I didn’t call Laide that night,
because I knew she’d be facing… scrutiny. She didn’t call either.
The next day, a Saturday, we spoke on
the phone. I’d hoped we’d meet, but as the day wore on, the possibility was
ebbing away… like it did the last time. That time, I had come all the way, and
literally hid in a hotel, scavenging on the leftover hours from classes, her
parents, and her legitimate boyfriend. And what was that? A few minutes after
school today, a few between lectures tomorrow… Whenever she was very free, her
boyfriend was waiting; or her mother; or both. We’ve come a long way since
then, however. Even though I didn’t know how things were between her and the
said boyfriend, I knew I’d gained grounds over time. One simply can’t duplicate
such commitment: if she was in such high seas of love and affection with me,
then she was in a starving lake with him. No doubt. So, her not showing up
tonight wasn’t necessarily because I was still lowest on the pecking order, but
because I’d upended the peace by stirring the waters.
My work was suffering; it was going
to suffer more. I’d planned to resign in December and take two months to prepare
for my trip, but now I feared that if my ‘ancestors’ kept tossing me about, I
would have to tender my letter sooner. I’d left work midway through Thursday,
flew into Benin, had a prerequisite tete-a-tete with her on Friday afternoon, and
then went to see her Dad in the evening. I stayed holed up alone in my hotel
room throughout Saturday. Sunday, I was on my way back to Abuja by road. Had to
be at work on Monday…
During
the week, our phone chats began to regain top form, paving the way for a
successive weekend trip to Benin.
I
took an off day the following Friday, to make a road trip to Benin. In Benin, I
checked into a hotel, and made off for her house at once. Dad was out; Mom, her
cousins, in… no hostility now.
I made myself useful. It was my
plan: to get involved in whatever it was they did to support the home. Some
frying business against the weekend… if I really wanted to make this girl my
wife, I had to make here my home first.
As the day wore on, the hustle and
bustle dipped. It was getting dark. I wasn’t quite tired, but my eyes were
heavy, though not with sleep: True, I’d had a hectic week; true, a long trip;
true, I’d been involved in the domestic chores… but what made my eyes heaviest
was my sense of pessimism. I took everything in, as if in blurry slow motion.
Her mom, robust and full of life, was a dynamo of energy. In consonance with
her fairly large frame, she made haste slowly. Because of that, she was
constantly in motion. A woman who had a lot to accomplish, but was slow, had to
always be busy.
Efe, Laide’s cousin – about the same
age as her; pretty, fair… from my phone conversations with Laide over time, I’d
come to know that Efe was usually lively and loquacious. Her silence now was
easy to see through: I was here.
During one of my earlier trips I’d
met Emmanuel… He shook my hand gleefully that day and welcomed me to Benin.
Laide introduced me as a friend then. Now that I’d shown up here wanting more,
his glee from that day was simply absent. Nor was Laide herself saying much…
only answered my questions and stuff. I seemed to be the only one talking;
trying very hard to remove all the ‘officialness’ from my language… trying very
hard to impress.
At
about 7pm the man of the house came home, and spotted me at the industry of his
hearth. Everybody greeted, especially me, trying to be recognized as the
gentleman from the other day, Duke. It wasn’t a very good reception from him,
but it was better than before.
I sat alone in the living room,
hoping he’d join me. I knew dinner would be soon, and that I needed to have
been gone before then… to save the family some dining awkwardness. Too early to
seek to dine, except if I was expressly invited.
The
man did join me in the living room, but it was to cause my evening to plummet
further. I stood up when he came in and, when he sat, he bid me do the same.
“You
know… young man…” he seemed to choose his words carefully. “You’ve made your
intention known… I think… erm… it’s now left for us to ponder it and give you
an answer. In my opinion… erm… there is really no need for this… this… show of
niceness around my family. You’re probably a nice boy, nobody’s doubting that;
but you’ve not been called upon to prove it.”
He bit off a bit of the piece of
kola nut he had in his hands and began to chew as if without a single care in
the world. He was gazing at the TV in a fashion that suggested I was dismissed.
I stood up, thanked him, bade him good night, and left. Outside I flashed
Laide, and she came for a hug that was better than the last time. We hung out
on Blackberry Messaging till late, and it was clear this was the girl I loved,
not her father. Therefore, only her demeanor really mattered. I always knew
there’d be mountains, only I didn’t like them appearing like they could never
be surmounted. Her sweet company gave me hope. And that was that.
After her lectures on Saturday she
came over to the hotel. Sex would be too daring, and would pilfer the moral
locus standi of my immediate mission, so we passed it up. We kissed, fondled,
pillow-talked, planned, strategized, and generally made light of the mountains
we faced, particularly the huge one that lay ahead – my prizing her from her
parents for a week and taking her to my village to shew my Grandfather.
No comments:
Post a Comment