Imagining Us

Chapter 20

"No, they didn't tell us anything at all, and it was last week." Her cousin Brianna, living in Trinidad, was recounting recent family drama to them.
"What do you mean last week? As in...they got married last week?" Esi asked, eyes bugging out of her head. She hadn't heard anything about this. And if she hadn't heard, then she knew that her mother didn't know either because she would have told her. This was bad. She could imagine the blow up that would come from it.

Her other cousin Afia, who lived in London, chimed in. "You're joking!"

"I kid you not. They got married last week. I've never seen granny so vex. He didn't even tell his mother." Bri responded.
Apparently, Bri and Esi's Uncle Sammy decided to elope with his girlfriend of two years. Their granny, who for some strange reason had become a social media addict—it was either that or soaps—saw pictures of the small and intimate ceremony online. Esi could imagine the drama that was happening in Trinidad. Her uncle was a free spirit, so his decision didn't surprise her that much, but she knew her granny, and behind the toughness was a woman who cared about her family. She was probably just really hurt about his actions.

"I mean..you know how he is, Esi, but they could have at least told her. I know she can be a bit nosey sometimes, but I...I don't know..it could have been handled better."

Esi sighed. "Yea..I know. You know how their relationship is..it's because he reminds her so much of grandpa, so they've always been close until Andrea came into the picture and he got his own place."

"You lot have too much craziness going on in Trinidad!" Afi's image was distorted as she was hanging upside down off the side of her bed.

Esi's father and Afi's father were brothers so she wasn't related to Brianna, who was Esi's cousin because their mom's were sisters, but that never stopped them from being close.

Brianna interjected, "Hold up, didn't you tell us last week about some cousin of yours on their seventh child...with the fifth or sixth baby mother?"

"Ah ah, don't judge. The man clearly has a lot of love to share around," Afi replied.

Esi shook her head. "Really, Afia?"

"What?" Her cousin had the most incredulous look on her face. "You know I'm a lover, Esi. If Coby's women don't have an issue with his poly love, why should we. Yes, I know environmentally, seven kids is a lot. God help our already overpopulated world, but he takes care of them, so who am I to judge?"

"We weren't judging. I was concerned about the women's feelings, but if you say that everyone's fine with it. Then, that's that." Esi was constantly surprised at how much Afi had changed over the years.

The Afi before Sabine's passing was never like this. She was completely absorbed in her lab work being a biochem major. She rarely went out and socialized, and there wasn't one hint of a romantic interest. Their friend's passing had really changed everything. She could still remember Sabine's last words to them. Those words were probably what spurred the change in Afi. They could no longer keep track of her social life. How she balanced the men, the partying and her work was astounding. Sometimes they worried that Afi was doing too much, and whenever the topic was brought up, she would wave them off. She would tell them that even though she loved her work, she wasn't living as she should have before—she wasn't enjoying life.

Afi had opened up to them about how life's uncertainty had scared her, which was why she was so meticulous with every aspect of it. But now, she realized that certain things—death—were inevitable in life, and she needed to maximize how she lived it. As much as she was happy for her cousin's newfound outlook, Esi couldn't help but still feel uncertain. Or maybe her feeling was less of concern and more of envy. She still felt stuck. She felt as if she was the only one not changing, not growing.