As they left the airport, Dr. August walked out to the parking lot to get some signal. Once there, he called Jayla to tell her how everything went as how everything was going.
"Hello?" Jayla answered.
"I'm here." Dr. August replied. "Also I uh......I seen Numra for the first time."
"Oh really?" Jayla cheered, pretending like she was happy. "How'd she look?"
"She's so beautiful. No joke." Dr. August said in a mesmerized tone. "The last time I seen her she was skinny, and now she's all developed. I got the chills when I looked at her."
"That's......great.." Jayla smiled, more jealous than before. "Did you uh, get those same butterflies? Heh heh?"
"Yeah but her husband was in the way." Dr. August sighed. "He wasn't even all that cute, to be honest. But yeah."
"Well I have to go." Jayla sighed. "Me and Meagan are going out to tonight so-"
"Oh that's fine." Dr. August smiled. "Call me later, I guess."
"I will." Jayla said. "Bye."
"Bye."
Dr. August hung up the phone and looked around. His mind was all on Numra. He figured that he would try to get back in touch with her some time soon.
Meanwhile, Numra had some worries of her own.
All night, she folded Roberto's large amount of clean clothes. She was running off of little sleep, barely able keep her eyes open. After spending an hour on folding clothes, she slumped to the kitchen to start making breakfast. She'd been up so long that the sky was starting to turn blue. She started the stove and started making an omelette, sweating from exhaustion. Minutes later, Christina walked into the kitchen and stood next to her mother.
"Mom, did you need some help?" Christina asked, looking up at her.
"No I don't, sweety." Numra lied as she flipped the omelette over. "Just go get you some rest, baby."
Numra knew that she was lying. On her own, she tore off a wet napkin and started wiping the counters off for her mother. Christina had yet another question that was riding heavily on her mind.
"I want my real dad here." Christina groaned as she wiped off the counters.
"Yeah...." Numra sighed, thinking of Dr. August.
"Can I spend some time with him tomorrow?"
"I would say yes, but no." Numra sighed. "It's too dangerous and...you know how mad your stepdad would get."
Christina was pissed. Right when she started to wash the dishes, Roberto stepped inside of the kitchen and gave Christina a furious look. At first, she thought that she heard their conversation about Dr. August.
"Christina, what'd I tell you about helping your mother in the kitchen?" Roberto growled.
"She was tired." Christina replied.
"It doesn't matter how tired she is!" Roberto shouted, startling Numra and Christina both. "Your mother is a wife and she is responsible for cleaning on her OWN! You will know one day when you get married, do you understand?"
Christina didn't answer him. She bowed her head, looking at her mother.
"Go to bed. You have school tomorrow." Roberto said, giving her a grim look.
As Christina strolled off to bed, Roberto brushed past Numra and tried his breakfast. He crunched down on his omelette as he observed the taste, then looked back at Numra. He kissed her on the cheek, watching her give off a grim look.
"Just like how you're supposed to make them." Roberto smiled. "I love you."
"I love you too." Numra lied, just like she'd been doing for the last 9 years.
But what Numra was really doing, was crying for help.
A few hours later, Numra woke up and watched Christina go off to school in her school bus. Right after Christina would go off to school, Roberto would be heading off to work. Once Christina left, Roberto kissed Numra on her cheek and glanced around the house.
"I want the living room cleaned along with our room. I also want my shoes polished and all of my suits ironed." Roberto demanded. "We have a big day tomorrow with my bosses and I'd hate for this place to look anywhere close to out of order. Understand?"
"Yes." Numra smiled.
"Good girl. I'll see you later, baby." Roberto smiled, kissing her on the cheek. "I'll see you in the evening."
Numra had even listening to his every word for so long that she didn't even realize that what Roberto was doing to her was wrong. Being in his every command since the age of 17, she was used to this. She wasn't used to being treated like a woman of some sort. Since he was gone, she decided to get to work early so that she could relax for the rest of the day. Right when she pulled her mop bucket, her home phone rang. She let out a loud sigh of frustration and walked over to the home phone, answering it.
"Home of Roberto Crabrerra, how may I help you?" Numra answered.
"Numra?" Dr. August cheered over the other line.
"Chresanto?" Numra gasped in shock.
Dr. August was so amazed to hear her voice that it sent chills through his system again. He loved hearing that unamerican accent of hers that she always struggled to get rid of. Rolling her R's, of course. Numra could always do that to him. It felt like high school all over again. He felt like a little boy talking to the girl that he hasn't had the balls to speak to throughout the years.
"How are you?" Dr. August cooed over the other line.
"Chresanto, you can't call this phone like that!" Numra scowled. "I have to call you ba-"
"Wait wait wait!" Dr. August panted. "I uh......I just wanted to see if we could spend some time together? Just meet up as friends. No girlfriend and boyfriend type thing or whatever."
"I don't know if my husband would permit it." Numra sighed. "Sorry."
"Oh. Alright." Dr. August said in a bummed tone. "I guess I'll uh....talk to you later."
Numra paused. She had to think to herself. She hadn't been outside of the house for a while that she was second guessing herself.
"Wait. Chresanto....." Numra sighed.
"Yeah?"
"I guess I can uh......spend a day with you." Numra smiled. "Just until the evening, though."
"Okay!" Dr. August cheered in a geeked up tone. "We can do whatever you want. Your choice."
In fact, there was something that Numra wanted to do that she hadn't done since she was younger. Horseback riding.
When she got to a ranch that was outside of her city, Numra waited outside of the local ranch that was open for everyone. When Dr. August arrived, he got out of his car with a sharp outfit. He wore a black shirt with a small gold chain and some tan shorts and some black Nike shoes. He was dressed like the average 24 year old. Numra was dressed in her hot pink sundress and her tan sandals, which was the dress that she always wore. She walked up and gave him a big bear hug. The feeling was bitter sweet, especially for Dr. August. He looked at Numra, glancing and looking at her beautiful looks. It never failed to amaze him. He never stopped adoring her brown skin with her neat, yet frizzy hair. She moved her hair out of the way, smiling up at him.
"You've gotten so much bigger!" Numra smiled, flaring out her accent. "How are you, Chresanto?"
"I'm great!" Dr. August smiled as his heart pumped and beat through his chest. "How are you, beatif.....Numra?"
"Never better. Just taking it day by day, that's all." Numra said as she placed her hands above her eyes and looked out at the bright sun. "Are you ready to ride some horses?"
"Of course." Dr. August smiled as he walked over to the ranch. "Let's saddle up."
Dr. August and Numra went up to the ranch owners, boarded their horses, and grabbed a ticket as they settled out. The horses went through a long wooded area with other riders, then back to the ranch again. It was a complete circle. While they rode off into the horizon, Numra looked at Dr. August while he held onto the straps of his horse.
"So I bet you're wondering why I didn't tell you about Christina, huh?" Numra asked as her thick hair blew over her shoulder.
"Honestly, yes." Dr. August answered, riding his horse as well. "Why didn't you tell me that you two were alive, Numra?"
Numra glanced at him, then looked back at the blue skies and rivers.
"My father told me that I don't get rid of this "trash" baby, he would arrange my marriage and have me shipped off to the Iraqis." Numra said, dazing off at the sun. "I wasn't going to get rid of my baby for him or nobody, so I kept Christina and let him do whatever. He found Roberto for me and forced me into marriage at 15. He shipped me away and Roberto's father had a court ordered marriage for us. I haven't seen my father or brother since."
"Wow." Dr. August said, shaking his head. "Your father told me that you committed suicide."
"He did?" Numra gasped, looking at him.
"Yeah."
"That unimaginable bastard!" Numra barked, looking at the sky. "I can't believe him!"
"Numra, don't cry." Dr. August sighed.
"No I'm not a crier. I'm a strong woman!" Numra snapped in an angry form. "It's gonna take alot more than that to make me cry. I've been raising Christina since I was a baby. I'm strong!"
"That's right!" Dr. August said, chanting her on.
"Anyway, that's enough about me." Numra said, shifting her expression and smiling at him. "How have you been? What do you do, now?"
"Well I'm good. I've been to myself since high school years." Dr. August sighed.
"Oh really?" Numra smiled.
"Actually, I work as a sex therapist. I have sex with women everyday." Dr. August grinned, looking at her. "All of the women leave at least $20 everyday as a tip. I get around $250 dollars everyday on average."
"Wow!" Numra laughed in an uncontrollable form. "So is it fun?"
"Some women can't do it at all, and some women are good at it." Dr. August responded. "I have one client who I consider one of my best friends now. She can fuck her ass off, but it's like a friends with benefits type thing. Her names Jayla."
"Ew. You don't need those type of women." Numra snarled. "They don't have class if they're coming in and having intercourse with you without even getting to know you."
"Oh no no no. I don't like any of them." Dr. August laughed. "It's just a quickie type thing. You come in, you get what you want, then you bail out."
"That's not what I'm hearing with that Jayla girl if she's coming in and having sex with you everyday." Numra shrugged. "I'm not saying that she's a bad person, but I just feel that you need to settle down. Find someone that you can do all of that with without worrying about catching a disease. Not only that, but what if Jayla starts liking you?"
"She doesn't." Dr. August smiled.
"But she will if you keep on having sex with her." Numra nodded. "She'll think that just because you guys are doing it everyday that you like her and she'll start losing it."
Before they knew it, the horses arrived back to the ranch. They both jumped off of the horse and dusted the bottom of their pants off. Dr. August took a deep sigh, then smiled at her.
"Is there anything else you wanna do?" Dr. August smiled.
"Well, I did want to go in my favorite hole in the wall spot." Numra smiled.
Dr. August took Numra to a restaurant called Shandesh. It was her favorite place, but since Roberto hated it, they rarely went there. When they arrived, it was a whole bunch of foods on the menu that he didn't like. She wasn't from the America's, so "burgers", "wings", and "pop" wasn't in her roster. Her plate of frog legs with a coconut covered wrap called pesarattu came to the table with her small cup of green tea arrived. Numra chowed and crunched down on her dinner, glancing up at Dr. August while he looked over her in disgust.
"Would you like a bite?" Numra smiled.
"No thanks." Dr. August chuckled.
"They're really good." Numra cheered in a bland tone, chewing her food. "My father always gave it to me when I was a child."
Dr. August scrunched his eyebrows at her, looking down at her plate.
"What is it?" Dr. August asked in a disgusted tone.
"Frog legs."
Numra picked up a frog leg with her fork and placed it in Dr. Augusts mouth while he opened it. He chewed on it for a while, then placed a large smile on his face. He actually liked it.
"Wow. That's actually, good!" Dr. August smiled. "Can I have another one?"
"I'll order a whole plate for you." Numra smiled. "My treat."
Dr. August chowed down on his frog legs along with the coconut wrap that Numra ordered for him. He ordered water to go along with everything as well. 9 years of not seeing each other, it was almost like their chemistry never left. They weren't as intimate, but they were the best of friends. After the nice dinner, Dr. August decided to drive Numra home. When he arrived at her house at night, he parked his car in the driveway and smiled as Numra thanked him and prepared to go in the house. Then, she seen something that scared her to death.
She seen Roberto's car in the driveway. Numra hadn't finished cleaning the house when she left, AND she didn't ask Roberto could she leave for the day. Her eyes widened with fear as she glanced at the door in a feared form.
"Good gracious." Numra whispered, staring at the home like it wasn't hers.
"What's wrong?" Dr. August asked as he looked at her.
"N-Nothing." Numra stuttered, placing on a fake smile. "I'll see you another day, alright?"
Dr. August knew that something was wrong, but she wasn't saying anything. He watched her walk into her house, when her husband greeted her at the door. He slammed the door shut, alarming Dr. August. He got out of the car and peeked into their large window, watching the two argue in their large living room. Christina was watching from the stairs. Suddenly, Roberto shoved Numra onto the couch and grabbed her arm, yelling and shouting in her face. He watched as Christina cried in the corner of the room, unable to do anything.
Dr. August finally understood why Numra and Christina were acting so weird. They were being ABUSED.