FIVE

Saturday morning came and as she got ready for the wedding she wasn't particularly excited. Not because she was not happy for Mary but social gathering with old people made her tired. Of course the wedding was a big event. The wedding was strictly by invitation and only the high and mighty were invited. She particularly didn't like it because her mother's acquaintances were always trying to match make her with their sons. She did take the numbers but never returned their calls or text.

"Get into the car let's go" she did just as her mother had said.

"When we get there, meet Ebere for the dress she said she bought for me"

Ebere was Mary's mother . She had gone to U.S. to do some last minute shopping for the wedding, while she was there, she had bought her sister a dress. Ebere was older than her mother by twelve years, grandma told her once. Though her mother has two brothers, she had never seen them or their kids before. The first one, Uncle Emeka who was the eldest lived in France with his family. Uncle Uzo was the youngest of all her mother's siblings, he lived in South Africa with his son. He however wasn't married. He lost his wife in a plane crash five years ago.

"Okay, mummy".

Aside from the wedding, that morning was a good day. Her mother was nice enough and that was more than enough for her. She didn't like telling people about her mother. People didn't understand it. She had made the mistake of talking about how her mother made her feel to a person she thought was sensible. The person ended calling her an ungrateful and spoilt child who didn't appreciate the fact that she was coming from a rich home. Lord knows she'd switch places with a middle class child if it meant having a relationship with her mother.

She knew that her mother loved her immensely. If she didn't , she would have aborted her or even ignored her completely but she didn't. Her mother was always there for her. Maybe not in the way she would like but she always showed up. Her mother corrected her whenever she did wrong. She knew that she occasionally messed up and deserved some of the reprimanding she got from her mother. She however longed for a really close relationship with her mother more than anything.

"Mummy, did you put your power bank in your bag?" she asked her mother.

"Yes, I did. Check if the cord is there as well"

The car ride to the event center where the wedding was holding was thirty minutes away from the house. While she sat quietly during the ride. Her mother was making plans to leave the country to Egypt for business the next month.

The Amber, the event center could hold a capacity of three thousand people.

The venue was packed, of course. Lots of faces she could barely recognize but they knew her.

Mary's husband was a the son of a wealthy politician who was equally successful. Damini, Mary's husband owned a tech company and they planned to move to the U.S. a month after the wedding. Rumor had it that the reason they were really getting married was because Mary was pregnant and her mother insisted that they get married.

Of course a VIP table was reserved for her mother. When they got to the venue, they were directed to their table.

Her mother seemed impressed with the décor of the place. She kept commenting on how beautiful the place was. Mary's gown however didn't really please Miss Daniels. She complained that the dress was to revealing.

The wedding was a great success and everything went according to plan. She enjoyed herself as much as she could.

They left the venue the moment the closing prayer was said. Her mother had an early flight to Cape Town the next day. She would return after a week.

When she woke up on Sunday morning by 10:00am, mother was gone. She smiled to herself. She has the whole house to herself. She called Gabriel and they went to get breakfast together. She never went to church, she didn't like it. She didn't like telling people that because how of it always sounded but that was her truth. She didn't believe in God or any supernatural being for that matter. She stopped talking about it because whenever she said it, people would say she was possessed or just call her names. Names she didn't appreciate.

"Let's go see a movie tonight" Gabriel offered.

"Sure" she shrugged. Her eyes were her fixed on her best friend.

"How did the Sandra shit go?" she asked

"How else was it supposed to go?" he asked rhetorically

"Like every other one, she took it out" he said, sipping his orange juice.

"What if mother nature decides to punish you when you want to have kids?"

Gabriel chuckled "That's her business"

In the course of his three years in the university, Gabriel had been the reason for a good number of abortions. He didn't particularly feel good about them but he didn't feel bad either. He had a strict no condom policy and he told every single girl he was involved with. So they knew what they were getting into.

"Well, I'm going home now. I have to get my nails and hair done"

"Have you called the driver?" Gabriel asked. She nodded.

"Texted him, he's almost here"

"Bye" he said, opening his arms for a hug.

She walked into his arms and he kissed her forehead.