Aaron had ordered grilled beef while I was still asleep, so even when he made us breakfast, he had himself sorted out. He served breakfast, and we sat at the table to eat. His pancake tasted delicious, and it was perfect with the milk. Yet, I wanted the grilled beef, which he ate, and when he noticed my longing stare at the piece in his hand, he offered it to me. Of course, I couldn’t take it. Zion sat at the table, and I had always taught him this thing called contentment and wanted to lead by example. So I shook my head and thanked him.
Aaron informed me he had also ordered clothes he could change into since he knew I had none in the house, or I would have given them to him.
I had no issue with that, and I thanked him for breakfast before standing up. Today was a long day, and I had a few things to do. I had to start by cleaning up and bathing myself and Zion.
I did not know if I said it out loud, but Aaron beat me to it, picking up the plates and heading back to the kitchen. When I opened my mouth to speak, he yelled back, “Take care of Zion; I’ve got this.”
A smile seized my face, and I carried Zion away to the bathroom. After bathing him, I dressed him up and brought him into the living room for Aaron to look after him. I dashed into my bathroom to take a bath while he played on his iPod. I bathed and changed into my yellow sundress before returning to the living room.
Aaron’s eyes lit up on seeing me, and it made butterflies run around in my stomach.
“You look amazing, Zera.”
Nothing was amazing about the sundress I had on or the bun I had my hair in. There was not even a trace of makeup on my face, and yet he spoke as if I had it all. However, I couldn’t respond arrogantly. There was no need for that. “Thank you,” I said, and I brushed off the nervous feeling.
“Going somewhere?”
“Yeah, I need to get my phone and line back,” I told him.
“I’ll take you,” he offered, and then I noticed he was already dressed in a polo and blue jeans.
My eyes narrowed on him, and I wanted to ask how he did that so fast, but I saved myself from the stress.
“Okay, I’ll take him then,” I said, walking over to Zion and taking his hand.
Aaron drove us to the phone store to get a new phone. The phones were brought out, and after making my selection, I tried to pay with my MasterCard, but the payment declined twice, and I did not know why. Aaron, who stood beside me, offered to pay. I accepted, but told him I would return his money as soon as my account came back on. Though he told me it wasn’t any trouble for him, I didn’t want to be in his debt, and so I insisted.
Having Aaron with me was a plus, especially with Zion. He held him in his arms all the time we were at the store and didn’t complain for a second. Zion was no longer a baby, and though I carried him around once in a while, I always made sure not to carry him for too long. Aaron didn’t care about any of that, as he carried him for almost thirty minutes while we waited for the sorting of my phone.
The attendant at the shop activated my phone and old line, then packaged it for me, and next, we stepped out of the store, heading home.
“Can you drive?” Aaron asked, already digging his hands into his pocket and handing me the keys without waiting for my response. I slowly took it from his hands. “He’s sleeping, and I don’t want to wake him up,” he later added.
We got into the car, with him in the passenger seat and me in the driver’s seat, and we drove off. I knew the road home, as I’d travelled it a few times. I drove home and stopped the car in the parking spot before my house.
I barely paid attention to anything when I came home yesterday, but now I did. I realise the neighbourhood looked the same way it had always been, and it didn’t even look like I left. It would have been a lot different if Aaron hadn’t taken care of Henry and every other mess made days ago at my house.
The incident happened in my house, yet I couldn’t see traces of it. I knew the neighbours had an even slimmer chance of noticing the change. I wondered if Aaron had done such things before, making people disappear without leaving a trace. I glanced at him and found his intent gaze on me. My heart skipped a beat, and I turned away from him.
Perhaps he heard me, but if he did, he said nothing.
I noticed a red Toyota parked opposite the road and a figure that looked like Daniel leaning against it.
I opened the car door and stepped out. Daniel looked up, saw me, and approached at a pace so fast I feared he’d trip and fall.
He got over to me, and the blinding smile on his face made my heart flutter. “I was so worried. I kept calling your line, and it wasn’t going through.” He reached out and stroked my face before leaning in and kissing my lips.
“I will go lay him in bed,” Aaron said, making us pull away. Daniel’s eyes travelled to him, and they turned cold the next minute.
“You were with him these past few days?”
I turned to Aaron and saw him already walking away with Zion, who was still sleeping on his shoulders. I wanted to ask if he was with the key, but I figured since he had worked on the house in my absence, he had more access to the house than I did now.
“Daniel…”
His eyes strayed from Aaron’s over to me. “Are you two back together now? After what he did to you?”
“Daniel! No!”
“Because while I was here worried sick of your safety, you were with him doing heaven knows what.”
“I can explain.”
He folded his arms across his chest and said, “Fine, explain.”
“Henry, the delivery man, attacked us in the house, and Aaron saved us,” I said, and his eyes travelled to the house and then back to me.
He gritted his teeth and said, “I am not some fool you can just lie to, Zera.”
“I am not lying. He was going to kill us, and Aaron saved us and took us to keep us safe. I will never lie to you.”
“That’s what you’re doing; that’s what you’re fucking doing! If you were attacked, where’s the police report? Where’s the witness account? Where’s the proof? You’ve got none because you’re lying.”
“I am not lying. I have proof.” I turned my scarred wrist towards him to have a look at it. “Henry dug his claw into my wrist while I was trying to escape. Look at the scar!”
He glanced down at my wrist, but his face only grew redder. “There is nothing there.”
My face paled, and I glanced down. “Can’t you see? Right here!”
“Stop doing this to me, Zera. Yes, I love you. A lot, but don’t treat me like a fool.” He growled low.
I turned to the door where Aaron had just gone through, wondering what the hell was happening to me.
“I am not. I am telling you the truth. Believe me.” The neighbourhood was quiet, and scenes like these would quickly attract attention from neighbours. I wanted him to come inside so we could talk, but Aaron had taken Zion there, and I doubt Daniel wanted to be under the same roof with him from the look of things.
“Did something happen between you two?”
I shook my head. I made sure nothing happened in the days I spent with him. I almost spoke, then realised that wasn’t the truth. “Not while I was with him,” I answered truthfully.
“But it happened.”
“Daniel…”
“Damn it, Zera, tell me the truth.”
I bit my lips, and my head dropped. “Yes, at Diya’s wedding. I was going to tell you before the attack.”
“Stop lying to me!” he snapped at me, and I jumped on my stand.
“He kissed me.” I blurted it out, shaken by his voice.
“Son of a bitch,” he cussed and stormed towards the house, but I stopped him. I didn’t want a fight; my son was sleeping in the house. If Daniel proceeded with his suicidal plan of fighting Aaron, Aaron would fight back. The last thing I wanted was Zion waking up because the two men couldn’t control themselves.
“Please stop, Daniel; control yourself!” I yelled, shoving him back when he struggled to set himself free.
He turned to stare at me, the fury in his eyes now directed at me. “Did you kiss him back?”
My eyes grew glassy; I knew where this was headed and that it would only leave me in tears. “Please…”
“Did you fucking kiss him back?” he shouted at me, and I flinched back.
“Yes, it was a moment of weakness,” I admitted, and it wasn’t something I was proud of.
His face paled, and I saw the hurt and pain in his eyes. He took a step back from me and shook his head. “I can’t do this.”
“Daniel…” I called out, my heart breaking in my chest. A tear rolled down my face, and I wiped it off. Why was everything turning against me?
I reached out, stepping towards him, but he backed away again.
“I can’t do this,” he repeated before turning away, and I watched him go.