A twist of Fate (A Nigerian Love Story)

Chapter 15

Emeka was finally coming back home and Nneka was excited although she did not show it. She was not one to show her emotions and often kept a blank face. However, her son was coming home and she wanted to do everything to get him happy, and improve the bond they once shared. She made sure his favorite meal had been prepared and his former room was in a good condition. She also made sure that his ex Chioma did not only look cute but also sexy enough to welcome him. She was aware her son had a new girlfriend now as he told her, but no way would she let him marry someone else who was not Chioma. 

It was not long before there were noises outside and Nneka presumed her son and his girlfriend had arrived. She, her husband and Chioma were all in the sitting-room waiting for them to come in. When they did, she smiled as she looked her lovely son, and when she hugged him she realized how much she had missed him. 

"Hi dad" Emeka greeted his dad

"Hi mum" he said to his mum

"Welcome home Emeka. Kee ka imere (How are you)" she asked 

"I am fine mummy you look so beautiful" Emeka said still huggin her

"I have missed you Nna" Nneka said.  

"I have missed you too mum" Emeka replied and motioned for Ngozi to join him. It was at this moment that Nneka looked at the face of the girl Emeka came home with. Her face looked strangely familiar. Nneka could not fathom why. She could not remember ever seeing the face before, and she was one to remember faces. She decided to let it go, and was about to welcome the lady when she noticed something strange. Emeka's girlfriend was staring at her husband like she had seen a ghost. Nneka glanced at her husband briefly and noticed that for the barest second he had looked at the young lady like he recognized her too. What was going on here Nneka wondered? This lady and her husband had given each other the weirdest of the looks which no one else noticed as their facial expression changed within seconds. However, she who was very detailed had noticed everything. To make matters worse, the lady's face looked familiar. Nneka would have brushed this off, but for the looks that had been exchanged. She was detailed to a fault and knew when something was amiss. However, she decided to deal with that later. Her son was back and she was going to enjoy every moment with him. She then exchanged pleasantries with the lady in order not to arouse suspicion and to make her son happy

"Hi dear. How was your journey?" Nneka asked Ngozi

"It was fine ma." Ngozi replied and Nneka nodded

"Hi, I am Chioma" Chioma said as she came to say hi to Ngozi

"I am Ngozi" Ngozi replied and they shook hands

As pleasantries were being exchanged, Emeka cleared his throat and said " I know mum knows this, but I would like to officially introduce you guys to my girlfriend Ngozi"

"Hi again" Ngozi said and smiled a little. One could tell that she was shy and not used to all the attention she was getting 

Everyone smiled and clapped a little including Chioma, who behaved like she was nothing but a cousin to Emeka. One would not have guessed that she was Emeka's ex. She seemed to have picked up few things about composure and hiding of emotions from Emeka's mum. On his side, Emeka wondered why Chioma was there and could sense that Ngozi was uncomfortable. He was pissed at his mum for inviting Chioma even though he told her he had a new girlfriend. His mum could be really annoying and he wondered why she behaved the way she did sometimes. However on her side, Ngozi seemed to be taking it all well and kept smiling. Chioma too behaved like they were merely relatives. She smiled and spoke to Ngozi like a fellow sister. There was no tension and Emeka was grateful for that. After all the exchanges of pleasantries, the cook announced that food was ready and the lot when to the dinning to eat. 

                                                                                 ******

It was close to midnight and it had been a long day for everyone. The lot had eaten, drank, talked and laughed like they were all one big family. Ngozi had given a little history of herself (Only what she and Emeka had rehearsed) and Chioma had done the same too. She had even gone to the extent of giving Ngozi tips on how to treat Emeka better. Even Nneka and Anselem had joined the train and had talked and laughed like never before. It was all fun and games and Emeka seemed to have forgotten that he was upset that Chioma was present. With the way things were moving, Chioma could pass as his sister and not his ex. However Nneka had not forgotten, and neither had she forgotten about the weird look Ngozi and Anselem had exchanged. After the meal, and when the house had been cleaned up, it was very late and everyone was exhausted. 

Nneka had just taken her night bath and was ready to go to bed. But she was waiting for Anselem to join her. When he finally did, she went up to him in her skimpy bight dress and kissed him like never before making sure his guard was down

"Today was a really good day was it not?" She began

"It really was dear. It sure was" Anselem replied and one could tell he was not really himself

"Ngozi seem to be a nice lady" Nneka continued

"Yes, that is correct"

"I feel like I have met her before. I just do not know where" 

"Wait, you have what" Anselem asked with fear before quickly regaining his composure. At that moment, Nneka was sure beyond doubt that something had definitely transpired between her husband and Ngozi. The reaction her husband had just given confirmed it all. 

"I just don't know sweetheart but you have to go take a shower okay" Nneka said to Anselem and lay back on the bed. Anselem nodded and left for the bathroom leaving his wife thinking.

As Nneka went through memory lane trying to recall where she had seen Ngozi, her phone buzzed. It was a text from her service provider, and she deleted it instantly. She looked at her wallpaper which was a picture of herself and she admired how she looked. Like one in a trance, she went to her photos and began to admire herself. And that was when she saw it, the pictures she had taken of her husband days ago. She had not captured the lady's face quite well but at the moment it suddenly dawned on her. The lady with her husband that day was Ngozi. Suddenly it all made sense. This was why Ngozi looked familiar to her. This was why Ngozi and her husband had exchanged weird glances. This was the same name she had heard her husband speaking to on phone. Everything fell in place like a puzzle waiting to be solved. This implied that Ngozi was not just an "unclassy" lady as she had figured out the first time she saw her, but she was also having an affair with Anselem. At this moment, Nneka did not know if to be happy or angry. Angry because she had finally found the little bitch that her husband seemed to want to impress, and happy because she had finally found something to make her son leave the whore. Whatever would be the outcome of this, Nneka knew she had to play her game well.