PHILANTHROPISTMaria was left flabbergasted after she went to check out the apartment Reid had offered her on platter of gold. It was hard to think that he's so rich he could give away generous gifts like that. Yes she knew he was wealthy but this was the first time she had experienced it firsthand. Reid's condo was bigger than she had imagined, leaving her agape and filling her with a feeling of intimidation. The apartment he had offered her which was a sub section of his Condo was a two bedroom apartment which easily twartled her expectations. It was painted grey and white and had a few appliances already set in. Although she still had to get things like curtains, rugs, mattress and common furniture. Athina jumped to assistance as expected, she was so happy about the offer Reid had made, only squinting her eyes in suspicion before deciding there was nothing to worry about. Athina considered that Reid had never been stingy to her, not like she ever needed his help financially but
UNCANNY ENCOUNTERThere is a first time for everything but with many firsts, comes hard work that feels like torture. Moving into a new apartment was not all I expected it to be though the time I and Athina spent decorating the place was wonderful, it involved backaches and sore thumbs. What I craved more than anything in the world was to soak my body in the huge bathtub filled with bubbly warm water. A glass of white wine, cookies, and chocolates were the finer details to add.It truly did feel nice to decorate the place as I wanted without my mother scrutinizing everything and judging my choice of drapes. My sister’s unwanted inputs would have been run mad that eventually slam my head into the wall with her incessant talks like she knew better than me. Tch, kids these days.The items I bought a few days ago had just arrived like my dining table set, bed, and other heavy things. The amazing part that made things less of a hassle was the fact they helped set them up. Especially the
NEIGHBORS“Are you coming In or not?” His gruff voice came out impatiently, narrowing his eyes at Maria. She pondered waiting for the next elevator but figured it would be too petty of her, so she reluctantly entered the elevator.She adjusted the bags in her hands with a frown whilst giving him a side eye.“I don’t think it’s been up to 48 hours since we last saw each other.” Maria spoke as they stood on opposite sides of the elevator, facing the door.Maria was seeing him too often than she’d like and it terrified her that her heart would waver. One could say the heart grows fonder with imposing presence. Her youngest sibling's magic play wand would come in handy to attempt to banish him to some foreign island. Or perhaps turn him into a frog. That was a sight she’d love to see though it was just a fantasy, but it lightened her mood.Reid let out a small chuckle as he pressed her floor button. “Why wasn’t I informed that there was a time stamp for us to run into another?”She glance
A daily affirmation seemed to do the trick to motivate Maria’s lazy ass to get out of bed. Though she’d choose the bed a million times, the harsh reality was she had to work hard to make living.Maria never had the privilege of having everything handed to her and the fact that some people had things easy made her bitter at times.Her family were depending on her to support them and for that reason, she had to ignore the soft bed and get to work. She also wanted the finer things in life. Mansions, luxury, travel, and many more. She had her mind set on working twice hard cause she knew it wasn’t going to fall in her laps, even if it meant taking orders from Reid.Just the thought of him ruined her morning.She was on her way to meet the team at the new building to sort out some details before the renovation began. And as much as she would love to sleep for an hour more, she couldn’t because the success of her business expansion was the key to the luxury life she dreamt of. At 7:25 am,
FRE-ENEMIESAnxiety consumes our daily life that we lose the essence of the present moment. Maria worried about one thing or the other 24/7 unable to change things. She always had anxiety and even in her waking moment as she lay in an hospital bed. Maria felt disconnected from the world as her body refused to listened at attempt to open her eyes. She could hear the beep of a machine that was connected to her right arm, like a peg on her index finger, and a drip connected to her left arm. That nostalgic hospital scent was in the air and her mind was foggy to recall how she had ended up there. Aside from hearing and smell, she struggled to move her body and open her eyes. She was awake and aware of her surroundings but was paralyzed to the bed. It was not an uncommon phenomenon and she had slowly learned to overcome it. She panicked, terrified to an extent she thought something grave had happened to her. She could hear voices although faint and it assured she was very much alive. M
PHOBIAAthina’s beauty and wild nature was a force of reckon. It marveled Maria how she could not only tolerate her but love her wholeheartedly. They were the antithesis of one another, yet completed each other.As Athina fussed over Maria like an egg that shouldn’t have a single scratch, Maria thought of ways to get her friend out of the hospital and make her stop worrying. If she could act this way, she wondered how parents would react.Athina sat in the chair beside the bed, flicking through the channels on the flat screen TV in front of them.“Hey, I hope you didn’t tell my parents about what happened?”Reid told her that he instructed Athina not to say a word, but she had to confirm from the horse’s mouth.“Reid told me not to, and he was dead serious about it. Do you want to call them?” She turned to her and was about to grab her phone to dial their numbers.Maria shook her head. “You know how they can be.” “I sure do. You would have pulled out all your hairs by the time they s
BUDDING FEELINGSThe day had finally come. The day Maria had envisaged with little pleasure when it came to her wardrobe and the state of her home. She managed to arrange her closet to a level after much procrastination and now expecting a house guest; she had no idea where to begin searching for what to wear.This was no ordinary visitor like Athina or Clara. It was a man, a handsome one that she admired and hoped to have something beautiful with. It had been too long since she was in a relationship and she could no longer deny that her heart yearned to love someone and have someone love her twice as much.Maria had gone through different clothes in the closet and eventually turned the place upside down like a tornado had occurred. She had the numerous outfits but was indecisive. It was either too shabby, showed too much skin, or was too much. She wanted to call on Athina, but refrained from picking her phone and dialing her number.She spent the whole day with her in the hospital an
NON-EXISTENT PRIVACYThe loud chime of a phone alarm startled Maria awake. Although her body wished to remain in bed a few hours more, she felt well rested and stretched her body. She had been asleep for over seventeen hours and her whole body felt numb. After Maria had fallen asleep in the presence of Kyros, who put her in bed and later saw himself out, the next time she opened her eyes was around 2am.She was shocked wondering how she made it to her bed, then found a note beside her on the bed. In a nice calligraphy written by Kyros, the note read “You were sleeping so peacefully and didn’t have the heart go disturb you so I saw myself out. Call me when you’re awake and feeling better. XOXO.”She smiled at the message and got out of bed to have a light snack. Maria was hungry and a light snack wasn’t going to satisfy her raging belly, so she settled for Noodles. It was a quick and satisfying meal. A light snack at 2am was a bad idea if she wanted to burn the calories she was always
We've come to the end of the book. I thank you all my readers for sticking through and being with me this entire while. I really appreciate. From the not daily updates to the rushed episodes, I really really, really appreciate.Y'all are the best. I can't thank you guys enough.Thank you, thanks you, thanks you.In between, I have a new book, which is still undergoing thorough editing.Thanks y'all, and thanks again.I'm also sad that it had to end on a tragic note, sometimes we really have to be very realistic, not everything is fairytale. In life every happy endings ahve a but. Thanks for keeping through with me, thanks for your hard earned dollars and points, and the gifts you guys send to me. Y'all's the best readers fanbase.I can't wait to share my new baby with you guys.Stay safe💫✨, I hope to share it with you guys before the end of the year
TOGETHER REGARDLESSReid could see through her. He saw the anger, the hatred and the confusion, all emitting through her eyes. The news he had just gotten broke his heart but he doesn't want to believe it was true. He was just going to treat it as words from an angry lady who needs in-depth explanation and love. He stared into her eyes with all the emotions his body was willing to profess. Living without her for the past year had made him realize how deep he was into her and how he couldn't do without her. Those days during the year were a living hell for him. He couldn't get his life together without a day passing when her thought would cross his mind. He hated life and how nothing ever goes his way. He deserted everyone and his work. Liquor became his friend and he gets drunk every single day. His dad had neglected him to be a worthless son who has nothing to offer. His dad wanted him to get married so he could gracefully pass the inheritance all over to him but he had proved to
LOST HATREDIt had been a year since the whole incident happened. Maria left her whole life behind including Reid and her friends. She was broken and saw no reason to live and now she had become a shadow of herself. She had travelled back home to her family without caring about anything or anyone since she has nothing left to lose. Maria laid on her bed with her door locked just like always. She had her head buried in her pillow, soaked in her tears with a high temperature. Her room was dark just like a vampire's room that was avoiding sunlight. She had always lived like this after she had visited a therapist and there had been no difference in her case. She was still always gloomy and the whole thing she passed through still played in her head like it was yesterday. She goes out of her room on good days when she feels light-headed and a little bit into the world. On these days, her mum and her siblings take the best of it by making sure that she feels good and less burdened and
EXCRUCIATING PAIN “What?” Maria exclaimed before she could stop herself. She had heard a lot but this new revelation was unbelievable and shocking. Reid's father has an illegitimate son? And that son is Kyros? Which makes Reid and Kyros brothers? She found it so hard to believe his words and she doesn't even know who to believe anymore since all everyone around her does was to lie. She thought of how she had trusted everyone and given them her all by loving them unconditionally but all she got from them was lies and deceit. The fact that Kyros had only used her for his advantage made the tears roll down her cheeks effortlessly. Kyros laughed before he continued. He was having fun, he was enjoying the way he was torturing her. “This is why you came into the picture. After I discovered that Reid was the heir and the whole inheritance was going to him, it seems unfair to me, don’t you think? The fact that I was illegitimate doesn't mean I'm not entitled or that I don't have the Mart
THE REVELATION Reid zoomed in, pulling up outside the building. He rushed down from his car and hurried in but as he got in, he saw no sight of Maria. "Maria," he called out and his voice echoed throughout the empty room but he got no response from her. "Maria," he called again, a little louder this time and his voice gave the same effect it had given the first time. He brought out his phone from his pocket to dial her number as he walked outside with his hand rested on his waist. He could hear her phone ring, only then did he realize that her phone was ringing on the floor close to where he was standing. He ended the call and walked closer to where the phone was ringing only to find out that all her stuff was on the ground. He looks troubled as to why she had her things scattered on the ground. "Maria!" he called out audibly, looking around but he got no response. He stood quiet for a while to think and the possibility of her being in trouble dawned on him. He raised his han
THE KIDNAPPINGThis was the last time she was doing the on and off with him. Maria had made up her mind and at that point, there seems to be nothing that could change her thoughts. It had been a month of silent struggle and endless sickness plus in-depth exhaustion. She had shut herself out from everyone and had decided to live through her pregnancy days without letting anyone into her life. She had stopped with the tears and endlessly thought. She had replaced all of Reid's thoughts that she had on her mind with that of her growing child. She laid on the sofa with the duvet pulled up to her chest and her face and breath were filled with exhaustion. She rubbed her growing belly and was trying to decipher the fact that she was pregnant. She was damn pregnant for a man she would never forgive. She hated how things had ended up with her and she couldn't help the tears that were gushing out from her eyes now. Was this a blessing or not? How could she bring her innocent child to this
NEW BLESSING OR NOTHe stared at her for a long time without blinking and when he later did, tears rolled down his cheeks. He’d tried his best. He had said words that he could think of, words that he thought were going to change her mind but ended up not making any difference. He couldn’t dispute the fact that her words were true and he could see how she had poured out her heart in her words. He hated himself right now. “We could still try to work things out!” he said in a low tone. He was desperate and helpless. He needed her so bad, that he doesn't think he could live another day knowing she hadn’t forgiven him. He waited for her to say something, anything. Just something capable enough to serve a salve on his injured heart. He wanted to listen to anything words from her still, he could see the exhaustion on her face. He doesn't want to stress a thing but he was a desperate man and his heart ached for her. “We could work things out, Maria. Don't give up on me,” he moved closer
INDEPTH THOUGHTS Since Maria had been living in her apartment, she had never seen a lot of people around which was odd to see them now. The whole building was usually quiet and not for once had she run into tons of people as she had now, stuck in the elevator with unfamiliar faces. The elevator was quiet even though there were a lot of people. They seem to be so interested in their businesses that they don't wanna mind anyone's. She stopped on her floor and walked straight to her apartment. She was a bit tired from all the stress she had to go through to set up the new restaurant which was a lot to do. Reid had excused himself to see Amanda the last time they were together and it had been two weeks now since they had seen. She hated the fact that she was acting fine and cool with the idea of having a family and she had to act as the mistress who has no effect on in his life. She had been feeling a little dizzy lately and being exhausted had been something that occurs to her fro
STORM AND SILENCE"I got the restaurant back!" Reid yelled delightfully and Maria stared at him in utmost awe. "What? How? How did you get it back? I thought it was...""Yes! Obviously. It was burnt to ashes but I got us a better one!" he retorted with a broad smile. "Hold on. Make me understand you, please," Maria said in a low tone. "All I'm saying is that we got the first building to ashes which was a great blow on us, so I got us a better and different building and here are the documents!" he handed her the documents with a gladdened heart as he stared at her face while her hands opened the brown envelope. He was proud of himself on how he could make her smile again. It felt like ages since he had seen her smile genuinely. "You did what?" Maria said, amazed as she opened the documents and scanned through the papers. Her smile widened as she read through the lines. "Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed as she jumped on him and wrapped her arms around his neck. This was great news