Chapter One

“Lena, we’ve lost all our wealth, all of our fortune’s gone” mom sobs loudly. “Another nightmare” I mutter under my breath as I sit upright in bed, grabbing a glass before pouring myself a glass of water.

It’s weird that I still have these dreams, seeing how long ago this happened. Every night I cried and hoped my parents were just playing a cruel prank on me. But as time passed by, I realized that this was our reality.

My eyes roam across the room as I take a sip of the water. My sisters Carla and Dora are softly asleep on their beds, causing a sigh to escape from my lips. I wouldn’t want to wake them up, they should sleep some more seeing the amount of chores we had to cover yesterday.

Dragging myself out of bed, I place my feet into my worn out cotton slippers, nothing like how it looked when it was first purchased. Another sigh escapes my lips as I remain transfixed on my slippers, my thoughts running wild.

“Another day” I shake my head, pulling myself out of my thoughts. “Snap out of it” I mutter, standing from my bed and softly walking towards the window, sitting on the cushion placed close to the window. 

My eyes roam across the surroundings of the house, held within the gate. To onlookers, this house looks like a house that the rich live in. Its high pillars and excellent infrastructure designed by one of the most famous architects would make anyone jealous and even cause them to envy the inhabitants of the house.

But I know better, my parents announced their bankruptcy fee days to my 18th birthday. I cried so much that day, the realisation of our sudden penury hit me so bad, making me realise that I can’t chase my dreams of being an actress anymore.

I bitterly smile as I look at the surroundings of our room, Carla, Dora and I used to have seperate rooms. But we could no longer afford heating for different rooms, so we had to learn to stay together and so did my brothers, Daniel and Lawi.

We couldn’t sell the house as my father had promised to never do so to his parents as it was a family heirloom that the family boasted of and the fact that he had signed a contract binding him to that promise was the major reason we still lived here.

So we were stuck with a huge house with no one to care for it and with little money to see ourselves through each day. We were no better than people living on the streets except for the fact that we had a house to live in.

But what use was the house when Daniel and I had to work round the clock just to provide a three square meal for the family.

To be honest sometimes I felt a dislike towards my father, after all he was the one that wasted our fortune and subjected us to this very life we are living. The first two years, I stayed away from him, my dislike for him growing everyday.

But the year after I decided to let it go, what had happened had happened and there was nothing anyone could do about it, no matter how much we wished.

At the age of 23, I am burdened with providing for my family. I have to take on odd jobs that I dislike, but the thought of my family and I starving keeps me working day and night.

My eyes water as I look around the room, the realization that I am on the verge of crying causes anger to well up in me. I had promised myself after that day to never cry over my family’s misfortune and to do everything in my power to regain our former glory and social standing.

A smile forms on my lips as I notice David Carter drive out of his estate, stopping some distance away from my house. My eyes widen as I watch him scold a lady, who profusely apologises as she begs for forgiveness.

What could she have done? I think to myself as I watch his car drive by. For years I have been closely watching David, he is my family’s only ticket out of penury. I have been carefully making a plan, waiting for the right moment to strike. Who knows when the time will come?

“Time to head out” I mutter under my breath, as I watch the sky get brighter. I need to get to my daily chores so that I can get to class on time. My parents can’t afford to pay for school housing so I have to travel a long distance of about 2 hours everyday and if I don’t get started on my chores I’ll be late for lectures.

I carefully exit the room, careful not to wake my sisters. “Good morning Lena” my older brother Daniel says startling me. “Daniel” I say, placing my hand on my chest as I try to regulate my breathing, “you scared me” I say, eyeing him warily.

“I know” he says, with a huge smile on his face as fastens the button on the hems of his shirt. The smile on his face is contagious, forcing me to smile after trying so hard to suppress it, “what’s got you in a good mood” I say, walking towards the kitchen to prepare breakfast, Daniel following closely behind me.

“Today is my interview at Luna Enterprises,” he says, leaning against the kitchen counter. “And…?” I ask, fully knowing what he means.

He smiles, “if I get the job, our living conditions would improve”. I frown, “I don’t mean to be a mood spoiler but it’s not 100% guaranteed that you’d get the job, so I think it’s best not to get our hopes up” I say, pouring a packet of oats into the pot filled with hot water.

Though I’m backing Daniel, I feel a scowl forming on his lips, “why can’t you be positive and hopeful for once” he says, grabbing an apple on the counter and stuffing it into his bag.

I shrug, “I’ve realised that it hurts less when you don’t expect anything” I say, grabbing plates from the plates rack.

His features soften, “I know you took the greatest hit with our fortune’s perishing, but I don’t want you to stop hoping” he says, patting my shoulders.

I nod, “sure” I say, forcing a smile on my face, wanting the conversation to end. He smiles, his mood getting better, “great, I’ll be on my way now. Wish me luck” 

“Wait” I say, placing a kiss on his cheek before handing him a food flask, “it’s never good to attend an interview on an empty stomach. Good luck” I smile, watching him grin as he places the food in his bag before walking out of the kitchen.

I serve the rest of the food in five food flasks, skipping mine as I’m not feeling very hungry. No one in my shoes would feel hungry if they had eight other chores to do in the span of two hours, some including scrubbing the main room floors and fixing the heating.