UN-FAITHFUL

Chapter 18

Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, an hour, a day, or a year, but after that it will subside. Some thing then takes its place. Either lessons learnt or regret on moments wasted.

It took a while to for Mya to realise that things had changed for them. While picking them from school, the mum had insisted on Ariel packing all her belongings too, giving an excuse that the school had changed from what they expected, so she would rather not have her girls studying there.

Mya surely knew that it wasn't the real reason she did that, but she couldn't let Ariel know. More to that, they had moved upcountry and life was far from usual.

Ariel used to be too demanding and almost complained about everything.
The house was big enough but there were complications. Like fetching water from the well when the water pipes broke down at the towns major suppliers and it took time before they could be repaired simply because the plumber came once in a month to the town.

The mom got them vacancies in the community school. It was hard itself being in a mixed sex school. They were used to free life style and this way, every one was always staring and Mya found it real hard to fit in. She always came late to class, sat in a corner and moved back home alone.

Ariel on the other hand was getting along just fine. She seemed to have gotten popular with the guys, and was being invited to musical shows, house parties, and was becoming fast popular.

Mya stuck to being a loner. She was beginning to see the changes home. Dad was changed. He begun drinking and was rude. It looked like his business was not running well. Mom was stressed out as well. And some times Caleb was sick.

As time went on, home became more like a refuge camp. Where every one had their untold stories but would keep them to themselves and move around not talking to anyone.

Mya used to come from school and keep in her room only getting out to eat something. She piled the room with novels of all kinds. She tried to write several of her own, only stopping mid-book, tried to write down some original music lyrics and would end up forgetting the beat or rhythm.

Other days, she would just sleep on her back and look back on the life they once had. Or some times, imagine herself landing on a gold mine and bringing their family back to the good old days. Or falling in love with a prince charming who would turn her life around.

But days passed, and life got worse,once in a while, she would get mail from Po and some times Racheal, the dad drunk more and more but the biggest shocker was realising that the Mom was pregnant.

Mya walked home from school to find the mom in the kitchen seated on the floor crying. Coming closer, she saw a pregnancy test beside her. She just turned back and banged the door on her way out. She just needed a place to cry.

Ariel was hanging out with her friends always. She would come home late usually and would some times bring over Leila and Gloria her besties. It looked to Mya like Ariel didn't even notice what was going on home.

Some one had to act sane in the family. And if there was anyone it was definitely going to be her. She run quickly back home to find her mom on the kitchen floor. She panicked but got herself together in time to call emergency and sit with her mom to the communal hospital.

On diagnosis, the mom had taken an overdose of anti depressants. She was detained in hospital for two more days and released on condition to go for counselling. Mya had no time to feel sorry for herself. She had Caleb to look after and a depressed mother to convince to go for counselling and an over demanding Ariel who became worse each time until Mya had to break down the whole story of their bankruptcy to her.

Ariel stopped talking with any one home and even got worse. Coming back late and spending most of the weekends at her friends' places. Not forgetting the drunkard father, the once happy family was tearing apart.