“Hey Cindy, good morning” a tall guy with a slim masculine figure came running towards me as I got out of the choir’s quarters. His name is Sean and his mother is the choir mistress, and also the presiding pastor's wife. Technically, he is Alice’s brother but he’s the older one between them. I have always known he has a thing for me but he has never spoken to me before.
“How are you doing?” He asked, flashing a warm smile at me. The smile made me feel a knot in my stomach. Damn! He is so cute. I would mind staring at him all day, if I am given the chance.
“I’m okay” I said nervously, avoiding his intense gaze. The thought of him talking to me for the first time made me feel butterflies in my stomach because this was literally my prayer point.
We had exchanged glances a few times but aside from that, he’s just a regular popular guy at the church. I also have a crush on him I must confess but I have always thought I’m not even the kind of woman he wants. He has a good relationship with Charlotte, every guy’s crush so I buried every assumption that I could ever date him.
“Can we talk after church?”
I didn’t even know how to respond. I have always wanted him to walk up to me because I lacked the confidence to approach him for friendship. As I was about to respond, I sighted my dad coming towards where I was. I guess he must have been looking for me for a while because the service just began.
“We should talk later, I gotta go” I said hurriedly then walked up to my dad.
“Cindy, what were you doing there?” He asked, giving Sean a sinister look as he walked past us into the church.
“Nothing, dad” I said.
“Good. Now get into the church”
I walked into the church with caution, monitoring each step I took so I wouldn't fall. If I had known, I wouldn’t have worn heels this morning. It was getting uncomfortable as I was walking back into the church especially as I can’t get my thoughts over the fact that Sean just spoke to me.
The rest of the service was a good one. The choir did justice to their part of the service. I have a really good voice so I was amongst the soprano singers. I locked eyes with Sean a few times, but I always looked away nervously. In no time, the service had come to an end. I took off the robe and handed it over to Alice. She looked so innocent as she was tending to the rest of the choir. We’re of the same age and height, I guess.
Her skin is pale and white but she’s really slim and looks like a model, unlike me of course. I like her though but we’re not as close as I really want us to be, maybe because I’m pretty busy with work to tend to any friendship. God knows if she’s aware of what her brother is trying to do with me, I’m sure she’d freak out if she finds out.
My dad gave me a signal with his hand to proceed to the car, too bad I won’t be able to talk to Sean as I said earlier. I don’t know why my dad is overprotective over me and my sister. It’s even worse with me, probably because I am the older one. As I got into the car, I noticed my dad was unusually quiet. No matter how my sister and mum were chattering and making silly jokes, he didn’t utter a word till we rode home.
Immediately we got inside, he turned to me with an angry look and asked, “What were you doing with pastor Joseph’s son, Sean?”
“Nothing. We were just talking. Is anything wrong?”
“Nothing? Look I saw the look in his eyes okay!”
“What kind of look?” My mum cuts in.
“He was looking at Cindy like he wanted to do something stupid with her. I stood outside for some minutes, watching he and Cindy”
“Dad, I’m not a kid anymore! I’m twenty one years old for God’s sake yet, you still act like I’m sixteen. Gosh! get it together dad!”
“Is that what you have to say about this?” He hollered at me.
“Yes dad. If I want to get married right now, I’m so damn sure you can’t stop me. So what’s the big deal?
“That’s not even the point”
“The point is, you need to stop over protecting me at this stage. Do that with Maddie, not me” I said with a grimace.
“That boy is bad news and you know it. I’m not stopping you from mingling with others but Sean, is a bad idea”
“Yes honey, you know how he flocks around other ladies amongst the choir, I’m very sure you wouldn’t want a husband who flirts with the whole city” my mum added.
“Fine, I get it, you have a point. But dad shouldn’t talk to me like I’m a kid”
“You go on to your room and I’d sort that out, okay?” My mom says with a warm smile.
I turned towards my room and took off my fascinator hat then threw it on the bed as soon as I got into my room and heaved a sigh. I took off my gown slowly and let down my hair. I looked towards the wall clock, it’s 11:20 am. I still have plenty of time to rest before I do my laundry. Even though I hate to admit it, tomorrow is monday. One day I dread the most purposely because of the tedious work that comes along with my job.
I worked as a waitress at a restaurant, a few kilometers away from my house. It wasn’t too stressful because we ran in shifts, the morning and evening shift. It's tedious on Mondays because I’m on the morning shift for that day. I slumped into my bed then took off my glasses then placed it on the drawer next to my bed. In no time, I slowly closed my eyes, giving way for nature to have its course.
John’s Pov. The day was pretty bright and sunny, not too bad for a Monday morning. I picked up my phone to check my schedule for today, damn! I have a whole lot on my plate for the day. I saw a notification from Fiona, my girlfriend. I opened it and schemed through her message, “Hi honey, please call me soon, I miss you so much.”I wasn’t in the mood to talk to her, or maybe I will later in the day but right now, I had a lot to worry about. I leaned on my chair and swung it sideways while I used one finger to make a little noise in the office. My office isn’t so large but at least it’s portable, just as I like it. My father owns a big club so I work as the manager at the club. A knock on my door jolted me back to reality then a young guy in his early twenties walked in. “Morning sir, your father requests your presence” he said. “Morning Vince, where is he right now?” I asked, twirling my revolting chair around, to face him properly. “In his private room, sir” he responded with en
“Clean up this mess” I said with a grimace. The two men carried the dead body out of the room, leaving me and my father alone. I walked to the chair opposite where he was seated and made myself comfortable on it. I couldn’t detect my father’s expression, maybe because of the dark shades he wore or the effect of the dimly lit room on him. He took the bottle of vodka on the table and poured some of its content into a glass cup. He picked it up and sipped from the cup slowly. He took off his dark shades and placed it on the table then clutched his fingers together, with a stern look on his face. “How did you sort the deal with Damien Sanders?” He asked, relaxing on his chair, swinging it side to side slowly. “Went pretty well dad” I responded. “Good to hear” he said, placing the glass cup gently on the table. “I thought you said you quit drinking because of your health? What went wrong again?” “Need I remind you that you have no right to tell me what to do” he asked, facing me and
Cindy’s Pov. The ride to work was a comfortable one and to be honest, it’s been a while since I felt such comfort. My neighbor, Mrs McLean, gave me a lift in her new car. I got to work fifteen minutes earlier so I had enough time to change into my work clothes. M&T restaurant wasn’t a big restaurant but sometimes we barely got customers but I guessed the owner is a really consistent person because despite the low sales, he still manages to pay the staff and maintain the place. I got into the work quarters, thankfully the people who are working with me in this shift are yet to come. I was to work the evening shift. I quickly took my work clothes from the closet, a light blue plain shirt with M&T’s logo on it and blue pants. I picked my name tag from my bag then pinned it on the shirt. As I was about to leave the quarters, someone I felt a presence behind me. I picked up a long stick that was placed on the wall, just in case anything was there to harm me. The room was dimly lit so
John's Pov I was pissed. I just needed to get away from Fiona by all means, not that I had any specific place in mind. But seeing her face all the time, I get reminded of how little control I have over my life. Dad had to choose a girl for me? Why couldn't I make that decision myself? I'm my own man, that decision has to be mine and mine alone. He's not the one who has to wake up to her fake face everyday for the rest of his life. She can't even hold an intelligent conversation. And the gum! Did she have to chew so loud?! Doesn't she know basic etiquette?! Yeah, I was pissed and I needed to calm down a little. It would have been better if I had a bestfriend I could talk about these stuff with, but our business is a tricky one and we can only trust family; even if I wanted to, I wasn't even that close to anyone. I drove around town a little, hoping to find some kind of distraction, but there was nothing, there was very little that interests me. Eventually, I decided to stop a
John's PovWhen I returned to the club, I was a little bit surprised to see Vince anxiously waiting for me in front of my office. I knew something was off immediately."You're back." He said when he saw me."Yes. Did something happen?""Not really, but I've been asked to wait for you and let you know that your father requests to see you as soon as you return."Why?But even as I asked myself that question, I knew why.Fiona."Did he return home yet?" I asked."No, he's still in his private room.""Alright, I'll go meet him."I didn't bother entering my office, I turned around and made my way to Dad's private room, so not expecting to see Fiona sitting on the armchair across from him with her head down and her make-up streaming down her face.They both looked up as I entered, no doubt Dad had an angry expression on his face."Come in, John." Dad said in a flat tone, gesturing at the empty armchair next to Fiona's. I kept my eyes away from her and took my seat. What did she tell him?
Cindy's pov"He likes you." Mabel said as soon as the handsome customer left. I had no idea she had been listening."There's no way. Did you look at him at all? I'm clearly not his type." I objected."Uh-huh, and he was clearly not staring at you like you're a goddess. Sometimes, I think you just have a pretty head on your shoulders but yet you're so dense when it comes to men. That man was flirting with you and you made a total fool of yourself. You should have flirted back, but you couldn't utter a word. I don't blame you though, he's really hot.""What are you talking about? Besides, did you see his tattoo? He's branded by the devil, there's no way someone like him and someone like me can end up together. We're worlds apart.""Oh please, he did that to himself, not the devil and his tattoo was nice. You're so obsessed with church. If you ask me, I think that men with tattoos are the nicest, they know how to treat their women right. I mean, that's a huge tip and he was a total gentl
The first thing that came to my mind was Maddie!"Mom? Dad? What's going on? Did something happen to Maddie?" I asked, hysterical while I looked down at my wrist watch, checking the time. There was still about two hours before Maddie would return home from school.Mom looked up at me then, actually surprised to see me."Oh, you're home. I didn't hear you come in." Mom said, giving me a smile I knew for sure was forced.Dad looked up then too, but he didn't pretend to smile, he just stared at me but I knew he wasn't really seeing me."What's wrong? Why were you both lost in thought?" I asked with concern.Mom waved it off."We're fine. How was work? Did you have a lot of customers today?""Barely.""I worry for Mr. Sam. We should remember to say a prayer for his business.""I know, mom. But that's not important right now, I know something is clearly up with you two. I'm asking what it is."Mom turned away from me to Dad, staring at him as the sad expression returned to her face.Dad bl
John's povI couldn't concentrate.For the past hour, I've been staring at the heap of documents on my desk without really seeing them. I was plagued with thoughts, thoughts of the angel-like woman I met the day before. I couldn't stop replaying our very short conversation and her smile, over and over again in my head.That was a problem.Even while I was with Fiona, shopping and the rest, I kept thinking about Cindy, wondering what it would feel like having her next to me rather than Fiona. Obviously, I would be happier in her company.But I wasn't doing it again... comparing Fiona to Cindy. That was not fair to Fiona and she actually made an effort to be less annoying throughout our outing. She didn't even buy so many shoes and clothes, unlike her and she used the proper cutlery at dinner.That was a good start.Yet... I was making no headway with work. I had to stretch my legs a little, go out for a bit to clear my head so I could focus on work. I had to get Cindy off my mind some