S AGO (Con

tiful stranger I had slept with, but all I could

up and forced my mind to be alert, half puzzled, half astonished. H

didn't even know

'd had in a while in the middle of l

search the restroom. "Hello," I sai

ans

ould be too embarrassed to answer me in the middle of it. But the restroom was

the bedside table for a clue, a note, a pointer, a phone number, anything to

found

it hi

been

y he'd have slipped out of the quilt without me stirring. But even if that hadn't been enough to wake me, at least his belt should have done it. Men generally are clumsy when wear

gged

to use the toilet or something. I was with him all the while until the sex. It m

d stain caught my eye. It d

irginity to a o

d to exchange names thinking I was going to see him when I woke up

im, and my room felt as though it was closing

: perhaps he took my number after all and was sending me a message to let me know he was back hom

m my two best friends who were dying to know how it went. They had dropped

pare nothing. Spill it like spoilt milk” “Why ain’t you replying, Gracie? Is the D so good you can’t get u

y’s messages and

hing to be angry about. It was a one-night stand! Then again, nothing stops a one-night stand from being respectful. I d

yesterday didn't happen. Like I had ma

....

really get some with the white shirt Mr. Chardonnay guy? You guys seemed so smitten by each other, I wo

t mean to be insensitive, (As they didn’t even know their friend was dumped by the so-called Mr. Ch

t was going to be later. Surely not so soon

wanted

ast or do anything that needed physical strength. I slept till mid-noon, still har

was the deadline my parents gave me to return home. I couldn’t stay back here any longer,

y now. So I got up, washed myself thoroughly like I was washing off stains from a r

till late evening. Secretly hoping, wishi

e nev

ng a last pained good bye to my beloved college room. I had so many happy memories i

by dawn, I landed in the outskirt of Lond

depression, I started sending resumes and applicatio

nged myself into and even felt bad for my parents w

o I wanted to work at a place where I would put my skills into

friends like a coward, like they wer

gs didn’t get

l, still jobless and depressed

. About eight

t the pregnancy after I admitted to them I di

Grace.” my mother had wailed,

ranks have to work ten times harder than the privileged ones. We exp

believe in the Goddess like everyone else, but I blamed

m, and however, I couldn’t let this innocent budding life

tion to have any say, I didn’t even have a job to

with just a little change for transport fare, a few clot

tay, no significant cash at hand, a baby in my womb

if I knew, I could never go look for them, not after staying estranged from them

my parents, my pack but on reaching there, I was told by my father’s d

d to stay back at the only house my parents had before they d

s already obvious and another

e, we could never keep a firm hold onto our prop

in, an agent from the biggest real estate company of a neighboring

t and stood my ground, saying I will never co

stand by me since my parents were unranked wolves, and with the accusation

the point where I just had to give it all u

as the company's name, a name I’

get a little room in London and continued

working as a waitre

fe in there began with