Trust

Chapter 5

July 2011 | P A S T | Comes To The Light

"Thank God you were able to apply for that annulment before things got serious. I cannot believe that bastard actually did that to you."

    Kellie said to me as she came to my rescue with a cup filled with chicken broth. I shook my head, denying the offer and gently pushed her hand with the cup away and looked out of my living room window. She sucked her teeth and rested her free hand onto my side to assure me that she was now here with me and everything was going to be alright. Part of me believed her, but I just couldn't help the ailing ache in the pit of my stomach that was telling me otherwise.

    "Val, you've got to consume something. You haven't eaten in days. It's not healthy for you and the baby." She spoke on, reminding me of what I didn't want to remember.

    Charlie's birthday was in a week and as much as it was killing me inside, I was going to wait until his birthday to surprise him. We were having a baby and I was two months in. So much for surprises, huh? I wanted to gather everyone here at the house for his surprise birthday party and make the announcement then. I'd even refrained from telling my family, including Monice. Kellie was the only one who'd known. I sort of thought that although Monice got on my nerves sometimes, she'd be just as excited as Charlie on that day. I was even going to ask Monice to be my Maid of Honor, despite Kellie being my best friend, even though I knew that she wasn't ready to take on the responsibility. Kellie had even agreed to it.

    "Think about my niece or nephew in your stomach, please? You're no longer fending for yourself." She said to me before pushing the cup into my face.

    I rolled my eyes with a heavy sigh, knowing that she was right, before taking the cup into my hand and smelling it.

    This entire issue made it hard for me to keep anything down. It made me more stubborn and bitter than anything in the world. The fact that Charlie hadn't even tried to reach out to me made things even worse. I hadn't even spoken to Monice since last week and I wasn't even sure if our parents knew about what was going on being that I'd been trying to avoid them, only talking to them through Kellie. I knew that sooner or later, I was going to have to face them and I was most definitely telling them what Monice was up to with my husband.

    "I'm unsure as of what to do now, Kelz" I say, shaking my head before taking a sip of the warm broth. It was obvious that she'd added some extra seasoning and I liked it.

    "Continue with what you were doing, only this time, without Charlie. You don't need Charlie for shit. Isn't that what you told me about Tyrone?" She rubbed my shoulder. "All you need is a good friend to lean on and that's me. I'll be here with you every step of the way."

    Kellie and I have been best friends since we were 12 and the fact that she'd never switched up on me and has been hanging in here with me for 18 years, being as loyal as she can be, made me appreciate her so much. Not once has she ever given me a reason not to trust her with every bone in my body. She's always been here by my side and I've always been here for her, no matter what. Despite how much we've been here for one another, I was always the strong friend that she could depend on. I was always the one with all of the answers and could find many different ways to cheer her up without really trying so hard. It was never really her consoling me as much mainly because I never really needed much consoling. I wasn't sure if it was just the pregnancy or the fact that me being in love for the first time really broke me down or what, but it just felt so bizarre to me. It just made me want to put a fake smile on and pretend that everything was okay although I knew that it wasn't and it probably never will be. I just needed to find a way to deal with Monice.