Nine days had passed since Heather had faced the Valentine scandal but Heather and Marcus' relationship seemed to be at some balance, though things had changed quite a lot. Marcus reduced his visits to Heather, and he called her less often from everyday to no more. He barely texted good morning or good night anymore, and he didn't say sweet things to her ,reduced calling her by the nick name he had given her and he become much colder towards her like a person tolerating a stranger.He even called her "Hey" when he forgot her name. He constantly updated his status with unfriendly memes. Things that a man in a relationship would not be posting . they became more intense and when she asked about it , he easily brushed it off. However what took more of Heather's attention was the familiar face he was constantly posting and sometimes he would block her when he posted about her then unblock her at the end of the day.
It was one evening when , Marcus came to her apartment all drunk at around 5:00am, he ricked of beer and alcohol, Heather first helped him change his clothes which exposed the various bite marks and spots on his body as though he had been through a swam of mosquitoes. In her heart she knew that they were love bites but she let herself ride the denial river, her heart ached as she questioned herself why was she dealing with this but the anxiety of being left alone overwhelmed her mind cause her chest to close in like she was choking and as she placed his filthy clothes in the washing machine , the scent of a feminine perfume , hot bitter tears cascaded down her cheeks and she angrily threw the clothes in the washing machine . She had promised herself not to cry over a male figure but here she was hopelessly crying in front of a washing machine she knew what she had to do but deeply she didn't want to do.
The next morning ,Marcus acted as if everything was normal , he made sure to give her compliments and maintain physical touch with her as through he was trying to fill up for his absence over the past days. This felt intoxicating for Heather like she was a charity case and she hated that feeling . He walked to the window to feel the morning sun kiss his bare chest . For some reason ,Heather's anger had reached its limited onto the boiling point, after him cheating again he goes ahead and pretends that nothing is up
Who is she ", Heather angrily asked .
What? he answered in surprise. "Yesterday night, you turned up to my door all drunk, reeking of beer, alcohol, and other things you had taken, including a feminine cologne, and to be specific, it was a Chanel Coco Mademoiselle. So, I'm going to ask you one last time, who is she? Her face looked calm with some anger looking out. Marcus stared at her, guilty plus fear cause that look was dangerous and he knew it , and the first thing that came to his mind was to cover up before things went out of hand.
Come on Dumpling don't be like that . i.. i was just trying out a new cologne and i was just having drinks with the boys ,
Are you sure that only the boys were there with you ?
what now , what's with all this questions ,for your own information your nagging which is really toxic for a relationship. he said trying to turn the tables around.
Did you just call me toxic,
There you go again nagging me as if am your child , am grown ass man and I get to do what I want you know what you won't understand it since your just a vanilla woman acting way beyond your age if you weren't so boring I wouldn't have to go looking else where
Heather sneered firmly holding the knife in her hand then striking it into the chopping wood she was chopping on some veggies, the knife stuck in the wood . This gesture scared Marcus leaving him to saw some saliva ,
They never had a conclusive conversation and before she could add anything there was a knock at the door , on opening she found a brown envelope that was directed to her , she picked up looking around to see if the sender was still around. She took it in and opened it on the kitchen counter. Her heart sunk the more when she saw printed pictures of Marcus and the same girl naked .Marcus was in the showers , Heather walked to the dresser and spread the explicit photos so that he would see them and with that she wrote a note as side . "Don't come back to the apartment ". Picked up her phone and made up an excuse that her father wanted to see her , He suggested to come with her however she strongly turned down his offer and left
Marcus came out of the showers and found the pictures broadly spread at the dresser. Biting his lower lip he said to himself , you slimy sneaking bitch . what the Fuck have you done . He dressed up quickly and rushed out , Heather who was slowly finding her way to her work place , she received a phone call on her father's number ,she heard a female voice from the recipient side . Confused and terrified about the situation Heather decided to first listen to the and ask questions later. The other person requested her to come by the hospital as fast as she could and that the matter concerned her father
Eight years ago,They'd lost their mother, and although their father always did his best to fill up the position of both mother and father even if he knew he couldn't fully take over the place of their mother , Heather knew it was also tough on him because their mother was like the balance glue of the house and when she left , many things fell apart , Heather who was to take law ended up doing phycological just like her mother Hansel ,Heather's young brother first fell out with the law falling in and out of prison , drugs , night clubs and alcohol became his new until his girlfriend died in one of the police raids . Hansel had taken the wrong path to cope up with his pain but Heather never blamed him she just told him not to hide anything from her cause then she could help him recover, Their father did his part as the strong hold in the family trying not to show his grievances which enraged Hansel even the more , he called him fake for bit grieving for there mother but he did that so as not to show any signs of weakness ,that all would be fine even with their mother no longer with them. But they also couldn't help but think of the possibility that their father wouldn't be able to live without her either ,which brought Hansel back to his senses so he decided to work his basketball career
When Heather heard that their dad was having heart problems, it was another blow to her face . She knew that he had recently had heart issues but she didn't think it would accelerate becoming an issue,this bad. She also couldn't help but think, "If Dad passes on, she was going to be alone." The thought of that made her heart ache and she was overcome with immense anxiety she suddenly couldn't breathe well and her visual was blurry she stopped in her tracks to catch her breath ,She didn't know how and couldn't imagine a life without her father. He was her all and she wished to take his place instead , she arrived at the hospital and was led to the operation floor where she saw the operation sign lighting red and an elderly woman seated across from Hansel who had arrive earlier than her. Upon seeing her brother , she couldn't hold her tears back she rush into his embrace with teary eyes ,
After a few hours they were pacing nervously outside the operation door , the clock in the hall way could clearly be heard ticking and each tick felt like an hour . A few more hours later , there movements were stopped when the doctor walked through the emergency door, and all their fingers were crossed, hoping for only good news.
"Are you the family members of the gentleman inside?" the doctor asked.
"Yes," they all confirmed.
Well the operation was successful and as we speak he is resting. Though I would advise you not to let him engage in any activity that might stress him out but for now let him rest and I propose that he may stay in the hospital for a few days under observation.
Their faces changed when they heard that because they knew that their father never liked to be in the hospital for long. Heather asked the doctor if there was a way to have him treated at home. The doctor didn't oppose them as long as their patient was receiving the treatment and care he needed, and he just requested them to get him a nurse. The tension that was in the air earlier was now gone. Heather walked to her brother who had just gotten off a phone call. It seemed to have preoccupied his mind.
Hey Hans , what's on your mind?
Nothing much just that I have scored a basketball scholarship to Jordan .
Wow, really Heather was speechless.
Yes I had applied and I was coming to inform you but I was called for Dad's situation .
Wow am so proud of you . Look at you ,you've had it all figured out
Thank you that means a lot to me
So when will you be leaving for Jordan
Am it's in two weeks after I've finalized my passport.
Let me take you out for a treat to celebrate your achievement.
Thank you sis .
As they headed out, their paths crossed with Leila, who also joined them for a treat. After a few moments at the table, Heather was lost in her thoughts. She found herself zoning out and thinking about what she's going to do with Marcus. The main option in her head was to leave the relationship, but the thought of regretting it later made her consider a second choice. "Hey, back to earth for Heather," Leila called out to her. "Hmmm," Heather reluctantly answered.
She's lying , Leila reported her ,Leila!! Heather shoved her away slightly. What is it . I think it's Marcus . The girls begun to discuss amongst themselves. Seriously guys . We sorry Heather but we gonna talk about this , one of the girls who was fashionable dressed in full black pulled out a pocket knife and asked Do you think the hospital can save someone whose neck has been slushed , the girls all turned and shouted Teria . What you guys are safe and I wouldn't hurt you but I would hurt those that hurt you so shall we visit Marcus . Not with a knife . They later go back to the hospital but Heather's friends were already planning to get her someone to help her move on with . Meanwhile, Marcus suddenly got some hiccups for being back bitten and since he was left in the dark , he was spending quality time with the same girl he told Heather not to mind about. Little did he know that he had messed up the unfinished matters and they were going to bite him back