It was a very early morning on Sunday when Sophia sprung up from her bed to pick up her phone that would not seem to stop ringing unless she answers.
Saturday night had been the most stressful night ever for her, she didn’t get to seat until 10pm as the request at the starlight nightclub was just too much but she didn’t have a choice because apart from the weekly salary, she knows how much she’s garnered from the tips given by customers.
At first, she didn’t know if it was okay to take the tips until the manager himself told her to take it whenever she’s offered.
“This is Sophia, do you need me for anything?” Still feeling sleepy, she yawned loudly.
“Were you among the ladies for the night shift??” She still didn’t know who was talking.
“Yes, I was with them”
“Come to the club right away, something happened and everyone’s attention is needed immediately” her eyes briskly opened with force.
She cleared her throat whilst trying to get that statement settled in her head as it sounded out of the blue. “I’m not on the morning shift so…
“This is not about work, we’ll assume you stole the item we’re looking for if you’re not here in the next 10 minutes!” Before she could say anything more, the call ended abruptly.
Sophia stomped her legs angrily on the ground, she stopped after realizing that her daughter was with her.
She ran to and fro before finally deciding to just wash her face rather than take a shower which would take most of her time.
As she picked her bag and some cash from what she got as tip last night, she stopped in her motion after seeing the little roll to each side baby Ann was doing.
“Please don’t wake up yet, I can’t take you with me” Sophia declared, stepping slowly to the door like a thief.
“Mama” Ann was already awake, trying to climb down from the bed to go to her mom.
“Geez!, my mom isn’t even around to stay with you!” Sophia laments. She wished her mom didn’t have to go visit her friends this early.
She wouldn’t stop hissing as she picked her up whilst trying to lock the entrance door, she couldn’t help but thank her creator as a taxi branched right in front of her.
It was very cheap and that was the only reason she could afford to ride it.
The car parked right in front of the club and with no one having to tell her, she could already tell that there was fire on the mountain.
“Thank God you are here but did you have to bring your sister at a time like this??” One of her coworkers said with a very disgusting eye roll at the little Ann who was just locking her fingers in Sophia’s hair.
If something like this happened to Sophia of two years ago, she would be so quiet about it but she’s a totally changed person now.
Life's hurdles will change the way you think!
“If you’ll run your mouth, run it at me not at my daughter!” She did the same eye roll before walking past her.
“It’s nice that everyone is here. We’re asking everyone one last time before checking the cctv footage from last night. Did anyone of you steal anything at all from Mr.Herbert? We all know him right?” YES, they all respond.
“If you did steal or actually saw someone do it, speak up now or everyone else might be affected by it!” The manager was a very young man, but he looked older than his age.
No one was willing to say anything and the only thing that surfaced the place was the soft mumbles and unsorted muttering from each person.
Sophia’s head hung low as she began to tap her index fingers on her tummy, it’s something she usually does whenever she’s anxious and most people here already knew that.
“You’re taking…
“I want to say something!” The lady who had issues with Sophia earlier raised her hands with so much confidence.
“Please question Sophia, she attended to him the most and even got tips from him and as you can see, she’s already so nervous which points that she’s the culprit!” Without wasting time, everyone’s attention was shifted to her.
Sophia who didn’t even know what was going on was resurrected back to reality with a tap from her daughter. “Mama” everyone gasped at the word.
“If anyone needs money the most here, it would be no one other than a single mother with…
“With what??” Sophia half yelled.
“What rubbish are you spiting from that pipe of yours!?, how do you know it’s money that been stolen and how can you accuse me when you yourself and everyone else is also involved? Matter of fact, prove it.” She raised her voice with anger burning in her.
“Do not turn this place into a quarrel zone both of you.” He said in a soft tone, making sure there was a maintained decorum.
“We gathered you here and you should know we’re not a fool to not know who the culprit is. But first, Sophia please go back home with your daughter, your cab fare will be added to your next week salary!” The manager said to her, she blinked her eyes in confusion.
“Why are you making her….
“I promise you that today will be your last day here as the one thing I’ll not tolerate is this impolite act that from you!” He slammed the words at her. The same lady who's accused Sophia and dismissed the whole staff before turning to go back to his office.
He had been signaled that the culprit has been found and the only person that wasn’t involved in this, doesn’t even have a hint on what happened was Sophia and some others but he decided to have everyone called in to make it a fair judgement on his end. Also, knowing the situation Sophia was in with her daughter, there was no need making her stay longer which is why he asked her to go back home.
Sophia released a long sigh as she stood in front of starlight, still trying to understand what just transpired inside and Ann thought it to be the perfect time to remind her that she was still around and needed her attention.
“Don’t even cry, I’m not in the mood to add your whining to my problems this morning!” Sophia scolded her baby.
She finally pulled herself together and dragged her legs tiredly to the bus station so they could go home.
As she got tired to carry Ann, she let her down so she could walk on her own but the little girl did not like it.
“What are you doing to my granddaughter??” Luisa popped right out from behind them.
“Mom?,” Sophia gasped in surprise.
“you startled me. I had no idea you were following from behind. Your look like you went shopping too. Did you?”
“I had to. I was craving Mac and cheese and we didn’t have any mozzarella so I went to get it." Sophia nods repeatedly before heading inside, all of them.
Sophia carried Ann into their bathroom so they could shower together, the girl happens to be so active when bathing and she wouldn’t stop teasing her mama while she bathes her.
“Just stop already!” Sophia scolded playfully with a smile as she uses her hand to rub off the foamy soap she splatters on her cheeks.
“Sophia are you done?, I need you to take these cookies to welcome our new neighbor” Luisa said, checking on them from afar.
"What new neighbour?" Sophia asks, wiping her daughter's body dry as they were done bathing.
Luisa doesn't respond until she sees them come out into the bedroom. Sophia makes Ann sit on the bed while she moves to pick out her clothes and body lotion.
"The house across the street, you know the one you talked about a few days ago. The new owner just arrived and I wanted us to do something nice to welcome them to the neighbourhood." Luisa said, beaming with smiles as she sits with her granddaughter who was playing happily on the bed.
Sophia shook her head, not liking the idea as she moves to have her child dressed. Quietly, Ann lets her do her business, like the good girl she is.
“Do I really have to do this? Since when did we become the friendly neighbourhood welcoming committee?"
“Just tell me, since when did giving gifts become something a neighbour shouldn’t do??” She asked Sophia who was busy getting herself dressed.
"Whatever mom, is the food ready? I'm hungry and I'm yet to feed Ann. I've got alot planned out for today and I want to have her fast asleep. So you see I've got no time for this."
“Don’t say anything, just take this to our neighbor, I’ll watch over Ann and feed her too. You can eat when you return, it wouldn't take long now will it? You can chat with him or take a stroll in the environment if need be, just take your time.” Sophia already sensed what her mom was getting at.
“Don’t keep your hopes up mom, no man would date a lady with a child and I’m also not ready to give love another chance in my life!” She made it clear to her mom before leaving.
Luisa read no meaning to her words. She was actually determined to make things work for her daughter to find happiness again.
Sophia stood in front of the main entrance to her neighbour's house, she had already rang the door bell and was waiting for a response.
“I’m sorry I kept you waiting, you are?” The young handsome man who had come to get the door said. Sophia gasped.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to look!” Sophia rasped impatiently and turned around after seeing him with just a small towel wrapped around his waist.
"It's alright Ms. It's actually my fault for coming to the door without proper clothing, I just returned from the shower. Please come in and make yourself comfortable while I go put on something better." The young handsome man said after noticing her discomfort. Sophia simply nods at his words and didn't bother looking back at him. He hurriedly goes in to get dressed whilst she lets herself in after noticing his absence.She felt impressed with his decor as she kept feeding her eyes on them where she sat. He had beautiful art paintings hung on the wall and scented flowers bringing life to the sitting room. She noticed he didn't have much furniture so she sensed he was a bachelor. Regardless, his sense of taste appealed to her.He shows up much later, fully clothe now. "I'm sorry, I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long Ms..." He stressed the last word, waiting for a response."Sophia, Sophia Dalton." She completed his sentence, smiling at him."Would you like a glass of water to dr
~~~Matt really didn’t like the idea of standing together with her or maybe he just felt embarrassed that she would be watching him pick all these for his sister.“You seem a bit confused, do you need my help?” Sophia felt like stopping herself from talking to him but she had already said the words. Besides she could see he was looked so confused and unsure of what he was doing.“Actually…” Matt paused, trying to put the pieces together to see if this was actually okay and after a moment of thorough thinking, he decided to give it a go.“I’ll need you to talk to my sister, she sent me here and I just don’t know what to do” he said to her. Sophia who had already got the wrong idea that it might be his girlfriend tried so hard not to smile as she nodded in agreement to what he said.Matt and Sophia moved to a private area at a corner of the store and they both took their seat whilst he dialed Vida’s line.“C’mon pick up the call!” Matt uttered, tapping his fingers nervously on his thigh
Sophia thought Daniella was only bluffing when she mentioned the rules being changed and the need to arrive an hour earlier but the sight she saw the moment she showed up at the bar spoke otherwise.The whole place was buzzing with busy people and even had more coming in. The customers too weren't any of the usuals they'd had before. She quickly rushed over to Daniella's post to ask what's going on."You're more than an hour late you know?" Daniella queried the minute Sophia shows up in front of her."I know, I know and I'm sorry. There really was an emergency that needed my attention." Sophia explained in a subtle tone.Daniella sighed, knowing she wasn't ever the type to be this late and so withdrew from querying her further."Anyways you can see the whole place is already busy with customers and for starts, you're lucky the boss hasn't noticed your absence yet. Speaking of..." Daniella paused, noticing the manager's presence."I see you both have got nothing better to do than to st
Hearing what his father said brought him nothing but shock and the feeling of betrayal. He was sure that his father intentionally chose the night to announce his taking over of the company. Why are they so funny?’ He thought to himself.At first, he didn’t get any attention even after what his father had said and that was because not many people knew his face which means everything was going well until his dad said“Matt, please come up to introduce yourself so you can get familiar with those you'll be working with soon enough!” Adres divulged with a smile, digging a hole in his son’s chest without actually realizing it.Everyone became curious to see who he was but he could only hang his head low. But the spotlight was on him now, everyone now knows his face. They’re making him do what he doesn’t want and he’d show them that he would not do it.Matt hesitates to acknowledge his father's words but rather proceeds to leave the place after several contemplation but the minute his leg
The cab driver could not stop himself from feeling disgusted by Matt and his companion. Neither of them would keep their hands to themselves they were all over each other, kissing and at random times, the lady would giggle, it was painful to behold. They couldn't care less if he was inconvenienced by them.After almost an hour drive, they arrive at Matt's apartment where he lived alone. Matt paid their fare and walked in with his lady."Oh my God, your house is so big." She squealed when they got in.Matt's house was nothing less than what one often saw in movies. All white, very spacious with exotic furnitures placed in the right spots. Matt knew no bounds at this point. So he just let her feed her eyes before pulling her to himself."How about we get down to business?" He asked in a soft tone."Sure, but first, I need to use the bathroom.""Come, I'll show you." He takes her up to his bedroom so she could relieve herself.He was taking his clothes off when she arrived. She walked u
After they had left, Sophia lays down for a few more minutes before she pulls herself out of the bed and into the bathroom. She takes off her clothes in attempt to have a warm bath. She turns on the shower knob and noticed that there was no water coming out of it. She made several more attempts but there still was no water coming out. "Please not now. I'm too tired to go outside." She whined.She knew where the fault was from. For some days now, they've been having issues with a broken pipe at the back of their house and each time she promises to have a plumber over, she forgets. She comes out of the bathroom and puts on a simple outfit as she makes her way to the back of the house where the water connection is. She sees the whole place wet with water as the water had kept flowing all over the place due to the faulty pipe.She does what she possibly could to have it fixed but nothing was working. She even opted for a duct tape to fix it but it didn't stop the water from leaking. Whi
"Look who's finally showed up after pulling such a show of a stunt last night." Nicole rolled her eyes at Matt as he sauntered in while Vida trailed behind."Hey mom." He said dryly and goes to give her a kiss and sinks into the chair beside her."Where were you last night? I called you up a bunch of times but you never responded." Nicole queried "I'm tired mom. Can we not do this now?" "Tired? Tired from frolicking around the city with those cheap call girls right?"He responded with a short sigh and Nicole frowned at him. Vida who had been standing there all along excused herself and went up the stairs to her bedroom. She wasn't in the mood to hear them banter. She had done her bid which was bringing Matt over."We'll be hosting an outreach program a few days from now with the members of a charity group I started some years back while you were away on your trip.""As one who would replace your father in leading the company, you should come with me so you can get acquainted with th
"Let's just have our talk at the club. I'm actually on my way there now, I need to clear my head. I'll see you there." Matt grabbed his car keys from the bedside table in his bedroom and hurried out of the house. It had been difficult for him to get over the talk he had with his mom regarding Clarisse. He couldn't understand why it still stung each time her name was mentioned but one thing was certain. He needed to clear his head off her and he could do that only when he's at the club. He arrived at the club but rather than stay in his office, he chose to sit by the bar for a drink while waiting for his companion to arrive. "I'll just have the whole bottle." He said to the bartender. He had poured himself a glass of whisky and was taking a sip when he felt someone touch him from behind. "Did I keep you waiting for too long?" Andrea asked as he took a seat beside him. "No. I have just arrived myself." "Really? And you're already down to half the bottle?" Andrea remarked doubtfull