It was one of those Mornings,too serene to be out of harm's way. Rain came down so thick and fast, sweeping through the glen and beating down on the untamed bloom until their petals clung to earth.The mist looked so restless and torn as they try to break through the tress like white ghost. Everything was plain while looking up from the slope of their house which always seems hidden from the world like they weren't part of it.
The mood in the living room was oppressive, mixed with the scent of burning wood from the fire place, almost suffocating. Natalie Thompsom stood with her back straight, tears running down her face, refusing to turn around even as the silence weighed heavily on her.
On the other side of the room, Mr. Marcus Addams rested idly against the arm of their couch, watching her with that calm and calculated look of a man who takes delight in power and control. He puffs a cigar, smiled after drawing in a long smoke and letting it out.
"You decide what happens to your father," he said softly, crossing and uncrossing his legs. "Give or take, you choose."
She said nothing.
He rumbled a laugh, it was deep but low. "I hate it when people go silent on me, Miss Thompson, It makes things worst. You only drag your father's time."
Tension formed behind her ribs, but she tried not to shrink back. She won't.
Marcus stood from his seat,he knocks off the ash at the top of the cigar, and as if the guard had read his mind,had brought the ashtray forward and catches the falling ash. "Just one word, Miss Thompson," he murmured, as he was already standing very close to her, her stomach tightened as the smoky scent of his cigar lingered in the air between them. "Marry my son… and I leave here with my boys, and your father will still be whole. And if what you say is a No…"The hint of a smile played on his face,. "Then you'll watch as his sins catches up with him."
Natalie turned around, her eyes searching for her father's who was tied against the window rods and he tried to avoid it. Her twin sister laid down flat, along side her grandmother. She couldn't stop her tears from flowing.
A sudden flash tore through the sky, crisp and far away, splitting the silence like a distant scream. And it made her fear unbearable for her to hold anymore.
"I agree," She whispered, her voice trembling."I agree, Mr. Addams, I agree". She sang, her voice much louder than the first time.
Her father turned to her, face heavy with grief. "I am sorry, Natalie. This is not what i wanted for you, I am sorry." He cried, shaking his head.
And just with that, Natalie brushed past everyone and ran out into the streets, she walked past the bustling stalls and nodding neighbors, her heart pounding and she struggled not to let the tears gathered in her eyes out. She accidently knocked into a woman buying roasted corn, and this helped release the first few drops
She wiped them and mouthed sorry to the woman who was now shouting and cursing at her.
And just oneday her whole life changed, she was stucked between going back and saying 'No' and accepting her new life.
The rain was ease now, fading into a soft drizzle, and the little drops on her face helped calm her messy mind.
The sky became a blur of gray and white, the street slick and glistening under the downpour. Natalie didn't care that her dress clung to her skin, or that her hair stuck to her cheeks like tangled threads. She rounded a corner and started walking back, passed a group of children playing in the rain . Eyes who had seen the cars go in and out her house peeked from small gates with curiosity, but nobody said a word to her. She drew in air, and let it out at once like it hurts to hold, and in that briefest breath, the dread, uncertainty, and boiling inside her began to unwind.
What else is left for her to do now?
"Nattie!, Nattie! .
She looked across the street to see her sister, one hand holding a newspaper over her head in a hopeless attempt to keep dry from the soft drizzle, raindrops fall from the edge and staining her back. She had worry in her deep brown eyes.
Olivia wasn't totally like a mirror of Natalie, they gently vary. If Ireti is fair, quick-tempered, with passionate. Olivia has a dark complexion, composed, but strong-willed. She was barely an inch taller than her twin.
Natalie's features were softer than her sister's—but when she sees her sister frown, it has the same fire as hers.
"Olivia" Natalie cried, her voice cracked.
Olivia closed in, her shoes sinking into the muddy ground. The newspaper was drenched now, falling apart in her hands. "You're gonna catch your death out here! Come home ". She urged gently.
"Father .....and Grandmother? "Ireti asked
"Father locked himself inside his room, and Grandma's up in her room, praying" Olivia shrugs her shoulder and nodded." Yeah, praying".
And for once since she left the house in a rush. Natalie let herself out, crying and dragging her feet half-heartedly on the wet grass as her sister led her home. Olivia hugged her waist tightly as she is the one carrying both of their weight and she tried so hard not to break down too.
" Do you remember what Mom always tells us, Lia?" Olivia asked as they walked the narrow road back home.
"She told us many things, Lia"
Natalie forced a smile as memory of their mother flooded in.
"She did say 'when all is said and done, what matters in the end is if above everything else you learnt to live". Olivia reminded her and Natalie let out another rough laugh.
"I can see through those sad laughs Nattie, its okay to cry. No need to hold them."
Olivia turned, making sure they face each other, and staring into her eyes for sometime as if she could get some answers out of her more than she could know when she ask.
" I think you should let me marry Mr. Marcus' mysterious son?"
"No,no. Lia , I won't let you do that for me. You won't, because I can't forgive myself say anything happens to you later"
"Listen, Nat...."
"I said No"
Natalie replied at once,her tone bold despite the tremor in her tummy. She shock her head and continued walking, leaving her sister behind.
"Nothing will happen to me , Nattie."
Olivia assured as she ran after her.
" Don't tell me that".
"Listen, Nattie. Listen to me. You have a bright future and...."
" And you don't?" Natalie queried.
"I do. But, i believe in magic, it happens when we believe"
" Magic is not real, no such things as miracles, karma and ..." She sighed
"I believe in them, Nattie "
"I am not letting you marry someone we don't even know, just because you believe in magic.
Natalie released a sob "You don't have to clean people's messes everytime, Lia. You always do that and its not fair for me,and for everyone around you. You are my sister and not my Mom".
Natalie retorted, the sound of it was very cold.
" Natalie!, Natalie!, Natalie...".
Without a hint of acknowledgment, Natalie turned and walked on, her steps calm yet deliberate, ignoring Olivia who kept calling her name and running after her.
The silence threaded with them as they walked home. Natalie's refusal was obvious and louder than any words could.