Chapter 10

'I like your hair'.

'Oh, really?'.

'Uh uh'.

'What's there to like about it?'.

'The colour, the texture'. She said running her fingers through the strands.

I snorted. 'I'd chose yours anytime'.

She rolled her eye and smiled.

'Eleanor said we look alike'.

'Really? She said that?'.

'Yep'.

I nodded. 'I'm glad to look like someone as beautiful as you are'. I winked.

She blushed. 'The honor is mine'.

'By the way, who is Eleanor?'.

'The cleaner, I thought you meg her already. She said-'.

'Oh yeah, we did. But I didn't ask her name'.

'Oh'.

Irena and I had become good friends that she moved all her belongings into my room.

She said she's used to sleeping with someone cause she sleeps with her 3 younger sisters at home and couldn't sleep all by herself.

Within the short time we had met, which is exactly 3 hours, we had talked about a lot of things.

I learnt that she's 17 and in high school and she's the oldest of 4 girls and that her father died 3 years ago leaving them with nothing.

That was why she dropped out of school to apply for the job.

Her situation was similar to mine, we both needed the job to survive.

But isn't that why all of us are here in the first place.

We both haven't been in a relationship, we both don't have friends.

Can you see why we fit so much.

And what really made me happy is the fact that she also hates Sadie, after hearing my own story she scrunched up her nose anytime I say her name, exactly like someone I know.

Or should I say some dog I know.

'You know, you look exactly like Roddy with the way you're scrunching your nose'.

'Who's Roddy? Your boyfriend.... Or ex?'.

'No'. I rolled my eyes.

'He's my dog'.

'Oh, I thought you meant----'. Her face fell.

'Nope, I told you I never had'.

'I didn't believe you'. She said pouting.

'How can someone as beautiful as you are still be single'.

I shrugged.

'Where's Roddy?'. She asked her face lit.

'Wait... Don't tell me you left him with those monsters'.

'No, what do take me for...I brought him with me'.

'Yay!'. She said clapping.

'Can I see him?'.

'Sure..but the problem is that I don't know where he is'.

She frowned.

'Alina took him from me, she said he's going to stay with the other dogs'.

'Oh'.

'We'll go see him tomorrow, let's sleep now'. I quickly said before her face falls.

'Okie'.

I laid on the right side and she took the space beside me.

Her back was turned to me but I knew that she wasn't asleep yet.

I couldn't sleep too. I just stared at the ceiling wondering how a perfect family was.

'You're lucky'.

There was silence for a while and I thought she was actually asleep when she talked.

'Yeah, I am. Compared to you, It must have hard living with your step mom and she treats you like that'.

'It wasn't something I couldn't handle'..

'But still....'.

'No one deserves that, everyone deserves a love and care shown to them'.

'Not everyone'.

'Why, why did you say that?'.

'I killed my mom, I don't deserve any love'.

It's true, if I was not born she wouldn't have died. She would have been with my father and he wouldn't have had marry Liza.

It is all my fault.

'No, don't say that'.

'I have to'. I said frustrated, tears were already polling down my face, I really hate it when I cry.

'You didn't, don't let them guilt you into believe what's wrong. It wasn't your fault she died...look, I never told anyone this but I'll tell you'.

'My father died because of me'.

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I was shocker to the bone marrow when I heard that.

'He did?'.

She nodded.

'As a child, I've always loved guitars. I envied one particular girl in my school who plays guitars and organs, so i asked my dad to buy one for me. He said promised that he would if only I promise to be the first in my class that session. I thought it was an easy one since I was always the second. I tried my best and got the first position'.

'When I got home that day, I didn't even drop my bag. I picked the phone and called my dad.

'He was happy, he told me he was proud of me and promised to bring the guitar home'.  She had turned to face me and tears were staining her beautiful face.

'You don't have to continue if you don't want to'.

'No, I have to let if out'.

'That day, I kept dancing around the house with my siblings throwing me naughty looks and my mother smiling as I danced past her'.

'We waited and waited. He didn't come'. She broke into another round of sobs then she continued.

'My mother was tucking me in when we heard a knock on our front door. I jumped up from my bed and ran towards the door thinking it was my father. But it wasn't, it was our neighbor'.

'She looked panicked and was soaked from head to toe in the heavy rain'.

'My mother asked what was wrong and replied, "your husband had an accident in front of ruby's store, an oncoming vehicle hit him, I don't think he's going to survive it'.

'My mother and I ran to the store only to see my father on a stretcher being carried to an ambulance. I ran towards him and held his bloody hands, he opened his eyes and smiled at me. Then he said: " I got it for you, take it".

'It was then I noticed the guitar in his hands held tightly against his chest. The nurses had tried to take it from him but he didn't let go'.

'He said-- you'll always be my baby, Irena'..

'And with that he closed his eyes....forever'.

'If he hadn't gond to that store, he would still be alive now'. She sobbed.

'You see, it was technically my fault he died but did I blame myself?'.

'No'.

'Always remember, Maya. What will be, will be. You can't stop some things from happening'.

'Good night'. And with that she turned.

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