Chapter 1
Tomika breathed in deeply as she walked in through the gate and moved over to the door of the pristine bungalow fit for a relatively comfortable family. She inhaled deeply and exhaled silently before knocking at the door.
''Get the door,'' Odessa said from the chair, she was watching a program on TV, her kids were both on their phones. ''Get the door, Nadia.''
''Ask Elias to do it,'' the girl responded.
''Elias, get the door,'' she turned to the boy.
''I'm... I'm coming,'' he said, still focused on his phone, he was playing a game.
There was another knock on the door and Odessa stood up, she sighed and went over to open it. ''Who is it?'' she asked as she flung open the door impatiently, she did not like to be disturbed whenever her favorite program was being aired.
''Hi,'' the girl said with courtesy.
''What is it?'' she replied, quite rudely.
''I was hoping to see dad,'' the young girl said. ''I have something very important to discuss with him.''
The woman looked at the girl suspiciously for a while, before opening the door wider and gesturing for her to go in.
''Oh look Elias, it's our dear little stepsister,'' Nadia said.
''Hi Nadia, Elias,'' she waved at them. Nadia's lips formed an inverted U in amusement, while Elias glanced at her briefly and returned his gaze back to his phone, none of them returned her greeting. She turned back to the woman. ''Um, where's dad?''
''He's at work,'' she said and returned back to her chair, focusing back on the TV. ''You can wait for him if you want,'' she said in dismissal.
Tomika took a seat on one of the chairs in the sitting room and waited nervously, she wasn't comfortable in such a setting, it felt like she was just imposing on them.
Tomika Gordon is a high school student, born to her mother months after her parents divorced. Right from the beginning of her life, the memory she had was that with her mother alone. Her father, for one reason or the other, was never present in her life even though he lived only a few distance away.
Tomika and her mother live in her father's other house at the edge of the city where her father is based. She has little or no knowledge of what might have transpired between her parents before she was born but like her mother tells her, she is also a Gordon and Felix Gordon is her father too.
''When will dad be back?'' she asked again, it was getting late.
''I don't know,'' Odessa replied sharply. ''Don't pester me, please,'' she said, still focused on the TV.
''It's because it's getting really late and I...''
''That's not my problem,'' she said with a tone of finality.
Tomika sighed deeply and fiddled with her nails for a while before resting back on the sofa. She had started dozing off before they heard the horn of a car at the gate and then the footsteps of the security man who went to open the gate for him.
She sat up on the chair as the car drove into the compound and a few moments later, her father walked into the house.
''Welcome, darling,'' Odessa went over to kiss him and take his briefcase.
''Hi dad,'' Nadia said. Elias had gone into his room earlier, to play his game without distractions.
''Hello,'' he smiled at her before noticing Tomika in the room.
''Good evening, dad,'' she stood up.
''What are you doing here?'' he asked, abruptly.
''I really need to talk to you, dad,'' she said.
''What for?'' he took a seat on the chair opposite her.
She lowered herself back to her seat. ''The school year is ending soon and my graduation is really close so I wanted to invite you,'' she said. ''And also um, about college, the general standardized entrance exam's organizing body increased the fee for the entrance examination this year, and they also placed a deadline for the payment,'' she explained. She and her mother had been preparing for her college application for a while but they didn't envisage an increase in the application fee. ''We're a little short and the deadline is in two days' time, so I was hoping you could help us with the remaining amount, it's about five thousand.''
He looked at her and scoffed. ''I don't have it.''
''Huh,'' she groaned. ''But can't you...''
''I said I don't have it,'' he said with a stern expression as if he was talking to a stranger, and then he stood up. ''Since you still have time before the deadline, you might be able to raise the balance,'' he stressed. ''And about your graduation, I don't think I can make the time.''
''But dad...'' she said.
He glanced at his wristwatch. ''It's really late,'' he said. ''Were you planning to spend the night here?''
''I've been here for a while, I didn't have the intention to sleep over,'' she said with a heavy sigh. ''I thought I'd meet you here.''
''Well, you can spend the night, I wouldn't want you thinking I'm callous or something,'' he said. ''You can stay in the guest room.''
''Honey,'' Odessa emerged from the kitchen. ''Dinner is ready,'' she smiled and then nudged Nadia. ''Get your brother,'' she said.
''Fine,'' she exasperated as she walked towards the corridor leading to Elias's bedroom.
''Come on,'' Felix said to Tomika.
''I'm okay,'' she said, trying hard not to break down in tears. Her hope had just been shattered and now he's inviting her to the dinner table as if he's doing her a favor. ''I'll just go to sleep so I can leave early.''
''Alright,'' he said and pointed towards the room, it was just beside the sitting room.
Tomika walked hastily to the room, got in and shut the door behind her then she cried silently. She could clearly hear the laughs and chatters at the dining table. It wasn't that she was not hungry but she didn't feel comfortable accepting to eat dinner in such a hostile environment. She walked to the bed in the room and laid on it.
Later that night, as she ruminated on her next course of action, she overheard a conversation in the living room.
''Are you okay, dad?'' Nadia asked as she took a seat beside her father.
''Nadia, you only do this when you want something,'' Felix smiled. ''So what is it?''
''It's my friend Claudine, she's having her birthday party out of town and I was invited so I was hoping you could help with my trip.''
''How much?''
''Around twelve thousand,'' she smiled.
''Twelve thousand for a trip outside of town?'' he raised a brow. ''You aren't going that far, are you?''
''Well yes, but I also want to attend the music festival that will hold in the Golden Isle,'' she said. ''Anyone that wants to become something musically in this country has to be there,'' she explained. Nadia is an aspiring singer and she hopes to have her own music career soon, though many people have tried to discourage her from the pursuit since they didn't consider her talented enough for it, but she won't be dissuaded. ''Come on, dad, please?'' she said.
''Okay,'' he said. ''Just tell me when you are ready to go,'' he concurred.
''Yay!'' Nadia screamed. ''Thanks, dad,'' she said and gave him a hug.
Tomika breathed in deeply as tears flowed out of her eyes, drenching the pillow beneath her head. She heard every single thing her father and Nadia talked about and it was even more saddening than the disappointment she got earlier. Why would he pay for Nadia's trip to a birthday party and decline to fund her own education? Ever since she was born, she had never received any support from him and now he still refused to support her even when he had the money. She didn't even ask for half of what Nadia requested, she thought as she wept.
The next morning, she picked up her bag and ventured out of the house. Her father was already in the compound, standing by his car as Odessa straightened his tie.
''Tomika's ready to leave,'' Odessa said. ''Honey, do her a favor and drop her at the park,'' she softly patted his tie before letting go. ''Have a nice day,'' she said and kissed him.
''Will do,'' he replied and got into the car.
A tear slipped out of Tomika's eye as she watched them and as she wanted to proceed towards the gate, her father horned.
''Get in, I'll drop you at the park,'' he said, but she only looked at him without making any move. He horned a few more times and when she didn't react, he drove out of the already opened gate and the security man closed it.
''You should have accepted the ride,'' Odessa said in derision and walked into the house.
Tomika stood for a while longer and then moved towards the gate and as she wanted to get out through the smaller opening, Nadia ran towards her from the back and pulled her hair hard. She cried in pain as her hands instinctively went towards the back to defend herself.
''Where's my phone, you thief?'' Nadia said, still firmly holding on to her hair.
''Nadia, what is it?'' Odessa moved towards them and Elias got out of the house to see what was going on too.
''She stole my phone!''
''Let me go!'' Tomika cried as she tried to break free. ''Let go of me, I didn't take your phone!''
''Give it back,'' Nadia said.
''I didn't take your phone,'' she said. ''Let go of me!'' She scratched at Nadia's hands and while Nadia retreated her hands, she bolted out of the gate and ran away, heading towards the park. She has had enough humiliation for the day.
***********
Evelyn was in the process of making breakfast when her daughter walked into the house, with an emptiness in her eyes
''Tomika, you are back,'' she said as she moved over to embrace her daughter. ''I'm really sorry, sweetie,'' she said when she noticed her daughter's countenance. ''You didn't get it?''
''I didn't,'' she shook her head.
Evelyn sighed, she had expected that. She already told Tomika not to go to Felix, but since they were desperate, she wanted to try that as a last resort.
''Who is my dad, mom?'' Tomika asked out of the blues.
''What!'' Evelyn held her chest. ''Felix is your dad.''
''No, he's not,'' she cried. ''If he is, he wouldn't be treating me like this. You don't know the kind of humiliation I went through in that house,'' she said.
''Tomika, my dear....''
''Who is my father, mom?'' she yelled, holding her mother's hands. ''Tell me,'' she said as tears flowed from her eyes.
Evelyn hugged her daughter tightly for some time to calm her down, and when she calmed down a little, she led her to a chair in the small sitting room and sat down with her.
''Believe me, Tomika, Felix Gordon is your father,'' she said.
''Then what happened? Why does he treat us like this?''
''I don't know either,'' she said. ''You see, when Felix and I got married, he started pestering me immediately to produce a child, because according to him, he was already long overdue for marriage before he settled down,'' she stressed. ''I tried, Tomika, there was nothing I didn't take, just to get pregnant, but years passed and I couldn't take in.'' She recounted, her voice softening. ''Six years after our marriage, he issued out a divorce. I begged him to give me just a little more time, and that was when he broke the news to me that while I was having difficulties with getting pregnant, he had an extramarital affair, and the woman already gave him a child.''
''Nadia?''
''Yes,'' she nodded. ''He told me she was pregnant again, and he wanted to marry her officially,'' she explained. ''It was a heavy slap on my face, but since his mind was already made up, I let him go, hoping that maybe I would be able to start over too,'' she said. ''As a settlement, he allowed me to stay here, and while I was working to get my life together, I discovered I was pregnant too. I wasted no time in telling him. Odessa had just given birth to Elias, and he was really elated at having another child. He accepted his obligation and took care of things until after I gave birth. He was really happy when you were born, but then he just changed afterwards and he started giving me a cold shoulder, I don't know what happened,'' she said. ''But since things turned out like that, I also stood up to my responsibility,'' she said, teary-eyed. ''I promised myself that I would do everything for my baby, I would provide her everything, and I wouldn't let her down. But then the hard times started and... I'm so sorry, dear, I'm sorry, I couldn't fulfill my promise.''
''You did, mom,'' she moved closer to her mother. ''You gave me everything and so much more,'' she said as she gave her mother a hug. Now she had a clear picture of what happened in the past. Things must have been really tough for her mother. To think that her father had an affair just two years after their marriage, it was unthinkable. Now, no matter what her father's reason was for abandoning them, she doesn't care anymore. She'll make her dreams come true without him or his support.
That night, Tomika stood before their house, thinking about the past events in her life, until her mother touched her from the back.
''Are you okay?'' Evelyn asked with concern. ''Don't worry, sweetie, it's just one year, we'll forfeit this year and apply next year,'' she said. ''Dear, I promise you that even if I have to go to hell to get the money to see you through college, I will,'' she said, her voice firm. She had tried to borrow the money from everyone she knew, but she couldn't get the balance for her daughter's application fee. Such amount of money was quite hard to come by.
''I'm okay, mom, I'll be fine,'' she nodded.
Evelyn caressed her daughter fondly as she gazed towards the sky. ''Look up, dear, the stars sure are beautiful, aren't they?''
''They are beautiful,'' Tomika smiled as she looked at the dazzling stars in the sky.
Evelyn looked at her daughter. ''You are the brightest star among them,'' she said.
Tomika smiled, her mother often says that to her to uplift her mood. ''Thanks, mom,'' she said as her mother pulled her into an embrace.