Chapter Fifty-Five

“And by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife.” The Pastor announced, lifting his hands as he spoke to the couple, “you may kiss your bride.”

Abike and her husband hugged each other tight and their lips fused together. It went on for a while and everyone was clapping and cheering until they eventually pulled apart. Adaeze was also clapping and cheering her friend on, it was indeed a happy moment.

Abike was now officially married and the wife to Bakare Lawan. She would henceforth be known as Mrs. Lawan.

Adaeze paused as she thought about that, with just a bunch of words and symbols her life had totally changed. She was no longer just choosing to spend the rest of her life with him, she was also choosing to spend it with his family. She would take his name and everything that had to do with him will also have to do with her.

That was an awful lot of change. It was such a big step indeed, no wonder it was never a good idea to run into it. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that love alone could never be enough to keep the marriage afloat.

Love could be likened to a boat that was out on the sea, but it was full of holes and cracks. It was the job of the couple to work hand in hand to keep the boat from sinking, and all that required a lot of things that had nothing to do with love.

Could she learn such a thing? Would she be able to keep her marriage in tact no matter what came her way? Because she knew that such things were definitely bound to happen, they were inescapable. What if this tryst of hers in Lagos somehow managed to catch up to her in Owerri, when she had already believed she had left it behind? What would she do then?

Adaeze shook her head, the thoughts that were swimming through her head were scary indeed and if she kept it up she would run mad. She already had a workable plan and so far it was going great for her. She did not have to be scared about how things could turn out because she already knew how it would. She would make sure of that and do everything within her power to make sure that it is only what she wants that actually happens.

The rest of the service went by in a blur, she only got up during offertory and then again during thanksgiving of the couple. It was a lively service indeed and everyone was in the best of spirits.

Sometime around noon, the pastor finally dismissed them and everyone was encouraged to troop out so they could take pictures with the family members.

As soon as she heard that Adaeze winced a bit, she looked out the window and saw that the sun was still as hot as ever. How the hell could she stand under this hot sun and be taking pictures? But then, it was a sacrifice she was going to make seeing as she was here for her friend and her friend alone. Something as pesky as the harsh sunlight should not stop her.

With a sigh of defeat, she pushed herself to her feet and began to walk towards the exit just like others. There were children running about and playing while their mothers cautioned them in hushed voices, reminding them that they were in the house of the Lord.

Her heels were clicking lightly on the floor, which had been covered in sparkling terrazzo. The floor covering was used to make different designs that were catchy to the eye. She could see a cross, she could see huge squares and many other symbols she could not recognize just because there were pews over them.

As she walked out, she also noticed some details she had not picked on when she had been walking in. There was a floor above as well, it had two staircases that led to it and it faced the altar directly. It was just for members that came late. It was pretty handy in accommodating more people inside the church, and they had a bird’s eye view of the altar and everything that went on over there.

She could also notice the giant air conditioning units placed at strategic points of the church, they were as big as refrigerators and they were backed against the wall. All of them were pumping cold air into the church nonstop, and as if that was not enough, there were also standing fans, those powerful types that could blow up a hurricane if care was not taken.

As people filed out and the building became empty, it became hollowed out and every sound came with an echo, even the sound of her heels as they struck the floor.

As she got closer to the door, already gritting her teeth in anticipation of the heat wave she was about to endure, she let out a yelp when she felt a hand clamp unto her wrist and pull her away from the door.

“What?” She gasped as she rolled once and she was backed against the wall to see Tunde staring at her, “Tunde, what the fuck?”

She was angry as she shoved at his chest, wrenching her hand from his grip. He had scared the wits out of her, if not that there were people around she would have slapped him hard on the face.

“I am sorry,” he muttered looking crestfallen. “I just had the feeling that if I called you, I would not get any response.”

“Well, that would have been to avoid something like this. You almost broke my wrist, you asshole!”

“I did not mean to, okay?”

“Just leave me alone,” she told him and tried to walk away but he slapped a hand against the wall and blocked her path. “Your sister is the bride Tunde, shouldn’t you be taking pictures with her right now?”

“Yeah, I probably should. But there is something more important I have to do, and that is to have a talk with you.”

“What?” she looked up at him, “what the hell are you talking about?”

“You have been avoiding me, why?”

She let out a deep breath as she looked at him. He was handsomely dressed in a three piece suit that looked like it was created solely for him. The cloth did him great service and made him look really easy on the eyes. His face looked smooth and lighter than usual, she had a feeling he had done something about that. Maybe he had gotten a facial or a face scrub, she could not put it past him to do something like that.

After all, a wedding was a big event and people usually wanted to go there looking their best. Even Eche had already booked appointments for something like that. Anyway, whatever it was he had done worked really well for him. He looked way more handsome than usual today and that was really saying a lot.

“Answer my question, Ada!” He cried out, grabbing her by the shoulder and giving her good shake.

“Get your hands off me!” She cried, slapping them away at once as her head rattled on her neck from the way he had shaken her, “what the hell is wrong with you? Do you just have it in your mind to hurt me today?”

“I am sorry, but don’t you see how you are driving me crazy?”

“Do not blame me for that.”

“Just answer my question, Ada. Why have you been avoiding me? And why are you even avoiding answering the question?”

“What? I am not avoiding anything, it is you that is being an asshole. And no, I have not been avoiding you. In case you have not noticed, I also have a life that I have to live, and that life has nothing to do with you.”

“Come on, you can’t say that. After what we shared together.”

“What we shared? Are you going with that again? You can’t seriously―” she stopped herself as she realized her voice was rising and people were beginning to turn their heads in their direction. She was forced to bring it down to just above a whisper, “what we had was just one night of sex, that was all. There is no point of you reading any meaning into it.”

“How can you say that? It was way more than just one night of sex, and you know it. Why are you hell bent on denying what we both know to be true? You want it, and I want it, why are you being so stubborn?”

“I am sorry Tunde, but you are the one that is hell bent on denying what is right in front of you. You have serious issues bro, and it is not my job to put you back in the right frame of mind.”

“I am in love with you, Ada. How will I prove this to you if you would not even give me a chance?”

She paused at that as she watched him again.

“Fuck…” she whispered as she walked away from the wall, not towards the exit but towards the closest pew where she just sat down.

This was not what she wanted at all, she did not want all these feelings messing up her plans. But then, she was not supposed to even be surprised. He had shown signs the last time they had met, but she had chosen to ignore it, choosing to believe instead that it was just lust that was wrong with him. What if he turned out to be that one cog in the wheel that ruined everything and caused it all to blow up in her face?

He left the wall as well and sat down beside her on the pew.

She let out a deep breath, things had taken an unexpected turn but she was not going to let that ruin her perfectly laid out plan. She would just have to be careful the way she handled this and ensured that she handled it with care. That was the only way.

“What did you just say?” she muttered, as if she had not heard him the first time. Of course, she had heard him perfectly. She just needed time to gather her thoughts, and she needed to hear him say it again to make sure that she was not hallucinating or hearing things that were not actually there to be heard.

“I love you, Ada. In totality, the head over heels kind of love. I just need an opportunity to prove that to you.”

She let out a sigh, “why am I having this feeling that the opportunity to prove that you are asking for is just to have sex?”

“You do know that sex is not the only things people in relationships have, right?”

“Well, it is the only thing you and I have had. How then did the love come in because I am confused here.”

“You don’t get to choose when or how you get to fall in love, it happens whether you want it to or not.”

“Since you believe it, then it has to be real, right?”

He took her hand and held it in both of his, “it is as real as I am here talking to you in this church.”

She gently pulled her hand from his grip, “please Tunde, do not love me. There will be nothing but heartbreak in store for you.”

“I am willing to take the risk.”

She scoffed at that, “what do you know about risk? I am sorry, Tunde. But there is nothing that can happen between us, I am only in Lagos for your sister’s wedding, I thought I told you that already? And after today I will be returning to my life and family, one in which you are not a part of.”

“Come on, we can do a distance thing. See how it goes before we solidify everything.” As he spoke, he cast a glance at the altar and nodded his head as only he knew the image that was floating within it.

“You are out of your mind, Tunde.” She told him as she got back up to her feet, she was done with this conversation and she had wasted enough time on it and needed to take pictures with Abike before everything ended.

“We are not done talking,” he told her.

“I am.”

As she made to leave, he grabbed her by the wrist again, “will I see you again?”

She was about to tell him what was on her mind, then she realized it was not going to do any good. After all, she had been telling him everything that was on her mind since the beginning of this conversation and it had done nothing. But in a weird way it had only served to strengthen his resolve and imagine walking her down the aisle and giving her a ring.

What a dork!

She sucked in a deep breath, it was not easy to keep herself in control after everything he was putting her through. But she was willing to give it a shot.

“Okay, we will see each other again.”

“Come on,” he muttered as he got up as well. “You just said it that you are returning to Owerri after the wedding.”

“Yeah… but I am not returning tonight, am I?” She yanked her hand from his grip for the third time that day. “I will get back to you on that. And please, next time, if you want to tell me something just call me. There is no point in breaking my hand just because you have something to say. My ears are not for fancy.”

She turned then and began to walk out of the church. She had forgotten that the sun was harsh and she walked right into it, making her even more angry. She held her purse over her head as she looked through the crowd of people, looking for where they were taking pictures. She saw that it was a place that was in the shadow cast by the church building. She began to walk towards them.

As she walked, she could recognize all the ladies she had seen at the Bachelorette last night. All of them were looking beautiful and peng, properly cleaned up after all the fun and joys of the night before.

Modesta was the first to see her and rushed to pull her into a hug, “wow… it is so good to see you, Ada! And my God, you are so beautiful.”

“Thank you, so are you.”

And truthfully, she was. Modesta had her gown sewn in such a way that the material clung to her body, and even went up her neck. It gave the illusion that she was long, but in a sexy sort of way.

“I saw you when you walked into the church, some jaws did drop.”

“Ahh…” Adaeze did not know what to say to that. It was a complement, she was sure of that. But now that she knew that Modesta was also into girls, anything at all from her could have a double meaning.

“Come on, girl. Let us take pictures!”

And soon, she got lost in the moment.