They suddenly
heard noise in the room.
“What was that?” Mabel asked.
“I don’t know,” her mother
said.
They paused and
listened. They heard the noise again. This time Mabel heard Cynthia call her
name.
“It is Cynthia,” Mabel said.
They rushed to
the room and almost collided with Cynthia at the door.
“What is the problem?” Cynthia
asked them. “Why are you rushing?”
“We heard a noise,” her mother
said.
“I hit my leg on the foot of the bed, lost
balance and supported myself with the chair. I think that was the sound you
heard.”
“Hope you did not wound
yourself?” her mother asked touching her.
“Don’t worry, I am fine.”
“You did not use your phone light?” Mabel
asked her.
“I was sleepy-eyed then,” she
replied. “But I am seeing clearly now.”
“Where are you going now?”
“I want to ease myself.”
“Hold on, let me fetch water
for you.”
“Has the one I fetched
finished?” their mother asked.
“Yes I used everything,” Mabel
answered. “I am coming, let me fetch water.”
Mabel took a bucket
and went outside to the borehole in the compound and fetched water. Cynthia thanked
her when she came back with the water and then went into the toilet. Mabel and
her mother stood at the door of the toilet waiting for Cynthia.
“Don’t lock the door o,” Mabel
told her.
“Why are you people standing
there?” Cynthia asked. “Any problem?”
“No problem,” her mother
replied.
They waited for
her. When she was done, Mabel flushed it for her while her mother helped her
back to the room to sleep. When she lay down, they went back to the parlour.
“Now back to what we were
discussing,” Mabel said to her mother.
“What has been the reaction of
your friends to your issue?” her mother asked Mabel when they sat down.
“They have been calling and
sending text messages.”
“Have they been coming to see
you?”
“Most of them want to see me
but I have not been in the mood to see them. I have only seen few who I met
suddenly, just the way I met Maggie.”
“The thing about friends in
this kind of situation is that you really can’t tell who feels for you and who
is happy about what you are going through.”
“You are right. Even the
stories they are telling are exaggerated. I don’t even know who to trust again.
If Kemi could do that to me, anyone else can do worse things.”
“What about the man who left
you for her?”
“I don’t know and I don’t care.”
Her mother
sighed.
“I hope you have not called
him?” she asked.
“Call who?” Mabel asked.
“Segun.”
“God forbid. For what? Why
should I call him?”
“Good. He left you and should
be the one to make contact if he values you and the relationship.”
“Exactly. He should be the one
calling and begging me. Even if he does, there is no guarantee that I will
accept him back after all the humiliation he put me through. ”
“Yes. No need selling your
pride as a woman and appearing desperate. That was the mistake I made with your
father. I appeared too needy.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“What exactly happened?”
Her mother
sighed.
“I was in my early twenties at
the time and he was the best man I saw,” she said. “He was my everything. The
things he said to me and the way he pampered me made me think he was for real. When
he broke my heart the first time, I went running after him thinking it was my
fault that he walked away. I found out I was pregnant for him and told him. He
denied and abandoned me. My parents were ashamed of me. I was in school then so
they could not reach me to do anything to me. They just stopped sending money
to me. It was one of my senior cousins who took care of me until I gave birth
to you. Your father did not contact me. From time to time, I would still write
letters to him but he did not reply or even bother coming. People advised me to
move on with my life. I tried.”
“Why did you keep trying to
get him back after what he did to you?” Mabel asked.
“I thought I would never meet
any other man like him.”
“Was he that special?”
“With the eyes of a young girl
then, yes. But now, nothing special at all.”
“Ok.”
“I was really desperate to
have him back. Then about 2 years later, he came back to me. He begged me and
told me several stories that I later found out to be lies. I heard he had actually
broken up with the other lady he was dating. I immediately took him back without
hesitation. I was foolishly in love with him. Family and friends were
disappointed in me. I lost most of my friends because of him but I didn’t care
as long as I had him. Then he impregnated me again and ran. This time, he ran
for real.”
“You were still in school
then?”
“I had just graduated. I
couldn’t continue doing my clearance in school so I got a menial job to take
care of you and my unborn child.”
“You really suffered o.”
“My dear, it was not funny.”
“So the man you call my father
never asked after you again?”
“No. Even when I gave birth to
Cynthia, he did not even send me a dime to buy baby food. That was when my eyes
cleared and what people had been telling me dawned on me. I took care of my
medical bills from the money I saved from the menial job I was doing.”
“Did you try reaching his
family?”
“Yes.”
“What did they say?”
“They said they are not aware
of anything going on between me and him. They shut me out completely. I think
it was because I didn’t have a boy. If I did, they would have claimed him
immediately.”
“Your parents did not accept
you too?”
“My father made sure no one in
my family came to see me or send me money. Things become so difficult for me
that I couldn’t afford to take care of you and your sister. I had to sell some
of my clothes and belongings to buy food for both of you. People I turned to
for help turned their backs on me. When I couldn’t bear it anymore, I had to
reach out to my mum. I told her everything and she softened. She spoke to my
dad day after day, telling him that I am still their daughter no matter what, that
they can’t afford to lose me because a randy fool (as she called him) decided
to deceive me and put me in the family way. He eventually forgave and accepted
me back.”
“You have not told me these
details before. I only know that our father abandoned us for another woman.”
“Yes I don’t want you girls growing
with bitterness in your heart. You would end up hindering yourselves while the
person you are bitter against is likely enjoying his life somewhere with his
family.”
Mabel looked at
her mother’s face. Her eyes were teary with a ball of tear about dropping down
her cheek.
(...to be continued...)
Nedu Isaac
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