The Night Before....6 (Concluding Episode)

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Toke opened her eyes on the couch as she came back to the present. Indeed so much can happen in a night. Back to why she came home in the first place. She went to her library and brought out a dusty book from one of the lower drawers. She found a clean rag to dust it and removed the covers to reveal a bible. She went back to the couch and stared at the bible long and hard. It has been ages since she opened it to read. Not certain how to pick up after a long while, she decided to say a prayer first.

“Dear Lord, it has been ages but I know it has not been long with you, for a thousand years is like a day before you. Please teach me to love you again, teach me to forgive and be forgiven, teach me to believe and trust in you again the way Juwon does. Above all, accept me back to you in Jesus name. Amen.”

She felt instantly refreshed and opened her bible, she was blown away with the first verse her eyes read:

“For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life;

Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.”

Toke was awed at the accuracy of the scriptures. She got more comfortable and continued reading. She was so engrossed she didn’t see Ade come in. He stood at the door wondering what was going on with her. He couldn’t place his finger on it but she seemed calmer than last night and there was a certain glow to her that he could not place. Looking closer he saw she was engrossed in a bible. Toke reading a bible? Wonders! Did she think all of that would change his mind? Shioor! He walked in to shower and change cloths. While changing, he remembered the conversation with his dad at the office when he asked if he had spoken to Toke. He had filled his dad in on details of the night before and had expected his dad to disagree with his conclusion on how he wanted to pay Toke back in her own coin, but his dad had reacted differently.

Calmly the man had told his son: “You are a grown man, we can’t choose or make your decisions for you but we will be praying for you as we have always done.”

His dad response earlier today had puzzled him a bit, then getting home to meet Toke reading the bible was even more unnerving. As he wore his joggers to go out for an evening jog, he received a message on his phone from a foreign number:

“She called today and spoke with Juwon for a long time.

Thank you for allowing God use you to start this process.

I hope you get the joy you deserve.”

-Jane

SIX MONTHS LATER

“Babe, we will be late for antenatal clinic today. Remember Juwon’s flight arrives by 7pm, we still need to get some things and be on ground before the plane touches down.”

Ade looked at the wall clock at the sitting room. He had taken time off today to take Toke to the clinic, since the doctor called to say he would like to see both of them after the last antenatal session. That coupled with the fact that he was going to meet his step-son for the first time. He didn’t want anything to spoil his careful planning for today, not even Toke’s pregnancy beauty routine. She was determined to make an impression on her son but he had told her she was beautiful enough the way she was.

“Coming, Honey; just this last touch.” She looked at her reflection in the mirror.

Who says she doesn’t have anything to be grateful for? Since that fateful night, things had taken a new turn for her for the better. Especially since she found solace again in God’s word. Ade had jilted his plan with the other lady. Toke couldn’t specifically say what happened, but like Juwon would say, it was a miracle. She heard the other lady too hadn’t been comfortable with the arrangements and they had mutually agreed to call off their affair and go their separate ways. Ade forgave her, and she and Juwon led him to Christ. Since then they had been attending a faith and word based church just a little distance from the house. Then two months after, she found out she was pregnant. Indeed she would count her blessings and name them one by one.

“Omotoke oooooo…”

“I’m out, Honey.”

As she walked into the sitting room, Ade took another look at her and smiled. Her bump was noticeable now and he took pure delight seeing her transform just to accommodate their baby growing inside her. He couldn’t thank God enough.

“Shall we, my lady?”

“Yes, we may.”

At the airport, it was a grand reunion amidst tears, hugs, kisses, pats and prayers as Toke and Ade met Juwon and Aunty Janet. As they made for the car park, Toke felt a pair of eyes on her. As she looked around, she didn’t see anyone she knew but she had a feeling she was being watched.

“Are you ok darling?” Ade asked, he had been noticing her looking around.

“I’m fine, just that I have this feeling like someone is staring hard at me.”

“Come on baby, there are hundreds of people here, besides you look hot with the growing bump so I bet that is enough attraction of its own.”

He drew her closer and as they moved towards Juwon, who was busy taking in the scenery, she heard it:

“Toksy?”

What?! Only one person called her that. Someone she had thought she would never see again. She spurn around to the still handsome but tired face of Yele. Yes, Omoyele Agoro. She remembered how she had fallen hard for him but he looked so different now. He didn’t have the hard exterior anymore, looks like life had dealt him a serious blow.

“Babe, do you know this man?” Ade felt it was time someone spoke up.

“Yes Honey, from way back. I never thought I would see this day but well, here we are. Ademi, meet Omoyele Agoro, you know so much about him already.”

Ade looked from Yele to Toke and back to Yele. He could see she was emitting some bad vibes and he had to calm her down for the sake of the baby. He looked back at Yele and felt pity for him which surprised even him. He had thought he would be jealous to meet Yele, but now he only felt pity.

“Babe, why don’t you just join Aunty Janet, let me handle this.”

She looked at Ade with questions in her eyes.

“Trust me, Babe.”

She looked at Yele once again and left them quietly.

“So how did it go with Yele? Juwon was asking who he was and I told him I would explain to him when we get home.”

“Well, it went better than I expected. He took the news of Juwon’s birth calmly, even happily; he admitted he wasn’t sure if you had the baby or not and asked to be a part of his life, even if it meant just visits. I explained to him that Juwon is not based here and gave him some other necessary details. I also exchanged contacts with him.”

“Thank you my love. I’m not sure I would have been able to talk to him civilly without bursting into some extreme emotion.”

“I know, Babe; I saw your look that was why I asked you to trust me to handle it. Thank you for trusting me.” He pulled her close in a warm snuggle.

“So what now?” she asked.

“Well, we tell Juwon the truth about his father and arrange for a meeting. It wouldn’t be proper to keep them both from each other. I’m sure Juwon would forgive him just as he forgave you.”

“Yeah, I guess you are right. So let me go to his room then.”

“Can I come with you? For support?” he smiled.

“Sure, Honey; you’ve taken this whole process better than I have. I could use some help still.” she smiled back.

“It hasn’t been easy for me too darling, but each time I remember how easily Juwon forgave you and had been praying for you, I feel inspired and empowered to align to God’s directives for me as the head of this house. As long as no one messes with Omotoke mi, I’m good to go.”

“Oh, I love you, Ademi.” Toke said with a teary sparkle in her eyes.

“I love you more, Omotoke.”

He held by the waist as they moved towards Juwon’s room.

THE END

A very big thank you to everyone of you that got to this stage. I have had fun writing this and even cried at some point, because this is a classic tale of forgiveness, the way God would want us to. Your comments, likes and feedback has given birth to another chain of thought from this short story. I will be doing a torch on the lives of other characters in this story and who knows, we may have a book out of this some day! Thus I will appreciate your comments, suggestions, observations to make the next story better. Even some fan theories and open speculations are welcome!

The next character I will be writing on come February: Aunty Jane...