Patching Up Pieces E-Book

Funmi Jesse

• Herausgeber: COMMUNE WRITERS INT'L
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Beschreibung

Treasure hates God. Not only that, she is the least loved person in her workplace. Beautiful and smart, she could easily attract people like bees to honey, except she has a nasty attitude which repels everyone as quickly as they are attracted. However, Treasure finds one person who seems to be immune to her volatile nature. But it doesn’t stop with that one person, and worse, they won’t shut up about God.

When she felt she had her life under control, Treasure is thrown into a series of emotional rollercoaster, battling the concept of God’s love. Nothing is the same for her and it only gets worse when someone is doing their best to make her lose her job, and maybe, her life.

Would Treasure allow herself be wrapped in the love of God and would she escape the clutches of hate before it is too late?

Leseprobe

PATCHING

UP PIECES

FUNMI JESSE

PATCHING UP PIECES

WRITTEN BY

FUNMI JESSE

[email protected]

COPYRIGHT (C) 2023

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the author or publisher.

Published by:

COMMUNE WRITERS INT’L

www.communewriters.com

[phone]

6, Amusa Street, Agodo-Egbe, Lagos

Published in the Federal Republic of Nigeria

PROLOGUE

It seemed like she was counting her steps, her heartbeat a great deal faster than the movement of her quaking feet. The lump that had formed in her throat refused to be pushed down no matter how hard she tried to swallow. Her neck and armpits were damp, giving her light-complexioned skin a golden glow. She briefly looked down at the letter in her hands and caught the sight of her quivering hands. She darted her eyes back up, trying to calm down, failing woefully at it.

When she got to the curtain demarcating the sitting room from the inner house, she stopped and peeped through. He was there like she knew he would be, seated in his favourite chair, a newspaper in hand. He liked to read the newspaper in the evenings, especially when there was a power outage. Though he looked calm to anyone seeing him, she knew trouble awaited her.

If this was not important to her, she would have avoided going to meet him altogether, but everyone in the class would be going and the teacher described the place in such a way that she could already imagine herself looking into the eyes of the animals she only got to see on the television, feeding the monkeys bananas, and clinging unto her friends as they hear the roar of the lions in their cages.

She wanted to go to the zoo so badly, however, the decision lay with her father. She wished she could have had it any other way than this. Taking a deep breath, she walked through the curtain, towards him, halting two feet away from where he sat. It was safer.

“Daddy.”

He did not look up from his paper. Typical. Her voice trembled as she continued.

“My teacher gave me a letter to give you. It is for an excursion we have in two weeks' time. We are going to –”

“Shut up,” he bawled, his menacing eyes glaring at her now. “Which stupid excursion is that? The money I spend for your school fees is not enough? You stupid, brainless idiot. Go and read your book or clean the house. Don’t ever disturb me when I am relaxing again, you hear me?”

She did not move. She shuddered as his intense eyes pierced hers. Tears formed in her eyes, pooling and leaking down her cheeks. She wanted to go on this excursion so badly. She didn't want to be left out. Not again.

“Daddy, please –”

“Get out of my sight!” he cut her off and rose to his feet. She scampered out of his reach before his large fist could touch her. When she got to the curtain, she grabbed it and sobbed.

“Dumb idiot. If I get my hands on you, I will beat that stupidity out of you!” He hissed and went back to his paper, mumbling to himself.

As she turned to leave, shoulders slumped and tears falling freely, she caught a glimpse of her mother peering through the kitchen door.

Her eyes were sad.

She wanted to hate her mother for not standing up for her, for being just as weak and defenceless as she was, but she could not. She understood, however, why her brother chose to cling to their father, hating their mother. At least, he would be protected. She walked to her room with one thought: she would never be like her mother.

CHAPTER ONE

TRESURE AKINBODE woke up at the sound of the alarm on her phone. Four O’ clock. She grumbled out of bed wondering why it was morning already. She had stayed up late trying to finish collating the data for a company and preparing a report on it. Deadline was that morning. It had taken her three days to complete and she was glad she met the deadline, but her body seemed not to be so happy about staying up late.

Setting her bathing water to boil in the kettle, Treasure was grateful for the power supply that morning. Most mornings were not so lucky and she would have to bathe with the icy water that way.

She moved towards the small army-green metal stove at the corner of her little kitchen in the one room-and-parlour apartment. Lifting it few inches above the ground, she gave it a little twirl and sighed in relief when she heard the tossing of kerosene in it. Breakfast was a given, thankfully. She looked over the mess she had not been able to clean up since the previous day and sighed. It would have to wait until later, she thought. She added to the untidiness after she was done with preparing breakfast.

Not planning on eating that early, she packaged her meal of egg sauce sandwich in a plastic pack and placed it in her black handbag. She rushed to have her bath and get dressed. Office hours began at 8 AM and she needed to leave early due to the distance and traffic.

She paused in front of the long, vertical mirror at the left side of her bed and took a lengthy look at herself. Her slender face – which was framed nicely by the afro extension she had on – had pronounced cheekbones and small lips which she had painted ombre. Her eyes, an almost pitch black with their ever penetrating glare were lined in black, her short curly lashes brushed out with a mascara. Her nose was wide and sat comfortably on her face. Treasure hated those two features – her eyes and nose – even though they seemed to add some extra spice to her looks. No negative thoughts, she ordered herself, shaking her head. Think happy thoughts.

Her eyes moved to the clothes she chose. Bright green pleated skirt, which brushed below her knees, over a white long-sleeved chiffon shirt she had tucked in. She liked the way the green looked on her light skin. Her shoes and bag were both black so they blended perfectly. Style was important to her. She picked up the black jacket she would have to wear to fight the morning cold and eased herself into it. She nodded in approval at her reflection and took a quick glance around to see if she was forgetting anything.

Treasure shuddered as the cold breeze smothered her skin. It was a distance to get to the main junction and she knew she would be bathed by the dew before she got there. Quickening her pace and hugging herself to keep the cold away, her eyes were alert to spot any weird movement. She had overhead her neighbour narrate how he was nearly robbed a few weeks back while he was leaving for work early one morning and ever since then, she had been very vigilant, her otapiapia always within her reach to spray in any harasser’s eyes. Thankfully, she saw a commercial motorcycle heading towards her. Empty.

“Okada,” she yelled as she flagged down the motorist. “Abeg, take me to Agboju.”

“Madam, your money na N200,” the motorist replied.

“N200 ko. Na N150 I dey pay.”

"I nogetchangeo."

"I get." She mounted the motorcycle. That ended the bargain.

The sky was beginning to light up in a faint blue. The scent of dew on the wet ground filled the cool morning air. Treasure inhaled deeply. She always enjoyed witnessing sunrise every day, having to feel the cool wind brush against her face. She also enjoyed watching the way the city springs to life each morning. People were always on the move, no matter how early; market women, office workers, commercial workers, and school children. As she got closer to where she would drop off, she held her breath. The pleasant smell of the morning was replaced with the odour of the decomposing garbage that lined the corners of the street close to the main market.

When she arrived at where the buses were being boarded, she was again grateful to be the one to complete the seats of one.

Like she did every working day, as the bus began its journey, she hoped there would be less stopping for passengers to alight, which meant a faster journey. There was also traffic to consider, but so far, it appeared to be light.

Treasure looked out of the window after paying the fare, trying to cut her mind off from the loud voice of the man who had begun to preach.

“God wants to be part of our everyday lives,” the man said. “The Bible says that He would never leave us, nor forsake us...”

Treasure boiled within herself. These so-called Christians, she thought, always being nuisances everywhere they go. She recalled with disgust a few of them at the office who would always drop their religious fliers on people’s desks, invading privacy. To her, they all were merely hypocrites, unashamed to use religion as a license for their wicked ways.

Treasure felt her face heat up as she shut her eyes tight. More memories, which she had tried to push away appeared and she silently cussed at the preacher for initiating it.

After enduring the torture for almost an hour, she alighted from the bus and boarded another one to the Island. Instantly, she was happy to have something else occupy her mind. She enveloped her mind with the life outside of the bus, as they made the transition from the Mainland to the Island. The bus was quiet, with the only sounds coming from the engine of the rickety bus and each speed breaker they encountered, along with the other speeding vehicles overtaking them. The tall buildings began to come into view. Her mind wandered.

Treasure had been nursing the idea of moving to the Island. She had been saving up for it. She did not need a big place, no, just a better living condition, far away from anything that reminded her of her past.

When the bus got to the park, she boarded a keke with two other persons. The ride was short.Stepping out at her stop, she glanced at her watch. Seven thirty. She made it on time.

“Good morning, pretty,” a male colleague greeted as she passed through the gate. She could not place his name, but he was someone she would rather not meet that early in the morning.

“Morning,” she murmured, moving towards the swinging doors of the entrance.

“Hey, I am talking to you, miss. It’s rude to ignore someone who is talking to you.” He walked up to her side when she stopped and turned to face him. He had small eyes as though they belonged to a smaller person and a pointy nose, all on a very dark face, which contrasted the white shirt he had on. He was grinning, obviously not seeing or choosing to ignore the bland look on her face.

I really don’t have time for this, Treasure thought. Aloud, she asked, “What do you want?”

“Hey! Still rude, darling,” the man exclaimed. He moved closer. He seemed confident of himself, hands in the pockets of a black pair of trousers, with a lazy gait. Treasure willed herself not to spit on the stupid grin on his face.

“Just wanted to speak with you. ‘Been trying to do so for some weeks, but you always seem to be in a hurry to leave after work. You are really beautiful, you know that? Can I take you out sometime?”

Treasure was not certain if she wanted to gag or just stab him. She smiled inwardly at the thought of the otapiapia in her bag. She took a deep breath and exhaled.

“Mr...”

“Just call me Mark,” the grin widened.

“Mr. Mark, I have been here long enough to know what a cheap slut you are. Your eyes can’t focus five minutes on anything that isn’t in a skirt. Sorry to disappoint you, I will not fall for your lame excuse of a personality. If you approach me ever again in this manner, I will see to it that I file a sexual harassment report against you and believe me, you will not escape the consequences.”

She turned and walked into the office. Mark, stunned, watched her leave. The grin on his face disappeared.

The security men by the gate laughed hysterically at him. He stood as though contemplating yelling at them. Then he adjusted his black tie and walked into the office building without a word.

Kemi looked up from the document in her hand as Treasure approached their corner, her round eyes brightening into a smile.

“Good morning, Treasure.” She paused. “You don’t look so good this morning. Well, you don’t most times, but still…”

Treasure shot a glance at the plump, dark woman she had begun to grow fond of since she began to work at the firm some months earlier, then softened her expression a bit.

“I don’t know why there are so many morons that are left to roam around, spoiling people’s precious mornings.” Treasure dropped her bag and slumped unto her chair.

Kemi rested her arm against the divide of their cubicle, facing Treasure. “Treasure darling, you can’t afford to let things get to you so easily. In life, offences will surely come, but we should learn how to thrive above them.”

Treasure looked up from unloading her bag. “Kemi, I know you are trying to help, but it’s not working. So, don’t bother.” She brought out her breakfast and began to munch away.

“Okay,” Kemi said, hands up in surrender. “And thanks for inviting me to come join you in your breakfast, as always.” Rolling her eyes, she sat back in her seat.

“Anyway,” Kemi continued. “Hope you are through with collating the sales data? You know how Mr. Kelvin gets when anyone on the team does not meet deadline.”

Sipping from the bottle of water in her bag, Treasure nodded. “Yeah, yeah. I am. Just let me eat my food in peace. This is eating time for me. Leave work related issues for now, abeg.” She turned on her computer and brought out some documents from her bag.

“Umm… Treasure?” Kemi said after some minutes, her voice dropping to a whisper.

Treasure looked up at her with a raised eyebrow.

Kemi strained her neck forward for Treasure to hear her whisper. “Why does Mark keep looking at this direction with daggers flying from his eyes?”

Treasure followed Kemi’s eyes and found Mark quickly looking away before their eyes met. She scoffed and went back to her computer.

"What a waste," Treasure muttered under her breath.

“Don’t mind the pervert. I gave him a piece of my mind this morning when he tried hitting on me again. I've stayed silent too long.”

Kemi erupted in giggles, holding her stomach as she did. “Don’t tell me he was the moron you were referring to when you came in?” Catching her breath, she shook her head as she went back to arranging the files on her desk. “I wonder what you must have said to warrant that look. I am positive whatever it was, coming from you, it was far from nice. Poor Mark.”

He is poor all right, Treasure thought. Poor and sick in the head. “If you are done laughing at and pitying poor Mark, let’s head towards Mr. Kelvin’s office for more work. I am done eating.”

Kemi nodded in agreement. “The hours of sitting up facing a computer is beginning to tell on me. My body is begging for a break. The workload is on the increase.”

“You are complaining. You who finished your share of work yesterday? I had to take the work home and stayed up till around 1AM to finish mine, yet, I had to be up at four.” Treasure shook her head as they made their way towards the Head Analyst’s office. “I like my job but I don’t like that it keeps me up when I should be having my figurative beauty sleep.”

Kemi chuckled. “Beauty sleep, bawo? Are you not beautiful enough? See people like Mark making advances even without your beauty sleep.”

Treasure rolled her eyes. “Please, when mentioning human beings, leave that one out. Even if I looked like a scarecrow, being female is enough. Rubbish.”

“True though,” Kemi nodded. “I tried talking to him the other time he tried hitting on me that he should forsake that kind of lifestyle. My advice made him run – not my age, not my marital status.” She scoffed.

Treasure looked over at her, eyes wide open. “He hit on you too?” She shook her head. “So, I was right after all – anything in skirt.”

They stopped at the door with HEAD ANALYST written in black on a lustre gold block. Kemi tapped. A deep voice invited them in.

Kelvin was seated behind a medium-sized office table, typing away on his computer. Even with the amount of files and loose papers on the desk, he had managed to keep them well arranged and neat.

“Good morning, sir,” Treasure spoke up. “I am done collating the sales data of AUC Company you gave me. I have also written a report on it.” She handed over the flash drive, along with the documents in her hands to him. “It’s filed under the name ‘AUC Report’. If you would like me to quickly brief you…”

“Thank you,” Kelvin said shaking his head. “I will look through it later. You two never disappoint.”

He collected the items from her, smiling up at both ladies. He had a handsome face – even Treasure had to agree – with skin that could be compared to hot chocolate laden with milk. He kept his beard low, carved, and clean. He cleared the right corner of his desk and placed the documents he collected.

“I have more work for you. Please, sit,” Kelvin said, gesturing to the dark blue chairs across his table, Kemi and Treasure briefly glanced knowingly at each other as they sat.

“As you would have noticed, the workload is increasing by the day. We are getting more clients, which of course is a good thing, right? More clients mean more money coming in and the confirmation that we all smile to the bank at the end of the month. So,” Kelvin continued, standing up to retrieve a big file from the polished brown cabinet behind his chair which had rows of files arranged.

“I would need you both to work on these micro-data for our newest client. It should be ready in the next forty-eight hours. Share the work between yourselves. It’s quite a bundle. I have what I would give to the other members of the team.” Kemi took the file from him.

He smiled at the distraught look on their faces.

“Don’t envy the others,” Kelvin continued as he returned to his chair. With his elbows on the table supporting his chin, he looked from one lady to the other. “They have punishment for always being late and behind schedule. Your work is very light compared to theirs. You can get to work.” He dismissed them with a smile and went back to typing on his computer.

“Yes, sir,” both women chorused as they stood up and took their leave.

“I don’t understand, but any time I am in that office, I don’t seem to breathe properly,” Treasure said as they left the office and walked towards their desks, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly.

“If I didn’t know you, I would have said you are having a crush on Mr Kelvin. But,” Kemi quickly added when she saw the look on Treasure’s face, trying hard to suppress her smile, “I do know you and that is not the case. I guess it’s just him. He has some kind of authoritative aura around him. You just want to listen to him speak.”

“Yes... something like that. Anyway,” Treasure said. “How are we splitting this work? It looks like more data collation judging from that size.” She eyed the file. The sight of the huge file was not appealing.

“Calm down. Do you want to set it ablaze with that look?” Kemi chuckled.

“I am still going to have more sleepless nights apparently.” Treasure sunk into her chair and placed her head on the desk.

Kemi was amused. “Look who is worried about her beauty sleep. It’s nobody’s fault that you take work home so you could meticulously handle it. There’s hardly any error in your work due to this. I’m sure the reason the data collation took so long was because you were reviewing it a gazillion times. Don’t complain about the talent you flawlessly have at being on top of your game. I really admire that in you. Do I tell you to stay up late? Probably Mr. Kelvin?” She playfully nudged Treasure before turning to walk to her chair.

Treasure raised her head. “I don't know what else I would be doing if not working. See, in three years, I want to be sitting at a top position, giving orders, being paid twice or more what I earn now,” Treasure told her. “And in other to meet that target, I have to put in more effort. Learn all I can at the shortest possible time and be a pro at it. I have no other choice.” With renewed energy, she sat up.

Turning her attention to the file, Kemi smiled and scanned through the papers, stopping to read through the instructions prepared by Mr Kelvin. “The major work has been done for us by this corporation,” she said as she flipped the pages. “They have done their research – market survey that is – and only need our help to sort the data, forming data models in a way they can make sense of it. It’s on customers’ satisfaction in relation to their services and pricing. They want a final report summarizing all these info, and a brief Power Point presentation on the strategies that would improve their customer satisfaction.

“They asked really good questions.” She glanced up at Treasure who had come to stand beside her to take a look.

“It’s what we know how to do best, dear,” Kemi added smiling. “The only real work here is that they chose to carry out their survey via questionnaire format, and also the in-depth information on their services and prices. Thus, the reason for all these plenty papers. I see why they pushed this work to us.” Kemi gave a small laugh. “I will handle the greater part of the collation, along with the final report. You can focus on the presentation when we are done.”

Treasure couldn’t believe her ears. “What? Me? Presentation? But you are the expert in that area. You should do that. You know I haven’t done any major presentation, and you are indirectly taking the bulk of the work.”

“I need to give room for others to become experts too and I am delighted to hand it over to you. You will do a great job at presenting, no doubt. No objections,” Kemi added, raising a finger to hush her. “Draw your seat closer, let’s begin. You would be assisting me in the collation so I am not taking any bulk work. It’s still balanced. And no need to take work home.” She winked.

Treasure stared at her. If there were really angels, she thought, Kemi would be one. The opportunity she had been waiting for, just handed over to her on a platter. She carried her chair over to Kemi’s side, a smile spreading on her once bland face and they began to work.

* * *

KELVIN MAKINDE wished desperately that he could get a break. A week, he thought, would do. He stared at the pile of work on his desk and sighed heavily. Even after distributing the work, he still had a ton of things to do: to double-check the research data he had given to the research team, to read through the reports that would be handed over to the manager early the next day, and to prepare for a presentation to a client coming in mid-day the following day. He glanced over at the day’s schedule he had written on sticker notes and placed at the edge of his computer. Dinner date with Eva, his girlfriend, was at 7 PM. He checked his wristwatch. It was some minutes past five. He would have to perform some kind of magic to finish the work on his table and make it in time for his date.

One had to be cancelled, and it was definitely not work. There was also the paperwork he needed to wrap up which he would use in the 7 O’clock meeting with the Managing Director and other Heads of Department the following morning. He could not go anywhere. Not tonight.

Eva would be upset, he thought, rubbing his knuckles over his eyes. This would be the third time in two weeks he was cancelling their date. The last time he did, she made a huge fit, yelling and threatening to leave him. She was being unreasonable, nagging too much these days and he was getting fed up. He expected her to understand that work was important because that is where he gets the money he lavishes on her anyway.

He picked up his phone and dialled her number. He prayed it would not ring. It did. He prayed she would not pick. She did. Tough luck, he thought grudgingly.

“Hi, baby.” He put up his most charming voice, hoping it would make things easier.

“Hello, love,” Eva’s soft voice flowed into his ears. “I was just picking the dress I would wear this evening. I am sure I would leave you breathless, baby. I got myself a spa treatment today, just for you, sweet. Tonight is going to be magical.” She rattled on in her singsong voice.

This is going to be harder than I thought, Kelvin said to himself, two fingers at his right temple.

“Umm, baby?” He paused. “I am so sorry I wouldn’t be able to make it tonight. I have paperwork to complete for a meeting holding tomorrow morning. I promise, I will –”

“What are you talking about, Kelvin?” Eva cut him off, disgust painting her voice. “How dare you do this again? What flimsy excuse are you giving this time? What am I going to do about my evening that I have already planned out? Do you think I am something you can pick up and drop any time you wish? Is your work more important than me?”

“No, baby. It’s not like that, please try to understand –”

“Understand what? That work always, always comes before me? That spending time together means nothing to you? That is what you want me to understand? In fact, I am done.”

“Babe…” Kelvin began, but was greeted by the dial tone instead. He sighed. He called her back. Her line was not reachable. He tried her other line but she didn't respond. He left a message, apologizing and promising to make it up to her, and then he went back to work.

It was eight O’clock when Kelvin finally shut down the system for the day. He was among the three people still left in the office: the security man, the Accounts manager – who he met when leaving – and himself. He was exhausted but glad he was able to finish the work for the day.

He stopped by at a restaurant to eat on his way home. Cooking was out of the question as he would probably fall into the pot with such fatigue that enveloped him. Not eating was also not an option as he had skipped both breakfast and lunch.

Traffic was light. He could not have imagined spending hours on the road with how tired he was. He had his bath as soon as he got home and stretched out on his bed in his night clothes: white polo and deep blue loose knickers. Though his body was tired, his mind was still active. He went through the day in his head.

Nothing colourful came to mind except a bright green skirt which he could not remember who it belonged to but recalled seeing. What a choice of colour, he mused. In all, it was a fulfilled day. Except, of course, the call-gone-bad with Eva, he thought wearily. Nothing a bouquet of flowers and money for new clothes wouldn’t settle. He would have to do the calling the next day as his body was ready for sleep.

The chirp sound of the call tone surprised him. He blinked his drowsy eyes at his phone he had kept on the drawer by his bed and he reached for it. It was Eva. He sat up on the bed and stared at the phone screen for half a second before he accepted the call.

“Babe,” he began.

“So, you really did not show up.” Her voice was angry but a bit slur. Kelvin sighed. He knew she must have been drinking.

“Babe, I am really sorry I couldn’t make it for our date.”

He heard her scoff in the background. “Sorry? You are always sorry. I would fix a date, you would cancel. You would fix a date, you would still cancel. Yet, you are always sorry.” Kelvin heard the ting of a glass and Eva’s low grunts.

“Why did you drink again, Eva? I thought we talked about this.” Kelvin ran his hand over his face.

“Leave me alone. What do you care? After I had a beautiful evening planned for us, you cancelled at the last minute, and you don’t want me to console myself for your disappointment?” Eva spat into his ears before accompanying it with a loud belch.

Kelvin could imagine her sprawled on the floor in her sitting room, probably still in one of her skimpy, satin night wares she liked to be in as she prepared for an outing, a near empty – if not completely empty – bottle of white wine by her side, a forgotten wine glass toppled to its side away from the duo which she would have abandoned for the bottle after gulping from it twice. He had found her that way more times than he could count whenever she was feeling down. This always bothered him.

“Please, Eva. Stop doing this to yourself all the time. You know I don’t like it,” he said, exhaling slowly.

“Then stop making me do this to myself,” she whined. “Your work is more important than me. You never make out time for me. I waited and waited for you to come over today. I really thought you would come. But you didn’t. You are really cruel.”

“I’m sorry. Really. I will make it up to you. I promise. Now, leave that drink and go to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“You better come. I won’t forgive you if you don’t. I really won’t forgive you this time,” she said, then muttered almost inaudibly about the empty bottle before ending the call.

The sleep was far gone, though he still felt tired. He was feeling uneasy with the knowledge that Eva was alone in her two-bedroom flat, drunk. It was always her way of punishing him, because she knew he hated her drinking, and loved her so much to worry for her. Sometimes, he had run to her house after such calls to make sure she was okay. He knew she called him in that state just so he could run off to her as usual. However, he could not do that this time around. He was exhausted and he had a busy morning the following day that he could not risk it at all.

He dropped his phone back on the top of the drawer and lay back down on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He exhaled aloud, his left arm draped over his forehead in exasperation. He let his mind wander to the first moments he had with Eva.

Beautiful. Charming. Full of life. These and many more defined her. Their meeting had been at a supermarket. He was there to pick a few things he needed at home, mostly toiletries and other food supplies. He had approached one of the cashier’s counters after shopping when he heard the sharp voice of a petite woman. She was dressed in a short, maroon gown that floated easily with each movement she made. She had black stilettos on and her short hair was packed in a bun at the base of her neck. Her make-up was that of a make-up artist’s masterpiece, with the right shades and highlights which accentuated the already beautiful face. Her lip had on it the only popping colour, a deep red that shone out on her slightly light-complexioned skin.

Kelvin had thought she looked breathtaking.

She was ranting at a cashier about her balance and he helped her out with it like the gentleman he was. They got talking thereafter, exchanged numbers, met up several times, and before long, they began to date, months after they met. She was really sweet.

There were several things about her that appealed to him. Her bluntness was one. She was never shy or afraid to bare her mind on anything. He knew when she was upset and why – nothing was left to his imagination. He really could not stand a woman who expected him to figure out when and why she was angry. It had always irritated him in his past relationships. Eva also possessed an air of confidence and independence, which always made her tantrums seem cute. Her tantrums assured him of her affection, even though she could result to being very vulgar. It was a vice he could endure. Sometimes.

Her alcohol consumption he could not stand. He knew what it was to be wasted, drowning in the overflow of empty bottles, belly full but heart just as empty as the scattered bottles. He had been there, done that, and knew that it was wrong. He had escaped its lure by divine providence and having the love of his life indulge in its folly always reminded him of his past – one he never wanted to be reminded of. Why did Eva have to always result to it just to get under his skin?

Two years was enough time for her to know this, enough time for her to respect his stance on it. She knew, quite all right.

Kelvin sighed aloud again, followed by a long yawn. As his eyes flickered, a thought crossed his mind: it would never feel right because it is not right.

When he awoke few hours before dawn by his noisy alarm, the thought remained. Before he could ponder its meaning through the fogginess of his still drowsy mind, he saw the reminder on his phone regarding the meeting he had early that morning. He hastily got out of bed and went about his morning routine: few minutes of exercise, downing a glass of water followed by a hot cup of coffee, then getting ready for work. He contemplated fixing something to eat but on a second thought, decided he would unfailingly make out time for lunch. Skipping meals was becoming a regular due to his busy schedule. He had been skipping a lot of things lately to his detriment, yet, there was no time to adjust.

As he made his way into his car, he thought to call Eva. It was just some minutes to seven. Most likely, she was still asleep, after the hangover from the previous night, but she would need to be up. He did not mind being her alarm. She picked up at the second ring.

“Hey.” He placed his jacket at the back seat, before moving to the driver’s side.

“Hey.” She did not sound drowsy as he had expected.

“Hope you slept well? Did I wake you up?”

“You thought I won’t sleep well? You really think I would let my business suffer because of you? You think too highly of yourself, Kelvin,” Eva said with a soft scoff.

“You don’t have to talk like that, Eva,” Kelvin said, scowling. “I apologized to you.”

“You always apologize. Yet it repeats itself. Don’t worry, I am learning my place in your life and I’m making adjustments. Look, it’s too early for this. I am on my way to the shop. Let me follow in your footsteps. Have a good day.”

Before he could say anything else, she hung up. He would definitely have to see her before the day ended, if not, it would be almost impossible to get her to calm down. If there was anything Eva craved, it was attention. Not getting it as at when she wanted it was only calling for trouble.

As he took his seat behind the wheel and shut the door, Kelvin rested his head on the wheel for a few seconds. Why was it so hard to please a woman? For the first time in forever, he was serious about a relationship, but it very well appears that his reckless lifestyle with women in the past was the easier way to go. At least then, he had no commitment with them, no emotional attachment. No one had the power to frustrate him. He called the shots instead. He would date three, four women at the same time and make sure they would eventually meet, so he could watch them fight over him, as he made way to a new one.

Kelvin raised his head up and shook it from side to side. It was a past he had wilfully abandoned. A past he was ashamed of. He was young and stupid and rebellious. Since he became born again, he had made corrections, though not easy ones, and had – by God’s grace – made up for his wrongs.

He heaved a sigh. God was probably as upset with him as Eva was. He had also not had time for prayers, or quiet time, or even attending fellowships like he used to. With a new resolve, he started the car and pulled out of the compound. He would make it up to both of them at once. There was going to be a weekday service later that evening. He would take Eva with him and they both would spend time together in the presence of the One who had saved his life many times.

He would make everything right again.

Once again, the same thought of things not being right crossed his mind, but he willed himself to ignore and focus on the events of the day ahead as he made his way to the office.

CHAPTER TWO

TREASURE WALKED into her apartment exhausted. The traffic had been insane. Spending two hours on the road, her legs cramped in the squeezed corner of the mini bus she had boarded to CMS, and then in the middle of the clustered Coaster bus to Mile 2 only worsened her mood. The fight that had ensued between two women in the seats in front of her had not helped her banging head.

She dropped her bag, pulled off her black heels and fell heavily on her bed. She groaned in pain as she wiggled her toes, but the ache in her heart felt worse. Unknowingly, Kemi had gushed open a wound that had been trying to heal. Who was she kidding? All her attempts to make them heal fell flat. They were always sore, always there. Never healing.

“Your parents would be proud of such a hard-working young woman that you are.” Those words filtered through again. Kemi had in a bid to make a compliment peeled a wound.

Parents?

A chill ran down her spine as she paused at the statement. It was seconds before she found her legs and moved towards the cabinet to place the files in her hands. Kemi noticed the new countenance but Treasure tactically avoided her gaze for the remaining few hours of the day. She did not want to yell or cry, not at work, and definitely not in front of Kemi.

Treasure now shut her eyes, left hand on her forehead. She failed at putting the emotions at bay as the memories came before her eyes. The memories that have haunted her every night since she got to Lagos. The memories that were her night-time companion.

She was eleven. Cradled on the floor. Her knees up to her chin, and palms clasped to her ears – blocking off the sounds coming from the sitting room. Her eyes were tightly shut, and tears ran down her cheeks. Her elder brother was on his bed in the room they shared, headphones on, eyes closed. He was nonchalant about their parents’ constant fight and yelling.

She hated hearing her father’s deep threatening voice over her mother’s high-pitched, strained replies. She hated the loud sobs from her mother after her father would have had his fill of punches and walked out.

She hated her father.

Slowly, she rose up to her feet when she noticed the yelling had stopped and walked towards the bedroom door. She opened the door as silently as she could and peeped through. Her father should not see her else she would receive the remnant of his anger.

As noiselessly as she could, she walked towards the sitting room and peered through the thin curtain. Her beautiful mother was on the floor, staring into space, expressionless. The front door was ajar.

Her father had left.

She raced towards her mother and wiped the hot, silent tears flowing down her mother’s face gently.

Her mother’s swollen eyes met hers.

“Mummy, are you all right?” she asked, cupping her mother’s face in her hands. Her voice, a whisper.

“Opeyemi. My treasure,” her mother said in a hushed tone, calling her by the pet name she loved. She cleared her throat and placed her on her laps. “Everything will be all right.”

“I don’t like the way daddy beats you. I hate daddy.” She pouted and held unto her mother.

“Don’t say that,” her mother snapped, pulling her face to look into her little eyes. “Never say you hate your father. He loves us very dearly. Look at me,” her mother said when she looked down, sulking.

“Your father… is just stressed. He loves me and you and Daniel. Okay?”

“Yes, mummy,” she said reluctantly. She hugged her mother tightly.

Though young, she knew better. She knew enough to hear the strain in her mum’s voice when she had said the word ‘love’. For as long as she remembered, her father had always been a monster. There was no way she would ever believe that her father loved her or her mother. Her brother, yes, because their father carried him like a precious jewel to be untouched by anyone. He had never raised his hand to hit him. Not once.

Daniel had no chores. Her father made it her duty to wash Daniel’s clothes, his plates after eating, and do every other work meant for him. Four years her senior, Daniel was far up from her reach. The only thing he ever did was run errands for their father. Though he was highly intelligent and did well in school, her brother was arrogant and lazy. She almost hated him as much as she hated their father.