The Billionaires Crush

PAST "Is this a spicy food joint?" a husky voice behind Zelia asked. Clearing her throat, she turned to reply to the owner of the voice. "Like, duh! Is that even supposed to be a question in the first place? I'm standing right here in a queue to buy my favourite noodles by the roadside, shouting at the top of my voice to prevent people from cutting the line, which clearly isn’t going my way". "Hey, move back," she said to the guy who thought it was okay to cut the line, then turned back to the gorgeous stranger and continued talking. "Yeah, as I was saying, so it can get to my turn since it's been over 30 minutes in this damn queue." Zelia huffed. She was powering out her frustration at this point to this poor innocent man who seemed amused, but she had reached her limits today. She had lost her first position in class after the last exams to that snob English guy—why anyone named their child English was beyond her. She had managed to run out of the house after her dad threw one of his new tantrums, as her brother and she called it. Recently, they were always failures in his eyes. She used her hand to gesture, pointing out the obvious to the attractive guy with a well-shaven face, which was rare in her neighbourhood. After taking him in, she mused to herself that he really was out-of-this-world handsome. He looked lost and confused, which she found cute—probably her age or older, with a very sexy and husky voice she thought she could listen to forever. Leaving beards was currently considered fashionable, yet he clearly had his own sense of style or didn’t care about following trends, and Zelia was already swooning over that. She had a thing for people who didn’t conform to society’s rules, so she was clearly in trouble because she was drawn to him. Thank God she wouldn’t see him again. Get a grip, Lee, she thought. "So, what do you think, sir?" she tried to joke and lighten the mood because, despite looking young, this guy was intimidating. The last thing she wanted was to add to the list of wrongs in her dad’s books. She couldn’t take another belt whip anytime soon. "It's obviously spicy food being sold here, just looking at the signboard. Are you by chance lost?" Zelia continued, pointing toward the signboard in question. He certainly wasn’t from around here, with the way he kept looking around like a lost puppy. "You mean this place is a food joint? Roadside, plywood structure, closer to the gutter?" he asked in that husky voice of his while turning around to properly take in his surroundings, awe and disgust showing on his face. Right. Hygiene. Zelia guessed she wasn’t going to crush on him for long because of that one sentence. "The gutters are spotless and clean, and if you want to confirm how true my statement is, you can come by every morning to watch Auntie Bee clean the gutter. Maybe not. But what is someone like you doing in this area? You don’t look like you’re from here. Your ignorance gives you away... What is it? Are you here to check out how privileged you are to be sitting in your castle?" She was clearly blowing it out of proportion, but what could she do? This part of town was a place rich kids like him avoided, and he just single-handedly criticized her favourite food joint. It wasn’t like it hadn’t happened before, but she was extra defensive today. They were clearly drawing attention with the way heads were turning toward them, but she didn’t care. He did, though, because he replied: "Ahem... No... I didn’t mean to sound that way, but looking at you... you don’t seem to be from this area either, judging by the way you're dressed," he said in a low voice, sizing her up and down. He was undoubtedly observant too. Zelia wasn’t from here, well not anymore. She wasn’t in her usual T-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. She was wearing jewellery, including a necklace, rings, and earrings, at the insistence of her mother, who wanted her to be presentable when they broke the news to her father that she had placed second in class instead of first, forgetting she had just transferred to the school. Ever since they moved up the social ladder, Zelia couldn’t recognize her father. "Nothing much... just one of my getaways... It’s not every day you get to see me, and that, too, in this state. I am Zelia, by the way." She extended her hand for a handshake to call a truce because who knew? "Ernest..." PRESENT "ZELIA!! ZELIA!" Sandra’s voice snapped her out of one of the memories that had cuffed her for years. "Huh? What is it?" Zelia answered belatedly, much to Sandra’s amusement. "What the hell? How did you enter one of your trances with this lively atmosphere? Don’t tell me it’s nothing, because I know it’s definitely something. I mean, I’ve known you for close to a decade, and you keep doing this more and more as time goes by. What is it? Same memories or dreams?" The room was indeed lively with chatter and laughter, yet Zelia had slipped into her own world as she stood by the window, casting her gaze on the buildings and mundane happenings outside. It had been a decade since Zelia left the place she called home growing up, the only city she knew, and yet every day she relived the moments she was there like it was only yesterday. She was the oldest child in the family, with a brother two years younger than her. She had been the apple of her parents' eyes—until she wasn’t. Having won various competitions from arts and music to the National Math and Science Quiz, she had also been awarded various scholarships before her dad hit it big, and she got to study at one of the most prestigious high schools. Her father had been a Senior Manager at a bank, and her mother was a small business owner. They had strived to move from the middle class to join the rich in society after an investment gone right led to their success. They did everything they could to live up to the expectations of that society, so they would fit in and be accepted. Since she was four, Zelia has been praised for her ability with numbers and her brilliance in picking up everything faster than others. Shortly before her high school graduation, thus, a month after their results were released, she received a proposal to join the University of Southern Ville, one of the most prestigious universities in the country. It was a place where all the rich and elite studied. This had been a dream come true for her family until she fell victim to the scheme that changed her life. Waking up with a spinning headache was bad enough, but the words that shook her to her core came from the one person she least expected to be there in the first place. "YOU SLUT! You finally got what you wanted from me! But let me make this clear, and notice is hereby given to you that in no way am I going to take any form of responsibility for what happened last night. So if you think you have me in your palms now, then forget it, because you are and will continue to be nothing in my eyes." "I... It’s not that... I..." Shocked by the events, Zelia stammered and tried to explain, even protesting in any way she could as she quivered under the blanket. "ENOUGH! I don’t want to hear anything from you. I don’t want to see you now or ever again. GET LOST. I don’t even want to set my eyes on you, so don’t be here when I come out of the bathroom. Get out!" He shouted the last words, which vibrated through her chest as he stood up and walked to the bathroom, slamming the door without looking back. Shivering more, Zelia immediately got up and, in shame, hastily gathered her things—the traces of herself left in the room, like her purse and heels. She dressed in record time and rushed down the hallway, and that was the last word she heard from him and the last time she saw him. "Nothing new, Dimples. Same old, same old." Zelia chuckled and turned to face Sandra, her friend-turned-sister, realizing she had taken too long to answer her. "How many times have I told you not to call me Dimples? Looking at both of us, your dimples are more visible. Somehow, you keep calling me that name. I give up on you. Just do whatever you want and snap out of it already, will you? They keep asking me if you, my dear, need to see a doctor, and I can't help but agree with them.” It seemed Zelia wasn’t doing a good job if she was drawing everyone’s attention, something she hated. Before she could answer, Sandra continued. "For you to still think about him after all these years means you either need to see a shrink or finally find a place in your heart to let him go, along with everything, including the pain." Zelia opened her mouth to retort, only to see the expression everyone wore. They had turned to look at her when they realized she hadn’t come to take her seat after the phone call she received, and from their expressions, it was safe to assume it had been over an hour. "Right," Zelia said, lowering her gaze, trying to prevent the tears that threatened to fall. She raised her head to hold it all together when, suddenly, she felt a small figure hugging her tightly. A moment later, two others joined her, and her heart contracted. "Don’t cry, Mummy. If you cry, you make me sad. All of us, I mean," said one of her children, as all three nodded, with two beside her hip and one in front of her. Kneeling to meet their eyes, Zelia wrapped her arms around them all. These moments made her feel proud of her struggles and her decision to keep them after finding out she was pregnant. "Why would I cry when I have my three cupcakes here with me? I’m not sad, so don’t look for ways to get out of going to school today because it’s not going to work." She changed the subject from herself. Sticking her tongue out, Eliana scrolled. "Mama! We already know what we’re being taught, and going every day is such a waste of time because nothing is challenging there." "And nothing new to learn," Ethan, who had detangled himself from Zelia, added as he walked back to the dining table to finish his breakfast. Zelia chuckled. This wasn’t the first time they had a conversation like this. Her children had been highly intelligent since a very young age, jumping ahead of their class several times in school thanks to their teachers’ recommendations, yet they still felt it wasn’t necessary to continue going to school for reasons she had yet to fully understand. "For a change, today happens to be your last day at school, and after you come home, we will depart for the city of AccraVille, which you have been bugging me about. Okay? So, for the last time, as we say bye to this region for the next three months, can we all be civilized and leave on a good note? Please." "Is it really okay for us to go to AccraVille with you?" Layla, the eldest of her children, who hadn’t spoken a word, suddenly asked. "Well…" "If it’s because of me, then I honestly don’t mind us staying here for the rest of our lives. Repeating or jumping classes are the last thing I think about, as long as we get to stay here. I don’t care if I keep seeing blurry. Moreover, it’s not that bad," Layla said. Layla had been diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, which had caused her eye vision to progressively worsen over time. Zelia was fighting tooth and nail to prevent her daughter from losing her vision entirely, but there was only so much she could do. It broke her heart to see Layla like this. Zelia crouched in front of her. "Sweetheart, as I told you and your siblings, I have been given a big contract I can’t pass on. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that people are fighting for, but it’s been given to me on a silver platter because my company keeps growing. You said you wanted to take over from me when you grow up, right? How can you do that if the company is no more or has collapsed? So, this deal is as important as your eye, which we will surely see to when we arrive there. So now, just get ready for school," she cooed. "What about you, Mum? You always shiver at the mention of the city. Even when Grandma Sylvia asked you to go for your school excursion, which was there, you didn’t go. Also, you didn’t come with us for the National Maths and Science Quiz. Why now?" Zelia knew that would haunt her for the rest of her life. She had allowed her fear of the past to prevent her from being present on one of the most important days in the lives of her children. She just couldn’t forgive herself for that. "Sweetheart, sometimes, you have to face your greatest fears to become stronger," she caressed Layla’s face. "Don’t you also want to see the statue of the first president and all the beautiful places?" Layla nodded. "Me too. I want to see all those places and more. I like them a lot," Eliana chimed in. "Okay then. Hurry before you get late for school." The kids nodded and dashed to their bedroom to pick up their school bags. Descending the stairs, they bid everyone goodbye, and Zelia kissed their foreheads before they ran out of the house, giggling as they bumped into each other trying to get out. "I used to be excited for our day back in the day, but your kids seem to be the opposite," Sandra sighed. "Well, you can’t blame them. This is their first long vacation outside this town, apart from the two days they spent in the city for quizzes, which wasn’t long, so they are bound to be excited and scared at the same time," Zelia replied, feeling a mixture of excitement and apprehension about their impending trip to AccraVille herself.