The house agent threatens to send auctioneers to collect the monies owed to them by Natasha. She is traumatised by the thought of her son being mocked by the other kids, as they are evicted from the only place he calls home. After being summoned by the HR, her car stalls on her way home.
Liam went on and on about how his day had been. I had moved him from his previous school and taken him to a school in a neighbouring estate, and he was yet to make new friends. "Mama, I miss Zuri," he said, referring to the girl who sat next to him in his previous school. It was getting harder and harder to explain to him that even putting his next plate of food on the table was a struggle for mummy. The idea of having my contract terminated, sent a cold shiver down my spine even though I knew it was inevitable. "I need a drink", I thought to myself. I wasn't your average drunk but once in a while, I indulged in some cream liqueur. It gave me a temporary high and made me forget my current troubles albeit temporarily. "Mama Liam, Kioko alileta barua yako ," interrupted Wilkister, the nanny. Kioko was our caretaker and I did not like the sound of it as he usually delivered communication from our landlord's house agents. My heart sank as I read the contents of the letter... if I do not clear my arrears, the agents would send auctioneers to my house at the end of the month, to attach my household items before collecting them. This would happen if I did not pay within their specified timeframe.
How would I forgive myself if my son was thrown out of the house because his mummy couldn't pay the rent anymore? Or if the auctioneers came and took away his bed? I had heard they were quite ruthless and I could not imagine the ridicule and embarrassment Liam would go through from the kids in the apartment. They were already asking him why he changed schools. Nosy little brats! Liam was still too young to understand the complexity of our predicament. I needed to think fast. It was now evident that I could no longer afford to live in my current house and a downgrade was rather inevitable. What would my friends think of me? Wait... what friends? It had been a while since I heard from any of my girlfriends. My biggest concern was what would become of Liam and I if I settled our arrears with what was left in our contingency fund. I could not think of another solution but how would we survive until my next job, which didn't even seem certain?
The following two weeks were full of uncertainty. The countdown to the end of my contract was officially on and I was hoping against all odds that the organisation would renew it. Of course, I knew I was lying to myself as it was a Non-governmental organisation (NGO) that heavily relied on donor funding. Further, the project I was working on was complete and it would not be, until another three years before they revisited it. I had just settled on my desk from a quick snack at the cafeteria when my line manager came to my desk and informed me that the HR Manager was looking for me. I knew what awaited me and I wasn't too shocked when she dropped the bombshell.
"I'm sorry Natasha we cannot renew your contract as the project has ended. You are a good team player and I'm sure other doors will open for you soon..." yada yada yada was all I could hear as Risper, the head of Human Resources continued with her motivational speech about closed and open doors. One clear thing was that I was officially back to the drawing board. I picked up my personal effects, said my goodbyes and left. The 10-minute drive to my house felt like an eternity. After navigating the last roundabout, which was less than a kilometre to my house, the unthinkable happened... my car stalled right in the middle of the road!
