A funeral had never been this empty, a symbolism of the lack of friends and family, how sad her life was. Birds are the only ones to be heard in th graveyard, their cheery songs seem to celebrate her passing. And the bright sun that gazes upon us doesn’t seem to want to tuck its warmness away.
Maybe it is good that it is warm, this way I will not wallow in the cold, hoping for the warm hug my mother would have given me. My mother had always seen my father as her only family and only friend. A burning fire love of an immigrant couple who trusted each other for life.
But mother was a fool, she was a fool to trust a that man blindly, that man that abandoned her when she got sick. That man who had already legally married another woman in order to get permeant residence a year after they had arrived.
“Everything will be okay Leah; I will come back in the morning. Call James to come help you with the child.” Cyan had always been an amazing friend; I had never been in a situation where she didn’t wholeheartedly support me, she had taken both my mother and her baby to the hospital after my father had left her on the side of the road during labor. I had hoped mother would survive, she would confront father of his actions, but she had died before even reaching the hospital.
“James will not come.”
“What? Why, you cannot take care of a new born alone.” Cyan scolded, “I get you do not want to burden him, but he is your boyfriend, and he should help.”
“He… he broke up with me yesterday.”
Fate, destiny or whatever it is, that had been choosing the struggles in my life sure was cruel, the devil himself wasn’t this cruel. Losing a job and a mother who left a new born child behind, having my father run to his legal wife the same day of her death, my boyfriend had to break up with me in the same wavelength.
“What? Why would he do such a thing?”
“He is getting married.” I replied in under my breath, hypocritical of me to scold my mother for not being smart enough to see through father’s façade, I was naïve myself, enough to not realize that my boyfriend’s cousin was actually his other girlfriend, the one he stands to marry in two weeks.
“My friend” Cyan’s warm arms had always made things feel better, but nothing could numb the pain I felt today, I was close to being deported. My mother had stayed for 16 years in this country and not once did she think of applying for permanent residency.
“How am I going to take care of the baby? How will I survive getting deported Cyan?” along with the cries of a child, a mother at 24 was not a problem to most, but I had only just began getting money through commissions to my artwork, and I didn’t have a stable job “I will be so lonely, I know no one there, I don’t even speak the language.”
The funeral preparations had gone well, my mother had made sure she had enough money for the funeral and the after care, smart thing to do, I should set up a plan myself. Only Cyan and I attended, “so, have you found a way to not get deported?”
“No, I am still learning how to take care of Zoey, she is a bit handful.”
“You finally chosen a name?”
My mother never had a chance to name her, she was busy crying and screaming at my father to not leave after giving birth at the side of the road. Pitiful, pathetic, whatever word she was.
“Yeah, it means life, I want her to have a long and happy life.” The words choke me as I say them, how am I going to provide this happy life when I do not even have a plan, “She is so precious, it is so unbelievable she shares the same blood as that man.”
“Hey, please don’t cry.” “We will fight through this; I already have a plan on how you can avert being deported.”
“Huh, is it a legitimate plan?”
Cyan’s planning skills are impeccable, but they all had one thing in common. We were always in trouble. I still remember almost getting expelled because of one of her plans.
“Yes, I was watching this show about immigrant getting married to get permanent residence. I think we should do it.”
“Cyan are you out of your mind?” of course she would produce a crazy plan “as far as I know my boyfriend of 5 years is marrying the girl, he said was his cousin in two weeks in the same chapel I said I wanted to marry at. Who in their right mind would marry an immigrant without a second thought?”
“Ugh, could you stop being negative. You are Kaleah Huxley before anything, and amazing girl who any man would be insane to pass of as a wife. Aside from some dumb guy names James that should be killed.”
“You are insane, I am going to look for a job and apply for a work permit. Not that crazy idea of yours.”
A month later.
Back then I had really thought that plan was insane, but as the deadline approaches and no company accepting my applications, artists have it hard anyway. The path to hell became the easiest path to travel.
“Um…. So”
“Did you go to that James wedding; the answer better be no because I would beat your dumb *ss up if you went to that jerk’s wedding.”
“I did not, okay. Ugh, I just called, and you are already scolding me. How was I supposed to go with Zoey?” I sigh, “remember that marriage plan to keep me from getting deported?”
With the silence that follows I became anxious; she thinks I am insane, doesn’t she? I boasted about finding a job a month ago. Now I am coming back with a tucked tail asking for help.
“Finally, you came around, I already have a few candidates ready, we will do it in a blind date type of thing.”
“What? How did you know I was going to consider it?”
“I didn’t, I just wanted to keep my options open, there is no way my friend is leaving me here all alone.”
“Huh, fine. When will the dates start?”
I sigh to listen to Cyan’s plan. Maybe this plan would blow up in our faces like most of her plans do.
Having talked to Cyan about the plan and deciding on how to manage the dates, I had been happy enough to finally take Zoey out to the park. Even when the happy memories in this place included my father, they still were good, and I want to share them with Zoey. The summer sun had already indorsed the sky with its blazing presence, the beautiful summer flowers as beautiful as ever. It reminds me of my 12th birthday, a picnic birthday party. Even though no one dared to come celebrate with me, that man and my mother were there. And I was the happiest. “I will find you a good father figure, one who will never run away.” I glance at the smiling angel in the strollers. She had inherited mother’s green eyes, precious emerald globes, which is mother used to call them since I myself have the same emerald globes. “I will protect you okay. I will protect you.” A precious young soul with no sins yet, her lips haven’t said a word of Malice, yet to step on the dirt of the world. “Huh, I thought
He had noticed me soon, and was started by my eyes on him, he had averted his eyes on Zoey who was in my arms. But he had snorted and ignored us, moving his eyes to the bus that had just stopped in front of him. Then a little boy who looked almost 6 had run up to him calling him father before he embraced him and left. I had thought I was over him leaving us, but I was not. I felt my cheeks water for just a few seconds, I think Zoey was crying as well. But I was in a daze to comprehend what was going on, I had loved and know this man all my life until he decides to leave a few months ago. He fed me, changed dippers for me, helped me learn how to walk. He had been the epitome of a good man in my life, and I had hoped to find a man as loving as him, and I admired him for how much he loved my mother only to leave us at our worst. How dare he, how dare he embrace someone else while Zoey didn’t have the privilege of even having a real family. How dare he? (Third POV) Cyan had been in Cla
“He used his dead brother’s pictures to catfish us. How dare he?” ‘Keep it down Cyan Zoey just slept.” I had tried to hush the bewildered Cyan. “He is so creepy,” she sighed, “see this is why we should do background checks, you wouldn’t have to go out with a dead man.” She had immediately taken out her phone to call Cain to swindle him into doing background checks for the remaining potential dates. I tried to have a positive outlook of the whole thing, but the future didn’t look too bright for my dating life. “Let us just rest first Cyan, you cannot disturb Cain’s sleep.” “Ugh, fine, but I will make sure that Mule guy will never do the whole catfishing thing again.” Her frugal thoughts had not been premature. Because it only took one night before Ellen Mule had started texting me again, he would ask “are you in need of me now?” Before taunting me with vile comments of how useless I would be without him. “He is so immature” Cyan had said. “Maybe this is not our thing, we should
It took a few seconds for my cousin to reach the scene of the crime and my aunt and uncle came right after. Scolding Clayton for having his indecent saga in the family kitchen. But then my angry grandmother who had just woken up stormed in angrily.“What is going on? Why did you scream like that you brat?” She scolds me.“Grandmother, Clayton was kissing that girl in the kitchen.” Conan explains mischievously,“I am not that girl; I am his girlfriend.” Hailee defended herself.The reaction of the rest of the family had been coordinated. Yes, we had urged Clay to marry many times, but I knew everyone agreed with me on the choice of his bride.“Sit down.”Grandmother ordered before ranting to the rest of the family on how to choose partners. She had stared at Hailee with an annoying face a few times. But Clayton had defended her, a really nice defense, Clayton wasn’t an ideal man to marry. Yes, he was a handsome rich man, but he was what many called a playboy, though many women still de
(Kaleah POV) It had been a doomed morning from the beginning, taking care of Zoey alone had taken a toll on me. I really needed to find a person to help me take care of her. The door had been locked when I slept but to my surprise it had been unlocked when I woke. ‘Paranoia would make you lose your mind’ I had thought. When I opened my phone Cyan had sent me loads of photos of her family. ‘That brat Clay wants to marry a con artist’ is the topic for the day. She had complained about how Hailee Leech was leeching of her brother and her brother was letting her. And though it is stung a lot, I still felt happy for Clayton deep-deep-deep down. ‘Bang.’ Maybe it is not paranoia, Zoey had woken up crying fanatically last night and I had felt a presence. “Hello, Cyan, is it you?” “Good morning, Miss Leah.” I heaved a sigh of relief, it was just Taylor, Cyan called her to take care of me yesterday. What a precious husband she is, note to self, make sure any future husband knows that Cya
Instead of a slap or a punch, he caresses my cheek before tilting my head with his fingers on my chin. “Open your eyes.” He orders, but I vigorously shake my head, I am not looking in this man’s eyes before he kills me. I will die like a cool lead in a movie, with pride. “I will ask one more time, open your eyes.” Okay pride is not a thing to be proud of, I slowly open my eyes to meet his brown lustful eyes. Wait a minute lustful, why is he lustful? Oh, hell no, “Is this a sadistic or masochistic trait?” Sometimes I wish my brain and lips do not connect, voicing out this is going to lead to torture before he beheads me. He is taken aback by the comment, “I didn’t mean it for you, it is this story I was reading last night that I am thinking about.” I explained dumbly. He rolls his eyes, “what is your name?” he seductively asks, okay he might have not been seductive, but no man around me had spoken in such a sexy tone to me, let me have my heroine in a novel moment. “Ka…. Kaleah.
(Third person POV) ‘Kaleah Huxley,’ to Clayton that was a woman who never means what she says. Even though they are staying at the same house, he had only seen her silhouette when she sneaks away from the kitchen every morning. He had tried to catch her making milk one morning like he did when they first met, but she was already running to her room when he had arrived. “Cain, what have you found about the girl?” Cain Dealer had just started working for Clayton only about 14 years. Yes, he had always been a lacky since childhood, but he did not mind. Aside from his bad attitude Clayton wasn’t such a bad person. “Oh, um... she is the only child of the late Ashely Huxley and the newly remarried Ore Huxley.” He lies, Cain had been threatened to limit information he tells Clayton by. And Mrs. Melisa Beckett threatened to kill him if he lists Zoey as Kaleah’s sister. Though he trusted she would never hurt him, he trusted she would hurt him at the same time. Better safe than sorry they
“Ms. Leech.” “Honey, you should call me by my name, we are going to get married soon, so we should speak intimately.” She giggles, “I told you grandmother approves yesterday, you should have seen how shocked she was when I gave her an ultimatum.” His chair seems to have thorns, he loosens up his tie, to help him breathe more. Maybe it is the pressure in his lungs that is making him feel repulsed by her. It doesn’t help, in fact her lustful eyes at his actions makes him want to commit a crime. “Ms. Leech.” “Honey?” the formality in his tone makes her frown, she had expected him to call he Hailee like he had always had. “This relationship is not working, so, I am going to end it indeterminately.” The words choke her up, he watches as her eyes become teary and he wants to curse her out of his office. He was never the one to take the moral high ground, he was a terrible person. One who should get agitated that a girl whose heart he had just broken is sad at the end of their relatio