Say Hello to the Broken-Hearted (9 page)

Karla clea
red the misty glass, only to see him drinking a glass of wine. It looked like blood.

“My struggles are my past. Today will become yesterday and tomorrow I will be
the entire woman I can ever be.” She took a deep breath…exhaled, then opened the door and went to the bedside. “Please don’t judge me. I am a victim of circumstances.” She reminded herself.

“Joseph, please-
-be gentle with me tonight--please.”

“Of course baby, don’t I always?” He worked in a machine shop all the days of his life. He could easily
mistake skin for wood, as Joseph Gibson did not know how to be gentle.

She dropped the towel and lay on the bed, frontal up with her legs clasped. She had thought about tell
ing him a lie. That her period was two days in but that would have only given her a couple more days to breathe. She wasn’t planning on staying that long.

He removed the sheet and gently braced his body on top of he
r. He was cold, cold as the midnight air. It made her scared, fragile and unwilling to open up to him. His dick was hard and potent. The two blue pills he popped had started to sink in. The abrasive touches of it against her legs made her brace to a tense for the expected common pain she knew well.

“Kiss me Karla.” He requested, almost sounding like a demand.

“Joe, you know I don’t like kissing.”

“Ok, I know, never mind…”

He swirled his tongue in her right ear and suck on it, then caressed her neck and breast with his lips.

She closed her eyes and parted
her legs. He forced himself inside of her. It didn’t felt like rape. It was worst. She wished death up on herself. All that conjured in her head was a jockey riding a third place horse with a steel whip as the beast panted heavily and wailed at the heat of excruciating pain as the ground trembled beneath its iron shoes. The pain got worst as he fucked her. He fucked her to make up for all the days she was gone. She should have pushed him away, but instead she rubbed her clit and screamed to the ceiling at the top of her voice…

The pills wouldn’t wear off until another hour. So the poor girl searched for a peaceful memory and in it she numbed her mind and allowed her body to suffer.

“Good morning sunshine, are you up?” Joe asked.

“Yes, I am up.” She hasn’t slept.

“Last night was wonderful.
Any chance of us having a go at it before I leave for work?”

“Jo
e, I am exhausted, please no.” She begged. Her body was still in pain. Her mind was still suffering from grief and the agony of misery and deception.

“Ok, never mind…however I want to ask you something Karla.”

“Go ahead Joe.”

“Turn around Karla, look at me.”

She dried her tears with the pillowcase and did as she was told.

“Yes Joe?”

“Last night, when we were making love…several times I heard you called me John…who is John Karla?”

“I am sorry, I didn’t realize, I guess I was too far away.”

“You were enjoying it weren’t you?” He flattered.

“Yes I was. You were great. I meant to say Joe. I am sorry ok?”

“Ok, it’s no big deal, John and Joe are very close names. If you had called me something like Alex or Peter then we would have a problem.”

She smiled. “That was close,” She
thought. “It must have been when the memories of me and John at lovers leap surfaced.”

“
Sweetie I have a lot of work to do at the shop, I’ll see you for lunch.”

“Ok…see you later.”

“By the way Karla, I transferred the funds for your tuition and car yesterday. I hope it makes you happy.”

“Aww
thanks Joseph. I appreciate it.”

“Yeah
, you’re welcome, see you later.”

“Later Joe.”

For the pain she suffered and for sacrificing John’s love and loyalty. A car and tuition money was her only consolation. Only if she knew before yesterday that there was nothing material in this world that could be substituted for love.

Chapter 11

The
drizzle started hitting the roof at four sixteen Am. John new the exact time it started as he had given up sleep for the night to unravel the mystery of the glow in the dark clock on the wall. It was nine thirty five and the omnipresence of the rain had brought with it a cold and sinister connotation with it.

“Mom, can I borrow your car please?”

John’s mother was drinking a cup of coffee while watching the rain battered her garden flowers from the kitchen window.

“You realize that
it’s raining cats and dogs right?” She replied with a loud negative tone.

“I have something important that I need to see to in
Mahogany Hall.” He begged, “I won’t take long, please…”

“No!” That was her final answer. Arguing with her decisions
was always a waste of time. However, neither that nor the wretched rain would stop him from finding out if the love he had was real and so he walked to the house in a raincoat and boots.

There were chains and a padlock on the door of the store. The house seemed abandon
ed. He saw from the patio that Karla Steelburg frontal window was still open and when he approached the steps he heard the radio in her room. He smiled.

“Thank you God. Sh
e is here.” He relieved and rushed to knock on the door. He knocked three more times, but still no answer. “She must be stead asleep” He thought. He then dialed her number, it rang three times, and then she answered.

“Hello.”

“I am outside your door. Let me in love.”

“John…I am in Montego Bay.”

“You-you left?” He stuttered. The rain came down harder and the frequency of it sounding on the roof was greater than the rush of blood through his veins. He shattered into a complete nervous wreck in less than a minute.

“I am sorry John. I had no choice.”

“I am tired of your excuses Karla. Goodbye. It’s over!” John shouted in a stern yet pain staking voice.

“No John
wait!!” She uttered in a breath of hopeless desperation, “You can’t leave me!”

Joseph was sure to hear her from down stairs.

“I am tired of this Karla. I have waited for you…faithfully! This is what I get in return! Oh my God, I am such a fool to have trusted you and loved you at that. What was I thinking?”

“John
please…”

“Karla
give me one reason! Just one reason I should go on with this.” John demanded. As far as he knew it was over, that’s all he would give. That’s all he had.

“JOHN…I-AM-
PREGNANT”

The phone fell and shattered…
dumbstruck.

“Hello…Hello…John! Hello…
Hello!”

   
“Who were you on the phone with just now?” Joseph yelled as he thrust into the room. Obviously angered by the utterances he heard from downstairs.

She looked into his eyes cold and hard. Sh
e was certain he heard her yell John’s name this time. A lie wouldn’t fit and a sorry would be too late.

“
Ahh, Joseph Gibson. I can’t do this anymore…”

“Do what anymore!” He demanded answers, but sometimes
it’s better not to know.

“The pretense
.” She proclaimed, “I never loved you Joe. It’s over. Please take me home now.”

“You-
-You’re not serious! This is a joke isn’t it?” He tried to console himself, making every effort to hide the sudden devastation that was crippling his sanity, “We have not had any problems in God knows when. No arguments, no fights--nothing. Is it something I did Karla?”

“No! No Joseph,
it’s not about you.” She reiterated, “Please just take me home.”

“Ok Karla,
I’ll take you home. I’ll do whatever you want. Just let us talk this out.”

She hurriedly fetched her stuff from the drawers to her suitcases. Being neat was a needless priority.

“There is nothing to talk about Joe.”

“
I’ll be waiting in the car.” He went out the room and on closing the door he realized how badly his fingers were shivering. It was a mere glance of how his heart was shaking.

“Affairs of the heart or maybe another midlife crisis….Oh God please help me.”

Chapter 12

The
sun receded half of an hour earlier this evening and as a result seven o’clock was darker than usual. Joseph and Karla arrived at the driveway of the store in Mahogany Hall. Joseph stood and watched her hastily fetched her clothes from the trunk of the car. But what much is left to say to convince the one you love to let reason to live last, even for a little bit longer.

“I am staying the night.” Joe gave out.

“No! One night won’t change a thing.” She frankly replied and grabbed two of the suitcases to the steps of the house.

“Karla, what happened?” Andre
w greeted her at the steps, apparently perplexed at the unfolding precedence. He asked. “Did you and Joe break up?”

“Yes, long story. Please get my other suitcase from the car.”

On walking to the car he saw John making his way from the grave approaching Karla at the steps.

“I didn’t know you were here.” He uttered at John.

“I never left!” John said out loud in his reply and Karla Steelburg knew he was alluding to her.

She turned and walked up to him. She wanted to touch his f
ace and tell him how sorry she was for hurting him, but her hands wouldn’t surrender and her voice had forsaken her long ago. Tears fell from her eyes and damped her cheeks. Sentiments shared, but he refrained from crying. Instead his heart bled from the deeply cut wound.

“Hello Karla.” A light, mystical and smooth smile stretched to his dimples. The chemistry rippled her face and refracted a smile that radiated the night and soothed the suffocating tension.

She thrust onto him with clasping arms, and he welcomed her without second thought.

“I don’t know how to say I am sorry.” She cried.

“You don’t have to…Your having my baby.”

“I love you so
much.”

“That’s all I needed to know.” John assured.

“John…”

“Yes?”

“I am keeping the baby.”

“Of course, I want you to
sweetie.”

“I am happy that we are having this baby. Besides I couldn’t go through that pain again.”

“Everything is going to be ok Karla…I promise.”

“
Ahh John…Joe and Andrew are walking this way.”

“I am through hiding. I had enough.” John proclaimed.

“So have I.”

“What is going on
here?” Andrew yelled, furious at the sight of his little sister and cousin in a compassionate embrace, “You two are cousins, my God!!”

“We are much more than cousins Andre
w.” John responded boldly.

“You must have lost your fucking mind!” Andre
w cursed in an enraged voice as he stepped to his face with clinched-tight fists, “What the fuck are you trying to say!”

“Andre
w please, leave him alone.” She cried and eased him away from John.

“So this is the reprobate you dumped me for!!” Joe fired at Karla in the midst of the screa
ming intensity, “You witch! You took my money and dumped me for your fucking cousin!!”

“If I am a reprobate,
I’m sure that makes you a pedophile! As a matter of fact, fuck you!”

“Joe I respect you, but refrai
n from calling my sister names.” Andrew demanded as he pointed to his face.

“First of all, I am not a witch
. Secondly, I didn’t take your money. You gave it to me. Now leave me alone for Christ sake, Leave!!” She commanded.