The Last Time

Chapter 17

Then...

"So, when will you spill the beans about that meeting at the Mpemba household?" I asked Hasani as we left the gym together. We had just wrapped up an evening arm and back session. I tried to sound casual as I asked about Ketura's family affairs but inside I was really worried. Something about Hasani's demeanour in the days since the meeting had been off, and I worried that Ketura wasn't okay.

Hasani sighed. "The girls found out their dad passed away and has left them all his riches."

"What?!" I exclaimed loudly. Ketura had spoken about her dad only a handful of times, but I knew he hadn't been in the picture since she was two years old. She insisted that she didn't feel his absence, but it must have been devastating to find out that she'd never be able to meet him now, ask him why he left, tell him how she felt.

She and I hadn't seen each other in several months, so I was torn between reaching out to offer comfort and staying out of her way. We'd avoided each other by all means, keeping our distance even when we hung out with our friends. When the awkwardness became too much for me, I just stopped hanging out with everyone. I'd spent more time in Kisho Valley than I had in years, visiting my family every weekend.

"Yeah." Hasani started. "Their dad, Joseph Mujulizi, passed away in a plane crash. Evidently the guy wasn't the negligent father we all thought he was. He'd been sick for a while, had schizophrenia. The illness brought up some abusive tendencies and he left to get better, but he never returned. Now he's passed down houses, valuables and a big art gallery in Musomi."

"Art gallery?" I asked, my braincells moving at thousands of miles per minute. "Surely not the Mujulizi Art Gallery?"

"That exact one." Hasani confirmed with his brows knitted in confusion. "Do you know him?"

"I don't know for sure." I shrugged. "Maybe if I saw a picture..."

Hasani dug into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He was swiping through it as he spoke. "Here's the picture of him from the memorial program."

"Shoot!" I exclaimed as soon as my eyes landed on the dark skin and bright eyes just like Ketura's, the dimples reminding me of Nella. "You're sure this is him?"

"A hundred percent." he said. "What's going on?"

"I have to go." I said, rushing over to my car without any further explanations and jumping into it.

As I drove to her place, the first apartment she'd moved into when she turned twenty-one, I kept shaking my head. There was no way the guy was actually her father. But that little moment of recognition that passed when she spoke about her birthday said he definitely was her dad. When she stopped to look at that picture, there's a high chance that she was looking at her own baby feet. My mind was blown by the crazy coincidence that she bumped into her dad unawares and even ended up having a whole conversation with him.