episode 2
714 Words
Lena had just come back from a contractors house. She was exhausted, having to talk to such a fancy wine snub for so long. She walked to the nearby park and sat down for a breather. She had almost finished collecting her thoughts when someone popped besides her.
"oh my God, it's you! Lena, what's up! "
Lena turned around to see an old familiar face. It was her friend from her college days, Sade
"Sade, what a pleasant surprise"
Sade went in for a hug. Lena froze awkwardly.
"What have you been up to. I haven't seen you in ages! I thought you would come for the pen flickers reunion, " Sade said with a brilliant smile on her face.
Her smile was like rose petals. Her eyes were genuine with brightness. It was a beautiful smile, Lena thought.
"Life has a way of keeping us busy." Lera replied
"I'm a therapist now " Sade blurted out
" That's wonderful. You've always liked to heal people. I guess it's been made official "
" well that's a great way to put it " Sade smiled
Then exchanged numbers after having conversation about how their lives have been going. Sade asks Lena to visit her office sometime before they both parted ways.
The next few days were a blur to Lena. There was an office party in which she sneaked in and out of. She basically ghosted her co worker who she promised that she would be there. His name was Luke and she was scared he had a crush on her. After Lena arrived home from the party, she went through her phone. She had about 10 missed calls. A lump formed in her throats. She hated calls and much worse were the missed calls. Beads of sweat started to form on her head and she was close to having an anxiety attack.
The number was unknown. She dialed it. It rang, and each sound made her stomach swirl and sink. The buzzing growing louder in her head. Her breathing was weak and her head was light. The caller picked.
"Hello. Is this Lena?"
said the voice
"yes" she whispered
She feared the worse
"Ugh, sorry for calling so much. This crazy guy with a package, kept bugging me to call you. He said that he saw you nearby. Anyways, he's gone now and dropped the package. Oh, I'm Kigso from the hr team "
It was then Lena heard the groovy beat in the background of the caller. It was a coworker who was still at the party. He sounded drunk and that might have just kept her dialing. And this package was probably work related. She sighed with relief.
" i was worried over nothing"
She threw the phone across to her couch. The package would be handled at work tomorrow. Her eyes closed and fell Sleep.
Lena woke up an hour later with the need to take a stroll. She found herself thinking on how she took more strolls lately. Outside, she observed the moon, it was full and bright. Lena wished she could be like that. As she was walking down, she found herself looking at her strange neighbors house. She wondered what he was doing. He gave her an uncomfortable vibe.
"But he's hot" she chuckled
Her work had released some nerves and she was heading back to her apartment. At a distance, she noticed a familiar face. The man was jogging and seemed a bit short of breath. She then recognized that it was her childhood church friend, Maine.
"Hey Maine. Fancy seeing you around this dreaded path " she joked
Maine stopped, took a breath, then got all serious.
" Are you okay, you seem shocked " Lena said
" Lena, this will come as a shock. You might have to sit down for this " Maine said
"I'm good. We can come inside, but I assure you that I won't faint on you if you tell me now. I'm good" Lena said
Her stomach swirled and sank. Bruised butterflies of panic fluttered their wings. Her breath quickened, her eyes blurred, her hands shook, her head was light...
"Your mother has passed away " Maine said
" oh. Wow. " Lena replied
She was not shocked.
- Writer
