Chapter 1
Today is Friday and now 7 days that Lota have not spoken with Ugo. This has never happened in there 5 years of dating. The last time they spoke she complained of being ill. This made it hard for Lota to understand. If she is ill, that’s when they should talk often. He tried to reach her severally to no avail. He called her friends and they all denied knowing her way about. His tension is now increasing. Could something have gone wrong? Indeed a lot has. Lota have known Ugo for about 5 years now. They live in cities far from each other. They have managed this way in their relationship. The distance between them have never been a barrier in their relationship. The only problem they have ever faced had always been associated with marriage plans and their different Christian denomination. Ugo has refused to entertain all talks on marriage preferring to graduate from medical school first. Lota worried all night about what may have happened to his girlfriend. He had called her elder sister Nneka earlier and she said Ugo was getting better. She promised severally that she would put her on phone but never did. Ugo could not sleep through the night. He began to feel ill from 4 am. He had developed headache, fever and tiredness from the worries of the previous days and the heightened tension due to Nnekas attitude. Nneka had been the one at the forefront of their relationship. Since she was the only family member of Ugo he had seen he always called her and their friendship grow. Lota knows that Nneka liked him a lot. At times they all joked about switching places and Ugo participated in the joke. The bond between them is strong. To some extent the warm relationship between Nneka and lota blinded him to any of Ugos ills. He was simply excited at the prospects of a warm inlaw relationship he had anticipated. He staggered into the bathroom, brushed his shoes and put them at the balcony to dry. He took his bath; half packed his things and the rest he flung into the boot unpacked. He was ready to drive off with his Honda salon car. He drove barely five minutes before he realized that he was becoming very sick. He went back home and decided to cancel the journey but he really needed to hear from Ugo. He called her number countlessly but it was still switched off and he called Nneka. By this time Nneka did not pick his calls. It was now the inability to reach anyone that could tell about Ugo that he worried about more than his own health. He staggered up carried his half packed bag and went downstairs. He called his friend to ascertain if he could drive him but he was already engaged. He opened his car picked a gift from his pigeon hole and headed to the motor park. He bordered a Toyota hiace bus. While in the bus he thought of the many ways he could make his intended proposal unique and create a lasting memory. He imagined she could be on hospital admission. He planned on how he will propose to her while she may be on her hospital bed. He considered many possibilities but the only one unconsidered was the reality unknown to him. He arrived the city of Port Harcout by 12mid-day after his stressful 4-hour journey. Stressful because the car was rickety and passengers were packed tight with each row of seat carrying four adults irrespective of the size and body structure. There were constant arguments and verbal abuse during the journey. Some passengers were reluctant to make the necessary adjustment to contain others and some were simply difficult to please. Half way into the journey there was a discussion of a wedding event that was cancelled on the altar as the bride did not show up for the wedding. This dominated their conversation. Everyone expressed their opinion. While many rained abuses on the proposed bride some preferred to term her brave for spotting out early that she couldn’t live a lie by making promises she wouldn’t keep. The conversation nose-dived into infidelity in marriage and many condemned unfaithful women in marriage with little or nothing said about the male counterparts. An asymmetrical conversation like this is not a strange incident in this part of the world. Women alone bear the brunt of cheating with no consequences on the men. Men are allowed to marry as many women as they chose culturally and this will always come in defense. He boarded a tricycle and began to make his trace of Ugos house. When he arrived, he doubted if he was in the right place. He knew the house was a three storey building but he was told it is an uncompleted. This was his first surprise. Nothing from the exterior could show the house was uncompleted. However it was a finely finished three-storey building of modern style. There were six flats in the house three were occupied by tenants while the other three were for Ugos family. A flat for the boys was downstairs then their parent flat was facing the girls flat at the topmost floor. Lota entered the gate to ascertain if he was at the right young man in his fourties as he was approaching the gate Lota asked. Good afternoon sir, please is this Ugos place? The man replied, yes your people are upstairs. My people! Lota could confirm from that statement that something was really going on. Without a second thought he went upstairs. The door was wide open and the room was filled with people all in traditional attire. He tapped at the door for courtesy and a young man serving kola beckoned on him. Come, come and sit down. Lota said to the young man. I am looking for Ugo. His tune was not a whisper and many in the room heard him. An athletic elderly man in his early sixties approached lota. I am Ugos father is there any problem. Lota responded and said no but that he was a friend to Ugo and since he hadn’t heard from her in a while he chose to come and see her. His friendly gesture weren’t received at all. The man kept at best a straight face and Lota was not deterred. He went on trying the best he could to make a good first impression as Ugos father escorted him downstairs. As they descended the stairs the old man rebuffed all of his attempts at initiating a conversation preferring to respond in the shortest words possible. Once they exited the staircase Ugo was the first person they saw. She was beautifully dressed and made up. Her face was glowing and she wore a colorful head gear only worn at ceremonies. Ugo! This is your visitor. I hope there is no problem. Ugo did not reply but only nodded in aggrement to her fathers’ querry. Lota was so happy to see her and end all his worries. He was also sad to see that she was this healthy and beautiful and kept him worried about her. Lota queried her strongly about her phone that had been off and mostly on the reason why she refused to inform him that Nneka was receiving prospective in laws. In a harsh tone he asked her, what is the meaning of this your attitude and why didn’t you tell me that Nneka was getting married? Even Nneka too that I thought I was so close to could not tell me anything? What really is going on here? Ugo you don’t look any sick to me? Ok you were busy preparing for your sister’s wedding why does it have to be a secret? He asked nearly a thousand questions in one minute. In a gentle and slow tone Ugo said, don’t mind the idiots that said they want to marry me. at first the message didn’t sink. Lota asked, said they want to marry who? She replied leave them let them keep deceiving themselves. It was at this instance that the message hit him. He legs instantly went numb. He became dizzy and his legs could not support his weight anymore. He reached to seat on the floor but Ugo did not allow him. She urged him to try and walk and she supported him and the both entered a hotel. Lota had begged a woman that sells in a small shop beside their house to keep his bag. So they collected the bag and went into the hotel. The first words Lota could say was Ugo so this is why you have switched off your phone. He unzipped his bag and brought out a box and gave to Ugo. She hesitated in collecting the box but then she opened it. Seeing that the box had an engagement ring and a perfume she began to cry. She knelt down and began begging Lota. Lota I am serious I never believed you truly wanted to marry me. I am sorry I never believed you. So is this ring meant for me? She wept like she meant everything she was saying. She knelt down and kept apologizing to Lota. The more she apologized the more sick Lota felt. He believed her when she said the people were only deceiving themselves but now that she has to apologise profusely. He was now very scared. it was at this point that Lota began really paying attention to looks and stopped listening to her words. She avoided all eye contant with Lota, preferring to look down. She mostly looked at the gift and at each gaze she continued to apologise. Her eye brows were arched outwards and her mouth droops in sorrows and she maintained a bowed head. All the while she maintained that she will have nothing to do with her proposed in law.
