THE AGONY OF MARRIAGE
EPISODE 11
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I knew that if I remained there any longer, I was bound to do something foolish. I didn’t find Uju attrac-tive but d–n, that girl knew how to make men fall into her tra-p if care is not taken I wondered if she was truly a village girl or if my father had truly met her a v!rg!nlike the elders had claimed. The way she was acting with me I knew instantly that this girl was out to get me at all cost. How she was so comfortable doing this to me when she knew that we were not alone not only surprised me but also baffled me.
Before her hand would move around my b©dy again, I caught it and flung it away and threw a glare at her over my shoulder. She gave me a puzzled look then tried to repeat the same thing but I stuck out a warning f!nger at her and whispered harshly, “Will you st©p this nons-en-se?! What’s wrong with you?!” I tried to keep my voice down as best as I could so that I didn’t wake Victoria up.
“Uju, don’t make me show you my other side this night! Are you a S-x freak?! Was this how you killed my father? Have you no shame? So this is why you c@m£ here, to s£dûç£me right?”
I yanked my hand away where she was directing it to immediately and hissed, “I can see that something is wrong with you. Aren’t you listening?” I was still whispering. “re-ad myl-ips, Uju, I-AM-NOT-INTERESTED!!!”
“Go find someone else to satisfy your nee-ds, all I know very well that I’m not going down the same tunnel my late father went throu-gh.” I spat.
“I have had just enough of this nons-en-se…” I got up angrily and, got down the be-d and moved around to the side where Victoria was slee-ping. I tapped Victoria’s arm to wake her up This was definitely not easy but I was determined to make all her plans fall throu-gh. I tapped Victoria ha-rder and as soon as she stirred, Uju quic-kly st©pped what she was doing and composed herself.
Victoria stared at me in a sleepy way, ru-bbe-d her eyes with her hand then looked up at me in confusion. “What’s it, is something wrong?”
“Let’s go down to the living room.” I told her.
“Why?” She yawned. “Is something wrong?”
I glanced at uju who was glowering at me with such hatred in her eyes then said to Victoria. “Let’s just go.” I took her arm and helped her out of the be-d. As she rose to her feet, she was unsteady and staggered forward, almost falling on me and s£nding me to the floor but I was quic-k to regain my stamina. All the sleep vanished from her eyes now as she noticed that
I sheepishly pursed myl-ips then glanced over her shoulder at Uju who was still glowering at me. “I’ll explain later.” I told her and she followed my gaze to stare over her shoulder at Uju. I placed a hand on the wall of her back and began to guide her out when Uju also got down the be-d. I paused and gave her disgr-untled look. “Where do you think you are going to?” I asked.
She had her hands on her h!ps and began to bounce lightly on one foot. “You think you can fool me right? You want to take her away and leave me here.
“Would you shut up?!” I snapped.
Victoria glanced from me to her with a bemused look. “Wait, Chris, what’s going on?” She asked.
“You want to know right?” Uju quic-kly jumped to answer, cutting me off before I could explain. “Why you were there snoring away… Obim has been tapping current!”
Victoria’s frown de-epened. “What do you mean?”
“What’s too ha-rd to un-derstand? I said Obim has been tou-ching me all over my b©dy.
Victoria scoffed in disbelief and turned to me. “plea-se Chris, tell me that this is not true.”
“Of course it is not! This thing here was trying to s£dûç£me… I wonder how you could even sleep throu-gh all that.” I defended myself.
Victoria gave me a look. “Don’t think you’ll get out of this easily.” She pointed a f!nger at me and I stayed quiet. She turned to look at Uju now then folded her arms un-der her che-st as she said, “I don’t know what game you are pla-ying, Uju, but it has gotten to the p@rt where it st©ps!”
“And who are you to tell me what to do in my own husband’s house?!” She took an intimid@t!ngstep towards Victoria.
“Jeez!” Victoria cried out. “He’s not even your husband! You are not even legally married!”
“And you are? What are you doing here? Don’t you have a home to go to? Look at your f!nger, is that not a wedding ring?! It shows that you are married, so aunty, just respect yourself and go back to wherever you c@m£ from. As you see me so, I’m here to stay and any asun-der fashioned between my Obim and I shall never prosper!”
Victoria exchanged glances with me but I was too angry and frustrated to speak. “I’m not going to debate over this with you. It’s past midnight and normal people are supposed to be slee-ping. I have better things to do than argue with a village idiot like you!” She snapped then turned towards the door.
“Bia aunty….” Uju pu-ll-ed her back by her arm, her face scrunched up in anger. “What did you just call me?!”
“You heard me!” Victoria spat. “A village idiot!”
As she attem-pted to lung at Victoria, I quic-kly got in between the two of them, protectively pushing Victoria to stand behind me while Uju desperately tried to scratch at her from the other side, raining insults on her in the igbo language.
“Anofia! Anumpama! Why are you hiding? Come na, come let me beat the living daylights out of you?! You should be ashamed of yourself! Husband snatcher! You cheap prostitute. A married woman like you slee-ping around outside her marriage! You have no dignity! EWU! (goat).”
“Enough of this nons-en-se Uju!” I yelled and silenced her. “My life was going just perfect before you showed up and disrupted the peace! Listen and listen good, I’ll tolerate every other thing but you disrespecting Victoria in anyway! The next time you call her names, I’ll not hesitate to throw you out on the streets where you truly belong!”
Uju was p@n-ting and she glared at us as I gr@bb£d two pillows and quietly led Victoria out of the room. We went downstairs and had to place the pillows on the sitting room rug, switched on the TV and tuned in to CBS Reality to watch Cheaters. It didn’t take long before Victoria fell asleep
As I was watching the television and changing from one channel to another I also felt restless, getting confused and angry at the same time re collecting everything that happened inside my be-droom. If I’m not careful, I will o something crazy to either Victoria that I truly love or Uju that is never going to st©p all the ru-bbish she was doing with me inside my be-droom. After about two hours sitting there watching the stains which mind was not focus on, I made up my mind, I rose and move back to my room since I know by now Uju would have left out of frustration and anger but I was wrong.
I left Victoria where she was slee-ping peacefully, gr@bb£d a pillow and went back up stairs, leaving her in the sitting room. When I opened my door and stepped into my room, I paused, the room was dark and I was surprised to see a silhouette on my be-d and I knew that it was definitely Uju. I was surprised that she was still in my room, I had been expecting that she would have angrily returned to her own room after I had left. I switched on the light, re-ady to s£nd her out since I was in a foul mood but the words hung in my mouth when I realized that she was stark n-ked on my be-d. She was p@rtially lying on her stomach, facing the right side of the be-d with both her arms used as a pillow. I knew then I was in tra-p and If I don’t leave immediately, the case would be a sorry one.
This was not what I had bargained for. I had simply left Victoria so that I wouldn’t be tem-pted any longer. I had come up here to try to sleep but I didn’t know that this was the sight that would greet my eyes the moment I step into the room. A soft voice in my head began to chant, “Chris, go back. Don’t.” While a louder voice yelled, “Just look at that s£dûçt!veb©dy! You know how much you want it! Go gr-ab it! Victoria doesn’t have to know, she’s downstairs. Just quietly do it and pretend nothing happened.”
I was caught between the two sides of my conscience! I was still stuck there, imagining the miracles, she stirred in her sleep, then her eyes fluttered open and she seemed to frown and blink at the bright lights. “Na who on light?” She started to ask when she saw me. “Oh, Obim…” She smiled now but I couldn’t say anything. I was rooted to the sp©t and my eyes followed her movement as she got down the be-d and walked towards me and I could ba-rely move from where I stood as If I was glue to the same sp©t. I knew right there without waiting for any soothsayer to tell me that I would fall. Oh! Jeez! What a witch!
As I was about to leave the room quietly she st©pped in front of me now, she pu-ll-ed me back “I knew you would come back.” She said huskily. “Even your father couldn’t resist me.” Before I could say anything, with full f0rç£ she pushed me to the be-d.
I was pinned against the be-d and helpless not knowing how to escape from this tra-p, I really wanted not to taste the forbidden fruit and at the same time my b©dy was yearning for the plea-sure I just layer down there allowing her to resume where she st©pped earlier
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VICTORIA’S POV
I just woke up suddenly, feeling restless as if something was about to happen, i looked around and found Chris was no more in there in the living room. I just sat down there debating whether to check on Chris or not. A lot of thoughts went throu-gh my head. First, Chris left there not bothering to wake her up, he just left her there and secondly, what of Uju? Where was she? Had she gone back to the room where Chris asked her to stay or are they together now? All this and that kept on coming my head but I believe Chris could not do such kind of thing to me because I knew that he liked me a lot, saying he loved me was an overstatement, after all, I had only just met him two nights ago. Not that I didn’t have feelings for him too but I just couldn’t bring myself to have an affair outside my marriage. Even staying with him in the same house without ma-king an arrangement to leave and find my way was alre-ady affecting my marriage and I didn’t want to worse it. Even though my husband had cheated on me several times, I didn’t want to do the same to him. I sighed then decided and ma-king up my mind to at least check on him to confirm any of my thoughts, I rose and started for the stairs. As I stepped into the corridor, I could hear someone gro-an ing in plea-sure.
I followed the sound and realized that it was coming from Chris’ room, creeping to the door, I placed my ear against the door which was p@rtially ajar to listen and I could hear someone ma-king a we-t noisy sound with his or her mouth and immediately my eyes wi-de-ned when I realized that someone was upon someone and the only two people besides me in the house were Chris and Obianuju. In order not to jump into conclusion, I peeked throu-gh the gap in the open door and what met my eyes rendered me speechless. I was shocked.
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CHRIS’ POV
Uju was dramatically doing everything she knew how to do best like an expert and it was really working on me. I was re-ady to do anything. I was eager to go ahead but unknown to me, Victoria who had been listening outside the door had also caught us. She had clasped her hand over her mouth to keep from screaming in shock while her eyes had filled with tears and without ma-king as much as a sound, she had quic-kly hurried back down the stairs, carefully not to give her pres£nce away.
As Uju continues with that I began to slowly lose interest. No matter how ha-rd I tried to pretend that I was actually doing this with Victoria, it just didn’t feel this same way. All I felt was guilt and I couldn’t believe that I was just about to do something with my step mother all because I wanted to satisfy the urge I felt. Slowly, I started to pu-ll away from Uju, even though I was still feeling the urge. She still continued to k!ssmy face and tried to do some other things but I held her wrist and stared her ha-rd in the eyes. Finally getting off the be-d after letting her go, I walked to the door, picked my shi-t and shorts and sli-pped back into them then opened the door and went to look for Victoria. I wanted to apologize to her but I didn’t know if I could bring myself to tell her what I did yet. I had let Uju k!ssme and fondle me. I felt ashamed of myself and shook my head at how S-xual temptations could weaken a man and push him to do just about anything to get a relief.
When I reached downstairs, I discovered that she was no longer where she was. I called for her but got no reply. I walked to the kitchen to check on her but she wasn’t there either. I called for her again but yet, only silence greeted me. I began to panic now as several questions sh0t throu-gh my head. Had she heard me and Uju inside the room? Had she gotten angry because I left her alone in the living room? Where could she be? Immediately, I hurried outside to look for her outside the house. I walked around the compound looking for her when my gate man appeared from a corner and flashed a torch are me.
“Oga, na you? (Boss, is that you?)” He asked.
“Yes, Effiong…” I answered.
He switched off the torch and asked again. “Oga, time na 3 a.m. we-tin you dey find?” (Boss, the time is 3 a.m., what are you looking for?)
“Did you see Victoria?” I asked.
“Oga, na who be Victoria? (Boss, who’s Victoria?)” He asked me.
I was frustrated and snapped. “Are you daft? How many Victorias do you know?!”
“Oga, me I no know her name. Na two women dey this house. The one wey you bring come two nights ago and the one wey your people carry come, na which one be Victoria? (Boss, I don’t know her name. There are two women in this house. The one you brou-ght home two nights ago and the one the elders brou-ght, which one is Victoria?)”
“The one I c@m£ home with.” I answered impatiently.
“Oh, that one?!” He chuckled and nervously stretched his arms then scratched his head. “Oga, she don go o. (Boss, she has left.)”
I frowned. “What do you mean by she don go?”
“Oga, she cry come meet me say make I borrow her five hundred naira, then she come commot. (Boss, she c@m£ crying to me, asking me to borrow her five hundred naira then she left.)” He explained.
“What! Effiong, are you mad?!” I flared up. “And you opened the gate for her at this time of the night?! Do you know what could happen to her out there?! And jeez! She was only wearing a night go-wn!”
“Oga, she borrow one of my shi-t… She say she go return am later… (Boss, she actually borrowed one of my shi-ts. She said she would return it later.)” The gate man mumbled.
“God!” I yelled. “Open the gate!” I ordered turned and rushed to my car. I got into it, started the car and reversed out of the compound then I drove off to look for Victoria.
To be Continued
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THE AGONY OF MARRIAGE
EPISODE 12
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VICTORIA’S SPEAKING
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I got down from the motorcycle that had brou-ght me to my parents’ house and paid the rider. I was wearing the gate man’s shi-t which I had borrowed to cover my thin nightgo-wn and I was thankful that I had collected it because the night was cold. I walked the house which had no gate and knocked on the front door. I had knocked almost nine times before my younger brother opened the door, surprised to see me. He ru-bbe-d his eyes and moved out of the way so that I could go in.
“Sister, what are you doing here by now?” He asked, yawning into his fist.
“Don’t worry about it… Just go to be-d, I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” I said and locked the door while he returned to his room. I walked to my sister’s room and sle-pt next to her.
In the morning, I felt someone tapping me. I opened my eyes to find my mother staring down at me.
I slowly sat up, ru-bbing the sleep off my eyes. “Mama, good morning.” I greeted.
“What are you doing here?” She blurted without even responding to my greeting then placed the back of her hands on her w@!st. “Do you know that we have been looking for you for since yesterday? Your husband c@m£ to us and complained that you ran away from home with another man? Is that how we brou-ght you up? To be gallivanting all over the place opening your th!ghs for whoever is interested? Don’t you have any shame?!” Her loud voice woke my sister up, who sat up to look at us, surprised to see me. “Why are you so bent on bringing shame to this family? Why do you want to disgrace your father’s name? After everything Daniel has done for you, now you want to repay him by becoming a w—e? You should be happy that you married a good man? How many rich men would go throu-gh the pains of marrying someone who’s not even in their clas-s? Is he not satisfying you in be-d? Doesn’t he meet your S-xual nee-ds? Why do you want to defile your marriage? Where did this promiscuity come from? Definitely not from me because I know that besides my first b©yfri£nd, Ikenna, your father is the second and last man who has gone in between my th!ghs?! If I had known, I would have gone ahead with the cir¢v-mcision. I would have re-moved that thing you call a c–t that’s now bringing the spirit of infidelity into you?!”
I heaved a sigh. “Mama, will you at least hear me out?”
“There’s nothing to be heard!” She snapped. “We went around looking for you. Your husband has explained it all. He told us that you would try to defend yourself with lies and he’s right because that’s exactly what you are doing right now!”
“Mama, what did Daniel tell you people?” I asked.
“He told us that he took you out to a p@rty to have fun and show you off. He just left you for just five minutes, common five minutes to go urinate and you alre-ady jumped into another man’s car and disappeared. He called you on the phone several times but you busied his calls. When you even finally picked his call, he begged and begged you to come home, even to the point of crying but you hung up on him!”
I gaped up at my mother in shock. “Mama, Daniel said that?!” I asked in disbelief.
“Oh! So you think he would not tell us! He c@m£ here complaining bitterly. He threatened to even divorce you since you are not being a good wife to him but I had to go on my knees and beg him along with your father. He has told us how you refuse to wash his clothes, cook his meals and even S-x! S-x that is very important to him, his own God-given right, you refused him that and then he had mistakenly spilled a wine on you while you were yet asleep and that was why you had dashed down here to lie against him that he had urinate on you! Ha! Adanna, to say that I’m very very disappointed in you is an un-derstatement! In fact, I regret giving birth to you! How can you take such a man for granted?! Don’t you have a heart! This man loves you to the core and yet you treat him so bad! See, if I had my way, I would have replaced you with your sister, Linda, at least she has more s-en-se than you do!”
“But Mama, I didn’t do any of such! Daniel is lying, just see what he did to me…” I started to pu-ll the side of my shi-t and night go-wn up to reveal my bruised side when my father appeared and harshly interrupted me.
“Will you shut your mouth!” He barked and I quic-kly dropped my go-wn. “So this is what you are, a green snake un-der the green gras-s. All these time that you have been running to us and pretending to be in a very loveless marriage, it was actually the other way around. You were the very evil in your own marriage. I felt so sorry for that young man and I regretted that it had to be my daughter treating such an upright man in such a manner. Anyway, I have just called him…” He lifted a hand holding his cellphone. “…to tell him that you are home and he will be here in the next thirty minutes to pick you up. We should be thankful to God that he’s willing to take you back. If he had gone ahead and divorced you, I would have disowned you and wouldn’t have let you back into my house. When he arrives, you are going to follow him back home and beg him seriously. I don’t care how you do it but you must settle differences with him! Be a good wife the way we raised you. Love and respect him. This family must not lose such a potential in-law. We are nothing without him! Do not ruin this for me, Victoria, or I’ll never forgive you!” He stated firmly and I helplessly kept mute since there was no nee-d trying to defend myself.
Daniel was cynical but my parents had failed to see that p@rt of him and once again, I was stuck in my dilemma. Men were all the same! They are cheats and untrustworthy. I had trusted Chris to do much and yet he had ended up slee-ping with Uju after I refused him S-x. I decided that it was better to stay with the devil I knew than the angel I knew nothing about. If my fate was to remain in this marriage, then Daniel it is.
Forty minutes later, I was in the car sitting next to Daniel as he drove us home. He kept glancing at me as something sinister went throu-gh his mind but I ignored him and kept a straight face with my eyes fixed on the road. He kept glancing at me and thoughtfully running his chin with his index f!nger and I saw his eyes moved down to my w@!st, to linger between my th!ghs. I adjusted and placed my hands right on the sp©t to conceal it from his view. He said nothing to me throu-ghout the drive back home. But when we reached home and got into the house, he threw his car keys on the coffee table and began to un-bu-tton his shi-t. As I made for the stairs, his unexpected question made me pause.
“Did he f–k you?”
With my back still turned to him, I remained there for a moment without a word.
“Are you deaf?” He drew closer. “Musa told me that you were picked by a man that night I kicked you out and I know that it’s definitely that guy from the club! I’m sure that he has been the one you have been with all this time, so answer my question, did you let him f–k you?
I slowly turned to look at him and muttered. “No.”
“And why should I believe you?” He shrugged off his shi-t and tossed behind him on the couch then began to unbuckle his belt. “You have been with him for more than a day, I know how h0t you are… No man would spend an hour around you and not want to t©uçh you. I feel that you are looking me right in the face and lying to me.”
“What do you want me to say? Tell you that I had a very good time with him or that he plea-sured me in ways that you have never done before.” I spat and a sl@p c@m£ out of nowhere and heavily struck the side of my cheek, ma-king my head fall to my shoulder. I slowly lifted my head with my hand on my cheek.
“You will shut that tra-p you called a mouth, you c–t! You think any other man would want you or can plea-sure your rigid b©dy the way only I can?” He chuckled wickedly, unZi-pped his p@n-ts with one hand then re-moved it till he was standing in just his bo-xers and I noticed that he didn’t discard the belt like he had done his other clothing, instead he folded it in two and held it firmly in a hand.
“Is that why you told my parents all those lies? To paint me black? First, you left me stranded on the road, next, you hit and kicked me out of your house in the middle of the night and yet you went with your deceitful self to fill my parents ears with lies about me running off with another man and denying you S-x?”
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To Be Continued