Each heart knows its own bitterness,
and no one else can fully share its joy.
-Proverb 14:10.
——————————————–
“I love you…”
“I love you too”, the duo said almost simultaneously. It
was so evident to the blind that they were in love, and
destined for each other. Even in complexion, they were
compatible.
“Do you still remember the first time I met you?”, he said
staring into her face.
“How would I forget, it is still fresh in my memory though
it is two years ago”.
Jadesola took her fiance out to Chicken republic, a
restaurant close to where she lived. He had come to visit
her during her youth service after many persuasion from
the lover boy…
“Erhm am sorry”, she said quickly bending to pick the
books that had fallen as a result of the collision. Jadesola
was making a call, and she didn’t notice the young man
who was hurrying to pass through the doorway of the
lecture theatre.
“I didn’t see you coming, I am very sorry, hope…”, she
tried to say, before looking up to see the young man
standing and staring at her. “Oh no its him, it can’t be
him, not this guy”, she thought. She had avoided any
contact with him after her first encounter when she was
in part one.
“Thanks”, he said, quickly collecting his books from her
and walking away without looking back.
“Hello am sorry Eunice, something happened ni jare, I will
gist you when I get to the room”, she said as she made
her into the lecture theatre where her next lecture would
hold.
“I think you need to confront your fears and at least talk
to him”, Eunice said after Jadesola narrated her ordeal
during the day to her.
“No!! that’s wrong, he should be the one approaching
me”, she said recoiling back to her side of the bed,
“Are you for real, nna ohh!!…my friend is in love”, Eunice
said clapping her hands in the gossiping mode.
“In love with who, that guy? Never! he is so arrogant,
pompous, imagine!!, he allowed a lady to pick his books
for him, mtchew!!! He is not even my type!!” Jadesola said
in defense. She would not allow her friend to win this
word battle or else she was in for another headache.
Eunice would tease her for days about it.
“Okay, even though it is obvious…why don’t you forget
him approaching you and at least get to know this guy
you are having a crush on”, Eunice said stretching the
word crush in her statement.
Rolling her eyes, Jadesola said, “Okay, at least to satisfy
you miss, I will say hi to him after service on Sunday, and
for the record, I don’t have a crush on him”, she added
as she threw her pillow to Eunice who was giggling at her
friend’s effort in convincing her.
“Hi, erhm…am sorry for the other day”, Jadesola said to
the head bent guy staring at the book in front of him. He
didn’t answer her, so she went further by tapping him. She
had been so busy, she couldn’t see him on Sunday, and
she had been lucky to see him today, she was not going
to let the opportunity pass her by.
“Erhm…sorry, am sorry, is this your seat, I didn’t know”,
he said as he jolted back to reality from the impact of the
tap Jadesola gave him. His eyes was wet and teary, he
had been crying all along.
“Are you fine, I mean, its fine…erhmm…you can talk to
me”, Jadesola said, sitting beside him like a concerned
mother who caught his son crying.
“Its nothing, it is just the wind that blew some dirty things
into my eyes and…”, he tried to say, though it was obvious
he was lying.
“C’mon…I know am a stranger. Erhm, I am Jadesola, am
an RCFITE too, and at least that is enough information, so
talk to me, why were you crying?”, Jadesola said, though
sounding like she was ranting.
The guy knew the lady before him would not leave him
alone without him telling her the reason for his mood, so
he told her everything, including the part where he just
saw a result which was terrible, he went further to tell her
he was at the verge of leaving school because he couldn’t
understand a thing from the course he was studying, he
didn’t skip the part where his g.p was so poor, and he
was on a second class lower. He looked hopeless and
unredeemable. Jadesola who watched and listened with
rapt attention as he narrated his ordeal, finally spoke
some soothing words to him, he was relieved.
And that was how their friendship started, they read
together, she checked on him, kept tabs, and she was his
constant adviser, sooner or later, they were both carried
into leadership but it was obvious they were in love.
After much prayer, and counselling, he finally proposed to
her on the night preceding his finally examination and
their relationship had a kick start…
“I still love you as much as I did back then”, he said as he
held her hand, and placed a kiss on it.
“He is the most romantic, spiritually balanced, worded,
guy I have ever known, he is mature even in his dealings
with me, thank God I met a man like this as your will for
my life”, Jadesola said within herself as she looked at the
love of her life…
“If wishes were horses even the beggars will have a ride,
everything that has a beginning must have an ending”,
Jadesola laughed at the incoherence in the sentence of
the singer whose song was being played to her ears.
———————————
“What is quality control?”, the beautiful yellowish young
lady probably in her late thirties asked Joseph who was
sitting in front of an interview panel.
Joseph had woke up this morning with the sound of his
alarm, it was just 6:30am, his interview was by 11am.
Thanks to John, who used his connection in getting him
the interview with one of the popular food companies in
Lagos. He was to work as their quality control manager.
Talking about John, his friend had been a wonderful
brother to him, he brought him several clothes, took him
out on several occasions when he was not at work, they
caught up with past times, though he had to travel down
to Ondo for a friend’s father burial, Joseph refused to go
with him stating he didn’t want to step his foot in Ondo
anymore, the place that reminds him of all of tragic
moments that had effects on his life.
John had bought him the suit before he left during the
weekend, and he also told him, that he might return that
evening with his fiancee, “his fiancée?”. He had tried
asking him various questions about the mysterious lady,
but the only answer Joseph got was that, she was
someone he knew very well during their days in the
university, and he should wait patiently to meet her when
he returned from his trip to Ondo.
“We will get back to you before the week runs out”, the
young lady said dismissing Joseph after the interview. He
had answered the questions very well, he was sure, that
his efforts in the interview combined with John’s
connection could get him the job.
“You have arrived? Okay, am on my way already. Is your
fiancee there too? Okay…I am almost home”, he dropped
his call, grinning. Aside the fact that he wanted to gist his
friend about his interview,he was so interested in knowing
John’s fiancee.
The way he talked about her, showed the way he loved
her dearly, he had been in love once, so he understood
his friend’s feeling…
“Adamu, abeg open the gate, it’s me Joseph, your oga’s
friend”, he shouted after knocking for close to three
minutes, while sleepy Adamu asked who the sleep
intruder was…
He walked majestically toward the front door, and stood
for a while as he heard a familiar voice, no it couldn’t be
her, he said to himself.
He opened the door and her name came out his mouth
effortlessly. “Ahmed Dorcas Jadesola!!!”
