

Trying but failing to give myself reasons why I should be crying my heart out instead of sitting here on the floor like I am the last person on earth who should feel hurt. But then reality comes crashing down on me and I know I can’t afford to be miserable right now.

Even if no one cares about my dreams, my ambitions or what makes me the woman I am today, I can’t afford to lose myself. If I lose my father’s company to the loan sharks, I’ll lose whatever shred of faith I have in fulfilling my dreams. Wiping away the tears threatening to fall, I pull myself from the floor and over to my table.

With a soft flick, I pull my laptop open and turn it on. Right there on the screen, waiting for me to put a finality to it, is the proposal I have been preparing for months. I have rifled through big names company and only ABM stands out, they have the capacity to help me fulfil what I have planned to achieve within a short period of time.

Moving the cursor over the proposal, I clicked on it and continue drafting it with the intention of forwarding it this time before I get cold feet.