Dear Diary

Chapter 1

      Song for the chapter- Home by Passenger

         
              "So am I loveless? Do I just love less? Or since love left I have nothing left for you? "
Kambili enjoyed singing to herself, one of the few novelties she still enjoyed, although her voice was not opera worthy, more than a few people had been quick to remind her.
She looked at her new living quarters, it would do for now.
          "So of all the places in Enugu, you chose this hovel. "
Grace was sitting at the dining, legs crossed, nose scrunched up, the picture of snobbish elegance.

Considering this was a three bedroom apartment that had plumbing and water and came fully furnished in one of the nicest  neighbourhoods in Maryland, she ignored her sister.
She started a mental list of all the things she needed to do, unpack her clothes and books, those were all she had brought with her.
But first, she needed to clean up the house, although it had been professionally cleaned before she moved, she needed something to do, needed to keep her hands busy, her mind busy.
              Her phone rang suddenly startling her, she jumped then got annoyed with herself. Why was she so jumpy?  She ignored the call, she had an idea who was calling and she did not want to pick.

      "Aren't you going to pick up your calls? "
Grace asked after the phone rang for the fifth time.
"Why don't you mind your own business? "she retorted and hissed. 
"Nawa oh,calm down. Someone's in a bad mood."
"Leave me alone. "
"Gosh. Sorry. Just that you don't have a lot of friends, stop ignoring the few friends you have... "
" I said leave me the fuck alone okay? Mind your business. "
Grace hissed and left.  Then she was alone.

             It took the whole afternoon and evening to clean up the house and then unpack her books and clothes. She was going through her books, most of them her beloved paperbacks, when she saw it. She thought she had left it behind. Her first reaction was to throw it at the door. Then guilt and common sense returned and she picked it up and placed it at the bottom of the pile of books she arranged in the cupboard. She needed to get a lot of things, all she had was furniture, no paintings, pictures, she needed to make this house a home.
          That could wait till tomorrow she thought, tomorrow she would make her list, right now she was tired and hungry. She left the room for the living room and checked the time on her phone, 7:58pm. Wow, time really flew. It seemed to do that a lot around her lately. Right now she had worked up an appetite, what to eat, what to eat, she didn't even have gas.

           She left her house, left Grace sulking in her room, to find what to eat.  This was exactly the kind of neighbourhood she had asked her agent to find for her, well she had been here before, when she was  a student.
            This place was peaceful, consisted mostly of upper middle class families, bankers, managers, doctors. The kind of neighbourhood that had curfews, and where you felt safe.
          There was a shop at the end of the street, she greeted the woman who looked at her curiously, they had all seen her moving in and wondered who she was, this their new neighbour.
"Nno. " the woman replied to her greeting.
"Daalu." she answered. Look tired, she told herself don't smile. She did not want to initiate conversation. She asked for Golden Morn and a sachet of powdered milk with two bottles of water. Then on second thought, sugar and a tin of condensed milk. The woman did not ask any questions which she was grateful for, she paid and left. She was already half Way back when she realised she had nothing to eat the cereal with. She had to go back to get a plastic disposable plate and spoon.
  

               Back in her house, she made her dinner and ate slowly. Thinking of what to do the next day. The items she still needed, she needed to fill up her gas, buy cutleries, kitchen equipment, basic household items, she needed a car.
And when she had fully moved in, what would she do with her life now?
           She was thirty years old and had accomplished nothing, the very thought was depressing.
"Cease the pity party will you? "  Grace again. 
"Ugh!  You still eat this?  How old are you again? "  
                 She ignored her sister. Sometimes, that was the best way to answer her. She finished her meal and washed the plate. Then she went to her room to bathe and laid on her bed and tried to fall asleep. Probably because she was very tired, she was soon fast asleep.

Soooooo,  we're off.
Hello everyone, I'm so excited to share this story with you. I promise it gets better, the more you read anyways. 
So Nno means welcome. That's Igbo language and Daalu means Thank you. She's in Enugu which is a predominantly Igbo speaking state, so you'll hear snatches of igbo here and there.
Soooooo, what do you think, any thoughts, if you're a bit lost, just keep reading, it gets better, I swear.
Don't forget to add to your library, like and comment.