Finally she was back!Back to the place she grew up!Back to the place where it all started!Back to her life!And not everyone was happy about it. Although she was happy to be home,the atmosphere was tense as her parents still held a grudge against her and she had to walk on eggshells around them.
A week after her return,Alma had to go back to work as her parents refused to support her longer than necessary. She stepped into her old office dressed extremely professional as she did not want any confrontations made to be more unpleasant than needed. Dressed in a grey striped pant suit,she was dressed for success and prayed for the best. For if things went south,she would be out of a job,and she did not need that kind of problem at the moment.
As she got to her previously designated cubicle,she was relieved to see that no one had been hired to fill her slot yet. She slung her bag on the back of her chair and marched into her supervisor's office,her heels going 'clack clack' on the polished floors.
On getting to his office,she turned the handle slowly to spy on him and gauge his mood. He wasn't yelling at anyone and for once he wasn't frowning;Alma smiled at her good fortune and opened the door fully,only to be greeted with a frown and raised eyebrows.
"Good of you to grace us with your presence after four months...Miss Lerner", his voice boomed.
On hearing that opening,Alma decided to look contrite,say very little and beg him if necessary for her job.
When she said nothing in response,he squinted at her and said,"Well......what have you to say for yourself?,Where have you been?Do you have any idea how short handed we were?Why should I not fire you where you stand right now?",he shouted at the top of his voice.
"Well sir,if you would just let me explain...",she began,thinking of a plausible excuse as her job was on the line.
However,he did not give her a chance to say a word but continued to scold her "You were very good at your job,efficient!When did you become do irresponsible?",he concluded with a disappointed look on his face.
On hearing his tone of voice,Alma was embarrassed and felt suddenly ashamed.
What could she tell him?She couldn't tell him that the reason she left was an unplanned pregnancy. She would look like an unserious person whose job mattered not to her at all.
"Were you sick?is that it?",her supervisor asked her further. On seeing her nod,he told her in a formal voice "Miss Lerner,for leaving work without permission for a period of four months,you are hereby placed under working suspension without pay for the next two months".
"Ok sir",she replied. Glad to know that she still had a job with the company. The punishment didn't matter,she would happily carry it out. She went to her cubicle and reacquainted herself with the rigours of her job,during break she caught up with the latest gossip and rekindled old friendships.
Within the space of two weeks,it was like Alma had never left and she was able to temporarily forget all she had gone through the previous months.
Alma was editing a story,when a shadow fell across her,she looked up into the eyes of a young man who was extremely good looking and joined the organisation the same month as her. His eyes were twinkling as her studied her face which was glaring at him with all hostility.
"What do you want?Can't you see I'm busy?",she snapped at him.
Unfazed,he smiled at her and responded"Like I said last week,all I require is your number and I will leave you alone".
She ignored him and continued what she was doing. When he refused to leave,she begrudgingly gave him her number and breathed a sigh of relief when he left.
As days and weeks went by,Alma began to attract lots of male attention at the office. It was said that her mode of dressing had changed for the better,others said she had poise and carried herself with lots of confidence. However,it was obvious that the girl who left town a few months ago crying was different from the girl that returned.
Alma refused to go on dates and focused on her job. She was determined to be the best,almost indispensable. So she took on extra responsibilities that were not required of her,and by the time the two months was over, everyone had all but forgotten that she had disappeared for a while. Life was good and Alma was happy again. Little did she know that Samuel had found out she was back, and was trying to track her down.
Late one evening,Alma was hurrying to the bus stop so that she would not miss the bus. She stayed later than normal in the office working as she had a deadline to meet. Most of her friends and colleagues had left hours before,and when she was finally done,she found out that the office was virtually empty. Even her supervisor had left. She looked at her watch and saw that it was seven pm. She hurriedly packed her things and tan out of the office as she had a two hour bus ride ahead of her.
She brought her phone out of her pocket and sent a text to her parents letting them know she would be home late. As she was thrusting the phone into her bag,she bumped into a hard body and her bag flew out of her hands,depositing its contents onto the sidewalk.
"Hey watch it",she yelled as she bent down to gather her belongings"What is wrong with you?Are you blind or what?",she demanded in a pissed off manner.
As she picked up her bag and was about to get up,she saw a familiar pair of shoes that sent a shiver down her spine,and those shoes stopped directly in front of her and refused to move on.
"Please God no...it can't be",she began to whisper to herself and continued to stare at the shoes.
"Will you get up or do you intend to spend the rest of the night staring at my shoes?",the familiar voice asked.
Alma jerked as if she had been slapped and there was a look of pure undiluted fear on her face. As she started to get up,she composed her face till the only expression to be seen was a blank one.
Once she was up,she faced him and tilted her head in a defiant manner.
"Hello babe,good to see you again. You are looking hot",Samuel said and laughed at the look of pure rage on her face.
"Samuel....what do you want and how did you find me",she asked with a scowl.
"I have my ways...thought you were rid of me didn't you?", he taunted "Well I am here for you because you belong with me and I refuse to let you go".
"What?",she screeched. "Are you insane?You and I have nothing!",she emphasized and turned to go.
"Take one more step and you will regret it",he threatened and Alma knew that her reprieve was over.
