The Disturbing Call From Home

The sun penetrated through the curtains in her room. She turned to face away from the sun, and he moved to be closer to her.

She liked the warmth of his body, and she didn't want to get up.

She turned to look at him, smiling, and he moved to kiss her, but her alarm chose to ring at that moment.

"Oh fuck," she said as she stretched her hands towards the bedside drawer to turn off the alarm.

She pressed on the snooze option instead, and minutes later, the alarm rang again.

"Wrong timing, you will have to get up, baby," Evans said beside Angie.

"Nights are so short these days. I didn't even rest enough," Angie said, yawning. She got up from bed, showered, dressed then left for the living room.

Karen had already prepared breakfast, and so Angie quickly ate it then left for work.

Angie worked at Atlanta News Agency as an editor for their daily publication. She had worked there since the company's inception, right when she had just finished college.

She had applied for an intern position and the manager, seeing her potential, had retained her.

"Would you consider working for us after your internship period ends?" the manager, Ivy, has asked her.

"I don't get it," Angie said after a while. Of course, she did. She only wanted more explanation.

"You've been with us. I have seen your potential, and I would like to retain you. Of course, the terms will be better."

"I wouldn't pray for anything else," Angie answered, beaming with joy.

"Sounds like exactly what I expected. I will ask HR to draft your letter," Ivy said.

Just like that, Angie had found herself a job. She had risen from being a reporter to being an editor, and she was aiming higher.

For her, the sky had never been the limit. She was naturally born competitive, and even when growing up, she never let Gabriel get anything without a fight.

She would beat him up if he was stubborn and her mother, Alice, said that Angie was the meanest child to ever exist in the entire wide world.

"I'm not mean. I'm fighting for what's mine. Why should I give it to him yet he has his?" Angie would ask.

"You're the eldest. You need to be more considerate towards him," Nobert, their dad, would say.

Angie got to work, which was a bee of activities. In the print section, some reporters were leaving for fieldwork, writers were writing their news articles, and editors like her were editing the stories.

In the broadcast section, editors were busy listening to clips and editing the stories that would go on air. Satisfied that work was going on well, she left for her own office.

As was her norm, she put her personal phone in flight mode to avoid distractions.

She was so consumed by her work, having to listen to clips before they were broadcast and going through the agency's digital site as well.

By the time it was lunch, she was feeling so drained that she gave her go-ahead for the clips she had gone through, picked her phone then left the office for lunch.

She got to her normal restaurant, ordered her food then removed the flight mode option from her phone. Instantly, she received notifications about missed calls and messages from her mom.

"Call me back as soon as you can," Alice's message read.

There was an urgency in the message, and Angie felt her heartbeat increase.

She looked blankly at the screen and shook her head as if by doing that, she would erase all the negative thoughts she had when she read the message.

Having received notifications that Angie's phone was on, Alice called immediately, and Angie picked it up.

"Have been trying to get hold of you," Alice said. She hadn't even bothered to greet her daughter.

"Sorry. I was..."

"Okay. Are you okay?" Alice asked.

"Yes, are you?" Angie asked, yet she knew there had to be a problem.

"I wish I was," Alice said. Her breathing had changed, and she seemed like someone who could break down anytime.

"What is the problem?"

"Your father is sick. Very sick. Can you come over?"

'No, it couldn't be,' Angie thought.

"I can," Angie said in a low voice.

"Please. As soon as you can," Alice said, then hung up.

The information she had given Angie made her thirst for more.

She wanted to know what the problem was, at least to be mentally prepared, so she called Gabriel, but he didn't pick up.

By then, she was so filled with worry that inasmuch as she was hungry, she couldn't eat.

She pushed the food before her away, left the bill on the table, and instead of driving back to work, she went home.