ANGELA ANDERSON: MOMENT TO SHINE [COMPLETED]

Chapter 7

Angela finished dressing up and was filled with her usual morning joy. She tied her hair in a bun and wore her a simple jeans dress with sneakers. She picked up her bag filled with the music books and her jotters and decided to sneak out through the back.
She tiptoed stealthily, as though she were a criminal in her own house and slowly walked out.

Just as she was about to exit the gate, she bumped into her father, her bag fell and the music books were scattered all over the floor.

Angela became filled with fright. ‘What was her father doing out at that time?’ ‘what excuse was she going to give?’ ‘how was she going to explain herself?’ ‘what was she going to do?’
Such thoughts filled up her head as she stared at her father. “Where do you think you are going?” he asked, looking very angry. “Have I not told you to seek my permission before you leave the house?” he continued. “Yesterday, you asked for permission, did I not grant you that permission? So why do you do this today?”
Angela stared at him. she did not know what to say nor did she have any excuse coming to her mind. Although, she dreaded being caught, she never actually thought her dad would catch her.
He bent down to pick up the books. “Musical books?” he asked. Angela looked at him sadly, as tears began to fill her eyes up. “Dad I can explain” she said as the tears dropped.
Jake and Chris were playing tag in the garden and heard the encounter and so came towards Angela and Dad. “Go on, explain” he said. “We heard she and Ellen talking about a musical competition some time back. We asked them for more information and they wouldn’t tell us” Chris spoke despite Angela’s several attempts to signal him to stop talking. “They were making plans and seemed so excited” Jake added. “I noticed her absence in the house a couple of times too but I assumed she was around” “But now that we see the music books, it all adds up” Chris continued.
It was as though her brain had shut down. She was sweaty and there was a gleam of cold perspire all over. Her watery eyes engorged as the hairs on the nape of her neck stiffened. She tried to talk but the inside of her mouth only allowed her to breathe heavily.

She knew her brothers would fail her and that was why she did not want them involved in the first place.
“I am very disappointed in you Angela” her dad thundered. “You are grounded and hereby banned from attending any musical competition” “Such nonsense, I hustle to make life much better for you and you repay me by lying to me and involving yourself in such useless ordeals” he went on. “I don’t even want to look at you, go to your room and come out only when it’s time for eating.”
Angela looked at him slowly and picked up her books. “I am taking those from you as well” he said angrily and tore the books in front of her. “Keep a close eye on your sister. If she tries this nonsense again let me know” he said angrily and walked away.
No one had seen Richard get this angry before. They had seen him angry on a number of occasions but not this angry and more so not at Angela.
She picked up the torn pieces of her books and put them in her bag and cried as she went upstairs.
“What’s wrong?” Ellen asked, looking at Angela from downstairs. “Ask those two” she said pointing at Jake and Chris and shutting her door.
Her life was ruined. No more practice, no more Miss Patty, no more Frost, no more competition. She placed her head on her pillow and cried heavily. Once her first tear dropped, the rest followed uncontrollably she began to cry with the force of a person mourning the loss of loved one. She felt the muscles of her face quiver. The drops of tears, began to fill up her shirt, and as much as she wanted to stop crying, she couldn’t help it.
She felt so many emotions all at once. She was sad that this had happened, she was angry at her father and more so her brothers, she felt bitter, she was frustrated, she was confused and her head ached all the more when she thought about everything.

She stared at her phone as Miss Patty called. “Miss Patty I can’t make it today” she sobbed, picking the phone on the 4th call. “Why is that my dear?” she asked. “He found out and things got messy and now I’m grounded and even forbidden to contest” Angela continued. “Oh that’s a shame” Miss Patty said with disbelief. “Well, we can’t just sit there and watch him step over your dreams” she continued. “We have worked too hard to get to where we are now”
“Miss Patty what can we do?” Angela said, trying to sound like she’d stopped crying. “And besides, I don’t even have a dress and I don’t know how my opening act is going to be like”
“You worry too much child.” Miss Patty laughed. “I will get back to you soon.”
She hung up and Angela turned the other side of her pillow and placed her head on it. She had one of those headaches you got after crying for so long. She lay on her bed and memories of her rehearsals with Miss Patty began to come to her mind. She remembered meeting Frost and she remembered how her sister and friends had kept her going. It was all too good to end soon.
She gave up and lay flat on her bed staring into the ceiling and wondering what her next fate would be.
She decided she was also angry at her dad for not allowing her to be who she wants and for scolding her for being what she wants to be.
Later in the day….
Ellen and her mum came to see her in her room,
“Love? You will be alright okay?” mum said softly as she opened the door and entered.
“Your brothers told us what happened” she continued.
“They are not my brothers; they are traitors” Angela said angrily. “I don’t even want to see them”
“I spoke to your dad about what happened. He shouldn’t have spoken to you that way and openly like that” Mum continued. “I do understand his methods of bringing you up are a bit brute sometimes but he has your best interest at heart”
“My best interest and he disapproves me singing? That’s what’s best for me” Angela pouted.
“He doesn’t see the significance, let me put it that way” she went on. “He sees it as unnecessary and a waste of time and feels as a young girl developing into an adult, you should focus on your books”
“Mum, things have changed.” Angela cut her mum off. “Education isn’t the only guarantee to success. I’m not saying music is either but he should at least give me a chance”
“Yeah, he always wants us to see things from his point of view” Ellen spoke. “How then do we move forward?”
“It’s always a planned way of us doing something and no one is supposed to go contrary”
Mum smiled. “Your dad is a very difficult man” she said. “He didn’t mean to talk to you that way”
She braided Angela’s hair and spoke to her about how much her father loved her and how much it hurt him that Angela couldn’t tell him about the competition and all. Even though, Angela insisted that he would have disapproved right from the start.
“He is still not going to let me go right?” she asked, finally cheering up. “Nope” mum replied. “He intends on punishing you for lying to him and sneaking out”
Angela sighed. “Could you at least talk to him?” she said looking at her mother with cute eyes. She turned to Ellen. “Well I’m out of the picture, when Jake and Chris ratted you out, they ratted me out” Ellen said with a halfway smile. “He said he was disappointed in me and felt I should know better as the eldest and blah”
Angela heaved a sigh. “Thank you guys” she hugged her mother and her sister and they got up to leave.
Unknown to them, Richard was behind the door eavesdropping on their conversation.
He left, as soon as he saw them hug.
Angela locked her door and decided to enjoy the comfort of her loneliness.
She slept and woke up and looked out through her window. It was night time. She saw the cars move slowly, and felt the cool breeze across her chest. She could see a couple arguing in the red car that drove past and she smiled, and then she saw a pregnant woman with three children at the back seat. She figured the pregnant woman was telling her children to stop making noise. She smiled.
She looked further ahead and noticed the car headlights, the row of street lamps, that led to the other side and the lit windows in houses. She looked up at the cloud full of stars which spread across the sky like sequins on a black blanket. The night chill leached through her clothes and so she moved back and sat on her bed.
She heard a noise from her window pane and she cast a quick gaze on her window. She saw nothing and so she turned her head away.
She heard the noise again and she turned and saw Frost.
Happiness rushed through her veins and her eyes lit with joy.
He climbed in and she run to hug him.
“What are you doing here?” she asked gleefully. “I came to save my princess” he simpered. “You will prepare a sumptuous meal for me, you will massage me, and afterwards you will feed me with a tantalizing desert. When I take my bath, you know who will feed me?” he asked.
“The funeral director” Angela replied folding her arms.
They both laughed. “You know it isn’t safe” she said looking at him dearly. “I am already in trouble for my many crimes, I don’t want to add you to it” she stroked his hair.
“I know, I just wanted to see you” he said looking at her with so much love. “You haven’t been online and you haven’t returned my calls either. My mum told me what happened and so I decided to surprise you”
“Where is the surprise?” she asked, looking around. “Me of course, I am a snack, and you are on a diet” he said smacking his lips and moving closer towards her. She threw the pillow in his face.
“You have to go Frost” she said. “Please, I don’t want to get into any more trouble. I will reply your texts and call you back.”
“No kiss for me?” he said pouting his lips.
“No” she gave a straight reply.
She hugged him and told him to leave.
Frost kissed her on her forehead and descended slowly.
Angela was thrilled. She was sad but Frost had just made her day. Frost went through all that just to see her. Maybe he was for real after all.

She quickly texted her friends to tell them how her day went.
There was a knock on the door. She placed her phone down and opened it.
It was Yaya. Yaya brought her supper. “Your dad was expecting you for supper this night” Yaya said politely. “I know; I didn’t want to see him” Angela replied.
“Yes ma’am” Yaya replied and Angela took her food. “Thank you Yaya” she smiled.
Angela ate her food and brushed her teeth afterwards. She took her shower and hopped on to her bed.

She switched on her television in her room and saw the advert for the competition again. She let out a heavy sigh. She tuned in to a music channel and sang along and danced to the beat.
She imagined herself on stage and it did give her some sort of satisfaction.
She gave Frost a call and went to bed.

It had been a week now and Angela hadn’t come out of her room and she hadn’t seen her brothers or her dad either. Ellen, her mum and Yaya occasionally visited her to bring her food and since she was grounded she was forbidden from having friends over which meant she couldn’t see Marlene or Estelle.
The day for the competition was getting closer, and she had given up.
She watched several people talk about it on television and she’d even seen a few posts on social media.
But what did she care? She had no clothes for the competition and she didn’t even know how she was going to get there and what she would do and all that.
She picked up her journal and worked on a couple of songs and sang them.
She would stay in her room and wait till Yaya or someone shows up to bring her food. She did want to get out, to walk around and enjoy the freshness but there she was, all alone in her room.
She started psyching her mind to get used to her staying in her room till who knows when.
She convinced herself she was alone and had no one and was going to get through this.