TO LAST A LIFETIME

Mr Peterson

*Pidgin English down this chapter but I've given the translations*

Gennie

Throughout the week I was busy with moving my stuff, Daniel had helped me find a truck to move my things, he was really a thoughtful and supportive person, Emily was darn lucky.

I had called Wesley after settling in, Emily's apartment felt a bit different and uncomfortable. I knew that was because it was my first few days of moving in, I had slept here many times but it was quite different moving in.

"Don't worry you'll feel comfortable in no time!" She'd said once when she noticed how it was hard for me to find things.

The most exciting thing about moving in was that I didn't have to cook a meal, I woke up to breakfasts and went to bed with a delicious meal in my belly. Emily was indeed the perfect wife material. Was I? Was I even ready to settle down with anyone? The thoughts of picking up laundry and cleaning up and doing the cooking sounded so much not my thing. But just in case...in case being the keyword, just in case Wesley wanted us to settle before Purity was born would I accept? Is that how I wanted to be married? Because of an unplanned baby! Of course not, I wanted to be married because someone loved me and wants to spend his entire life with me, not because he feels he needs to give a baby a family, what about the mom?

It wouldn't even get to that, Wesley just got out a commitment, I don't think he would want to rush into another one, he wouldn't even want to settle with an African, the distance and the race was just too wide.

I sighed. What would Purity even look like? Where would he be born? Certainly not America, I wanted him to be born in Nigeria. What if Wesley wanted otherwise, sure he would! This was messy, it was a tough decision to make.

I took a gulp of my chocolate tea I had just made. It tasted good. Emily came into the kitchen, she found me by the counter.

"You know too many thoughts aren't good for a pregnant woman, high blood pressure is the last case we want!"

"This isn't how I planned my life!" I said.

"Things do fall apart, and the most wonderful things in life are usually the unplanned one, look you're having a baby and you'll be traveling the shores of America like going home did you plan that? Certainly no!"

"That's the point, such expensive travelings aren't for me, I want a peaceful and quiet life with my family, not putting a child on a flight every holiday to meet his father, that's not the kind of life I want for my child!"

"I know how difficult that can be, and that's by the way, for my traditional marriage I was thinking maybe we should add fruits to the meals what do you think?"

"That would be crazy! I've never heard of anyone sharing fruits in their traditional marriage, discard that idea asap!"

"Whatever! But they'll be muffins and puff-puff?!"

"Emily just let the planners do their work!"

Rain fell later that evening, I sat by the window looking at every drop of the rain, I wanted to be on my own, thankfully Emily had gone out.

I strolled to my phone, picking it up at the second ring.

"Hello!"

"Hello my princess, it's so nice to hear from you after so long!"

The voice sounded a bit familiar, I was mentally waiting for the voice to register on my brain when it didn't, I asked.

"Sorry, but you're?"

"Come on my princess, have you grown so forgetful? It's your daddy!"

My daddy? Mr. Peterson? Mom said he was going to call, finally, he did, what did he want?

"What do you want?" My voice was flat.

"Aww come on darling is this how you talk to your father after so many years? Don't be this harsh, Princess!"

"You didn't answer my question! What do you want Mr. Peterson?"

"Your mother told me you're in Abuja, you had a job and you didn't even reach out to me to see how I'm fairing, that's not how to take care of family!"

"I don't have time for this, what exactly is your point?"

My voice was harsher than I had intended.

"The tink be say, your Papa no get money to take spoil himself and since you get work for big company and I hear say you went Yankee, na I reason say money dey so make you help me with small cash nah, abeggi! (The thing is that your father has no money to spoil himself, and since you're working for a big company and you went to America, I know you have money, and I want you to help me with small cash!)" He said in Pidgin. (Translation in bracket)

"Dem send you? Oh! You don sabi me abi? Listen well well, you no be my concern, nah you first talk am, so park well well! (Oh! You now know me right? Listen well, you're not my concern, you said it first! So don't bother me!)"

"See, see your mouth, I go land beta slap for your face, becos you get small barrel that one no mean say you get right to insult me any how, Olosho! (Fat mouth! I'll give you a hard slap on your face, because you have loose change doesn't mean you should insult me! Slut!)" He said, his tone raspy.

"No vex but I no get money to carry throw away, abeg, commot for my phone I dey very busy! (Don't get mad, but I don't have such money to waste!" I spoke audibly into the phone.

"My princess, abeg no vex for that tink where I just talk now now, abeg since morning I never chop anything, abeg just arrange small tink give your Papa abeg, I go text you my account number, abeggi! (My princess do not vex 'cause of what I just said, since morning I haven't eaten anything, please send some money to me, I'll send my bank account number to you! I beg!" His tone softened.

Before I could say anything he hung up, probably his airtime was off. Since he'd abandoned us years ago, this was the first time I heard from him, obviously, he was stricken with poverty. Thank goodness he left mom and I. His abuses resurfaced on my mind. The terrible things he said to me, the bruises and hunger, his neglect, all those terrible things came back to my mind.

My phone beeped, I opened the message, his full name, and bank account number was there on my message box.

I wanted to ignore it, to delete the message, to pay him in his own coins to tell him to go to his new family, but I couldn't, even though he was disrespectful, he called me a slut, I had never slept with anyone for money, all the men I had known not even one was for money, but behind the doors of a relationship, Wesley was the very first man I slept with without a relationship. I had planned for a hit and run, not knowing I'll be hooked for life! So his harsh words now meant nothing to me.

I sighed, after giving it many thoughts I transferred twenty thousand Naira to his account through my online mobile transfer. After some minutes he called again! Dang!

"Hello!"

"Na only twenty thousand you fit send? Wetin twenty thousand fit buy me? (Is it just twenty thousand you can send? What can twenty thousand buy me?)" His greedy tone vibrated through the speaker of my phone.

"You know what I would've done for myself with that money? Twenty thousand Naira is enough for anyone to start up a small business, it can feed you for a month. You're just ungrateful!" I snapped.

"No insult me on top this chicken change! I go wire you wen this one don finish, nah you line be this bah? (Do not insult me over a loose change! I'll call you when I'm done spending this one, this is your phone number right?)" He giggled greedily. He was still the same old greedy man. Eek!

"Of course! Bye!" I ended up on him. I was already choked up by his hoarse voice, it brought the same chills to me as the nights he came home drunk.