"What are you trying to say," Steph asked, confused, pulling the duvet covering her body with her as she struggled to get out of bed.
Alex was just as confused as she was. He was handing out a cheque of 10000 and she wasn't collecting it.
"I am just paying you, what kind of question is this?"
"What do you think I am?" Steph said already so frustrated and angry.
She picked her dress from the chair, her shoe with the other hand and stomped out of the bedroom.
Alex watched with confusion as she left. Steph picked up her phone to check what time it was and realized that she had a lot of messages from Mia and also that she was late for work.
She hurriedly got dressed and stomped out of the apartment.
She called for a cab and hoped that she wouldn't be late to work on her first day after the promotion.
Alex couldn't think too much of what had just happened, he had several interviews scheduled for the day on the opening of a new branch and the partnership with Dawn's. He was excited and just hoped the day went by smoothly.
Steph got to the office just in time. Stephanie walked towards Ella's table.
"Is Helene around yet?" Steph asked.
"No, she isn't."
"But she told me to show you something when you resumes for the day," Ella said, standing from where she was sitting.
Steph followed Ella behind and then they stopped by an office space.
"She said you will be using this now," Ella said with a smile.
Steph got into the office, scanning around it with her eyes, she smiled. She had always wanted her own office space, where she wouldn't need to work with everyone.
"This is pretty big," Steph said.
"You're our assistant manager now, you deserve it," Ella said with a smile.
"Thanks, Ella."
"I should go back to work now," Ella said.
Stephanie sat down on her chair and spins around happy on the office chair. She was beyond excited. It was all becoming too good to be true.
Even though she had that little voice in her head, consistently telling her not to be too comfortable because it could all go away any minute, she decided to block it out and just enjoy the moment.
Alex was about starting his interview with Forbes. He remembered when he was young and watched his dad having all the interviews, he hoped he would be in the chair one day answering in his questions and here he was.
"And how will you describe yourself," The interviewer asked.
"Determined, focused and getting it," Alex said with a smile.
"That would be all," The interviewer said.
"Thanks a lot for having us," He added before standing to leave.
"Your interview was amazing," His mum said, sitting in the chair.
He loved his mum being at all his interview, they were closer now than they used to, be especially after his dad passed away.
Steph packed up at work once it was 7pm. She had a dinner to get back to at home and she had explaining to do about where she had been since the last 24hours.
People wondered why she still lived at home, at 23 years of age but she really never had an answer for the questions. Was she scared? Was she unprepared? Did she just like being at home?.
She was sure that the last one wasn't the answer because she hated the constant comparison that happened when she went home. If she could be anywhere else, she would.
On days when she didn't just feel like being home, she stayed with Mia but Mia had a roommate and that didn't make things easy.
Mia had asked her to be her roommate when she was about to take the apartment but Steph had been so indecisive and Mia couldn't wait for her to make up her mind.
Steph got home as they were about to start eating.
"Sorry, I am late," Steph said as she got to the dinning area.
"Glad you could grace us with your presence," her mum said, rolling her eyes at her.
"I got caught up at work."
"And throughout yesterday?"
"I was at Mia's."
"You could have called."
Steph muttered a "didn't know you cared" under her breath before moving to sit.
"Hey sis," Anna said, pulling Steph into a hug.
"When did you get back from college?" Steph asked.
"Just this morning," Anna said with a smile.
"I am glad you're back, you could have called me."
"Didn't want to disturb you at work," Anna said.
The only times when Steph was excited to go home was when Anna was home. She loved her baby sister's company a lot and always just missed her the moment she leaves.
"I have missed you," Steph said, smiling.
"I have too."
"So, Anna, what specialty are you considering?" Their dad asked.
Anna was quiet for a while, she looked up from her food to her dad.
"I am not sure yet," She answered.
"You can't say that. I knew what specialty I wanted even before year 4, you should too," her dad said.
"Your dad's right Anna, you need to start planning for your future," Her mum said.
"You don't want to be 23 and still living with your parents," She added. On days like these was when Steph wished she had accepted Mia's proposal.
"I will decide soon," Anna said before continuing to eat.
"I have good news," Steph said, dropping her cutlery to pay attention to everyone.
"Have you considered maybe you want to do a masters," Their mum said, turning to Anna. Completely ignoring that Steph had made a statement.
"You can consider that too, in case you don't want to start practice immediately. Or you can even do the two at the same time," There dad said.
Steph was used to being invisible on the table once Anna was around, but today had felt even worse than it used to.
"I will consider that too," Anna said.
Anna turned to face Stephanie "what was it you wanted to tell us, it sounded exciting," she said with a smile.
Steph was used to Anna always doing a damage control.
"What's it? Someone bought a new dress?" Her mum said, sarcastically.
"Mum!" Anna said.
"It doesn't matter, it's nothing," Steph said.
"It didn't seem like nothing," Anna said.
"Just let it go," Steph insisted.
"I think I will go inside now, just lost my appetite," Steph said, standing from where she was sitting.
Anna knew she had something to say and that she had acted out that way because of her parents and how they didn't pay attention to what she had to say.
Anna also didn't like to have all the attention but there was nothing she could do about it.
Steph went into her room, she didn't want to be at the table anymore, since no one seemed to care about what she had to say.
Anna entered the room few minutes later, she sat by the edge of Stephanie's bed.
"Hey," Anna said.
Steph was laying in bed, going through her phone.
"I knew you wanted to talk about something," Anna said and then Steph sat up next to her.
"Yes, I did have something to say but it doesn't matter."
"It matters to me though."
"I wish mum and dad felt that way," Steph said.
"I got promoted to assistant manager," Steph said.
"Wow!!! That's amazing!!" Anna said, pulling Steph in for a hug. "You have always wanted this since the first day you started working there, I am so proud of you."
Stephanie smiled from ear to ear. Her sister's compliment was good enough for her and she didn't need anything else.
"This is so great," Anna said.
"Your dreams are coming true," She added. "I wish I could be more like you," Anna said, her face fell.
"What are you saying! You're one of the best students in your class and you were already done with premed at 20. You're extraordinary," Steph said. She had always been so proud of her sister and she wondered what Anna was trying to say.
Anna looked up to face Steph. "I don't want to do medicine anymore."
"What are you saying, this is what you have always wanted and looked forward to since you were a child," Steph said, confused about her sister's sudden change of mind."That's always been Dad's and Mum's dream, Steph. Not mine. I want to do something else," Anna explained."You know I am going to support you in whatever decision you make. I will always be here for you.""I signed up for this evening's acting classes, I think I am good at this and might even be able to make a living out of it, I love it," Anna said and Steph watched how passionately she spoke about it. "I am enjoying it," Anna said."What will you do?" Steph asked. She wasn't sure what advice to give her sister. She knew how important it was to do what you want but then, her parents.Anna stayed quiet for a bit. She also didn't "t know how to answer the question."Are you going to tell them?""I don't know but I don't think so.""What are you going to do then?" Steph asked. "You should know that I am here for you, reg
Steph sat across from Mia, at the restaurant staring blankly at the menu places infront of them. She wouldn't say anything yet and Mia was starting to get anxious and scared about what the matter could be. The waitress came to get their order, it was the second time she was showing up. The first time they had decided that they didn't want anything yet but a glass of water. "Should I get you anything now?" She asked."Burger and fries," Mia responded. "Steph! Steph!" Mia called out and then she got snapped out of her thoughts. She had completely zoned out. "I will get that too," Steph concluded."You have to tell me what's wrong now, you look pale," Mia said, concerned. Steph was about to talk when the waitress came over to drop their meal. After watching the waitress walk away, Steph spoke. "I am pregnant, Mia." "What!! How!!" Mia's face was a mix of confusion and worry. She didn't understand the information she had just gotten. She knew Steph had No Boyfriend a
Steph followed him as he walked on. She didn’t understand his reaction. She was irritated by it and wanted to find out why he would treat her that way. “Hey, you can’t just walk out on me,” Steph said, panting trying to catch up with Alex, who was walking extremely fast. It was evident that he worked out and she didn’t. He didn’t stop or slow down and just kept on walking until he reached his office and got in. Steph was about to enter when Alex’s assistant stopped her. “You can’t go in,” he said, using his body as a barricade on the door. “I need to go in,” Steph insisted.“Let her in,” Alex said. Knowing that Steph was going to back down anytime soon. He hated that she was starting to create a scene. Steph walked into the office space. Alex was sitting on his executive chair and she stood in front of him like a client. “What exactly do you want me to do?”“What do you mean by that? Didn’t you hear what I said to you downstairs? I am pregnant!” “Many girls have wal
Steph scrolled through the cart she had started creating for her baby. They were so many fun and cute baby stuff online and she was enjoying scrolling through. It made her happy and even though her baby bump was bearly noticeable, she was starting to get used to the fact that she was pregnant. "Here are the files for the new fall collection," Ella said. Bringing Steph back to reality. She dropped her phone on the counter next to her. Picking the folder up."Is everything okay? You seem absentminded these days," Ella asked, concerned."I am fine," Emma said, with a smile. "Also, before I forget, they are asking for new designs for the collection," Emma added."I will see what I can do," Steph answered.She checked her phone as Ella walked out of the office. She realized she was almost late for her lunch date with Oliver and Mia. Oliver was off work today and they all decided to meet up. Steph picked up her phone and her purse and walked out of the office. The restaurant they had
“Are you going to tell them,” Anna asked, picking the dessert from the oven.Stephanie did the dressing on the salad. They were getting dinner ready. Steph had explained to Anna all that had happened and she was having trouble deciding whether to tell her parents or not. “I don’t know,” Steph said. Picking up the food to take to the dinning area. Anna always looked up to her sister and even though she never said it always, she loved Steph a lot and would literally do anything for her. Anna brought the rest of the dishes out and they all sat to eat. Their parents were already sitting and ready to eat.Each person started to dish the food and the dining was quiet at first until Anna decided to speak.“I will be going back to school this weekend,” Anna said. “That’s great. Remember to get in touch with the professor’s I mentioned,” Her dad said.“Yes, I will.”Before anyone could say anything else, Steph summoned the courage to speak. She wasn’t sure if she was doing the right th
Steph stared at the contract in front of her on the table. Alex and his mum had insisted they did it in a court so the contract will be valid. Steph had requested if she could come along with Mia. She needed someone to be there with her when she was making the decision. She was nervous and scared and even though she wasn’t showing it, she still couldn’t help it.“Sign here,” Alex’s mum said, pointing towards the part of the paper that Steph was required to sign in. Steph picked up the pen and after a few minutes she signed where she was supposed to. The documents were passed to Alex who also signed in his part. “We are done with it now, I think we can conclude that you are married” the official said. Steph had never thought her wedding would be like this. Rushed and laying for 10months. Steph dreamt of a big hall with plenty flowers, walking down to the alter to her favorite love song, a first dance with her husband to her favorite Ed-sheeran’s song. Dancing with her fr
Steph felt a sudden ray of light on her face, causing her to squint her eyes but she didn’t open it. Rather she turned to the other her face to the other side of the bed, pulling her duvet to cover her already exposed self. She suddenly felt her duvet removed from her body. She wondered what was going on and stood to sit up, rubbing her eyes with her hands. “It’s time,” The voice said. Steph managed to open her eyes to see who it was that was talking to her. “Time for what?” She said, in a sleepy tone.She finally opened her eyes and saw a lady standing in front of her bed. She wondered who it was.“Who are you?” She asked, curiously.“I am lols, I was sent here to get you ready for the interview,” She explained.“What interview?” Steph asked curiously. She thought about if Alex had mentioned it to her but she couldn’t recall.“It starts in 30 minutes, you should get in the bath now. We will get your clothes ready.”Steph figured there wasn’t so much time to keep asking questio
Steph hurried to get to work the next day. She was almost late and wouldn't want her boss to start the new month with a query for her. Alex had assigned a driver and car to her. It was going to be much easier for her to get to work and she wasn't going to need jumping the bus again and staying several minutes at the train station. She got to work just in time for the days' work to start and she wished her week started with someone else bumping into her and not Mike. They had both entered the same elevator and Steph wished she had been a few minutes late in other to not get to see him.It was just both of them in the elevator and at first they said nothing to each other. "Didn't know you still worked here" he said sarcastically and Steph wondered what he meant by that."What do you mean by that?" Steph asked curiously. Steph turned to look at him and the first thought on her mind was "have I been fired and have no idea about it". "It's all over the news. You got married to a b