FLIRTATIOUS ; (Part 37&38) – OPEYEMI AKINTUNDE

PART 37 “FLIRTATIOUS”
© Opeyemi Akintunde

“You want to know who you are?” Mama; my elderly friend who watched over my boys echoed my question…

“Yes”

“Well, I can take you to a pastor, he may be able to tell you who you are”

*****
“I know who you are, but it‟s best you discovered your identity yourself…”

“How sir?” I asked the pastor

“Prayer…”

“Ha! Prayer… Prayer is not easy”

“What makes prayer hard is when you refuse to see that prayer is a conversation with God. You make prayer a task, rather than a way of life. That‟s why you feel it is hard. Why don‟t you find a quiet place in your
home and speak to him?”

The Pastor had said to me, but I did not value that advice of his, so I decided to go through another route.

The route of focusing on becoming a better person all by myself.

I stopped attending the youth church so as to avoid Bro Femi. I focused on completing my studies.

With all the cash flowing into my account, living a comfortable life was not
a hassle.

*****
I knew I needed some air, I was tired of Promise. I thought marriage to Promise would be promising but it was anything but that. It was therefore with a heart of gratitude that I embraced Promise‟s suggestion that I travel
abroad for a year course at a prestigious fashion school in France…

My business was already growing, and I had competent workers who could handle things in my absence, so there was no reason why I should not go…

“How would you cope in my absence?” I asked pretending to be unhappy about her suggestion

“I will be fine… I want you to improve yourself. My dream is to see you
become a better man” Promise had said

“Thanks love”

I couldn‟t leave the country without seeing Leni… I therefore sent her a
message, for the first time in a long while.

“Hi Leni, I would love to see you and the kids, I will be travelling to France for a year program. Please give me the satisfaction of seeing my sons, please” My heart yearned to see Roland and Greg

*****
When I got the text, I was tempted to send him the address, but my resolve was strong. I wanted to stay as far as I could stay from F.D.

“F.D, so good to hear from you, I am sorry I can‟t grant you your request, I
will send you pictures of the boys. It‟s best we maintain the distance between us; I wouldn‟t want to disrupt the good life you have with Promise.

I believe you have a kid already… May God keep him/her. Thanks for the money you spend monthly, goes a long way. I wish you a safe journey”

As I typed the text, I couldn‟t help the tears that flowed. I missed F.D no doubt. I missed the only relative I had…

My convocation was in a few months, how I wished F.D was around to see
me graduate despite having 3 sons, but life had to move on in the direction
I had chosen…

*****
“Leni, so what‟s the plan now that you are out of school” Mr. Teju asked.

Over the two years of living in his house, we had grown close in a brother and sister way. I saw him as an uncle. He was very proud of me for going back to school despite all I had been through. I had updated him about my life, but not deeply. I told him an edited version of my life story.

“Uncle Teju, I am hoping to find a good job, that way I can get my own place, and stop being a burden to you”

“Good thought, but I am not complaining about you staying in my place.
You should get a job truly, but not because you need to get out of the house…” He said laughing.

“Uncle Teju, thank you, but someday I will still need to move out. Someday, you and your family may plan to relocate to the country”
“I have no family coming back to the country, if I relocate, I will be staying in the main house, and that doesn‟t stop you from staying in the mini flat”

He replied

I paused to ruminate on his last statement. For years, I had tried to dig into Uncle Teju‟s personal life, but he never let me. Whenever, I asked about his family, he would simply say “Everyone is fine”

Therefore, his statement about no one relocating with him, if he were to
relocate was mind bugging

“Uncle Teju… Are you married?” I decided to cut the chase.

PART 38 “FLIRTATIOUS”
©Opeyemi Akintunde

He was silent…

“Leni, I will send you a phone number right away, contact him, he is a friend of mine. Send your C.V. to him, he will help you with a job placement” Uncle just said sharply. I knew that voice. It was the formal voice. I understood the cue.

I got the job of a marketing executive in an Oil and Gas company, thanks to Uncle Teju’s connection.

It was a new life, a big girl life. A life of earning my own money in six digits. My life was going smoothly until…

*****
My one year freedom was what I needed to gain back my sanity. I had a good time learning more about the fashion. I made new friends.

Over there, I was the African orphan boy, who was very creative and everyone loved me. When I concluded my study, I got a lot of offers from different fashion companies to stay back but Promise was not having it
She kept telling me to return home as she had a surprise waiting for me.
My thought was that she had renovated my business space.

On getting home, I was surprised at the chubby looking Promise I saw, plus she had a baby in her hand…

We did a lot of video calls, and truly I knew she added some weight but not the level I was seeing.

“Whose baby?” was the first question I asked.

Promise was all smiles initially, but my question threw her off balance.

“Whose baby?” she repeated my question

“Yes whose baby?” I asked again

“Our baby” Promise answered

“How is that possible” I have been gone for a year and a month”

“Do the math, she is four months old” Promise walked towards the bedroom angry.

I did the Math, and if truly the girl was mine, then she got pregnant before I travelled…

But…

My soul didn‟t believe it.

I followed her into the room and met her crying…

“Why didn‟t you tell me all this while” I asked

“I wanted you to concentrate on your studies”

“Can I carry her?” I said wanting to see her face.

She gave her to me, and I stared at the baby.

She was not mine. I knew it, she didn‟t look like me, nor Greg…

“Everyone says she looks a lot like me” Promise said shooting herself in the
leg.

I was definitely going to take the baby for a DNA…

I was waiting for the child to turn one, I was going to pretend all was well for the eight months left.

Life was going well until…

****
Don‟t blame me for doing what I did. I needed the one year space, so I could do what I needed to do… I kept wondering why I was unable to conceive for F.D. I decided to try other men. I had started the game plan some months before he travelled, and two months before he left I became pregnant for another man.

The baby‟s real age at the time F.D came back was 6 months, but I had to lie she was four months, so it could tally with the last time we made love before he left…

I thought he would be happy seeing the baby, but instead he turned cold on seeing the child.

That got me thinking more seriously…

I was beginning to sense that F.D didn‟t want anything lasting with me…

“Is it true he has a woman and son? Maybe that‟s why he doesn‟t want a child with me”

I employed a spy to monitor my husband‟s movement for about two months and nothing sneaky was found.

I went back to the particular herbalist who told me about the woman and the child.

“What kind of herbalist do you think I am? I know what I saw…”

“Come here” He said angrily. He felt insulted by me insinuating he was lying.

The priest dragged me to a pot…

“Take the water from the pot, and wipe your face. Look into the water afterwards.”

I did as he had instructed, and I saw F.D and Leni with Greg’s Image in the water…

“What!” I shouted

“That’s your husband’s wife with her child”

My Life clock stopped ticking…

“No…. She is his Sister ..”

“Is that what he told you?” The herbalist said

“Leni is his…..” I said but Greg’s face clicked.
Greg was a replica of F.D…