At Future High, Lemuel knocked on the door of the Director’s office and let himself inside. There, he couldn’t quite figure out what he thought of the scene before him.
The director, a somber faced man in his sixties, peeked at him from a pair of thick medicated glasses.
A single seat was arranged at the left hand side of his table, while the right hand side was occupied by a couple and the plump girl from his class. What was she even doing here? he thought.
There was a resemblance between the girl and the woman, so he figured that they could be a family. The woman was on the slim side though.
Lemuel realized that he recognized the man as a Reverend who preached on Television. He generally didn’t like preachers because he had discovered that many of them twisted the scriptures to put money in their pockets. This one though had earned his respect when he heard whispers of how he lived an average lifestyle and spent most of his church funds on charity and missionary work.
He also noticed that the girl had her eyes glued to her feet while she kept wringing her hands and fidgeting nervously. The Reverend and his wife however had their eyes on him and their gazes looked reproachful. The question was, what business did he have with them?
“Good morning, I’m glad you could make it.” said the director, pointing him to the empty seat that he had noticed.
“Good morning sir, Reverend, Madam.” Lemuel greeted and the Reverend and his wife nodded, somewhat curtly. The girl was avoiding his gaze so he ignored her.
“Well, why am I here sir?” He asked the director.
“Do you recognize this young woman over here?”
“She’s in my class” Lemuel responded, still wondering what that had to do with anything. He really didn’t like this meeting because something seemed completely wrong and off.
“Well, this here is Reverend Anthony and his wife. Miss Inara over here is their daughter and there’s an issue of...”
“Young man,” Inara’s father cut in, directing his words to Lemuel. “What the director here is trying to say is that the examination you wrote with my daughter has produced a result, one you must be willing to accept responsibility for because you passed. You both passed.”
Lemuel understood allegories but couldn’t allow himself to fathom that what was being said was real.
“Excuse me sir?”
“My daughter is pregnant for you. How can you be so aloof?” Inara’s father accused him.
“What? I don’t even...Jesus, this isn’t happening. How can that be?”
Lemuel had never been so shocked in his entire life and he was one who was open to surprises because he believed a wise man should never underestimate mankind.
“Are you saying that you never had sexual relations with Miss Inara?” The director probed.
“Of course I never did.”
Inara broke into a sob and Lemuel was forced to really look at her. This was insane, he thought.
“Miss Inara, look at me. Look at me damn it.” he snapped, impatient and she gave him a glance but quickly returned her eyes to her lap and continued to cry.
“Don’t try to intimidate my child.” the Reverend warned.
Inara raised her tearful eyes to look at Lemuel and his hazel eyes narrowed at her, causing her heart beat to escalate with fright and guilt.
“Why don’t you tell the truth about whoever is responsible for your pregnancy? What exactly do you want from me?“Lemuel demanded.
For a second, Inara considered telling the truth but when images of the consequences of ignoring the last dare flashed in her head, she painfully shoved that thought aside. She didn’t want to age strangely and die strangely.
“The...the baby is yours.” she sobbed and quickly averted her gaze to her mother’s. “Please help me mummy, daddy, please help me.” she cried and her mother threw her arms comfortingly around her.
“Young man, you must accept responsibility for your actions. How can you treat this innocent girl so?” The director was indignant.
“I have told you that I never had anything to do with this girl. I’m shocked.”
“That’s it. I cannot listen to this degradation against my own daughter.” Inara’s mother cried.
“My patience is running out.” the Reverend shouted, rising to his feet and pacing about.
Lemuel threw his hands up, unbelieving. The rage that overwhelmed him was so powerful that if no one was there, he probably would have killed the girl and made sure that he did it slowly.
The thought triggered vengeful feelings from the core of his being and as soon as the vengeful thoughts entered him, he decided that he would do anything to ensure that this girl came to learn in a hard way that indeed, he was the bastard son of his father. The only way to do that was to let her into his world. She had come knocking right? Well the door was about to open.
“Reverend, Director, Madam, I sincerely apologize for all the confusion so far. I have had some ponder and accept the result of our examination as you so proverbially put it sir.”
Silence enveloped the air when he finished talking. It seemed as though the sudden peace was staggering because his positive response had been unexpected.
“Well I am glad that this has come to a peaceful resolution.” said the director, his grim face, relaxing into a more friendly countenance.
Inara had stopped crying upon hearing Lemuel’s words. It wasn’t from relief but from shock and she didn’t know what to make of the turn of events.
When she stole a glance at Lemuel, his eyes were narrowed at her in that ominous way that overwhelmed her with fear, hence she quickly cast her gaze to the floor, her heart hammering against her chest.
“My daughter will not give birth out of wedlock.” her father insisted.
“I understand.” Lemuel agreed. “In that light, I will like a short moment with your daughter so we can talk.”
The hammering of Inara’s heartbeat escalated with the fear of being alone with him but knowing that her parents were around the corner gave her some little comfort.
“We’ll be right outside sweetheart.” her mother said, kissing her forehead before they exited the office, leaving her alone with Lemuel.
She tensed as he rose up and drew closer to her with slow, calculated steps, his musky scent travelling towards her. She continued to avoid his gaze until she felt his hand lifting her chin, forcing her face upwards but she still wouldn’t look directly at him. Instead, she continued to sniff tearfully.
“Look at me.” he demanded, his voice low to prevent possible eavesdropping.
Inara swallowed hard and forced her gaze to focus on his for a moment.
“How old are you?” he asked.
“Twen...twenty” she stuttered.
He felt like wringing her neck but he controlled himself.
“You should know that you’re playing with fire.”
“I...I don’t know what you mean.” she said, her eyes welling up again.
“Cut the crap. Who really is responsible for your pregnancy?”
“I...I already to...told you.” she stammered, tears rolling down her face again.
Lemuel gritted his teeth in frustration and took a deep breath to calm his anger.
“Listen to me very carefully. I am the last person that you want to have problems with miss. I am not a very nice guy so you have one last chance to end all this drama, right here, right now, regardless of what I had said earlier to the others and we can pretend that this never happened.”
Remaining terrified, Inara chose to stay between the devil and the deep blue sea. She saw no other option which made the tears rolling down her face, intensify and her silence, unbroken.
“Well, you’ve had your chance.” He drawled. “And I don’t know what your mission is but one thing is for certain.”
Inara felt his breath on her neck as his last words were whispered darkly into her ear, “You will surely regret knowing me.”
She visibly shuddered and wanted to call for her mother’s help but managed to keep silent and return her gaze to the floor with fresh tears rolling down her face as he released her jaw.
“I don’t want to see those tears. Wipe them off.”
She sniffled and he lifted her jaw again, capturing her green eyes with his.
“I said, wipe them off, now!” his deep voice commanded and Inara quickly cleaned her tears with the back of her hands.
“Good, I would hate to send the impression that we haven’t been making up.”
With that, he strode to the door and opened it. The others reentered the office and everyone took their seats.
“So what has been decided?” The director asked.
“Oh, Reverend, I officially request permission to marry your daughter.”
The preacher was relieved. “That is the right thing to do son. Permission granted.”
The director nodded with pleasure at the turn of events. The Reverend shook hands with Lemuel and Inara’s mother hugged her close.
“Well, congratulations to you all.” said the director. “I guess we can all look forward to a wedding.”
Lemuel let his gaze travel to his so-called bride to be as she cowered in her mother’s arms and all he could think about was that she had better enjoy such comfort while it lasted because soon, there would be no hiding place for her.
After the confrontation with Lemuel, Inara remained quiet and distant with a forced smile here and there as her family became cordial again. They were gradually accepting the state of affairs concerning her.Her father and Lemuel had exchanged phone numbers and he had told her that Lemuel said the wedding could take place in seven days and that he would formally have her engaged in two days. The information frightened Inara.Amara was excited but Inara didn’t share in her excitement for obvious reasons.***
In the evening, when Lemuel’s SUV pulled up at Inara’s place, she watched from her bedroom window, petrified.She was already dressed and pulled herself away from the window as her father entered to see her in her room the second time since she had gotten prepared for the evening.The first time was he informing her that they would be meeting Lemuel’s family a day after the engagement. It was an information she had received with trepidation, overwhelmed by how fast things were going, based on a single lie.
When she stepped out of the car, he shut the door and took her hand in his, leading her towards the cozy lit entrance of the restaurant.“Mr. Lemuel, Madam.” the Spanish attendant greeted them, handing a ticket to him, “Your reservation according to your expectations senor.”“Thank you Hugos.”“Anytime.”When they stepped inside the restaurant, she admired the ornate surroundings; elegant décor and sparkling chandeliers. The people inside looked affluent. A quiet, live piano music filled the room from one corner where a female musician was skillfully manipulating the keys. The guests were few and he led her to the table for two in the middle of the room. “You’re having lean tuna steak and vegetable salad without cream.” He said as they sat down. Inara wasn’t sure he was serious about what he had just said.“What?”“Just remember to recite it when the waiter gets here.” He said, studying one of the menu on the table.The waiter drew forward to attend to them.Inara stared at the secon
Inara slowly raised the glass to her lips and took a sip, praying that it wouldn’t be bitter because she had a sweet tooth.She didn’t like any drink that wasn’t sweet. Which was why when Zee would take all those bitter alcoholic drinks, she always went for any vodka or alcoholic drink that was at least sweet like Smirnoff Ice or Gordon’s Spark. She didn’t like red wine either. The ones that she had tasted were still not sweet. She would pick ice cream over it any day.Surprisingly, as she let the tiny quantity of wine she had sipped, flow over her taste buds, she found that the drink wasn’t bitter as she had suspected. Thankfully, she took another sip, before placing the glass on the table. Lemuel had his gaze on her the whole time, keeping her in a constant state of nerves.“Was that bad?” he asked.“No.” she answered, shaking her head.“Tell me why.”She lowered her g
There were five pictures inside the envelope. The first featured him on his knees, presenting the engagement ring to her.On the second picture, he had slipped the ring onto her finger. The third showed him kissing her engaged hand. The fourth was when he had her locked in his arms, his lips to her ear, whispering those dark words that had almost paralyzed her. And the last was when they waved at the people in the restaurant.The moment she had returned home, Inara had watched her family pass the pictures between them. They were pleased and happy about the feedback the photos presented.“I certainly approve.” Amara said. “He’s a gentleman and seems very confident.”You have no idea,Inara thought and returned Amara’s smile with a forced one of hers.“I am happy for you, baby sis.” Amara said excitedly, hugging her.“Thanks love.” Inara said, returning her hug.
Inara and her choir colleagues rose to the applause of the congregation, ready to present their piece for the evening Church Service.She loved the choir because it was where she could momentarily forget problems and just participate in being part of the music.Today was a free day before Lemuel’s family would meet hers the next day and nervous as she was about that, she had decided to forget about her present problems.She adjusted her robe, straightening it presentably and stepping up to the microphone as the keyboardist began playing the keys to the hymnI’ll Stand By Until The Morning (Fierce and Wild The Storm is Raging). When he cued her in, she sang;Fierce and wild the storm is ragingRound a helpless bark,On to doom ’tis swiftly driving,O’er the waters dark!The rest of the choir joined her at the chorus:Joy, behold the Savior,Joy, the message
Lemuel was reading a business email in his office when Suzy barged her way inside with a newspaper in hand.She flagged before him, a page that reported his recent engagement with a picture of him proposing.The CEO, Men’s Aura is Set to Tie The Knot it read. Then she started a tirade of complaints while he just listened to her, watching her complain.“Am I not good enough for you? I thought we were an item. Now she comes into the picture from nowhere. Gosh. I just can’t believe this. How did this happen? Just look at her. She doesn’t even look as good as I do.”Suzy stopped talking, her breath heaving with anger. Lemuel rose from his seat and approached her, seeing that she had stopped expressing herself, at least voc
In the cool of the day around 6:00 pm, Inara peeked from her room window as two SUVs, black and white, pulled up before her home. Then a red one, the one she was familiar with, pulled up last. It made her heart beat faster, knowing that it was him in there. And she couldn’t help but touch the ring that he had slipped onto her finger. It clung to her skin, constantly reminding her of him.Her family had already pre