The Externals Reloaded - Chapter Four

 Home Beckons...

"Dad, is everything alright?" Beth quickly got out of the pool and wrapped herself with a cotton towel.

"You son of a gun!" Thomas ignored the concern Beth showed him because he was boiling with fury.

"If only I could swim, I would have gone to the pool to destroy that ugly face of his", He thought.

"Can someone please tell me what's going on here?" Beth turned to the people walking behind her dad since he refused to talk to her. They included Jane, Mart, and two men in a cop's outfit.

"Quinn's not who he says he is", Jane said apologetically and Quinn instantly knew what she was talking about. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do to stop anyone from spilling his beans.

Present Day - Sean's Apartment
"Uncle Sean, a sweet person like you doesn't deserve to be associated with filth", Beth said, giving Quinn the most disgusting look ever.

"Quinn seems like a nice guy. What happened between the two..." Sean felt sad that his soon-to-be stepson and niece started on the wrong foot, despite not being a huge fan of her.

"He became filth the day his Nigerian identity was revealed", Quinn said while struggling to contain the anger he felt.

"We both know that's not the truth, nigger. The only reason our relationship isn't what it is today is because you lied about your identity", Beth increased the volume of her voice. "Quinn Taylor is a fake".

"Come on, babe. You shouldn't stress yourself over this thing", Finn Halves, Beth's new boyfriend who was tall and muscular, took her away.

"We're not done with our conversation yet. Who the hell are you to just take her away from me!" Quinn tried to bring Beth back but he got punched. He would have gone into a coma if Miss Claire hadn't rescued him. Sean couldn't do nothing because he was dumbfounded. Everything seemed like a dream to him.

Unfit to enjoy the rest of Sean's party as planned, Quinn was driven to his best friend's apartment. Regardless of what happened, Mart decided to remain his friend. He even went to the extent of messing around with Beth's sister just to get back at her for what she did to him and never regretted it though his career also got hurt. Even Quinn distanced himself for a while but he still didn't flinch.

Mart listened to Quinn's story with a mind that got more furious each second. Knowing he wouldn't mind going to jail for him after beating the hell out of Beth's new boyfriend, Quinn hid the keys to his home so he wouldn't be able to get out and it worked. They ended up comforting themselves with bottles of whiskey and singing lyrics of their favorite songs together. Mart planned on getting Quinn drunk so he would fall asleep but he was first to doze off!

At dawn, Mart was woken up by the light from Quinn's laptop screen which penetrated his eyes. He expected to see Quinn lying beside him. Well, it's not like he wasn't lying beside him. He just wasn't closing his eyes in deep sleep, or turning around to find the most comfortable sleeping position. He was looking at some images on his laptop and miming the lyrics of "counting stars" with his headphones on both ears.

Miss Claire couldn't sleep throughout the night because she was afraid Quinn would never speak to her after what happened. She hated not being on good terms with her son and wanted to join him at Mart's apartment but Sean advised her not to. One would think he wanted Quinn out of their lives so she would fully concentrate on raising their kids but he didn't even plan to have kids with her. All he wanted to do was make them both happy together for the rest of their lives. Miss Claire also agreed with the idea, not because she hated having more kids though. She was only scared of raising them alone like she did with Quinn if things get out of hand with Sean since life's unpredictable.

Still not sure whether he would speak with her or not since he was quite a stubborn kid like Sean described after meeting him just once, Miss Claire knocked on Mart's front door the next morning. As imagined, Mart was the one who got out to open it then started a conversation with her in the living room so she wouldn't get bored as she waited for Quinn. Part of what they discussed is how the duo had to take turns to watch out for Quinn after he attempted suicide when everyone at grade school refused to attend his 8th birthday because he was a black kid.

A few steps from the loveseat Mart and his mom were sitting on like mutual friends, Quinn eavesdropped their conversation without being seen and a beautiful smile escaped his lips. He wasn't angry with either of them and never dreamed of doing so because they were once the only reason he wanted to live. Unfortunately, he didn't tell it to their faces. He loved Miss Claire enough to do anything that would make her happy yet didn't want Beth to forever remain a part of his life since he knew that was extremely dangerous for him. He had to make Miss Claire believe marrying Sean meant losing him for eternity.

"Mom, what're you doing here?" Quinn got out when he couldn't stand seeing them chat happily without him anymore.

"I know you both sulk at cooking so I brought some cabbage plate", Miss Claire said nervously. Despite not doing anything worth feeling guilty about, she felt it.

"You shouldn't have. It's not like yours is the best cabbage plate in the world", Quinn immediately hated himself for saying that, for letting his emotions get the best of him.

"I know but I think the taste improved a bit because I followed an improved recipe", She said like a cooking contestant trying to get the approval of a judge.

"Does it look like I care about your cooking right now?" Quinn raised his voice.

"Son, what matters is you eating to live. Doesn't matter who cooks it", Her voice was still normal.

"Mom, I don't need you to worry about your cooking now. I need you to worry about my happiness", He replied.

"Even if it's detrimental to my happiness?" The words came out of Miss Claire's lips wrongly.

"Is my happiness no longer your happiness?", Quinn asked with all seriousness.

"Seems so", Miss Claire sniffled.

"Mom, if you're still bent on marrying Sean, there won't be us anymore", Quinn quickly went to Mart's bedroom and slammed the door.

"You son of a bitch!" Miss Claire yelled. "How can you do this to me after everything I did for you all these years!"

Quinn was greatly affected by his mom's words. While a part of him was pushing to make her wishes come true, the other remained adamant about ignoring her until she calls off her wedding. When he got too tired thinking deeply about the situation, he forced himself to lie down and wrapped himself with the whole of Mart's Superman duvet. No sooner than five minutes later, he found himself dreaming about his visit to Disneyland with his parents when he was a kid.

Since Quinn wasn't in the mood for any guy stuff that would keep him lively and Miss Claire was no longer available for a hearty gist, Mart decided to fiddle with his laptop. The angry Quinn didn't remember to shut down properly or at all so as soon as Mart turned it on, he saw the activity his bestie had been performing. He was browsing about the country he hated so much. The country of his biological Dad. Nigeria for heaven's sake! Mart couldn't help laughing after he saw that. Unlike other European friends Quinn had, Mart had no problem with him embracing his fatherland. As soon as he got inspired by the pictures of the huge landscape that beautifies it and that of black girls wiggling their butts to do the bata dance, he went to his bedroom to wake him up. Mart became determined to do anything that would make Quinn agree to go home.

Quinn had the feeling that home was calling out for him. Every part of his body longed to be reunited with his dad though he still hated him for abandoning him and miss Claire. He tried to discourage this idea by thinking about the loads of bad roads in the country and the experiences of the African American in the "Nigerian Prince" movie he watched. Still, a part of him wanted to be in a place where he belonged. He wanted to be in a place where he wouldn't be treated like a second-class citizen. Nevertheless, he said no to Mart even after he offered to pay their expenses for a one-month vacation in the giant of Africa.

On Monday morning, Quinn whined about how lonely he was going to get because Mart had to go about his daily activity while he focused on homeschooling. However, Mart had no plans of leaving his bestie when he knew the gravity of what he was going through. He knew Miss Claire would forever remain a broken woman if she lost her only son to a suicidal thought without even getting the chance to resolve the feud with him so he refused to leave Quinn alone in the house.

While the two boys were on their way to a location Quinn knew nothing about, Miss Claire sat down on one of the long seats in Brisk Cofeeshop, unable to enjoy the heavenly taste of the caffe latte resting on the glassy table facing her because she was having mixed feelings. No matter how much she tried, her mind couldn't stop thinking about Quinn's situation and how happy she was about getting married to Sean, who she hoped would forever be her source of happiness. She thought Quinn's dad was the only man she'd marry, so since their marriage later turned out messy, she thought that was a sign that she wasn't good enough for life-long commitments. To keep bad thoughts away, she blamed racism for the failure of their marriage and encouraged herself with the thought that she won't have issues with Sean because of their national identity.

"A penny for your thought, Miss Claire", Sean walked in when she had totally become unaware of what was going on around her.

"I'm fine", Miss Claire adjusted her seating position.

"There's absolutely nothing wrong with having a cool feet babe", He took a sip from her drink.

"That's....not it", She stuttered.

"You don't have to lie not to make me feel bad, babe. I know Quinn's also part of your worries so you can take as much time as you need. This gentleman right here isn't rushing", He assured her.

"Thanks, sweetie", She moved close enough to give him a peck. "But we're not making any adjustment to the wedding plan".

"If you insist. I have to go now. Business calls", He rose and returned to the booth where his clients were.

"Alright, sweetie. Take care", Miss Claire widened her lips to form a smile.

Quinn spent a huge amount of time staring at the "Nigerian Embassy" building before he finally walked in. Of all places, he wouldn't have imagined a friend he had known for over ten years would bring him there for an outing. Before he became greatly disappointed and blinded by anger, a calm voice ministered to his soul. Whether or not the voice was working alongside Mart, it pushed him to get past the front desk of the building to the office where interested individuals apply for visas!

In case you missed the previous chapters, here's the link to access it:

https://talesofeni.blogspot.com/2023/07/the-externals-reloaded-chapter-one.html

https://talesofeni.blogspot.com/2023/07/the-externals-reloaded-chapter-two.htm

https://talesofeni.blogspot.com/2023/07/the-externals-reloaded-chapter-three.html

AUTHOR'S NOTE
Thanks for being here once again😁You're very much appreciated😍Do you think Quinn will still push through with his plans to visit Nigeria. Do you think his relationship with his mom will be forever ruined if he does? Kindly drop your opinion in the comment session😍😎

Yours teenfictionly,
Oluwamuyiwa Eniola