The Night Before.... 4

Ade felt Toke’s hands on his trousers, he looked down at her to see tears flowing freely down her face. She looked like she had lost something or someone.
“Ademi, please forgive me. You know I won’t intentionally hide something like that from you if I knew it was of significant importance…”
“You call having a child and not telling me insignificant? Are you so mean that you hate the one you have? By the way, when was the last time you spoke to him or your Aunty?”
“Six years ago when my aunty called to say Juwon was asking to know his mum, and I told both of them never to regard me as his mum again because I have started a new life and I don’t want him in it.” She cringed now even as the words left her. Am I really this wicked? she thought to herself and almost missed Ade’s next words.
“Well, I told Nina to put pressure on you to open up to me but since you adamantly refused to say anything, I decided I was going to pay you back in your own coin.”
She looked momentarily confused. “What, how do you mean, Ademi?”
He glared back at her, and it slowly came to her.

“Whaaaaaaaaat? You have a child too?! How? When? Where?”
Ade looked at her scornfully, “Oh so you know how it feels to have a child hidden somewhere without the other partner knowing, right? Anyway, as I was saying, I had Nina promise me that she won’t tell you I know since you didn’t want her to let me know too. But I had gotten in touch with your Aunty and Juwon.”
She waited a while as she processed that. Then: “Nooooo, that can’t be possible, how did you get their contact?”
“I got it from your diary. I checked your phone but didn’t see it, so I thought to check your diary since you also had some contacts penned down on it. I tried a couple of numbers you labelled Aunty, before I eventually got the right one. She was quite surprised to hear from me, especially since you didn’t tell her about our wedding, and I explained the whole situation to her. She opened up after series of conversations with her and corroborated Nina’s story. I never knew I could shed tears till I spoke with Juwon. Why do you hate that innocent boy so much? He is intelligent, smart and witty, just like you. Do you know he has been leading his class and he got an award for excellence with a scholarship to take him through high school? How can a mother forget her own son and turn her back on him, especially when he needs her the most? So I sought some counsel and I came to the conclusion that I was also going to attempt to impregnate another woman until I decide what to do with you.”
“Haaaaaaaaaa, Ademi! Please pinch me and tell me I’m not dreaming? Don’t do this to me Ademi. Ok, Ok, I promise, I will accept Juwon back, I will love him again as my son that he is, I will do my duties as a mother, I will…”



“Enough! Do you know if the reason we don’t have children is probably because your son wouldn’t forgive you for abandoning him? Or maybe children are scared of you because of how they think you will treat them? Yorubas say ‘Ori omo lo npe omo wa’ye;’ a child well cared for in the home attracts the birth of other children into same home. I had decided I won’t let you spoil my life with your inconsideration. Do you even know the spiritual implication of what you have done? I know it is not your fault you got pregnant, but that shouldn’t make you a heartless mother. Anyway, since I don’t want my unborn children to suffer the same fate, I have found another woman that will give birth to my children and I had made plans to take her home to see my parents this weekend before Dad called me today. I had a long talk with him and he asked that I talk to you because he had a bad dream over the night.”

All the while Ade was talking, Toke sat down on the plush centre rug shaking like a leaf struggling against a strong harmattan wind. Ademi had another woman?! Hmnn! How long have they been seeing each other? Who was she? How did they meet? Did Nina know? Who else knew? Joe? Perhaps, he started all these in the first place. Noooo, he didn’t. It was just about time for the truth to surface, didn’t they say nothing lasts forever? Not even secrets. Will Ade ever forgive me? Will Juwon even forgive me? I’ve hurt him so bad, he may not want to ever talk to me again? Is there still hope?
“Well,” Ade continued, “Since I have spoken to you about all I’ve bottled up in the last two years, I believe I can go ahead with my plans now with a clear conscience as I leave you to yours.”

He picked up his suit and bag as he went to the room. Toke felt certain that her carefully built world had just crumbled before her very own eyes. She was about blaming Yele for all that she had gone through when she chided herself. She was an adult now, adults take responsibility for their actions. It wasn’t Yele that told her to neglect her son, it was her own decision and she must now think of a way to bridge it. How could she convince Juwon that even though her stubbornness pushed him away, her heart never forgot him? How can she convince him that she followed all her Aunty’s updates and posts on social media judiciously just to catch a glimpse of him? “How can I tell him how much I cried the day I saw his picture receiving the award and scholarship without being there to support and cheer him on?” She wiped her tears on her sleeves and went to the guest toilet to pick some tissues to wipe her runny nose after which she washed her face in the wash basin. She looked up at her reflection in the mirror; well there was no need crying over spilt milk. What needs to be done, needs to be done regardless of how it is done or the outcome of doing it.

First thing tomorrow morning, she would put a call through to the United States. With that resolve, she felt like a heavy burden had been lifted up her shoulders.

Photo Credit: Google