A soap opera was playing on the television about women fighting over a designer purse, that was as far as I watched it at least, I wasn't paying attention. Amy was snoring halfway and Alatha was doing pushups beside the bed.

Two hours had passed since I sent the message to my mom, but she hadn't replied. It wasn't like her; moreover, she had told me she got the day off. Frankly, it made me worry.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Alatha spoke.

I put my phone down and turned to her. "About what?" I asked quizzically. In truth, I was nervous at the thought that maybe she did see my message about Alfie.

Faint lines appeared on her forehead. "About what happened at HEROIN."

When she said those words, somehow a tiny bit of the impediment was lifted off my shoulder. She was the least of my problems now.

I replied slowly, "They would escort me back early tomorrow."

Her lips parted to speak, but I could guess what she was about to say, so I interrupted her. "It's about my pod."

Releasing a heavy breath, Alatha stood up. The illuminating light above her head underlined her bulging muscles after the intense pressure she placed on them.

"Charis, you know you can tell me anything, right?" Her eyebrows knitted together, flickering a look of disappointment. "I am your best friend. Don't you trust me?"

That query piqued my mind. I used to trust her; nonetheless, I still trusted her but not when it came to pod men. I remembered how she distasted her own like its life didn't worth sympathy.

"I do trust you."

"Then what's with your pod? What's with the frown?" she exhorted.

"I just told you everything. There's no more of it that I know, " I emphasised.

The answer was the same as me telling myself of the still precarious situation; HEROIN shady agendas. What made it so important for them to rush me that they couldn't even wait for me to finish the field trip?

"Charis, I may disappoint you at some point. But I care about you." She sat on the bed, and slowly closing in the distance between us. "I care about you so much, " she reiterated.

There was something odd about the way she looked at me. I wanted to reverse, but my back was already leaning on the bed frame. Hence, I remained motionless at my post.

"I love you, Charis..."

For a while, I just stared at her, confused with the statement. And her eyes met mine, conveying something peculiar. But I couldn't take the awkward silence anymore and shifted the other way.

"You know I love you too. You are like family to me," I stated.

I heard a sigh coming from her, following it was a gentle touch on my shoulder. "You don't understand, Charis. I love you more than that. I always have."

After uttering those words, she didn't wait for my response. By the time I turned my head, the room's door clicked shut. She was consumed by the other side of the wall; a separation set to avoid my answer.

***

I looked outside at the same view that I had seen the day before, but sitting in a different vehicle, and going towards the opposite direction; to my home. The two escorts sitting in front didn't make a sound at all after their general briefing about my rights for toilet stops. There were a packed chicken salad and a bottle of water placed in the car ready for me too.

What am I, a convict?

Under the silence, my mind drifted to Alatha. Things got complicated between us. I should have seen it coming; of her having feelings for me. But I was too ignorant or deep down I chose not to realise it. After her confession, she never returned to our room. If there were things to be said, it was too late since our meeting at the lobby were attended by HEROIN.

Truthfully, I felt terrible that we part ways unsettled, but it was for the best. Feelings weren't entirely the issue, but being close to me would only drag her into my problem. And the fact that I was leaving would only hurt her more. Even though the idea of vacating the district was still unclear, my mind was set that it had to be done. No matter what the cause.

For the umpteenth time, my hand gripped my phone. My eyes stared at the empty screen, picturing each letter of the last message my mother had sent.

It's going to be okay. Trust me.

However, I couldn't disembark the unease no matter how hard I tried. I compiled so many speculations of what they were planning to do, and thinking about it kept me up all night.

"Miss, you know how special you are? You got me working on my day off..."

Suddenly the driver talked, her sarcasm shattered my pondering. I saw her looking at me through the rearview mirror, with disdain smothered on her face.

I wanted to stay quiet and ignore her. But I couldn't. "Why?" The word made a successful escape from my mouth.

The two glanced at each other then turned their head back to the road and decided to ignore me. I wanted to yell at them and demanded an answer for the treatment I was going through. But I was afraid that it might make the situation worse. So I had no choice than to keep all the idea cooped up inside.

Time seemed to move quicker as it envied my peace. The sky was still bright when my house came to view. My heart was pounding in frantic when the car parked in my front yard.

"Show us where you plant it."

At last, the second escort broke her silent charade, her voice was surprisingly soft, but her question still gave me all the wrong feelings. I was procrastinating; acting dazed.

Sadly, I was out of the frying pan, into the fire when the driver made her turn to speak.

"WHERE IS THE POD!" She bellowed.

It was clear evidence that she wasn't in a good mood by what she mentioned earlier, and she was losing her patience. The soft voice woman gave her a stern look before turning to me.

"Honey, we only want to check on the pod. We won't take much of your time, " she said calmly. An awkward looking smile appeared on her lips, the kind that looked like it was forced.

I didn't know what to do; even the oxygen around me seemed to deter because of the tension. Thankfully, I saw my mother walking out of the house. Both women tailed my line of sight and concurrently stepped out of the car.

When I tried to open the door, it wouldn't budge, it was under child lock. Probably they forgot about me and sauntered inside following my mother. I scrambled to find the right unlock button. Once I finally freed myself from the car, I frantically ran towards my backyard, dropping my bag in the kitchen.

I thought they would be there, inspecting my shed, but they weren't. When I turned around, I saw the driver carrying something. It was wrapped with my bedsheet. My feet stopped moving at the backdoor entryway as I watched the scene happening in front of me.

Failing to abstain the dubious thought, I tailed to the front door. My eyes widened when the sheet swiped aside slightly, revealing strands of hair. Like a hit, my knees buckled.

The car dashed away quicker than me landing on the floor. My hand moved to my mouth, bracing my self for the incoming scream.

To be continued...

***

Thank you for reading. So guys, what do you think about this recent chapter?

Any theory of what is happening?