Olivia"Dad…" I moved closer to him but he only hissed."I should have never let you work there. How dare they fire you like that, despite your qualification?!" "What?" I turned to Rita who offered me a little smile.What is going on?"Rich people are very complicated, I can never understand them." My father went on lamenting."I know Olivia would get a new job in no time sir, I'm very sure of that." Rita said to me my father."What is going on?" I whispered to her."I told him you were fired." She whispered back.I sighed, almost loudly, in relief.For a minute I almost thought he had found out about everything already, I was so scared.Rita was a friend indeed.I couldn't believe she had spoken to him ahead of our trip, even I hadn't thought of that."Princess, why did you hide this from me?" Having calmed down, he came to me and engulfed him in a hug."I didn't want you to know." I started crying as soon as he hugged me.I wasn't crying because of Asher this time, but because I h
OliviaHurriedly, I packed my clothes into my box.I couldn't take them all so I would only be taking a few.As I did so, tears rolled down my face.After finding out that I was still pregnant, I felt really guilty for even thinking of trying to terminate my pregnancy.This was my very first pregnancy with the man I deeply loved.How had I even thought of getting rid of it?Now, I don't care if Asher was here to see me through my pregnancy as I had always wanted.All that mattered to me right now, was birthing my child and watching it grow.I wasn't ready to explain anything to my dad.I didn't want to hurt him, couldn't hurt him.I know running away wasn't the best thing to do and it would only trouble my dad but this was the only option I had!I had the courage to run away to a town I had never been to but not tell my dad that I had broken my promise to him and gotten pregnant.I wasn't going to leave him with nothing so I had decided to send him all of the money I had.Before sendi
OliviaI hurriedly packed the foods into plates and bagged them.One of the customers had requested for a takeaway and I had to prepare them myself.It's been three months since I moved to Golden Lake City and it's been hectic.I had no money on me when I got here but fortunately, the first person I met in the City offered me a job at her restaurant.It was strenuous but I got used to it quickly.I had no choice anyway, I paid my bills and saved enough money ahead of my baby's birth, from the money I got paid.I thought that by now, my baby bump would be obvious but it wasn't and I was happy about it.I hadn't told her about my pregnancy yet and honestly, I didn't have any plans to.She didn't employ pregnant women so telling her about my pregnancy would mean losing my job.I had to secure another job before leaving this one.And of course, it had to be a job pregnant women were allowed to engage in as I won't be able to hide my baby bump soon.I walked to the table where the order wa
Olivia"Ma'am….but….." She completely ignored me and walked away but I ran after her."I said you're fired Olivia!" She yelled really loudly this time around.I looked around and noticed that most of the customers had left already."I'm really sorry about what happened ma'am. I don't know what came over maybe….. maybe I am mentally unstable. But please don't fire me. I really need this job." I went on my knees, holding on to her skirt.I hated that I had to admit to being mentally unstable when I wasn't but I couldn't help it.I needed this job and would do pretty much anything to keep it.For the sake of my child."Well, maybe you should have thought of that before disrespecting someone so important." She kicked me off and walked away but I still ran after her."I had absolutely no idea who he was. Please ma'am, pardon my ignorance. This job is my only source of income and I really need it. I beg you ma'am, please don't take it away from me." I held onto her leg once again.Tears had
OliviaWho could it be?The problems just never end.I wanted to ignore the call, hopefully, the caller would get tired and give up.But that didn't happen."You've got to be kidding me." I sighed, looking at the number that just wouldn't stop calling.Sighing, I decided to take the call."Who is this?" I asked the caller once I had taken the call without caring if I was rude or not."Olivia?" The caller called my name directly like he knew me.The voice of the caller sounded familiar."Olivia, are you okay? It's me, Rose."Oh,!….Rose."Hey, Rose. Look, I'm really sorry for being rude. It's been a horrible night for me and I kind of vented my anger out on you even though none of what happened was your fault. Once again, I'm really sorry." I apologized, rubbing my forehead with my free hand.I was too tired from running around all day so I crashed into one of the bags."I understand, it's fine. I got really worried when I didn't see you after I closed. I decided to call to make sure yo
OliviaI woke up feeling nauseous.I opened my eyes expecting to see the white ceilings of a hospital but instead, I saw a beautifully colored one."This isn't a hospital." I mumbled to myself and got up quickly.But as soon as I got up, I fell back to the bed.My entire body was on fire, in pains.It felt like I had been beaten up even though I didn't remember getting beat up.All I remembered was losing everything I had gotten since I came to Golden Lake City.And someone following me.How did I get here anyway?I heard the door creek open so I shut my eyes immediately.I heard footsteps coming in my direction and my body stiffened.Could this be the person who was following me last night?What could he possibly want from me?"You know, if you want to pretend to still be unconscious, you could losen up your fist a little bit. That would make your act look more believable." A chuckle followed those words.I wasn't sure if I was being followed by a man last night as it was too dark to
Four Years LaterOliviaI rushed into the elevator, anxiously waiting to leave the office.When I finally got out, I ran out of the company building like a mad person.I saw Jeremy's red Nissan Jeep at the other side of the street and I hurried toward it."Hey, slow down, would you?" He laughed, seeing how anxious I was to see my children."It's been three days since I last saw my babies Jeremy. How would I not be so eager to see them?" I rolled my eyes at him as I got in.He got in too and handed me a lunch pack.He was fond of bringing me lunch regularly and today was no exception.I was skeptical about Jeremy's offer but I had no choice but to accept it.It was my only chance of survival anyway.He was really supportive during my pregnancy and somehow, he helped me forget about Asher.Although not completely, but now, I could go in for hours without thinking of him now."Thanks." I smiled, collecting the pack.Thing's got harder for me to handle, emotionally when I found out that I
OliviaThe kids were really excited to see my father.I was too, I've been longing to see him.But I also dreaded seeing him.I couldn't think of what to say to him to show that it was never my intention to leave him for so long."Are you ready?" Jeremy asked as we got into the car."There's no going back now, is there?" I smiled at him and he smiled back.The truth was, I would never be ready to return home.No matter how many years I spent away from the past, I would never be ready to heal from it so it was either I returned to face my past or continued being a coward.My children wanted this and I wanted them to be happy so I had no choice.I was doing this, ready or not."Mommy what does grandpa look like?" Kianna asked from the back seat.I had never shown them pictures of anyone from my past, not my father, not their father.No one at all.I took out my phone and searched for pictures of my dad."Here's what grandpa looks like." I handed the phone over to them."You don't look l
Several Weeks LaterOliviaA lot has happened since the abduction.Rita faced trial and sentenced to thirty years imprisonment with hard labour.I didn't want to be there at the court but I had to.The kids had spent quality time with my father just like Gloria had.She still hadn't said anything as regards her obvious feelings for my father but I wasn't going to rush her.She had all the time in the world to think carefully about her feelings for him.Jeremy got back once he heard the news of the abduction.He was horrified when I told him more about it, especially about Rita; my best friend being the perpetrator of such evil.It was often said that sometimes, it was the people we know that hurt us the most.Mrs Smith and Rita had in need no doubt, proved that to be true.Now that Jeremy was back, he helped out with setting up my business.I wasn't exactly sure of what I wanted to do but I was eager to try out something new, something that didn't involve me working under anyone."It
OliviaI jumped in fright when the door came down, dust rising in the air.I had to close my eyes for a second and when I opened them again, I saw Asher standing right before me."Asher?" I tried to get to him but the ropes that tightened around my skin reminded me that I couldn't.He noticed this and rushed to me."Olivia? Oh my goodness! What happened? Where is she?" He asked multiple questions as he freed me.I answered none, I had no time to.Once I was completely free, I tried to run in the direction I had seen her go after she said what she was going to do to the twins and I."Where are you going?" Asher dragged me back even before I could make a move.I tried to wriggle out of his grip but I couldn't."She has the kids Asher. She has Kian and Kianna!" I didn't realize that there were tears in my eyes until they began rolling down my face.I had never been this scared of anything before.The image of Rita's malicious laughter that continued popping up in my head reminded me of t
AsherSebastian arrived on time while I alerted the police.Mr Anderson seemed to be troubled by their presence but I was too worried about Olivia's absence that nothing else seemed to matter to me.According to them, they were close to finding her but I knew they were only saying that to make her family and I feel better.They couldn't track her phone, it was like it had been thrown into water.Whoever had called earlier, didn't call anymore which made me more nervous.Usually, when abductors want something, they keep calling and threatening the victim's family until they get what they want in exchange of letting the victim go.But it wasn't the same in this case.The abductor wasn't making any call which made me feel like he might have all of what he wanted already buy only called the other time to know that she had what I loved.I couldn't help but fear that she might try to harm Olivia and the twins.If she made any attempt to, I would make sure to punish her myself before handing
Olivia"Rita?" I gasped, staring at her."H…..h…No, this isn't real!" I tried to assure myself but failed miserably.Now that I listened carefully, Janette sounded just like Rita.Little wonder she felt oddly familiar and I felt strange around her.She was the person I had been looking for, for so long!"I had plastic surgeries done after the incident of the video. I thought that I could win Asher's heart if I came around when you were no longer in his life but that wouldn't work too. Even with you gone, no other girl was able to take your place in his heart. Despite how much he despised you for what he thought you had done to him, he still loved you. It was inexplicable but undeniable, Asher still loved you, deeply." She explained, moving away from the bed."So you never wanted me with Asher all these while? Best friends are always happy for each other's happiness and we were supposed to be best friends, Rita." I felt mad and hurt.I had trusted her so much as more than a friend.Rit
OliviaI felt a sharp pain at the back of my head and my eyes fluttered open instantly.I closed it back afterward, like the pain would magically go away afterward.And surprisingly, it did.I tried to get up only for me to realize that I couldn't.I struggled but I couldn't even get my hands away from my back.I struggled over and over but the more I struggled, the harder it became.I couldn't take my hands away from my back simply because I couldn't but because I had been tied up.How the hell did I end up like this?!The last thing I remembered was getting prepared for my date with Asher.I was supposed to be on my way to New York City if the driver hadn't switched lanes and……That was it!When I tried to argue with him, he locked the car doors and sprayed something in the car.I passed out afterward.Whatever he had sprayed in the car must have been the reason I passed out as I couldn't remember anything after that.I looked around wherever I was but I couldn't see anything but da
AsherSeveral minutes have passed after the time Olivia was supposed to meet up with me.I didn't want to call her because I needed her to take her time and do as she pleased.But her absence here was beginning to get uncomfortable until I was pushed to take out my phone.I placed it on my ear after dialing her number, waiting for to hear her voice from the other side of the phone but that never happened.I dialed her number over and over again but it just rang with her never answering the phone."This is not some joke, Olivia. Pick up your phone." I mumbled under my shaky breath."Would you like to place your order now sir?" The waitress walked up to me and asked for the umpteenth time.I had waved at her not to worry severally, because my date was on her way here and I didn't find it fair to place orders without her presence.I had somehow however, managed to attract the attention of the other customers around.This was a restaurant for couples only and I had over time, reassured th
OliviaMy didn't speak of Asher until later that night.And fortunately, he gave his full support toward my relationship with Asher.At the hospital, he had shown his displeasure in my decision to stick to Asher but decided he could do nothing against it since it had been my decision.But last night, he had told me that he was ready to fully support me.I think seeing the way the kids acted around their father must have made mine consider his decision and support me."You're going to be late if you keep staring at the mirror like that, Lila." Gloria said, suddenly coming out of nowhere and startling me.I visited Asher and his family frequently after we got back from the hospital.So I got in touch with Gloria again.Asher wanted me to return to the company but so much had happened, too much actually, for me to wish to return to that place.So, I was just going to to set up my own business like Jeremy had suggested.Today, I and Asher were going on a date.I also refused to move in wi
Asher"Oh….that…." She stuttered uncomfortably."It's fine if you're not ready to come over yet. I honestly do not wish to make you feel uncomfortable." I quickly said when I realized she hadn't meant what she said to Sebastian.It was unexpected that she had actually let me into Kian and Kianna's lives.I didn't want it to seem like I was taking advantage of her kind heart and making her do things she wasn't comfortable doing.She shifted on the chair and just looked outside the car at the house like she could see through it."I've not decided on that yet." She spoke up after a long moment of silence and I nodded."I understand. Whenever you're ready, you could just call me to come pick you and the kids." I responded and she nodded, smiling genuinely."I guess this is goodbye then." She got ready to leave the car."Wait….!" I called her back, pulling her in for a kiss.My lips were almost on hers when she withdrew."What are you doing?" She whispered, her breath fanning my face."Oh…
OliviaAsher and the twins woke up shortly after I left the ward and Sebastian helped them get ready.I was right about my dad going back home to bring some clothes and food for the twins and I.And just as I had planned with Sebastian, I took the clothes and food he brought for me."Do you think Kianna and Kian would still want to come home with me?" My dad asked when I returned from the restroom where I changed."Why do you think they wouldn't want to? They've been so eager to see you." I responded, taking a seat beside him.Ever since Sebastian and Asher made it to the hospital last night, my dad's mood had completely changed.I could tell that he was worried.Initially, I thought it was only about Asher, regarding everything that had happened in the past.But now, it seemed he was bothered beyond that."It's just that, their dad's here now. I can't help but feel like they would forget about me so soon. Usually, they would want to be around me but since last night, they've just sti