Chapter Forty-Eight
With a heavy heart, I spun around and went back to my room. My mind was going all over the place.
It was Blake who told my brother about it? Why would he do that? Well, he always seemed to feed on my misery but this time he went far too ahead. And this baby? Was I that sure that I wanted to keep this baby? I mean I knew that I had come to a decision and even told Shirley about it but still. And my brother ... he was still visiting my school grounds in search of me. Hoping that I would return from my hideout so that he will catch me. His random visits to my dormitory and school means that I could not return to my school. What was I going to do now? What should I do?
"Who was she?" I was startled by the sudden voice that pulled me back from my haze. Looking over my shoulder I saw Nelson standing in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe. His hands were in his pockets and he was staring me down with one of his most serious looks.
I sighed.
How long was I going to go on like this? How long was I going to lie to him like this? It did not feel right. He let me stay here even though my other story was just as screwed up as this one. The only difference was that in my real story there was someone who looked after me- Shirley. And now, we have come long after our formalities. Now that Shirley knows where I live, I think it was safe for me to tell him.
I had to tell him everything. There was no point in keeping him in the dark. Because if I took much time it would be like betraying him. I still betrayed him by lying to him but if I took my time in telling him the damage would be too much to handle.
I turned around and faced Nelson. With a slumped shoulder and a racing heart, I gathered all my courage.
"I lied to you." I began with the main truth.
Forehead creasing, Nelson looked at me. "What?" He said.
"I lied to you." I repeated myself. Taking a pause to let it sink in him, what I was trying to tell him. After the initial shock, Nelson's face became neutral.
"About what?" He asked.
Here it was. Here came the truth. "About everything." I told him.
"Just listen carefully." And then I told him. Everything. About my situation, about what happened to me to ask him for his help, why I could not tell him because of safety reasons and coming up with a story. I told him all. I told him everything that he needed to hear. I did not hold any information back with him this time. How my current situation was a mess from my past. When I told him that I was pregnant, the shock on his face was so big that I almost laughed. Almost. I would have laughed if the situation was not so messy.
During our conversation, Nelson came and sat next to me and listened to all the explanations without interrupting. When I finished, he did not look at me. No, instead, he kept staring at the ground. After a minute or so, he spoke.
"Wow ... I knew there was something off about the story you told me but wow. I was not expecting this. Certainly not this." He muttered, almost to himself before he looked me directly in the eyes.
"So, you lied to me this whole time?" He asked me. I felt ashamed and guilty when he asked me that question like this.
With shame catching up to me, I bowed my head and answered him, "Yes." I knew I was at fault.
No matter what my situation was, I lied to him and that was wrong. Even though I knew that I chose this route again, if I had to face this situation, it was not right to take advantage of a good person like him. I should not. Nobody should, but my situation did not allow me to tell him the truth because it would mean laying down all my cards when I was in the most vulnerable position. And I had done it before with Mike, and as I knew the result was disastrous, to say the least.
"You should not have lied to me." I heard Nelson say to me and I felt even more bad, hearing the sincerity in his voice. Nelson was a good human from what I could tell and hearing him say it like this, I could not bear it.
"Yeah. I'm sorry for what I did to you. But don't worry. I will find another place to live. Now that you know the truth about me, you don't have to let me stay here. I will find another place to live for a short while." I told him. Finally raising my head to meet his eyes.
"You don't have to leave this place and move anywhere. I am just upset that you lied to me. Especially when I have been nothing but kind to you." He said. When I opened my mouth to explain, he stopped me.
"I knew you had a reason, and a good reason nonetheless. But still, it does not feel good to be taken for a fool." He told me. I stared at the ground.
"You don't have to move anywhere. You can continue living in this place. Your brother is still out there, looking for you. It's not safe." And with that, he sighed.
Rubbing his neck, he gave me a fleeting glance. "I would support you through all of this. Your pregnancy, your studies, everything. Your friend can keep coming here to visit her to meet you but there's one rule that you must follow." He told me.
With my heart in my neck and tears almost choking me, I asked him. "What is that?"
He gave me a half smile. "That you will never lie to me about anything, ever again." He said almost teasingly.
Without thinking, I flung myself on him and hugged him. I felt his shock, then his hesitation in returning the hug but when he finally did, I felt a wave of relief taking over me as if a glacier had broken inside me.
"Thank you, Nel. Thank you so much. You have helped me when I thought nobody would. Thank you for showing me that not all people are bad. Thank you." And with my mumbling, we remained like that and I suddenly realised that I just gave him a nickname, Nel.