05

I liked the idea of marrying Noah but aunt Caro didn't want to hear of it. “At this point you can't reject Jeff.” She said after I spilled the news of Noah’s proposal the next day. She continued to cut the newspaper pages into four equal parts. “He knows about our plan and could ruin the chances of making any other marriage look real.”

“I know but a marriage with Jeff wouldn't even look real.'“ I insisted. “I know I'm not perfect but who is going to believe that I fell in love with a man like him in such a short time? All he seems to do is eat, drink and watch TV all day. Have you been to his house? I didn't want to be there a minute longer.”

I remembered the kind of dump it had looked like. I shuddered thinking of having to live with that dirty man.

My aunt arranged all the cuttings on the table in a neat pile. “Listen here, little girl. I know these things. In this country, things are not like where you came from. When you're of a certain race, the justice system rarely believes you especially in a state like this one. And in any case, are you sure that white boy isn't lying to you? What if he's one of those who hate immigrants and gets us arrested for fraud? I cannot believe you told him about the plan. Anyway, it's not so surprising. You're Jennifer's daughter after all.”

Jennifer is my mother. I wanted to inquire what she meant by that statement but refrained myself. As siblings, they might have had their own issues but I didn't want to get involved. She was doing me a great favor by helping me settle in. Also, she was right. I shouldn't have trusted someone I knew nothing about. Noah might be setting a trap for me and I had decided to walk right into it. But, things were going to change as I realized I needed to listen to my aunt. Her manner of doing things may not have been the best but I knew that she wanted the best for me, just like my parents. 

“You have to listen to me stay and away from that young man.”

“Okay aunt,” I said. Marrying Noah would be like a dream, that’s if he didn’t turn out to be a psycho. What man would just offer help after eavesdropping on people’s conversations? Surely, that was too good to be true. Maybe aunt Caro was right.

Just then, my cell phone rang and Noah's name appeared on the screen.

“By the look on your face, I can tell that's him.” Aunt Caro stood up, collected her newspaper cuttings and went up the stairs, probably heading to her room.

I said nothing. “Talk to him. Say you lied about the marriage or something to get us out of this situation. You even gave him your number. How stupid can you get?”

“Hey, can I see you today?” He asked.

“I'm really busy so it may not be possible,” I lied, instantly feeling bad I had to lie to him yet he had been so nice to me. 

“Okay,” he said. I hoped he believed me because I didn't want to lose his friendship. “Have a good day, Lena.”

After he hung up, I remained seated, still holding the cell phone against my ear. Even though I couldn't trust him, I really wanted to. I wished to be around him, watch his beautiful face as he talked. Sometimes, his good looks had me so transfixed I had to ask him to repeat some things he'd said. Oh how I wanted to see him again, let him show me around South Bend.

“You have to set up a date with Jeff one of these days,” my aunt said when she came back. She disappeared into the kitchen and returned a few minutes later. “There are many events in town during the weekends. Go to one, take lots of pictures. We need everything to prove that you love each other. And since these pictures will be taken on a specific date, six months from now it'll prove you've been together for long.”

She handed me a plate of hot soup. “Here. Wait for it to cool a little and feed Linda.”

I reached out for the soup. My cousin Linda wasn't my biggest fan. For some reason, she had been cold to me since I arrived even though I tried so hard for us to become close. But, it was okay. She didn't have to like me immediately. I was a stranger, even though we had similar blood running in our veins.

“Hey Linda,” I said to the thirteen year old girl, lying on her bed, a phone with her left hand which she claimed couldn’t lift a thing. Her right hand was in a cast. I pushed her wheelchair away from the bedside. 

“Brought you lunch,” I set it down, glancing at her left hand. It had several bandaged bruises but if she could hold her phone, maybe she could use it to eat. It seemed quite unsteady so I decided I’d just help since I didn’t know how painful it was.

“Where's my ma?” She asked. “I want her to feed me.”

I rolled my eyes at the chubby teenager with big round eyes. She and aunt Caro were going to drive me out of my mind. Babysitting stubborn teens wasn’t on my resume but after this I would have learnt the necessary skills for the job.

I placed the plate on the table and sighed then went to talk to her mother.

“I have to go somewhere. Figure something out and make sure my child eats.”

She was almost at the front door when we heard the doorbell rang. I was on my way to Linda's room but paused, out of curiosity.

“Hello.” I heard a familiar voice and turned to see the most handsome man I knew. Noah Elliot.