Why Lena?
1109 Words
Lena reached out to touch Frank but he backed away. Lena gasped she didn't expect that to happen.
"Lena, don't touch me with those flirty hands," he said. "I can't do this anymore with you”
"Baby..."
Frank grunted
"Frank..." Lena corrected herself. She wished she could correct the whole situation instead.
"Frank, remember what you said? A few months ago?" Lena continued.
"You said you loved me after we watched the Notebook, we took a walk from your apartment under the stars and...."
"Well, that was before I knew you were a w***e"
"Hey! Shut the hell up, my friend is not a w***e" A voice snapped from behind them followed by a loud slam of the door.
The estranged couple looked at the door that just slammed into their conversation to see Grace Martin, Lena's best friend and roommate by the door. She had her beautiful blonde hair in a bun so Lena should see her brows furrowed. She looked very angry.
Grace marched right to where Frank was and pointed a finger in his face.
"How dare you walk into this house and say just anything you like to my friend"
"Grace please..." Lena tried to stop her.
"No Lena, let me talk to this...." Grace eyed Frank from his head to his toes. She didn't even know what word she could use to qualify him.
"Grace, please do not say anything more, Frank and I are just having a little argument..." Lena continued.
"Lena Thompson, you call this an argument?" Grace said, looking at her friend.
Right now to Grace, it felt like she was back in those days in the group home and Frank was just another big old bully. Why would he say such mean words to Lena and she would just stand there crying?
Why Lena?
Frank looked at both of them like they were crazy and finally spoke up.
"You know what Grace, I have never liked you!" He cracked.
"Well, I have only been tolerating you too," Grace clapped back.
She squared up to him and stood very close, standing in front of him eye to eye. No one was going to walk over her friend today, not when she was there.
Lena sank her head into her hands, she didn't like what was going on.
Why did Grace walk in at that moment, she knew she could calm Frank and stop him from breaking up with her. She didn't want to imagine what it would be like being single again.
Many men have never gotten past the first date with her whenever they hear that she had a kid.
But when Frank came along she felt she had finally found the one, he didn't seem to mind that she had a kid when she broke the news to him.
But at the moment, she had no idea what could have turned him around and made him all mean to her suddenly.
"Frank, Grace? Please stop this nonsense" Lena said while she tried to pull them apart.
Frank scoffed but took a step back. Lena turned to Grace.
"Could you please give me a minute with Frank...please?
"Alright, but I won't be too far away..." Grace replied without taking her eyes off Frank.
"Thank you Grace" Lena gently nudged her friend away before she finally moved and walked out of the living room into her own bedroom.
Lena heaved a sigh and checked her wristwatch, it was only a few more hours before the school bus would drop off Eric.
"Frank, I am so sorry about what just happened" she said to Frank, her eyes softening as she looked at him sadly but hopeful.
"Your friend is just a handful..." Frank replied.
"Let's talk about us, I told you the truth because I do not want any secrets between us"
"Well Lena, I cannot deal with this secret, because anytime I think of you, I will only be seeing a lady who slept around so much that she doesn't even know the father of her child"
Lena closed her eyes, every word Frank said stabbed her heart and it hurt really bad. She felt like throwing herself over him and begging him to please stay with her.
"But you know that I have always been faithful to you"
"I doubt it, and I don't want to have anything to do with you again"
"Are you saying this is over?" Lena said as her voice broke, the tears started again.
"Yes, good luck with your life"
"Frank...please...we spent the night together.. why now?"
"Lena, don't be stupid. No one will ever want to be with a woman who has a child..."
"Frank...you are hurting me.."
Frank walked out without looking back and Lena dropped to the floor sobbing loudly.
The moment Frank shut the door behind him, Lena felt her heart tear apart. She started to cry even louder and this made Grace rush out.
She joined her on the floor and cried with her. Frank may be an i***t but Lena deserved none of that, his words were so harsh it hurt even Grace too.
As much as Grace loved Eric, Lena’s son. She always felt guilty that she brought it upon Lena. Lena didn't want to go the masked party years ago and she had coerced her into going with her.
She felt even worse that she abandoned Lena at the party to hang out with her boyfriend of that time instead. If she had been with her friend, she would have been able to stop her from having drunken s*x with a stranger or at least, being about to help recognize him.
They had asked questions after they found out Lena was pregnant but no one knew of anyone who was 25. The party was open to everyone and everyone had to be in a mask, so it made it even more difficult to trace who had been with that night.
Suddenly Lena's phone rang from the couch across the living room. Grace got up to get the phone for her...
"Please tell me that's Frank, and he was just playing a stupid prank" Lena asked hopefully.
"No Lena, it's Mrs. Timbrook, Eric's headteacher" Grace said, handing the phone to her.
Panic flashed on Lena's face. Why would Eric's teacher call her in the middle of school hours? With her hands trembling she quickly took the phone.
"Hello?"
"Hello Miss Thompson, your attention is needed at the school right away" Mrs. Timbrook echoed from the phone, with a voice strict but unable to properly hide panic.
Lena looked at Grace, what could have happened to her sweet boy?
- Writer
