The Betrayal That Made Me

Chapter6-TheWeightOfSurvival

The days after Sophia left Chase Enterprises were some of the darkest she had ever experienced.

She moved through life without purpose- eat, sleep, cry, repeat. Sometimes she lay awake at night, staring at her ceiling crying silently, tears soaking her pillow. Her grandmother and her sister, Isabella tried to console her and cheer her up but all to no avail. Sophia just couldn’t shake the weight she felt pressing her chest. At first, her phone buzzed non stop with messages from Kelvin and Laura, but she ignored them. Then after a few days, the calls and messages stopped. The silence felt worse and the pain was unbearable.

Bills piled up on the kitchen counter, each envelope was a cruel reminder that life continues not minding her broken heart. Rent was due, she needed to pay Isabella school fees and Granny’s medication needed to be topped up. She stared at the last bit of savings she had, a few dollars and she felt sick. She had no job, no income and she needed to pay their bills.

Her grandmother entered her room and saw the state she was in, she sat down and hugged Sophia tightly. “You can’t stop living because of one setback, you have to try again my dear.”

“I will, grandma” Sophia whispered but deep down she didn’t know if she could try again or even succeed. She has no confidence in herself.

Sophia forced herself out of her apartment the next day. She walked into shops, offices, restaurants anywhere that had a “Help wanted” or “Hiring” sign. But most turned her down.

“You don’t meet our requirements”

“We will get back to you” was what she kept hearing.

By evening she was already tired and her feet ached. She was about to give up and go home when she saw a small café between a bookstore and a laundry store. She went into the shop, it smelled like fresh bread and croissants. A middle aged woman was behind the counter she was cleaning up, getting ready to shut down for the day.

“Good evening ma’am” Sophia greeted. “Are you hiring by any chance”

The woman looked at her. “Are you willing to work hard?”

“Yes. I can do anything you want. I really need a job to take of my grandma and sister”

The woman studied her for a moment, then nodded. “Be here by seven tomorrow morning, we will see how you do. Do not be late.”

Sophia almost cried out in relief.

Working at the cafè wasn’t like working at Chase Enterprises. No glass buildings, no designer suits. She didn’t enjoy it as much as she enjoyed reading mails and preparing for a presentation but she had no choice. What she had here was steaming coffee, squeaky tables and customers who sometimes smiled and sometimes raised their voice. But Sophia worked hard. She swept, poured coffee, cleaned tables, smiled at customers and mopped. Her hands ached badly at night but she did not complain. Every dollar show earned went into paying the rent, paying for Isabella fees and buying Granny’s medicine. There was nothing left for her - no new clothes, no treats, she could not afford any luxury. And it still felt like she was trying to pour water into a basket because her salary still wasn’t doing much.

Peace never lasted. One afternoon, Laura walked into the café wearing a red dress and tiny heels that clicked with the floor like she owned the place.

Sophia stood in place.

“Well, well, well,” Laura said sweetly as she looked around. “So this is where you’ve been hiding.”

“What do you what, Laura” Sophia said

“Just a cup of latte and also to see how you are doing. Kelvin was worried about you.” She said with a smirk on her face.

Sophia said nothing and just went to prepare her order. Laura, being persistent, went to the counter and leaned towards it.

“You should be happy for me, Soph. Kelvin and I are happy together”.

Sophia's jaw tightened. “Good for you guys.” She knew Laura wanted a reaction from her but she wasn’t going to give her that pleasure. The taunting from Laura didn’t stop, she would occasionally drop by with Kelvin just to show off their relationship and mock Sophia but Sophia didn’t let them break her spirit.

She handed her the drink and Laura left. When she left Sophia balled her hands into a fist until her knuckles turned white.

Weeks passed. Sophia saved every penny she made but her grandmother’s health kept declining. The cough returned, deeper this time. Most times her grandmother could not sleep at night. She would stay awake coughing to the point that she could not breathe at times. Anytime Sophia suggested going to the hospital, Granny Andrew would refuse saying she was fine because she knew that Sophia was barely able to pay their bills and she would not be able to afford paying the hospital bills. One day Sophia came back from work only to find her grandmother on the floor struggling to breathe, she rushed her grandmother to the nearest hospital.

After examining her, the doctor frowned. “She needs immediate treatment” the doctor said with a serious look on his face. “We need to run some tests and place her on stronger medication but you have to pay a deposit first.”

Sophia’s stomach dropped when she heard the amount- several thousand dollars.

“I don’t have that kind of money”. Sophia whispered.

“You need to look for a way to get it. We can keep her for now but if the bill isn’t paid in the next two days, we would have no choice but to discharge her.”

Sophia nodded. That night she sat by Granny’s bedside, holding her hand. “I can’t lose her, I won’t lose her”. She knew the only person that could help her was Kelvin. She didn’t want to call him at first but she just had to try. So she called him. The line rang once but went straight to voicemail but she called again, this time Laura answered.

“Well, look who it is,” Laura said in a nonchalant manner. “What do you want, why are you calling my man by this time.”

“I need to speak to Kelvin, it’s very important”. Sophia said. “My grandmother is really sick and I need his help, please Laura.”

“You think you can just call him after everything? You know you are very pitiful and you’ve always been a sore loser.” Laura said. Her voice was very cold.

“Laura, please—“

Before Sophia could finish what she wanted to say, Laura ended the call and blacklisted Sophia’s number on Kelvin’s phone.

Sophia tried calling back but Kelvin’s number was no longer connecting and then she realized that Laura must have blocked her number. She stared at the phone in disbelief.

The next day, Sophia worked a double shift at the café hoping to raise enough money for even a partial payment. But by evening, she had still not gathered enough money.

She looked at Granny’s tired face and made a decision. She was going to go to Sterling Enterprises. Even if she had to kneel down and beg Kelvin, she would swallow her pride and do it.

She stood outside Sterling Enterprises the next morning, her heart was beating fast. The glass building towered over her. She took a deep breath and walked inside. No matter what happened next, she had to at least give it a shot.