Chapter Six

Sofia stood up too, and followed her father into his room. Her father never disliked Camilla but he has every reason to because he knew that she must have told her friends first about her plans before coming to tell him, and he never judged sexuality.

“No Pa, none of them” Sofia replied.

“Then who?” he asked spreading his hands.

“You said you want to get connected and you think the right place to get connected is at a clubhouse where people go to squander stolen money?”

“You need to be patient bunny, I can talk with my customers trust me,” her father said softly with his hands on her shoulders

“They can’t do anything” Sofia said almost screaming.

“For how long do I have to follow you to the farm?”.

“My mates are out there making money and planning their future but here I am, being accused of being rude and disrespectful to customers and getting fired and following my father to the farm that barely gets customers,” Sofia said bitterly with tears clouding in her eyes.

Mr. David stood motionless his gaze fixated on his little bunny. He was surprised and dumbfounded.

How could his little bunny talk back at him like that? He thought to himself.

Sofia realized that what she had said had hurt her father’s emotions and she only said it out of frustration and anger.

“Pa, I.. I.. didn't mean...” Sofia stuttered moving towards her father and trying to hold his hands.

“No..No, you see this conversation bunny?”

“It’s over,” her father said and he switched off his light and made his way to his bed to lie down.

Sofia didn’t know what to do, She went into the living room and sat down on the cushion and was lost in thoughts that she didn’t realize when she fell asleep.

It was seven in the morning when she woke up with a covering from her neck to her feet. She knew she was not the one that covered herself but her father did. The television which she had left on yesterday night was switched off already.

Sofia hurried to the window to see if her father's truck was still in the driveway but it wasn't there. She figured he was still mad at her and because she talked down about following him to the farm he decided not to bother her.

She went to check the dining to see if he left her a note but there was none.

She took her shower and made breakfast.

“Today is going to be a good day then,” she thought to herself.

She decided to use the whole day in search of James, he was part of the mess she was in at the moment.

There was a knock on the door, but she was not sure where it had come from, maybe it was her neighbor's door she thought to herself. The knock came again and again.

She left her room to check who it was.

“Hey girl” Camilla entered smiling.

“What are you doing here Cami?” asked Sofia

“Are you not happy to see me?” Camilla asked walking towards Sofia’s room.

Camilla loved staying in the room with Sofia even when her father was not around. She would always tell Sofia that her room always held their little gossip and secrets.

“Cami, your shoes”

“You don’t know how difficult it is to wash that bedsheet do you?”

Camilla smiled and removed her shoes.

“I know you are rich and your family is wealthy, so you don’t really worry about keeping everywhere clean you have a maid who do that for you” Sofia said as she shook her head.

Camila got an apartment for herself and hired a maid who comes to clean up her apartment every weekend and a laundry company that comes to pick up her worn clothes and bedsheets to wash.

Sofia had always wished she was in Camilla’s shoes, at least she had a mother and siblings but she had none, and that made her sad.

Camilla took a careful look Sofia noticed she was dressed but laughed when she noticed the color combination of her clothes.

“What are you putting on?” Camilla asked still laughing.

“What do you mean what am I putting on?”

“I’m putting on my clothes”.

“Yeah obviously, but the color combination is just so wrong”

“Cami, please I don’t have time for that, tell me why you are here”

“Well I came to check up on you, it’s been a while since I last saw you,” Camilla said

“Cami that’s not true, we saw each other a few days back remember?”

“Yeah you’re right, I forgot,” Camilla said smiling

Sofia knew Camilla was lying, she remembers so vividly that they had met up a few days back, and she was only exaggerating. She concluded Camilla had just come to gossip and while away her time at her place.

“Aren’t you meant to be at work?” Sofia asked

“Yeah, but I called in sick,” Camilla said with a smirking

“Wow, why do you lie a lot?”

“I didn’t lie, I just needed some days off to unwind”

“And where are you off to all dressed,” Camilla asked taking another look at Sofia’s outfit.

“I’m going to see Mike” Sofia replied.

“And who is Mike?”

“He’s one of James friends”

“I need to go see him, I know him to be one of his very close friends, he can help me reach him”.

“Then I’m coming with you,” Camilla said putting on her shoes.

“No Cami you don’t have to”.

“I want to, I’ll be waiting outside”.

Sofia watched Camilla leave the room, she knew Camilla to be very stubborn but a very good friend, and hoped she won’t cause a scene when they get there and eventually see James.

Sofia and Camilla got into the taxi that brought Camilla to her house and began their journey to Mike’s house. She had chatted Mike up on his I*******m handle to ask about James' whereabouts but he only sent her his address and she now had to use G****e Maps as a guide as she was unfamiliar with the location.

They eventually got to the location and they alighted from the taxi, Camilla paid the driver and he drove off.

Sofia and Camilla were surprised and could not believe a place like that existed in the world. The buildings looked so unattractive as some were on the verge of collapsing, and there were portholes on the streets.

“Are you sure we are at the right place?” Camilla asked looking around at the place in disbelief.

“I don’t know” Sofia responded.

“What do you mean you don’t know?” Camilla asked with her eyes widened.

“Cami the address is correct and we are in the right place,” Sofia said handing over her phone for Camilla to see and confirm.

“What?”

“How can a human live in a place like this?” Camilla said turning to look around.

Sofia ignored Camilla completely, this was one of the reasons she did not want Camilla to accompany her to Mike’s place. She was always being dramatic about almost everything.

Lads were playing on the streets shirtless and barefooted, Sofia decided to walk up to them and ask for directions.

“Excuse me, can I ask you a question?” Sofia asked tapping a boy of about twelve years old on his shoulder.

The boy turned to look at Sofia and Camilla and he smiled.

“Tourists?” the boy asked.

“No, I and my friend are kinda lost, can you give us directions?” Sofia asked

The boy didn’t say anything but brought forth his right hand, indicating he wants a tip first before giving them directions.

“What?” Sofia asked confused.

Camilla brought out a five-dollar note and on handing it over to the boy he shook his head in rejection.

“Twenty bucks or you go away,” the boy said as he turned to leave.

“Okay, wait,” Camilla said, and taking a twenty dollar bill out of her purse, she gave it to the boy.

The boy took the money from her happily and shoved it into his pockets without thanking her.

Sofia was simply standing and looking at how the boy and Camilla carried out their transactions and she wondered why a boy of his age is on the streets playing while the other kids of his age are in school learning.

She was just thankful that Camilla had insisted on tagging along because she had no money to give the boy as a tip.

“What does the address say?” the boy asked

Sofia took out her phone from her bag again to take a look at the chat.

“It says, Meditation Lane, building five, apartment H”

“That’s the building over there, all you have to do is take the stairs and get to the fourth floor that's where apartment H is” the boy explained pointing to a building directly opposite where they were standing.

Sofia and Camilla were shocked, they have been scammed by a little boy, but It was not his fault neither is it theirs. There were no street signs to indicate.

“You little thief!” Camilla snapped at him in an attempt to grab him by his arm.

“You welcome!” the boy ran off giggling.

Sofia and Camilla simply shook their heads as the boy ran off leaving them in awe of the behavior he portrayed.

They went into the building and took the stairs, they noticed the rails were rusty and the edges of the stairs had mustiness. They found it irritating but they had no choice but to endure.

They got to the fourth floor and looked at the doors, they found apartment H as it was written with chalk on the door.

Sofia knocked on the door but there was no response, she could hear some movement which came from inside she knocked for the second time, and this time there was a response.

“Coming!” the voice which sounded feminine yelled.

In two minutes the door swung open with a creaking sound, it was a young girl in her teens, she had a cigarette in her mouth. She wore ripped blue jeans with a pink crop top, and her blonde hair covered half of her face.