WAZOBIA: A Tale of Two worlds

19

I couldn't sleep as early as I  planned. Faust's sober look disturbed my closed eyes.

I got up and tied my robe, looking around for my slippers. My door was cracked open promptly as i realised the house was still busy. I took a glance at the stairway clock; it was 11:52.

I made my way downstairs toward the last room beside the solar installations in the house and overheard gossips and laughter of the helps who were now sharing Fausti's room. I cocked my ears; I didn't hear Fausti.

"Girls, me heru m ụzọ,"  I said audibly as I knocked on the door.

"Aunty Simbi, I'm coming!" I heard one of the girls inside slap her slippers towards the door.
It opened wide and the help, Naza, peeked her head through from behind the door.

"Aunty Good evening," came the unanimous greeting from all the helps. I didn't hear her voice.

I  scanned for Faustina through the dimly lit room and found her lying at the edge of the bed, eyes wide open, facing the wall. She was completely silent and unstirred, index fingernail grazing the wall.

"Good evening," I said and cleared my throat.

"Fausti,"

She continued to graze the dry wall with her fingers, making scratch noises with each scrape; as if she didn't hear my voice.

The help directly beside her slapped her arm.

"Come on gbọzọ ọtọ! Can't you hear your name?"

Faustina stopped grazing for a second and looked at me.

"Yes," she managed to mumble.

There was a short silence.

"Ehem, Fausti, there's a nice movie on, Africa Magic, do you want to watch?"

All the helps turned to look at her, waiting breathlessly for an answer and as if daring her to say no.

She continued to stare at the wall, then nodded her head vaguely.

The girls followed Fausti's every move as she slowly got up from the bed and more slowly walked towards the door.

"Good night girls," I said, then Naza closed the door after me.

I hadn't even begun to walk down with Fausti before the gossips erupted from inside the room.

Fausti and I walked upstairs silently. I could imagine the thoughts running through her head. Mostly thoughts of Daniel.

I didn't even know how I would start to convince her but I hoped the AMIgbo movie I saved for her tonight, would. Maybe if she watched enough of the wickedness of men; she'd finally learn to hate them.

I turned on the AC at the end of the room and dimmed the lights. Then switched on the curved TV on the wall and made myself comfortable on the duvet, beside Fausti, who had already buried herself in the pillows.

The movie began with that traditional Igbo flute playing and introductions; meaning, the names of all the cast and crew in the movie were being shown slide after slide in a black screen with the obnoxious and slightly irritating flute playing in the background.

Local AM movies were usually just comic to me but they always held certain morals and portrayed ills of the society. This one in particular was going to show Fausti just a pinch of how devious and vile men are. But I wasn't going to let her watch it to the absolute end because then there would be this obscene moral lesson on "forgiveness" or some other stupid charity. Men weren't to be 'forgiven'. They were to be punished. Simple.