Chapter 42: Chapter 42

Chapter 42.

I am seated in a marquee with Luke’s mum. She has finally decided that she wants to speak with me today and I am dead worried and anxious as I don’t know what she is going to tell me. I have been here for a few days, like four days or so but when she saw me that day and was told my situation, she decided that she wasn’t going to hold any talks with me and that left me so apprehensive but I decided to let nature take its course.

She asked me not to go anywhere. She and her entire family have been so good, welcoming, convivial, genial, and accommodative. She doesn’t let me do anything and when I tell her that I am just pregnant and not sick, she says I will tell that to someone else but not her.

Tabby passes by almost every day to check on me and yesterday she informed me of Harry still bothering her wanting to know of my whereabouts but she maintains the ‘no’ response. Luke is always here when I need him. I don’t need him much though but being the only person I knew before knowing all the others, I trust him the most compared to the rest.

Emmy took me to the supermarket and I was able to purchase the things I need for my drawing. She also bought a few but very expensive dresses for me. I feel like a burden and a bother to this family but every time I try telling Luke that, he gets so infuriated and riled at me and I wonder why.

I smile at her nervously when she grins sweetly at me. I have no inkling what is going to be talked about here but I hope all goes well.

I thought she was going to kick my ass out but she didn’t. She has been so good to me and when I told her about my interest in the fashion designing world, she assured me that she will support me to the end.

Apparently, she is one of the renowned fashion designers in the world. She is mainly an expert in men’s suits and that fascinates me a lot. She agrees to train me on the basics but says she can speak to her husband to support my education.

My heart leaps with immense happiness when she says that. I swear there are good people around, locating them proves impossible but they exist.

Why would she be so nice to me? Just because her son said that I am a good girl? Really? Anyway, I will find out soon, she can do whatever she deems right and I will work hard not to let her and her entire family down.

I shift myself nervously on the seat and tilt my head to look at her fully. She is jovial, exotic, and peculiar. I like her heart, she has a golden one. I can never compare her with Mrs. Williams.

‘’You got to relax, Clara. I am not here to frighten you, I just want to talk.’’ I nod without a word. ‘’Do you know Mr. Williams? The doctor whose son you’re in love with?’’

‘’I do, why?’’

‘’A very long time ago, I met that guy. We were both in college. He was a medical student as I was in the school of fashion designers. I wanted to be the best in what I do and trust me, I was. Matters of the heart happened when I met him in the mall, my friend and I had gone shopping. I wasn’t sure of what I saw but when I saw him the very first time, I was sure I would end up with him. The shimmer, the gleam and the blaze in his eyes hazel brown all suggested love. He winked at me but I didn’t react instead, my friend reacted. She winked back. He stretched his hand for a handshake but I didn’t respond but guess what?’’ ‘’What?’’

‘’My friend did. Every first thing that guy wanted I kinda declined but my friend proudly went for them. I was curious because I knew what I wanted in school. My parents were well off but my friend came from a very poor background. She, however, was only humble the first few days in school but later on released her scrapes.’’

‘’That’s gross.’’

‘’Tell me about it, baby girl,’’ she says with a sweet smile. I swear this woman reminds me of someone, I just can’t tell who at the moment but trust me I will figure it out. ‘’Anyway back to that day, I still remember it as it happened a few minutes ago. That guy Williams who in my opinion seemed very humble and down to earth wanted to pay for our shopping. I declined the offer because my parents had taught me better. I knew something was good about him but I wasn’t about to make a fuss on that. My friend, however, accepted that her shopping be paid for by the stranger and we departed from the mall. From that day henceforth, my heart created a place, a special place for Williams but trust me, I never knew what I was getting into.’’

‘’Let me try and guess,’’

‘’Yeah,’’

‘’Your friend turned evil, or maybe Williams broke your heart.’’

‘’You are a genius, Both.’’

‘’Sorry about …’’

‘’Don’t be. I moved on but He will forever be plastered in my heart. What we shared with him was more special and just so you know, Williams was my first boyfriend and was the best man I ever dated.’’

‘’Wow! That’s awesome.’’

‘’I know right?’’ I nod. ‘’Well, days passed by and Williams ad I became friends. Later on, our love bloomed and budded. It was being spoken about by everyone in the school. We were known for being the best in our areas of studies and that made things even greater. I loved Williams and he loved me right back. None of us dropped in grades instead we always had our study times and romance times. My friend in her opinion was very happy for me but I could see an evil gleam every time I spoke about my love with Williams. I had known that deep inside she was never really happy for us.’’

‘’And you continued being friends?’’ she beams sweetly as she moves closer to me as if she doesn’t want anyone listening to us. She looks around and whispers close to my ear.

‘’Ever heard about the saying which goes; ‘Keep your friends close but your enemies closer?’’ I nod gently when she asks that. ‘’That’s exactly what I was doing with my evil friend. She had tried tarnishing and sullying my name to Williams but at that point, our love was greater than anything else in the universe.’’ She pauses a bit with a smile.

‘’What year were you when the both of you met?’’ she leers slightly before she responds.

‘’I was in my second year while Williams was in his last year.’’

‘’Wow! Am I allowed to ask how old you were?’’

‘’You are allowed to ask anything that you wanna know. I was twenty-one then and Williams was twenty-five. He was termed as handsome with brains and was always up to his games. Besides my good friend who was also a brute and an asp on the other side, I was the envy of other girls. They thought I had fed him something but no. it was pure love. My Prince charming did love me so much and that’s what was most important to me.’’

‘’Do we still have such kind of love today?’’

‘’We do but on very rare occasions. Finding a man who loves you truly today isn’t easy. Green and naïve girls like you, my child often fall for their scheming and conniving lies. You are usually unsuspecting so, they make you feel things, they take you to bed and then boom! They leave you raising a baby alone.’’ I swear I am shedding tears involuntarily. I have no idea what to do when she says that. What she just said is very true and maybe, just maybe I’m already a victim of the same.

From the look of things, I am going to raise this angel alone. What a way to put the truth across my face. I don’t think Harry was lying to me but hey, anything can happen.

‘’Hey, you don’t need to cry.’’ She brings her thumb to my eyes and wipes the tears away gently. ‘’I didn’t mean to trigger any pain. And by the way, I think Harry is a good boy, especially if he takes after his dad. Don’t worry after this, I will call Luke to drive you over to him so you can go speak to him about the pregnancy. That way, we will know without prejudging if he is a good and responsible boy or not.’’ I nod.

‘’I hope he doesn’t say anything to hurt my feelings. I hope he accepts his responsibility and become a good dad. Do you know that he was the first guy I have ever been within my life?’’ she nods, it’s evident on your face. ‘’It was the first time I messed and see what happened to me. I got pregnant and then he came to me with the unpleasant message on the same day that I wanted to tell him about it, actually that’s when I found out. In fact, I hadn’t run any tests to be sure.’’

She takes my hand in hers. I swear I feel like she’s my mother. She makes me feel very comfortable. She looks at me straight and I smile at her absently.

‘’You aren’t gonna start feeling guilty over anything. I know you have your mum and other siblings. You have mentioned before that they don’t know anything for now but trust me they will support you on this one. If not, I will be the one to support you.’’

‘’Thank you, ma’am. Why are you being so nice to me?’’ what catches my eyes is the sweet smile on her face. I like it. I am really trying so hard to remember where I saw her before but I cannot seem to remember.

‘’Because I have been in your shoes before.’’ She says sadly and I know what that means. Her phone beeps and she checks on it then I catch a small frown on her face.

‘’Don’t tell me that sir Williams …’’

Cut off. ‘’Yes, he did.’’ But can we continue with the talk tomorrow? I still have more to tell you but I have to go. I have a meeting with some clients. I’d wish to tag you along but I want you to go see him first then come back home and rest.’’

‘’Thank you,’’ I say standing up. She stands up too and pulls me into a hug. This woman is treating me like a princess. I have no idea why she is doing that but maybe I will find out soon.

I smile at her when she pulls away. I am partially a troubled soul because usually when the deal is too good then there could be a hidden agenda.

God forbid.

Luke is standing by his car when we walk out of the gazebo. Harry doesn’t work on Thursday afternoons so I am super sure that I will find him home.

I haven’t told him that I am paying him a prompt visit but I will go anyway. I would wish to go see Aliana as well and thank her for being a good boss to me. Leaving Aliana like that was a very big mistake but we spoke on the phone and she understood me.

She was so happy when she heard about the pregnancy and she promised me that she will be willing to support me in any way possible.

She felt so bad about what her foster mum was planning to do but she had nothing to do about it. She said she spoke to Harry and He assured her that he wasn’t gonna marry that sick woman.

‘’Hey, you okay?’’ I nod at Luke and without any waste of time, he takes my hand and walks with me to the other side of the car.

Emmy and Tabby are already seated at the back of Luke’s posh car. Luke opens the passenger’s door and I hop in gently. I wonder briefly why Tabby isn’t seated with Luke but I totally don’t ask questions.

The drive to Harry’s is short and quiet. I know he is going to send me away because I haven’t been picking his calls but hey, in between confusions, you can always decide to stay away from some things or people for some time in order to clear your mind.

Right now, after staying away from Harry for a few days, know exactly what I want to do. I know what is going on in my mind and I know how I want to sort it out. I will, however, follow Mrs. Jones pieces of advice and I hope it goes well.

‘’Make sure you call us out loudly if anything happens, okay?’’ Luke says and I nod at him with a smile. He really cares about me.

‘’Good luck, girl.’’ Tabby and Emmy shout in unison and I turn to smile at them.

‘’Thanks, guys,’’ I say quietly.

After convincing the gateman who has seen me on a few occasions before that Harry is expecting me, he agrees to open the gate for me and I step out of the car then walk in completely sure of what to do. The gateman says that he will not let the car in and I totally understand. The home is as clean as I remember and the house is gargantuan and colossal. The kei-apple that is surrounding the homestead is neatly trimmed and well-groomed. I admire the person who undertakes this work.

‘’Clarita!’’ a sweet, deep and familiar voice calls after I walk a few steps from the gate and when I turn to look at her, she charges towards me and wraps her arms warmly around me. She has no idea about my pregnancy and I won’t say anything about it just yet.

‘’You look beautiful,’’ I comment gently and she laughs genuinely.

‘’Thank and so do you.’’

‘’Thank you.’’

‘’I know you are here to speak to Harry,’’ I nod lightly. ‘’Come, let me take you to him.’’ She clenches my hand and pulls me gently towards what I assume to be the garden. ‘’We need to talk about so much but before then, I want you to speak to him first, then we can catch up later okay?’’

I nod uncertainly. I don’t think I will speak to her after I speak to Harry. Maybe he will want to take me out to celebrate the fact that I am pregnant.

‘’Really Clara? Anyway all the best.’’ I roll my eye when my innate says that to me.

The garden is lovely. The flowers are heavenly and I smile absently telling myself that I will take a photo in the beautiful background.

Anita comes to an instantaneous stop, her stare directed straight ahead. I follow the direction of her eyes and my mouth drapes open, my head spins and swirls hastily. I turn on my heels without a word to Anita and run towards the direction we were coming from.

I walk out wholly aware of Anita shouting my name but I don’t bother turning to look back. The soldier is wise enough to open the postern without uttering a word and I get out. When I get to the car, I lose cognizance and fall on the ground with a thud!