Kamayiah huddled under her bed covers, wishing that the start of the school day could be delayed indefinitely. Her alarm had just gone off five minutes ago, and yet it felt like way too early for her to be getting out of bed. She couldn't shake off the feeling of dread that washed over her as she contemplated heading to class. Every day felt like a battle, and she couldn't muster the motivation to drag herself through the doors of school yet again. Today was no different. With a deep sigh, Kamayiah reluctantly forced herself out of bed, wishing she could just slip back into her dreams and forget about the day ahead. Everything had changed ever since her mum died five years ago. She wouldn't say she changed much but she no longer had passion for some things she used to have passion for. One of those things was school.
She got dressed in a white T-shirt tucked into a high waist black leather shorts and a white Nike air force shoes. She always put attention into her dressing. Fashion was another thing that she loved besides watching movies and advocating for people. With hope of getting in, she was going to study at Harvard after high school and become a lawyer. She looked in her mirror and when she felt satisfied with what she wore, she went to the kitchen to make breakfast.
With her mum no longer around, everyone in the house now had days that they were to cook. She unfortunately got Mondays and Wednesdays. The two days she detested in all the days of the week. Those two days just had a bad aura to her.The same way she hated mayonnaise and a long list of other things. Pulling an apron over her head, she started cracking the eggs open and mixing it in the flour. She started thinking about how sudden her mum's death came. She would rather not dwell on it, but she couldn't ignore the feeling either.
There has always been this feeling that she had about been left out. She felt she was involved in nothing when she was involved in everything. She knew her father was struggling, but she couldn't help but feel that struggle wasn't going to last long. Her Mum had died when she was 13. It was a tragic moment for her. She was left with her dad and her younger sister. She always felt like there was more to her Mum's death, but she couldn't exactly start cracking cases to prove her thoughts. “Dad! Dad, where are you, your food is ready” She turned to look at her sister, Cece.”Where do you think he is?”
“I don't know. Go check his room” she said, focusing on her pancakes. Rude… She thought. She sighed and left the kitchen to look for her dad. She went straight up the stairs to his room, then she heard his voice…" You have to give me time. She's just 18". He sighed then continued, “I know your son is 18, but... he and my daughter are not the same people. She needs to sleep on it. It will take her time to gather her thoughts”.
It was not in her nature to eavesdrop on other people's conversations because if the case were reversed she would be angry, but she felt like she needed to listen to this particular conversation. She decided to stop eavesdropping and knock, then he shouted this time. Anger in his voice as he spoke. She felt it had something to do with her mum, but she would rather not jump to conclusions. There was a fifty percent possibility she was mistaken.
“Fine just three days …I'll tell her everything.” He sighed again, and she heard him move towards the door. She knew it was time to step back. Ben had been trying to get Chris off his neck for days. Chris insisted that he told kamayiah all that was to tell. He didn't exactly feel it was time she knew. He had personally intended to tell her on her sister's birthday. That was Cece's wish, and he didn't oppose the idea. Her birthday was in 5 months and that was enough time. Now he had 3 days and he didn't know what to do.
“Honey, how long have you been here”. He said as he stepped out of his room. “Not long” she said, and they motioned towards the stairs.”Did you hear anything?” He asked and made his brown eyes a little darker. That was worry and she could sense it. He had to start praying she didn't hear anything. “Dad? I'm even sure the neighbors heard” she let out a little laugh. He chuckled and budged her elbow.
“It was just busine—” … Ben tried to say. He had started searching for that inner part of his that held lies. He still had 3 days, and he was not about to shorten that time. “I know it was only business, dad.Now let's go eat, the pancakes are getting cold”. They made their way to the dining room. He made a mental note to give God some peace offering for allowing him to scale through today. Kamayiah was a smart girl, and sooner or later, she was going to know.
“Morning daddy”. Cece said as she washed her plate and cup. She had heard the conversation too. Who would have thought that bending at the end of the stairs would be another perfect place for eavesdropping, apart from the front of the door itself. Or maybe it was probably because her father shouted. She knew exactly when to escape before her sister caught her. That was the last thing she wanted to happen.
“Morning darling” They both sat and ate breakfast. When they were done, she washed the dishes and grabbed her keys after hanging her backpack on her shoulder. It was like an everyday routine.”C'mon Cece we'll be late”. Cece grumbled before carrying her bag.
“Bye dad”. She said and left the house. She owned a Mercedes-Benz, The black type. Her dad got it for her 18th birthday and she went nuts. Sometimes she was happy that her family was rich, but she knew too well that money had its problems. Not that she was expecting them, but being ready was one of her early morning rants. She took it upon herself to be prepared because she wasn't ready when her mum died and since then, she wanted to be ready for everything else. If anything was going to happen, she had to be set, she had to see it coming.
“I really don't want to empty those pancakes anytime soon”. Cece said as she put on her seat belt.
“Oh please”. She said and stepped on the gas. She was not a terrible driver. There had just been one day that she almost crashed her car. A crazy thief was on the run and police men were behind him. She was listening to Rude by Magic in her car, and it was so loud that she didn't notice the police vehicle that crossed to her lane. She pressed the accelerator with force, thinking the space in front of her was free. It was the horn behind her that brought her out of the music frenzy. That day, another thing topped her list of things to thank God for. She got a ticket and her dad seized her car for a week, so she could say Cece was right. Now that she thought of it, she was a bit terrible at driving. Just a bit.
Hell, here I come… She thought as she took a turn.
