'The reality of the world makes it that our dreams are crashed but our ambition makes it that we make it through everything.'
I grab my school bag from where it lays on the passenger seat of my car and get out of the car. I check that I am leaving all doors closed before heading into the house and when I confirm that the doors are locked. I walk into the house and find my father and Yarrow sitting in the living room chatting the night away casually.
"Hey guys," I say as I drop my bag on the floor and take a seat beside my dad on the couch. He leans toward me and presses a kiss on my cheek which I return with a smile of my own.
I snuggle myself in his arms the way I used to do when I was a child and I have faced a bad day.
He puts his arms around me, putting me close to him and I smile.
My mom walks into the living room with Savannah behind her, they walk around to the other couch facing the one I am sitting on with my dad, leaving Simmons sitting on the one facing the fireplace.
"Hey ma, how are you feeling?" She smiles at me and nods her head.
"Am doing good. Okay, am glad that you are finally here, I don't want to waste a lot of your time. I know you are all tired so let me get to the point before I even doze off myself." She says the last part in a joking way which makes my father's chest vibrate from chuckling at her joke and so do we three, we smile at her joke but our smiles have something to do with how true it is than it being just a joke.
My mother has been weak and sleepy since she learned the news of her being pregnant and maybe I think it's due to the fact of her being pregnant at a late age. I've read lines about it being harmful to both the mother and the baby's health and I can't say the least about it because I've already seen symptoms of being unhealthy on my mother.
She clears her throat bringing my attention back to her. "Am going back to America. Lily Samantha, I was hoping for you to come there with me and it's permanent." I turn around to look at my family confused. 'Did I just hear that correctly?' I pull myself away from my father's chest.
Slowly and surely, I slip away from his hold and I sit upright thinking that being in an appropriate position could lead me to misunderstand what is going on.
"Ivy, we didn't allow on that." My dad says beside me and I turn to look at him. He looks annoyed and somehow angry, I turn to look at my mother and she has the same expression on her face.
"Am not going to argue with you about the health of mine and my baby," Mom says back to Dad and I frown. 'Are they still arguing about her leaving?'
"My baby too Ivy, our baby, and don't make it sound like am disregarding the health of it and you. Just because I want to take care of you closely does that paint me the bad guy?"
My mother shakes her head and is starting to feel like, I and my siblings shouldn't be here to listen to this conversation.
"That doesn't make you a bad guy but not caring about your wife's needs makes you a bad husband."
"Do you realize that you moving back to America, it's you erasing me from our baby's life?" The pain in my father's voice makes me turn to look at him as I reach for his hand and hold it in my small ones and it is a comforting squeeze.
Out in a silenced living room, we hear a sniffle from my mother. I turn to her and I frown when I find her crying.
My dad stands up and walks to her, he takes her in his arms.
"Stop crying Ivy, I wasn't trying to make you cry?" She sniffled as she wiped the tears with her fingers.
"How can I not when you are pinning me as the bad guy? I know you aren't but some too." She says sobbing. I turn to look at my siblings and we share a look of disbelief.
The look in our eyes means that we all know we shouldn't be there.
I look at her savannah and nod my head then to Yarrow and as quietly as we can, we sneak out of the living room and walk upstairs to our rooms.
We reach Savannah's room and I turn to look at them. "What was that?" I ask and Savannah turns to look at us before she ignores us and walks to her room.
"What is her problem?" I whisper to Yarrow who raises his hands. "You tell me?" He whispers back and I frown. "I tell you?" I ask gesturing at myself because I feel he is being unreasonable.
'How could I know what her problem is when I tried to ask and got snapped for it."
I push Yarrow away. "You are nuts." I walk to my room but I can feel him behind.
"How am I nuts? You are the one going after Savannah's hot man. I think you are the one going nuts here and not me." I turn to look at him.
"What are you saying?"
He shrugs.
"I saw you drive out of school with him in your car."
"And what does that have to do with me taking him?" He shoots me a pointed look and I frown.
"You drove him and I think in the dictionary it has the similarity as taking him."
"Get out of my room?" He looks at me and I purse my lips as I look back at him. "What is going on with this family?" I sigh and turn to go sit on my bed.
"I don't know but please stop filling your mind with thoughts of me and Lucas because there is nothing there. The guy is just....." I stop on my words wondering if it's even worth speaking with my brother.
"Yarrow, am not after Lucas and we are nothing so please stop it right there before you raise something that isn't there." He looks at me and nods looking away. "If you say so." I hear him say under his breath.
"Am going to head out." Before I answer him my phone rings and I reach for it in my back.
It's a text from Leila.
Leila: Night girl_oh, tell Kai I love him for you and also remind him to have a good night sleep for his beauty.
I smile at her text. 'She really is crazy. What does she mean by saying she loves Kai for me?'
"Who is it?" I look up at Kai and curse under my breath. "For fuck's sake.'
"Goodnight loser, get out of my room." I stand up from my bed and walk to push him out of my bed but he is being stubborn not wanting to budge. "At least tell me who just made you smile and I will go." He says but I just push him harder. "Get out Mons."
"Tell me then." I keep on pushing but he still doesn't budge.
I clench my jaw. "You don't know them."
"The gender at least."
"Yarrow," I yell and finally he runs out. "Don't eat me." I sigh when he finally leaves my room.
I walk to my bed and grab my phone to hit back Leila.
Me: You nuts for sure.
I send the text put the phone on my bed and go to take a shower.
It's late and am tired not to add the day I just had, full of drama from morning till night.
***********
I wake up late this time, I don't know if it's because of my tired body or if it's because I am not feeling school.
I shift from my position in bed and am welcomed by the light that is coming through my window which pushes a groan out of my mouth.
"Good morning sweetheart, I made your favorite pancakes with different other things you like for breakfast." I push myself up to lean on my headboard.
I look at my mother as she settles different types of food with juice on my lap.
"What time is it mom?" She sits beside my legs on the bed with me.
"It's almost 7 o'clock," I grab the tray and put it down on my nightstand well balanced before jumping out of bed and into my bathroom.
I take a quick shower and when I do come out my mom is still sitting where I left her before heading into the closet.
"Mom, I need to get ready for class?" She claps her hands together on her lap turning to look at me as I go to search for what to wear in my closet.
"Lily Samantha you've been acting weird and am worrying about you? Is everything ok?" I nod my head but I don't know if she can see me because am deep into my closet looking for what to wear.
"Mom, am alright and if it's about last night, Mom I can't just move back and forth from here to there, not now that I am an assistant of an actual counselor in the Embassy of America. Am sorry that you were counting on me and I am disappointed, but I can't come back to America not after this year." I change into my clothes quickly and walk to my mother. 'I really said that? Am not dreaming. Please someone pinch me.'
I take a seat on my bed right beside my nightstand where I left the tray of food.
I picked up the orange juice she brought and a pancake. "Lily Samantha, you had it all wrong sweetheart. Am not disappointed in you, if anything am proud of you." I watch as she pauses between her words like she is having trouble finding the right words to express her feelings to me.
"Asking you to come back to America has nothing to do with wanting to change the life you made here for yourself, I just thought you still wanted to go back because you never wanted to come and I thought you were the perfect candidate but," I reach for the second pancake. I feel like crying when I realize that am on the second with everything my mom made and I can't stay to eat more because I have to go to school.
"Just know that no matter what you decide or want, I am always here and I am happy for the woman you are turning into. I do not know if you see it too but this country changed you a lot and it's for the best." I smile at my mom, I put the glass of juice in my hands back on the tray and reach for my mother to pull her in my arms.
"Mom, I appreciate this so much but if you would help me pack these other pancakes, I would appreciate it even more." She pulls away but plants a kiss on my forehead.
"I got it, pack your bag we will meet downstairs." I nod.
"I love you, mom! Wait when are you going?" She stands up picks the tray from my nightstand and walks to the door. "I have come to a compromise with your father, now hurry or you are going to get late for school." I roll my eyes because here she was talking to me a heart-to-heart talk not caring about me being late for school but now she is turning the parenting mode on me.
She walks out of my room and I run upside down looking for my books for the classes I have today, I will always curse that school for not having lockers and worse for not allowing phones on the school campus.
I finish packing my school bag, run downstairs, and find a box packed with pancakes I name it mine,
I walk out of the house with the keys to my car.
I stop midway when I find Yarrow leaning on my car.
"What do you want now?"
"Well, good morning to you too."
I sigh. "Am not dealing with you now."
I open the car door and like last time, he walks in the passenger seat without my permission. 'What is it with people getting in my car without my permission?'
I start the car feeling annoyed and the feeling gets deeper when Yarrow starts annoying me even more.
"Why don't you ever play some songs." He reaches for the radio and I look at his hand and slap it away.
"My car my rules."
"My phone my rules." He reaches for his phone and opens it before I listen to G Eazy's songs start to be played out.
"Ew, you know how to have bad taste in music and nothing else." He pulls his tongue out at me when I turn to look at him and I chuckle shaking my head at him.
The rest of the drive he plays songs on his phone till we make it at school.
We are late by fifteen minutes and we are reduced fifteen marks of discipline for not being punctual and being responsible enough before we even make it to class.
I get through the rest of the morning fine and I find myself at my usual table pulling my mother's pancake out of the box where she packed them for me with a big exciting smile on my face, at least something to lighten this day again.
Am enjoying the third pancake with my passion juice but the taste goes away from my tongue when I catch the person putting the tray of food on my table with a bang and making himself comfortable in front of me.
"Not you again!" I receive a chuckle as a reply.
"Why do you always sit here alone, ain't here any girl who wants to befriend you?"
"Sometimes lonely isn't out of a situation but a choice." He grins.
"Okay, I don't get it but whatever I hate seeing you alone so then I guess I have to take it on myself and be your only friend here." I point my index finger at him.
"Point of correction, your sister's friend, not your friend." He smirks.
"Really? Because I might have heard something of you using my tradition. How come that doesn't make you my friend then?!"
He asks shrugging his shoulders innocently, but my mind caught on to what matters. 'Don't tell me Leila told him about the tradition he taught me. I mean where else could he have heard it from?'
"So she told you?"
He quirks his eyebrows in confusion. "Who?"
I roll my eyes. "Stop playing dumb you know who."
"What is that you are eating?" I raise my eyes to stare in his dark ones, quite different from Kai's blue ones but I snap out of it when he snaps his fingers in front of my eyes. Wondering what Kai is doing on my mind now, I shake my head and bring my focus to Lucas who is in front of me.
"Hey Sam, girl I know I am handsome but not that handsome that you could eat me for lunch just tell me what's that you are eating and we can discuss what you want from me later."
I pass him a glare. "Shut up Lucas, these are the pancakes mom made for me but I packed some for lunch. Want some?" He nods his head and reaches his hand to pick some, I slap it away.
He groans glaring at me.
"Just a warning boy, these are going to be the best pancakes you will ever taste but know that you won't be getting another one." He rolls his eyes and reaches for the pancake and I let him this time.
"Where is a worry in that? It's my friend's mother that made them so I don't see why am not getting another one." I raise my eyebrow challengingly at him. "Really?"
"Ow wow please tell your mom that I am free and if possible she can adopt me anytime she wants." I laugh out loud but not loud enough to earn us looks from other students.
"Not a chance body."
I spent lunch with Lucas and we went to the other classes together because we have the same classes. I find my day being normal and fine because of his company.
Classes end and Lucas walks behind me following me to my car he sits in the passenger seat and somehow am not surprised at all.
"Please tell Leila that you have a ride, to not bother her coming all the way here for nothing again." He winks.
"Already did!"
I shake my head because somehow it doesn't surprise me that he already planned this before. Am pulling out of the parking lot when I catch sight of my brother running to me.
I stop and run till he catches with me, I pull the window down.
"What is it?"
"Sam," he says when he reaches me.
I look at him as he looks at Lucas in the passenger seat and nods his head at him. "You are taking my phone and I can't wait till you get home to get it."
"Where is it?"
"Can you get it for me man, down there beside the door?" He says to Lucas and he pulls his hands down to look for it before strengthening his arm over my window to pass the phone to Yarrow. "Thanks." He says to him and then turns to me. "Laters lovely." Am not even surprised by his name now.
I drive Lucas to his house and then drive to the embassy.
Kai is deep into work by the time I get there and he tells me, it's confidential work so I just hang out in the embassy, doing small work that am assigned to. At the end of it, I ended up going home earlier than usual because there wasn't anything more for me to do.
I drive home and I reach there first before my father. I park the car in its usual place and I walk into the house.
I hear peals of laughter in the kitchen and I head in its direction, I find Mom, Sav, and Yarrow In there. Mom is cooking, Sav is reading a book while Yarrow is just talking and hanging with them and it strikes me that I didn't see Sav today at school.
"Hey Lily Samantha, you are home early?" I nod reaching for an apple.
"Yeah the embassy is busy but it has nothing to do with me but it does with my father and he might come home late or not at all." My mom turns around to raise one of her eyebrows in question.
"Everything Okay there?"
"Yes, it's just some chaos from America I think I've heard I guess."
"Oh, I hope everything is fine then. Okay, now that you are all here I want to tell you something guys."
"What is it now?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you lovers!!
Keep on voting and sharing.
Ask me whatever you want and am willing to answer also please do comment on what you think of the characters and the story twists.
About the errors, if found please kindly point them out and I will gladly correct them.
Love you already!!🖤🖤🖤
Buh byeeee!!!