It took us another ten minutes or so to reach the villa. I asked Priscilla if she needed something before going to bed, but she shook her head in denial. She started climbing the stairs lazily, while I followed her so that she may not fall down. On top of the flight, Priscilla took right and headed for the bedroom, while I turned left and headed towards the kitchen.
I clapped my hands to turn on the lights of the kitchen. I opened the refrigerator and took out the milk. I poured some in the pan to heat. My eyes were getting heavier by the moment. The glass of milk will give me enough energy to make one phone call.
I took the phone out of my pocket and dialed a number. It rang for a long while before I could hear a familiar voice.
"It takes a lot of guts to call your friend after two years. Where the hell have you been?" Trigman questioned.
"On the road. Promoting my talent. Don't you read the news?"
"I do. I have heard some good news about your penmanship. How are you doing?"
"Crappy. It is busy, but I think I'll be taking some time off. I'll be in Nepal by next week."
"With your girlfriend?"
"No. Just me."
"Why alone?" Trigman's playful tone vanished and his stern, concerning tone asked me a question I hoped he wouldn't ask.
With trembling lips, I answered him, " Just because."
Trigman didn't speak for a while before I heard him sigh.
"Mistakes of yesterday destroying a tomorrow. Is it that time of your life again?."
Tears started forming in my eyes as I replied," Prepare a spare bed for me."
Trigman waited a long time before hanging up. He didn't say anything, but I understood everything he was going to say.
I turned around and poured hot milk in a mug. Before I could face Priscilla, I wiped away my tears and threw extra hair over my face.
I picked the mug, sighed a little, and pasted a smile over my face.
I entered our room to see Priscilla asleep. Just looking at her in her slumber warmed my heart. But I had to do what was necessary. It was not a time for second thoughts.
I came near Priscilla's lump body and touched her forehead. I rang fingers all over her eyes and in her hair before retreating to the lobby.
I whipped open my laptop and waited for it to power up. In the meantime I texted my lawyer, my accountant as well as Cline of what I wanted them to do. The laptop was powered up and I put my cellphone aside to open up four websites.
HipHopDX.com
WorldTrades.com
MIS.com
Atlanticbank.com
On HipHopDX, I started looking for the industry journalist that covered Priscilla's articles. After some browsing I came across two editors who were exclusively covering P.A. as their topic. Drew Landry and Martin Row. I e-mailed both of them to meet me in two days at a Bronze Coffee Parlor at 11 A.M.
On WorldTrades, I looked at my stocks in NASDAQ, gold, silver and Facebook. I wasn't making an overall profit, but I decided to sell everything. I'm going to need money, and abundance of it never hurt anybody. I suffered a loss of US $225,778, but I got US $ 2.7 million. I was happy with it.
My cellphone chimed and it was Cline, still denying his new positing as Priscilla's songwriter. I convinced him some more and told him to meet me two days later at Bronze Coffee Parlor at 11 A.M.
MIS.com was a gambling website, where people bet on music talent all over the world. Nobody affiliated with the talent could bet on their own artist, but I had bent the rules because Priscilla's sales numbers had been a chart topper from the day her mixtape dropped. I logged in as Mapalla, because that is what I was on this website, and looked at my winnings. US$ 33,450. I entered my banking details and got everything deposited in my account.
At last, I logged into my Atlantic Bank's website to look at my savings and earnings. US $ 4.47 Million. All this money was mine. Every single penny made by grinding everyday. I made this money by making Priscilla a superstar, and I deserved every single dime for my efforts.
After looking at my astonishing amount of money, I e-mailed a 24/7 hotline worker. I took down all the details that I required to withdraw all the money. It was a process which will take three days, and some documents would also be required. I took down all the details and thanked the person on the other side.
I turned my laptop off and my cellphone chimed once more. It was my lawyer, asking me if everything was alright. I stepped out of the lobby and went outside the front gate to call him.
"Mr. Goodman, I want to know what the cost of my house in Miami and San Francisco is?"
In a raspy voice, he answered," I don't have the exact number, but according to the estimate, it'll probably be in the ballpark of $1.1 Million for both."
"Get me the exact number by tomorrow. I mean, today. It's already past 12."
"That's what I was going to say. You're asking the price of your house like the Feds are coming to seize them. Is everything fine?" He asked.
"Yes, everything is fine. Just, give me the number by tomorrow." Saying that, I hung up the phone.
My eyes felt heavy once again. The strength given to me by the milk was already reaching its end. I looked at the time on my phone.
2:07 A.M.
I pocketed the phone and looked up in the cloudy sky.
Soon.
I twitched my eyes as the light hit my face. It was too bright to endure. Slowly, I opened my eyes and the beam of light hit my eyelids. I closed my eyes once more and started waving my arms around to save myself from it.
Suddenly I realized that everything was hot. SO HOT. It was supposed to be cold outside, and we hadn't cranked the heat in the house. It felt like being in an empty cauldron with a fire sitting below it. The only juices I was dipped in was my own sweat. I couldn't take it anymore so I jumped from the bed and dashed to the lobby.
I breathed heavily to catch my breath when Priscilla walked out of the room laughing maniacally. Before I could realize what was going on, I looked at the torch light she was holding. It was an LED light which burned my eyeballs moments ago. It was also this laughing beast who had cranked the heat of the room to dry-boil me.
"You-" I marched towards Priscilla at a breakneck speed and swung my right hand. She dropped her laugh and opened her eyes wide to receive an open hand slap straight to her left cheek. Instead, I grabbed her nape, pushing her lips into mine. My eyes were closed, but I bet her eyes were wide open at this subversion.
I locked lips for a minute before I let her go. This time, it was her who was catching a breath.
"Good Morning, baby." She looked at my smug face walking past her.
I went into the kitchen and the lost lamb followed me.
"What do we have planned for today?" Priscilla asked.
"You need to work out. I will go to the Jango Night Club to arrange a meet up. In the afternoon, we'll go to the studio where we'll complete yesterday's recording. You record your best music when you're tired. In the evening, we'll meet up for a sexy dinner. Today is also one of those rare days when you can return home at 10 P.M."
"Okay, got it." She said. "What will you do?" She asked.
"I just told you. I'll go to the club to arrange a meet-up, then I'll pick you to go to the studio."
"Jango will probably take half an hour. I'll be working out for more than two hours. What will you do in the meantime?"
I turned around towards the refrigerator and looked for orange juice inside.
"Probably will take care of some business."
I turned around with the carton in hand and pointed at some glasses. Priscilla trotted across the kitchen to get them for me. I poured the juice and handed the glass to her. "Why'd you ask?"
Priscilla gripped the glass she was holding and answered, " it's 1 P.M. right now. You always sleep that late when something is bothering you. I just wanted to make sure you were alright."
I almost dropped my glass when I heard it. It has had been so long that Priscilla noticed even the minuscule changes in my behavior.
I collected myself before saying 'Everything is fine' to her.
There was some laughter following that, before I dropped a piece of news on her.
"Hey, Priscilla. I'll be in Asia for the next month."
Priscilla's eyes sparkled," Cool where are we going?"
I immediately corrected her," No, not us. Just me. I'll be in Asia for a month to plan your Asian tour."
"But, why can't I accompany you?" She made her drooping face to convince me.
"Because you need to finish up your album. I'll be visiting couple of countries to book your shows, and I'll be back in no time."
"What countries would I be performing?"
"China, Japan, Thailand, India. That's all I have thought of right now. Do you have any specific choice?"
"What about Nepal?"
Priscilla's answer caught me off guard. "No, Not Nepal. They don't have any big stadiums. And I don't think you have any audience in that country."
"Why not try it?" Priscilla was getting persistent.
"There is no way they have a location to pack 50,000 people." I offered my reason of resistance.
"But I looked online and-"
"Enough, Priscilla. Nobody will invest in a hole like that. So better concentrate on the given task. If you want to visit Nepal so much, take it to the sponsors." Saying that I left the kitchen and dashed towards the washroom. I bolted the door behind me once I got in. I still had the glass filled with orange juice in my hand, which I proceeded to flush in the sink. I let the glass slip from my hands and it clanked in the porcelain sink before setting in the center of it.
I sat down on the toilet seat and cupped my face with my hands. It took every fibre of my body to resist myself from breaking down.
I had decided. Be strong.
I had a path ahead of me. Be strong.
I had experience of survival. You're strong.
Saying all that, I threw my head backwards while having my eyes closed.
It's all just a dream.