Story Chapter 1
"My Lord, please make my Iko change."
Almost
everyday, Ika goes to church to plead God for her alcoholic husband to
change. In her mind it plays like a movie how he used to be.
Iko
was a romantic man when she met him. He loved to bring her roses and
chocolates. He was very sweet, kind, funny and most of all, good
looking with his brown eyes, short hair, brown skin and medium length.
She meant height. Then she chuckled to herself every time she remembered
his face when she told him he was too short for her. Well, again, she
meant height. Ika was taller than him.
It
is Monday afternoon. After having lunch and washing everything, she left
the mini store to her twins of fourteen years old, while she took her
turn to rest. They have a small store of varieties, from candies to
basic home kitchen needs. A business they managed to establish during
their fifteen years of marriage.
After
ten years, she stopped working from an office related job and Iko
continued with his painting jobs. Unfortunately, he lost it just a year
ago. It caused him to change. He said that companies would not take him
anymore because of his old age. It despaired him a lot.
On
the other hand, he would not let Ika get back to work again. He wanted
her to stay home. It did harm his ego to send her to work. She did not
have a choice but to stand him when he started to turn his desperation
to alcohol. He became a drunkard. A big problem for her.
After
praying, she looked at her watch. Time to go. She took a deep breath
and got up from the church's chair. There were few people inside.
She
walked her way home. It was just two hundred meters away. Two blocks.
She arrived at their mini store which was in front of their bungalow
house, as it used to be their front lawn.
The
store was big enough for a mini store, where shelves were all around
against the wall. Customers could not come in. They could only ask what
they wanted and attended through the opened window of the squared
size store. Outside of it, there was a small table with six chairs,
where men like her husband and friends sit while they're having their
beers, cans of beers as they join themselves to have their happy hour.
She
entered the right hand side entrance of the store. Her twins were
ready to get back to nearby school. Both were in second year high
school. They bade her goodbye, giving her a kiss on her cheek. Then she
asked them for their father.
"Where is your father?"
The
girls looked at each other with a sad face. No one responded to their
mother. They just turned their looks outside the window of the store.
Then their mother followed their look.
To be continued...
(c) bbayonito20/bethbciar
@bbayonito20(Tap to Author's Profile)