OBIANUJU ( A Nigerian story)

Demilade’s family

OBIANUJU

*

A week has passed since I said yes to Demi and our relationship has been "Wow". He has been at his best , caring for me , listening to me , buying me stuffs , in fact he is the reason for most of my smile and I must confess I have no regret , none whatsoever in dating him...

The sound of voices disrupted my sleep and I slowly opened my eyes to see Funmi singing and dancing around my ..... no, her room..

oh right!I came over to study and ended up sleeping....Amazing!

crouching beside the bed , I said my prayer and when done, i reached for my phone and unlocking it , I was disappointed

There was no message from Demi

Why!... I mean it is so unlike him as he never fails to send me a "Good morning" text ....

quickly, i dialled his number and it rang till his voice mail picked up...

I dialled it again but it was still same!

I sighed in frustration, "why is he not picking up na?" I thought aloud

"Who is that?" Funmi paused what she was doing to stare at me .....

"Ademilade". I replied and she hissed loudly

"Crazy girl! So na man be your problem this early morning "

"No ooo! I just wanted to be sure he is alright". I defended myself as she rolled her eyes......

"What is the difference?... anyways, Good morning". she greeted first

Ah! I completely forgot about greetings!

"Morning!" I replied and she nodded , shaking her body to rhythm of the song playing on her cell phone

"And thanks for yesterday". I added

"Oh! Don't mention, studying with you was fun ....but not until you fell asleep". she drawled making me laugh

"Don't mind me jare, i was so weak. So awfar, are we going to study again this night?

She smiled sheepishly as she shook her head

"No, i am going on a dinner date"

"dinner date! I repeated in surprise as I got up off the floor ..

"Yes ooooo! I am going to rock it this night with my boyfriend"

"hun..hun.. opor! ....but you never told me you had a boyfriend"

"That is because I just met him three days ago". She replied and I shot her a puzzled look

"You mean you met someone three days ago and you are already dating him..no na , it is not right". I queried her

"right ke! no ooo, if you see this guy ehen , you will understand me"

"Ehen!" I clapped my hands slightly as she continued

"The guy is tall ,handsome........

"but not as handsome as my Demilade". I cut in and she rolled her eyes

"hmmmh...She don start ... Demilade's wife, we know......

Better!

"so as I was saying , the guy is handsome , dark , rich, a third year medical student"

"A third year medical student?"I repeated and she nodded

"Wow! Demi is also a third year medical student . So what is the name of this your rich dark handsome boyfriend?"i drawled

She smiled shyly "Dave"

"Dave..Dave...Dave.... I don't think I know him"

"But he knows you". She retorted

"Knows me......me eeee". I touched my chest as I stared at her , disbelieving

"Yes, he always ask of you"

"Really! but how does he know we know each other?"

"That is because he has seen us together, ehemmm do you remember the day we went to school together?"

I nodded

"Good! that was the same day i met him"

"Okay ooooo! I don hear, have fun with you dark handsome knight". I rolled my eyes and she laughed loudly

"Go away Jor"

Smiling, I picked up my books from the reading table and walked out of her room to my room....

Entering my room, I dialled Demilade's number for the third time but he was still not picking

"Oh God!" I sighed in frustration as I collapsed on the bed

"What is wrong?" Faith who was cooking in the Kitchen asked

"Nothing!" I answered ,dialling his number again but it was still the same

Arrrgh! Is he kidding me?" I wondered , kicking my legs in a little tantrum...

how I wish Shakirat was here, she would have advised me on what to do!

Speaking of which, let me even call her sef

I scrolled down my phone for her number and when I saw it , I dialled it

She picked up on the first ring

"Good morning !"She greeted first, her voice was so low

"Bestie!how are you?" I asked as she sighed

"I am fine Jare!"

"Are you sure? you don't sound alright to me"

"Wo! Juliet !to tell the truth , I am not alright at all, Usman has refused to pick my call"

"Usman! who is Usman?" I asked , knitting my eyebrow

"Han! Han! have you forgotten so soon? the accounting student I told you about na". She reminded

"Oh!oh!oh! that dark guy .but what happened? Did you guys fight?

"No ooo! we even chatted yesterday night"

"Nawa ooo! Even me sef , Demi has refused to pick my calls"

"Demi! why! ah! and you sit down for there ! my friend, will you stand up now and go to his place"

"his place! but he didn't invite me over". I said softly as she hissed

"he didn't invite me over". She mimic , "stay there now and let another girl steal him from you"

"how is that possible?" I asked , confusedly

"hmmmh...you know it yourself that your boyfriend is a flirt , for all I know , he might even be f**king another girl

Instantly, I sprang up to my feet

"No way ! I will kill him myself if he does that"

She chuckled "now you are talking"

"Alright na! Let me take my bath, I will call you when I get there"

"Okay bestie, I will be waiting for the gist". She said and I laughed softly, ending the call

She is so funny!

pulling off my clothes, I dumped it inside the cloth basket then rushed into the bathroom to freshen up....

I brushed my teeth , took a quick bath ,reached for my towel , wrapped it around my body and on returning to the room , I found Faith searching my "Louis Vuitton" hand bag..

I scoffed silently, is she trying to steal from me?

"What are you doing?" I shrieked making her jump up in shock

"erm Uju erm I am sorry , I needed #50 to buy pure water erm so I was trying to check if you have". she stuttered

"Then you should have asked me?"

"I am sorry". She apologised, bending her head slightly

Hmm! this one that she is acting all gentle!

I sighed " it is alright, you can make use of the #500 on the table"

"Thanks". She muttered

"It is nothing". I assured as I went over to the wardrobe...

She cleared her throat " also the foodstuffs have finished, we need to get another one"

I scoffed silently, turning to face her

"We? no way , I bought the last one now it is your turn to buy this"

"I know but I have no money". her voice came out hoarsely...

Oh yeah! I rolled my eyes as I turned away from her , facing the wardrobe

"I kept #15,000 inside the drawer, make use of it"

" #15,000! no na, it is too much"

"It isn't, or have you forgotten I date one of the richest guy in school?" I boasted

"oh! oh!"she exclaimed softly as she walked into the kitchen

I smiled inwardly, she never see anything yet!!

Opening the wardrobe, I searched through it for a comfy cloth and soon found one

A red sleeveless gown with slanted edges

I pulled it out , smiling.

Demi bought a dozen type of this same gown for me saying he loves the way it looks on me.....

*

Towelling off, I put on my undies and hurriedly changed into the gown; then I put on a white sandal, brushed my hair , picked up my phone grabbed a white hand bag and rushed out of the room...:

" where are you going?" Faith called after me

"Out!" I simply answered as I walked through the long passage ..

I got outside just in time to see a bike pass by and I flagged it down

Immediately, the bike man pulled out of the road and stopped in front of me....

"Fine girl! where you dey go?" he asked , smiling

"Brown Apartment".i replied and he shot me a confused look

"Plenty brown apartment dey for here , which of them?"

"The one at Ijesha road"

"Oh! that one wey yahoo guys dey stay"

"It is you that know . How much oooo?"i asked ,eying him coldly

"#500".

I hissed loudly "from where to where, please be going"

"Oya! how much you wan pay?"he grinned like an i***t

"#200!" I answered, hoping he would agree and he did"

"Enter make we dey go"

I smiled , Thanks to Shakirat who taught me how to haggle prices if not I would have foolishly payed #500!

Rolling up my gown a little , I climbed on the bike and the bike man, kicked the engine, driving off......

At last! We got to the brown building and the bike man drove through the huge gate , parking directly in front of Demilade's apartment....

Paying him, i climbed down the bike and rushed into the balcony; then I pushed the door and walked into the sitting room...

"Demi!" I called , looking around the messed up sitting room but there was no response....

Where could he be? Is he still sleeping?" I wondered and began walking towards his room.

Sliding the glass door, I found the door to his room opened ajar and I walked in to see a shocking sight ....

My boyfriend was laid sprawled out on the bed , his eyes closed as he rolled and tossed on the bed restlessly .....

I rushed to him and sat down beside him , tapping him gently

Ewoo! his body temperature was so hot!

"Musa! Is that you?"his voice came out weakly...

Musa! who is that

"No, it is Obianuju". I corrected ; instantly his eyes flung opened and lit up ...

"Baby!" he muttered , smiling weakly as I stared down at him , worriedly.....

"Yes it is me , your baby . What is wrong with you?"

"Nothing". he replied

"Nothing! are you kidding me? ...jeez!your body is so hot and you telling me nothing, no Demi, Please talk to me , what exactly is wrong with you?" I pleaded , i was trying so hard to calm my panic....

he coughed weakly"I am sick"

"Then stand up , let's us go to the health centre"

"I have already done that". he stated and that was when I noticed the drugs scattered on the floor

"Okay! Okay! So what are we going to do now?" I asked with a trembling voice....

"Home". he said softly and I shot him a confused look

home! What is he talking about?

"Fine! Fine! so have you eaten?"

he shook his head negatively

"Ha! and you have taken drugs? do you want to kill yourself?" I retorted, caressing his cute face as his brown eyes bored into mine

"should i prepare rice for you?" I blurted out and immediately regretted it

"erm I mean should I erm make tea for you" . I stuttered, pursing my lips and he chuckled lightly

"You can't cook?"

Chai! how did he know??

I smiled shyly " something like that , should I make the tea?" I repeated and he nodded slowly

And without wasting time , I sprang to my feet and ran out of the room.....

Ademilade

Immediately she left the room, I sat up in the bed , grunting

I was so damn weak !

My heads were spinning, pounding , my whole body hot , it was like a lot of fire was burning inside me thus making me restless.....

I tried using pills and drugs but it was all to no avail..

I sighed in frustration, perhaps my dad has been right along.....

Just then my phone rang and I reached for to see the name "Mallam Musa" flashing on the screen

I received it

"Hello sir! Kai! me I don dey close to your place , make you get ready". he spoke with an accent which always got me laughing but right now , I was in no mood to laugh , I was terribly sick..

"Alright". I simply said and ended the call....

Scrolling through my phone ,I was surprised to see 13 missed calls

I from Kewe, 2 from my dad , 6 from Susanna and 4 from ... Obianuju...

I smiled lightly as I tossed the phone on the bed .

no wonder she rushed down here , she must have been worried!

weakly , I dragged myself up from the bed and using the wall for support , I went over to bathroom to freshen up . when i was done, I returned to the room , went over to the wardrobe and on opening it , I pulled out a Kiton blue jean trouser with a brown shirt and hurriedly changed into it ; then I put on a black boot and combed out my curly hair .....

I clenched the drawer with my hands for a moment to steady my breathing then dragged my feet to the bed , picked up my phone along with my wallet and walked slowly out of the room to the kitchen....

What is that Lazy girlfriend of mine still doing?

Entering the kitchen, I found her slicing an onion , She was so engrossed with it that she failed to notice me....

"Do you want to put onion in the tea?" I asked sardonically as I weakly leaned against the wall

She turned sideways to look at me, smiling

"When did you get here?"

"Not quite long". I replied

"Oh! I changed my mind about the tea, I want to make you something special"

Special! It sounded more like poison

"There is no need for that". I simply said and she stopped what she was doing to stare at me blankly

"Why?"

"That is because I need ...arggggggh! I groaned in pain as the headache hit me terribly"

"Demi". She screamed, rushing to me as I groaned again

"You alright?" She asked ,holding my face as she stared into it

Alright! I was far from alright

"Yes!" I lied

"No you are not , let's go to a better hospital please". She pleaded

"I will do that when I get home today"

"Home! You going home today?" She widened her eyes in surprise

I nodded

"Really! and you never planned on telling me?"

Swears! I saw the hurt in her eyes

"No babe!it is not like that , I never planned on it"

"Oh! so what will happen to me ?I mean where will I stay? how will I cope?" She asked in a rush , clearly confused

"I chuckled softly, I will be spending only two days and you can stay here if you want"

"No! I want to go with you". She said and I went stiff

Is she for real! Go with me! to that messed up house? no way!

"No you can't". I retorted in a huff but being the stubborn girl she is , she shook her head negatively

"I won't be able to sleep knowing you are sick, I won't be able to .....she paused , breaking down in tears ; immediately, I looked away ......

"D**n!" I cursed silently

"I ... won't ...be ... able .. to ...think .. straight". she struggled her words in between tears and that was it , I gave in

"Fine! we will go together". I agreed, wiping her tears and her eyes lit up

I couldn't bear to see her cry!

"but what about Rinzy? won't he get angry?"I asked and that was the exact moment a knock came at the door

"Who is that?" she shouted ,obviously she was trying to avoid my question

"Kai! It is Musa" . The person answered and she faced me

"Who is Musa?"

"My Dad's driver". I simply answered, leaning on her shoulder for support as we slowly walked to the entrance door....

Opening it , the short man face came into view

"Kai! Small Oga! na your face be this?" he greeted smiling as he looked at Obianuju and then back at me

"Musa!" I called weakly as Obianuju and I walked out of the house; then i locked the door keeping the bunch of key in my pocket ....

"help me please". I begged weakly stretching forth my hands to him ; instantly, he reached for it holding me tightly as he helped me down the short step to the black Benz parked beside my car....

Opening the rear door , i climbed into it and Obianuju followed suit, sitting beside me

"She dey go with us?" Musa asked and I nodded slowly

"Kai! your girlfriend fine oooo". he praised as he got into the driver seat

"I know". I said , taking Obianuju's hands into mine as I leaned back on the seat

"You are alright?" She asked

"Yes! I need to sleep". I replied weakly and just as Musa started the ignition, I found myself dozing off ....

A light tap on my shoulder disrupted my sleep and I opened my eyes to see Obianuju staring at me...:

"Your driver is driving into an airport, are we making use of a plane?" She asked, clearly surprised

I sat up, wiping the sleep from my eyes as I stared out of the window

"Mutala Muhammed Airport Ikeja Lagos". I read the huge wordings

"Obviously". I stated

"Wow! Do you make use of plane whenever you going home?" She probed on and I shrugged

"Most times"

The car skidded to a halt and we all alighted from it at our different ends ; immediately Musa rushed to hold me , supporting me as we all walked into the airport, straight to the terminals

"Sir! I go need your passport". Musa informed and I nodded , taking my wallet out of my wallet

"Me I don't have a passport ooo". Obianuju complained

"Don't worry! Musa will make use of his". I assured as I handed my passport to Musa who immediately rushed to purchase the ticket....

"but what about him, won't he be needing a ticket too?"

"No, he will be travelling back by road". I answered

"Oh!so how are you feeling now?"

" a little better".

To tell the truth, I was feeling worst and was just trying to stay strong as I don't want her getting all worried about me ....

"Thank God!" She mumbled but I heard her clearly..

Just then , Musa returned , sweating profusely

"Sir!kai! Na last minute ticket I buy for both of una oo". he rasped , handing me two flight tickets

" make una go fast fast , the plane don dey full"he added and I was forced to smile

"Thanks!" I muttered , holding Obianuju's hand as we walked through a short passage to the plane

"Your ticket please ?" a man on uniform asked and I handed him both tickets

he went through it and then nodded in satisfaction

"Your seat numbers are A17 and A18, you can board the plane

Climbing into the plane , my gaze wandered around for the seat numbers and then I found it , it was seat at the aisle

"Let us go". I said softly and we both walked to the seats , sitting down as we listened to the announcement

"Ladies and gentle men , as we start our descent to Abuja , please make sure your seat belt is securely fastened"... Thank you!

"Abuja! We going to Abuja?" Obianuju asked , widening her eyes in surprise

Amazing! She doesn't even know where she is heading to!

"Fasten you belt". I simply told her as I fastened mine ...

"Abuja! I have been there twice!oh I love the city! It is so beautiful!..... she kept on gushing and as for me , I was too weak to say a thing .

I leaned back on the seat , closing my eyes

"Do you want to sleep?" her beautiful voice rang in my ear and I nodded

"Okay baby! I heard her say and I smiled lightly

She called me baby for the first time today!

*

A loud banging sound Jolted me out of sleep and i opened my eyes Just in time to see the airplane land

At last! I muttered, sighing in relief as I faced Obianuju who was still sleeping

tsk.. tsk... with this loud noise , she must be a heavy sleeper!

"Uju!" I called tapping her gently and she stirred a little, chewing on her lips as she mumbled

I tapped her again and this time around, she opened her eyes

"Are we at Abuja?" those were the first words that came out of her mouth

I chuckled softly " Abuja! Is that what your dream was all about?

"Oh! So we are in Abuja". She said , looking around the plane as I stared at her , puzzled

Is she alright??

"Are you alright?" I directed the question to her as she smiled

"Of course I am , let's us go"

And with that , she stood up and reached for my hands . smiling, I held her hands tightly as I stood up ; then we both climbed down the plane and walked towards the waiting area ....

"Wow! this is beautiful!" She remarked, letting go of my hands as she literally jumped around , "Are we going to make use of a taxi?".

Opening my mouth, I was about replying when I heard a familiar voice call my name

quickly, I looked in the direction to see my "personal driver , waving at me

"Kingsley!" I muttered smiling as I sauntered towards him...

he wasn't only my personal driver , he was also a good friend!

"Ade my man!"he hailed as he literally rushed to hug me

"Arrrgh!" I grunted and instantly, he let go of me

"I am sorry, I never knew it has gotten this serious". he apologised, his gaze fixed behind me

"Who is she?" he asked referring to Obianuju

"My girlfriend" . I answered and he chuckled, leaning in close

"Yay!this one is fine ooo,when you done with her , Abeg pass her to me"he whispered and I scoffed , shooting him daggers

"Are you too dumb to understand the meaning of girlfriend?

"Oh! I erm am erm sorry". he stuttered

Obviously! he was not expecting that kind of response!

"Where is the car?" I asked coldly

"Over there". he said , pointing to a white Benz

"Your family are all out waiting for you". he added as he led us to the car .....

"how many cars does your dad have?" Uju asked in whispers

"I don't know". I answered and that was the truth...

Opening the rear door , she got in and following suit , I sat down beside her and Kingsley who was behind the wheel, drove off speeding......

True To Kingsley words, my family were waiting outside the huge mansion gate and when I say family, I meant my Dad, his wife and my favourite little step sister , Adesewa .....

Alighting from the car, she rushed to hug me careful not to hurt me

She was the only one in the house who understands me!

"Brother Demi!how are you? Is the headache hurting you bad?" She asked in a rush as she stared into my face

"I am fine". I assured and she smiled lightly

"I hope the "witch is treating you nice?" I asked referring to my "step mom" who was standing beside my dad , smiling sheepishly

"No ooo! she only treats me better when Daddy is around". She replied , staring at Obianuju who was beside me

"Who is she?"

"My girlfriend".

"Oh! she Is pretty!"She remarked

"Enough with the talks, we need to get going now". My dad butted in and I huffed

"So soon?"

"Yes son! your mother said it must be done today"

"Yes Ade , we can't waste any more time". the witch joined in the conversation, her gaze fixed on Obianuju

From the look on her face , I could tell she was curious about her ....

"Alright!" I agreed and then faced Adesewa

"Please take my girlfriend inside and make her comfortable"

"Okay!" She answered but my stubborn girlfriend, shook her head negatively

"No Demi! I want to go with you"

"No you can't". I hushed and without waiting for her response, I got into the back seat , sandwiched in between both "parent" and Kingsley drove off , heading to the ..... Shrine ....

Finally! After a long drive, the car skidded in front of the familiar bushy path

"Wait in the car". the "witch" instructed my Dad as we both alighted from the car ...

I scoffed silently " as if she do allow him to come with us before!

We walked down the bushy path until we got to a little house covered with red and white clothes , strange sculptures and cowries scattered all around ...

"Baba!" She shouted and in a split second, a tall lanky man tying a red cloth came out from the little house...

I stared blankly at the man I have known for six(6) years and the only emotion I had for him was Hatred but what can I do? nothing, I was in pain and I needed his help....

"Welcome Ade". he greeted ,laughing like a fool as he gestured me to kneel down and when I did , he began reciting some strange words.....

Instantly, my head began spinning, my breathing heavier and groaning loudly the realisation hit me , I wasn't sick , I was under a kind of .......spell!!!!

OBIANUJU

It has been over two hours since Ademilade left with those "weird" parent of his and he has not returned

I sat there on a big bed in a beautiful room , playing game on my phone since I had nothing else to do as his "pretty sister"was on a video call with a friend...

But what kind of family is this? Nawa ooo! they are just too blunt for my liking, Even his father is not left out ..... I mean I was so eager to meet the "speaker to the National Assembly" but see the way he treated me like trash , like I never existed

Chai! I don suffer

This family are so proud, ah! It is too much!

Is it because they are wealthy or what?

Even this small one , I shifted my gaze to his sister to see her staring at me and I looked away immediately....

"You alright?"She asked

"erm no erm yes". I stuttered , nervously and she laughed

"You don't need to be shy, anyways I am Adesewa by name". she introduced

Oh right!after ignoring me , she is now acting friendly

I smiled lightly, facing her

"I am Juliet"

"Wow! Juliet, then I guess my brother is the Romeo". She teased

"Yes he ...... I paused , trailing off when a car drove into the compound ; instantly I stood up and rushed to the window side , looking out just in time to see the same "white Benz" park in the open garage full of numerous cars....

"It is Ademilade!" I squealed in delight, about to run out of the room when she stopped me with her voice

"Don't! he needs to rest!"

I stopped in my track , turning to face her

"Rest! Is his illness that serious?"

She was quiet for a while and then she nodded

"Oh! now I understand why your parent were so worried"

She scoffed " worried! I doubt they were"

"What!" I stared at her in surprise, "which kind of parent won't be worried about their kids?"

She exhaled deeply " Fine! my dad would be worried but you see that his wife ehen , I am sure she is only pretending"

That his wife! what is she trying to say?

"Is she not your mother?"

"Mother ke! that one , no ooo, she is my not". she clapped her hands as she squeezed her mouth in disgust

Confused, I moved closer to sit on the bed , I wanted to digest what i just heard

"You mean that slim woman isn't your mother?"

She nodded "she isn't Brother Demilade's mother as well"

Oh! I think I understand now , that proud man married two wives

"where is your mother?" I asked , curiously making her sigh sadly

"She doesn't stay here , she lives with her husband"

Now I am getting all confused again!

"If I am not mistaken, you trying to say Demilade's mother is married to another man?

she scoffed "what are you saying? Brother Demi and I don't share the same mother , his mother is Dead". She stated and I went stiff

"Didn't he tell you?" she quickly added

I shook my head. " No! what happened to her?" My voice came out shaky

"She died of asthma on the same day she intended travelling back to Canada with Demi"

"Canada!" I muttered

"Yes, his mum is an American , she is a white woman". She said and instantly, my mind raced back to the woman in the picture frame..

The brown eyes! the curly hair ! the smile!...oh God! why didn't I think of it?

"but what happened between She and her hu