FORBIDDEN LOVE – Episode 23

After taking my eyes off Uncle Sam with the anger that was boiling up in me, I looked back at the lady who was standing in front of me with a smiley face. There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before she broke the silence.

“Uhm Meso, why don’t you go and wash up, then come and have lunch. There is enough food to get everyone really tired.” the lady said.

I didn’t want to seem rude or anything so I smiled and replied with an “Okay” before heading back to my room. I washed up, got dressed and decided not to go out. I was really pissed so I laid on my bed and played with my phone. As I was playing with my phone, I got a message from uncle Sam saying to please come outside and behave properly, that he was going to talk to me about the whole thing later. At first, I hesitated and wanted to be stubborn but I didn’t want his fiancé to feel like I’m unnecessarily stubborn so I left to join them outside.

She asked me to dish out what I wanted. From the vegetable soup to the jollof rice to the  fish stew to the fried chicken. I couldn’t understand why she had to cook this much but I went to the jollof rice pot anyway and dished out a little portion. I was about to head out of the kitchen when she called me back and said to take chicken and meat from the small cooler. I did as she said and I was called back again but by uncle Sam who asked if the food was enough for me. I let him know it was very okay for me without trying to express any feelings or emotions, then I left the kitchen for my room.

I was hoping they wouldn’t call me to join them at the dining table since they were going there to eat. I stayed in my room and ate my meal all by myself. It was actually really delicious and I began to think Uncle Sam was getting tired of my cooking. I knew he wouldn’t get married to me but I also knew that most of the attention he had been given to me would be given to his soon to be wife. Each time I thought about it, I became so sad.

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A month later, I felt like I was forgotten because uncle Sam barely spoke to me or say the sweet things he always said. He didn’t sneak up on my bed in the night like he used to or even kiss my forehead goodnight. He was always busy, coming home later than usual and I began to get worried. You know at a very young age, when you lose the attention that you were once given, you feel less loved. I only consoled myself with the fact that uncle Sam had promised to take me to Port Harcourt to see my sister after my junior WAEC.

Uncle Sam finally came to talk to me one night about everything that was going on. He said  he still loved me but he had to get married and move on with his life like I would move on with mine. He explained a few other things that I obviously knew and understood but I wasn’t willing to accept the fact that he was right. I knew he was my uncle, my late dad’s brother. In fact, I knew whatever feelings I had for him or vice versa was absolutely wrong. But I didn’t see it as anything anymore, not after he was the same person to take away my virginity at a very young age. This weird feeling got weirder every day and I got to live like that.

He announced to me one night that his wedding would be coming up in two weeks and even though he wasn’t doing much, he wanted me to be happy for him. I couldn’t understand what was there to be happy about. He was getting married and I would be the one tossed into the gutter so why was I supposed to be happy. Before his wedding, I started my junior WAEC so I tried as much as I could to forget about him or his wedding and what not. I made sure that my school came first this time. I suddenly didn’t care and started digging into my books. I even started talking to people that I never really talked to in school since I was a loner like I was already tagged by some. I wouldn’t say I made friends but I began to know and talk to certain people. Everything was going fine until my uncle’s wedding eve. I slowly became sad and angry at myself and uncle Sam. After I let him use me to fulfill his sexual pleasures, he was going to get married and I may become his wife’s slave. I would be the one at lost.

The next day which was a Saturday, my uncle finally got married to his fiancé just like that. It all happened so fast I couldn’t believe it. Surprisingly, I saw Esther, my aunty and my cousins at the wedding even though it wasn’t a big wedding. I was surprised because they had told me that they wouldn’t be able to make it for uncle Sam’s wedding but I guess they really wanted to surprise me. I couldn’t stop smiling when I saw them. I hung out with Esther who had added weight and my cousins. They looked so bright and happy. I was happy to see them and to see that they were really happy. Even though at the end, Esther became really sad. She had almost cried that she missed me and our parents. I felt really bad because I couldn’t help her.

After the wedding, they made them stay over at one of our distant relatives’ home. They were going to be heading back to Port Harcourt the next day. I also joined them, just to leave the newlyweds to themselves for the night and spend some more time with my sister. I kept smiling and trying to cheer Esther up while catching up with what’s going on in her life. I had spoken to her few times on the phone but you know it would be way different when in person. So we talked about a few things and later allowed her to rest since they had to leave the next day.

The next day, I said my goodbye with tears in eyes and hurt in my heart as I watched them leave the house in a Taxi. It was time for me to go back home so I was dropped off later in the evening. Thankfully I didn’t have an exam the next day until two days later so I could rest from the whole drama. I got home and met uncle Sam and aunty Jennifer on the couch relaxing and watching tv. Then I greeted them and went straight into my room.

In order to cut things short, three weeks later, I ended my junior WAEC. I had just Lagos state exams left. By this time, everything was normal at the house. Funny enough aunty Jennifer was really nice. Initially, I thought she was going to turn me into her personal house maid like what happens in the movies. Most especially because she was recently married to a man that has his niece under his and now, her care but she was just a really nice person. Maybe she was just pretending, I thought to myself several times because she was just too nice. She cooked most times, cleaned sometimes and bought me things. I started to see her as a loving mother. She was quite young but she acted like a mother with experience, so loving, mature and wise. I started to think less of uncle Sam and feel really happy for her and her marriage. The fact that I got to meet a wonderful woman instead of what I thought would be of me when uncle Sam gets married made me happy too.

One night, uncle Sam snuck into my room and came to lie with me. I was very shocked as to why he was in my room by the middle of the night after two months of being left alone. He suddenly started kissing me all over and tried to take off my clothes but I refused. I refused to let him touch me and was whispering a ‘No, no, no’ so no one could hear, then he got angry. He said I didn’t love him anymore and filled my tiny head with lies that made me feel guilty and so I allowed him sleep with me. After he was done using me as his sex toy, I didn’t feel the same way I did like the other times he had laid with me. I felt different, I felt horrible and guilty. I felt disgustingly strange. I felt like I had just betrayed aunty Jennifer which got me really disturbed. Now, he kissed me goodnight and was about to stand up when we heard aunty Jennifer call out uncle Sam’s name.

I was suddenly so scared because what would be his explanation If he was found in my room by the middle of the night. He left my room immediately and I quickly adjusted my nightgown before pretending to be asleep. I heard uncle Sam say something about him going to check if there was light so the generator could be turned off. I’m sure she would have been confused because it was Mohammed’s job and not his but the liar that uncle is, would have come up with something else to remove any trace of suspicion.

I didn’t see uncle in my room again after another week. Probably because he was trying to avoid getting caught like he almost was the other night. Although, he always texted me, whether I was in the same house with him or not. I didn’t say a word to aunty Jennifer about the other night as guilty as I felt. She didn’t have any suspicious look either so things went on normally until the day things got worse. I had just finished all my exams for junior school and uncle Sam had promised to take me out. I was actually excited and couldn’t wait to spend time with him just as my uncle and nothing more. It wasn’t only because I wanted to spend some time with him but because I was happy that I was finally done with junior school. I had managed to carry my phone to school that day even though it wasn’t allowed. This was because uncle Sam said he was going to text me before he comes to get me since I already told him what time my last paper was going to end. I waited in school for about an hour and didn’t hear from uncle Sam. Another hour went by and all the jss3 students that had been running around all happy and excited that exams were over were already leaving for their homes. It was getting late so I decided to go home disappointed in uncle Sam than wait till it got really dark. I got home and no one was home yet. I checked the messages I had sent to uncle Sam and not a single reply yet. I decided to change and have my dinner while I wait for him to come home.

I was in my room when I heard someone come in so I went out to see who it was and found aunty Jennifer. I greeted her and she asked about my wellbeing, my exams and even Uncle Sam. I told her everything was fine but that I hadn’t seen Uncle Sam. She said ‘okay, my dear’ and left for her room. But before she left, I asked if she was hungry and she said not to bother myself, that she would eat when she was hungry so I went back into my room. Just five minutes later, I heard a scream. I jumped up from my bed and rushed out to see the reason for it. I found aunty Jennifer on her feet standing by the dining table with a very sad look on her face while talking with someone on the phone. Before I could even ask what was wrong, she told me to go get her car keys. When I came back with them, she told me that we were heading to the hospital because uncle Sam had just been involved in a terrible accident while trying to escape some armed robbers.

To be continued……..

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