The past

                           ~JESSICA~

~THE PAST~

 “Ma'am…we're here already” the taxi driver tapped me softly, waking me up from my sleep.

I yawned and stretched my body, looking around me.

“I've been calling you since. But you're too deep in sleep” he said.

“I'm sorry, Sir” I apologized.

 Last night had been another long one, staying up to send out job applications to as many companies as I could find. With each passing day, I felt the weight of responsibility press harder on my shoulder, but today especially, it was crushing me.

The moment morning broke, I rushed to the hospital to check on my stepmother—though in every way, Sarah was my true mother.

Three days ago, she had been admitted with severe pain, and every test the doctor ran seemed to pull us closer to a diagnosis I dreaded more with each hour.

And then the tests were really expensive and was draining me financially, more reason why I need a job as soon as possible and stay awake most nights to send application letters.

Sarah wasn't the only person I needed to take care of. There was also Grace, my eighteen year old step sister who's still a high school student. And that's why I was in front of Albert's house, my fiance. I needed his financial assistance.

I needed to see him, to feel his arms around me, and to believe, if for just a moment, that everything would be okay.

 I paid the driver with cash and came down from the car. The cab sped along and I walked to the gate. 

Surprisingly, the gates weren't locked and I had walked into the compound when Troy, the gatekeeper ran out to check who the intruder was.

He's strangely surprised to see me and I wondered why. 

“Troy, why did you leave the gates open??” I asked him.

“I'm sorry ma'am. I just opened the gate not quite long and went in to do something” he replied with uneasiness and raked his fingers through his hair.

I stared at him curiously and at the same time scanning the compound with my eyes. Albert's car was still in the compound which shows that he's around.

“Seems your boss is in, let me go inside to see him” I said to Troy.

“Eh.mm…. ma'am…” he stammered.

“Troy, is anything wrong? You're behaving strangely today” I asked.

“It's nothing, ma'am,” he replied.

With one long last look at him, I turned and headed towards the door of the main house.

I got to the door and just like the gate, it was also opened and I found it odd. I entered the house and the first thing that welcomed me was the loud moans and cries that filled the air.

No, I thought. It can't be.

I froze, the shock holding me captive as I came face to face with Albert on the couch, tangled in the arms of….

Quickly, I adjusted my glasses and took a good look at the scene and was surprised to see that the lady Albert was having sex with is my best friend. Albert was tangled in the arms of Isabella!

The room spun around me. My hand flew to my mouth as I staggered back, tripping over the edge of a rug and landing painfully on the floor.

Oh yeah, right time to be clumsy!!!

The loud thud made them pause, and Albert turned to look at me. I held his gaze while still on the floor. His face shifted from shock to cold indifference.

Isabella, my best friend, stared at me with no remorse on her face. She didn't even flinch. She simply looked at me, calm and unbothered as though I had caught her doing something mundane.

Slowly, I pulled myself up from the floor, trembling, and took a shaky step towards them. Albert was now wearing his shorts while Isabella covered her body with her clothes.

“Albert? Isabella? What's happening here? What am I seeing? Hope I am seeing things wrong?” I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

“You're putting on your glasses, Jess, so everything you're seeing here is right” Isabella retorted.

Her words stung, each one like a lash across my heart.

“You?? Isabella, you?? For Christsake! You're my best friend. I tell you literally everything about me! You kept advising me to leave Albert but you're having an affair with me behind my back??” I whispered, unable to even speak properly.

Tears welled in my eyes and my heart felt clogged and heavy.

She laughed, a harsh, mocking sound.

“Please, Jessica, you don't deserve someone like Albert. It should have been me and not you! I mean, I'm more beautiful and classy than you'll ever be in your life, you nerd! Yes, look at you. Nerdy, always broke, plain as can be. You think you're on his level?” She spat out and my eyes felt dizzy.

I turned to face Albert with a vision blurred with tears by Isabella's cruel words.

“You've been sleeping with my best friend??” I asked, hoping and praying for him to deny it but he admitted it.

“Yes, Isabella is the woman I love now. She's everything you're not!” he said with a detached smirk, and I staggered slightly and held my forehead with my palm. My head was suddenly banging.

His words cut deeper than I could have imagined.

“You said you love me! You fucking engaged me! How dare you cheat on me?” I screamed.

“I never loved you! I loved the way you loved me. I loved how smart you are and how you bring smart ideas to help me in my business! I engaged you because I knew you're going to put your best in the relationship. I wanted your brains and nothing more! I was just in love with your personality, ambition. But physically, you were never my type! I just wanted to use you! He said harshly and my eyes went spinning around again.

He used me to grow his business. He was with me because of the way I loved him. I literally did everything for him! Went out of my way to buy really expensive dresses just to please him! Dresses I ended up selling when I lost my job! I spent my money on him and for him and now he has the guts to say he's using me??

“So you just used me??” My voice cracked, barely above a whisper as I thought of the late nights I had stayed up helping him strategize.

“You're not in any way my spec! You're not beautiful or sexy and you're too flat and tall for my liking! Plus you're always putting on those annoying glasses of yours and packing your hair up in that funny way! Just take a good look at how you're dressed right now. You smell” he spat out.

Unconsciously, I raised my arms up to smell myself. I was shabbily dressed but I wasn't smelling.

“But you should know that's how I am! You should know that I can't see without my glasses! I thought you loved me for who I was” I yelled out and the tears fell freely now.

I was really heartbroken.

“And what's that talk about keeping your virginity till you're married. You behave like an old school. Who's still a virgin in this current time?? You never allowed me to have sex with you because you kept claiming you're a virgin and wanted our first time to be after our wedding. I got tired of waiting for you and Isabella gave me what I wanted”

“You're stylishly trying to force me into marrying you, but your plans won't work” he said.

Beside him, Isabella grinned, a cruel gleam in her eyes.

“You kept complaining about how Albert never buys you stuff but he's been buying lots of things for me and not you, because you're not worthy of it. Fine bags, clothes, expensive jewelry, weekly allowance and others that you can't relate” Isabella mocked.

“Thank you for shifting my business to a higher level with your great ideas, but we're done here. We're over and I never want to see you again” Albert said.

I turned and ran out of the house as fast as I could. I will never break down in front of them!

My side eyes caught sight of Troy's eyes staring at me with pity and I wondered how long this has been happening. How long Isabella has been coming to Albert's house without my idea and how Troy couldn't say a word to me about it.

~THE PRESENT~

   I didn't realize I was crying until I saw the tears drop on the table, and another followed, and another too.

I allowed myself cry, letting out all the pain and hurt.

When I felt I had cried enough, I wiped off my tears.

“Albert, I'm never going to cry because of you again” I vowed to myself.

Then I stood up and walked back to my room.

I climbed my bed and was preparing to sleep when my phone rang.

I checked the caller and my phone slipped out of my hands in shock and landed on the bed.

It was Albert calling!!!