Things Remembered 2

admin Jun 5, 2023 1647 0

He said: “I didn’t believe my luck

All the other ladies were dressed in a bikini and whatnot

She was dressed in a church outfit for a boat cruise

Her friends asked her why, she said she changed her mind at the last minute to come on the cruise

She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen

She came into the boat and sat right next to me

I got nervous; it was my first-ever boat cruise

It was my first ever time in the company of such folks

They were the A class of the society

I got invited by a friend I met in the course of my work

I am an up-and-coming movie director but I had done some good jobs and made a name for myself somehow

She was polite, calm, prim, and proper, a lady

We got talking, she knew me and yes, I knew her but we had never talked

She told me her name, I blushed and told her mine

She sensed my nervousness and smiled at me reassuringly

The boat cruise was a blur to me, I didn’t want it to end because that would mean she would go away

After the cruise, she said, ‘I am peckish, need to have a bite’

I was hearing that word for the first time…. “Peckish”

I said a friend was waiting for me at a restaurant

She said, ‘Can I come?’

We went together, in my car

She told her driver to drive behind us

We got to the restaurant, she met my friends and we ordered our food

She fitted in like gloves to hand, with no airs at all

She was so down to earth

As the day wound down, I summoned the courage to get her number

Her driver took her away

I sent a message that I enjoyed myself and would like us to do it again

She didn’t reply for two days

When she did, she said, “When and where?”

I called, she picked up, and it began

We were talking all day and all night, asking questions, laughing, sharing…

She said she knew me by reputation and didn’t want bloggers hounding her

She was popular in her own right and so was I

We struck a deal to keep it off the radar, to keep our friendship to ourselves

We couldn’t get enough of each other, it was meant to be

We met for a date and then I had to travel to a location for a shoot

Throughout the two weeks I spent on the location we were together day and night on the phone

Her voice started my day and ended it

I had fallen in love

I kept her all to myself, told nobody the reason for my joy

I got back to Abuja and asked for another date

She said, “The rate we are going, this won’t be an ordinary date”

I said, ‘I know’

She said, 'Go and do STD comprehensive test pls, I am on my way to do mine

I jumped into the car

She was on the phone as I did mine and I was on the call as she did hers

I knew what was coming

It was inevitable She sent her test result to me and I did the same

She said, “This weekend, somewhere private” I booked a room at a resort, sent her the location

She said, ‘Friday morning, I have online meetings but I’d do them from the location

I got there as early as I could, I was waiting in the parking lot when she arrived

I couldn’t believe she didn’t change her mind

She got in the room and set up her laptop just in time

I kept pinching myself

She was for real

I listened in on the meeting, watched her do “boss lady” for about an hour

The meeting ended

I wanted to walk toward her, I found myself walking away,

She said, ‘What are you doing?’

I said, “I want to be sure you want this”

She said, ‘Meaning what?’

I said, “I am shy”

She said, “Come here this instant”

I flew

I had never been in love before, at least not this way

I wasn’t a man trying to be with a woman

I was a heart syncing with another with joy

We talked afterward

She asked questions, and I answered

We talked and talked and talked all night, sharing, laughing, loving, crying

I had found my Garden of Eden

I just had to keep the serpent away

We didn’t know how to stop

I remember one day I didn’t call her at 6 am as I used to, she called and said, ‘This one you are not calling me again’

I said, “We slept by 2 am, I didn’t want to wake you up’ She said “For you, sleep will wait” I learned her love languages and I taught her mine

We were in each other’s arms every weekend from that first day, learning, growing, loving, crying together, and sometimes having those lovers spat

She was perfect for me, I was perfect for her

She would say, “Relax, I am not going anywhere” I’d say, “If you run, I’d pursue”

Sometimes I’d leave her in the room and take a walk to clear my head

Sometimes she would do the same

The trick was not to be seen together so that we don’t become cannon fodder for gossip columns

We knew we would have to come out of the shadows eventually but we should let love

marinate

One day she said, “Is this just a sex thing? Because I feel if you do anything now, I don’t know anyone I can talk to about it and you don’t know anyone you can talk to about me too, like a support system

Someone who can intervene in case we lose our heads

I said, ‘We will get there’

I wanted to shout about our relationships on rooftops all over the world

We made plans to travel together to Dubai first, then Italy, then the USA in that order

I had traveled to the Maldives once

She had been all over the world

I applied for my visa immediately

Where she went, I was determined to go

She said she was ready to be seen in public with me

I said OKAY, and made plans

I even prayed

I didn’t want us to put our first foot in the river and find it swallowed whole by a crocodile We went to a Friday Night event It was a huge success

What a night it was!

I called my father the next day and told him about her

She spoke with him too

She asked me why I hadn’t told my Mum

I said once I did that, we will have to get married

My mother raised her sons to be responsible

I didn’t have the guts to tell her unless she was sure we were ready!

She said she would test the waters, tell her sister and see…

She came from a very elitist background, I was the son of a teacher

My mother is a retired nurse

She was very down to earth with me but I sense her family needed to be eased into things

I was not in a hurry

All I wanted was her

I will take her with or without a marriage

I will elope with her if I have to

I love her and she loves me

That was all that mattered

I remember driving her home that Sunday evening

As soon as she alighted from my car, I knew something was wrong from her countenance

I knew!

As I drove home, she didn’t call

For the first time, she was not in my ears

I called but her number was busy

When I got home, she called and said, ‘I saw my father’s car in the compound and I knew he wasn’t supposed to be around, yet I sensed that my sister had told him about us and he came around to address the issue

I was not mentally prepared for a confrontation, so I sneaked into the house and he was waiting

Then she called me by my name in a serious tone

She said, “This can’t go on, I am sorry”

Wow! Brother Gbenga, help me out

Please tell her to please remember

To remember her promise

To remember my commitment

To remember my love

To remember my tears

To forgive my mistakes

Tell her to fight for us,

to stand up for this