by Boadi, Lilly
***
When Kiara came over after work, supper was ready. The vicar beckoned her to join them; he would take no for an answer anyway. But as she followed Haida upstairs, Mrs. Morgan didn’t like the idea. Once they got to Haida’s room, they’d chat till the food got cold. “Let’s have supper first before you guys go and do your own thing” she said.
‘Jesus!’ thought Haida who couldn’t wait till after supper to embark on her task. “Err…I’ll take Kiara’s bag upstairs…I’ll join you soon” she managed to say, something which didn’t make much sense, and bolted to her room. Since she wasn’t familiar with the use of the device, she spent considerable time learning about it. She was about fixing her urine when her door flew open.
“Phoebe you’re keeping us waiting” said Mrs. Morgan. Haida stood before the device, looking very nervous. “What were you doing?”
“Err, nothing” said Haida sharply and then stood firm, hoping her mom hadn’t noticed the device.
Mrs. Morgan gave her a suspicious stare “Well, shall we?” she said
“Sure!” said Haida, pushing the device to the far side, but it fell and made an irritating sound
“What is that?” asked her mom.
“I’m not sure. I’ll take care of that later; let’s go mom” said Haida, almost driving her mom out.
At table, Mrs. Morgan stole suspicious glances at Haida and saw she was still looking jittery.
“Phoebe, don’t forget we are seeing Dr. Stevens tomorrow morning at seven” said the vicar “I see you are better than before but then you still need to check up. Don’t worry about work; I’ll talk to the CA”. Haida and Kiara gave each other a surreptitious glance.
“Jolly, give the dog an early bath” said Mrs. Morgan when supper was over.
“I’ll take care of the dishes” said Kiara.
“I’ll help you” said Haida immediately.
“Are you sure…?” asked Mrs. Morgan.
“Sure mom…I’ll be fine” and made her way to the kitchen with Kiara with a pile of plates in her hand.
“Could you do it” hissed Kiara, soon as they were in the kitchen.
“No, I couldn’t! My dear mom came in when I was about to. I really hope she didn’t see it” said Haida, edgy
The two ladies ran to Haida’s room soon as they were done with the dishes. Haida reached out to where the device had fallen and it was gone. They looked every corner in the room and couldn’t find it “Kiara, I’m finished!” whined Haida.
“Are you sure you left it here?”
“Very sure”.
Kiara sighed deeply “What do we do now?”
“I…I don’t know” said Haida, trembling “Even if the laboratories aren’t closed yet, there is no way I can leave the house” she stammered.
“You will have to see your family doctor tomorrow, right?”
“You heard my dad!” said Haida and collapsed helplessly on the bed.
Kiara sighed once more “You should have been smart enough to tell him you were feeling ok for no need of hospital!” she said impetuously.
“Only if I decided to be disrespectful, but he wouldn’t have budged!”
Kiara exhaled and thought. “Why don’t you talk to the doctor?” she asked.
“About what?”
“About all this before you see him with your dad tomorrow”
“What should I tell him? That I am pregnant?”
“Beseech him not to tell your dad about it if he finds you pregnant”
“Kiara, you don’t know about that! He’ll not budge, and it will be more embarrassing if I tell him something like this. What if I tell him that and he finds me not pregnant? He would tell daddy about that all the same, and daddy would know I have been fornicating and he’ll be carping all over me. No, I can’t put myself through that now!”
As soon as Kiara was gone, Mrs. Morgan came to Haida’s room “Mom” Haida jumped out of her thoughts when she saw her.
“Let’s talk Phoebe” said Mrs. Morgan drably.
“About what, mom?” Haida had started getting nervous.
“Tell me the truth? Are you pregnant, Phoebe?”
“No mom. Why that question?” asked Haida innocently.
“Have you been sleeping with Mellis?”
“Mom, no!” said Haida, offended “How could you think that way?”
“Then what were you doing with this?!” Mrs. Morgan retorted, and then brought out the device from behind her. “What was this doing in your room?” Haida was tongue-tied. “Is your menses really yet due or overdue?!”
Haida collapsed on her bed. “It’s overdue” she said softly, looking away.
Mrs. Morgan sighed. “For how long?” she asked calmly, walking closer to the bed.
“A week”
“What?! When did you start sleeping with Mellis?” Mrs. Morgan was alarmed.
“Mom, I’ve not been sleeping with him!” Haida snapped and got on her feet.
“Oh, then what?! Is it only once? You decided to have a taste of what sex was all about and so you gave yourself to him for only once?!”
“Mom, please stop it!” Haida yelled.
There was a pause. Mrs. Morgan glared into her daughter’s eyes and the latter turned away.
Haida stole a glance at her mom and blushed with guilt. “That day, I woke up and saw Mellis beside me on the bed” she said, lowering her voice “I don’t know if he slept with me or not” she stammered, looking bemused
“What are you talking about? Which of the days?”
“That Sunday morning when I came home…three weeks ago. I lied about being at Kiara’s the previous night. I don’t know how it happened that night, but the following morning, I woke up and found myself in one of the rooms at the hotel and Mellis lying beside me…” said Haida
“Do you understand what you are saying? What happened to you that night that you were oblivious of what was going on around you?!”
“Mom, I was drunk” said Haida dejectedly.
“You were what?!” Mrs. Morgan was shocked the more. “Phoebe when did you start taking alcohol?!” she was getting miffed now. “When did this kind of life start? You are a vicar’s daughter for God’s sake! Didn’t you think about that?” Haida looked away and sobbed, feeling embarrassed. “And Mellis! Didn’t he tell you about the fun you people had the following day?!” snapped Mrs. Morgan disdainfully.
“He was still sleeping when I left the premises!” Haida was hard up. She was getting bitter by her mom’s sarcasms.
“And thenceforth, the two of you never reminisced about the nice time you had that day?” Mrs. Morgan scorned once more.
“I’ve seen him only twice after that, the last being two days ago. We’ve not been in good terms for the past couple of months” said Haida softly.
“Oh, you two are having problems? I knew it. Look, we can talk about that later, but now, let’s deal with this pregnancy issue! For goodness sake you should have told me the truth about your monthlies earlier and we could have found a way to deal with this! Now, your father is involved and there’s nothing else I can do to convince him to allow me to take you to the hospital alone! You know how your father is when it comes to you. He’ll find out then if you are really pregnant, and I guess this is what you wanted!” said Mrs. Morgan fretfully. “How could you do this to yourself, Phoebe?! And Kiara, oh, she also assisted you in all this mess?! I knew something wasn’t right. Phoebe I knew something was going on and I asked you but you wouldn’t say anything, and you preferred to say it all to your friend but not me your mother! Why?!”
“Because she truly listens to me, mom!” Haida snapped amidst tears. “She doesn’t criticize me when I do wrong! She understands my every situation, listens to me and doesn’t criticize me, but help me find solutions! She cares about my feelings, mom, Kiara cares so much!” Haida spat out impulsively yet honestly.
Mrs. Morgan was silent with shame. “Are you telling me I’m not a good mother?” she asked. She was hur
t not because her own daughter said this to her, but the fact that what she said was true. It felt like now someone had said the truth right in her face, just as it was. Yes she has been trying to be a good mother, but then severally, she has been messing up like a first learner. She either had proudly refused to accept and continue to feel bitter, or admit her sin, repent and feel better. Drawing closer to Haida who was very upset, she put a hand on her shoulder “I’m sorry child” she said softly. Haida sobbed and Mrs. Morgan watched her pathetically “You didn’t do the test, did you?”
“No” said Haida in a choked voice and sniffing her nose.
“Why don’t you try and let’s be sure about this beforehand? I’d see what I’d do if you are really pregnant” Mrs. Morgan knew if her daughter was really pregnant, she couldn’t conceal that from her husband, but then, they could decline going to the hospital and save the family some embarrassment. But when Haida tested, it read negative. Her face lighted up with delight and relief. “Are you sure this thing can be trusted?” she asked. “Are you sure you did it right?”
“I hope so…I just hope so” said Haida hazily. This was the first time she was using the device and Kiara could be of liable help. She only hoped she had done it right.
The next day at Dr. Stevens, Haida saw the uneasiness on her mother’s face. Mrs. Morgan fidgeted on her seat several times, and every point in time, she stole a glance at Haida. Listening attentively, Dr. Stevens stared into Haida’s eyes as, upon his request, she told him how she had been feeling the past few days. “Mm, I see” he kept saying erratically. “When did your last menstrual cycle end?” he asked, and Mrs. Morgan stole a glance at Haida, whose heart jumped out.
“Urr…on the 16th of last month” said Haida
“You are overdue for a maximum of seven days!” said the doctor, and then got on his feet “Can you come over?” he beckoned and entered an inner room.
Haida lied still on a bed, and the doctor felt her abdomen, pressing firmly but slowly. Then he handed to her a urine-sample bottle. She went to the washroom and after a minute, came back with half-fill the bottle of her urine. All the while, both Haida and Mrs. Morgan had been keeping their fingers crossed, praying.
The doctor excused himself and entered a smaller inner room. He came back less than ten minutes, wearing a grin on his face “Ok…” he sighed and sat. He ran few tests on Haida and scribbled something inside her card.
“So, what is wrong with her doctor?” asked the vicar. Haida’s heart raced. Mrs. Morgan held her breath.
“Urr, she has fever and is quite anemic; either she has not been eating properly or is under stress” said Dr. Stevens and Mrs. Morgan gave a loud sigh. “Any of these can cause a delay in menses. A menstrual cycle can also delay on these two conditions: malnutrition and stress. Both conditions cause blood loss, anemia sets in and causes disorders in menstrual cycle. But if the cycle past due for more than a month, then clinically, there is a cause for alarm” explained the doctor “I’d advise you eat well and, urr, if you are under any stress or depressed in a way, make sure you deal with that” he smiled at Haida who nodded gratefully.
It was all well comprehended. Haida thought her relationship with Mellis would have done nothing more than to cause her stress and depression. Yes, she had been under despair for some time now. Soon as she was home, she called Kiara and gave her the good news. Kiara came over in the evening after work. “I had to tell everything to my mom about that night” Haida was saying upsettingly “I didn’t mention Osborn anyway. Can you imagine Kiara, I am twenty six years, yet my parents have to be my escort to the hospital when I am sick, and then listen to everything the doctor says about my ailment! I really can’t take that anymore!” she snapped, as if Kiara was the culprit.
Kiara lay sideways on Haida’s bed “I have been telling you to find a way and move out of here and be on your own. If you do, they wouldn’t have to be intruding on your every affair!” she said blamefully.
“You do not think it is a blessing to have an old strict vicar for a father, do you?” Haida returned the favor. “It would be difficult to convince him. Unless I’m married, there’s no way he would make me move” said Haida dolefully. “That is why I have to travel for a while – if I must be away from them and on my own before I get married, it is the only way” she said and paused “I wonder if I am going to get married anyway”. Kiara only gave a stare.
Apparently, Haida felt so stressed out and felt like she needed to get away for a while. She wanted especially to get away from Mellis. She was scared she might fall for his advances once more even as he had started calling for a comeback, for she still felt love for him. “I’ll travel abroad for my Masters,” she said instinctively.
“Really?” asked Kiara indifferently.
“Yes. I’ll travel to the US for a year and do my Forensics concurrently.”
“And when do you intend to go?”
“I would join the third session, next month,” said Haida resolutely.
“That is about only two weeks away! Why the rush?” said Kiara, who was aghast.
“I don’t want Mellis hanging around me talking about making up, because I am not ready for that anymore!” said Haida spitefully and Kiara flinched.
“Did he start that when he came over during the weekend?” Kiara said with a sardonic smile that eluded Haida.
“Can you imagine?!” said Haida gallingly.
“That reminds me! When you went to Barclays Bank yesterday during lunch he came looking for you…. Sorry I didn’t inform you” Kiara added intentionally. “Guess having a male escort made it escape me, and especially, when I didn’t see you again for the rest of the day. Here he was dying over not seeing you when you were enjoying yourself with another man…illegally! A married man!” she said aggravatingly.
“Hahaha! I give myself so much credit for that!” Haida sneered and Kiara couldn’t believe she didn’t care. “See what I mean? If I am around, that moron would be pestering me everywhere and every way. I don’t know what has happened between his darling girlfriend and him that he wants me as a substitute now!” said Haida sarcastically.
“Don’t you think the opposite is the case, that his darling girlfriend is only a substitute to you?” asked Kiara, emphatically.
“Don’t start, Kiara! You are always bidding for every guy who comes my way forgetting that they are all jerks, including Mellis!” snapped Haida.
“Haida, dear, are you so sure about getting away?” asked a concerned Kiara. She actually found it unworthy to act impulsively on vital issues, like putting your job on hold or taking up a Masters course, just because of a man.
“Kiara, I must get away and put all this ruckus behind me. I had a first relationship and yes I messed up so much! I feel I had been so cautious all these years for nothing, and it feels so disappointing. I need to start a new life somewhere far from the memories of the awful past, and at least, prove myself worthy of better things in life. You do understand me, don’t you?”
“And you think this is the best way?”
“Yes. For me yes this is the best way….”
Haida immediately applied for a study-leave-with-pay and it was granted her. Just after that, she put in an application for admission to the University of Wisconsin. Mellis travelled to the Ashanti region the following Monday for the Business Awards ceremony – he won the noble prize of the Best Youngest Executive Director in the Accountancy field. He came back to the capital city during the weekend, only to learn Haida had travelled to the US. He felt very disappointed with himself. He wasted time in reconciling with her and now she was gone.
TEN
In the course of time, all went smoothly for Kelly with her relationship with Mellis. They got to talk as lovers often and for long hours; little did she know he was being such a great actor for his mother’s sake. Kelly knew she could soon talk about marriage with him, but Mrs. Hansen said she should leave that to her. Mellis had promised to spend the Christmas with them and she would
capitalize on that moment to talk to him and definitely fix a date for the wedding before he left to Ghana. Of course, with Haida out of town, his Christmas celebration would be tasteless if he spent it in Ghana. It would have been their first Christmas together, but he was sure she would spend hers over there in the US. Besides, Kiara had said she would probably come down only after the end of her course. Haida had entreated Kiara not to give her US number to Mellis, but she lost sight of the fact that he could get that from her father. When Kiara brought her mind to that, she thought it was not a big deal, sure that Mellis would find it difficult to ask that favor from the vicar. What would her father think anyway? It would only make him believe they were having problems and she was sure Mellis wouldn’t like to give him that idea.
Soon, Christmas was just a week away. Mellis flew to the UK on a Sunday evening and met his mom and Kelly in good health and spirits. How they pampered him with affection and care! For the sake of work, Mellis had to come down three weeks after. On Christmas day, there was a banquet in the house – partly in his honor for his noble prize award – and merry making was grand. With close friends and family around all present for the festivities. It was then that Mrs. Hansen discussed with Mellis, his marriage to Kelly. Suddenly, he thought of Haida. Undecided, he told his mom to give him time to think about that. Knowing he had no reason to delay in his decision, Mrs. Hansen requested for a response very soon, possibly before he left the UK.
In the interim, Haida called Kiara to give her Christmas wishes. Kiara asked how she was doing and how her academics were going. “All is well” Haida said. “I’m very happy here and I’m excelling greatly in my academics, too. I think I owe this to somebody special,” she said with contentment at the end of her tone.
“Hey and who is that?” asked Kiara, noticing a lilt in Haida’s voice. It was obvious in Haida’s voice that she was happy over there. The change of scenery was really doing her some good.
“There is this young handsome man I met here. He is at the university with me. He has been very nice to me. He makes me laugh all the time and treats me like the queen that I am you know. One thing that makes him special is that he has helped me forget all about Mellis. I think I really like him,” Haida talked away.