7/8
NOT SO PERFECT 😍
By Christabel Nwoko
Episode 7
Emeka was a gentleman he didn’t utter a word to Gilbert and I was so impressed.
When Gilbert walked away, I asked Emeka why he was silent.
“My love, my grand papa always talk say if you dey follow fool dey argue, other people go think say both of una na fools, why I go talk when I know say na me you choose and you don tell me how that idiot abandon you, when you nee-d am the most, the only problem wey I get now, na how I go take win your papa heart, me I know say the man no like me, how I go take marry you now, if your papa no approve” Emeka said and he gave a quic-k frown.
I tried all my best to console Emeka and i as-sured him that nothing will ever come between us not even my father or Gilbert.
“Everything will fall into place” I told him and finally he smiled softly and we drove off.
The next day, my father’s voice woke me up from sleep, it seemed like he was arguing with my mom.
Immediately I could un-derstood what was going on.
That morning, Gilbert had called my father and told him everything and my mom was only trying ha-rd to convince my father to let me choose who I want to be with.
The next minute, my father thun-dered.
“Jessica! Jessica”
And ran out almost immediately, my father had never been this loud.
“What’s going on with him? Why is he taking everything personal? I thought I had the right to choose who to marry, after all I was the one who brou-ght Gilbert home to him, so why is he so upset because I refused to reconnect with Gilbert?” I asked myself.
To avoid more problems, I ran out almost immediately to the sitting room to meet my father, his face was wearing a frown and my mother was sitting very far from him.
“Good morning daddy” I greeted nervously.
“What is going on between you and that illiterate?” My father entered almost immediately, without responding to my greeting.
I kept mute and my father continued.
“I Don’t want to see you with him anymore, I Don’t know what that guy might have done to you because It seems like you have lost your mind, how can you choose an illiterate over a smart and successful person like Gilbert?”
“Dad, I have been quiet enough, but I think it’s high time, I speak up. Dad yes I choose Emeka because he is way too kind and smart than that beloved Gilbert of yours, Gilbert and I are over, and I have made up my mind. Emeka is the one, I want and de-sire and I will be so happy, if you accept him because we are engaged alre-ady” I entered
“Never, I will never accept that illiterate as your husband, you better tell him to back off, or else he will have me to contend with” My father responded and walked away.
I was so furious, my mom tried to calm me down but failed. I called up Gilbert and I gave him the piece of my mind.
“You have just ended the friendsh!pthat was left between us, what gave you the right to speak to Emeka the way you did last night and to t©p it all, you called my father to complain about me and Emeka, I’m highly disappointed in you, I thought you were smart and that you are wise, I never knew you could stoop this low, I thank God that we never got married because it’s your type that report their wife to everyone, I hate you, as-suming I knew you will become a thorn in my flesh, I wouldn’t have forgiven you when I did, have you forgotten what you did to me?, you left me when I nee-ded you the most, you told me you wanted to move on with out me but immediately you heard I regained my sight, you c@m£ back like you never left, Gilbert plea-se leave me alone, I have moved on and of course I have moved on without you, deal with it” I growled at the phone and hanged up afterwards without giving Gilbert a chance to respond.
After that call, I felt a bit relieved because it seemed like I had poured out my anger on Gilbert over the phone and sure he deserves it for being so rude to Emeka and for instigating my father against me.
One day, I was with Emeka when his phone suddenly began to ring, like always he told me not be upset that he will be brief and I smiled.
“Guy, pick your call, you Don’t nee-d to take permission from me before you accept your call, I will never be upset because someone called your phone” I told him in smiles and he smiled back.
“Nne, I love you” he told me as he quic-kly accepted the call.
“Hello, good evening, who is speaking” Emeka responded and the next minute he bec@m£ extremely quiet.
And the next thing I heard was.
“Sir, I love your daughter oh, I will always make her happy” He finally spoke up.
The two things that I un-derstood from that s£ntence was that the caller was my father and that Emeka spoke that English s£ntence correctly.
“Wow, I’m a good teacher” I told myself but still I was wondering why my father had called and how did he get Emeka’s number. And then I remembered the day I left my phone beside my father and how I had returned and found my phone in my father’s hands.
Even though it was strange but still
I didn’t even bother to ask him, what he was checking for on my phone because I never suspected a thing.
I walked closer to Emeka and quietly, I took the phone from his ears and I placed the call on loud speaker, so I can hear what my father was saying to him.
“Stay away from my daughter, she is not your type” my father entered at the other end of the phone and hanged up afterwards.
I was speechless and furious at the same time.
Episode 8
Immediately my father hanged up, i walked into Emeka’s arms and hvgged him with tears falling uncontrollably from my eyes. Emeka held me very ti-ght, with the look on his face, he felt like tearing up too. My dad had murdered his feelings with hurtful words; I know my father often refers to him as an illiterate and I know he might had used more hurtful words on him over the phone.
Despite all my efforts to get Emeka to say all my father had told him, but still he couldn’t find the strength to narrate anything to me, Emeka just kept mute. An evening that was supposed to end well for us, will end up being disastrous. What if Emeka ends our relationsh!pjust because of all the hurtful words that my father had said to him? “God forbid” I thought. I had to as-sure Emeka that I have come to love him more everyday and there’s no way I will leave him because my father said so.
I felt a lot relieved too when Emeka reas-sured me of his love and how he will improve himself, so that my father will accept him.
“Nne, I Don’t mind going back to school, so I can speak big big grammer like you, nne I Don’t want to lose you” He told me and i smiled softly and he smiled too.
Emeka felt so elated when I told him that he was improving alre-ady.
“really, me? Improving? How?” He asked in smiles.
“When you were on the phone with my dad, your English was perfect and I’m so proud of you” I replied
Emeka smiled and hvgged me.
“Nne you are a good teacher oh” He told me.
I was so elated that I could bring him out of the bad mood he was in, and I’m glad everything was okay between us. After staying at Emeka’s place for over three hours, I had to leave because it was getting late. We said our goodbyes and then I left.
On my way home, I began to boil in anger again, when I remembered all that my father had done, first he took Emeka’s phone number when I was not looking and he called the innocent man up just to insult him. I was so prepared to confront my father that evening, my anger was overflowing and nee-ded to be channelled towards the right person who triggered it. When i arrived, my parents and siblings were in the sitting room having dinner. Immediately my mom saw me, she knew that i was not happy because I was wearing a frown.
I greeted my mom silently and she left the dinner table and c@m£ to me.
“Jessica my child are you okay? What happened?” She asked calmly.
“Is it not your husband?, you wouldn’t believe dad called Emeka on his phone just to insult him” I replied instantly.
“What?”My mother entered and turned to my father.
“No honey that’s not right, you went too far” my mother told him
Before my mother could finish her statement, my father flared up;
“so you want your daughter to get married to a never do well, an illiterate, I can never allow that, never. Gilbert is the one I have endorsed and so shall it be, how can a daughter of mine choose a failure over a successful man like Gilbert, Gilbert is from a well known family, but let me ask you Jessica, who is Emeka?, where is he from? Who are his parents? That young man is not your type and I called him, to tell him to stay away from you, I warned him sternly, if he knows what is good for him, he will leave you alone” my father entered
“Dad why on earth did you do that? Why did you call him? you disrespected my feelings by calling a man you know that I love and demanding he leaves me alone, How can you be so ins-en-sitive? Have you forgotten how I felt when Gilbert left me and now you want me to go back him, what if something worst happens to me in the future, how are you so sure that Gilbert won’t abandon me again? How can you choose Gilbert over my happiness, Dad, This isn’t fair and I haven’t done anything to deserve such cold and unsupportive treatment from you. Dad plea-se stay away from Emeka, Don’t call him again, I beg you. I love him and I want to be with him, Dad, Emeka might not come from a well known family like Gilbert, he might not be able to speak good english but believe me, he is successful and he has done well for himself, he is ha-rd working and soon he will make a name for himself unlike Gilbert that is dependent of his parent’s wealth and connections. Emeka is very successful, Dad ask around” I said boldly
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My father smiled “Don’t allow that illiterate to decieve you, he is a nob©dy, there’s no way an illiterate like that young man could be successful, maybe he has a rich boss or uncle, if you know what is good for you quit that relationsh!p” my father added.
“Dad, then get re-ady to disown me because that will never happen” I entered and this time I was in tears.
My mom c@m£ to hold me, to st©p me from talking back to my father.
” Mummy plea-se talk to your husband and tell him to let me choose who I want to be with, Emeka is the only man that truly loved me” I told my mother in tears
My mom bec@m£ emotional and was about begging my father to allow me make my choice without interference, but my father got up, sighed and walked away. All throu-gh that night, i was restless and kept thinking of the nightmare that happened earlier on. that same night Emeka called me to know if I was home but I comported myself as we spoke on the phone, the last thing I wanted was for him to find out that I confronted my father because of him.
Emeka was smart, immediately he noticed that something was off,
“Nne, are you okay?, You Don’t sound happy”He asked.
“Emmy, I’m sleepy that’s why” I lied.
“plea-se Don’t Tell your father that you were with me when he called because it will make things worst oh” he warned.
“Yes, I won’t” I lied because I knew that I have alre-ady done the opposite.
We finally said goodnight and other sweet words to each other and then we hanged up.
After that phone call, I began to regret my actions, I didn’t even think about the consequences.
“I shouldn’t have confronted my father, I would had spoken to my mom instead, oh what have I done?” I thought.
That night I felt so elated when my mom walked into my room and she advised me to take things easy with my father.
” Your father’s business is not doing well, gradually we are going bankrupt and I guess that’s why he is not in a good mood, he believes your future will be secured if you marry Gilbert, he doesn’t want you to suffer. But I have told him that God will take care of us and he should allow you choose who you want to be with. I reminded him of how Gilbert left you when you nee-ded him the most and he might do worst when he finds out that we are not rich anymore, but your Dad believes Gilbert had learnt his lessons and that he won’t fail you again, plea-se my child, your father meant well but he is going on about it in the wrong way, I st©pped debating on that issue with him because I know by Tomorrow, he will be having an important meeting with a new investor and he nee-ds to wake up on time and prepare himself for that meeting, I hope everything works out, because if this new investor agrees to invest in our alre-ady coll@psed business then everything will be fine again” my mother told me and I felt so bad for being ha-rd on my father when his intentions were good.
That night before I sle-pt I asked God for his intervention and guidance, for a moment I have even forgotten that Emeka was wealthy and he promised to do anything for me. It never occurred to me that Emeka was capable of saving my father’s company from bankruptcy. I only prayed for God’s help and for his will to be done.
I guess I forgot all about that details because I wasn’t interested in Emeka’s money or maybe because my father didn’t believe me when I told him that Emeka was successful.
My father had concluded that Emeka was a nob©dy and that he was only decieving me.
I knew I wasn’t being decieved but if that was the case, I Don’t care because I wasn’t interested on how much Emeka had, The most important thing I nee-ded to know is that he was ha-rd working and he loves me a whole lot.
Tbc…