Avery Adams was your typical kind of girl. She entered the house with a beautiful smile, walking into the kitchen where she found her aunt, Jessica's mother. "AUNTY!" she screamed in excitement, startling her. She had been occupied with baking cookies for her niece's arrival.
Jessica's mother was an elderly woman, approximately 64 years old. She had given birth to Jessica at the age of 45, seven years after a tragic loss.
She glanced back at Avery, who gave her a warm smile. "My dear, when did you get here, and where is Jessica?" the woman asked curiously.
"I called her a couple of hours ago, but she seemed preoccupied with something. I just took a taxi here," Avery explained excitedly. She was, however, rather worried about Jessica and wondered why the girl had not yet returned home. Avery hadn't heard from Jessica after she ended the call. Jessica was supposed to pick her up from the airport, but she seemed to have been caught up with something.
Avery watched as Mrs. Hayman's expression turned sour. She seemed extremely angry for some reason as she took off the brown apron and placed it over the kitchen counter. Turning off the oven, she looked towards her niece, who was still standing before her, confused by her actions. Jessica's mother felt extremely frustrated and irritated because of her daughter's behavior. Time after time, she had to mentor and teach Jessica.
"I should have known, that boy is no good," Mrs. Hayman said in anger, pushing past Avery as she walked towards the door. Avery was now confused; she didn't catch a hint of what the woman was saying, but she was definitely interested in understanding.
"Boy? What boy?" Avery asked in confusion, following her aunt towards the living room. She put down her suitcases and walked behind the woman.
"That stupid Nick Thomas that she has been seeing. Ever since she started dating the boy, nothing seems to matter to her anymore. She listens to nothing I tell her, and she is always too occupied with wanting to see him. It's almost as if she's obsessed with him," the woman screamed in frustration. She was pacing around the house, looking for something, maybe the keys to her car, or her shoes and handbag.
"He is no good for my baby girl. She is only nineteen, hanging out with a good-for-nothing like him. He is always racing, organizing those stupid and dangerous games for all the youth in the city. I'm going to get my daughter from that place, and this time, Jessica had better listen to me!" Her voice was filled with finality.
She hated the young man so much. Wherever Nick Thomas went, there was always trouble. This seemed to be the very concept that angered Mrs. Hayman the most.
As though the universe worked in correspondence to the words, 'speak of the devil,' Nick Thomas stood at their door frame. Mrs. Hayman had never been so shocked. There was a feeling that settled inside her gut. Instead of anger, fear settled. Nick Thomas had never come to her house; he wouldn't dare. He had never brought himself to that household or greeted his girlfriend's mother.
When Avery's eyes met his, something was strikingly familiar about the man. He ought to be someone they'd met, or perhaps she had seen him somewhere.
"Ma'am," Nick Thomas spoke, looking at both the mother and her niece. His entire demeanor was unsettled; he seemed as though he had just had a date with the devil.
"It's Jessica!" Nick said, looking at the woman as his heart beat drastically. Remaining composed was always his cup of coffee; he knew how to act and how to remain calm. When he stood at that door today, however, he seemed to break apart with so much fear. It was as though he had been coming to that response for the past couple of minutes that he made his way here. Nick Thomas was not a man known for being tense, but when he arrived at Jessica's home, he was so scared and shaking that he had to constantly calm himself down. He needed to construct better sentences just so he could explain to Jessica's mother what exactly went down.
For the first time ever, a tear fell systematically from Nick's eye. A lot of emotions swam inside him. Jessica's mother had raging thoughts. On one side, she felt the breaking of her heart as she looked at the boy she already despised.
"What? What happened to my Jessica?" she asked. Her voice held so much panic. Nick knew just how much Jessica meant to her mother. He knew that the family was rather wealthy and Jessica was all her mother had.
Avery had been standing right next to Jessica's mother as she waited for Nick Thomas to break the news. She was just as confused as Mrs. Hayman, but on the other side, she tried to recollect her thoughts and figure out where exactly she had seen Nick. She was not one who mistook people, and right now, Avery Adams had seen the boy somewhere.
Could Mrs. Hayman ever be prepared for the news she was just about to receive? Would life ever prepare her for the treachery and deceit she was about to encounter? Misfortunes come knocking on the door when we least expect them, but what happens when they not only knock on the door, but they invade our privacy and our lives? When catastrophe strikes, it does not injure; it demolishes.
Nick Thomas did not have enough courage to break the news to her. Jessica's mother heard the ringing of their telephone. That delicate sound caught her attention as she turned around and moved towards the white telephone that sat on top of the counter.
"Mrs. Hayman!" The person on the other end of the line spoke, convincing Mrs. Hayman that it was not a wrong call. Whatever bad news would be conveyed next belonged to her. Avery looked at the worried expression. She patiently waited for her aunt to finish talking on the phone just so she could know exactly what was happening. On the other hand, she kept throwing furtive glances towards Nick Thomas. The boy was obviously built; he was extremely handsome, and his physique was impressive.
If only she would have known that enemies swing by way closer than allies.
"Your daughter, she's been hit by a car."