Charity event

The next day, I woke up with a swollen face, a severe headache, painful and red eyes. I was so exhausted and I just wanted to sleep through the day if I could. I got up from the bed and walked into the bathroom.
I took my bath, brushed my teeth and wore some clean clothes. I didn’t bother combing my hair which rested on my head like a bush of thorns.
Unluckily for me, that was the same time Sebastian decided to send his call girl off. She was ranting like every other girl before her. She kept ranting until her eyes met mine as I was stepping out of the room. She looked me like she was rolling her eyeballs at me before she spoke.
"What are you doing with him? You should leave him. He's a monster. He doesn't deserve you and you look like a nice lady. File a divorce and leave this asshole", the lady said, walking away.
I wish it was that easy. To just walk away from the bondage my parents put me into? My parents signed a lifetime deal of pain and hardship for me. I can't just divorce Sebastian. My parents would kill me if I tried that. If I tried to escape, they’d send people after me to find me.
They probably don't know what I'm going through here but even if they did, I wonder what reasonable step they'd take. They'd probably just keep watching me or tell me to bear with it all. Would they even try to pull me out of this marriage? That's if they even care for me that much.
Oh, I just remembered. They don’t. Parents who left me with my grandparents all my childhood and didn’t bother checking up on me till Nana and Papa died. They probably don’t care how am fairing. I really hope they’re enjoying the reason they tied me down with this goddamn marriage.
But to actually think of it, this was the first fling Sebastian would bring home that would actually say something nice to me. Others just insulted me or threw glares my way, like I was behind their misfortunes.
"What did I do? How's it my fault you go played by a player? It’s your fault, bitch. Next time, you’d stay away from married men", I'd say but not out loud.
I ignored Sebastian and his fling and went downstairs to find an aspirin or something to alleviate this headache I was having. Luckily, I met Selena in the kitchen making breakfast.
"Good morning Selena", I greeted.
"Good morning dear. Did you sleep well?" She asked.
"Well, I tried. It’s just that I woke up feeling pains in my eyes and a severe headache. I don't know if you have any aspirin or pain relievers I could take", I replied.
"Oh, let me check", she said.
She rummaged through the kitchen cabinets for a while but found no pain relievers or aspirin. She told me to wait and she headed out of the kitchen. Perhaps she went to check her room for an aspirin. I waited patiently, holding my head with both hands. Soon, she came back and handed me a packet of aspirin.
I smiled a little so as not to intensify the pain. I thanked her and popped two pills out of the packet. I threw them into my mouth and downed it with some water.
Just like magic, I felt a little relieved. I quaffed more water and dropped the cup on the kitchen counter. I turned to face Selena and asked,
"What's for breakfast?"
"I'm making some porridge and soup for you because I knew you might wake up this morning with a headache but I'll make some pancakes and scrambled eggs for Sebastian", she replied.
"Thank you Selena", I smiled and said to her.
"I'll just be in the living room. I feel a little giddy standing up", I said, truthfully.
I was actually feeling light-headed; perhaps the effects of the drugs had kicked in already.
"Sure dear. I'd call you when breakfast is ready", she said. Shoot!!! I'd totally forgotten that mother was coming home today to take me out for breakfast. Almost immediately as that thought came in, the doorbell rang.
"Who would that be?" Selena said, walking out of the kitchen to open the door.
"That'd be mother. Let me open it instead" I said, holding her back.
She nodded and went back into the kitchen while I walked to the door. I knew my face and hair was a mess but I didn't have the time or strength to make myself look good now. On opening the door, I came face to face with mother. She was holding carrier bags in both hands. About 3 to 4 bags.
One of the bags looked like it had shoes in them. Another looked like it had a handbag in it. The other two were carrier bags filled with clothes. I know them because I’ve both clothes with that kind of carrier bags. She hugged me excitedly and I hugged her back.
"You look neither excited nor ready to go out for breakfast", she said, frowning as she walked into the house. "I suddenly fell under the weather when I woke up this morning" I said.
Her demeanour changed. I thought she was angry that our plans had gone ‘under the bus’ but actually, she looked so concerned. Her fingers felt my forehead and she withdrew her hands almost immediately. I guess my forehead was burning up. That means the cold shower I too didn’t help in cooling off my temperature.
"You are burning up. Have you used any medications or do I need to take you to see a doctor?" She asked, looking so worried. "I took a couple of aspirin tablets and I guess I'd feel better with time if I get to rest a little bit", I answered.
I She nodded and helped me walk to a couch. She told me to rest my back on the headrest and I did. She went out of my view and came back holding a face towel and a bowl of water.
She dunked the face towel into the bowl and squeezed out the excess water. She placed the towel on my head and my face felt cold.