How life went on.

Five years later and Nia could not get out of her misery, the only reason she survived was because of her adorable angels, Stanley and Mira, and her best friend Nancy.

She had just been fired from her job, which was her fifth in two months.

Ring!!!

The sound of a phone rang as soon as Nia entered the house. She quickly dropped all she held in her hands on the kitchen counter, to pick the unknown call.

"Hello, who is it?" She said, using her shoulders to press the phone against her ears while washing her hands in attempt to prepare lunch for the kids before they returned from school,

"It is I, Doctor Frank, and am I unto Ms.Nia." The urgency in the tone of a male voice on the other end of the line was palpable.

"Yes, you are." Nia squeezed her brows in curiosity, wondering what a doctor would be needing from her. It is not like she needed a job at the hospital; she was not qualified. All she could think about was getting a call from one of the many jobs she had applied for.

"Uhmmm... I am sorry for the inconvenience; I am your mother's doctor." He unraveled.

Nia's focus shifted from the lunch she was trying preparing to the phone call, her face flushed with curiosity as her heart began to thump loudly.

"Mom!!! Is there anything wrong with Mom?" Her voice trembled; why would a doctor be calling her because of her mother? Was she okay?

"Madam, your mother is in desperate need of surgery; her cancer requires immediate attention, and we need to perform the surgery within a month, because that is all she has left." The urgency in the doctor's tone remained.

"We would also require some funds to proceed with the surgery."

'OMG!!! So many things are happening all at ones that I forgot about mom's health.'

"How much do you require for the surgery?" Nia sighed. She inquired, fully aware that it would necessitate a large sum of money; she did not have much, but she was willing to give her savings to her mother, hoping that would suffice.

"A total of $5,000 will be required, ma'am."

Nia's eyes widened as she stared at what was not present in the room, astounded by the amount mentioned by the doctor.

How was she supposed to get such a large sum of money? Where would she get it from? She had just lost her job, received a letter requiring her to pay her outstanding house bills, and her children's school called, complaining about the nonpayment of their fees; how was she going to do this?

Nia's mouth trembled, her lips brimming with words. "Doctor, please hold on to her; I will pay the cash soon I promise."

"We hope so, madam; we are doing everything we can to keep her alive; we will get her out of this mess as soon as you provide the necessary funds." The doctor stated.

"I will do my best, Doc." Nia was not sure how, but she assured.

"All right, ma'am, thank you." He then hung up.

'Another issue!!! , how am I going to raise such a large sum of money? Do I borrow it from a bank? No, that would necessitate an interest payment. The kids' school fees!!! 'Oh, God, please help me.' She thought as she stood motionless in the kitchen, staring at the wall as if something was there.

"Mommy!!!" Two adorable little voices jolted her out of her thoughts, she instinctively came out of the kitchen, which was just a corner next to the sitting room, her eyes met those two little pumpkins running towards her as they came to hug their mother, a lady walked in as well, she carried a smile on her face while watching the kids run to their mother.

"Stanley! Mira!! "How are my two precious angels?" She inquired, forcing a smile on her face as she embraced them.

"We are fine, mummy!" They hopped joyfully with a contagious smile on their faces, their brown eyes twinkling as their chubby cheeks turned pink.

"That is wonderful to hear, babies." She admitted with a smile on her face. Her smile was not genuine, but the presence of those two little angels made her forget about her problems; they were all she could ever ask for, the lights of her small world.

"Mom does not seem happy; is mom upset to see us?" Stanley stated as his mode changed, he knew his mother so well that he could see through her smile.

"No, no, no!!!" Mom is fine?" She continued, her forced smile masking her sadness.

"Hmmm!!! You do not seem well, mom; your eyes are baggy, as if you have been awake all night?" Mira said, touching her chubby cheeks with her finger as if she was thinking about something. Nia was taken aback by the girl's brilliance; she knew she could not lie to those adorable brown eyes.

"Mom is fine; she has just been..... busy planning new designs for your bedroom." She lied, still attempting to conceal her anguish.

"Mom!!! You are still thinking about designing our bedroom; don't you remember what that mean old man said about the house rent yesterday?" Stanley countered with his eyes furrowed and his arms folded in surprise as he looked at his mother.

"Mom designing our room isn't a priority, you must first think about the bills." Mira stated, astound by her mother's idea.

Nia, who was equally taken aback by the children's audacity, quickly changed the subject to avoid further squabbles with toddlers.

"All right, champs, you two go to your room, take a bath, and come have some delicious pasta for lunch."

"Yeah! Pasta!" They were both ecstatic about pasta, that had become their favorite food since it was all they could really afford.

"The last person in the room is a rotten egg!!!" Stanley said as he dashed to the stairs.

"Emm!!! No, Stanley, my legs are too short." Mira cried as she hurried to meet her brother on her two adorable short legs.

They both left the scene, leaving Nancy and Nia alone in the sitting room, both with worried expressions on their faces.

"So, Nia, what are your plans now?" Nancy inquired, crossing her legs as she sat on the couch, munching on some potato chips.

"Well, I applied for a restaurant job, and they asked me to come in tomorrow for an interview," Nia replied, forcing a smile.

"Hmmm!!! "How much are they willing to pay?" Nancy was curious.

"Well, they will talk to me about it tomorrow; it is a small job, so I am not expecting much; I just hope it is enough for the house."

"How about your "mom"?" Nia furrowed her brows as Nancy said, emphasizing the word "mom."

"Look, Nia. I know you do not want to bother me about your family problems, but I am your best friend, the kids will not be able to attend school next week, your house rent has expired, your mom needs surgery, Nia a lot is going on in your life, you need to let me know sometimes, I may have one or two ways to help." Nancy bemoaned as she looked at Nia.

Nia could not look her in the eyes, so she sat back and stared at her foot; a lot was truly going on in her life, and the worst things happened every day; Nia had no space in her head to even consider bothering anyone about her personal issues.

"How did you learn about my mother?" Nia inquired, still astounded by her knowledge.

"My brother drove your mother to the hospital; he called me while trying to reach your line; have you forgotten they are neighbors?"

'Oh, that is right.'

"How much did the doctor demand?" Nancy inquired, her face flushed with interest.

"Look, Nancy, I am not going to bother......" Before she could continue, a slight knock on the door interrupted her words.