THE EX FACTOR #22
Miles unending is the depth
of the mind. The world can fit in perfectly and the space left won't hinder its
going round.
"Daddy!" Dorothy
shouted as she began to run towards me.
I squatted and stretched my
arms forward in anticipation with a very broad smile on my face. She ran into
my arms and I lifted this very beautiful and weighty demi goddess into the air
with a bit more strength than I had judged from her outward appearance. She
laughed, giggled and chuckled.
"Aww! Aww!... I've
missed my princess" I managed to utter between smiles and laughs.
"Missed you too
daddy"
"How have you
been?"
"I've been okay"
We walked to a still double
swing, a couple of steps away, sat down and began to talk, updating each other
on what we've missed while we were apart. We continued one of the sweetest
conversation I've ever had when someone tapped me from the behind.
It was dark skinned man, must
be in his mid-thirties and was nicely chiseled. His wrestlers shoulders were
embelished by the light V-neck shirt he wore and his arms were wide and thick.
He was wearing a black jean, brown timberland boots and completed the dressing
with a black porsche shade.
"Hello?" I said as
I turned around and squinted a little from the effect of the sunlight.
"Hey... Are you done talking
to my daughter?" He said with a husky voice and removed his shades to look
straight into my eyes. The fact that I was seating and him standing, made his
position somewhat intimidating.
Dorothy didn't say a word.
Dorothy didn't say a word.
"Err... Err..." I
was still stammering when my phone began to ring. "Hold on" I said and
began searching for my phone. I couldn't find it on me but I could hear it
ring.
I turned to Dorothy.
"Have you seen my phone
dear?"
She responded by shaking her
head. The ringing got louder and louder until...
...I woke up with a start.
"Arrgghh!" I
groaned. "This... is why I hate observing siesta. Your mind turns whatever
you're thinking about into a motion picture and adds some stupid, low cost
scenes."
My phone rang again.
"Hello?"
"Sup bro"
"Nothing much. How are
you feeling now?"
"Never been better sir.
I feel happy and I'll be back to a hundred percent fitness in no time. Believe
me."
"Thank God for that. My
regards to madam."
"Yea. Sure. Take care
bro."
"Later man."
I let out a huge sigh of relief
and thought of how fast life had seem within the last couple of days. I'm
working on getting engaged to a single mom. I'm planning missions for my crush
to save my ex's relationship. I almost lost my friend to a club brawl... Now
I'm going to have to either find a way to stop Dorothy's dad from ripping
mother and daughter apart or step back to allow him do whatever he wants.
Except for argument's sake, they are his immediate nuclear family. Regardless
of whether they like it or not, there is still the ties that bind.
Dorothy was spending the
second week with Lizzy's aunt. Lizzy had lost her mum two weeks after her
eighteenth birthday and Aunt Sarah was the only woman to have taken
responsibility for her survival first, then her education and other needed
requirements to keep her body, mind and spirit together in her own capability.
Liz had told me she was the only woman who was there for her when Dorothy's dad
had impregnated her and fled. She was
with her at the hospital at the point of delivery and since then, she had
fallen in love with the little human being, even before she was given a name.
"...Without Aunt Sarah,
I don't know where I would've been." She had said one time. When Tammy was
down with fever and she wasn't responding to treatment, she had taken her to
church and brought her back hale and hearty. There was no other place she could
think of for the safety of her priceless asset, since the return of the man who
would just have to be tagged 'A father' but never 'A dad'.
"...He suddenly called
me one evening like that and I thought it was you. Then next I heard was his voice
and I just couldn't hang up although I wished to the universe that I could.
Then he started apologizing and begging. Saying he realizes all his mistakes
and he's really sorry. That I should just try and forgive him. That he's ready
to make everything right and whatever I asked him to do, he's ready to do it. I
asked him if he expects me to believe what he's saying and he said it's true.
Although he sounded sincere
and truthful, I can't allow myself to be fooled again. So I told him I'll need
time to go think about what he said but in the meantime, he's such an imp. The
next thing he said was what scared me. He kept on insisting that whatever the
price to make it right was, he's ready to pay it.
Then I told him he can't even start
making it right from thousands of miles away and if he had just hit a big money and
thinks sending money is what I'm in need of, he's gravely mistaken cos I'm living
comfortably with my daughter and giving her the best I could give. Then he said
he had already taken the first step to redemption. He said he's no more
thousands of miles away and he had traveled all the way down, just to really
drive home the fact that he is really sorry. I was shocked to my marrow and had
I not seen something to hold on to, I would have slumped.
Jay, he's been around for a
week, searching for my contact everywhere and from everyone he knows might be
able to help out, before finally contacting Bimbo. My roommate during
university days. I don't know why that one didn't contact me first before
giving him my number and allowing him back into my life. I don't care much if
he's truly sorry but I can't take chances with my daughter. That's all I have
in the whole world and I can't let a wolf in sheep's clothing come from nowhere
and snatch her away from me. Not even after all he put me through.
He's just not coming any
close to my daughter and I'll never disclose her whereabouts to a stranger cos
for now, that's what he is. I don't know his plans, I don't know his mission, I
don't know if he has changed or if he's still the old screw up I knew him to
be. Not like I care though but my topmost mission is to keep my daughter away
from any intruder and kidnapper and I've explained that in details to Aunt Sarah.
I've told her if anything happens to my baby, she'll instantly give birth
to another one for me.
If he's sorry, let him be
sorry. I'm not even angry anymore. Those days have passed and God himself has
wiped my tears. What more do I want to complain of?... I live in an apartment I
pay the yearly rent from my own pocket, I eat the food I want and not the one I
see, I provide for my daughter whatever she needs and teach her morals and how
to grow up not only to be a woman of class and high standards but to strictly
avoid the mistakes I made during my own time... I'm just scared Jay. I've
suffered and suffered over Damilola and I'll just kill myself if anything
should happen to her or if one human should come from nowhere and start
claiming daughter.
If it's to take her and run
away to one remote village where nobody will see us and start our lives all
over again, I would without any questions or hesitations. I'm scared... So
scared Jay... So scared."
She had busted in a fresh
round of tears. And still in my silence, I drew her closer and gave her some
reassuring pats while a thousand thoughts flowed through my mind.
****************
"If she was not
motivated about her 'mission', she shouldn't have just gone AWOL. She should've
told me and I'll know the next step" I thought to myself as the over
elongated church service was about coming to a close and I still couldn't spot
Kate in the crowd, no matter how much I twisted and turned my neck. I knew she
was in the crowd somewhere but it was just like she had put herself in 'camouflage mode'
to avoid the disturbance and inconvenience that would result from the contact
of my prying eyes.
After service, I kept on
walking slowly towards my car while twisting my head here and there, all to no avail.
I shrugged and just as I grabbed the driver side car handle to pull back and open
the door, I got a slight tap on the shoulder.
"Ah!... Kate!"
The kind of reply she gave me
was indeed surprising cos without saying a word, she just drew me over and gave
me a very warm hug like old buddies reconnecting after ages.
"I'm sorry bro."
She said just before she let go and allowed me to breathe.
"I was thinking you just
decided to go off the grid for reasons best known to you."
"No sir. I wouldn't do
that... I just returned from Abj on Friday."
The look on my face was
beyond astonished as I replied...
"Abj?!"
"Yes!... And I have good
both good news and bad news sir"
"Really?"
"Yep. So which do you
wanna hear first?"
I thought for a while, what
the good and bad news might be. I rolled my eyes, bent my back, racked my brain
and got no clue. So I shrugged and replied.
"Let's hear the bad news
first."
The wailing and loss of the
farmer is indeed the cream of the party for the crows.
Mature Minds Talk.
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