After a long time of negotiation with the two men, they finally came to an agreement. If they didn't pay back the money in a month, they would lose everything and her mother would be sued for it.
When the men left, Mia's eyes was ablaze with a mixture of anger and concern as she stormed over to her mother.
"Why did you take so much money from the bank, Mom?" She demanded. At first, Mia didn't want to let her mother know that she'd seen the bank warning notice, but now that things had gotten out of hands, she couldn't help but feel guilty and even more angry at her mother for lying to her that she'd already repaid the money they'd used to cover her school expenses a year ago. Furthermore, her mother hadn't told her she'd even borrowed the money from the bank until that day she'd seen the bank warning slip to the floor.
Elizabeth looked up, her eyes filled with guilt, and tried to explain apologetically, "Mia, I did everything for you. I wanted to give you a better life, a future without struggles."
"I don't want a better life if it means you have to suffer like this!" She yelled, her frustration building up into a mountain. Mia hated it when her mother would always do things for her but never allowed her to repay the favor by supporting the family. Not once had her mother agreed for her to get a job.
Elizabeth stood up from her chair, "You deserve more than all this, Mia. And I would do anything to give you a much better life than this slum."
Mia's tears streamed down her cheeks as she couldn't contain her emotions. Why couldn't her mother understand that the more she was trying to give her that better life, the more burden it was causing her daughter?
Subconsciously, Mia hugged her midriff and murmured softly, "I never asked for this, mama. I never wanted anything more than to make you happy. If I'm the cause of your misery, I'd rather quit school and get a job."
Elizabeth, who always had a calm demeanor and expression, jumped at her daughter's words. "You will not do that, Mia. You will go to school and have a brighter future!"
"I don't care about a 'brighter future' if it means you're suffering. I'd give it all up to see you happy, Mom." She cried out, and without waiting for her mother to speak again, Mia stormed out of the eatery and headed to their house. She ran up the stairs ignoring all the people standing and gossiping in the corridors. When she got to her room, she broke down completely and crouched down hugging her school bag to her chest.
Mia hugged her bag even more as she recalled the words of the women.
'The family's weird, they have no man in the house. I heard from Mrs. Dennis that Elizabeth most have gotten pregnant out of wedlock and raised the girl alone. Who knows, perhaps even the girl isn't going to that expensive school to study but to screw the rich kids there for money.'
At times, Mia herself would believe that she was born out of wedlock and had no father. Her mother had informed her that he had passed away while she was still pregnant, but whenever Mia attempted to ask about her father, her mother would avoid the topic or leave the question unanswered. When they relocated to Whispering Way and she started attending the local school, Mia faced constant bullying from her peers due to her fatherless status.
Mia tried not to dwell on the curiosity surrounding her father, but there were moments when she felt the need to prove to those who looked down on her mother and called her names that she did indeed have a father. She always turned down Rayne's offer to drop her off at home in their limo because Mia knew that if anyone saw her getting out of such an expensive car, they would assume she was being escorted home by one of the wealthy kids she was involved with.
Normally, Mia wouldn't care about what others said, but she was concerned about the impact it could have on her mother and her small eatery business. Mia knew how much her mother cherished the business and aspired to have her own restaurant someday. To protect her mother's reputation, Mia stayed away from anything that could harm her mother's market. And now, if the bullying continued, she would even be willing to drop out of school as long as her mother wouldn't have to bear the burden of the expenses for her school materials.
However, the thought of dropping out weighed heavily on her heart. How could she abandon her education when she had a great dream to pursue once she graduated?
As if under some sort of spell, Mia suddenly stood up from the floor and began rearranging her room, even though it was already tidy. To keep herself occupied, she even started moving her wardrobe to a different spot.
Elizabeth walked towards her daughter's room, she slowly knocked on the door, but receiving no response, she gently pushed it open. As she stepped inside, she found Mia behind the wardrobe, attempting to rearrange it. A faint smile played on Elizabeth's lips as she thought about how her daughter's habit of organizing things when her emotions ran high, would never fail to stun her. Mia would keep her hands busy either by playing guitar or organizing things until she'd be too exhausted to let her emotions control her.
She heard Mia mutter a curse under her breath as the wardrobe proved challenging to move. Elizabeth approached and, without a word, joined in to help push it back against the wall. In that moment, Mia paused, her teary lashes meeting her mother's gaze.
Elizabeth, recognising her daughter's emotions, acknowledged, "I know you're angry with me for what I've done." She began softly, "but i_"
Mia walked away from the wardrobe and walked towards the window as she declared, "I've decided to drop out of school and find a job."
Elizabeth who was aware of how much her daughter cherish her school, was surprised to hear that. And without hesitation, she said firmly, "No you won't."
Mia swirled around, "Yes I will, mom. Since you won't allow me to work while I study, then I am willing to quit and work to pay back the loan."
Elizabeth shook her head, "No, Mia. Don't do this to yourself, I can handle this, i_"
"Enough mom." Her voice trembled with a mix of frustration and hurt as she poured out her emotions. "I've tried to be the daughter you wanted me to be by not doing things that would hurt you. I stopped asking about my father because you don't like talking about him, but Mom, the more you think you don't want me to suffer, the more I suffer whenever you do things for me."
Elizabeth, struggling with her own pain, couldn't respond. She had stopped her daughter from doing any work or getting any job because of her own past mistakes and guilt. But now she realized she was hurting Mia more than she was protecting her from knowing the past.
Elizabeth walked towards her daughter and pulled her into her embrace. She cradled her head against her breast and patted her back. "I am sorry..."
Finally, Elizabeth agreed for Mia to get a part-time job if she promised not to drop out of school. And Mia happily promised. She loved her school, and she didn't want to quit now that she had gotten this far. Not to mention, she had a contest to win. However, if her mother had still tried to stop her, she would have quit.
***
Amidst the urban landscape of the bustling city of Zen, a gleaming skyscraper stood tall, it's gleaming exterior casting a warm glow over the surrounding streets. The building, with its sleek lines and modern architecture, seemed to defy gravity, as if it was reaching for the sky. Inside one of the skyscraper condominium, Neil stood in front of the large unobstructed window of his condo, with a glass of wine in hand. He had recently brought the condo when he took on the identity of Leo Bennett.
Elite Haven Towers was one of the best apartment complex buildings in the city and he liked his condo for the city view it offers. He stood at the large window to watch as the sun dipped below the horizon, he didn't move as he was listening to what Liam was reporting to him from behind. Even after Liam finished giving his report, he still stood there until the city's tall buildings and skyscrapers that were once bathed in the warm glow of the sun, were now standing proudly against the darkening sky, making their windows look like diamonds that shone brightly in the night.
Neil finally spoke after he'd silently digested everything Liam reported to him about Mia Harrison. "You mean to say she had never lived in Mirage mesa before?" He asked Liam as he turned away from the large window and walked towards where his friend was casually sitting on the kitchen island.
Liam, who had been assigned the task of investigating a girl's background, couldn't help but comment instead of answering. "I was surprised when you called me yesterday afternoon just so I could investigate this girl's background." Neil had never cared enough about any female to even bother looking into their background. Furthermore, whenever he was on a mission, he never spoke or concerned himself with anything unrelated to the mission.
Liam was having lunch with his four sisters, who'd dragged him to a fancy restaurant when he had received Neil's call yesterday. Knowing that his friend only called when something important arose, he assumed it was about a bomb or some information regarding the da kroll gang. However, he was taken aback to hear Neil say, "I want you to investigate Mia Harrison's background. I want to know everything about her, including her birthplace and the people in her life."
Liam had been sipping water when he heard those words yesterday, and he was so surprised that he almost choked to death. Neil Wayner, who typically disregarded matters unrelated to his mission, was now involving himself in something completely unrelated. That was the first!
To make matters even more unusual, his friend, who preferred not to have anyone who knew him as Neil visit his condo, had summoned him there just to report everything he had discovered about this unknown girl he had never met.