Turning A Teen

Chapter 1

Rainy days.                                 

I had completely lost track of how long we were running or where we were going to, I was out of breath but I kept running, it was as though something in my head was saying "Whatever you do don't stop." By now it was raining but only a drizzle.

I was cold, my feet were numb, and I was hungry but that was the least of my worries. Mom was exhausted, the look in her eyes said it all.
    
Eventually we stopped, the building that stood in front of me was grand, almost like I had walked right into a fairly tale, then a petite woman dressed in shabby looking clothes came out.

Her appearance was a direct contrast to the building itself, as if she was out of place there. Yet, she seemed familiar, I couldn't recognize her from the distance where I stood, and she was clearly oblivious to us standing at the gate. She made way to enter the house after emptying a waste bin.

Mom was consumed by her thoughts, whatever they were she acted fast and on instincts. BANG!! BANG!! the gates shook violently, that definitely got the lady's attention and might have woken up some of their neighbors. As she drew closer I got a better view and could finally place her face.

Aunty Maria, that was what everyone knew her as at the fellowship. Mom had been attending a women's fellowship for months now, in hopes to find a solution to our problems.

On few occasions when I accompanied her to the fellowship after being sent back home from school for unpaid fees, I met aunt Maria. She was a cheerful lady with a very lively spirit. Nonetheless, she had her own fair shares of life.

A year ago her husband was involved in an accident at the factory where he worked, and his employers were rumored not to have given any form of compensation to him or his family.

So eventually she lost him, not long after, her only child had a terminal illness and died. Ever since then, she volunteered to work at the local church near us. Just between us two, I think it kept her sane.

"Sister Kate, WHAT!!. So you mean he did all this to you?" Aunty Maria asked, shaking her head in disbelief.

Mom bleeding had stopped by now, and aunt Maria was a fantastic hostess. In spite of not being the owner of the house, she welcomed us from the gate without hesitating and offered us food to eat. Now I had a protruding belly.

Aunty Maria was evidently the house keeper of this apartment, and it was chic. Mom kept throwing me warning glares not to touch anything, not like I was planning to but it was really tempting.

I had not seen such beautiful furnished chairs before, I was afraid to sit on it for fear it would break. And when aunt Maria showed us the room we would sleep in, my mouth nearly dropped.

Her boss was away on business, he was not expected to be back until Friday. So she agreed to let us pass the night after much pleading, until mom figured things out.

Slowly, I drifted to sleep and soon enough was in slumber land. I woke up to voices, loud voices as I opened my eyes and as they adjusted to the light, I sat up. I was in my old bed and room again, but how?
 
*****
     Hi fam👋,  hope you enjoyed the chapter, what are your thoughts? Kindly drop them in the comments section please don't forget to vote as your support goes a long way 💪. Looking forward to seeing you in the next chapter.