Episode 38

Episode 38

Erika looked up from her desk as Willis approached. She had finally made a decision and had asked the man to meet her.

“Erika, darling, you wished to discuss my proposition?” Willis asked confidently.

Erika nodded and decided to simply go the short route, “I’m declining. Thank you for the offer.”

“What?! You’re declining! Do you realize what I am offering you?” Willis asked.

Erika nodded, she had asked herself the same question once she reached her conclusion after many sleepless nights. “I’ve decided to persue other opportunities.”

“Is someone offering you more? How is that possible?”

Erika smiled, “He’s offering me love and I am actually on my way to meet him.”

Willis smiled. “Ah, love. I guess I can not compete with that. Well, in that case, good luck my darling. I hope he is everything you desire and more.”

“Thank you, Willis. I hope things work out with you as well.”

“I’m sure they will, there are not too many women on the island willing to turn down a fortune in the pursuit of love, but I commend you. Now hurry up, don’t keep the young man waiting.”

Erika rushed into the diner and grabbed Kevin in a passionate embrace.

“Wow!” Kevin breathed collapsing into his seat. “What a greeting!”

Erika smiled. “I’m so happy and content. Everything is falling into place right now.”

“How so?” Kevin asked.

“Well, we’re getting married.”

“We are?”

“Of course, silly. I love you.”

“What about…about the other offer?”

“I turned him down. Told him I was following love.”

“Wow, if I had known that was why you were so excited I would have saved you a trip.”

“Huh? What are you talking about?”

“I’ve been thinking…about us. I love you, I really do, but the more I think about it the more I realize that we would never work together as a married couple. We value different things and our ambitions are not equal. In fact, they’re opposite.”

“What does this-“

“Basically, I couldn’t be married to a woman willing to enter into a marriage of convenience for money. I mean, what else would she be willing to compromise for the sake of an extra simolean? “

“So you don’t want to marry me anymore.”

“I want to marry you, I really do, but I can’t. We would be so unhappy.”

“So, where does that leave us?”

“I don’t know. I know that I can’t date you anymore, I love you too much and the temptation would be too strong to try and make you my wife. I don’t even know if we can be friends still, my desire for you is that powerful that I don’t trust my emotions around you.”

“Why not just follow your emotions?” Erika asked pleadingly.

“I really can’t, we wouldn’t be happy. In fact, I need to go. I’m sorry.”

Kevin stumbled getting up and grabbed Erika into a hug. “I do love you, that’s why I have to go.”

Erika watched as tears threatened to spill over as Kevin walked out of the diner…and out of her life.

Lani stared at the pile of suitcases near the door of the condo, her heart was heavy and her mind clouded. Things had happened so fast.

“You don’t have to go.” She whispered as Russel placed another bag by the door.

“Yes, I do.” He responded. “You deserve happiness and if happiness is without me, then so be it.”

“But it’s not!” Lani wailed.

“Don’t worry about the diner,” Russel answered. “I don’t renege my promises. I will continue to financially support the diner and the condo is yours as long as you want it. It’s paid for and the bills are handled directly from my account.”

“Russel, don’t-“

“I have to, Lani. I can’t stay here, loving you so desperately and watch as you run to the arms of another man. I have to leave.”

BEEEEPPP!!!

“That’s the taxi,” Russel said. “I have to go.”

He swept her into his arms and held her tight. “I will miss you so much, I hope that one day you’ll see that I did love you. Perhaps I didn’t show it in the right way, but I did love you the best way I knew how.”

“Russel, please don’t go.”

“Don’t ask me to stay, I can’t bear it.” He answered releasing her and grabbing his bags.

Lani followed and stood motionless as he packed the taxi. Her limbs wouldn’t move as he took a seat and waved at her. They still would not move as the vehicle drove down the lane and Russel exited her life.

“But don’t you get frustrated at times?” Sierra asked.

“Sometimes, but I call my mentor when it’s gets really bad and I make sure to use my support system. Each day gets a little easier.”

Sierra nodded, soaking the advice in. Ever since that meeting, she and Donna would meet sometimes to discuss her road to recovery and each time she would leave with more hope of recovering.

“What about-?”

RIIINNNG!!

“Sorry,” Sierra said glancing at the phone in her pocket. “I have to take this.”

“Hello?” she asked walking towards a corner of the room.

“Sierra?!”

“Yes?”

“You have to come back home quickly, grandfather is dying!”

Opal glanced around the hall and quickly opened her locker. There it was, the small folded sheet of paper. She unfolded the creases and smoothed it out.

Good move-ur sekrets safe wift me

Opal gingerly smiled, thankful that the whole ordeal was over. She couldn’t bear facing her disappointed teammates again.

“Opal, I’m glad I found you.”

Opal stuffed the paper into the locker and slammed it shut. “You found me, coach. What can I do for you?”

“Well, it’s more of a question of what you haven’t been doing for me. Your performance lately has been letting down the team, the school and yourself. You’re better than that. What’s going on?”

“Nothing.”

“I was afraid of that.” She frowned. “If nothing is truly going on, then I must accept that your recent performance is not due to external factors and that you hold sole responsibility. Which then leads me to make the best decision for the team. I’m afraid that you are no longer the captain of the team, effective immediately. Dalma will be replacing you starting the next practice, I expect you to give her your full support.”

Opal gulped, fighting back tears. “Yes.”

“Great. Have a good weekend.”

Opal squeezed her eyes shut as the steps of her coach receded. She had lost her position as captain, all because of-

“Ah, there you are.”

Opal turned to face her idol, the man that could make her a star. She smiled.

“I’ll make this quick since I have another meet to attend. I am no longer considering you for the team, obviously your recent performance has been nothing short of a disappointment. I wish you all the luck in the future. Goodbye.”

Opal felt her knees weakened. She had lost a spot on the nationals, she was no longer captain and all her dreams were very quickly deteriorating before her eyes. In addition, she was the only one to blame.

Nailah watched as Donna turned a few knobs and flipped a few switches on the monitors surrounding her daughter.

“How long will..will”

“Not long.” Donna answered.

“Will it…hurt.”

“No, she’ll simply…go to sleep.”

Nailah blinked back tears as Donna quietly exited the room, she watched her daughter lay in the tiny bed and watched the nearby monitor slow down and finally…stop.

Only then, once the screen was black, once her daughter was cold, did she allow herself to cry.

“Thanks for coming,” Nailah whispered to Donna as they watched the final shovelfuls of dirt cover the casket.

“Of course.” Donna choked, painfully aware of her own red-rimmed eyes and the matching eyes all around the little site. She hated losing patients, but she knew that the rhythm of life consisted of beats and silences. She just really really really disliked the silences.

Nailah knelt down over the fresh mound of dirt and placed Justice’s favorite doll. “Goodbye, sweetheart. Mommy loves you so much.” She said wiping at her tears, leaving fresh streaks of mud on her face.

“Do you want us to drive you to the house?” Missy asked her mourning friend.

Nailah shook her head, “No. I’ll think I’ll walk.”

The crowd slowly disappeared leaving the young mother and her child alone for their final words.

Nailah dropped the scissors on the bathroom floor as the knocks pounded again.

“Are you sure you’re ok?!”

“Yes! I’m almost done!” she shouted back, her toes covered with strands of hair. She leaned into the mirror and caressed her head and the tiny wisps of hair covering it.

“Yes,” she whispered. “Now I’m ready.”