Coker looked
where Mabel was pointing. He saw Segun seated with Margret, pressing his Tab. He was backing them so he did not
see Mabel.
“What should I do?” Mabel
asked Coker, visibly shaken.
“Are you ready to face him?”
he asked.
“Honestly I don’t know if I
am.”
Mabel turned
around and made to leave but Coker stood in her way.
“You are going nowhere,” he
said.
“I don’t want to see him,”
Mabel said.
“Margret is the one who asked
you to come. Go and see her.”
“It is definitely a set up.
She arranged this meeting. ”
“Yes I think she set this up but
we are here already. Go through with it, pretending it is a coincidence.”
“I don’t know if I can do
that. I don’t want to create a scene here.”
“That will not happen.”
Mabel went on
with Coker and his brother towards the order counter which was close to the
table where Margret and Segun sat. As she got close, she pretended she just saw
Margret suddenly and called her name.
“Maggi what are you doing
here?” she said, feigning surprise.
“Mabeeel,” Margret called,
also feigning surprise.
Segun looked up and was taken aback when he saw
Mabel. His Tab almost fell off his
hand. He did not know whether to stand up or to remain sited. He looked at
Margret for an explanation of what was going on. Mabel went towards Margret and
they hugged.
“What is this all about?”
Mabel asked Margret, whispering into her ears.
“Please sit,” Margret said and
drew out a seat for her.
“Let me get what I came for.”
Mabel made to
move towards the counter.
“I will get it for you,” Coker
said. “What will you want to take?”
“Ice cream will do.”
Segun was visibly
uncomfortable.
“Did you arrange this?” he
asked Margret.
“No I did not,” Margret said. “It
is a coincidence.”
Mabel wanted to
talk against it being a coincidence but Margret pinched her on the back and she
kept quiet, looking at her. Coker shook Segun and went to get the ice cream for
Mabel while his brother bought two bottles of drink. He gave the ice cream to
Mabel who was still standing, and then went to sit on a different table with
his brother.
“Where are you going?” Mabel
asked him.
“To sit down till you are
ready to leave,” Coker said.
“I don’t plan sitting down.”
She turned to Margret and said, “I see you are ok. Now let me go and attend to
more pressing needs.”
“Please don’t spoil this moment na,” Margret
pleaded with her in whisper.
Mabel insisted on
leaving but Margret kept insisting she stayed. After a while of pleading, Mabel
sat as far away from Segun as she could. Segun looked at her, their eyes met
and she looked away.
“Now I know why you have been
going to the restroom every minute,” Segun said to Margret. “You invited her
here to embarrass me.”
“I did not,” Margret said.
“Why then did you bring me
here without any tangible reason? I was supposed to leave like fifteen minutes
ago but you kept me here. Now she walks in and you say it is a coincidence.”
Mabel eyed him angrily and hissed loudly, desiring to
spew vocal venom on him but Margret kept pinching and nudging her leg which was
under the table. So she just kept her cool. Segun kept talking about how he
didn’t want to be there. At a point, Mabel could not take it anymore.
“Is this what you brought me
here for?” she asked Margret.
“Ehe the truth is now coming out,” Segun said. “You brought her
here. I said it that you arranged this meeting.”
“Oluwasegun will you behave
yourself,” Margret told him, her voice a bit raised. “I just met her and asked
her to stay, hoping you will have something meaningful to say.”
“Whatever needs to be said has
been said since na.”
“You have obviously been
bewitched.”
“No. I saw a better option and
took it.”
“So that’s what you have to
say?”
“I have moved on. Is it not
clear? She should do the same.”
Mabel let loose
and verbally washed him. He just sat there and took them. People around saw
what was going on and just went on with their business. Margret nudged and
pinched her till she was tired. When Mabel was done talking, she hissed loudly
again.
“Are you done?” Segun asked
her sarcastically.
“I am not,” she said. “I will
tell you more.”
“It is enough,” Margret said.
“I think it was a bad idea making you sit down. This was not what I expected.”
“People break up and make up,”
Coker said from his table. “Life goes on.”
“Coker I thought we have
talked about this before,” Segun said, turning to Coker.
“You are yet to give any
tangible reason why you left her.”
“Honestly, Mabel is a nice
person but I have moved on with my life.”
“Is it something she did?”
“No. It is a personal
decision. Why is it difficult to understand?”
“I have since moved on,” Mabel
blurted. “I don’t know why Margret made me stay here. If I knew you were here,
I wouldn’t have come in the first place.”
“Suit yourselves. I need to be
somewhere now.”
Segun made to
stand.
“You don’t leave until I say
so,” Margret told him.
“As what na?” he asked.
“Just try me.”
“Thank God we are just cousins.
You are not my big sister.”
While they were
still talking back and forth, Kemi walked through the door.
(...to be continued)
Nedu Isaac
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