CHAPTER 3

He went out and called Martin when he told him that he was home, he hurried there, he needed to distract his mind so he thought of convincing Martin to gout clubbing with him till late in the evening but he knew it would not be easy since his friend did not like noisy places, he preferred drinking in his house. He drove to his friend's house within 45 minutes, when he got there, Martin was already out tending to his flower bed. He saw Harrison drive in and walked up to him, they exchanged greetings and went into the house, Martin offered his friend a cup of coffee since he did not like tea, only coffee would be available at his house. Harrison slammed on the sofa and heaved a long sigh, then took the coffee, it would for sure do him some good, he took a few sips and placed the cup on the coffee table, he looked stressed up. Martin asked if the matter was related to the newfound girl. Harrison stared at him without saying anything, I mean what else would make him look so helpless if not her? He didn't have to answer that since his friend had already figured it out. So Martin went ahead to ask if something had happened. Harrison was confused, whatever had happened did not come from Susan but it was very much related to her. He told him what the little girl had said in the morning, Martin was also surprised at the guts but then he smiled at that. He said that he would like to meet this charming woman that is charming even the little girl. Harrison felt that his friend was not helping so he decided to ask him what he thought he should do, Martin seemed to be contemplating something but knowing him well, Harrison could tell that he was not serious, he told him to embrace the feelings since it was not something he could control. Harrison was more confused, he knew he would not control the overflowing emotions and at the same time, he did not want to acknowledge them at this particular moment. What he was interested in was doing something to make him better to be able to handle the relationship, again Martin suggested that he should go for counseling, which did not sit well with him, he was used to people sharing their problems with him and not the other way round. To this point, he thought of all possibilities but since he was determined he decided to look for someone who did not know him, or his identity and share his predicament to see if he can be helped, that idea sounded good to both of them, he decided to do that when he went back to work, he would be setting aside some time for sessions. With that settled they switched into a better mood, Martin liked cooking and Harrison hated even going to the kitchen, so Martin decided to make lunch for them both. He went to his neat kitchen and started getting everything ready from the vegetables and everything he needed. Within an hour, the meal was ready, they ate while watching sports highlights on the tv. After lunch, they went out to watch a live game that was happening at the stadium after which as he had planned, Harrison suggested that they should go and have a few drinks but Martin was against that, he rather told him they would better go back to his house since there were drinks there, Harrison could not listen to him. With his insistence, Martin had to give him a go to the nearby club, which was bustling with activities since it was on the weekend. The music was round and people were all over singing and dancing while others were just enjoying their drinks while watching the others dance. Martin sought a corner that was not much crowded and they went and sat over there, they ordered a few drinks and started drinking, Martin was sipping leisurely while Harrison was gulping down glass after glass, Martin understood him so he watched him drain his sorrows. When Martin realizes that it was getting very late, Harrison was already so drunk that he could not walk by himself, so he held him by the side and they left for his home, Harrison was not a heavy drinker he only did when something was greatly disturbing him, with this understanding, Martin could not send him back home to keep his family from worrying, instead they got back to his house.

Back home Makena realized that her brother had not come back home yet he does not stay out late and if he does, he would at least call home but he has not contacted anyone, she was worried that something might happen to him, she has tried contacting him several times but he has not been picking her calls, she thought of where he might have gone but she had no idea since he did not tell anyone when he left in the morning. She tried calling him again and again but to no avail. Susan was equally worried but she could do nothing. She thought of his friends and settled on calling his best friend, Martin, it was late but she knew he might not be sleeping since it was the weekend so she called him. Martin was busy dragging Harrison out of the car to the house when his phone started ringing, he wondered who would be calling him that late, he decided to get Harrison to the sitting room before picking the core, it kept ringing continuously that he almost thought it was an emergency he got to the door and decided to check who was calling. He was not surprised when he saw it was Makena, he knew she was always worried about her brother, he knew she was calling to ask if he was with him, so he picked up the call and answered, 'Hey Makena' BUT SHE WENT STRAIGHT TO THE POINT. Hey, Martin, are you with my brother? Martin told her that she doesn't have to worry, Harrison was at his house and he was perfectly fine. Makena was not convinced so she asked why he was not picking up her calls, Martin told him that he had decided to spend the night and left his phone charging in the sitting room since he slept early. She was not convinced but then she knew that Martin would not lie at her for such a thing. She felt a little at ease and told Susan that he was okay and they should go back and sleep. Her little sister had been waiting for Harrison to come back and bring her something but he did not, so she waited late, she overheard her sister speaking on the phone. She came out slowly and approached Makena, she was startled since she did not expect her to be awake at this hour. her eyes turned red as she told Makena what she had said to Harrison in the morning, she felt bad and started sobbing, she then asked Makena if that was the reason their brother refused to come back home. Makena did not think that would be enough reason for him to stay out, so she comforted her and assured her that it was because of other issues that he had stayed out to cater for. She believed her and went back to sleep. That was not before Makena warned her to think of what she said to him since he is her elder thus she needed to respect him greatly. She gently nodded, hugged her sister, and went back to her room to catch some sleep. Same case Makena and Susan went back to their respective rooms to sleep, each with a different train of thought. no one knew what the other was thinking about. therefore knowing they had to get back to work they went to sleep.

Makena and Susan went back to school, Susan was not happy that she would not see Harrison before leaving but then she had no other choice so she left. She had realized from the way he looked at her, he might like her too but then she was not sure, but with that assumption, she was a little happy, she did not feel so bad, and she went ahead with her daily routine, to and from school, In school she had already become the favorite for some children who liked her teaching and the fact that she was nice to them made them love her more, some even called her pretty teacher Susan but they feared to say it loud with the fear of offending their teacher, she taught them well, gave them assignments and checked them all when done to make sure no student was left behind. Susan also got along well with other teachers apart from the few jealous ladies and those who felt threatened by her beauty and also her brains, she did not mind them since she knew that not everyone was entitled to like her, and haters too have their chances. Susan was missing Harrison greatly and had visited his house twice already, she did not want to seem nagging or something like that so she decided not to go there this weekend, again she thought that since she felt as if Harrison would like her too, maybe he would find a way of contacting her, She found Makena and told her what was on her mind but then Makena told her that she had to go home for the weekend since it would be the last weekend Harrison would be home before he goes back to work .he was on annual leave and she had to say goodbye to her brother before he left. With this new information, Susan knew that if she didn't see him then she would miss him greatly once he left. Yet they had not even gotten into speaking terms such that she would contact him while he was away, she was in distress, what would she do, would she miss the opportunity to see him now and keep missing him for long? She felt that she would feel bad when she saw him leaving but on the other end, she would feel even worse if she didn't see him off even though in silence. She took her time to think of what she would do, Makena had expected her to go since she did not know when next she would see him but to her surprise, Susan looked at her firmly and said that she would not be going with her this weekend. Makena asked her if there was any problem but she said that it was just that she would feel bad to see him leave, she seemed to understand and nodded. Susan could not tell her what was on her mind the fact that she thought she should not go there because she thought that he liked her too and would not leave just like that, so she expected if he had a liking of her, he would look for her before leaving, if not she would know that his look meant something else. Her expectations were great, she waited for the weekend to see what happens, whatever would happen would leave a mark on her heart, whether positive or negative.

When the weekend came, Makena got ready to go home, she knew she would miss her brother so she could not afford not to see him off. When she was done she went to Susan to ask if maybe she had changed her mind about going home with her, Susan was very firm with her no, Makena had no otherwise so she left. Susan knew that she would be bored throughout the weekend since she was not used to being alone but she did not want to change her mind. She was testing the waters. After Makena left she decided to take a walk down the highway, she met several guys who tried hitting on her but she dismissed them all at first glance, her mind was so much filled with Harrison that she did not have the time to look at others. She went back home after an hour and made herself some mashed potatoes and peas for supper. She had no appetite for eating alone so she ate a small portion before going to bed, Susan was getting so bored s he had her phone but was not used to chatting she did not have many friends. She was just staring at her phone and then she thought of texting Makena to know if she got home as well as to ask about Harrison's whereabouts. Makena was quick to reply and said that everything was okay at home, she told her that her little sister asked why she did not go with her and she gave her an excuse. She also told her of the funny expression she saw on Harrison's face when he was looking behind her, maybe checking if she had come along only to be disappointed but then he hid his disappointment and did not dare to ask. At that, Susan was grinning widely reassuring herself that maybe he would look for her before he left. After the chatting, they said goodnight and Susan slept with a contented smile on her face. The next day, she woke up earlier than usual, made her bed, freshened up, and went to make her breakfast after which she started doing some cleaning around her compound. All the while her mind was somewhere else, she was nervous and was asking herself, what if he doesn't look for her, what will happen, but she quickly dismissed the idea and continued with what she was doing, the morning ended and the afternoon came, she was becoming very restless while waiting for something she was not sure would happen. When she realized it was three pm she decided to ask Makena if Harrison was yet to leave, she was taken by surprise when she heard that he had left a while ago without minding her. All her hopes were shattered at that moment, she did not know when tears found their way out, but she was crying while staring at nothing in particular. She regretted not following Makena but again it was also good she knew he did not think of her so she would try forgetting about him if that was even possible, she felt dispirited and did not realize when she slept while crying. That was it, he left without seeing her.