**THE BETRAYAL**
(EPISODE 51)
......On December 22nd , I was cooking @ the
backyard when mum ran into the kitchen very
excited n full of smiles.
“guess who just visited us?” she asked happily,
“i can’t guess mum, pls tell me” i begged.
“Mike came with his parents, they r in the sitting
room with ur father” she said to me. I quickly
dropped the kitchen spoon i was holding, without
minding where it fell nor the rough clothes i was
wearing and ran into the sitting room where dad
sat with Mike n his parents.
I greeted n welcomed them happily, my heart
pounding furiously.
Mike stared at me with a smile, understanding the
girlish shyness n sweet fear that had changed me
into a timid girl.
He stood up without wasting time.
“Cyndy pls i have something to tell u” he calmly
said to me.
“let’s go outside dear” he begged.
I breathed deeply, looked at my dad who nodded
in approval, shrugged and left the room with him.
“i have borne my impatience n pride for the last
three months,” he said when we got to a lonely
part of our compound; “but i now must speak to
you, for i can bear it no longer, Cyndii. Oh, do not
turn away 4rm me, I love u n i want you to be my
wife– my wife, darling; n i will love u– I will
cherish you– I will spend my whole life in
working 4 u, I have no hope so great, so sweet,
so dear, as the hope of winning you.” he said.
My silence was more eloquent than words.
“it seems a strange thing to say, but, Cyndy all
the time i was away, my heart was really with
you” he confessed.
“you are my fate, my destiny!, if only you will say
yes to me. Ur love would incite me to win name
and fame, not for myself but 4 u.
Your love would crown a king. I beg of u, say yes
to me this instant.
Surely great love wins great love and there could
be no greater love than mine” he begged
It was at this stage that our eyes met.
“it’s love that makes life. Only to think, my darling,
that you and i may spend every hour of it
together.
Just say yes to me and by Easter we will get
married” he proposed.
I raised my eyes to the fair, calm heavens, and
infinite happiness filled my soul, a deep, silent
prayer ascended unspoken 4rm my heart.
“yes Mike i accept you” i finally opened up with
tears.
He smiled happily as we hugged each other, but
deep down i still felt an uncertain fear.
With a whimper of relief he smiled at me. His face
was absolutely ashen, his lips white, as he pulled
me savagely into his arms, folding me into the
safety of his body, cradling my head, then cupping
my face in his hands and tilting it upwards.
His eyes moved feverishly over my face as if he
wanted to reassure himself i was really there.
“thank God” he murmured as he bent his head,
pressing his lips to my hair.
“i thought i’d lost you again” he confessed.
“but what kept you away for so long?” i asked
curiously,
“it was my pride my dear, it ate me up like a
terminal disease, but i eventually overcame it and
came running with my parents. How do i make up
for my complete and utter crassness?” he asked
remorsefully. I looked away.
“I got this for you……” He said, as he let go of me
for a moment, pulling out something from his
pocket,
“now i want to do it properly, before anything else
happens to come between us” he smiled as he
held out his hand. In the centre of his palm lay a
gold ring.
‘Cyndii—’ he pulled me gently back into his arms,
kissed my cheekbone, my temple, and the corner
of my mouth.
‘I love you—’ he murmured.
I closed my eyes in bliss and felt the tears
spilling out from beneath my lashes. Protesting
against the sudden constriction of our bodies
pressed together.
“i will forever love you, cherish you–” He broke
off, raising my hand to his lips and placing a kiss
on the tip of my index finger.
“comfort you, protect you…..” he kissed my
middle finger.
“honour you and make endless fantastic love with
you for all the days of my life.” holding up my
third finger, he slid the ring onto it.
“if you will have me”
He prayed.
Through a shimmering veil of tears, i gave a soft
laugh…….
I was so happy, and so thrilled, because all my
dreams were coming to past. What else could i
wish for?
Together we walked into the sitting room to break
the joyful news to our dear old parents.
Mike made the necessary first payment {which
showed that he has reached an agreement with
my family}, just like our custom demanded,
before collecting the list of items required for our
traditional marriage, Promising to show up three
weeks later for the first stage of Introduction{pr
esenting himself to my kinsmen}
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Unluckily it never happened as we planned.
Precisely two weeks later, I got a very terrible
news which almost killed me.
Hmmmm it truly wasn’t the kind of news i was
expecting at that stage of my life, neither is it the
kind of news you guys are eager to read.
/Whatever/The following January brought
unhappiness to my life.
(Episode 52)
...On the 10th of Jan, Mum walked into the sitting
room, with a heavily coloured n drawn face.
My heart leapt as i noticed her condition.
“mum! R u alright?” i asked,
“don’t mind me , i just recieved a very terrible
news 4rm a relative” she replied n walked to her
room.
I ran after her.
“just let me be dear ur dad will be in a better
position to break the news to u” she begged.
Her words panicked and got me more curious,
instead of calming me like she expected.
“mum u are now getting me more worried”
i held her hands, staring into her eyes.
My heart pounded furiously as i wondered what
could make her look so sick and nervous.
“mum i insist u tell me, please” i begged.
“alright fetch me a glass of water, i’m very
thirsty” she ordered. I ran to the kitchen, filled a
glass cup with water and ran back to her room.
She smiled reassuringly after drinking the water,
breathed heavily
“i will tell you the news i just got, my dear. It
really isn’t terrible like i earlier said, but just a bit
surprising.
So promise me u will behave like a proper lady
when i open up to u” she asked of me.
“i promise i will behave mum” i managed to
mutter anxiously.
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“Mike has a child, do u know?” she broke the
news to me like a question.
I couldn’t believe my ears.
“which Mike ?” i asked,
“Ur Mike of course” she replied,
“we had to ask around, in order to get first hand
information abt the family we are giving out our
daughter to n ended up getting this piece of
information 4rm a relative married in his Village”
she explained, while i bit my lips as sadness,
disbelief n pain instantly filled my heart.
Mum clearly understood my condition, drew my
head to her chest n patted me like a baby.
“u shouldn’t feel very bad, u can still go ahead
with the marriage if u love him well enough to
overlook the little hinderance.
The child is a girl n i heard the parents never
accepted both the little girl n her mother” she
consoled me,
“Mum pls don’t talk like that” i cried, “how did it
even happen?” i heard myself asking.
“No wonder he was very anxious to marry me
quickly n his mum even hid it 4rm me” i cried
bitterly.
I FELT PLAYED n BETRAYED, very uncertain of
my future with him.
The next evening....
Mike was in our house as if some1 alerted him of
what we discovered.
I sat up and stared back at him with a ferocious
look, breathing heavily as i tried so hard to control
my emotions.
“dearie please calm down, the love i have 4 u is
very sincere, listen to me darling, please listen to
me” he pleaded nervously.
“u are just a heartless. U thought u could hide
such a big scandal 4rm me didn’t you, or have
you cooked up another lie, c’mon spin it out” i
said angrily. He shuddered as my words hit him
hard, forcing him to look down remorsefully.
“i couldn’t get myself to tell u abt it because i was
very scared of ur reaction, i couldn’t risk losing u
over a silly mistake
“the girl was a mistake and i have nothing to do
with the mother anymore, please believe me. It
was only a one night stand i regret ever doing,
please don’t judge me over it.
Judge me 4 who i’m n not 4 who i was please” he
begged,
“i want to see the little girl n her mother. I want to
see them b4 i say anything else to u” i requested.
His hands shook as he tried to hold my waist, he
breathed deeply n stared at me.
“don’t tell me you are already changing your
mind /over us/?” he asked with a coloured face.
I looked away.
“i’m not happy with u n i have nothing else to say
till i see ur little daughter n her mum” I concluded
bitterly.
“this is so unfair Cyndii, why do you insist on
seeing them? I can’t let you see them, i just
can’t” he murmured sadly, while i forced out a
dry smile.
I demanded to see the girl and her mother
because i wanted to get first hand information,
concerning the level of relationship they enjoy
with him. Moreover i really couldn’t bear standing
between anyone’s happiness especially when a
child is involved. I hate seeing a child grow up
without a father. I know to some people it matters
not, but to me it matters alot.
“what you are asking of me is very outrageous, i
can’t do it.
Moreover they are not living with me and i can’t
take you to her house” he explained seriously,
“then invite her to yours or somewhere condusive
for us to meet” i insisted.
“meet over what?”, “and what exactly do you
expect me to tell her huh?, that my fiancee want’s
to see her, you are very insensitive to another
person’s plight, you only think about yourself
which isn’t good.” “I understood and was
resonable with you when you were virtually living
with Ben, why can’t you respect my feelings?,
infact i can’t stand you this evening, i’m leaving”
he poured out angrily, stood up and left the room,
while i silently reflected over his words.
“oh my God, he just accused me of being
insensitive and selfish. Is he right?” i gasped n
wondered.
Whats next??
TBC TOMORROW @4PM
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