Ch.5

Saturday. SAT the first three letters pretty much explains what my Saturdays are all about sitting and lazing around . but today I decided to give change a chance and not be lazy . I am going to cook , well more specifically bake I don't know what yet . "baba" I call out " what " he answers from his room.' is he on his periods? ' ." I am going out, you want something?" pause." out where ?" he asks as he makes it down stairs

" supermarket " . " okay , you got the money? " he asks "yeah" , " well hurry before it rains ."

I notice that it's less crowded for a saturday , atleast there won't be long lines .

I pick out ingredients and make my way to unusually short line . as I check in I notice that the cashier is new , I was used to Clarence's grumpy face but now I'm face to face with a tall blonde whose budge says Gus . he greets me with a smile and I smile back . I am about to leave when I hear " miss you forgot this " Gus says.

' that's an odd name ' . he waves a packet of Skittles and I look at him confused "that's not mine " I tell him but he shoves it my way nonetheless I take it and he says " now it is " , I look at the small packet and notice a sticker paper with a phone number

' pfft' I scoff internally , I wonder if the guys that give out their numbers like this actually expect a call . " girl you are holding up the line some of us got better to do than watch you flirt " a redhead says from behind , I look at Gus who is still smiling ,and I say " thanks " cheerfully because who doesn't like free food , chocolate moreover .

what's up today even the road is almost empty . ' is everyone hangover ?' I wonder .

I enter the kitchen and lay the ingredients ,

" Baba, am back" I don't get an answer so I go check in his room to find it empty " Baba? " .

I call out again . maybe he received an emergency call from work , but he would have called me or sent a message. I check my phone but in vain , the notification bar is empty , I ignore since it's not the first time it happened , 'he probably forgot , again' I reassure myself and go back downstairs .

we live in a pretty decent two story house , with picture frames covering the wall besides the staircase which makes it more welcoming , I stop and stare at Mama's picture at the top . it's of her smiling looking at something in distance ,I remember that day clearly and I was the one who took the picture like many others on this wall since I like holding the camera instead of pausing for it .

my mother passed away in a car accident ,

2 years ago and I was with her , the wound is still fresh and I sometimes get nightmares, especially when I forget to pray before sleeping . and I kinda used to blame myself for it .

** FLASHBACK ,2 YEARS AGO**

"How do you even listen to that , it's lulling me to sleep " mama says as I sing along to Giveon " and those old french songs don't ?" I ask teasingly " ofcourse not they are deep and filled with emotions " she says passionately , "well if feel the same way towards these " I answer back " stop it's different and you don't wanna get me started on the reason why " , it's true ,I don't want to get her started not cause she's right but because it will turn into an argument none of us will win , " fine lemme put your sappy songs " I say as I play the

'SAPPY' playlist and Garou's Belle starts playing . I honestly like these songs I just don't admit it out loud to spike out my parents although they know I don't really have a specific favorite kind of music .

" glissé mes doigts dans les cheveux d' Esméralda" she sang loudly " your voice is terrible " I said covering my ears for emphasis and to keep her quite I decide to 'fight fire with fire ' an expression I never understood . I scream back different lyrics " it's cold outside like why you walked outta my life why walk outta my li-" I stop abruptly , before I could finish I see a truck coming from Mama's side but she didn't acknowledge it " mama watch out " she turns as I finish my sentence and the truck clashes with us sending our car flying and landing upside down , the impact causes my head to smash into the open window and a shattered glass pierces through my forehead , I hear my shoulder crack as the car lands and it's front smashes into an electric pole . I blacked out for a minute and wake up to a man screaming " call the f***ing ambulance idiot " I struggle out of his hold when I realise mama is still inside " mama" I call out " get her back the car will explode " another man says , I rush back towards the car but my body is getting heavier by the second . I get to the car and go to her side I remove my jumper and wrap it around my fist and smash the window which was already half way broken, as the man who pulled me out tries to pull me back " help me get her out " I scream at him and try to open the seatbelt while praying internally ' please ,God I still need her ' the stupid seatbelt won't budge . the man realizes that it won't work but I don't want to admit it to myself , I pick a sharp glass to cut it , the man pulls me off . I scream and kick but he won't let go " mama " I call out as the car booms and the tears I was desperately holding back roll down my cheeks . I start blacking out as the pain in my shoulder and head kicks full forces and the I let the darkness take over my vision

** PRESENT **

I snap out and wipe the tear that escaped and check the time on my phone 4:30 and my dad hasn't called yet .

' that's odd ' I decide to call him instead but it goes straight to voicemail.

'ding ' the cookies .

I get up from the sofa and go take them out .

I sit them on the counter and wait for them to cool , I take off my apron and get to my room to take a shower .

____

' not bad 'I think to myself as I take a bite of the cookies ' not bad at all ' . I pack a few in a small box container and head out to Miss Simmons ,the florist whom I worked for last summer and known since we moved here .

" so , what do you think ?" I ask impatiently leaning over the counter "hmm , not bad at all , you have improved since the last time" she says with that warm smile of hers, she was great friends with mama although she could have been her mother yet she was the one with the gossip . " oh you know I try " I tease and she rolls her eyes and I smile as a response . the woman on the news cuts short our chatter " she was just there crying and when I turned to get her bottle , the crying stopped and when I turned back she wasn't there no more , please help me find my baby " she cries " that is horrible , who would do that ? and is that not the park nearby ? " I ask

" yes it is , these missing cases have been going wild for the past 2 days , that's allover the news but this is the first case in Boston " she says looking panicked .

______