That day at school, students were buzzing about the surprise checks done on them. Amongst those sent to the Principal's office was Sweetie – a misfortune many had anticipated. In fact that wasn't the first time she was caught. Teachers found a pack of cigarettes in her school bag this time. She had been lucky all these while, but that day, there was no escape.
And as a result of that offence, Sweetie was sent for counseling sessions. She spent some hours with counselors, listening to words which were all too familiar to her.
"Great...just like at home when Mummy goes bla bla bla...." she thought to herself.
"What's the big deal about cigarettes anyway? Others smoke, even my father smokes!"
Sweetie was bored during these dragging sessions but she still sat religiously till they ended. She didn't want to pick a fight with her teachers. There were already enough problems at home and she just wanted to get over with school and then proceed with her own plans.
And it was at counseling session Sweetie met Sue.
Sweetie wasn't too sure why Sue was there, and she never bothered asking. But she liked Sue. There was something about this timid round faced girl that made her want to be friends.
That was the start of a beautiful friendship of this obverse pair. One was lost in life's bright lights and the other was groping in its darkness.
Academically, Sweetie and Sue performed average – sometimes they’d fail miserably and at times if they strived hard, they’d stay afloat. Sweetie never bothered much about her studies. She knew how to sweet talk her father on sending her to college once she finished her secondary education. Sue however had to work really, really hard if she wanted to pursue her college education. The orphanage couldn't possibly fork up money for her, not when they themselves were struggling to keep operating.
Sweetie once told Sue that she wanted to run away from her family. After her SPM exams, she got a part-time job in a boutique and was paid pretty handsomely.
“Aku nak lari lah Sue,” said Sweetie when they met after work that evening.
“Ishhh…jangan, nanti kau jugak yang susah. Mana kau nak tinggal Sweetie?”
“Ahhh…aku tau lah mana aku nak gi….”
Sue prayed hard before she went to sleep that night. She prayed that Sweetie would change her mind and would have some compassion for her parents.
“Ya Allah Ya Tuhan….tunjukkan lah jalan yang benar bagi rakan ku ini. Bukakan lah hatinya. Berikan lah ia hidayah dan petunjuk Mu Ya Rahman…..”
Those were Sue’s plea to God. In between sobs, during her sujud , she asked God’s guidance for her good friend. All she wanted was for her friend to be shown the right path by God Almighty. She could give nothing to Sweetie – money and wealth was beyond her means. It was only to God she could turn begging for mercy and compassion.
Maybe it was her prayers; maybe it was something else that happened, Sue wasn’t too sure. But Sweetie changed her mind many weeks later.
“Mummy aku tak sihat lah Sue. Kesian pulak….” explained Sweetie.
“Bagus lah tu. Kau berbaiklah dengan Mummy kau. Syurga dibawah tapak kaki ibu tau,” advised Sue.
“Hah…nak jadi ustazah lah pulak kau ni. Tell me about it, but if you have a rotten Mummy, where is the Heaven going to appear from?”
Sue kept silent. She could only pray for Sweetie to change. InshaAllah…one day God would lead her the way.
When they finally received their SPM results, as predicted, they both did average. Sue fared slightly better than Sweetie. Both applied to the same college and they finally managed to get in and then completed their diploma in three years.
Sue studied retail management while Sweetie did culinary arts. Sue was very surprised when Sweetie opted to venture the food industry. Never in her wildest dream that she would see Sweetie slogging in the kitchen, and much to her surprise, Sweetie did pretty well in college.
During the three years in college, Sweetie hardly spent time with her family. She seldom went back to that big house. Even during breaks she would work on campus and save money for room rental and food. Sweetie’s father would send her money, but obviously with her lifestyle, the money disappeared in blink. Sweetie had then become a chain smoker and had started frequenting clubs in the city.
There were times when they met Sue would ask Sweetie about her family. But Sweetie never had anything nice to say about them. Obviously her heart was still like an erupting volcano and she said she could never forgive her Mummy.
Later Sue learnt from Sweetie’s aunt that Sweetie’s dad had a stroke and was paralyzed waist down. Sue could tell that Sweetie wanted to be with her father, but she was still not at peace with herself and her hatred towards her mother, kept her from heading to the big house.
to be continued…..
~Sent from my iPad~
