SHATTERED

╣FIFTEEN╠

     Tears slipped down Thelma's cheeks as the diced onions on a chopping board in the industrial kitchen of Murphy's restaurant.
“Hey, look at you, cry baby.” Gemma Jepherson her assistant chef teased her. Thelma rolled her eyes at her as she continued to dice the onions.
“Why don't you chew a chewing gum. It will ease the effect of the onions.” Gemma told her, greasing a pizza tray.
“I'd love too but last year, I had one of my molars removed.”
“Oh!” Gemma exclaimed.
“I have vowed never to eat anything sugary again because it was an awful experience with the dentist getting my tooth removed.” Thelma scrunched her face, remembering the experience she had in dentist's office.
“I am so sorry about it Mrs Wilbur.” Gemma said sympathetically.
“Thank you.” Thelma smiled as she put the diced onions into the sizzling pot of hot water on fire.
“Please can you help me taste this chicken soup to see if it's too spicy.” Gemma said carrying a bowl of chicken soup in front of Thelma.
“Sure,” Thelma took a soup spoon from the cutlery rack, dipping it into the bowl of chicken soup and tasted it.
“Perfect!” Thelma remarked after tasting it.
“Are you sure?” Gemma arched an eyebrow at Thelma.
“Yes.”
“Thanks.” Gemma smiled
“You are welcome.”
“Mrs Wilbur, table 104 is in need of Supreme pizza” Mr Truman, a waiter came into the kitchen with a serving tray in his gloved hand announcing.
“Uh-oh, Supreme pizza just finished and I'm about to make another one, can you serve Peperroni pizza instead?”
“Okay.” Mr Truman said collecting the box of pizza from the kitchen countertop and left.
“Miss Jepherson once you are done with the chicken soup, please you'll assist me in garnishing the pizzas. Don't forget to add the mozzarella cheese.” Thelma told her as she brought out the already kneaded pizza dough from the fridge.
     Thelma phone vibrated in the pocket of her apron she put the pizza in the large oven. She wiped are stained hands on her apron and brought her phone out of her pocket, she switched the phone on, seeing two missed calls on her phone screen.
“Miss Jepherson, excuse me, I'll be right back.” sh said and left the kitchen heading towards the backyard of the restaurant so she could call back the number that called her twice.
“Hello,” Thelma said as soon as the line went through.
“Hello, this is Mrs Finley the principal of Olivetree Highschool speaking. Am I speaking to Mrs Wilbur?”
“Yes, I'm Mrs Wilbur.”
“Alright. Mrs Wilbur, I will like you to come over to here to your daughter's school. We need to discuss something very vital.”
“I am really busy at the moment, I am at work. Can't the matter wait?”
“I am sorry it can't.”
Sighing loudly, she responded, “Okay, I will be there soon.” she said and hung up. Thelma hurried back to the restaurant to take  permission from her boss to leave work.

                 ➰➿➰

“It is a good thing you were able to make it here on time, Mrs Wilbur.  Please have your seat.” Mrs Finley said as Thelma walked into her office.
“Thank you,” Thelma said as she sat down. “What is the matter about, Mrs Finley? I don't really have much time to spend here because I had to take excuse from work just to be here.” Thelma said impatiently.
“I am really sorry about that. Actually it's about your daughter, Eleanor.”
“Eleanor, what happened to her?”
“She has been detained.”
“Detained? What did she do?”
Thelma creased her eyebrows curious.
“She got into a fight with one of her classmate, she punched the boy's nose and the nose nose broke. The boy is in the hospital.”
“How come? What really transpired?”
“She said the boy was called her names and she got angry at him.”
“Eleanor is not this aggressive, I am really sorry about what happened.”
“This is not the first time she has gotten into a fight with soneone. She has even insulted a teacher in this school, we handled the matter ourselves without informing you but what happened today, we had to inform you.”
Thelma sighed, rubbing her forehead. “I have warned her several times to learn to control her anger, I don't just know what is wrong with her.”
“We would have expelled her if not that she is new to our school system and in form one.”
“I am really sorry, I know she can be a pain in the neck, she is also giving me tough time at home and it's so difficult taking care of her all alone.” Thelma said sentimental.
“Mrs Wilbur, I do understand how it feels to raise a child single handedly. It's not easy especially when you don't have God as your backup. We can't raise them alone because he is the one who gives children, once you surrender the child to him, I tell you it will be easy.” Mrs Finley counseled her
“Hmm,” Thelma sighed deeply.
“By 3:30pm she would be released from the detention, she will be detained for a whole week, that's the punishment we gave her. When she's done with her last class for the day she goes to the detention room, doing all her assignment in there. I am really sorry for taking much of your time.”
“It's okay.”
“Thanks for coming.” Mrs Finley said shaking Thelma.
“Thank you too for your advice.” Thelma said and left the principal's office.

                  ➰➿➰
 

       The night sky was murky black when Ethel stepped out of Cambridge University's library. It was Saturday and the weather was awful and people were afraid that a storm might occur. Two years ago, she had been granted a provisional admission to study Criminal law at Cambridge University, Cambridge while Sylvia had been admitted in the John Hopkins University, Maryland, America to study software engineering. Presently, Ethel is in her second year in Cambridge University. She clutched her books tightly to her chest as she entered her school dormitory.
“I thought you were going to sleep in the library.” Aisosa, a Nigerian girl, Ethel's roommate who had come to Cambridge to study linguistics said.
“Hey, highsowser you are still awake?” Ethel said as she dropped her books on the nightstand in between her bed and Aisosa's bed, unbuttoning her jacket.
“I just wanted to stay awake and besides I don't have any class tomorrow and next. As for you, it's past 10pm, what were you doing in the library, sleeping?”
“No…”
“Eating?”
“No!”
“Then what were you doing?” Aisosa scowled.
“What else do they do in a library?”
Aisosa arched an eyebrow at her, frowning “Don't you know being out there by this time of the night is dangerous?”
“I know, it was the psychology assignment that took my time, I never wanted to stay that long.” Ethel sat at the edge of her bed facing Aisosa who was sitted in her own bed across her.
“Can't you read here?”
“I can't, I am trying to avoid distraction.”
“One more thing, how many times have I warned you to stop calling me highsowser?” Aisosa said sternly pretending to be angry.
“I am sorry, don't mind my intonation.”
“I am Aisosa, not highsowser okay? Because I am not high.”
Ethel chuckled, “I have heard you icesosa.”
“A-i-s-o-s-a, Aisosa!”
“Okay, Aisosa.” Ethel said and laughed.
“Better.” Aisosa clucked her tongue, rolling her eyes. “The next time you come late, I won't let you in, is that clear?”
“Yes ma'am.” Ethel said and laughed at the way Aisosa scolded her like the way mothers do to their child.
       After Ethel took a warm shower, she settled down on her cozy bed covering herself with a blanket from her legs up to her waist as she sat on her bed to read all the unread messages on her phone, she had two unread WhatsApp messages, one from Sylvia and the other from Miss Sebastian. She quickly tapped on Sylvia's name on her  phone to read her message.

“Hello Ethel, how are you? I am pissed off 😣with John Hopkins University and their stupid project, it's almost every week lecturers here give each student a project to work on and guess the type of project my lecturer gave me this time?He told me to create an appllication. What sort of crazy project is that?😭. Americans are friendly but I have a nerdy roommate whose nose is always stuck in her books. She doesn't talk much and she's so so boring…expecting to hear from you.”
<My bestie 💕
2:00pm

“What's up girlie, just seeing your message now. You called for it Sylvia, you applied for the course so you have to do all the crazy project as you call it😛. I just got back from the library some few minutes ago…I have a wonderful roommate who is a Nigerian, she is different from what we thought how Nigerians should be. Our theory was wrong, she is intelligent, has a good sense of humor and well-behaved and guess what she is also a writer. I'll like you to check out her books on Amazon. Her full name is Aisosa Pleasant Osadebame.  Remember I wasn't sociable at all when we were in highschool, I was a nerd too until you became my friend. I trust you will do the same for you nerdy roommate. It's already 11:45pm here in Cambridge. Love you Sylv💓”
>11:46pm.

Ethel typed. After she was done replying Sylvia's message, she read Miss Sebastian's message.

“Good afternoon my princess, how are you doing? How is Cambridge's weather? Over here in London, it's rainy almost everyday. I am so excited Ethel😄 I am getting married this coming summer. Can't wait till you come back home. Missing you so much dear.”
Miss Sebastian
3:17pm

Ethel gasped with a smile on her face. Finally Miss Sebastian has found her Mr Right, she couldn't wait to see who this Mr Right was.

“Congratulations! Miss Sebastian. I am so happy to hear such great news from you. I can't wait for the summer holiday to arrive, so that we can meet again. I am badly missing you too and your homemade food too. 🤗”
>

11:50pm

After she was done going through all her messages, she set her phone alarm for 5am because she was to attend church the next day. She laid down in bed yawning loudly.
“Aisosa, please when you are ready to sleep, put off the light.” she said to Aisosa who has been busy surfing the internet since she came back from the library.