Three Years Into

"Inmate 0202, come with me." The female warden raps on her cell door and opens it.

Mika steps out of the small cell, waving goodbye to the other women she had stayed with for a month as she holds the small basket containing all her effects.

She's taken to the office and the warden gives her a few documents to sign before handing her another basket filled her clothes from that fateful day, her phone and purse.

She grabs them all and heads out of the door, squinting lightly at the harsh afternoon sun.

Then she smiles and rubs her hand on her belly.

She immediately hails a taxi and leaves.

Less than two minutes after she leaves, a white Ferrari pulls up in front of the police station and out comes Price Woods with Lily on his arms.

They go inside and hear that she has just been released. Lily scoffs in disappointment. "I was really hoping to meet her so I could give her the invitation card to our wedding. Why was she in such a rush?"

Price smiles down at her. "You're so cute and too nice for your own good. It's a good thing she knows her place and didn't bother to reach out. She probably acknowledges that she what she did was so wrong that she ran away. Isn't it for the best?"

Lily pouts and laughs cutely. "You're right. Let's go back home then, it's a good thing she left on her own. It would have been a hassle if she came to beg or something. I might have felt bad for her."

"She deserved what happened. Come on, let's go. I'm sure your mum is done with the chicken dinner. I can't wait to taste her food again this night."

As soon as the white Ferrari drive away, a black Rolls Royce pulls up into the same police station but no one descends from it until about five minutes later when the driver of the car goes into the station and returns in about two minutes.

He opens the door and sits. "They said she was released less than twenty minutes ago."

"Fuck." A man swears at the back, his eyes cold and his fists clenched. "There is absolutely no way I can find her now. Come on, let's go."

All of Mikayla Anderson's visitors all leave without getting to see her.

THREE YEARS LATER...

"Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday happy birthday Happy birthday to you." Mika sings as she kisses each of them on the forehead very early in the morning. Her short neck length hair of years before has grown out to become a full back length blonde hair but she currently has it packed in a ponytail.

She sets their plates of breakfast in front of them. "Don't worry, I have the perfect birthday gifts for you both after school."

They nod excitedly while chewing.

Mika watches them, her heart in her eyes as all she has left after being ridiculed by her family is her own children whose father still remains a big mystery to her.

She returns to the kitchen to tidy up in preparation for work and her mind wanders to the day she had gone into labour.

When they had pulled her out, she had been so relieved and happy until the contractions hit once again.

A boy.

She had given birth to a set of twins, a girl and a boy on the same day.

She had smiled through the immense sweat and pain, knowing that these two will be her redemption and happiness for as long as she has them which is why she has chosen to stay back in San Francisco where no one will find her.

"I'm done eating..."

"I finished before you."

"No. I finished before you."

"That's a..."

Mika cuts in before it turns into a full fledged plate throwing fight. "How about we agree you both finished and I drop you off at school?"

Miles simply looks away and drops his spoon on his plate.

Mika sighs in her heart, the young boy looks so much like his Dad with as much as she can remember from their short encounter. Not even enough to be called an encounter because she was the only one who saw him that morning while he was still asleep.

Maya frowns her small eyes. "Fine, only if you give me more sweets? I'm his elder sister."

Mika laughs.

She's already exerting her authority at such a young age. Mika winks a yes at her as she packs their plates.

She drops them off at their school and heads to work. She has been working at a firm ever since she moved down to San Francisco. Things are not hard for herself nor her children but they aren't living the best lives either.

Sometimes, she cries in her room, knowing that she could have given her children a better life if she had not come to terms with the fact that some of the venomous things Lily had said was true.

She was adopted at five but that's another story.

"Good morning." She greets her co-workers cheerily as she settles down in her office.

An pudgy, short and pot bellied man suddenly shows up out of nowhere and calls her name out loud. "Mikayla, into my office now."

Everyone begins to whisper amongst themselves, giving her looks of pity. It has become public knowledge that ever since he tried to have his way with her and she had not agreed, he had resorted to humiliating himself, thinking he is humiliating her instead.

He always refers to her being a single mother, insults her and undermines her work, and the best ones, he steals them for himself and claims to be the brain behind the ideas to the bosses. She has learnt to be immune to all of his tauntings and not let the sadness of an old man cost her her job.

She pushes her chair back and goes into the office and as is the usual, his raise voice can be heard in the office outside.

"Why are you so useless? You can't do anything right. Something as simple as putting a better font on a presentation is such a hard job for you? Why don't you just quit and focus on your children instead?"

Whenever he refers to her children, she clenches her fists in anger, but always manages to hold it in, remembering what happened the last time she let her anger take hold.

Went to prison for a month and it's permanently on her record.

"Oh, it is your children that has been distracting you right? Maybe if you just gave them out or did something about them, maybe you will focus better and maybe even get a promotion."

She keeps quiet through all the verbal abuse and then very calmly, the same calmness that always seems to annoy him either way. "What exactly did you say I should do? I'll correct it now."

He grunts frustratedly. "Change the font here to a better one."

"Maybe you have something in mind?" She asks, because she knows quite well that nothing she does will ever be okay with him.

"So I should teach you your job too? What exactly are you being paid for...?"

She grabs the document off the table and nods politely before leaving his office, sighing heavily.

"See her go with her haughty attitude. You'll never learn anything if you keep up this bad attitude of yours." He hisses loudly as the door closes with a click behind her.

As soon as she sits down, a female co worker wheels her chair to her seat. "I still don't know how you're going along, not punching that man in his stomach just yet. You have a very high tolerance level."

Mika laughs. "Of course. If I didn't, I'm sure I'd have flushed my children down the toilet a very long time ago."

Both women laugh and in few hours, it was the end of the day and she stopped by to pick her children up from school with a beautifully wrapped cake on the passenger seat next to her and a large order of cheeseburgers and fries, their favourite food in the world even though they can't eat much of it yet so she gets to eat the most. Good deal if you ask Mika. She sees her children running to the car and she gets off so she can give them a big hug.

Maya stops short first. "Come Mom, we have something to give you for our birthday."

She frowns slightly and smiles. "But it's mommy that should be giving you gifts, I even have them in the car."

They shake their head. "Just come."

She shrugs and goes with them, what wrong could possibly happen?

She follows them to one of the classes in the school. She enters and meets their teacher who was packing books off the desk and other things. He straightens up when they enter.

Mika greets him politely but her children have something else entirely planned.

Maya nudges Miles. He frowns and nudges her back. She frowns at him and he gives her a bad eye.

The two grown ups just watch their antics.

Maya finally speaks up, a small smile on her cute face. "Mom, meet Mr Benjamin. He's a teacher here and my friend told me that he wants a wife. I just want to tell you."

Mika's face slowly turns beet red, not knowing what to do between her child and the teacher who seems just as surprised as she is.

"Hi, I'm their mother and I am really sorry for all of this."

Mr Benjamin laughs. "It's fine ma'am. Your children are quite bright. I envy you."

Mika smiles politely. "Thank you. I'll make sure to discipline them. It won't happen again. I'm really sorry."

And for the first time in months, she scoops both of them up in her arms and make a hasty exit, wondering where her children got their matchmaking thoughts from.