Two Princes and a choice

Chapter three

Hayley had a premonition that she was going to have severe back ache after her shift tonight stroke the next morning. She moved to a table with a group of boys chatting in loud voice with their order. She dropped the drinks in front of them. ‘Here you are,’ she announced ‘chocolate smoothie, banana and strawberry, latte, and milk shake, ‘she distributed it before them. ‘Enjoy,’ she said with a little smile and frowned when she saw one of them winked at her and the others stared lewdly at her. She turned to leave and felt a hand on her behind, Hayley looked over her shoulder and saw a smile spread on the one that had winked at her face. She tightened her face and walked away to the counter.

She kept an eye out for the boys at the seventh table and was glad when they left leaving a note on the table. She went to clear the table and saw they had left a 50 Oduduwa Pounds which means they had unconsciously or consciously tipped her thirty Pounds. They must be rich she thought as she put the note into the cash register or stupid.

Allyson had called and Diane as well but she couldn’t pick their calls as she was busy so she sent an apology message to them.

The café closed at nine and stuffing her pay check and tips in her bag she hurried over to her next part time a pub down town. Hurrying into her apron she grabbed her tray took and answered orders. It was a long night Hayley was tired and longed for sleep. Her eyelids were heavy and began to droop as she wiped tables and placed chairs upside down on top of them. She finally left the pub at four the c***k of coins sounding as her boss counted his gains for tonight.

He wasn’t generous and wasn’t that stingy though the amount he gives her as pay is wedged in between the normal amount of regular pay and the paltry sum you would give a beggar. But she didn’t complain, since she wasn’t born as fortunate as the rich and he was her boss and at least he was paying her so she shut up and accept what she has.

Fifty Pounds is a lot of money and with tips at well that made it. She did some calculations as she walked home close to a hundred Pounds ninety –five Pounds and six pennies. And all along with her pay from the café which was a hundred and fifty Pounds along with all the tips and it made all the pay for today two hundred and forty-five Pounds and forty pence. And added with all her pay for this month made it, she did a quick calculation in her head.

‘Eight hundred Pounds multiplied by four equals three thousand two hundred Pounds plus two hundred and forty- five Pounds equal three thousand four hundred and forty-five Pounds added with six months – oh,’ she scratched her head. Her head was pounding with such force and her knees felt wobbly but she went on.

‘Hayley Smith don’t you dare faint you can faint when you get home,’ she told herself. That was her usual words of encouragement to herself whenever she felt like she was slipping away on her way home.

The moon was full tonight, stars twinkled from the sky and the breeze was chilly. Hayley shivered wishing she had brought jacket along with her. She wrapped her arms around herself and half ran. Her house was in a block of flat which was acceptable in normal standards. Hayley got in shivering from the cold and ran up the stairs to the door of her family’s flat. She unlocked it with her key locked it behind her and dragged herself in. It was dark but Hayley didn’t even bother to switch it on. She heard heavy snoring from her parents’ room followed by a short snort. Hayley smiled thinly hearing her parents sleep soundly. She pushed open the door to her room and without bothering to undress or taking off her bag jumped into bed. From her bed she could hear her parents’ bedroom door open and footfalls. Her bedroom door opened and she heard board squeaking as her mother came to her bed. She could tell by the scent of cardamom and thyme and cheap perfume.

The bed sank in as her mother sat down and she felt a cold hand on her temple moving down to her cheek. ‘Sleep well dearest,’ she was saying, ‘you’ve worked hard.’

Hayley needed no further encouragement.

The static coming from the radio in the living room woke Hayley up in the morning. She stretched on the bed, tossing and tangling herself in the sheet. She rubbed her eyelids and sat up. A familiar scent of eggs frying in oil tickled her nostrils. Hayley yawned, slid off the bed to her knees crossed herself and recited the Lord’s Prayer. She went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. She checked her phone. She had messages from her friends and all message were the same thing, have you heard the news?

What news? She thought.

Her father was at the table reading a newspaper her mother behind the skillet.

‘Morning papa,’ she bent and planted a kiss on his cheek inhaling his scent. His smelled of flowers soil and aftershave. He was dressed for work in his dirty jeans and T-shirt.

‘Morning beautiful,’ he murmured.

She moved to her mum her flip-flops sounding like a dull thud on the bare wood floor. She kissed her cheek also and murmured good morning mama.

‘Good morning Hayley,’ she murmured back. ‘Make your father’s coffee.’ She took a dish from the rack and scooped omelette in.

A man was talking about weather on the radio but they paid no attention as they went on with their daily business. Hayley poured coffee into a mug for her father and carried the mug of coffee and a plate of omelette to her father.

‘Thank you darling,’ he purred as she set both down before him. He closed folded his papers and set his papers aside.

Hayley leaned against the worktop gnawing on a piece of slightly burnt toast while her mother got food for herself paying more attention to the radio. It was time for morning news and the anchor-woman and man were reading out the headlines. Hayley listened to them with half interest but her interest suddenly piqued up at one of the headlines as well as shock. “Former education minister and humanitarian, was found dead in his house yesterday Monday seventeenth of august 2018.” The piece of toast fell out of Hayley’s hand onto the linoleum floor she increased the radio’s volume and listened all the while with her heart pounding. Waldorf was dead!