Chapter two: "Cry"

I put down my bag on the side desk near the door and remove the coat to hang it up on the hook behind the door, the picture frame on top of the fireplace shows only me and my Grandma after my elementary graduation. My parents abandoned me and were never present even before they left me to live with Grandma.

The fire from the fireplace kept the living room warm and cozy and it made me feel sleepy but before I can plan to sleep I decided to help Grandma Carol prepare, I headed to the kitchen and I was shocked at the sight.

"MAMA!" I yelled as I ran to her aid

I started calling her Mama when my mom wasn't around she became one to me

She was lying face down on the floor and I checked her pulse to see if she is still breathing, there was nothing.

Not a beat that made a sound

That's impossible she was just fine this morning!

I called the ambulance and a few minutes later they arrived to take her to the hospital, so before I left I grabbed everything I need and turned off the stove and the fire in the fireplace. When we arrived at the hospital she was pronounced dead on arrival

My hand started shaking "What?" my question was like a whisper, the doctor and nurse apologized for my loss

"How did she die?"

they both looked at her lifeless body that was covered with a white blanket on the hospital bed, her hand fell out and I jumped a bit from being too startled "She died from a heart attack, we did our best but she couldn't make it"

My feet started moving on their own in the direction where my Grandma was now asleep forever

When I lifted the blanket I saw her peaceful sleeping face her lips were upturned a bit like a small smile

That's how she smiles when recalling a sad memory when she was alive

I touched her hand and the warmth that it always contain is now cold like ice

How could she leave like this without saying goodbye?

A teardrop fell on her lifeless hands and I noticed that I was crying. a lot.

My only family member who cares for me is dead, I am truly alone now. 

For the first time, I don't know what to do first, I may be an adult but even we get stuck and get lost. Just when I feel like my world is getting smaller I heard someone calling out my name "BEA!"

When I raised my head to see who it was, it was my only friend during my college years. Lilian.

Her dyed purple hair was a mess and her Honey brown eyes filled with worry "I got your call" she sat immediately beside me, I didn't hold back when I started crying in front of her. I don't know what to expect from Lilian because she started to also cry alongside me, she had met my grandma and knew of my circumstance.

She gave me a side hug and patted my back "Everything will be ok, you got me, and all of your employees care for you, there's also Alex" 

Oh right there was a tiny detail I forgot, since my grandmother has now ascended I was the only inheritor of the 1000-acre land in the suburbs since my Mom's location is a mystery and I was the only grandchild she has. Looks like I have to make a visit to Alex to tell him about what happened.

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It was the next day and I went to the city hall for the land ownership to be transferred to me, Mama (Grandma) told me before that if anything happens to her I should transfer the land ownership to my name as an inheritance because my mother might come back and take it away from me.

Mama hated my mother that my Dad chose to be his wife, she knew from the start she was the woman who will never become a good mother and she was right. Look where I am now.

When she would describe my mother as a selfish and cold-hearted woman who doesn't care if you're her family as long as she wanted it, she will get it.

I should prepare her funeral and invite her close friends

Relatives are out of the question because where the hell was they when I needed them the most?! My Dad's side of the family was not close and my mother never had any siblings or parents because she was an orphan. 

Just when this quiet day for me to mourn wasn't enough, I started getting text messages from My Dad's side of the family asking who will the land ownership go to. This is no simple 1 or 2-acre land, we are talking about a 1000-acre of land that was inherited from every generation of my family

at least that's what Mama told me

They didn't even bother to visit me to say their condolences or say goodbye to Mama and yet they're asking me who will inherit the land? what a joke!

They just can't keep their greedy little hands off of this matter, selling the land would either be worth billions or even trillion or more. I guess my family has greed stronger than grief

While walking alone on the sidewalk I saw someone come out of the book store, it was Hue. My bully when I was in college. 

It looked like he has a change of heart because he looked cleaner than when he was a party boy

He was wearing a suit and his attention was glued on his phone, my mood was now low because he appeared in front of me. Before I could even have a chance to change direction and walk away he saw me after he turned off his phone and shoved it in his pocket.

"Bea?"

I became stiff frozen in place 

Don't look at him

Just keep walking, ignore him

"Bea wait!" he said loudly and this time I ran as fast as I could, I don't want to talk to the likes of him. Even if he has a change of heart that still doesn't erase everything he has done to me in the past

He always destroy my homework so I always make a back up which caused me to not sleep a lot and I fainted because of it

He would tell others made up rumors about me and it resulted in me becoming an outcast

and worst of all he was making fun of what I like and my image

I hope we would never meet again, this was just a coincidence but let's just hope it will never be repeated. I might not contain myself if I do see his face.

The only reason why I couldn't defend myself against him is that I never wanted to cause Mama trouble especially since stress would worsen her deteriorating health and it would not be an effective method since they would only keep coming back to do it again.

Walking home knowing that nobody is waiting for you anymore made me feel sad but that wasn't the case today because there were two people waiting at the gate

it was Jason and Lee

They saw me walk closer to them so they waved hello to me

"What brings you both here?" I asked as I opened the gate and let them into my home, they sat on the sofa and I offered them a glass of orange juice

Jason had his hand in his coat pocket before pulling out a cheque "We're here to pay rent" he grinned up at me "Where's Mama?" he looked around the room with excited eyes

Yes, they call my grandmother Mama too

I was silent before I broke the news to them "She passed away"

Their eyes widened with shock and seem sadder than I am about the news of her passing, just remembering about it made me cry again.