š¼š¹ONCE UPON A GIRLš
āāļø
š„šSHE’S JINXED (CURSED)šš„
(Flashback)
Ā©GIFT OKORIEāļø
šCHAPTER 3š
āshe brou-ght that book, she brou-ght that box, she gave me those things that cursed my life. And then she left meā she spat out with venom in her voice and I almost jumped out of my skin.
**************
She stared at me for few minutes before averting her eyes which was alre-ady filled with tears.
I wanted to tell her that it was gonna be alright even though I have no idea what she was talking about but I have a hint that it has to do with the freaking curse thing or something.
Was it her mother who cursed her? But that is not possible, a mother canāt hurt her own child.
Well I canāt really say for since I donāt know the woman neither do I believe in curses. I didnāt realise I was alre-ady hvgging her. Her tears soa-ked my jersey but I didnāt care, she has suffered enough today to add it up with tears.
She cried in my arms for few minutes before she pu-ll-ed back.
āitās alre-ady late Dave, you should go, Iām fine now and thanks a lot for helping meā she sobbe-d out.
āitās ok, Iām sorry for your parentsā I said, although I wanted to ask her what her mother really did to contribute to her predic@mĀ£nt but I decided that she doesnāt wanna talk about it.
āthanks, and Iām sorry I soa-ked your beautiful jersey with my miserable tearsā she apologised.
āitās ok. I have to go now; will you be fineā I asked with a concerned voice.
āIāve always been fine Daveā she replied with a smile. I smiled back and stood up. She walked me out. I waved her bye and walked throu-gh the walkway only for me to be stĀ©pped by great darkness few steps away from the door as a result of the sparking of the shimmering blue and white light which ended up switching off completely ma-king the whole compound to receive an unwanted visitor called darkness.
I brou-ght out my phone and switched on its light, I turned to look at her and she smiled with embarras-sment written on her face.
āitās the curseā she defended.
āor perhaps you didnāt fix the light wellā I asked with amusement, is she trying to pin this on a useless curse?
ādude itās the curse, believe me, it happens sometimesā she whined.
āyea rightā
ājust go away Dave, you are ma-king me sick right nowā she complained and I chuckled and walked out missing her presĀ£nce alre-ady.
—————
MARICHUIY’s POV š
He walked out and it felt like my mum left me again.
I sighed and walked back in to the lonely house where Iāve been waiting for the past three years for either death to come and swallow me up or for my mum to come back and hvg and tell me āā¦M, baby, itās was just a joke, that box didnāt curse you, it was just an audition for a movie role and for you to pu-ll it off I had to leave, I never actually left you babyā. But it never happened, each pas-sing day I felt like Iāll never see my mum again. Sheās gone. Was it because she knew that Iāll open the box and that if I do Iāll be cursed, was that why she left me, because she didnāt want to be the mother of the cursed girl? Or was she tired of me? I walked to the couch and la-id on couch, the memories of the times I spent with my mum began to flow throu-gh my mind like rushing river. the things we did together and how she left me.
FLASHBACK
Bethany and I finished our as-signment and she left, I leapt downstairs cause of my broken ankle, it hurts really bad.
I managed to get to the fridge to gr-ab a can of milk, immediately I opened the fridge everything inside it crashed to the floor, the drinks broke, the eggs broke, the milk spilled, the snacks if not that they were all in packets would have splashed all over the floor, the fruits were scattered everywhere.
I donāt get it, I was careful while opening the fridge, even if I wasnāt it shouldnāt have been this bad. I bent to pick the one that were still manageable like the snacks, fruits, and packaged chicken.
āoh my God, M, did a tornado hit the kitchenā I heard my mum exclaim at the door. I sighed loudly.
ātrust me mum, it was an invisible tsunamiā I replied as I picked three apples. My mum picked up a broom and walked up to the fridge.
āhow did it happenā she asked.
āIām sorry mum, I opened the fridge to get a glas-s of milk and everything just crashed to the groundā I explained.
ādid you shake the fridge before opening itā she asked as she swept the other spoilt things into a waste basket.
āthatās the crazy thing mum, I didnāt, I just finished my as-signment with Bethany and decided to drink some milk to cool my head, I opened the fridge and everything crashed to the groundā I replied.
She sighed de-eply, then walked out to dispose the trash. I turned to walk away only for me to miss a step and fell backward, I thought I blacked out but I heard my mumās shout and saw her running to me.
āoh my God, my baby are you ok, did you get hurt?ā she asked as she examined me.
āwhat happenedā I asked her as I slowly stood up, my back hurts as if I was sliced with a sharp blade, but thank God there was no blood.
āI heard a crash sound, It was really loud, I ran back to know what it was and I saw you lying on the fridgeā she explained.
So I fell on the fridge, no wonder why it hurts so badly, I turned to look at the fridge that doesnāt seem to like me today, wow, the double wings were completely crushed, but I donāt have such weight to crush a stick not to talk of double wings of a refrigerator. This is insane. I looked at my mum and her eyes were almost poping out of their sockets.
āmumā I called and she didnāt shift at all.
āmumā I called again as I shook her. She jĀ£rked back and smiled at me.
āIāll get someone to fix it okā she said.
āget the pots re-ady letās make dinner, iām going up to changeā she added as she walked out of the kitchen.
I gave the crazy fridge a short look before getting things re-ady for dinner preparation.
Mum picked the TV remote and kept fli-pping throu-gh channels, I waited for impatiently to settle for one before we eat. We were actually sitting in the sitting room and our deliciously made macaroni and cheese with chocolate cake for dessert sat on the glas-s centre table waiting to be munched on. I sighed with frustration as mum kept fli-pping throu-gh the channels.
āmum, can we plea-se eat now, you can fl!pthe channels all you want when I feed my angry stomachā. I pleaded and she chuckled, itās not funny!
āyou can eat baby; Iām checking something importantā she said and I sighed gratefully and dished out my food and started munching on it.
Few minutes later she finally sat beside me and I guess she has finally seen what she was looking for. I nee-ded to know what was so important to her at that time, was it news? I looked up at the TV, it wasnāt news, in fact I didnāt even un-derstand what it was, just some crazily beautiful looking lady talking about how you would know if you have been jinxed, weird.
āwhat is this mumā I asked her.
āitās written there baby, how you know if you have been jinxedā she replied pointing at the TV.
āyea, I can see that, but why are you watching it and why was it so importantā I asked and picked up my glas-s of jui-ce.
āI just wanna watch it, itās really funnyā she answered and bit throu-gh her chicken.
After dinner, I went to wash the dishes.
“How was school today?” I Heard my mum ask as I was rinsing a small plate.
“The Usual” I replied and gave her a little look but then I realized she was staring keenly at my hands as they move around the plate.
“Mum is everything OK, why are you staring?” I asked her in confusion.
“M plea-se hold the plate well, you are scaring me” she complained and I chuckled a little.
“What? Mum are you sure you are OK, how am I scaring you, I’m just washing the dishes” I asked.
“Just be careful, that’s all I’m saying” she stated.
“I’m fine m…….” I didn’t finish when the Plate cracked on my hand and its pieces littered on the floor. “What!?” I exclaimed as I stared at the broken plate and then at my bleeding hand.
“Oh my gosh, M stay right there, don’t move, let me get the first aid kit” my mum instructed, she rushed out to her room and rushed back in with first aid box.
“OK, now, slowly walk to me” I did as she said, she sat me on the breakfast table and started treating my wound.
“I don’t un-derstand, a plate cracked in my hand? I fell on a double wing fridge and it broke, I don’t have super powers, what is wrong with me mum?” I asked as tears threatened to fall due to the pain from whatever she was applying on my f!nger.
“Probably the plate has expired” she shrugged.
“And the fridge?” I asked.
“I don’t know M, I’m still trying to figure it out” she replied as she tried to stĀ©p her f!ngersfrom shaking, she was literally fidgeting.
“Mum, calm down, I’m the one who got hurt not you” I tried to calm her nerves but instead she asked out of the blue.
“M, those things i asked you to keep for me, where are they?”
I hesitate a bit before answering “they are in my wardrobe”.
She tied a little bandage on my f!nger and looked up at me, she looked intensely into my eyes.
“Did you open them” she asked coldly, I kept quiet. “Did you open them?” She barked at me like she has never done before, I shivered and leaned back a little.
I was expecting an apology like ‘M baby I’m sorry for yelling at you, I didn’t know what c@mĀ£ over me’ but instead i got a blinding glare from her, I shivered.
“Just the box” I answered quietly wondering what has gotten into my mum.
“You did…. A ahh…. You did what!? She screamed at me. “I specifically warned you not to open them, why are you so stubborn” she fired.
“I’m not stubborn, I was just curious” I cried out.
“Well look where your curiosity has gotten us to, congratulations you have just successful destroyed your life” she barked.
“What?! What are you talking about” I asked her in tears.
“When I gave that instruction, I expected you to stick to it but no, you prefer your curiosity over your mother’s warning, look what you did to yourself”
“What the hell are you talking about mum”
“That is a sacred box from a dragon temple, I told you to keep it for me while I figure out how to take it back to where it belong, and I warned you not to open it but you chose to disobey” she fired and I sprang up.
“Sacred what, from a temple of what?” I asked her but she didn’t reply.
“Mum, am I gonna die, what will happen to me” I asked as I slumped on the chair. I heard her sigh, she bent to me and cu-mpped my face.
“No baby, you won’t die, and I’m sorry for being too harsh” she apologized.
I nodded and looked up at her. “What’s going on?” I asked her.
“The thing is, you’ve been cursed by that thing”
“What?” I exclaimed in shock.
“A lot of bad things will start happening to you but I promise baby, i will find a way to sort this out” she as-sured me.
“But how did you get it mum, those things and why?” I asked her.
“It’s a long story M, but I promise I’ll fix this OK” she as-sured me. I nodded.
“Now, go to sleep, tomorrow is school” she patted me, I got up and walked to the stairs, immediately i climbe-d the first step, the light went off, we both g@sped.
“Is it the curse mum?” I asked her.
“I think so dear, let me get a flash light from the drawer” she said.
I heard her footsteps for sometime and then it stĀ©pped, I heard the sound of drawer opening, she fli-pped the switch and the flash light illuminated the sitting room.
“There’s one other flash light in my room, let’s go get it.” She stated and we both went upstairs.
Few months later, things bec@mĀ£ very difficult and unbearable, mum lost her job and had to pay a lot of damages cause everywhere I go, I spoil things, and I don’t even know how they get into my hand in the first place. Mum had to pay for everything.
Then One fateful morning, I woke up, went down stairs to prepare for school.
“Mum” I called for like the hundredth time but she didn’t answer. I’ve alre-ady been to her room twice but didn’t see her.
I shrugged and concluded that she must have gone out.
I went to the kitchen to know if she prepared breakfast. I saw a written note on the breakfast table and an envelope beside it. I picked up the note and re-ad it. ‘Gone to work baby, we will get throu-gh this M, I promise, I kept some money for you, take care of yourself. I prepared bacon for breakfast for you” that’s weird. I shrugged and opened the envelope. I counted the money and jeez $5,000, what! We don’t have to much money to spend, why will she give me such hvge amount of money for just lunch.
I took only $100 and put the rest back into the envelope and hoped to give it to her when she gets back home.
I went to school after eating my breakfast.
After school, Bathny c@mĀ£ to my house and we studied together, chatted a little and then she left around six. I made vegetable noodles and chicken salad for dinner and then waited for mum to come back so that we can have dinner.
I dozed off as I was waiting, when I finally woke up, it was around 4:am. I g@sped, I jumped up and ran to my mum’s room but she wasn’t there, I checked her bathroom, and every other place in the house but no sign of her, why didn’t she tell me she won’t come home tonight.
I went to my room and picked my phone. I called her a thousand times but her number wasn’t going throu-gh, I began to panic, could something have happened to her. I shrugged the thought off.
I dialed the hospital and they picked up at first ring.
“Hello” I heard a female voice say. “This is Grace hospital Beverly Hills, how may we help you?” The voice asked.
“Umh, hi…” I replied with cracked voice, I didn’t even notice I was crying. “My name is Marichuiy Heverna, my mum is Clara Heverna and she works in your hospital” I stated.
“Oh, yea, Miss Clara, you are her daughter, how many we help you dear?” She asked.
“plea-se I just want to speak to my mum, or you can ask her to call me” I pleaded.
“Oh, I’m so sorry baby but your mum didn’t signing today” she stated and I crashed on the floor. “Hello, hello” I heard her voice but it faded away as I heard my phone crash to the floor.
I cried and kept shouting mum until day break.
Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months and it’s now three years, I’m gonna clock 17 in few weeks and mum hasn’t walked throu-gh that door to tell me that it was all a prank.
TBC…..