The moment the door closed, Natasha groaned clutching her head.
Sure enough, the women who smiled sweetly at you were way more scarier than the men who blustered angrily in front of you. The woman, Marlene Ropier, felt way more dangerous than her husband to Natasha.
She knew that those things will come back to bite her in the ass one day. That was the reason that she tried to stay away from that life as much as possible after being dragged into that quagmire in her early days.
And behold, here it was coming back to bite her in the ass.
Natasha knew that if she had even hesitated for a single second, she would be going straight to jail after being released from this hospital bed. That woman Marlene would have surely tipped off the police at the minimum.
And if that woman was ruthless enough, she could even make sure that some special department would get hold of her and use her as a scapegoat for some unsolved cases. Luckily, she had the wherewithal to know when to bow her head.
Growing up in the streets gave Natasha a lot of useful life lessons. It was true that she was cocky and contrary to some extent. But, no one survived the streets without learning some valuable life lessons.
Now, she had until she was discharged from this hospital to decide on her destination. And if she read things right, that day wasn't far off either. That meant she needed to make a decision on where to move soon.
"Bloody hell! Why is this my life?!!!"
Natasha groaned as complicated feelings rose within her. Just when she thought that her life was on a good track, such a thing happened to her. She had tried very hard to stay away from her mistakes for the past year, but those damned three years were still haunting her like some unlucky ghost.
Gritting her teeth, Natasha started to plan…
*****
"Let me get this straight, girl," Sean's rough voice came through the phone in a harsh manner. "You bail out on me for a week. Now, you call and ask me for money saying that you are skipping town for a few years. Do I look like a fool to you?"
"Sean, I didn't bail out on you. I got into an accident, you asshole! It is not as if I want to leave the city. But, the situation is complicated. I can't explain it to you. This is for your own good. And I am not asking for your money. I am asking for the wages that I worked for," Natasha retorted angrily.
"Bah! For my own good, eh? Do you know how much trouble I ran into because you bailed on me? Accident? Why don't you say someone kidnapped you? Look here Nat, don't show your face in my bar. I once took pity on you and hired you. But, you are not welcome here anymore."
Before Natasha could rebut, she heard Sean angrily slamming the phone and cutting the line. She stood in a daze for a brief moment not willing to believe that Sean would treat her like this. The next moment her nostrils flared and she angrily dialed another number.
The line didn't go through for several rings. But, Natasha persisted, and eventually the call connected.
"Hey, motherf***er! Don't you know what time this is? If you want stuff, call at a decent time," an angry voice came from the other end.
"Tony! You asshole! I thought you stopped getting involved in those things!!!" Natasha raged causing the other side to go silent.
"Nat! Is that you? Why are you calling at this goddamned hour!?"
"Hmmph, if not for an emergency why would I call you at this hour?" Natasha snorted angrily.
"What happened? Is anything wrong?"
Natasha could hear Tony sobering up on the other end. Hearing the concern in his voice softened her heart a bit.
"I got into an accident," Natasha said grimly.
"My god! Are you alright?"
"I think so. The doctors also said the same thing. So, I guess I am alright," Natasha shrugged.
"Good, good. Did you get the plate number of that guy? Just tell me the number, I will teach that bastard a lesson," Tony's angry voice caused Natasha to smirk.
Tony didn't even ask whose fault the accident was. After enquiring about her health, he jumped straight to being angry at the person who hurt her. This was the Tony she knew. It warmed her heart to know that she had his unconditional support.
"Forget about it," Natasha said. "Things look a bit dicey. We can't do anything to the one who caused the accident."
"It doesn't matter who he is, just tell me who it is. I will disfigure his face," Tony said heatedly.
"What if it was a girl?"
"Then, I will disfigure that bitch's face too."
Natasha felt like slamming her head on the nearby wall. Tony, the loveable idiot, was always like this. In his eyes, only his friends mattered. No one else was important to him.
Still, disfiguring a girl's face for an accident felt a bit too much for her. As a girl herself, Natasha knew how important beauty was to the female species. It sounded unnecessarily cruel to her.
"Forget it, Tony," Natasha said in a soft voice. "Listen, I didn't call you to avenge me or some shit like that. I need your help."
"What do you want me to do?"
"I need to skip town for a while. Things are complicated. I will explain when we meet in person. I was wondering if you can help me out a bit with my stuff," Natasha asked.
"No problem," Tony said immediately. "But, your landlord is going to be a bitch. Are you coming back anytime soon?"
"Nope, I guess it will be a year or two before I come back," Natasha said a little doubtfully.
"Gosh Nat, what did you get yourself into?"
"It isn't anything illegal, you dumbass. I have become clean, unlike you…"
"Um…"
"Look, it doesn't matter now. I need you to go to my apartment and get my stuff packed. If you can arrange a car for me, it would be great. Come to St. Jacobs Hospital tomorrow at 7 in the evening," Natasha instructed Tony.
"Damn, St. Jacobs? What are you in there for? How are you going to pay those bills, Nat? You aren't selling your kidney or some stuff like that, right?"
"No, my bills are paid. I will be discharged tomorrow. I need to skip town immediately after that."
"Sounds serious, Nat. Are you sure you aren't in any trouble?"
"Trust me, it will only be trouble if I don't leave," Natasha said in a soft voice.
"Ok, I understand. I will be there."
"Thanks, Tony!"
"No problem, Nat!"
Natasha cut the call and took a deep breath. It was time to dial the last number. She only hoped that things didn't go to shit at the last moment. With trepidation etched on her face, Natasha dialed the last number.
"Hello, who is this?"
"Hey Barney, this is Natasha. You remember me?" Natasha asked anxiously.
"Natasha? Which Natasha? Ummm…Sorry, I don't have a clue."
Natasha felt her insides clench hearing that statement. Barney and she weren't very close these days. But, before her mother died, they used to be best buddies. Even though there was a few years difference in age between them, they got along really well during that time.
After her mother died, they drifted apart due to her being sent to foster care. They met each other very irregularly after that. When she ran away from her foster home, she became more independent.
But even then, their friendship never was the same. Her friend circle differed very much from Barney's and he didn't approve of her lifestyle. So, they drifted apart once more.
Two years back, Barney's family moved to Los Angeles. The last time they met, Barney had given her this number telling her to call if she ever came to Los Angeles.
Once Natasha knew that she couldn't live in New York anymore, she immediately thought of going to Los Angeles to live for a bit and see if she could find anything worthwhile to do.
If New York was the biggest city on the east coast, then Los Angeles was the biggest city on the west coast of the country. Moreover, Los Angeles was ideal for a high school graduate like her to develop further.
Los Angeles was the movie and television capital of the country. There were countless job opportunities even for people like Natasha who only finished high school there. And there was one more reason for her to go there.
Ever since she woke up, Natasha felt something was different about her. She didn't know what it was for several days. But, she always felt that something about her had changed due to the accident. She just didn't know what it was. It was an irritating feeling to experience.
Two days ago, Natasha was bored sitting and staring at the hospital wall for a long time. In the end, one of the nurses took pity on her and gave her a newspaper so that she could pass some time.
The moment her eyes fell on the date, it was as if an explosion happened inside her brain. Luckily, she didn't pass out this time. Nor did any blood leak out of her nose or ears. The shock came suddenly and subsided eventually.
But when the shock was over, she had an entirely different set of memories sitting in her mind.
*****
A/N: Check out my other stories and let me know your thoughts...
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