~ The Next Day ~Amelia hurried out of her apartment and locked the door. She had just ten minutes to get to the company. Though she could still make it, she wanted to get there as soon as she could. She had woken up late because she left the party very late. James wasn’t ready to leave the party when she wanted to, so she had no choice then to stay back with him. Before she could walk away from her door, Elena’s door opened, and Amelia turned back. She saw Elena standing at the door. Elena smiled widely at her, but Amelia was too pained to smile back at her. She remembered what she did to her the previous night. “Good morning, Amelia. When did you return yesterday?” Elena asked, and Amelia exhaled. “I returned very late. You must have been sleeping when I came back,” Amelia answered coldly. Elena noticed the way she acted, and she stepped out of her apartment and shut the door behind her. “What is wrong, Amelia? You don’t sound happy.” Amelia looked at her and shook her head.
Charles sat in a restaurant, waiting for his divorced wife, Helen. They had both agreed to meet because of their son and nothing more. He took a peek at his wristwatch and saw it was almost noon. “This is one of the reasons why I get so mad at her. Why didn’t she just choose noon for the meeting if she would keep me waiting till this time?” He picked up his cup of coffee and took a sip. He looked out of the restaurant through the transparent walls. He soon sighted a car park outside the restaurant. The car door opened, and he saw Helen alight. She looked as beautiful as ever. Charles gulped heavily and looked away. He picked his cup of coffee and took another sip. “I am so sorry! I got a bit delayed at the airport,” Helen uttered and sat. He looked up and stared at her face. There was no difference from the last time he saw her. She looked so beautiful and young. “Airport?” Charles asked in surprise, and she bobbed. “I just got back from Malaysia. I’m sorry I kept you waiting
Amelia was still in shock, even after the day’s work was over. When she helped James wear his shirt, she was tempted to bury her nose in his chest and sniff him. His singlet, his everything smelled so nice! She couldn’t stop wondering how he smelled so nice, and he was yet to be eaten up by people. She hung her tote bag on her shoulders and waited for James to leave the office, before she headed home. James walked out of the office and met Amelia standing at her desk. “What are you waiting for?” He asked, and she raised her head to look at him. “I’m waiting for you, sir. I didn’t want to leave until you left.” James raised his eyebrows and exhaled softly. He tucked his hands in his pockets and walked to the elevator. She hurried behind him and they both waited for the elevator to give way to them. For some reasons that Amelia wasn't sure about, she felt quite nervous. Maybe because she was going to stand in the same elevator with James at the same time. The elevator opened,
Amelia dragged her feet down the street her apartment was, crying profusely. Everyone that passed past her stared at her. They all wondered what had happened to her, but never asked her what happened. “How do I call Mr. James now? He is going to be so mad at me tomorrow. If I don’t resume using the phone tomorrow, I’ll be so done!” “All my money has been stolen, I can’t buy another one unless I get home and pick some more cash. But I can’t come back here tonight, it’s already late.” “Why is the world against me so much? Why do you hate me so much!” She cried aloud like a baby. She kept dragging her feet, her head lowered in sadness, and her bag hung carelessly on her shoulder. She didn’t care about the eyes that peered at her. She was devastated. She shuffled past the mall on her street and before she could take five footsteps away from the entrance of the mall, she heard a loud crash behind her. She stood walking and looked back in fear. She saw a woman struggling with alread
“Amelia? What are you doing here?” James asked after he stopped hugging Helen. “I brought her home, because she helped me,” Helen answered before Amelia could, and the men exchanged looks. “I’ll tell you about it later, okay? Come on, James, join me in the kitchen.” Helen held James’ hand and pulled him along with her to the kitchen. After they were gone, Amelia looked at Charles, she didn’t know what to say. “Come and have your seat, Amelia. Let’s talk.” Charles walked to the sofa, and Amelia followed behind him. She sat on the sofa in front of Charles and looked around again. “Welcome to my home, Amelia. I’m still very surprised to see you.”“Thank you, Mr. Charles. I never knew I’d be visiting too. But Ma’am insisted I have dinner with her. I never knew she was your wife.” “Erm, not really. She is my ex-wife.” “Oh… I’m sorry, Mr. Charles.” Amelia lowered her head, and he chuckled. “It’s fine, Amelia. You never knew about it.” *“So, are you going to tell me why Amelia is
Charles parked in front of Amelia’s apartment, and she alighted. He also stepped out of the car and walked up to her. “Thank you so much for the ride. You can go back now. I don’t want to keep you waiting,” Amelia said and bowed. “I would love to talk to you about something. Do you mind if I go in with you?” “Oh really? Sure. Let’s go, Sir.” Amelia led the way and Charles followed behind her. They walked up the stairs and in no time, they got to her floor. She headed to her door and when she drew close, she looked at Elena’s door. “She is probably asleep,” She said aloud, and Charles looked at the door. “Who is asleep?” He asked, and she looked back at him. “My friend, Elena. I’m always coming home late, and I don’t get a chance to talk to her at night:” “Elena?” Charles knitted his brows, and Amelia nodded, opening her door. “Why? Do you know her?” “I know one Elena. She worked as James’ Secretary before she got him pissed, and he fired her. I heard she lives around the co
Amelia got to the company very early in the morning. She got to her table and arranged everywhere. James was yet to arrive, and she was happy she got to the company before him. ‘I’m going to try my best not to piss him off.’ She took a look at her outfit and smiled. She was dressed in a yellow T-shirt and a very tight blue skirt that stopped directly on top of her knee. Her flat shoes were black. Her t-shirt refused to remain tucked in her shirt because her skirt was too tight. As she walked, it kept pulling out. ‘I believe this is a better look. He would be surprised to see me wearing something fitted.’ Amelia thought excitedly. She sat on her chair and placed her bag on the table. She pulled out the file James had given her and began to read through it again. She stayed up all night to make sure she covered everything in the file. She just wanted to brush through to refresh her memory. She was still reading when she heard the elevator open. ‘He is here!’ She sprang to her fee
So many taxis passed by Amelia, but she wasn’t ready to stop one. Her head was full, her eyes were blurry due to her tears, her heart was broken. An hour back, she thought she finally got control over her life. She thought she could now make money and survive without her uncle, but she was wrong. The happy fantasy was washed down the drain by James. She looked at the company’s building for the last time and began to shuffle down the streets. She tried so hard not to call Freddie and tell him about it because she believed he would be busy, and she didn’t want to be a distraction. She held her bag firmly, grasping it tightly under her shoulders as she walked. This time, she wasn’t going to let anyone snatch her new phone and money from her.Almost everyone they passed by Amelia looked at her. Something caught their attention. It was either the way she sobbed home, or her fitted skirt. When Amelia noticed a young couple staring at her, she realized they were whispering things to them