Chapter 2
679 Words
After the funeral, Uncle James met with me and after greetings and pleasantries, he said, “Daniel, I have a favour to ask of you. I would have done it myself but you know my wife. She bluntly refused and all the relatives too. I can only turn to you now. Could you please take Lydia in? I can't let her stay alone as she is too young. Could she possibly stay with you for a while?“
I glanced at the Lydia in question who was staring at her late mother's portrait as she sat in the front of the pew, looking lost in her own world before I looked back at Uncle James. “Okay” I replied. “Thank you, Daniel. I'm so proud of you” my uncle said. “Come, I'll introduce you to her” he added and we went to her. He sat by her and said, “Lydia!“ Lydia looked at him, sad and dry eyed.
“This is your cousin, Daniel. You will be staying with him for tbe time being. Be respectful and well-behaved. I don't want to hear any complaints, okay?“ Lydia did not respond, glanced at me and looked away. “Okay, Daniel is a busy man. Go get your bags so we both can be on your way before it turns dark” he said, calmly. Lydia stood up and entered the house while Uncle James sighed as he watched her leave.
Lydia and I left for my house. When we got to my house, I ushered her in and said, “That is your room and you will be using the guest bathroom. You should know your way to the kitchen”. “Thank God I was living in a two-bedroom apartment. I now realised I had made a right choice afterall. Lydia did not say anything to me and went to her room while I sat on my couch, took off my tie and exhaled in exhaustion. She did not come out of her room that night until the following morning. I was in the kitchen waiting for the water for my instant coffee to boil when she entered.
She did not even glance at me but just went straight to the sink, drank some water with a cup and was about to return to the sitting room. I stopped her with my arm and said, “I know you just lost your parents and I understand how you feel because I lost mine too but that doesn't mean you should just ignore me like I don't exist. You should at least say “Good morning” or something. I'm much older than you and I deserve respect, okay?“ She was staring at my arm as I spoke before she glanced at me and looked away. I sighed and took my arm away from her path. She did not say a word and returned to her room.
I made my coffee, drank it up and went to the door of her room. “I'm leaving for work. Don't go out and keep the front door locked until I return. Eat something in the fridge when you're hungry” I said and left. When i returned from work later that evening, she was sitting on the couch, watching a show. She glanced at me and looked away without a word. She didn't even lock the door as I had instructed. “She is going to be a headache” I thought, going to my room.
The next day passed without her saying a word to me but on the third day since her arrival, she greeted me a “Good morning” when she came out of her room. I was pleased and somehow went to work, smiling. When I returned from work, the living room was a mess. “Why is the living room this way? Shouldn't you at least clean up?“ I asked. She rolled her eyes at me and left to get a broom from the kitchen.
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