Pandora's Box

Dearest Diary,

I received the most bizarre message today. I free so broken I don't know what to feel or think.

I thought I knew how betrayal feels like, but what I thought is nothing compared to what I am feeling right now.

I am trying to be brave, to hold back and put on a smile, but it's hard. When I am alone I break down into tears and I don't even know how to respond to him.

How can he be so calm after everything he has done. Could I have misjudged his character so badly that I am now smarting for it? God help me.

************************************************************

"What wrong with you? You look like someone peed in your curry." Dom says, walking into my room with Shea in tow.

"It's spit in your bean curd,  doofus." Shea tells him.

"That's Garfield, not Mulan."

"It's Mulan and Mushu says it." My sister replies, sticking out her tongue at him.

"What are you two doing here?" I ask them placing my phone on the covers beside me. I have been tucked in bed the whole day, feeling blue and this two must have missed my presence.

"We've been sent to check on you. Your lawyers are requesting your presence downstairs." My sister tells me.

"Then what is he doing here?"

"I tagged along to stretch my legs. Plus those two don't really need me."

"I am not feeling well. Ask if we can meet tomorrow."

"You think you will be better then?" My sister asks and I nod. She narrows her eyes, studying me and then out of nowhere she grabs my phone.

"Shea!" I yell jumping out to grab her. She jumps out of my reach and unlocks my phone.

"I knew it. You are not sick. She accuses looking between me and my phone. "Who is this and why is she in a bikini in Troy's...OMG!"

"Return my phone Shea!" I yell, stalking her to grab it from her hand. Once again, she skips out of my grip and stares at me with an angry look. Dom looks between us with a puzzled look, but we are too engrossed in our confrontation to pay him any attention.

"Have you confronted him?"

"Shea..." I groan slumping back onto my bed.

"I take that as a no."

With that she wheels herself out of the room and rushes out.

"Oh God!" I mumble, feeling too defeated to move. Dom gives me one look and decides that I look like I need the time alone. He closes the door behind him and I finally allow myself to breakdown and cry.

I don't know how long I spend in that state. Five minutes, Ten? I have no idea. I cry until my eyes fail me and I fall into a fitful sleep.

I wake up to angry voices whispering over me and I open my eyes to find my sister and Troy arguing in the darkness of my room.

"There's a light switch you know."

Both of them pause and turn to look at me. I switch on my bedlight and turn to my sister, too hurt to look at Troy.

"Where's my phone Shea?"

Her hands slide into her back jeans pocket and she pulls out the slim black rectangle that is one of my most prized possessions.

"Thank you. Now leave me alone. I want to sleep."

"Attara..." Troy starts and I hold up my hand to silence him.

"No!" He growls in anger. "I am not letting this drag out more than it needs too. All along I thought that you were stressed with everything or even mad at me because of my mother and what she's been doing to you behind my back, but not this!"

"Troy," my sister tries to drag him away.

"No Shea! She maybe your sister, but she's my everything. Please, let me fix this."

Shea looks to me for permission and I nod my head, signalling that she can leave us be. She nods back at me and walks out, closing the door behind her to give us the privacy that we need.

After Shea leaves Troy takes a seat on the bed in front of me and reaches out to take my mind. For some reason, I let him, eager to hear what he will say.

"I am so sorry Attara." He says all the anger draining from his eyes. My heart skips a beat and I panic not sure if that was an admission of guilt.

"I saw the picture and realised that it was Jessica, my mother's secretary."

"Are you sleeping with her?" I ask dreading the answer that I may get.

"No!" Troy says looking insulted by the very idea of it. " I don't know how she came to be in my house and in my room for that reason."

"You seriously expect me to believe that?" I ask angrily and Troy looks hurt by my question.

"Have I ever lied to you or ever given you a reason to distrust me?" I shake my head. "Then why won't you believe me on this?" He adds sounding frustrated.

"I don't know, a picture of a girl, barely clothed in your room?"

He lets out an exasperated sigh.

"Look at the details of that picture. The time stamp. It was taken when I was here with your family, in Kenya!" Troy says taking my phone from beside me, on the cover to show me.

"May I?"

I nod. He unlocks the screen and retrieves the picture from the gallery. He goes to the setting and retrieves the details which include the date it was taken, including the device name.

"See. I am not lying to you."

I nod, breathing out a sigh of relief. I know for sure that the time it was purported to be taken, Troy was with our family in Meru.

"How did she get in?" I finally ask, breaking my long silence.

"Has to be mother or the housekeeper. My sister told me that she had visited when I was away."

"And what does Jessica want from you?" I ask bitterly.

"I don't know. I have never interacted with her. Remember my parents are based in Perth?"

"Okay." I riposte slipping deeper into my covers. For some reason I still feel angry and I don't know why.

"Sweetheart, Attara...You're going to sleep."

I nod, burying my chin under my covers.

"You haven't told me if you've forgiven me?"

"What's there to forgive? You've proven that you haven't done anything wrong."

"Yet you are still mad at me." He says chuckling.

"Troy White. Quit making fun of me."

"Lord Whitemore." He says smirking. I let out a growl and hide myself under the covers."

"Fine. Hide all you want. I will wait for you here."

At that, I throw away my covers and turn to face him.

"What do you want?" I demand from him.

"I want you to forgive me." I start to open my mouth, but he holds up his index finger to silence me. "I want you to forgive me for being so blind. My mum is a good person I promise you, I just don't know what happenned to make her... her..."

He seems to struggle with words so I help him.

"Bitter?"

He nods.

"Troy, your mother thinks that I am a golddigger. That I am using Bri to milk money from you. She also hates me because I rejected you and supposedly ruined your political career." I finish and Troy looks at me horrified.

"I hope you know that I don't feel the same way."

"Now that you tell me."

"Attara..." he groans. "What can I do to show you how I feel about you? Do want me to cut up my heart and give to you?"

"Show me, but the heart thing can work as well."

He raises an eyebrow at me and I grin back at him.

"Glad to see you smiling." He chuckles. "It's been a funeral since I arrived here."

I stick out my tongue at him and he laughs, raising my fingers to his lips to place a kiss on them.

"My queen, Do want to see what you humble servants have been slaving at?"

I nod.

"Get dressed. We'll meet you downstairs." With that, he stands up and exits the room.

♧♣♧

"From the smile on your face, I assume that all is finally well in paradise?"

I swat my cousin on his head and he snickers joined by Caleb on the sofa.

"Guys! Focus!" Troy says seated on the sofa, beside me and they both sober up at his sharp tone.

He continues to bring me up to speed with what they have been doing and the plans for our journey back home.

"These two tell me that you have some sort of pandoras box that you plan to open only if things get rough?" Troy says directing the question at me.

"Not a Pandora box!" I say glaring in the faces of my two cousins.

"What is it then?"

"A fail safe." I reply.

"Okay, I think that makes me feel better."

"Of course it does. Pandora's box sounds like something that would ruin everything, not fix it!" I add.

"Exactly! My sentiments exactly!" Troy says, looking intensly at my to relatives seated across from us on a leather settee. I match his look with a glare and they burst out laughing.

"You two are so in sync, you should just get married!"