Blurred 4

Blurred 4

Follow @adewus4real on  

You’ll only regret it when I get heartbroken 

 ⟹ ⟹ ⟹ PLAY THE SONG BEFORE YOU START READING

 

Be With You by Tajan

In my lonely hours, I lay there with a heavy heart and a clouded mind. All I could think of was Danielle. But truly all the thoughts were racing through my head from Ms. Annette to Rosie to Dylan and always back to Danielle.

I kept trying to understand what she would do.

Would she actually contact Ms. Annette?

Was I going to come out of this a free man?

Did she hate me now?

I asked myself those questions as the days added up and I awaited some news in the cell. The days were long and the nights felt shorter. Well it all felt like darkness inside my heart maybe that was why I couldn’t tell the difference.

It was cold in the morning when I was reading a book in my bed. A guard came into the hall and yelled out my name and summoned me to stand by the door. As he opened the cell gate he told me I had a phone call. My heart began to race. Who could it be?

Could it be Ms. Annette? Or Danielle with news from Ms Annette? Or even Rosie?!

After days of not hearing anything from anyone, this felt like hope. This felt like a chance. This felt real.

I walked into the waiting area, which was also home to the phones. I walked to the one the guard pointed to and picked it up.

I took a deep breath and then I said,

“Hello, this is Cristian”

The person on the other side spoke and said,

“Hi Cristian, this is Lisa from David Mitchell’s office, your lawyer?”

My heart immediately sunk. I think I actually felt it drop out of my chest and deep into my stomach. I just couldn’t take it anymore. All the hope I built up was gone in a flash. Apparently my lawyer David had a family emergency he had to attend to and court was in 4 days. I knew I was screwed.

I checked back into the conversation as she said,

“Mr Christian, are you there?”

I gathered myself again and said,

“Yes, yes I am.”

“Okay sir, Mr Mitchell’s partner will be representing you and he’ll brief you before court on Monday. Do you have any questions for me?”

Like an irritated customer when the customer service representative fails to refund an overdraft charge, I let out a sharp

“No!”

and dropped the phone.

I called the guard and began walking towards my room as he led the way. I was so distraught and hopeless. I just wanted to sleep and forget my own existence.

An act that I committed out of love had now become my downfall and I had lost all the people around me that I cared about. Here I was; alone.

It was just after lunch and we were about to begin heading out for yard time when I heard my name go off on the PA system asking me to come to the lobby. A guard came and pulled me out of the line I was in and led me through the doors. At the lobby, they took me to the visiting room and I remember saying to the guard,

“I’m not expecting anyone today”

He responded,

“Well someone is here for you. Would you like to turn down the visit?”

I kept quiet and walked into the waiting room. Backing me, it was Danielle’s mom.

 

.      .     .       .       .       .

 “Ma’am, what are you doing here?”

I asked politely.

“I came to talk Cristian. About you, about Danielle, about something I got in the mail”

I was confused. What was she talking about?

She began to clear it up by saying,

“I understand that Danielle stormed out of here upset. She was very hurt. I think she believed that you were having an affair. Were you?”

I shook my head and told her no.

“That’s what I thought too. I don’t need to know what happened between you guys. I know you were trying to protect my grandson and I appreciate you for that. Thank you. Do you have any plans regarding what you want to do if this all blows over?

I remember when you came to me trying to figure out the best way to ask her father for his blessing. Is that still what you want?

I responded.

“Yes ma’am. She is all I want but I don’t think she wants to be with me anymore. I think I might have messed it up too bad. “

“Don’t worry. I can talk to her once all this blows over.”

I still wasn’t really sure why she was there. Yes, between both her parents, I felt like her mother was still okay with me because I truly loved Danielle. I wanted to ask her why she was there. She looked at me and said,

“Yesterday morning I received a call that told me to look out for a specific letter. In the afternoon, a letter came and it had a key tucked away inside. It seems like the key to a safety deposit box. It is from the local bank. I went there and there was a joint account in our names. I opened the box and there was a lot of cash in there and a note asking me to watch a video. The lady in the video said her name was Rosie and she had to lay low because James and some dirty police officers came to her house. She said she left that day and she might return when things settle. And she wanted me to wish you all the best and let you know that all your money was in there”

I smiled at the fact that Rosie was okay and right before I could respond she said,

“Cristian, that was a lot of money. I’m not even going to ask how you got it but only this… Is it drug money?”

I said,

“No.”

She said,

“Okay, that’s all I needed to know.”

She began to leave when I asked her,

“How’s Danielle holding up and Dylan?”

She stopped and said,

“We haven’t seen Danielle since the day she left you here and Dylan is holding up fine. He’s at the house. James’ house. I know where Danielle is. Her friend has been in contact with me daily.”

I cringed and squeezed my fist.

She said,

“Goodbye Cristian. I’ll continue praying for the best.”

She was walking out the room when I blurted out.

“Do you by any chance know if Danielle contacted Ms Annette?”

She turned and said,

“Who is that?”

I sighed and said,

“Never mind. Thank you for coming. I appreciate it. Please don’t forget the things I asked for”

She smiled back as she walked out of the room. My disappointment streak continued. I was now truly fucked. What The Heck Man.

.       .       .       .       .       .

 I was nervous that morning as I put my clothes on. They had a patrol car come and pick me and drive me to the courthouse. I just could not believe this was all happening to me. I started all this trying to protect the woman I loved and now here I was with no protection and not even my lawyer to fight for me.

I was hurting. My heart was hurting.

I was told that somehow, Danielle and her family would be present because the lawyer had requested her to be a witness for me. I wondered how James’ team allowed that considering that they had an open family court case in process.

I sat there with my fingers locked. They were sweaty. I was extremely nervous now. I couldn’t believe all that was going on. I had weeks to think about it but I just could not believe that I was actually here and potentially about to be prosecuted.

I considered running across to the other side of the room, jumping on my knees to beg James to drop the case but I knew he wouldn’t.

He hated Danielle too much and everything that came along with her was hated too. It was definitely not going well for me. I tried to hold it together.

The room was packed with people. It was not normal to have that many people in there for such a case but it involved a state official’s child and James’ father was in the conversation regarding who to replace the state governor the following year. Ultimately, there was some media attention.

It was about 5 minutes before the proceedings were about to start and there was still no sign of my lawyers. The judge walked in and everyone rose. As she sat and we all sat, the doors flew open and a group of people 5 in total; 3 men and two women walked in. They all seemed like lawyers. A man and a woman walked all the way to the front and the woman spoke,

“Your honor, sorry we’re late. We were finishing up the change of legal counsel. I am Rachel Rainey and my team and I will be representing Mr Lewis.”

They took their seats flanking me. I was confused.

I leaned in towards her and asked,

“Who are you people?”

She turned and with the coldest and most reassuring face I had seen in a long time she said only two words.

“The Calvary”

Her response sent chills down my spine. I felt my dick twinge between my pants. Her confidence was oozing and it was beyond sexy.

The proceedings were moving along with the state listing all the charges they had brought against me from endangering a minor, kidnapping, trespassing and a harassment charge brought by James for some texts I had sent him a while back. Hearing it all I began to get nervous again. I couldn’t even convince myself to believe that the set of lawyers sitting next to me could even help me out. Everything seemed impossible.

My lawyer rose and asked the judge for a recess to go over the charges with me. The judge called for recess and asked us to resume a little over an hour later after lunch.

I looked down and just knew I was beaten, it was only a matter of time.

We headed out into a small conference room where four of the lawyers came in with me. The lead lawyer, Jessica said,

“Cristian, it seems like this is going to be tough. The texts on James’ phone are solid and there are some threats in there. They are going to paint a picture that you were kidnapping Dylan to back up your threats and hurt him, not that you were doing it out of love for Danielle. I can get some probation for the trespassing charge and I can knock of the endangering a minor charge because from the reports you strapped him into his car seat properly and there is no record of you driving at a dangerous speed. Do you understand Cristian?”

She snapped her fingers in front of my absent face as my mind had wandered. I was still not sure who they were and then I asked,

“Who are you guys for starters and where is my actual lawyer?”

She smiled and said,

“We are the late Ms Annette Foster’s legal team. Well your legal team per this letter she asked I hand deliver to you.”

I opened it and began reading….

 

INSERT LETTER

Ije Love ft. Chidinma by Dubie

Ms Annette had passed away but not before she heard the news of my detention. She basically willed all her property to me and instructed the legal team to win my case for me. Even in her death, the woman was still protecting me. I began to tear up just thinking of all the things she had done for me. The fact that our relationship was purely down to companionship felt special. I could be myself around her always. She didn’t want sex or lies, just me being there was more than enough for her. I was drifting away again when they called me back to reality.

I folded the letter and said,

“I know people who can testify against James for his violent conduct and harassment. Her name is Rosie”

“Rosie used to work for James and his father when she first came to America but she left after he repeatedly harassed her and threatened to have her deported. The day I met her, I was just leaving the office when I saw her crying in her car. I went over to speak to her and she told me her whole story. Back then I also had a lot of money saved up. She quit the next day and I paid for her to become legal and she ended up moving her family here.”

The lawyers looked on keenly and then Jessica asked,

“So where is she?”

I dropped my head and said,

“James’ people got to her.”

Jessica scoffed and said,

“Cristian, we cannot make a case against someone because we suspected that he might have done something. Unless you have him on tape doing something we can leverage with, we need a new line of attack”

On tape?! It clicked in my head. Rosie had mentioned in the video that James and his people had come to harass her at her house. The camera!

Rosie had a camera that recorded and stored her footage outside the door of her apartment. She used it to scan who was coming in but also monitor “visitors” (the police) when she was not home.

I got excited and said,

“I think I know how we can get him on tape”

I explained it to the team and Jessica placed a call and asked the person to hurry like their life depended on it. She looked at me and said,

“You better be right. We only have 26 minutes left before we have to get back in there”

I crossed my fingers and said a quick prayer.

The wait was horrible. It felt like the longest 24 minutes of my life. I looked at the team all on their phones and said,

“We’re due back in 2 minutes”

Jessica looked at me and said,

 “I’m sorry Cristian, we haven’t gotten anything back yet. Hopefully we can stall once we get in there.”

Stall?

No. I just knew it was time to give up. It was my luck. I was screwed. I kept saying What The Heck Man in my head over and over. I acted of impulse. I had acted with my heart and not my head and now my body and mind were going to pay for it.

We filed out of the room and we were about to walk into the courtroom when one of the guys on Jessica’s team rushed up and gave her a file. He whispered something into her ear and she smiled. She looked at me and smiled again.

Right then, James and his lawyer were returning and about to walk back into the courtroom. She looked at his attorney and said,

“You might want to wait for a second before you go in there. So this file in my hand is a compilation of all the undocumented campaign donations going back to your father’s last run for state controller. Now, this case today might close but be sure that this will be the cover story in tomorrow’s papers. Drop the case.”

James puffed his chest with his arrogant self and spoke before his attorney,

“We will not be doing anything of that nature. You’re just bluffing. Besides, what could you have? We’ll take our chances with those”

He was about to walk in when the second team member returned with a CD and handed it to Jessica. She was now smiling harder.

“It must be my lucky day!”

she said out loud. She turned back to the lady that handed it to her and said,

“You’re sure he’s on there? You played it?”

she nodded. Jessica smiled again and while waving the CD in her hand, she said

“Now, I have you on tape here harassing a former employee of your father who also gave us the list we have here. You see how that looks right. ‘Son harassing father’s former employee amid corruption scandal.’ Now that is a headline that would catch my attention. Don’t you think so James?”

James looked stunned. He knew what he had done. They were able to recover the video from outside Rosie’s apartment and it had him clearly on it.

“James, make this easy for us. Because personally, we have been paid through the next 10 years to fight you if this case doesn’t drop today. Drop the case or we will make your life a living hell. We will come for you and your family till your family name is tarnished. So there you have it. I don’t need to tell you what to do”

Jessica and her team walked into the courtroom. The judge gave her the stink eye because they were late again; the second time that day.

Jessica didn’t eventually need to drop the video. It was mysteriously leaked to a news station by a reliable source. Well my reliable source; Rosie.

We sat in our chairs as James and attorneys let themselves into the courtroom and took their seats. I looked over and he looked at me for the first time in a long time, I smiled from the heart.

.       .       .       .       .       .

YOU KNEW I WAS COMING FOR YOU ABI. YESSSSSS. BE READING AND NOT COMMENT THERE O. SEE YOU. Reading and not commenting is like someone drinking community Garri and using spoon while forcing all their friends to use forks. It’s NOT FAIR. Comment at the end o. I take puff puff seller beg you. I need it to stay in America pls.

God is WATCHING YOU in HD. I AM WATCHING TOO but my WiFi is acting up. 

.        .      .       .       .       .

 James’ lawyer stood up and said,

“Your honor, after consultation with my client, we would like to grant full custody to Ms. Danielle Chambers in an unrelated but also on going case with my client; and the case against Mr. Lewis dropped”

The entire room sighed as the words traveled through their ears. Small whispers began to occur and the judge snatched up her gavel and slapped it on the sound block calling the court to order.

Probably realizing that it was not part of the discussed plan, she asked the lawyer,

“Are you sure?”

He said,

“Yes.”

“And your client agreed to this?”

she replied. James dropped his head as the lawyer took in a deep breath and said,

“Yes”

 The judge paused for a second and declared,

“Based on the information just presented, the court orders full custody to Ms Chambers effective immediately. A later date for visitation purposes will be set if necessary.”

The gavel hit the sound block again as she arose and sounds of joy filled the room. Danielle’s parents hugged her as tears rolled down her eyes. She seemed so relieved and happy.

The bailiff came and unlocked the handcuffs from my hands. I rubbed my wrists for how uncomfortable they had been in those handcuffs all day. I turned around; my lawyer shook my hand and congratulated me. My friend Spencer came forward and gave me a hug. I felt halfway there. I could see Danielle and her family in the back of the room and I wasn’t sure if I should say anything to them or not. I swiftly walked out of the courtroom and in the hallway. I was standing over by the water fountain waiting for my lawyer and the bailiff to arrive with some papers for me to sign when I saw James’ nanny walk Dylan over.

His little hand was in hers as she stopped in front of the courtroom and handed him over to Danielle. Danielle’s face lit up as she bent down and picked him up. She couldn’t stop smiling as she cried and he looked at his grandparents in confusion.

I loved that boy. I bent my head down as I fought back tears.

I had wanted to be everything for this woman and her son but somehow, I had blown this one too.

My lawyer snapped me out of my thoughts as he congratulated me again and pointed to a place on the form that he wanted me to sign. I signed it and he said,

“You’re a free man”

I shook his hand and thanked him as I looked down the hallway at Danielle and her family. Dylan was back on the ground as she released him from her tight hug. I turned to get a drink of water. When I turned back around I noticed Danielle and her family walking towards me. I began to panic; I hadn’t spoken directly to her since the day she stormed out of the visiting room. I wanted to hide but there was nowhere to hide. I just held my ground. Danielle and her family walked and continued to walk right past me. I just wanted the ground to open up and swallow me.

After everything, everything I went through and felt for this woman; she just walked right past me. In one light, I understood it and on the other end, it stung and it hurt badly. I tried to force the hurt off my face but I couldn’t.

I stared at the backs of Danielle and her family as they hit the end of the hallway and hit the front steps of the courthouse. I just felt like it was all over. I could hear some lady calling another lady named Jackie in front of me. The noise from the lady and the sickness I got in my stomach caused me to sit down. I sat down on the bench and I reached to pull my phone out.

I now had to pick my life up again. The sadness I felt in my heart was like that which I felt when my mother passed away.

My phone had tons of messages on them. I was about to start reading them. I almost didn’t even want to leave that seat. And then I felt someone sit beside me.

I knew that perfume and I recognized that scent, I turned to my right and there she was; Danielle. The way she sat there and looked at me. I wasn’t sure what to say. I was shocked. I was beyond convinced that I was never going to be able to sit next to her or hold her hand again.

She looked into my eyes and said,

 “Putting my son in danger was never okay. The things that happened and keeping Ms Annette from me was not okay even though she told me nothing happened since you and I got together. You have a lot of making up to do but helping ensure that my son; our son, can grow with us is a BIG start.”

She started to smile. I was still in shock… She continued and said,

“Yes, I said our son. I would like us to be a family some day. If you would have us”

I couldn’t believe my eyes. Have them?! They were all I wanted and needed.

My face was blank in shock but my heart was beaming. I was about to speak when I felt a little hand touch my right thigh. I looked down and it was Dylan. His little hands on my thighs, he flashed that winning smile at me. I reached down and scooped him up into my arms. Danielle got up as I pulled her close to hug her too. I was grateful. I turned around and there were Danielle’s parents.

Her father walked up to me and I broke up the hug as he stretched his hand out to me. I shook his hand and he said,

 “You are a good man. Any man willing to put his life and safety on the line for the happiness of my daughter and grandson is one I approve of. You have my blessing.”

Danielle from behind me said “blessing?”

I handed Dylan to his grandfather and put my hand into my pocket and for a quick second I thought it was missing. It wasn’t.

I slowly got down on my knee and said,

“Danielle, a lot has happened that has affected both of us in our lives. You have traveled a road similar to many but with unique challenges. Yet you have come out on top. You are a beautiful woman; inside and out. You motivate me each day to be a better man. From the depths of my heart, I am grateful to God for granting me the grace to meet you. You have helped me stay grounded and even in dark times, gave me hope for the future. I want to be the one you wake up to every morning, I want to be the one you experience life and old age with. With you on my team, I can’t lose. I’ll be your protector and give you the best things in life as long as I can work hard. Danielle, my life till the moment I fell in love with you has been a big blur but here we are. You have given me the picture of the future I want and like your personality it shines bright. So Danielle, I ask you this today, will you come and travel the world with me with our son as our love grows beyond words? Danielle Chambers, will you make me the happiest man in the world by saying yes to spending your life with me?”

Her hands covered her mouth as tears slowly streamed down her face. Amid tears, she began to say,

“Yes! Yes! Yes!”

as she stretched out her left hand towards me. I gently slid her mother’s ring up her finger. She didn’t give me time to get up. She got on her knees in front of me and hugged me tight. I turned to the left to look at her mother as I whispered a “thank you”.

She had a camera in her hand recording while Danielle’s father was taking pictures. I looked at the lens and thought to myself, this was Danielle and I’s picture. I smiled.

Lens? Focused.

Picture?  Perfect.

The End

 I cannot explain how grateful I am for the people that truly love me and the lengths they would go to protect me and my happiness. The Blurred series showed us lies, secrets, pain, hurt, happiness, love, growth, forgiveness but more than anything it showed how strong love is. Love, I have said, can make people do the most irrational and illogical things. Thats why some of you think your partners are the best looking in the world but I’am asleep tho. Lol jk jk.

But the truth is, love captivates you. It controls you in some ways. But we have to make sure we stay in control of it MOST times (Nigerian women) lol. Let it inspire you to love your families and partners hard. Let it catapult you to the place of being able to move mountains for them.
Never hesitate to be everything for the people you love. Never.

But DON’T end up in jail either unless you have a Ms. Annette somewhere, then go ahead but only after you pass me her number. I’m looking for sugar madres o! I can cook, clean and suck on… Nvm…

Truly, in all seriousness, I hope you enjoyed the Blurred series and it somehow gave you some clarity on what love should seem and feel like. I love you all. I truly do and thank you. You don’t know how much each comment, retweet and feedback means to me. It keeps me writing. Well, I love it too though.

Go the extra mile for the ones you love. Buy her some flowers, ask about his day. Tell you parents you love them. Share your Netflix password. BE AMAZING like you already are.

I’m thankful for the people I love and those that love me. The acts that might push me to may be a blur but I know I would do anything for them and the clarity the happiness would bring to the people I love.

 

Watch OUT for my next series, TITLE WILL BE DROPPED ON WEDNESDAY!!!!

Give me feedback. How did this make you feel? Talk to me about Blurred 4 or the series.

COMMENT!!! 

Follow @adewus4real

Thank you for reading and commenting. You are highly appreciated.