She Is Blind

Chapter Thirty-Three: As We Go On

A sweet aroma teased my nostrils the following morning, making me sit upright in bed trying to stretch. I could not remember when last my mother woke up in the morning to cook food that smelt this good, and I took in more of it as I checked the time, noting that it was already 7:21AM.

I shuffled my feet to the living room, intending to join the rest of my family for our daily morning devotion, when  a certain kind of joy radiated through my body. I suddenly remembered that I was done with school, and in a few months I would be serving my country with what I could give, and that my friend Amina was at home in Abuja with me.

It was when I saw my mother seated in the living room, an old wrapper draped across her chest and glasses resting on her eyes as she scanned through the pages of the Holy Bible we owned, made brown with age, that I realised she was not the reason for the aroma. It was all Amina, working her culinary magic as usual, and as if to reinforce the realisation, u heard her chattering away with Jemima in the kitchen.

"Good morning mummy." I greeted, bowing my head and silently thinking of how a graduate like me was still in his father's house. It had always seemed corny to me, depending on my parents and being above 21.

"Are you sure this is not the wife you have brought for us to marry?" My mother asked, shoving my greeting aside, something she only did when she was angry, and I would have assumed she was if she did not have that motherly smile that brought out all the wrinkles on her face.

"No." I said, half irritated. "She is just a friend who wants to get the feel of Abuja for a while, and she decided to come stay with me."

"I don't see why she should not be your better half," My father's voice joined in as he walked into the living room with AB trailing behind him, a smug smile on his face.
"Right from yesterday I have been noting how good the both of you look together."

I had become fully irritated, and AB was adding more fuel to the fire with how furiously he was wagging his eyebrows behind my father and smiling at me like a clown.

"She is already dating somebody else." I said.

"Who said you can't take a woman from somebody? Will you just let this jewel slip through your hands?" My father asked, his two hands behind him as his face assumed a mature smile.

"Good morning everybody. I see you have woken up." Amina's voice rang as she came from the kitchen. "I hope I did not wake you?"

"No my beautiful daughter," My parents said in unison and I silently scoffed.

"Good morning Mummy and Daddy." Jemima greeted from behind Amina.

They did not reply to Jemima too, their eyes were too focused on Amina for anything else.

"Jemima said we would have to pray this morning... I am sorry if I started something before the prayers. I just thought I should cook something for everyone this morning."

"No problem my daughter. You have saved us the stress." My mother grinned.

"I will even be going to work this morning. I can't go on an empty stomach." My father answered.

"Okay the food will be done in five minutes Sir, so maybe we could pray in that time."

"You are free to join us if you want." My mother said. "We won't really force you to do what you don't want to."

"I definitely will join Ma. Prayer is one thing I live on, from whichever religion."

The prayer was quick and not as long as we would have usually had it, but listening to Amina's amens made me pretty uncomfortable, and I felt like she had compelled herself to do it until the prayer was done and she had a triumphant smile on her face. We instantly moved on to the food she cooked and  sat waiting as she and Jemima brought plates loaded with noodles, and I could not help drooling over how complete it looked. Red chillies, green peppers, purple onions, orange carrots, and the icing on the cake, the chicken.