GuiTara

🎵~11

🎶After all my strength is gone, in you I can be strong ~ Whitney Houston

●Tara Afua Henrie●

Thanks to the unrelenting power of second thoughts and Nando's slightly convincing pep talk, I decided to spend a few more days in Mexico just to see what I could do with my life here.

That decision was slowly turning out to be a not-so-great idea because the last two days had been quite... stressful, to say the least. Job hunting was never easy, but an unfamiliar environment made it a hundred times more difficult.

Today was one of those difficult days, and as I trudged up the stairs to the front door of my sister's matrimonial home, all I could think about was a nice warm bubble bath.

The lock clicked twice as I turned the key and let myself in, grateful to have the house all to myself. It was a few minutes past four, meaning I had roughly two hours to satisfy my bubble bath cravings before the entire family returned home.

Jogging up the stairs, my shoes were the first to come off, followed closely by my bag, then the rest of my clothes. Now standing in the bathroom in just my underwear, I turned the tap open while examining Pam's assortment of Bath and Body Works products.

"In the Stars, a thousand wishes, ooo sugar plum swirl." I opened the bottle and poured a generous amount under running water, watching as the sugared musk welcomed bubbles.

Pam would definitely kill me if she saw me using her stuff. But if this was the only way to get her to break her vow of silent treatment, so be it. It had been going on for the past three days, and honestly, I was at the end of my rope.

This morning, at breakfast, I asked her to pass me the blueberry jam and she acted as if I wasn't even at the table. She did the same thing last night when I was watching reruns of the Supernatural. Pam just waltzed in and changed the channel as if I was a non-existent piece of furniture sitting in the living room. She ignored me when I asked for help to operate the washing machine and when I needed a new tube of toothpaste after I found the empty one still in the toothbrush holder. Pam's attitude was the very definition of petty, and it was annoying the hell out of me.

The only reason I hadn't blown up was because Nando was doing everything he could to help fix my relationship with Pam, and I didn't want to ruin it by starting another fight.

Pulling off my remaining clothes, I hopped into the bath, melting into the warm and aromatic tenderness of the water. White fluffy bubbles traveled on the surface like a sea of white glittering sugar. I just wanted to scoop a handful and shove it in my mouth, but then I remembered that I wasn't six anymore, and people still needed me alive.

I allowed my body to relax, soaking all my troubles away. Since arriving in Mexico, I felt relaxed and at peace for the first time, and that peace carried me off to slumberland. I wasn't sure how long I was in there, but when I woke up, it was to the sound of a fist banging on the bathroom door.

"AUNTIE TEE!"

"Yeah!" I yelled back, ignoring the grogginess in my voice.

"I want to PEEEE!" My five-year-old niece wailed.

Quickly, I splashed out of the bath, grabbed a robe and the rest of my stuff before yanking the door open.

Keke immediately stopped the peepee dance and dashed past me. A chuckle left my mouth as she slammed the door behind me, giving her the privacy she needed.

After dumping my stuff in my bedroom and changing into an oversized Lacoste sweater and pajama bottoms, I descended the stairs, heading straight for the kitchen, where the alluring smell of pizza welcomed me.