The following day which was Saturday, I slept in, glad I wouldn't be going to school. I slept till 12:30pm and the only reason I woke up was because I was starving. As if my hungry thoughts had been heard by a force above, someone knocked and came in. It turned out to be mum. She brought food; with just a sniff of the aroma, I knew she made toasts, eggs and bacon with coffee. I thanked her by giving her a bear hug.
"Cassie, you need to go brush your teeth this instant. You smell like dung." She gasped.
"Mum, you had to ruin the mother-daughter moment." I feigned being hurt.
"Sorry dear but no conversation or food until you brush that mouth of yours." She retorted.
I stood up grudgingly and walked to the bathroom. I brushed, had a shower and washed my hair. After that, I went over to my closet and got a pair of leggings and a long sleeved shirt.
When I got back to mum, she handed me the food and I dug into it.
"Before I forget, while you were in the bathroom, Tess called. She said she has something important and you need to call her immediately when you get the message." Mom said.
"Oh! I wonder what it is. I better call her now."
"No, I want you to eat your meal first. You've been through a lot. Whatever she needs can wait." Mom countered my idea. This was one of the moments when I enjoyed and loved her pampering. I smiled inwardly and nodded. I wolfed down my food within minutes. I took hold of my phone and mentioned Tess' name and immediately my phone sent out the call. She picked on the second ring.
"Hey Cassie, how are you?" Her bubbly voice made me grin.
"I'm alright and you?"
"Same here dear. I bet you just woke up, didn't you?" As a good friend, she already knew me enough to know that I loved sleeping. It had always been my hobby.
"Yeah I woke up because I was starving and trust my mum to make sure I brushed and showered before eating." I whispered the sentence but mum still heard me. She nudged me playfully and I sighed.
"Cassie, I just heard yesterday that the Strawberry Festival is coming up this Saturday. The Vice Chancellor decided to make this coming week the mid- semester break. He said we should make use of it to prepare." She explained the reason for her call earlier.
"Strawberry Festival? What's so special about that?"
"Every year, the NYU cooking staff bakes the largest Strawberry Shortcake in New, York, using 2,500 egg yolks, 326 Ibs. of pastry flour and 489 cups of sugar." She answered.
"Strawberry shortcake?" I was already salivating at the sound of it. "But how do you know so much about it, especially the ingredients?" I asked. Tess was a weird person sometimes. She loved researching on insignificant things.
"Well, I'm obsessed with baking and its literally my first party in NYU." she explained.
Oh! That sure explains it all.
"But what do you mean by party?Since it's just the staff members who would be baking, how does it concern the rest of the students?" I seemed to be asking a lot of questions but you can't blame me, I needed to understand the whole concept of this Festival.
"The school organized a party that will last till dawn. We are all expected to dress fancily. That's why I need you and Ana's help. We need to go shopping together in the week."
Oh my God... A large cake, a party with fancy dresses at school, That sounds fun, Right?
"Oh sure. But call Ana so she can set a date for us to go shopping. Any day is fine with me." I replied.
"Yippee! I knew you'd come. Thanks. I'll call her now." She said and hung up immediately.
"What did she have to say?" Mom inquired.
I told her everything and she did what I expected would never happen.
She jumped in delight. The heavy pounding of her shoes on the ground made me realize that she was dressed and about to go out. I wonder where... Mum and her business.
"Mum why are you so happy?" Curiosity got the better part of me.
"Aww my baby is growing! This is your first party in NYU and I want you to go and have fun. It's high time you did that. I want you girls to go shopping on Monday. Tell Ana to find something special for you." she replied in between happy sighs.
"Mum, remember that I can't see and that limits the level of fun you expect me to have."
This blindness was sought of a setback for me. I would never be able see anything, especially the ones I love.
"Nonsense. I want you to have fun. Get drunk, dance if you can and mingle with the crowd. But one thing is clear," her voice turned strict and I listen with undivided attention, "Never have sex with any man dear. Save yourself for the right man. Save yourself till marriage."
I groaned but listened. I honestly needed to give the props to mum for always telling me to abstain from sex. I mean if one should view my mum from a distance, one would come to the conclusion that she was a kind of person who would do all it takes to remain powerful and influential.
I admit mom was that kind of person but she would never advice me to sleep with any man before marriage. To her, premarital sex was never the answer for singles but a trap to lure them into sin.
My parents are both Christians and in all, I would say they raised me upright.
"Cassie, I can't believe you zoned out on me." Mom tapped me and that brought my attention back to earth.
"What were you saying?" I asked
"I said the fact that I've given you liberty to date anyone doesn't mean you'll date a peasant. I would never agree to that." Her voice was stern and unwavering.
"With all due respect mum, I will date whoever I want, rich or poor. As long as he loves me." I stood my ground.
"You will do no such thing. Mark my words Cassiopeia, if you ever bring a lowlife into this house, I will do all I can to end the relationship." With that, she stood up and slammed the door at her exit. The sound of the door echoed her message loud and clear.
What did she mean by she would end my relationship?
I thought every mum's duty was to love and support her child instead of making rules that were far too high for her child to scale through.
Why was mum different from other mothers?
One thing I knew for sure was, any man who's willing to see beyond my blindness and love me regardless of it, is worth giving a shot no matter his social status and so help me God.
At this point in my life, no one, absolutely no one, not even my mum could change my decision.
Yay or nay for this chapter?
The Strawberry Festival is actually a real celebration in NYU. But I was just being creative a bit by adding a party to it. I have never attended it before so anyone who knows more about the Festival and notices that the events here are quite different from the real one, please KEEP IT to yourself. Some people have the tendencies of bringing it up in a rude way, making I, the author feel dumb or of little knowledge. If you still want to SPEAK UP about anything, do it tactfully and tentatively.
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Love,
Osaro.
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When Love Dies | 1 ✔
Romance[COMPLETED] "I wish I could turn back the hands of time." I whispered to myself, "At least he'd still be right here with me." "Now that your love is dead, you have to move on Cassieopeia!" Mom's voice startled me. I didn't know she heard my solilo...
