~Alisa~

_A glitch in our bond. Was that all it took for you to throw me out like garbage? Cause I was starting to think you were worth more than the entire stars combined _

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"I can't believe she never told me. I mean, she never told ME" he murmured to himself and I fought the urge to snort.

"How depressing!" I muttered and he chuckled at the level of sarcasm reeking from my voice.

We'd been sitting on my window pavement, legs kicking to and fro, and watching as the stars winked down at us.

Bewitching.

They were bewitching, yet I didn't have the time to savor their beauty. I was too worried to even care.

I waited for him to say something, but it seemed like he didn't have anything to say to me. He simply stared at the starry skies and hummed to a song which I didn't know.

At times, I'd make up stupid stories, just to get my mind off moments like these. For instance;

I'd always had a dream, when my knight in shining armor sweeps me off my feet and we would fly to Jupiter and ride on the milky way: anything to flee from the reality of this cruel world. We'd surf through the galaxies, and journey through crazy dimensions - hand in hand. Those dreams were filled with a lot of wanderlust and it hurt cause they were only mere fictional dreams that'll never happen. I mean, friggin Jupiter? The milky way? What?!

Fictional, people! Wake up, Lisa!
Stick with me, woman!

"I'm bored" Dub suddenly announced and I turned to give him a look which had disbelief sewn to it.

"Seriously? Now's the time for that? You don't feel the tension I feel?" I asked, wide-eyed. "I'm literally having an internal meltdown and here you are; not caring. Jeez! And I thought I was the insensitive one!" I further said, and he replied with a shrug, and continued staring at the skies.

"I can't think of anything to fix the problem you both have. Sometimes, when life gives you lemons; make lemonade" he said and I let his words sink in. I got his point, and I understood his reason for haven said that, yet I couldn't count on that.

Lemons? Lemonade? Guy, I need actual advice and not a refreshing drink!

"How?" I murmured my question.

"Hmm?" He finally turned to look at me, his brown orbs seemed to sparkle from the night sky and moonlight.

"I meant, how do I make lemonade?" I asked and he erupted with laughter.

"I didn't mean actual lemonade. It's a saying, dummy!" He laughed again and I huffed and gave him the finger.

"I know that, arse clown! I meant, how do I make things better? Jeez! You're dumber than you look" I rolled my eyes again and he chuckled.

"Well... I don't know how exactly you could actually do that. But I'm sure you'll figure it out" he shrugged and I facepalmed. "Oh, and feel free to marvel at my truth bomb. Don't worry, I won't brag about it" he said, and winked. I, on the other hand, gave an everlasting hiss.

Dweeb!

"Wow! What a pep talk!" My words weighed a lot of sarcasm in them. In reply, he laughed and continued staring up at the sky.

A comfortable silence filled us both, and it seemed like we were both lost on our individual planets. I seemed to be in Jupiter, while he seemed to be in Mars.

"Ever stargaze?" He suddenly asked, and I nodded in reply.

"A lot"

"Then, you should also know this; when it's dark we all need to search for the stars. They're tiny, and minute, yet they radiate an amazing amount of light that seems to sparkle and shimmer. They just seem to lure you in, capture your attention and—"

"Get to the point, poet!" I snorted, cutting him off, and he rolled his eyes and continued.

"—You, Alisa, should learn from that. When I feel depressed, I stargaze. It reminds me that no matter what, whether during thunderstorms or night time; they'll always be light.

"For instance, when it's nighttime; we see the stars. When they're thunderstorms, then they'll be rainbows at the end. And when it's cloudy,surely the sun will come out, eventually. All these things mean that no matter what happens, the bad shall pass and the good shall come. It only takes time, and patience" he smiled at me afterwards, and I literally gaped at him.

Who knew he could be wise?

"Wow!" I breathed out, fascinated by his words. "I never would've guessed that you had some wisdom in you. That was - that was deep!" I smiled at him and he shrugged. "Thank you" a smile lined on my lips, and he nodded in acknowledgement.

"You're welcome, chica!" he beamed at me, and we sat - once again - in a comfortable silence.

When it seemed like the sky began to darken more and more, he finally rose on his feet, and bade me goodbye. I felt a little sad that he was leaving, but I was mostly grateful that he came. His words; repeatedly rang in my ears. They were solid piece of advice. And I was sure to adhere to them.

But how do I find the stars in my situation? They just seem to be ignoring me.

Slowly, my eyes travelled to the sky once more, and I watched as the stars twinkled in the sky. He was right... And all needed; was a little positivity.

* * *

At dinner, we all had gathered round the dinning table - as usual - and the atmosphere seemed a lot eery, given that no one had anything to say and seemed to be having their individual thoughts. I, on the other hand, hoped to hurriedly evacuate the dinning room. I felt a lot suffocated. Reason being the fact that Kambili sat across from me, and still refused sparing me a glance. And everyone else in the room, seemed to have a secret that they weren't willing to share. A secret that could possibly ruin everything. And perhaps, everyone.

"Kambili" Mr. Ekwegh suddenly called out, and Kambili reluctantly glanced at him.

"Yes, dad?" She replied, looking as emotionless as ever.

"Why didn't you go to school today?" The minute the question flew out of his mouth, Kambili dropped her fork abruptly and gritted her teeth.

"I'm talking to you" her father said, yet she didn't say a thing.

"Kambili!" He yelled at her, and she finally turned to look at him. Her eyes read raw rage, and they spat venom at him.

"I wonder why you're asking!" She yelled in anger. "Like you don't already know the answer to that. After conspiring with this she-devil here—"

"Kambili! Will you shut that pit of yours?! She's your mother!" Her father yelled, and she scowled. Her eyes travelled to Mrs. Ekwegh, and she eyed her in disgust.

"SHE IS NOT MY MOTHER, AND WILL NEVER BE! I'd rather call a demon my mother, than to refer to her as one! She's worse than the devil himself!" Kambili yelled.

"Kambili! Shut up! Just shut the hell up!" Mr. Ekwegh yelled, yet she ignored him and continued talking.

"It's the truth, dad. And you can't change that" she said, ignoring the warning glare from her father. "No thanks to her, you blindly listened to her venomous words and sent your own son away. Do you think that'll fix this problem we have? This problem he has? Do you think that'll make him trust you? Or learn to heal from what you and your mistress did? Do you?!" She had a pained expression on her face, like she was battling with her tears. "Dad, at first, I thought that history would make you fully know how to rectify your mistakes. But now I know I was wrong. Instead of correcting them, you're trying to shield them and keep them hidden," She shook her head in pity.

"Kamsi will never learn to see you the same way ever again. He'll never learn to respect you, and neither will I. Initially, I chose to forgive you and try to act like it never happened, but now? Now I'm done pretending. I'm tired of lying to myself, dad! You've failed as a husband, and as a father to us both!" she gritted her teeth at him, and he abruptly got up from his chair and slammed his fist on the table.

"Kambili! To your room! Now!" He yelled, his eyes were still rooted to the mahogany table, and his fist was still rooted to the table as well.

"Why?! So you can keep the truth hidden as well?! So you can get rid of the naked truth again?!" She yelled back, an irritated look on her face. "Not only did you betray mom, you went ahead and married her twin! And news flash, you had an affair with her twin before she died... And when this woman killed her, you hurriedly went ahead to marry her!" Kambili yelled at her father, who seemed to be shaken by his rising anger. "It makes me want to think that this was all planned, and you meant for her to die! You—"

"KAMBILI! Shut up right now! To your room, right this instant!" He roared at her, his fist was clenched so tight that his knuckles were almost plain white.

"No! You can't change what happened, dad! And soon, Alisa will also know who the both of you really are. I still wish she were wiser, but still, time will tell" she finally glanced at me, and eyed me in the disgust as well.

"I married your aunt because I didn't want you and your brother to feel the void of not having a mother!" Mr. Ekwegh yelled at her, his eyes had already reddened over time and his voice had anger knitted in it.

"And she was the only woman left on this planet Earth?! Dad, please... Enough of your lies!" Kambili yelled back, her voice: louder than her father's. And hers was much more fiercer, and had a lot of bitterness edged to it. "You're all blind! It seems like I'm the only one in this house who's able to see through all the fakes and lousy lies placed and painted right in your faces... No thanks to her" with disgust, she eyed Mrs. Ekwegh - who had been sitting beside her husband, with a pained expression on her face and glassy eyes.

"You all sicken me! Every one of you!" And with that, she raced upstairs in a fit of rage.

What was that all about?

I was surprised that her father didn't hit her all the while she yelled at him so carelessly. And after their showdown, the tension which hung on the atmosphere, made me shiver. I couldn't keep eating, cause I'd long lost my appetite.

Mr. Ekwegh still had his fist and eyes rooted to the table, while Mrs. Ekwegh had tears in her eyes. I stared at the both of them in confusion. More and more, I kept having doubts about the two. These days, I found it hard to even believe that they're good people. With Kambili's constant allegations, and with the few information I was slowly trying to gather, I really wondered why they seemed to have skeletons hidden in their cupboards.

Who really are these people? And what if they actually murdered the real Mrs. Ekwegh intentionally? What if their stupid affair wasn't a mistake?

... And what if Mrs. Ekwegh is really the villain? What if she actually lied to me?

As these questions kept popping into my head, I felt like my head weighed a ton. Hurriedly, I got up from the table; ready to leave.

"Wait," Mr. Ekwegh called out, and I felt a lump form in my throat. I suddenly stopped, and fought the urge to run. "I need you to talk to Kambili. I don't know what has gotten into my daughter" he told me, and I slowly turned to look at him.

He looked drained, and seemed to be fighting the tears that welled up in his eyes. His shoulders were trembling, and he refused looking up at me. Which was good, cause I didn't want to have to face him. Eyeball-to-eyeball. Hurtsoul-to-hurtsoul.

Never have I seen a man as broken and hurt as him.

"Sir, I wish I could help. But I can't" I replied. I didn't want to be dragged into any of this. It was their personal issue, and I only started living here a few weeks ago. Barely a month. I just didn't want to get involved in their too many problems.

"Why?" He asked, his voice weighed a lot of anger and sadness, so much that it came out shaky and croaky, and I tried speaking past the large lump in my throat.

"Because Kambili is mad at me as well" I replied. A brief silence hung above us all, and I finally decided to break the ice. Meanwhile, Mrs. Ekwegh sat; letting out all her tears with quiet sobs.

"Sir? I'd really like to make a suggestion" I said, and he nodded.

"Go ahead" he replied, his face held low, and I drew in a shape breath and finally spoke up again.

"Sir, I really think it'd be best if Kamsi comes home. I get Kambili's anger towards you. She feels sending her brother away won't ease the tension between you all; which is very true. The boy needs to learn to trust you. He needs to heal, and sending him away is not a way of helping him. It'll only make him hate you. He'd feel like you're getting rid of him. It'd make him feel like you're treating him like a problem, like someone you aren't happy about. It'd make him feel unwanted.

"A person like Kamsi, needs all the love he can get. The love, most especially, from his family. His mother may be no more, but you aren't. You're still here, and you can still bridge that gap between you both. The gap between him and the rest of this family... And you can do same for Kambili too. I understand that I only got here a few months ago, and it's not in my place to say anything concerning this issue, but I also know that what I am saying is right. I don't really know what turned Kamsi into what he has become, but I really hope that you try to fix this misunderstanding he has of you all... You especially.

"Maybe Kamsi needs therapy. I'm not saying he's mad - please don't think that, sir - but I just think he's depressed, and that isn't healthy, especially for a teenager like himself. Sir, with all due respect, I believe that your action of sending him away was cowardly. Pardon me for my choice of words, sir... But it's true. Kamsi does not deserve that treatment. It's not his fault, and I'm not saying it's yours either. All I'm saying, is that he doesn't have to pay for something he never caused for himself. He needs help" I stopped, and noticed that the both of them were listening attentively. I was afraid that he'd be mad at me, and even ask that I pack my belongings and leave his house; for poke-nosing into matters that didn't concern me,  but that didn't seem to be the case. Instead, he listened; patiently.

"I understand, Alisa. And if you could just talk to Kambili for me, I'd really appreciate it" he finally said, after a moment of silence. "But Kamsi will not come home, yet. I have my reasons" he said, and I felt my heart sink. Although I wanted to oppose, I didn't cause I was in no place to do that. I'd tried my best, and as Kamsi's father, he knew what would be best for him.

"Of course, sir. I'll try my best to talk to Kambili. Goodnight, sir. Goodnight, ma" and with that, he excused me and I fled to my room. Hoping, and praying, to not be disturbed by any other form of drama that maybe stirring up slowly.

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Somebody say; draaa-maaaahhhh!!!😂
Boys are not smiling oh, girls are boning.

I'm so sorry for waiting till this long to update. School has been taking a lot of my time, and my data subscription finished. This chapter was ready as of Saturday, but I couldn't update cause my data had finished. Fortunately, the chapter is finally here. Please don't forget to comment and please vote... *Taps chin* I wonder who your favorite character is so far. Please tell me(◠‿◕)

Kamsi: *eyes me, hisses, gives me the finger and slams door in my face*

Kambili: whatever, dude *walks away*.

Alisa: *covers her entire body with duvet* nothing like privacy here?!

Mr. Ekwegh: *snorts at me* thanks for making my daughter and I have an argument... Nonsense! *Eyes me*

Mrs. Ekwegh: *still crying* I don't even know who I am anymore!

Dub: *whistles while stargazing* this life, I can't kill myself... I can't kill myself oohhh! Allow me to flex, allow me to flex oohhh!

Me: *shrugs and stares at the readers* y'all seeing the rage in these peeps?😂
Seriously, I'm in danger here! *Runs to Canada by foot*😂💔

Anywho, just wanted to show you all what's going on with our characters. Please comment who you love most, or your favorite characters.

Next update: Whenever the God of data answers my call🙁
(Omini mistaken data transfer, Baba it's not too late to answer this call)❤️

Love you guys!❤️❤️❤️
Bye!💜