She fussed over the scrawny strands of hair on the raggedy doll with her tiny pink tongue tucked between her lips. Sliver of sweat beaded her forehead as dry air slithered through the open windows. Dissatisfied with the outcome of her efforts, she ran the comb through it all over again; fresh starts looked promising for the doleful toy. Footsteps echoed down the stairwell as shiny brogues descended from the stairs. Her hand stopped midair as her face rose high to seek out the new entrant who stopped at the foot of the steps. He smiled broadly and wordlessly spread his arms expectantly.
“Daddy!!” The little girl exclaimed, dropping all that she held and raced to him.
“Hey, baby girl,” he responded, lifting her high enough to emit giggles from her. “What are we doing?” he asked, arranging her dress about her while she sat astride his left hip.
“I am making Anu’s hair but it is not going well.” she complained through pouty lips.
“Aww. What do we do, eh?” he inquired.
“Daddy, you can help me to hold Ann, so that I can plait her hair well.” she suggested in a sonorous squeak.
“Oh! That’s a great idea. But I need to get something outside and then we would do just that, okay?”
“Yaaaaay! Okay daddy.” she triumphed. “But daddy, can’t this thing wait?” she asked, sobering up quickly.
“Oh no! It cannot, dear. But I promise to be back, okay?” she mulled the words over with as much prowess as her six year old brain could muster.
“Promise.” she acquiesced.
He kissed her forehead and placed her gently on the floor. Straightening up, he met the gaze of his wife who stood at the door to the kitchen holding a bowl of vegetables inside her elbow. Her eyes held within them questions that he was not ready to answer. He sighed inwardly as she averted her gaze and smiled at the little one raising her toy to her. She felt her heart ache for her child but it could not be helped. She opened her mouth to speak-
“I just want to get something outside.” he interjected, shifting from one foot to the other nervously.
Kofo looked long and hard at the form-fitting tailored suit he had on, the bulge of his car keys in one of his pockets and shook her head in self-deprecation.
“Lola, would you like some ice cream?” she asked the little girl.
“Yaaaaay! Mummy, I would like some.” she smacked her lips in excitement which rented the space for a moment.
“Just be sure to bring her some.” Kofo said by way of goodbye and turned back into the kitchen. She placed the bowl carefully on the counter top and leaned heavily on it with her arms cradling her head.
Jide heaved his long held breath, turned and smiled at his daughter whose attention had returned to her doll. He looked around the house in a bid to ensure that he was not leaving anything behind and walked through the door.
. . .
By the third day, Lola’s wailing had become too much to bear. She cried so much so that Kofo feared that her tear ducts had emptied themselves for life. She was tired of putting up a solid front herself, and needed reprieve sooner than anticipated. Lola was denying her that; much as it grated on her nerves, she felt saddened by the little girl’s pain.
“It’s okay, baby.” she pacified, folding a dress mid-air. She patted the garment into one of the open cabinets of the wardrobe opposite the bed. Rather than keep still, the child rose from her crumpled state on the floor, ran to her mother’s side and wailed even louder.
“Where is Daddy?!” she groaned yet again.
Kofo shut her eyes in anguish; hate rose like bile in her throat. She blinked repeatedly to stall the tears threatening to come pouring down.
“He will be back, love. Just hang in there.” she lied yet again.
Lola screamed and threw herself on the bed. She kicked her feet high, riding her gown low to expose the stockings that covered her legs. In irritation, Kofo spanked her backside, further worsening the matter. Finally giving in to the hurt, she sank to the ground with the child in her arms and surrendered to the overwhelming despair.
. . .
Lola watched expectantly as her Paul walked across the plank sitting atop the gutter towards her. It was Thursday evening, their respective schedules had freed them up to meet at their usual rendezvous just metres from her hostel. He had made the trip across town to visit her in school which made it all the more romantic for her. She gushed at how he looked particularly handsome that night. His smile seemed to compete with the radiant moon, or so she thought.
“I am in too deep.” she chuckled playfully to herself.
Underneath the mango tree, they sat and watched as the school community far off fared in the night.
“Finals are not so far away anymore,” he mentioned. “Do you think you are prepared for it?” he asked.
“Oh gosh. Please don’t bring that up now. I was having a fine time pretending like it was some dream.” He chuckled and nudged her shoulder.
“But seriously, are you?” he pressed. “I’d hate for you not to be, you know.” he said.
“I am trying my best.” she replied.
“I trust you dear.” he said and kissed her forehead. She closed her eyes and reveled in the emotions the singular act evoked.
. . .
Her world couldn’t keep still, it was spinning too fast for her to keep up. She found herself leaning heavily on him with hands pressed into his shoulders. He smiled warily and wondered at her reaction; his knee was starting to buckle underneath her weight.
“So… Is that a yes?” he asked carefully.
“Uh? Yes, oh dear. Yes!! I will marry you.” she whelped with joy.
“Are you crying? No! Please don’t. You are embarrassing me in front of everyone.” he quipped quietly.
Those words fell on the deafening sounds of felicitations and shutters of phone cameras flicking into existence the moment just experienced. She stood at his side and basked in the euphoria of having the void inside her filled by the love of her life, she felt ready to take on the world.
When sanity finally returned to the house, the evening wore off slowly with Lola giggling to the gist of her best friends. All but one was missing a glass of red wine in her hand, the other three kept filling theirs in quick succession and this had Bosede worried.
“You guys have gone through two bottles already. Isn’t it enough?” she whined, pulling the throw pillow from under Ada’s rump to herself for warmth. The other girls paused momentarily and burst into laughter in unison.
“You better join us and quit whining.” one of the three said waving her glass dangerously in the air. Bosede turned her attention to Lola instead and furrowed her brows.
“Lollie,” she started. “This proposal that you just accepted feels funny though.” she said.
The room went quiet instantly, sobering the girls. Outside, the gatekeeper of a building a stone’s throw away from them grumbled under his breath as a car blared its horns. He rose from his pallet and walked slowly to open the gate only to find the car parked in front of the next house. He looked left and right and went back inside morosely.
“What?!” Adaku replied in place of the soon-to-be-bride after gulping down her wine in haste.
“Hey! I wasn’t talking to you.” Bose retorted.
“Ah! As it is, you are talking to all of us. What do you mean by ‘feels funny?’” Tolu thundered.
Lola focused her attention on the rim of her wine glass, refusing to deign to respond to the conversation. She swirled the remaining content and knocked it down in one gulp. She raised herself unsteadily and made to leave the room. All eyes were on her as she picked her way around the furniture, the silence choked the once vibrant atmosphere. Nearing her room, she turned and fixed Bosede with a cold stare.
“Paul and I are getting married whether you like it or not. Got it?” The door slammed with a muffled bang rattling the windows.
The other girls hissed heatedly and retreated to their rooms leaving Bosede to wonder where she had gone wrong.
“Kill joy!” Ada spat in disgust.
. . .
The piano concluded the ‘Here Comes the Bride’ piece just as her uncle propped her at the preacher’s side. She adjusted her veil and faced Paul with her most winsome smile branded on her face; if only the veil would let her be great, she mused inwardly. The three piece suit looked sculpted for him, making him look as elegant as ever. She ravaged him with hungry eyes but was taken aback when their eyes locked on to each other. Something seemed off with his stance. She could not pinpoint what exactly, it was but a gut feeling. She shrugged it off and decided that the butterflies in her belly were getting the best of her mind.
The vows could not have been said quickly enough. She fretted with her sandal heels as they caused her to groan softly. Finally, it was time to exchange rings. She gasped with mixed relief and delight.
Paul patted down his jacket, checked his breast pockets, and every other one but came up with nothing. He looked to his best man for answers, the latter only shrugged and looked away nonchalantly. After a long minute, the crowd slowly began to stir with confusion.
“Erm, Pastor, I think I left the rings in the car.” he finally said. A heavy sigh ran through the church. “It’s not an issue, let me just get it.” He concluded.
“Can’t your best man do that for you?” The man of God inquired innocently.
“I won’t be a minute, sir,” he replied him. “Babe, I am sorry this is happening. Let me just get the rings from the car, I will be back immediately, okay?” he said to his bride-to-be.
“Okay, dear.” she replied, smiling.
She watched him walk down the aisle and suddenly felt conflicted. She still could not place her finger on what was off about the scene. Few seconds later, the engine of a car roared to life, its tires kicked up dust as it veered off recklessly from the church premises.
“Daddy…” was the last word she uttered before losing consciousness.
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