Relief washed over Vanessa as she prepared to retire for the day. She was so eager to go back home after the long day. The day was eventful, and she couldn’t wait for the day to end. After mumbling goodbye to Phoebe, she got into the elevator. With a sigh, she pressed the button and saw the elevator doors close.
Staring at her reflection in the elevator mirror, she recalled the conversation she had with Darryl. The offer sounded impossible, but there would be no arms if she tried it. She could only hope her choices didn’t backfire on her.
A worried look replaced the frown she had on her face when she saw Tania’s teary eyes as the elevator doors opened.
“Oh my God, why are you crying?” Vanessa asked as she rushed out of the elevator, towards Tania’s crying frame.
Forcing the tears, Tania trembled as she noticed she had caught her prey. Tania had waited for the right moment to get Vanessa alone and the best way to do that to do so was to blackmail her emotionally.
“I need a shoulder to cry on.” Tania trembled as she said. “Can you help me with that?”
“Sure, come here ” Vanessa pulled her into a hug and patted Tania’s back slowly.
A sly smile played on Tania’s lips as she saw that her plan was working. “Can you drive?”
“Yes. Why? Confusion laced in Vanessa’s voice as she asked. What does driving have to do with her tears? She wondered.
Tania fumbled for her car key. She handed the key to Vanessa after she found it in her bag. ” I know a coffee shop down the alley, I can share my burden over a cup of coffee.”
Giving Tania an understanding look, Vanessa nodded in response. “Sure, we can do that.”
Vanessa offered her tissue paper to wipe her teary face. “You should clean up, to avoid unnecessary attention.”
“Thank you, Vanessa.” Tania said, dabbing her face gently with the tissue paper Vanessa gave to her. “I’m sorry to drag you into my mess. I just can’t be alone at this moment.” Tania said as she put on a dark shade to cover her swollen face.
With cautious steps, Tania walked closely beside Vanessa as they exited the building.
“I understand you.” Vanessa replied as she opened the passenger seat for Tania.
Vanessa couldn’t believe she had agreed to help Tania when she had plans to go home to rest. How many events does this day carry because she is stressed out already? It started with Darryl, then with Phoebe and Carolyn. Now, Tania is here with her endlessly crying.
Vanessa’s facial expression became dull as she pulled up in front of the coffee shop. She followed Tania as they entered the shop. Finding a perfect spot to be unnoticed, Vanessa and Tania sat as they waited for the waiter.
Taking off her shades, Tania sniffled. “I’m such a fool. I feel like a loser too.” She started.
Shaking her head in disagreement, “no, you are not a fool or a loser” Vanessa said.
Pretending to fight back tears,”Have you been in love or are you in love?” Tania asked.
Vanessa’s brow furrowed in confusion. What does her love life have to do with Tania’s problem? She wondered. She fumbled for an answer but found nothing.
Noticing the silent reply from Vanessa, Tania grimaced. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have asked you that.” She apologized, faking a sympathetic smile.
“I just need someone who can relate with what I’m going through.”
Buying time to form a good reply, Vanessa observed the waiter who brought their drink.
“You can confine in me if you want to. I’m willing to listen to you if that’s what you want.” Vanessa’s mouth curved into a smile as she encouraged Tania.
“I don’t know how to begin.” Tania inhaled sharply as she cooked up her lies. “There’s this man I’m seeing. We started our relationship after he caught his fiance cheating on him with his best friend.
Vanessa nodded as she listened to Tania’s sob story.
“I should have waited for him to heal from the heartbreak, but I agreed to be with him, I agreed to help him heal because I loved him deeply.” Tania sniffled.
Sympathy engulfed Vanessa as she observed every word that Tania said.
“After healing, he promised to marry me. He promised to be there with me. He promised to repay me for all the good I did to me.” She paused, squeezing her nose.
“I can’t believe I held on to his promises. I can’t believe I was waiting for him to fulfill his words.” Tania said, forcing tears to make her pain look real.
Vanessa, who was oblivious of her plan, fell into the trap and sympathized with her. As she listened to Tania’s story, a fresh wave of pain engulfed her because she had experienced heartbreak before. Without waiting for the end of Tania’s story, she made up her mind not to ever fall in love with any man. She lifted her gaze to Tania as she heard her voice again.
“You won’t believe everything he told was lies. I was deceived because I fell in love with someone who only wanted to use me to heal.”
“Oh my….” Vanessa’s hands covered her mouth to hide the surprised look on her face. “I’m sorry about that. You deserve better.”
Tania’s lips turned up in a sly smile as she noticed her prey believed everything she said. Masking the smug look before Vanessa noticed, she sniffled.
“The worst part of this is that I’m carrying his child. I told him thinking it would make him reconsider his choice, but he didn’t even look at me twice before rejecting me and his unborn baby.”
“Why would he do that to you? Why is he so full of shit?” Vanessa couldn’t hide her irritation. “I’m sorry to say, but your lover or ex-lover is a bad man, and he doesn’t deserve to see another day.” Anger was laced in Vanessa’s voice as she talked.
Tania watched Vanessa’s reaction with a satisfying look. The only thing left for Tania to do was to tell Vanessa the name of the man in her fake sob story.
“That’s one of the reasons I can’t trust a man. They end up treating us badly.” Vanessa continued to rant. “Just discard him and focus on your baby.” she advised Tania.
“But I still love him, I really do.” Tania replied, forcing her voice to tremble.
“If you still want to fight for him, go ahead but don’t get hurt in the process. You should put yourself first before making any choice.” Vanessa gave her an encouraging look.
Vanessa took a sip out of the cup of coffee in front of her. She should just settle for Darryl’s proposal, she thought. By getting married to Darryl, his mother would get off her neck and she would make money out of it. This will be her final decision if she wants to stay away from falling in love with someone who will eventually hurt her like Emmy or Tania’s man.