I Love You, Jemima V 2

Three: Miracle

Three

Miracle

"Listen," he started very gently, taking me back to university days when we would have our teeny little fights and how he'd always speak to my soul with the gentleness of his voice like an angel. ", I've found you, Jemima, and believe it or not but that's what I've been spending the most of my normal life doing, searching for you. You have no idea how incredibly happy I was when I saw you. To you, it was a mere once in a lifetime coincidence, but to me, it was a miracle."

I couldn't help but look at him like he was crazy due to the amount of sincerity that I could denote from the way and manner in which he spoke.

"Are you crazy, Charles? I...I...cheated on you bro! Not only did I just cheat on you, but with your best friend, your freaking best friend! I'm the one who should have to spend the rest of her normal life looking for you, I more than stabbed you in the back, Charles, I ridiculed your love for me, I messed with your feeling, I BROKE YOUR HEART!" I cried out the last words in tears. "I don't even know how to look at you or look into your eyes, Charles. You have no idea how happy I was when I discovered that you had a little daughter. I was happy that you finally had some form of happiness in your life again."

He released his grip on my hands and settled into his chair with a smile on his face. My God! He looked so handsome.

"That little girl? Do you know who she is?"

"Yes, I just said it, your daughter... right?" I sniffed back the tears.

"Yes, she is, Jemima, by law and by every fiber in my bones, but I'm not bounded by blood with her, at least not biologically."

My heart raced and my head banged. 'He adopted her?'

"You adopted her?" I asked.

"Yes." He nodded with a smile on his face. "From my late but very good friend: Marcus,...and his late wife."

"Wait, what?!" I could just tell from the reactions I was having internally that I was going a little crazy.

"Yes, Marcus got married 5 years ago and he had a daughter with the love of his life; Mirabel."

I just sat there frozen. So, he'd reconciled with his best friend years ago too, and he'd even taken his best friend's daughter as his? Despite the hurtful thing we did to him? And wait, Marcus was dead?

"Marcus is dead?"

"Sadly, yes. The car crashed, but their baby came out alive and unharmed. It's why I called her, 'Miracle'."

I felt tears gather around my eyes once again.

"I...don't...God! I don't know what to say, Charles. Marcus is dead?" I bowed my head in pain. "And you took his child? Even when we..."

"I forgave my friend long before he even thought of getting married, Jemima." He answered with the most peaceful expression on his face.

"How?...why?" I heard myself breathe out with confusion written all over my face.

"Come on, Jemima, my forgiving Marcus shouldn't come off to you as surprising, didn't I turn up as the best man at my own brother's wedding to a girl I used to love? What makes you think I won't forgive a friend then?"

No one deserved this man, he just was too good for everyone.

"You're unreal," I confessed. "It's almost hard to believe, very hard to believe. If life was a Nollywood movie, I'd think you're plotting the biggest murder plan on a low because...we betrayed your trust, Charles. We let you down and although you talk so much about forgiveness right now, what about all the hurt you must have felt?"

"So, here's what I've learned about this journey called, life." He took a hold of my hand with a gentle smile on his face. "We only get hurt by the people we love; an enemy cannot get tears streaming down our eyes, it's always the ones we truly love, so, if your love for them is as true as you claim, then you should also always get ready to forgive them at every point in their lives because love knows no bounds, it's unconditional. You can't claim to love someone with conditions attached. So, yes; I admit that I was very hurt at the time, but it didn't take me too long to realize that I wasn't going to leave all my love and promise behind; I decided to stand on the rock of my promise to you, and that's why I was able to forgive the both of you because no matter what the terrible thing it is that you'll do or have done to me, I'll always only remember the good times. After all, they are what makes us memorable."

I nodded as I watched him explain himself so articulately.

"I understand, I'm still super sorry though," I said, still trying to avoid his eyes.

"I'm sorry too, Jemima, there must have been something I was lacking in for you to have taken the action which you did, I mean what did I expect? That you'd wait until we got married?" He chuckled and I joined as memories of us as young adults started to rush in. The nights when we were always so close to making love but how he always stopped me with kisses, reminding me that he wanted to respect me and my body. "I guess I should have known better."

"No, Charles, you were perfect, more than perfect." I smiled. "I'm the one with the problem. I should have said something, maybe God didn't want me in the journey of your life because he knew how messed up I was; and quite frankly, I still am. Someway and somehow, I'm glad whatever happened, happened. I didn't deserve you, no one did."

"Except I think I deserve you." He smiled.