Barracuda

On the day of His wedding, 
Only eight people were in attendance 
Three of them were his relatives 
The other five were his friends 
His father did not show up 
His mother did not show up 
Only his uncle and his aunt and a 
cousin showed up! 
He was an only child 
He was supposed to be the one the 
whole family would gather with and 
celebrate but his father has had 
enough 
His mother has given up on him
The friends that attended were from 
all over 
One from way back 
Another from a trip to China a few years 
before 
Another from his former place of works 
Two from the community he grew up in 
His wife's people didn't show up at all 
Her father was against the wedding 
He said she was marrying a leech who 
would suck her dry 
Her mother was against the wedding 
Her mother said she was getting married to
 a taker 
One who would make her life miserable 
But she was determined to get married! 
Even if only for the record! 
She saw everything they saw 
She was not under any illusion 
But men were scarce and she was 
thirty-seven years old already 
She had gone past the stage of 
cherry-picking 
She had promised herself she 
would settle and deal with the 
baggage that comes with it! 
He was stinking baggage! 
His friends that came around got 
talking during the wedding 
Their discussion somehow was on 
how long the wedding will last 
The most optimistic said six months 
The most pessimistic said one week! 
They were all strangers until that morning
But they all know him! 
He was given to surface feelings and 
selfish pleasure 
He took advantage of everyone 
He had no qualms about biting the finger 
feeding him 
He kept a lot of friends for the drinking 
and the partying 
Deep down he was hollow and very deceitful 
After the ceremony
They gathered to take pictures with him 
He started his thing... "I ordered food from 
an Italian restaurant, that was why 
I invited just a few people! 
I wanted to treat you guys to maximum 
enjoyment! 
Everybody laughed! 
He was lying, it had become a part of him
Nobody takes his words seriously
It was that bad
Nobody waited for his Italian chef to 
bring anything
They started leaving 
He came after them! 
"Guys I have spent a lot of money, 
please give me something to hold 
body and soul together! 
I am going on honeymoon and I 
have no dime! 
My car had a crash last week, 
that was wherein have spent all 
my money! 
I had to pay for the ticket of my in-laws! 
They missed their flight, that was why 
they couldn't make it down! 
(His in-laws were in Ekiti State, not
outside the country and they surely
wouldn't take a flight to Lagos)
It was one lie after the other 
Some gave him some money 
Others just left 
They had done their duty to be with him 
as he jumped the broom! 
A week after the wedding 
He got arrested 
He had promised to help someone secure 
an American visa and after getting paid, 
he didn't deliver! 
His wife had to pay and bail him out 
As soon as he got home, he got 
arrested again 
He helped a friend sell off his car and 
couldn't come up with the money 
He claimed he spent the money on his 
wedding What!
She bailed him out again 
As soon as he got home, he got 
arrested again! 
This time he had defrauded a school 
that wanted to take their students on an
excursion! 
He claimed he would get them cheaper 
tickets to a tourist site and defaulted! 
She bailed him out again! 
She received so many phone calls from 
those he was owing money! 
Many of them saw her as the leverage 
The one they could harass or used to 
shame him into paying 
The one they could blackmail into paying! 
It was tough! 
Her father was right 
She had married the worst kind of man 
She had some money, a tidy sum she 
saved up before she married him! 
She was in a big debt just a few months 
into the wedding 
She was desperate to get married 
Desperate to leave spinsterhood 
Desperate to become a MRS! 
She jumped from comfort into hell! 
He was her undoing at every level! 
And she was pregnant! 
That was why he even agreed to get 
married to her! 
She practically used the pregnancy 
to hook him 
Not knowing he was a Barracuda! 
Somehow they patched it until she 
got to the hospital for delivery 
He drove her to the clinic 
He called her mother and left her there! 
While she was delivering their baby, 
he found his way to a restaurant, 
had a good meal and proceeded to a 
beer parlour where he drank himself 
senseless! 
The funny thing was, it was the sixty-five 
thousand naira sent to her by her father 
for the delivery that he took from her bag 
to go drinking! 
Shameless!
When her mother arrived and found out 
what had happened, she couldn't stomach it! 
Enough was enough! 
Her mother told her she should be ready 
to pack her things and leave with her once 
they got home! 
Two days after the delivery, his family 
members showed up to see their grandson!
He came with them, looking like a scared 
rabbit 
He lied as expected
He said the money got somehow missing 
and he had been trying to get it back! 
He was forty years old! 
He couldn't even own up to his misdeed! 
Meanwhile, many people saw him and 
even sent pictures and video evidence 
that day! 
The baby had jaundice 
They had to wait at the hospital 
The brother in Jeans and T-shirt was invited 
to the hospital to pray for the sick! 
That was how they met 
He approached the brother in 
Jeans and T-shirt to please name 
his baby as he doesn't go to 
church and didn't know how to get 
clerics to name the baby! 
The brother in Jeans and T-shirt named 
the baby 
Then he laid his hands on the couple and 
blessed them 
He said "I see a wayward pattern, the 
Holy Spirit says He is setting courses 
straight from this moment" 
Everybody said Amen! 
She was determined to see the day 
through, get discharged from the hospital 
and part ways with him! 
He walked the Brother in Jeans and  
T-shirt to his car 
"Sir, I have spent a lot and my mother in law 
doesn't allow my wife to support me 
with a dime! 
Can you assist me with something to fuel 
my car?" 
That night, when they got home; 
he got a job offer! 
A man from the ministry of tourism 
He went to see the man for the interview 
the next day 
He resumed the job the following Monday 
The salary was good 
He started carrying his weight and 
somehow started caring for the welfare 
of his son! 
Somehow they stayed together 
Nobody knew how or why 
She said she wanted to give him another 
chance after he got a job 
He said He knew she wouldn't leave him! 
Whatever the case, they got better! 
He became both responsive and responsible 
His wife called the brother in Jeans and T-shirt
"Sir, I don't know how to thank you! 
Wow! We want to come and see you" 
They met him at his office 
He listened to their testimony with joy 
Somehow his new boss at the ministry of 
tourism took him under his wings and led 
him to Christ 
He also coached him on living the right 
kind of life! 
He was receptive and willing to change! 
He was a fool at forty but the Holy Spirit 
worked on him and in him! 
Hallelujah! 

PS:The marriage is three years old now 
She is pregnant again and both of them 
are waxing stronger on every side! 
There is only one life changer!
His name is Jesus!!!