Away to love

Chapter3 Scene 2

“ You cannot blame me for always being indoors. I love art, music is art, and art is one of the ways I can show my soul that I am listening. I also play the violin. It’s not an easy instrument, and it needs patience and space to listen to your soul. I get paid too to perform at birthday parties and little events. That’s why I don’t have time to mingle or socialize with people. Good! ” She thought. I have it all memorized.

Nina went into the restroom, she looked around and saw that it was empty. She was happy as she loved privacy a lot. She did her business and washed her hands really quickly. She then sprinkled some water on her face to freshen it up, and she wiped her face with her handkerchief. Carefully, she applied some gloss and powdered her face. She ran her fingers through her hair too, trying to rebrush it, looked in the mirror, smiled and gave herself a hi-five.

As she was about to open the restroom door to go back to Sweden, she saw two people vicariously making out with each other. ‘Hmmm’, she thought to herself. It reminded her of her wild days with Josh. It saddened her to remember that he was emotionally checked out of the marriage. She had to ask for space for some time, and she packed all her savings and got herself a studio apartment downtown while trying to process everything that was happening. ‘ God, don’t these people have any decorum? Why would they choose a place as public as this to make out, and what is a man doing in a woman’s restroom? ” Nina thought.

“You should get out!” The girl yelled at Nina. Nina, being too timid and shy to speak, looked at them and raised her brows. Why should she yell at me when I should be the one yelling at them? She stared hard at the girl, too stunned to speak, and she noticed that the girl was dressed like a hooker, ready for a one-night stand. Could that be the case? Nina stared at them a little more, wishing she could still be this bold. “Hey, feel free to join us if you want,” the guy said. Nina shook her head in disgust and raced hurriedly out of the bathroom. She thought he had no shame, and she felt sorry for the lady, because she saw herself in her, a tool to be used for pleasure till the romance finally dies, and she’d be left puzzled, stranded, drained and clueless like her.

She turned around as she closed the door. While she almost closed the door, she saw him give her a very quick wink as he closed the door.

“People like you are the reason I hate men”. She went back into the café and took her seat behind her sister, who was very occupied with the phone call she was making.

“Bye, I love you,” Sweden said as she ended her phone call.

Nina looked down, anxiously fiddling with her phone.

“ Are you done? Let’s go, ” Nina held her sister’s hand as she tried to pull her up to leave.

“ Slow down babes, we just got here, we came here to rewind and have some outside time. Why are you in such a hurry to go back to your depressing bubble? ”

Sweden asked Nina.

She was slow to respond, she kept tapping at her phone, aimlessly and quickly strolling through her phone. She seemed unsettled.

“ Or is there something you’re not telling me? Did something happen on your way to the bathroom? Tell me, you know you can always talk to me. Is it Josh? It’s him, right? Did he call? Or is it someone else? Nina, talk to me! ” Sweden kept pestering, asking a series of questions, answering them herself and asking again.

Nina still quietly pressed her phone.

“Your iced tea, you’re yet to finish it”, Sweden reminded Nina. As Nina took a sip her phone buzzed. It was her mom.

“Hello,” she said.

“ Where have you been? We’ve been calling your phone and telephone. We’re so worried, you know? How are you?

“ Hi mom, I swear I was going to call you back. I’m out bringing to Sweden. Am I really okay?

“ Your father wants you to come back home and spend some time with us. He says you need some days away from the city and its environs. Colorado next week? You’d heal perfectly being out here in the country with us, sipping wine, painting, horse riding, farm work, gardening, writing, cooking organic farm food and perhaps, playing your violin for us and some friends from time to time by the fire at night? ” Their mom suggested.

“Mom? I really accept your offer, and you’d have to give me time to think hard about it. I’m busy, there are bills to pay, and I crave stability which I can only get by having a strong source of income. I need to get on my feet first before I think of traveling anywhere to spend a week. I would really love to come, you know how much I love cooking organic fresh food and spending time by the fire, ” Nina whined.

“ Let us do our part as parents in your life. Even your father, he longs to spend quality time with you. It’s been a long time. I know he hasn’t been the best dad to you, but you could use this time to salvage your relationship with him” , Nina’s mom complained.

Nina’s father disowned her and refused to speak with her after she ran off with Josh. Before her marriage with Josh, she had come to seek his blessings before settling down, and he blatantly refused to give it to her. Instead, asking for her plans to go to college and if she had given up on her main dream of becoming a doctor. Nina had stated to him time without time that being a doctor wasn’t her true passion, it was just a phase she passed through as a child, and she accused her father of trying to live through her, as he had not accomplished his dreams of being a doctor. She had flatly stated to him that her main dream was music, and he had sworn that none of his children would be musicians, as he was very orthodox.

Nina’s mother had tried to beg and convince him to forgive her and give him his blessings, but he refused, and she went ahead with having the marriage anyway. He reached out after a year and apologized, but since then. Nina had not been able to open up or come close to him again.

She said he abandoned her at a time when he needed her the most. Sometimes she blames her parents for not miraculously stepping in to disrupt the union between her and Josh when they saw they were going too far. Sometimes she blames herself and tells herself she shouldn’t have rushed to get hitched at just 18 years of age. A few years later, a wild love affair had picked up with one person seemingly being so happy and moving on without a care in the world and the other, stuck with trying to pick up the pieces of her life.

“ Mom, you know I cannot. Please send my regards to him some other time, I promise, okay? Love you!, Nina screamed as she hung up