Get out!

The chatter around her increased. The neighbors gathered around. Families, passers-by, everybody seemed to be interested in watching this unfortunate event of Raya's life.

It did not help that her apartment was just right there at the side of the street, very visible for the whole world to see. It also did not help that the landlord was not tryingthe least bit to be discreet.  He had slammed his door shut in her face when she hurried upstairs to beg him to give her some more time but then he decided that he had not humiliated her enough so he came out of his apartment to bash her some more, calling her every horrible word he could think of in front of everyone.

He seemed to enjoy the show that he was making, he seemed to enjoy the attention he was gaining because he continued to berate her without any sign of slowing down.

“You really thought that you could stay here for free huh?!” He yelled the crowd moved in closer. They chatted amongst themselves, throwing snide glances at Raya.

“You know what? I think it was my fault, I should have never allowed you rent this apartment! I should have known just how irresponsible you are! I mean it is quite obvious that you are nothing but a hooker with that bump in your stomach!” The man yelled. There was gasps all around, there were whispers around.

“Oh my goodness! A hooker?” Someone gasped, it was Raya's next door neighbor, the same lady she had considered her close friend when she first moved in. Raya shook her head no, begging with her gaze for the woman to believe her, the intensity of the glare the woman sent back Raya's way caused her to look away, back at the ground.

“I should have known that she is a hooker, I mean what else would explain the mysterious baby bump? Another neighbor tsked.

Raya bite her lips nervously, she did her best to hold the tears back but that was impossible, even with how much she tried to keep her quivering lip shut the tears feel freely.

“Please don’t throw my out,” She begged. The owner of the place ignored him and then turned to face her with the full force of his glare.

“Get your worthless shit and leave before I call the cops on you!” He glared. Raya swallowed the lump in her throat, she avoided the creeping fear and embarrassment and continued to beg because what else was she to do? She had nowhere else to go.

With no mother anymore, no siblings and no relatives, she was all she had.  There was Mimi of course but the thought of bothering Mimi with her problems once more irked her, it caused chills to run down her spine. Mimi had done so much for her, Mimi had also made it clear that she had no more help to give. Mimi was tired of helping her out, and Raya could not even blame her friend, who wouldn't be? She was just a big ball of misfortune, she could not blame Mimi for wanting to get away from that…from her.

“Please I have no where else to go, I have no family please,” She begged with her knees to the ground and free flowing tears on her face.

“Sleep on the streets for all I care! That's where loose women like you belong anyway!” He yelled and then kicked her belonging further into the street. There was a mix of emotions around here, there was people laughing and making jest of the whole situation like as if it was a comedic movie, like as if it was not somebody's real life on display. There was people who were empathetic, they had sympathy written all over their faces but even they did not move close to her, they watched from the corners, avoiding her life a contagious plague. There were also the people egging the owner on, one of them kicked Raya's things away.

Raya held her hand over her eyes as if that would make her disappear, as if that would save her from the embarrassment of what was happening, the shameful embarrassment of having her things thrown out of her house because of a track record of due rents.

The belongings, everything laid at the side, everything felt so surreal, like she was in a horrible lucid dream that she wished that someone would wake her up from but unfortunately this was no dream, this was her real life happening in real time. She had no job, no prospect of getting one, almost a single penny to her name since all her savings were spent trying to save her now dead mother, she had a baby on the way, a baby whose father was unknown. Her life seemed like a joke, a horrible sick joke.

Raya reached for her phone,  with a deep breath,  she dialled his number…Raphael Renolds, her separated husband, the only person who could potentially save her.

Her heart thudded rapidly as the phone rang, her breath got hitched in her throat when he picked up the call.

“Hello,” his self-assured baritone voice said.