When God Intervenes

Chapter 10🏵️

Cont'D- Two Years Earlier

It was around 7 when I finally arrived at Sere's place after being stuck in heavy traffic. I parked my car and quickly checked my phone, expecting to see messages from her since I thought I would have arrived much earlier, but there were none. That was odd. Normally she'd be all cranky and load my phone with messages especially at a time like this. 

Grabbing the box of chocolates and fruits I had bought for her, I hurried to her doorstep and reached out to ring the doorbell, but I noticed the door was already opened. Panic hit me instantly. I rushed inside, and my anxiety spiked even more when I saw the house in complete darkness—Sere wasn't someone who liked the dark.

Prepared, I grabbed the umbrella I saw at the entrance; It seemed useless, but I was ready to use it on any intruder. I scanned and turned on the light switches in the hallway, the den and finally the living room where I spotted her all curled up under a blanket on the couch. I sighed in relief, lowering my "weapon" with a chuckle.

"Babe," I called out, gently patting her shoulder after walking over to her. "I'm here."

She stirred slightly, mumbling, "What took you so long?"

"I'm so sorry, I was stuck in traffic." I explained, placing the things on the center table. "Why was the door left open and the lights off though?"

"The lights were just making my headache worse," she muttered, rubbing her eyes." And I left the door open so I wouldn't have to get up when you arrived."

"Serenity, you know leaving the door open like that is dangerous. Anyone could have walked in or worse. You've seen the news; criminals don't even care if you're awake or asleep anymore; they kill and take or take and kill."

"I know, I know... It was careless. I just wasn't thinking straight. Infact maybe if you had found your key I wouldn't have to."

After dating for six months, we decided to exchange house keys as a sign of trust and to show that we could rely on each other whenever we needed support, prayer, or simply someone to be there. However, spending too much time 'alone' together slowly became a problem, as we almost got carried away. Recognizing this, we sat down and talked, like any Christian couple should, and established boundaries that we continue to adhere to this very day.

"I'll collect the new key from the lock smith tomorrow. But if there's ever a situation whereas you're sick and you can't open the door for me I'll just pick the lock and let myself in."

She laughed, "You don't even know the basics of picking a lock to begin with."

"I'm a fast learner," I quipped, grinning. "I excel in everything I do."

She sat up, brushing her hair from out of her face. "Well, I don't want my neighbors calling the police on my boyfriend so don't even try it." 

"I'll listen to you for now, but if you do that again, I might go back on my word."

"Elias, enough of that," she insisted with a slight frown. "Did you purchase the painkillers?

"Oh, here." Digging into my pocket, I handed them to her. "Let me get you a glass of water."

I turned, headed to the kitchen, filled a glass with water, and brought it back to her.

"Thanks," she said, quickly taking the tablets.

"De nada, amor." (You're welcome, love.) 

She hesitated, then asked, "Have you eaten anything?"

"No, not as yet."

"I cooked after you called so if you're hungry you can have something to eat."

"Really?"

She nodded, but it was clear she was now struggling to relax. 

"Is everything alright?"

She winced slightly, shifting on the couch as she rubbed her lower abdomen with her hand. "I hope it was," she said faintly, standing up. "I'm just gonna head to bed, so let's have our nightly devotion now, just in case I'm fast asleep when you're ready to leave."

"Okay, sure," I replied, then added, "Do you want me to get you anything before we start?"

"Maybe just some more water, but I'll be fine," She smiled. 

I quickly fetched a glass of water for her, and after she took a sip, we prepared for our devotion. Sere went to grab her head tie to cover her head, a habit she always kept during our prayers. Once she was ready, we chose a couple of worship songs to sing together. Her voice, as always, was beautiful, causing goosebumps to form all over my body. It reminded me of a mix between Annatoria's melodic tone and Sunmisola's harmonies.

After the songs, we decided to read Philippians 4:6-7 (KJV):"Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."  We both shared our views on the passage and then we both prayed. 

Soon after, Sere went to bed as she said she would. I then ate the meal she had prepared, sliced and refrigerated the fruits for her, tidied up and watched a few podcast episodes on YouTube. Before deciding to head out, I checked on her to ensure she was okay; she was curled up and sleeping peacefully. I whispered another short prayer and then I took my leave.

When I finally arrived home, I grabbed a quick shower and went straight to bed, but not before texting Sere to let her know I had arrived safely. I wanted to make sure she wouldn't have to worry when she woke up.

4 a.m.

I woke up feeling really drained, so I just laid in bed a little bit longer. It wasn't anything new; I'd been feeling this way for a while now. The constant fever, chills, and fatigue had become a part of my daily life. I'd been pushing it off as stress, but I decided to get a checkup done after I noticed that my lymph nodes were swollen, and I was gradually losing weight. I consulted my personal doctor, and he had me do a physical examination as well as blood tests to check for abnormalities. 

When the results came back, they were indeed abnormal; my WBC were really high. I panicked at the thought of the possible issues the doctor told me about and he later referred me to a specialist who carried out a bone marrow biopsy, and flow cytometry. I haven't received the results as yet and neither have I informed Sere about anything. She is someone who cares a lot and I know if she knew she'd drop everything to ensure that I was okay. She has been working really hard to get promoted and I really don't want to hinder her from doing her upmost best.   

Mustering the strength I finally got out of bed, I said my morning prayer, took a shower, got dressed and replied to Sere's message. She had sent a prayer via voice note like she did every morning since we made 'US' official.

I then whipped up something quick for breakfast and as soon as I took a bite of my apple and started scrolling on insta, my phone rang. It was my grandfather's caretaker. With the way she spoke I could tell right away that something was wrong and indeed it was. My grandfather had passed away. 

Disclaimer: With the fact that my book includes references to leukemia and its treatments, please note that artistic liberties have been taken for storytelling purposes.

N.B: I have made quite a few changes to the previous chapters just to tweak things up a bit and to ensure a great storyline. 

Thank You All For 633 reads, I really do appreciate it. 

#Road To 1000