A Better Path
Anita's POV:
Current atmosphere:
“What the hell is wrong with you, Anita?” Lucy yelled at the top of her voice upon entering my suffocating room. She dropped her bag on the floor and quickly ran to hug me.
I kept quiet and didn't bother to hug her back because I knew I would get scolded again. Yes, I was a hundred percent certain my mom called her because my elder sister was out of the country.
“Oh my goodness!” She sobbed into my neck when I refused to reply to her. “Who did this to my baby? Who is the bastard that dares to turn my talking angel into a quiet demon?” She continued her lamenting, blaming herself as the cause of my problems and sadness.
This hurt me, for the past few days, I have gotten my mother and brother scared to the extent of calling Lucy. If Piper, my big sister, heard about this, she would surely cancel her appointment just to come and console me. My family and Lucy were my very world; they cared about me and had been trying to get me to open up to them.
They were really sad, and most times, my mother refused to eat because I skipped my meals, and my little brother was not faring any better. I hated to see them in such a condition, and I was trying to forget and move on with my life. Every night, I prayed to God for the ability to sleep, eat, and not cry, but it seemed as though God was ignoring my prayers because it was always the same experience.
“Oh, Lucy!” I cried out. For the first time since the incident occurred, I opened my mouth and spoke up to someone. I wrapped my arms around her waist and cried out loud. “He betrayed me. He cheated on me with someone I didn't expect to be so shameless. If he wanted to cheat or sleep with a girl, he could have easily booked an appointment with a shameless whore. If money was the problem, he could have lied to me, and I would foolishly send him my life savings,” I whispered with a melancholic voice.
“Don't say that, sweetie; you know as much as I do that Asher doesn't deserve you. He is a bitch, always has been, and always will be. Please stop blaming yourself for this.” Lucy tried to console me. She placed her hand around my neck as we both stared into each other's eyes before I turned my face away.
“Would you believe it if I told you I went to Asher's house three days ago—the house I rented and paid for with my money, hoping he cheated because he was drunk? But on getting there, I met him sleeping with that slut of a friend on the bed. He called me a pushover, a dumbass, and a gullible girl who easily believes everything. He said he got bored of me and that he is no longer interested in me.” My hands were shaking, and my body was shivering as I explained this with my cracking voice.
“He is a fool for calling you names. I mean, how dare he?” Lucy yelled at the top of her voice. Anger was visible on her face because of the way Asher addressed me. “If you would let me, I'll make sure he spends a year locked behind bars, fighting for a crime he knows nothing about,” she continued, and without waiting for my response, she took out her phone. I knew she was going to call her Mafia boyfriend, so I quickly held her hands.
“Please don't,” I told her at once. “If people find out I used seven years of my life to love a guy who never loved or cared about me, I will be turned into a joke, and people will use me as an example when talking about the dumbest girls in the world.”
“Oh, Anita!” My best friend squealed and held my hands tightly. “What can I do to make you happy? How can I take away your pain and make you feel better? I hate seeing you in such poor condition, and I really want to make you smile.” Lucy burst into tears before she could even complete her sentence, and we hugged each other.
I didn't know that my little brother, Devon, was at the door, eavesdropping on our conversation, until he entered the room. He was in tears, and without saying a word, he hugged me tightly. He later told me that I should have opened up to him because he had nearly gone mad thinking about what caused me such pain.
“I am so sorry, Devon, for the pain, worries, and sleepless nights I caused you by my actions. I wanted to open up, but I was scared. I thought you would be disappointed in me. I thought Mama would hate me for being so cheap, and you would see me as a bad inspiration,” I explained after we stopped crying.
“Really?” Devon was taken aback by my excuse, and he raised his brows. “You know just how much I hate Asher? I will never stop loving you because of a motherfucker like him. Also, Mom is so worried. She said if you are pregnant or infected with HIV, she will still love and accept you,” Devon replied. He held my hands and looked me straight in the eye. “I love you so much, Anita, and I always will.”
“So will I,” Lucy added, pecking my cheeks.
“I love you guys,” I declared, and we hugged tightly.
“Please, let's go eat some food. Mama is preparing your favorite,” Devon announced. He stood up and wanted to pull me, but I was nervous.
“Can't I just eat here?” I asked with a grimace on my face, hesitant about going to the dining room.
“Hell no, you can't. The air is polluted by burning papers, and you need a change of environment.” Lucy shook her head in addition to what she had said.
“Yes, I agree with Lucy." Devon quickly chipped in when he noticed that I opened my mouth to disagree with Lucy.
“Fine! I wouldn't want to upset you, will I?” I asked sarcastically. I took a deep breath, and with Lucy's assistance, I stood up, ready to overcome the world.
Dining room
My mother was shocked to see me and quickly served me a huge amount of chicken soup. While we were eating, Lucy quietly went into the room to clear up the mess I had created, and to open the windows so the air would be fresh.
After eating my meal, I decided to take a walk in the park, Lucy wanted to follow me, but I convinced her to give me some space.
I stepped out onto the busy streets, determined to get over the pain and betrayal I felt. The city lights sparkled in the distance, and the stars shined brightly at me. My heart was heavy with the weight of my past love, but my steps were determined.
As I was walking, Asher's number flashed on the screen. The temptation to call him, to confront him one last time, was overpowering, and my fingers trembled as I considered it, but then I remembered the empty, insulting words he had uttered and the menacing smile that was on his face. I wanted to throw my phone away, just thinking about Asher, but I managed to control myself.
Instead of crying or doing something stupid, I sent a message, a single line that would echo in his conscience for eternity: “It's over between us, Asher. Goodbye." With that, I turned off my phone and stopped to admire my surroundings.
Everyone looked happy, it seems I was the only way with a broken heart, and this pained me.
‘Please help me to forget my pains.’ I remembered what I wished for in the hospital, and I felt nervous. It was like something was telling me: ‘be careful what you wished for’
“What I wished for?” I murmured under my breath thoughtfully. “Wishes doesn't come true, they're just childhood fantasies,” I assured myself.
Suddenly, a loud shrilling noise enveloped the atmosphere, it was like another planet had landed on earth. When the noise died down, everywhere became quiet, and everyone on the road had vanished, except for me. I was confused and I looked around, wondering where everyone was.
Then I saw it, at first the creature was walking slowly, as though it was being controlled by a remote, but on sighting me, it increased it pace and began to run after me.
“What the hell is going on? Am I dreaming?” I asked myself, increasing my speed so that the creature wouldn't catch up to me.
How the strange entity ran was weird, and it head was shaking as if it would fall down. I didn't know what this creature was, but I knew it wasn't my friend. I ran for what seemed like hours, only for me to realize that I was surrounded by thousands of this strange creatures.
“Welcome to Hell, demon,” I heard a melancholic voice at the back of my head, and the creatures erupted into laughter.