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CRUEL- INTENTIONS
-Chapter Twenty Five-
I knelt down beside her, seeing that she was crying so ha-rd and she could ba-rely breathe.
‘’plea-se don’t ask me to go back,’’ she pleaded while crying and gripping my hand ti-ghtly.
‘’plea-se st©p crying, I promise I won’t ask you to leave,’’ I said.
‘’I don’t want to leave without you,’’ she cried ha-rder.
‘’It’s okay,’’ I said patting her back gently.
‘’Does that mean I can move in with you?” she asked.
‘Moving in together is a big step in a relationsh!pand I honestly don’t think I am re-ady for that yet.’’
‘’Are you even committed to this relationsh!por you have plans of leaving me for someone else?’’ she asked.
‘’I told you in the first place that I don’t jump from one woman to the next.’’
‘’So if you are sure about me why don’t you want us to live together?’’
‘’I would rather wait until we get married for us to take that step.’’
‘’Then you have to marry me,’’ she smiles.
‘’What?’’
‘’Marry me, I am more than re-ady for marriage.’’
‘’Are you serious?’’ I sh0t her a questioning look because she wasn’t ma-king any s-en-se at all.
‘’Yes.’’
‘’That’s the dumbest thing I have heard you say since I met you,’’ I respond.
‘’Are you calling me dumb?’’ she asked before she bur-st into tears.
‘’Not again!’’ I sighed frustratedly.
‘’plea-se Mike don’t kick me out, I don’t want to stay alone, it’s horrible at my place, I keep seeing things,’’ she cried.
‘’Fine you can stay,’’ I responded.
‘’Thank you.’’
I held her hand and helped her up then I guided her to the be-d.
‘’I will make some tie, lie down a bit here,’’ I said.
Then I k!$$£d her forehead and started walking to the kitchen to make her some tea. After I finished ma-king the tea, I poured some for her and walked back into the be-droom.
To my surprise, Lillie was fast asleep in be-d.
I looked at her for a long time before I gr@bb£d a blanket and covered her.
I don’t know what’s wrong with Lillie but I intend on finding out, her behavior is not normal at all. One minute she is calm and happy, the next she is sad and angry.
Anyway, I kick off my shoes and undress before I hit the shower.
As I bath I make a mental note to visit the hospital tomorrow so I can talk to the doctor about Lillie’s situation. I stay in the shower for almost thirty minutes before stepping out. After that, I dried myself and put on my pajamas then I went to the kitchen to make myself something to eat.
I didn’t feel like cooking because I was tired so I just made myself a bowl of cereal and after eating, i watched a movie to pas-s some time as I waited for Vee.
I watched the movie to the end but my sister was not yet back and Lillie was still slee-ping.
Feeling bored, I decided to call Wendy hoping she was still awake.
The phone rang twice before she picked up.
‘’Hello!’’ she said.
‘’Hey! Hope I didn’t wake you.’’
‘’No you didn’t, I just got out of the shower.’’
‘’I see.’’
‘’How are you?’’
‘’I am fine, how are you?’’
‘’I am very fine,’’ she laughed. ‘’I haven’t felt this fine in a long time.’’
‘’Is marriage that bad?’’
‘’Marriage is sweet, my husband and I just had issues to deal with.’’
‘’Okay.’’
‘’I am sure when all is said and done, we shall have a happy ending.’’
‘’You believe that?’’
‘’Everyone deserves a second chance don’t you think so?’’ she asked.
‘’Yes.’’
‘’And I haven’t even been married for a year for me to start thinking of a divorce.’’
‘’I guess you are p@rt of the crowd that believes marriage is sh!pikisha club?’’
‘’Not really, I just don’t believe I should give up on him just yet, he is trying to get help after all.’’
‘’I see.’’
‘’And I also nee-d to work on myself so I can be a better wife.’’
‘’You remind me of someone,’’ I said, trying to change the subject about her husband.
It’s quiet irritating that she keeps defending that man after everything he has done to her.
I just woke up and Mike isn’t lying next to me but the cu-p of tea he promised me is on the small table next to the be-d. The tea is cold by now I have been slee-ping for almost an hour.
I usually cry a lot when I am angry and then I sleep after that so that I can completely be calm.
When I don’t control my anger I get violent, I cut myself and sometimes I just smash things.
I like Mike a lot and I think after everything I have been throu-gh I deserve a good man and a fresh start.
Moving in with him is my way of marking my territory I don’t want any girl to snatch him from him.
I jump out of be-d and gr-ab the glas-s of tea before I walk out of the room.
As I walk towards the living room I can hear Mike talking to someone, bet his sister is home.
After I get to the living room, I realize he is talking on phone and he looks comfortable and happy.
He is too busy talking that he doesn’t see me watching him.
‘’Who the hell is he talking to?’’ I wonder as I feel my anger building up.
And the suddenly when I can’t help it anymore I drop the cu-p to the floor and it breaks into tiny pieces.
‘’I will call you later,’’ he says before he turns and we lock eyes.
‘’Are you okay?’’ he asks
‘’Yes, I am sorry I bu-mped into the wall and the cu-p fell,’’ I lie.
He gives me a questioning look but doesn’t say anything else.
‘’I will clean this up,’’ I say.
‘’It’s okay, you sit here and let me clean that up.’’
‘’Sure.’’
I sit on the couch and he picks up the pieces of glas-s and cleans the mess then he joins me on the couch.
‘’Do you want something to eat? ‘’
‘’I am good, I will just have a cu-p of tea.’’
‘’Okay let me fix a cu-p of tea for you.’’
‘’Okay.’’
When he leaves for the kitchen I quic-kly gr-ab his phone and luckily it’s unlocked.
I check his last call and it says Wendy, I look at the number twice and memorize it then I put it back where it was. He walks back into the living room with tea and some bre-ad and eggs.
‘’Thank you.’’
‘’You are welcome,’’ he responds.
-Chapter Twenty Six-
Saturday Morning, I awake to my phone ringing, gr-abbing my phone from the table I wonder what’s so important that someone has to call me this early on a Saturday. With sleepy eyes, I look at my phone it’s a strange number.
I sit upright and answer the phone immediately.
‘’Hello?’’
‘’Hello,’’ a female’s voice says on the other end of the line.
‘’I would like to speak to Wendy, plea-se,’’ she says.
‘’This is Wendy speaking, what can I do for you?’’
‘’I got your number from Mike,’’ she says.
‘’Okay. How can I help you? Do you nee-d help with planning an event?’’ I ask thinking that, Mike recommended my services to her.
‘’An event?’’ she asks.
‘’Yes! Or maybe you are calling for something else.’’
‘’Oh, yes, I have an event coming up that I would like you to help me with.’’
‘’Okay, what sort of event?’’
‘’A wedding but can we meet for breakfast so we can talk more about it.’’
‘’Sure.’’
‘’I will text you the name of the place in a minute or two.’’
‘’Okay.’’
She hangs up and I try to get back to sleep but it seems there’s no more sleep left for me. I roll out of be-d and walk out of the be-droom.
Wynita is having breakfast and she is all dressed up.
‘’And where are you going?’’
‘’Morning to you too,’’ she responds.
‘’Where are you going?’’ I ask again pouring myself some coffee.
‘’It’s none of your business,’’ she says.
‘’Aba nabo,’’ I roll my eyes.
She laughs,’’ I am going to Kabwe,’’ she says.
‘’To do what?’’
‘’Kitchen p@rty.’’
‘’And you have to start off this early because?’’
‘’I have to be there early because I will be helping with décor and other stuff.’’
‘’Okay.’’
‘’I will be back tonight, I don’t want to miss church tomorrow.’’
‘’Ba holy mother,’’ I tease.
‘’You and I are going to church tomorrow,’’ she says in a serious tone.
‘’I am not a child anymore so you can’t order me around, I am someone’s wife remember?’’ I say and she cli-cks her ton-gue.
‘’You still consider yourself Jason’s wife?’’
‘’I am his wife or am I not?’’
‘’So after everything he did you will still go back to him?’’
‘’Yes.’’
‘’And if this is what they mean when they say love is blind then I don’t want to be in love.’’
‘’Hater,’’ I respond.
‘’What’s there to hate?’’
‘’You are older than me and I got married earlier than you did.’’
‘’And so?’’
‘’You are jealous.’’
She laughs, ‘’Of Jason? The wife beater?’’
I shake my head, ‘’Fine, you win.’’
‘’You marriage is a scam, the sooner you realize the better,’’ she says.
‘’That’s a mean thing to say.’’
‘’The truth hurts,’’ she responds.
‘’You are too bitter for my liking,’’ I gr-ab my coffee and head back to my room.
When I sit on my be-d I get my phone and start going throu-gh my wedding ph0tos.
I did look like a princess on that day and even though things turned out a little different than I had anticipated, I smiled throu-gh it all.
I don’t want to give up at least not just yet, why is it so ha-rd for everyone to un-derstand? My phone rings a minute later startling me from my reverie.
‘’Hello,’’ I answer without checking my caller ID.
‘’Babe!’’ he says. My heart skips a beat his voice still has that effect on me.
‘’What?’’ I answer sounding uninterested.
‘’I miss you, I can’t cope without you.’’
‘’What do you want me to do?’’
‘’Come home.’’
‘’I can’t come back home until I know you have changed.’’
‘’I am working towards becoming a better man but I nee-d you by my side.’’
‘’Jason!’’
‘’Let me take you out to dinner tonight and then we can talk.’’
‘’I don’t know if that’s the right thing to do.’’
‘’plea-se,’’ he pleads.
‘’Okay.’’
‘’7:30, I will pick you up.’’
‘’Okay.’’
‘’Later.’’
‘’See you.’’
I am about to put my phone back on the be-d when Nita clears her throat I didn’t even see her enter my room.
‘’Who was that?’’
‘’None of your business.’’
‘’Okay.’’
‘’What do you even want here?’’
‘’I am leaving, I will see you later in the evening.’’
‘’Okay.’’
After Nita left, I cleaned the house and did a bit of laundry before I got re-ady for my meeting. She had alre-ady s£nt me the name of the café we were meeting from.
I had gotten so carried away when we were talking on phone that I had forgotten to ask for her name.
‘’I am starting off now, how will I recognize you? And sorry I forgot to get your name,’’ I s£nt her a text when I was about to start off.
She replies almost immediately, ‘’my name is Lillie, I will be clad in a black t-shi-t and a pair of blue r!pp£djeans.’’
‘’Okay,’’ I respond before getting into the car and driving off.
I pu-ll up in front of the café almost forty five minutes later then I step out of my car and walk into the little café. I look around the room but no one fits the description she s£nt me.
‘’I am here alre-ady,’’ I s£nd her a text.
‘’I will be there shortly, order something, I will handle the bill.’’
‘’Sure.’’
I find an empty sp©t and sit down then I order myself some food.
As I sit there waiting for her, my phone vibr@tes indicating a new message, I pu-ll it out of my bag to find a message from Mike.
‘’Morning sunshine,’’ it re-ads.
I smile as I type my response, ‘’Morning handsome.’’
‘’Oh! So you think I am handsome?’’ he replies adding an angel face emoji at the end.
‘’I didn’t mean it like that,’’ I type back.
‘’Tell me what you meant,’’ I am all ears.
I am about to respond to his message when I see Lillie walking into the café so I raise my hand and wave at her and she sp©ts me almost immediately.
As she walks towards me, I put my phone back into my bag then I stand.
‘’Hello!’’ I smile extending my hand.
She eyes me suspiciously from head to toe almost twice before she firmly shakes my hand. Then she takes a sit across from mine.
After that she calls for the waitress and orders herself a cu-p of coffee and some muffins.
‘’Thank you for agreeing to meet me at such short notice,’’ she says.
‘’You are welcome. So you are the bride?’’ I ask.
The waitress walks back to our table and places the food in front of her, she picks up her cu-p of coffee and takes a large sip before she responds, ‘’No am not maybe in future.’’
‘’Oh.’’
‘’So you are Wendy?’’ she asks.
‘’Yes.’’
She lowers her b©dy back into the chair and starts tapping her f!ngerson the table.
‘’Is everything okay?’’ I ask.
‘’No,’’ she raises her eyes to meet mine.
‘’Okay,’’ I respond, I don’t un-derstand what is happening but she is behaving a little too weird for my liking.
‘’Actually Mike didn’t give me your number, I got it from his phone, he doesn’t even know I am here with you right now,’’ she says.
My heart suddenly races and suddenly I feel a sinking feeling begin in the pit of my stomach, a feeling I know very well.
‘’I c@m£ here today to warn you.’’
‘’Warn me?’’
‘’Yes, if you love yourself enough plea-se stay away from my man,’’ I say.
‘’I don’t un-derstand,’’ I say.
‘’You keep away from my man,’’ she yells and all eyes turn on us.
Embarras-s and confused I ask, ‘’what are you talking about?’’
‘’Stay away from my man you snatcher,’’ she yells, louder than before.
‘’There’s nothing between Mike and I, I am a married woman,’’ I flash my ring in her face.
She rises to her feet, ‘’so you want to have all the men?’’ she yells.
Stunned I remain silent, what can I possibly say.
‘’You stay away from him, don’t call him and don’t entertain him. And this is the only warning I am giving you, if you dare go after him again, I will murder you,’’ she says softly but words give me goose bu-mps, she looks like the kind of woman who can kill for a man.
‘’Fine, I will stay away from him.’’
‘’Great,’’ she smiles.
I shake my head, like who does that, one minute she is yelling and the next she is acting all nice. I am sitting there looking at her as she finishes her food, when she is done she slams the cu-p on the table so ha-rd and bur-sts into tears.
‘’Are you okay?’’ I ask.
‘’Stay away from Mike,’’ she yells before she gr-abs her bag and walks out.
For a minute I sit there confused, like what just happened and everyone is looking at me with evil eyes like I am some husband snatcher or something.
I quic-kly pay my bill gr-ab my bag and walk out before they all eat me alive.
Tbc…