GuiTara

🎵~47

🎶Oh why can't I conquer love ~ Sia

●Tara Afua Henrie●

I wished those moments where you wake with no memory of the past day's events lasted longer than five seconds.

Once I sat up in bed, everything that happened last night came flooding back, along with a sharp headache. "Ugh."

I was back in the same room where my Mexican journey had begun—the room I'd stayed in when I first moved into Pam’s house.

Now, she was beside me on the bed, her hand resting protectively on her pregnant belly, pillows propped up behind her to support her back. She must have fallen asleep after spending the whole night trying to comfort me.

Careful not to wake her up, I pushed myself out of bed and into the bathroom. The reflection that met me in the mirror was awful. The puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks were reminders of how I cried myself to sleep after getting my heart broken... again. Luckily, my braids were still intact, thanks to the hair cap Pam put on my head.

I turned on the tap, splashing cold water on my face, hoping it would jolt me awake from this miserable reality. Then, I yanked a towel off the rack and dried off.

Last night was a real eye opener.

I'd been such a fool.

A massive fool to think what Shaun and I had was special. Guys like him don’t settle for girls like me—they lie, they use us for their fun. Even his stepmother, Mrs. Perez, told me that what was going on between us was just a fling. Yet, I didn't pay much attention because I was in love. I pushed things further. We went on dates, watched fireworks together, we kissed and we made love. To me, it had meant everything. But to him? It was nothing. Just a game.

And now, I was paying the price for believing him.

I couldn’t stop the memories from resurfacing, but I refused to drown in them. It was my fault for letting someone into my heart again, only to have it shattered once more. This was just another in a series of bad life choices, like the whole mess with Cudjoe and Sheeda. But this time, I wasn’t going to wallow in self-pity. I was going to fix this. And I would do it alone.

Fishing out some Advil from the bathroom cabinet, I popped two pills into my mouth and washed it down with some tap water. Then I hopped into the bath, took a quick shower and emerged.

Since, I moved out months ago, I didn't have any clothes here. So I had to rummage through Pam's closet for something to wear, which turned out to be a hassle because she was currently in her maternity phase. Thankfully, after ten minutes of searching, I found a suitable pair of jeans and a blouse.

Gathering my braids into a ponytail, I pulled on some sneakers and stepped out of the room, descending the stairs. I had just reached the foyer and was about to let myself out when a familiar voice stopped me.

"Tara?" Nando emerged from the kitchen, wearing an apron. "Where are you going?"

"The penthouse." I reached for the door handle.

"Wait!"

The urgency in his voice made me pause and turn to him.