LOVE OR HOPE?

Chapter Nine

Jeez. I was going to be so late for school today. I glanced at my wristwatch one more time in panic, took my bag and hurriedly went down to the dining table to get myself some cereals but the note I saw on the table stopped my tracks,I curiously took out the neatly folded card and slowly unwrapped it.

***HAPPY EIGHTEENTH BIRTHDAY, SWEETIE! YOUR DAD IS GOING TO BE PROUD OF THE BEAUTIFUL WOMAN THAT YOU HAVE BECOME. ENJOY YOUR DAY!

PLUS,
I'M GOING TO BE OUT FOR THREE DAYS, DON'T WAIT UP.***

I never wait up. I know I'm supposed to be flattered and shit but I spent half of the time wondering how she got to remember my birthday,I even forgot my own birthday for a  few minutes.Age doesn't move me and I literally regret being born at every one of my birthdays,even now.

Beep. Beep.

I brought out my phone and saw a message from Gillian.

*Happy Birthday Doll!*

I stared it for a few minutes and my mind played back to Gillian's fight with my step dad. My body went numb and I wondered if I should ask him about his forehead.

*Thanks* I replied. I don't want him to think that I deeply care about him so I decided to ignore it.

"Nadia wishes you many happy returns*  He sends again. I knew he was lying, Nadia probably wished me death than happy returns but what she didn't know was that I would have gladly preferred the latter.

I dipped my phone into my pocket and rushed out of the house. My appetite for my cereals had been very much destroyed.

I'm just not a big fan of birthdays.

***********************************

I'm at the back seat of Tracey's car wondering what the hell we were actually going to do at her place. She says we are having some kinda besties pool party and a classic sleep over to celebrate my birthday but she didn't let me go home to get my things.

I only had this fancy black crop top made of jeans with my name written in cursive,Tracey gave it to me this morning with a black short.

The wind blew off the strand of hair hanging on my face and I looked outside the window to notice how beautiful Tracey's estate is at night.

I hope my friends were not trying to plan a surprise birthday party for me like they do in the movies and some shitty novels cause they were just too clichè and I would have to smile and pretend like I'm impressed.

We soon got off from Tracey's car after she had talked me into wearing the clothes she brought for me,Tracey and Mia also changed into pool party wears,Tracey wore a sundress with poka dots around it and Mia was wearing a short black flared skirt with pink tank top. Tracey passed us look alike sunglasses and I really hoped that it was not was I was thinking.

Tracey led us to to her oh- so- cool rectangular turquoise pool and what I saw nearly threw me off balance.

*HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!* The crowd in front of me shouted at the top of their voices.

Christ!,I was half expecting this but what was in front of me was beyond my imagination. Forget what I said earlier about pretending to smile and shit cause this smile glued to my face was as real as fuck.

They all sang the birthday song as Norman came out of nowhere and walked me to where a large cake that had twenty five candles of different colours lit on it and I was asked to blow it off like a little girl. The same way my name was written on my top was the same way it was written on my cake.