BELLA'S MEMOIRS (ENTRY #33)

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!

After all that had happened, you’d think that by now I would have gotten used to surprises and all the drama and heartache that comes with them. Nothing had prepared me for this though…nothing had prepared me for not knowing where Okechukwu was. He being incarcerated was one thing but not having a clue as to whether he was dead or alive was too much for me to bear. It therefore did not come as a surprise to anyone when I fell ill…very ill.

It all started two days after my dad had called from Abuja to say Okechukwu was nowhere to be found. That night I threw up a couple of times before I went to bed, I did not think much of it until the next day when I woke up with a really bad fever and had to be rushed to the hospital. It was my third day in the hospital and I was getting better but I had no intentions of going home. Left to me I wanted to just stay in the hospital; after all what was there to go home to?

My father’s business was suffering the backlash of his confession. His political party had held an emergency meeting to decide his fate and were now divided as to whether he should be forgiven or asked to step down to prove that the party was not full of fraudsters as people had been saying. The final decision was to be made the following day and I honestly did not want to be around for it.

My stepmom had been a little distant. I couldn’t figure out if it was just a case of her being worried about her husband or whether she was secretly blaming me for all that happened. After all, if not for my hot romance with Okechukwu perhaps all of this would never have happened.

The Duchess had contacted the Vice President several times and he kept swearing vehemently that he was not involved in Okechukwu’s disappearance and from our recent conversations she was beginning to believe the conspiracy theory that Okechukwu had somehow escaped custody. With me being tied down in a hospital room and the Duchess throwing in the towel I knew no one was actively trying to figure out what had happened to Okechukwu.

I just wanted to crawl into a little hole and never come out.  I had been having recurring nightmares of Okechukwu being tortured so even sleeping was not a means of escape for me. On my third night at the hospital, as I was sleeping I had another nightmare. In it, Okechukwu was being dragged off in handcuffs while he called out for me to save him but my feet seemed stuck to the ground and I couldn’t move, no matter how hard I tried. I was still immersed in the nightmare when I felt someone tap me and call out my name. My eyes fluttered open and there was a figure in black hunched over me; I wasn’t sure if I was still dreaming or awake. I tried to scream but the person promptly covered my mouth with a masculine palm. Was I being attacked?

“Bella it’s me!” I heard.

I couldn’t believe my ears. It was the unmistakable sound of Okechukwu’s voice, surely I was dreaming.

Okechukwu: I heard you were ill, I had to crawl out of hiding and come see you.

He said as he removed his hand from my mouth. I couldn’t see his face in the dark but I knew it was him. His touch felt heart-wrenchingly familiar.

Me: What happened? Where have you been?

Okechukwu: Believe it or not, your crazy fiancé or ex-fiance Yinka helped me escape and gave me a place to hide. I wonder what he is up to but at least I am fine. I had to see you even at the risk of getting caught.

It occurred to me that Okechukwu had missed out on so much and didn’t know what had really been going on. Didn’t know that Yinka was now a friend not a foe, he didn’t even know the President had declared him a free man.

Me: There is so much to tell you but turn on the light first of all, I want to see your face.

Okechukwu: Bella, I’d rather not. Anyone could be passing by and spot me here.

Me: Okechukwu the President ordered your release days ago. You are a free man and no longer have to hide. Now turn on the light please.

Okechukwu: What do you mean I am a free man?

Me: There is so much to tell you. Just turn on the light please.

Okechukwu ignored my request and so I pulled myself up and turned on the light closest to me. He was dressed in a black hooded sweatshirt and a pair of black joggers.

Me: Take the hood off let me see your face.

Okechukwu: Bella I don’t think I should be here. I just came to make sure you were ok.

It finally occurred to me that there was a reason he was not taking off his hood. Was he hiding something?

Me: Okechukwu come here.

He took a couple of steps backwards instead. I tried to get off the bed almost pulling down the stand where my drip was positioned in the process. He rushed forwarded to steady the stand and I used my free hand to pull off the hood. That was when I saw what he was hiding – a horrible gash on his forehead. I instantly burst into tears.

Me: What happened to you?

Okechukwu: You are ill, you don’t need this. You need to rest and recover Bella.

Me: Stop telling me what I need to do and tell me what happened to you!

I screamed at him. He also raised his voice.

Okechukwu: Detention happened to me Bella! What do you think they were doing to me? Giving me manicures and pedicures. Someone tried to murder the Vice President’s son and I was implicated. It came with consequences and they tried in very innovative ways to make me confess to the crime but I never did.

Me: Has this been treated by a doctor?

Okechukwu: Someone looked at it while I was there.

Me: And since you got out?

Okechukwu: Bella I did not know I was a free man, my first instinct wasn’t to walk into a hospital and ask to be treated.

That was all I needed to hear and simply pressed the bell for a nurse.

Okechukwu: What the hell are you doing Bella?

Me: Getting this thing on your face treated before they have to amputate your whole head. In case you don’t know, this entire experience taught me that I cannot live without you and I don’t intend to lose you to an infection.

He smiled as a nurse rushed in.

Me: Please this young man here needs to be thoroughly examined and treated.

Nurse: Ok Ma. Please sir are you registered here?

Me: Use the family card, he is my fiancé.

Nurse: Yes Ma. I’ll just get the forms he needs to fill.

She disappeared to get the forms and then Okechukwu asked with a raised eyebrow?

Okechukwu: Fiancé?

Me: You tried to ask me to marry you a few months ago and I am saying yes now. That is if your offer still stands.

Okechukwu: Do I have a choice in the matter?

Me: You know you don’t. I’m not going anywhere Okechukwu.

He laughed and then said “What has been going on in your crazy world?”

As I started recounting the occurrences of the last couple of weeks, I silently prayed that this was not another flash in the pan period of happiness, that this time our happiness would last and we would be together forever.

Okechukwu had just been discharged from the hospital where he had been admitted for almost two weeks. He had everything from malaria and typhoid to a throat infection and of course the injury on his forehead which had been treated and properly stitched but was obviously going to leave a scar. Okechukwu referred to it as his tattoo of love and told me that if I ever doubted his love for me I should simply look at his forehead as he was proudly wearing his love for me everywhere he went.

So much had happened since he resurfaced. My dad had stepped down as CEO of the company he started following the aftermath of his confession. His political career however seemed to be looking up. There had been a closed door hearing of his case in court, the investors involved in his embezzlement case had testified that they had been receiving their payments according to the agreement they had with my father and were therefore not interested in pressing any charges. The case had been dismissed and even though the media had gone into a frenzy about him being ‘above the law’ and ‘rich kids who escape jail because of their family name and contacts’, the fact was that there was no case if no one pressed charges.

My grandfather had returned to the UK to be with Toni’s mother, his longtime mistress and The Duchess…well she was back to being The Duchess. After her confession about her heritage, she had been even more distant from her normal self. No one had brought the topic up again and she also chose to act like it had never happened. Typical Ayo-Kessington behavior to sweep things under the rug until they became a big issue.

Toni and Yinka had practically disappeared off the surface of the earth, although the last time I spoke to Yinka he had informed me that they were living together in the UK and were even making plans to get married and settle down there. He also informed me that he had severed all ties with his father.

As for Okechukwu, he was much better physically but I guessed it was his mind and spirit that needed fixing. The Vice President had instructed for all his assets to be restored to him and so his house in Oniru which had been previously sealed off had been released to him. I was glad he was coming home from the hospital to his own house.

Me: Do you want something to eat?

Okechukwu: Something like what?

Me: I don’t know, what do you want to eat? I’ll be glad to make you something.

Okechukwu: Bella are you trying to send me back to the hospital? We both know you cannot cook.

Me: It would surprise you to know that I have been spending a lot of time in the kitchen with my stepmom. Let me prove myself to you.

Okechukwu: No one has been in this house for months. I bet there’s nothing to even cook.

Me: Well I already stocked up, no way was I going to let you come home to an empty house.

Okechukwu: You’re amazing.

He pulled me close and kissed me on my forehead. I noticed he had been doing that lately, only kissing me on my forehead and cheeks like I was his sister or something. I made a mental note to discuss it with him after feeding him. I had every intention of making up for lost time and he was going to have to do more than friendly kisses on my cheeks and forehead.

Me: So when exactly are you going to get that haircut and shave like we agreed?

Okechukwu: I’ll go right away so I can be presentable for dinner with her royal majesty.

Me: Perfect. Food should be ready by the time you get back.

Okechukwu returned a couple of hours later looking like my Okechukwu. I set the table.

Okechukwu: Wow Bella this is amazing.

He said with his mouth full. We were having jollof rice and fried chicken, the only meal I had mastered so far but I wasn’t going to let him know that.

Me: You see, now that you know I won’t poison you with my food when exactly am I getting that ring you proposed with earlier so I can start showing it off.

Okechukwu: Bella about that. I think we need to think it through.

Me: Think what through? We are engaged aren’t we?

Okechukwu: Gosh Bella. It’s always black and white with you isn’t it? Always yes or no! No middle ground.

Me: What do you mean?

Okechukwu: What I mean is that I just got out of detention. My business has practically gone down the drain…I mean who wants a PR person who was at the centre of a national scandal not too long ago. Have you even thought of that? You finished your NYSC almost two years ago now…no job, no talk of a career. The last one year of your life has been dedicated to preparing to be Yinka’s wife and then trying to clean up the mess we found ourselves in. Your dad just had to step down from the company he started and the only thing on your mind is getting engaged. Is this really the next thing for us?

He was right. I had been too consumed in my own excitement that I hadn’t considered the realities before us.

Me: You’re right. I’m sorry.

Okechukwu: I am not saying I don’t love you. I do, which is why I cannot be pressured into making this decision. I have always had to fend for myself and you have always been taken care of so we see things differently. If we get married you become my responsibility, I need to be able to take care of you and right now all I have is this house and it’s not enough. I want to go back to school and build a career or business that can assure us of a comfortable future.

Me: It’s ok baby. I understand. I guess this was just my way of letting you know how much I love you and how much I want forever with you.

Okechukwu: Forever is a long time Bella. Let’s not rush it. Do you realize that in all the time we have been “together”,we have spent less than six months being a proper couple? In between the fights and separations and you dating Yinka and the detention…we have spent more time apart than together. If you love me, just enjoy loving me and stop obsessing about whether we end up together or not please.

I was about to tell him that I was just happy to have him back when the doorbell rang. He got up to get the door. He was gone for a few minutes longer than necessary and then I started hearing him shouting at someone. I ran to the living room to find out what was going on and in the middle of the living room was a heavily pregnant Ese surrounded by suitcases.