Vengeance Is Mine|MJ|COMPLETED

|Outerlude: Hues of the Sunset|

August 29, 2019

A year ago, Michael made a promise to meet Yalayla when it was all over. And when it was, there was no Michael in sight. Everyday Yalayla prayed for Michael to appear and as hard as it was for her to accept the truth from being in so much denial, she finally did last month. July will forever be a hard month to get through because it'll only be a constant reminder of him. What even made it worse was the fact she was pregnant. She found out the day she made it to Embudu, Maldives.

In February of this year, she had given birth to a premature baby boy that she named Shakir Michael Jackson. Unfortunately, Shakir only lived to be a week old. Born with a heart defect, he had succumbed to his health issues, leaving Yalayla alone once again. She had no one and her baby was her beacon of light that she needed in her life.

To have it snatched away from her so suddenly put her into a deep depression that lasted for two and half months. She even contemplated suicide on more than one ocassion. Prayerfully, a native of the village she resides in lent a helping hand and pushed Yalayla to get back on her feet and into her right state of mind. She helped in so many ways to beat her depression and when she finally came out of that destructive phase, she was forever indebted to Ravina.

Being inside majority of the day, Yalayla leaves out the front door of her bungalow and into the warm weather, peeking ahead to see that the sun was beginning to set. She had been cooped indoors reading and enjoying the peace and quiet it provided. So much has changed about herself the past year. Her appearance remained the same but her hair was trimmed down to a shorter length with refined coils.

As she's walking the shore-her bungalow practically a few feet away as well as others-she comes in contact with Ravina who was doing her daily sales of fruits, vegetables, and natural herbal products. Yalayla always made purchases from Ravina and it was her way of repaying her for all she'd done in the darkest hours of her life.

Ravina was the type who helped because she wanted to. She wasn't a person looking for some reward at the end of every good deed and when Yalayla tried to reward her for the days and nights Ravina stayed with her, leaving her own family behind in the process to care for her, she got declined. What she done was from the heart, and those who do such things doesn't need any kind of reward. Yalayla never pressed the matter and realized the true reward was her coming out of her depression. Since then, they have become inseparable, practically like sisters. Their friendship was a one of a kind.

"Yaya!" Ravina waved her over.

Walking over to her friend, Yalayla greets her back. "Hey, Ravi. Another big sale today?"

"Oh, yes! I've made approximately three hundred and fifteen dollars today," she replied, her accent seeping through.

"That's good!" Yalayla happily exclaimed. "That's more than last time and what you usually make a day."

"I know," Ravina grinned proudly. "I was also worried about you, too. Haven't seen you outside all day. I was going to stop by to check in, but I see I don't have to anymore."

Yalayla chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, I was readin' and just enjoyin' the peace and quiet is all. Didn't think I'd be inside for the entire day."

"As long as you are okay, enjoy your time alone. It's good to see you out though. I know I say this a lot everyday that I see you." Ravina flashed a cheeky grin.

"It's all good, Ravi. You care is all."

"That I do. Well, I'm going to head home to the family and prepare dinner."

"Okay. Tell the kids and Zareb I said hello."

"Will do."

Parting ways, Yalayla continued her walk along the shore, the sounds of the waves crashing from the ocean, the light breeze of the wind brushing against her face and the birds chirping flying above in the sky to go to their resting place for the evening. As she's walking, she looks ahead to see a white tent set up and only two people underneath it. One person stood while the other remained seated in one out of the ten chairs that were decorated with peach colored sashes and roses. It had dawned her in that moment that a wedding was getting ready to take place.