Three

Vera usually transported through six rides between her house and Jake's - three rides to and three rides fro. Her first ride was seamless. No blood stain. However, she could feel her gown soaked when she got off the first ride. Her saving grace was that she was wearing a red dress. This was a mere fluke. The colour of her blood, blending with the colour of her dress forged the scene into a water spillage lookalike. Although, she was soaked in her own blood, it seemed she inadvertently sat over water.

Due to self-consciousness, she didn't properly sit in the second ride. She chose to sit at the edge in order to be able to sit on her hip — not on her butt. She tilted her waist towards the door such that her left hip was on the car seat and her right hip was resting on the door handle. She was very smart; nobody in the vehicle noticed her odd sitting posture. To her disgust — when she alighted, some blood had smudged on the edge of the seat. She was embarrassed. Luckily for her, the car seat was black adsorbent material, thus, nobody noticed the stain except her. She felt pity for the innocent person that would later sit on the inconspicuous blood.

Now was the final challenge. Relieving — it was her last ride before reaching home; troubling — the incessant bleed had climaxed. Luck was against her this time as the available vehicle had its seat topped with cream-coloured polythene cover. She hesitated boarding the vehicle because the blood stain would be too evident on the polythene by the time she alighted. On a second thought, it wasn't reasonable to waste time because it seemed the bleed intensified every minute. She boarded the vehicle. Like she predicted, the seat spot she sat on was lucidly bloodied when she alighted. Vera was mortified. The fat woman that noticed the stain as Vera alighted stared at her scornfully.

"I'm so sorry. I wasn't aware". Vera had to lie. She was deeply remorseful. She resented herself at that juncture. She untied her jacket off her waist and tried to clean the bloodied seat-cover with the jacket sleeves — the only part not soaked.

"I have a rag. Here, have it." The kind driver offered.

The fat woman collected the rag and cleaned the seat. Some of the blood had dried on the seat.

"Thank you very much, ma". Vera glorified the woman. She was surprised she could be of help, after shooting her that vicious look.

"No problem. It's the feminine system, I understand." The woman responded.

"I'll wash the polythene cover when I close off work in the evening." The kind driver reassured.

"I'm very sorry, sir. Thank you, sir and ma."

The vehicle zoomed off. Vera was deep in humiliation. She just wanted to have pleasurable sex but here she was as a blood dispenser. Devastated, she walked the short distance home. Commercial vehicles were not allowed in their street. For the first time, she was grateful for the rule. Even though the sun was scorching, she was uninterested in staining another person's vehicle with blood. Nobody deserved to suffer this burden with her. She hoped no cordial neighbour would drive by and offer a ride… She just didn't want to stain any more car seats.

Still puzzled at the misfortune, she started calling her sexually active friends as she walked down the road home. She put two of her female friends on a conference call and started confessing. She wanted to know if her case was regular or it was bizarre as she suspected. Her friends on the call confirmed her suspicion, they had never heard of, or seen a situation like hers.

"During my first time, I only felt some pain like some sharp cut and I bled very slightly." Aleesha mentioned.

"I did not even bleed at all". Rhoda added.

"Vera, don't you think the fault is from Jake? I feel he didn't put you in the mood enough." Aleesha suggested.

"I second that. First times are too delicate to be rushed. It's likely he was too horny to check if you were fit for the act." Aleesha affirmed.

"I beg to differ. He was nicer than I expected during the bleeding. I feel my body system is awkward. Regardless, what's the way forward now?"

"I would recommend you go to a pharmacy, consult a pharmacist and purchase prescribed medications." Rhoda suggested.

"I'm close to home already. I can't go anywhere in this mess." Vera disregarded.

Vera had found shade under a tree so she could discuss extensively with her friends. She feared she might not be chanced to speak freely about the matter at home.

"In that case, when you get home — drink warm water mixed with salt. It ought to subside the pain."

"Alright. Thanks, girls. I gotta jet. Bye." Vera hung up.

She was more worried.

What is wrong with me? She kept on meditating. She continued her walk home. She had never been so eager to reach home.

As if she hadn't suffered enough misfortune for that day, her mum drove past her and parked.

My goodness. What am I supposed to tell mum?! Why didn't I just make it home before her?

"Good afternoon, mum." Vera feigned a smile as she entered the car.

"Today is your lucky day. You won't be walking under the hot sun — your sole reason for disliking the street". Her mum teased.

"Lucky indeed". Vera feigned another smile. There's no such thing as luck today asides my red dress and black jacket that camouflage my affliction. Vera tilted on the car seat like she did in her second ride.

It was fair to say Vera inherited her intelligence from her mum.

"Why are you sitting like that?" Her smart mum had noticed.

"I'm stained and I don't want to smear the seat."

"I thought I saw used pads in your room last week?"

"Yeah. I'm guessing there's a hormonal imbalance or something. You know I have irregular menstrual patterns". That wasn't a lie. She had always informed her mum about that.

"Fair enough. But is it the blood that's reaching your knees?" Vera's mum touched her knees to acknowledge the obvious stains. "That's a lot if you'd ask me. You were never a heavy-flow victim."

"I just can't wait to get home."

"Where did you go?" Her mum was trying to connect the dots.

"I went to greet a friend."

They had gotten in front of their gated house. Her mum started hooting.

"Give me the key. I will open the gate." Vera couldn't spare an additional minute in her soaked dress.

"You won't wait for your sister to come open up? You're always too lazy to open the gate. Why is today different?"

"I need an immediate change out of this dress". Vera managed to hide her panic.

She opened the gate and headed for her bathroom immediately.