“Shadows of ungratefulness”

Waking up every morning felt like a knife piercing my fragile chest, especially when my dreams were always friendlier than the ever dark and gloomy reality I was forced to accept.

However, today's dreams paled in comparison to the extraordinary glow of my unexpected new reality.

I awoke as if there had been an emergency, as if sleeping had suddenly become dangerous; my heart was racing faster than usual, my brain was a jumbled mess, and a wide smile could be seen plastered permanently upon my once dead-to-joy lips.

I had a feeling my day was going to be spectacular. My confidence couldn't be contained as it danced gracefully at its highest point, indicating that, for the first time in forever, I had awoken incredibly happy and optimistic.

Mother had made us go to bed hungry the night before, as I had predicted, due to Peter's failure to completely sell his goods and my tardiness back home.

Peter, as usual, was already preparing for another night of crying himself to sleep, but thanks to my very clever plan of getting back-up, we didn't have to sleep hungry; not only that, but we wined and dined like kings, and for the first time in a very long time, I was gifted the pleasure of hearing my beautiful baby brother laugh without a care in the world, which automatically wrapped up the night as the best night of my entire existence.

I knew I had to see the nice stranger again, and thankfully he had already invited me. I'd only met him once, and in the few minutes he spent with me, he did something no one else could—not that they even tried—he purposefully made me smile without asking for anything in return. I was beyond grateful to him, and all I wanted to do was tell him so.

With all of my housework completed, I gathered my daily quota of goods to be sold, bid my brother farewell, and walked out with happiness coursing through my veins and the hope of seeing the mysterious angel again, for he had single-handedly restored my shattered faith in humanity.

*****

On this morning, the clouds diffused the daylight, dominating the morning sky, leaving transitory patches of blue, a hint that rain would play a role in my day and a visible sign that even the weather despised my happiness, but I wasn't going to let any of it bring me down, not today of all days.

Despite nature's obvious hatred for me, my only prayer was for the angel I met last night to show up.

When I arrived at the location where I last saw the stranger, I decided to patiently wait by the side of the road for him to appear. He arrived a few minutes later, much to my surprise and delight!

I could tell he was taken aback by my excitement because I couldn't stop the visible trembling in my body or the wide smile that had suddenly taken possession of my lips at the sight of him. But there was no time to be embarrassed about my overreacting body because, as usual, it didn't take long for the husky colour of the sky to fade away, allowing rain to splatter on the asphalt road and ruin my excitement.

The nice man produced an umbrella I didn't even realize he was holding, walked up to a blushing me, and gracefully placed it over our heads before leading a grinning-like-a-fool me to a nearby provision shop.

We both entered the small but beautifully designed store to get away from the rain.

Reaching for a chair, the man offered it to me, waited until I was comfortably seated, and then proceeded to mimic my actions, his lips still adorned with an evergreen smile.

He finally greeted by reaching out his hand. His strangely familiar voice had been something I had been longing to hear since yesterday. I couldn't believe someone as nice as him existed in such a harsh world as ours.

"Hi, my name is Sunny Omola but my friends call me 'Sun', what's your name?" My smile instantaneously widened at his statement. I was no more surprised about his warmness towards me, for his name had graciously explained it all.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sunny," I said. I'd never tried so hard to hide my joy and gratitude because I couldn't remember the last time I felt this way about someone, but here we were. "You can call me Nellie," I cheerfully added.

Ginning, I extended my hand and shook his, finally letting all of my restrained excitements flow into that very pleasurable handshake.

*****

Sunny and I had grown so close in just one month that I considered him to be my best and only friend. I would always bring my unsold goods to him, and he would always buy them from me without even raising an eyebrow, and he would sometimes even force his friends to do the same.

Throughout this time, I felt as if I were living in a never-ending dreamland of soft, unblemished pink clouds.

Since I wasn't hawking on the streets, as usual, I spent all of my free time playing, exploring new places in Lagos, and generally acting like a teenager with my newfound companion.

Sunny surprised me with an unexpected love confession during one of our numerous outings and adventures together.

In the few weeks I'd known him, I'd discovered that it was in his nature to be undeniably charming. So when my fourteen-year-old self fell head over heels for his sweet talks and constant persuasions, it wasn't too surprising. And somehow, I became completely convinced that I was completely and undeniable in love with Sunny Omola, just as much as he claimed to love me.

Sunny hurried to the next phase—Sex—once our relationship had been established.

Every day, he would ask for it, and I would always refuse. On a particular Friday, Sunny had asked me to meet up with him as usual, but this time the meeting would take place at his house. Seeing nothing wrong with it, I accepted his proposal. After all, he was now my boyfriend.

Sunny was nothing like his carefree, never-serious, playful self when I arrived at his house that day. He had the expression of a man on a very important mission, and I was curious as to why and what had caused his sudden seriousness. Sunny did everything he could to make me feel at ease and safe, but even so, I couldn't get rid of the anxiety I was experiencing as a result of his strange behaviour.

After three hours of doing nothing but talking, eating, and watching movies, I found myself adjusting to his new behaviour, visibly relaxed, and my eyelids began to close on their own.

"Do you love me?" the question came out of nowhere, causing my eyelids to jack open.

I watched him intently, nodding in confusion, trying to decipher the contents of his mind.

"Do you not want to marry me?" I stared at him, puzzled, wondering when he had asked and when I had refused... but I answered the question anyway, my voice cracking as a result of my confused state.

"I'd like to."

He nodded and went on. "Do you not want me to take you away from your evil stepmother while also caring for your brother?"

Something sparked in my brain as a result of his words, and I found myself speaking louder and more seriously than I had intended. "I really, really want that Sunny!"

He continued with one of his lovely smiles. "If you truly love me as much as you claim, you will go to any length to make me happy, just as I have done for you..." He paused and looked me in the eyes, every trace of seriousness in his dark orbs, before continuing,

"All I want is to be able to hold you in my arms without you objecting and completely possess you; don't you want that too?"

My entire being was overtaken by a sudden shadow of ungratefulness and selfishness. This was Sunny, the man who had single-handedly changed my life for the better and was even planning more good things for me and Peter, so why was I acting so selfishly and not also thinking of his happiness? What was the matter with me? I pondered.

Right then and there, I resolved to do anything he asked of me from that point forward without ever raising a question, no matter how pressing it became.