Serenity and Smile

chapter 10

He lies unconscious in his bed, deep in slumber. Those sleeping pills have been working, and he was afraid that if dosage increases will they take him to never _ending land of dreams where he could stay forever, where he has almost everything that he has ever wanted or wished to have in his life. People want different things. A human is made up of desires and life is to chase after them until he rest his final sleep. Michael Jennings never wanted more from life than a family. He was a kid of a single mom. She got pregnant with him while she was in college , his father whom he never met,refused to take responsibility for him , in fact he asked his girlfriend for an abortion as they were both college students and having a child was not a option . They fought and her mother chosed her baby over everything, over her relationship, over her academics. His father broke up with her. She has raised him ever since and not once did she make him feel like he was unwanted or not needed.

" I will always chose you even if I lived hundred lives . So never think you are not loved I will always love you no matter what ". His mother has said it to him.

They loved each other, but is love everything needed for a human to live?
If he could ask Daniel his reply would be ;yes love is enough as he always craved it he always wanted to be loved by his parents unconditionally. But for Michael love is not everything. Love doesn't fill your belly. It doesn't nor does it solve anything else than providing you comfort and warm but he never blamed Daniel for thinking that way. They both wanted what they were deprived of . Humans are always deprived of something. He remembered when one of the days his mother came to pick him up from school. Daniel saw that and whispered maybe to his own self.

" How lucky".

Michael heard that and never understood what he meant . But now he does.

He was dreaming again until the knock on his door brought him back to world.
He laid back not wanting to get up. Knocks on the door become consistent, piercing his ears . His eyes shut open and he knew there was no going back now. He sat straighten up in his bed for few seconds until he threw the covers off himself. His room falling into twilight.
" what time is it now? " He questioned himself. He leisurely ran his hand across the side table trying to find his phone. Before he could pick it up another knock on door came in sounding annoyed at him. He opened his door and before him is his mother.
Lucinda Jennings

She almost reach his shoulder. Tired honey brown eyes ,different from his emerald green ones staring at him, ready to give him a lesson. Her dark brown hairs falling across her shoulders have curls in them unlike his straighten one. He doesn't have much of her in him, he has realized it long ago.

" Do you know what time is it now?".

" No , can't tell was sleeping ".

" It's seven in the evening ".

" Oh I couldn't tell ". He run his hand across his hair , a thing he always does whenever he is embarrassed. His mother shaked her head and walked off.

He stood under the shower while the warm water poured down on him like soft gentle rain. He closed his eyes and let the stream cascaded over his body. His fluffy hair now completely damped were sticking to his forehead hovering over his eyes. The subtle fragrance of sandalwood fills his senses. It is soothing nevertheless his mind is in complete haze . They are too many thoughts, tangled up.

He was thinking about various things: the basketball match, the hijabi girl leaving in panic, Tyler inviting him and Daniel to hang out together, his refusal, and his decision to meet Natalie Angles. Everything else after that was a blur.

water was still dripping onto his skin. Everything in his mind kept circling back to just one thing: one person-Natalie Angelis.

"So, what's her deal?" Daniel asked him.