Metus Evenit (Latin:fear happens or comes to pass)

“Petra i need to borrow your calculator !” I hollered from upstairs . “ What’s this ?” I thought while i picked up a box from her bag . “ Don’t open my bag without telling me !” Petra screamed and snatched the bag out of my hand .

“ Ayy- calm down i just needed to borrow your calculator …” I continued “… and i found this “

I opened my hand to show her the box of staple pins i found in her bag .

“ i was planning to return it tomorrow-“

I cut her short , “ Petra , you cant go on like this …”

Hit by my words she looked down embarrassed.

“ im not trying to make you feel bad im just saying - again - dont you think you should ask for help ? Its not easy to admit but you have to accept it so you can overcome it or am i wrong ?” I asked

Just then mom walked in

“Whats going on ? “ she asked

“ new item in her collection “ i blurted out and guilt swept over me right after

Mom gasped “ that wasn’t nice , apologise !”

“ I-I’m sorry i didn’t mean it “ i stammered

“ Petra come here “ mom said to her and gave her a short hug “ i put your food on the table go have it , ill join you soon “

Petra dragged herself out of the room leaving mom alone with me .

“ She’s treated poorly everywhere “ she pauses and looks straight at me “ home too?”

“ im sorry i didnt mean it - im just tired … of her condition of course - not her , shes still my sister”

She sighs , “ you know , ive found a place … a coworker showed me this specialist hospital we can take her to … i just dont want her to feel like -“

“ its for her own good mom , taking her to see a doctor is what she needs , oneday she’ll have to build her own life how can she do that with this condition? How can she keep a job if she’ll pick something on impulse almost every day ? “ i argue

She nods “ mm , yes , yes i know well then id tell her before bed today “

I nod and leave the room .

It hadnt been easy managing Petra and her condition especially when it first began , a year ago .

At first mom saw it as traditional theft and kept scolding her . You see the thing is mom was a single mom trying her best to support us , so having shop owners, neighbors and friends come over to our home to attack Petra for theft was kind of painful.

And the things she stole ? She never seemed to need them - they were a large variety of items ; books , pens , shoes , a bag of chips, a salad bowl, toffee wrappers … oh yes and the staple pins among others.

The thing is only I realised she didnt need them , to those she ‘stole’ from - well … “ her mom must’ve not been able to get some for her “ and if it was sooo random that that explanation wouldn’t work they’d say “ Well we’d never know why she took it !”

I knew there was more to it so i looked it up and realised Petra was at war with her own self .

She didnt need the salad bowl or the toffee wrappers not even the books because mom bought enough at the beginning of the school year ! She just couldn’t help but pick these things up … think about it -

she knew there were cameras ,

other times she was in a crowded area

but most at times it happened when she was alone but she never planned the theft nor how to get away with it .

I was soo sure it was a case of Kleptomania

And on September 20th 19~~

I was proved right .

I drove her to her first meeting with the doctor

She was quiet the whole ride and i have to admit it made me nervous

“Here we are , youre going to be fine okay just-“

“ lets get this over with “

I nodded slowly and walked slowly behind her

“Id be right here waiting for you “ i said to her at the door to the doctor’s office

She nodded and went in

That was the longest 1 hour in my life

I use to joke about her condition (in my head) so i could act like it doesn’t really bother me and i was handling it well but the truth is i was really really terrified of her condition. I always feared that oneday shed put us in a situation with no escape and its not going to be a “ Petra stole a chocolate bar at my store” kind of situation . I did read and notice that people with her condition stole things of lower value but stilllllll I couldn’t help but fear things could spiral out of control.

My thoughts were interrupted by Petra leaving the office

“ how was it ?” I asked hurriedly

With a smilie she replied “ cool , ill be back next week”

I let out a nervous laugh because i thought she’d come out angry or something just not in a positive mood but looks like things went well - i was delighted.

Some days later …

“Where are you going?” Petra called out to me from inside the house

“ The filling station, i need some batteries “ I replied

“ i want ice cream can i come too?!” She exclaimed

“ okay” i said and rolled my eyes

I must say i loved that specific filling station beacuse of the minimart beside it . They had everything! I think Petra loved it too .

“ Get your ice cream im going to get the batteries “ i said trying to look cool

“ okayyyy Rayllaaannnn” she said swaying her head

After finding my batteries i meet her at the cashier

“That’ll be 30 cedis sir”

“Here you go … thank you “ i turned to Petra “lets go”

I walked behind Petra towards the exit .

PAUSE . . .

its moments like this i hated

I left her alone at that aisle …

wait …

“ Petra “ i called her calmly

“ whats that in your pocket ?” I asked in a low voice

she froze …

She froze …

No Petra prove me wrong …

“ You know i wasnt going to steal it i don’t need it anyway its just a toy car they used for decor i just wanted to find a way to put it down before anyone noticed it was gone but if i walked back right now it’ll be weird so I thought i’d come later …”

“ its okay give it to me i’ll put it back” i said calmly

I was going to say wait here but no

“ come with me “

I placed it down and without taking my eyes off the car I continued “ you’ll get better , it takes time “

No

I didn’t believe that

Petra was going to live with this forever she just had to find a way to manage it .

I was ashamed to admit it but here i was believing that my sister couldn’t recover and that she just had to find ways to cover up when she made a mistake - cause she’d keep making those mistakes.