"Why do you do that? Why do you dress like that? Why can't you be like any other girl?" Elijah asked Rachel with curiosity, the girl who was now hugging her books protectively as she looked at her long grey dress she loved so much.
"What?" Ra...
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Closing the door behind her, she threw her bag on the bed and went to the bathroom. Turning to her small mirror, she met her reflection. She saw how puffy and red her eyes were because of her tears and sighed.
After taking her shower, she wore her pajamas before heading to bed with her Bible in her hand. Before reading it, she closed her eyes and prayed to the Lord, asking Him to reveal His word to her because she knew that without His revelation, she could read and read again and again without receiving the message.
Opening it, she fell on a verse that she already knew, but the good thing with reading the Bible was that you could read the same scriptures again and again and each time, you would find something new to feed your soul. That was the way Rachel saw the scriptures. The Bible, to her was completely different from other books.
You can read a book once and never think of reading it again. But when you read the Bible, your soul always craves for more.
A tear slipped out of her eye again when she read that verse. She couldn't understand why she was getting so emotional. It was in the book of Isaiah 49:14-16.
But Zion said, "The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me." "Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.
Closing her eyes again she praised the Lord for His goodness. After saying amen, she heard a knock on her door. Frowning, she walked to it and gently opened it, meeting Davin. She was surprised to see him there, standing in front of her door after a whole month of almost ignoring her.
"You're back." She simply said.
Nodding at her, he scratched the back of his head before speaking up again.
"There's someone outside that wants to talk to you." He said making Rachel confused at who could be wanting to talk to her in such a time.
"Who's it?" She asked suddenly concerned.
"You should go and see by yourself, she's in the living room." After saying that, he walked away probably to his room that was two doors away from hers.
Closing the door again, she walked to her wardrobe and grabbed the first dress she saw before wearing it and walking out of her room. It was a simple yellow summer dress that she always wore at home on lazy days. It was very long and she loved it.
Walking to the living room, she met the back of a woman that seemed so familiar. She was siting on their sofa as she drank from her glass of water that Davin has given her for sure.
When the woman felt her presence, she turned to look at her. Surprised so see who it was, Rachel stood still without moving as she looked at her, still wondering how she knew where she lives.
It was Gina.
But she looked completely different from the last time she saw her. Maybe it was because she wasn't wearing her maid outfit. She was dressed in a black skirt that looked very elegant on her and a white blouse with nude heels.
"Hey Rachel." She finally said before standing up and giving her a quick hug.
"Hi Gina, I'm so surprised to see you." She admitted as they both sat next to each other.
"Rachel, if I came till here it is because I have to talk to you about something." She said as her expression changed making Rachel even more confused.
"If you're here because Elijah sent you..." she started but didn't finish her sentence because Gina started talking again.
"No, it's not Elijah who sent me here. I came here by myself and trust me if he finds out, I know how mad he's going to be."
"And how do you know where I live?" She asked, still confused.
Laughing silently as she placed some of the strands of her almost grey hair behind her left ear, she replied.
"I have my ways. But that's not what I'm here for."
She cleared her throat before speaking up again.
"It's about Elijah. You know I was in the house and when Elijah came back home he wasn't fine at all. And at the sight of him I knew that he cried just before entering the house. I asked him what was wrong because I was so worried. Rachel, the last time I saw Elijah crying was two years ago, when Ruth died, his mother." She paused before looking at her hands.
At her words, Rachel felt bad because she knew it was because of her. It was her fault. She said the words she didn't mean just to get away from him.
"And when he explained to me everything and told me that you didn't want to have a friendship with him anymore, I understood how special you are to him. But I think that's it's not fair Rachel, not at all." She whispered the last words.
"What do you mean?" Rachel asked, the pain in her chest still present.
"You told him that you can't stand his mood swings anymore... but there's something you're still ignoring and that's why I'm here to finally tell you the truth." She said before turning to look at her right in her eyes, ready to tell her what Elijah always feared to pronounce.
"Tell me Gina, what do you want me to know?" Rachel said, worried.
"Rachel, Elijah has anger issues. Serious anger issues since his mother's death." She finally said, making Rachel gasp.
Of course, why didn't she think of this earlier. She knew that there was something wrong with him, since the beginning. She knew that it wasn't normal for someone to be getting mad at small and unimportant things.
"Oh my goodness, I didn't know that!" She said as she placed her hand on her mouth.
"I know, I know. And that's why I'm here. He has been getting expensive treatments but nothing seems to work. And can you imagine how difficult it is for his father? To constantly having his own son telling him that if he lost his wife it is because of him when it's not even true?"
"I really thought his father had something to do with his wife's death because of all the hateful words Elijah could pronounce against him." Rachel said as she rubbed her temples, feeling so terrible.
All she wanted to do was run to him and be with him forever and never let go of him. Of their friendship.
"Not completely." She said, turning her head to the side not wanting to meet her eyes.
"What do you mean, not completely?"
"There's a time for everything. The Bornman family has many things that haven't been revealed. Secrets that haven't been told. And I just can't open my mouth and say everything. I'm sorry. But when the time comes, you'll know the whole truth about Ruth."
After saying that, she stood up ready to leave the house.
"Please Rachel, don't tell him that I came here to tell you this. And also, don't let this truth leave you indifferent. Do something about it. I'm convinced that you can help him get through this if you just try with everything you are. Don't let go of him, not now that he needs you the most in his life."
And after those words, Gina left.
And all Rachel wanted to do was walk to her room, get ready and go find her friend Elijah. She wanted to apologize. She wanted to tell him how much he meant to her. He wanted to stay with him and tell him that she would be there for him forever.
