Toxic

At first, she thought it was love. 
The way he became aggressive 
and territorial whenever he saw 
her with other people
The first thing he did was cut her 
off from her friends and family members
Everybody was a threat to him
If he sees a lady with her, he is quick 
to assume the lady was pimping her 
for some guy or influencing her to 
do ungodly things
If he sees a guy with her, he would 
insist the guy was definitely interested 
in sleeping with her.
She tried everything to keep his mind 
at rest and assure him that she was his 
but it was never enough
She would rehearse lies to tell him 
whenever she sneaks out to see a friend 
or a relative
He had CCTV camera installed at home 
with which he monitors all her movements
He was a control freak whose could turn 
violent at the drop of a hat over a minor 
issue
After a year of bearing it, she reported 
the situation to her mother
Her mother called her husband to discuss 
the issues with him
Her husband insulted her mother until 
her mother busted into tears
By this time she was pregnant and had 
come to accept that he was a cross she
 had to bear
When she was six months pregnant, 
he had a burial to attend in
Port Harcourt and insisted she must 
come with him because if he
left her in Lagos she would most likely 
see her mother
She begged him to let her stay in Lagos 
because of her condition
He refused
She traveled and somehow the stress 
triggered premature labour
She delivered the baby thirteen 
weeks early
The baby didn't make it 
She spent three weeks in the hospital 
in Port Harcourt
When she was discharged, he said 
"Of what use are you to me?
You cannot even carry a baby to term?"
His words cut her to the quick
The loss of the baby had put her in a 
dark place, his words felt like removing 
the pin of a grenade
She reacted poorly
locked his shirt and bit him on the 
shoulder
She called him a callous, cold-blooded, 
blood-sucking demon
She didn't believe she was capable of 
such a behaviour
The months of oppression and abuse 
led to that moment when she erupted
He ran to the raverend father as soon 
as they got to Lagos to report her
The reverend Father had always been 
aware of his behaviour towards her
and insisted what she did was as a result 
of how he had treated her since
they got married
The marriage was strained and in her 
opinion over
She just couldn't stand him anymore
When she told her mother her decision, 
her mother told her there was still a 
step she had to take for her own 
mental health
She started seeing a counselor
The effect made her better daily to the 
point where she was able to talk to him 
without feeling any revulsion
He saw the change and joined her
They saw the counsellor together
While they were with the counsellor, the 
root of his insecurity was dealt with and 
he began to let go of the jealousy
It took a year and three months before 
they started communicating and
having sexual intercourse again
It felt to her as if she was with a new 
man entirely
The CCTV cameras came down and he 
treated her with trust and respect
She got pregnant again and delivered a 
baby girl
This time, the baby was born into an 
atmosphere of love and care
She said the first three years of her 
marriage was hell
it was a baptism of fire but it all happened 
because her husband came into the 
marriage with a wrong mindset of "ladies 
are cheats" and "You must control your 
woman"
With the help of counselling, he came to 
see her as a person worthy of his love 
and respect and adjusted his perspective

PS: The couple live in Surulere area of 
Lagos State
Their marriage is 8 years old
They have two children and their 
relationship is getting better every day