22/10/2024
"A NIGHT TOO COSTLY"
I was sitting at the small dining table, going over some paperwork for our new job, when I heard Janet’s voice. Her phone was on speaker, the conversation between her and another woman filling the quiet apartment.
“All you need to do is spend one night with him,” the voice on the other end said casually, as if it was no big deal.
I glanced up at Janet. Her eyes flickered toward mine before she quickly looked away, her face flushed with embarrassment. She hadn’t meant for me to overhear, but the phone speaker was too loud, and the walls of our shared space were too thin.
“Maggie, I just need time to think,” Janet replied, her voice unsteady. “I’m scared. What if things don’t go as planned?”
I kept my eyes on the reports in front of me, pretending to focus on them, but the tension in the room was hard to ignore.
“Janet, there’s no time to back out. You’ve already agreed to this,” Maggie’s voice was firm. “We set this up days ago. He’ll pick you up at 8 PM. Just get dressed and be ready.”
The call ended abruptly, leaving the apartment in an uneasy silence. Janet sat down at the table across from me, her shoulders slumped, her face a mask of frustration and uncertainty.
“Janet... do you really need to do this?” I asked gently, setting aside my papers. “Is this how you want to solve things?”
She didn’t answer right away, just stared at the table as if it held the answers she was looking for. “I don’t know,” she finally said, her voice barely a whisper. “I don’t know if it’s the right thing, but... I feel like I have no other choice.”
I could feel the weight of her words, the pressure she was under. “Janet, we’re fresh out of university. We’ve just started working. Things are tough now, but we’re both in this together. We’re sharing this apartment to save money, to build our future. Don’t throw that away.”
She shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes. “Sarah, the debts are piling up. My family’s depending on me, and I can barely keep up with rent. I’m falling behind. I need the extra money. This isn’t what I want, but what else can I do?”
Her voice cracked, and she stood up, brushing away her tears as she walked to her room. I watched helplessly as she closed the door behind her.
A while later, she emerged, dressed in a sleek black dress that clung to her in a way that didn’t feel like her. Her makeup was bold, her lips painted a deep red, and there was a coldness in her eyes that I had never seen before. She looked like someone else.
“Janet, please,” I whispered, standing as she grabbed her purse. “There has to be another way. You know this isn’t right.”
She hesitated for just a moment, her hand on the door, but then she walked out without a word, the door clicking softly behind her.
I had no idea that would be the last time I’d see her.
Two days later, the news spread like wildfire.
“YOUNG GRADUATE FOUND DEAD IN HOTEL, MURDERED BY ESTRANGED BOYFRIEND,” the headline read.
I stared at the screen in disbelief, my heart sinking as Janet’s face appeared beside the words. The same girl who had walked out of our apartment just two days ago, full of life, with dreams of a brighter future, was gone.
My phone slipped from my hands, clattering onto the floor, but I barely noticed. My mind was spinning. How could this happen? How could someone I’d just spoken to, someone I’d lived with, be gone in an instant?
I collapsed into a chair, my chest tight, as tears spilled down my face.
“Just one night,” I whispered through my sobs, the words haunting me.
I remembered something my mother used to say when I was younger: “The devil never gives without taking far more in return.”
Janet had paid the price for that one night with her life.
To the young ladies out there, no matter how tough life gets, never let desperation push you into making harmful choices. Your worth is far greater than any quick fix or risky offer. Stay strong, seek support, and trust that there’s always a better way. Protect your future, it’s worth more than you know.
LaLi
Life and Living it
