Five Days Later

Calabar, Cross River State

Ekaette had known that going home to be with her family was not an escape.

Loving them was not the same as wanting to be with them, but she had gone anyway to distract herself. Their presence in her life represented pressure, the type she could not do without. Right now, they were messing with her head with the different issues they presented. Although it wasn’t a refreshing experience to be with them, it gave her a break from the turmoil of heartache.

“Offiong will be joining you in Lagos next month,” her father declared. He was not seeking permission or asking if it was convenient, he simply told her that her sixteen year-old sister would soon be her responsibility, an addition to all that she was already doing.

“Papa, why? Offiong is still in school!”

Her father laughed.

“Offiong does not have a book-head like you. We have only kept her in school because you agreed to pay her school fees. Now, we need the money for something else.”

Her family had always been entitled, but this decision to suddenly dump Offiong on her and divert the money Ekaette was investing  into her education showed a new level of audacity.

“Papa, do you think it has been easy sending all that money and doing the best for the family? I do it because I have to, to ensure my family has food, and that my siblings can be empowered to make their money too. If you stop Offiong from going to school, what kind of future will she have?”

Her father moved closer, as though she finally made sense with her last question.

“That is why Offiong will follow you to Lagos, the land of opportunities. She can sew clothes well. You know this, because she has made some for you. In Lagos, people will pay her more for sewing than here. She can even get a job as a tailor somewhere. That way, we are putting her where she would be most useful. You can give us an advance of her school fees for your brother, Ubong’s wedding.”

Ekaette took in deep breaths to avoid losing it. She held herself from saying anything she would come to regret to the man.

“Why is Ubong getting married?” Ekaette asked, unable to hide the disgust from her voice. Her brother was only in his mid twenties and he had no job. Her mother came in and interrupted the conversation.

“So, because you have chosen to be a reverend sister, your brother too should choose that lifestyle?”

“Welcome back, Mama!”

“Don’t welcome me back. When are you getting married? You are our pride and joy in this family. You should have married a big man by now, a politician or someone close.  But, no, you are forming christian sister.”

“My marital status is not the issue here. Why is Ubong getting married? Was it not recently he graduated from school? Does he have a job?”

“But at least, he will perform his duty by increasing the family size. We need children,” her mother protested.

Ekaette was livid. Ninety percent of the money her family spent was provided by her, yet her parents were encouraging Ubong.

“We are barely surviving! Why do we need to increase our number?”

“Money is not everything, Ekaette,” she responded, a bit calmer this time.

“Yet, you expect me to send as much as I can every month. I am stressed out, my life is hard. I did not complain until now because I have always looked forward to sharing that responsibility with my siblings soon.”

Ekaette’s father looked remorseful.

“Ubong got a girl pregnant, that is why he is getting married.”

Ekaette sighed in frustration, and her mother came to her side.

“You won’t be under this much pressure if you had a husband. You are a very beautiful girl, it would be easy to get a rich man to marry you if you are determined. Come back to Cross River, attend church, and community meetings, you will meet a man there.”

For the first time in her life, Ekaette held her mother’s gaze to make a point.

“I am not moving back here.”

Her mother looked away.

“As long as you don’t bring someone from Yoruba, Hausa, or any of these strange tribes, it won’t matter where you live.”

Ekaette laughed.

“So beyond getting married at all, it must be to someone from here?”

“I am only advising you, for the sake of your future happiness.”

“What if I bring home a white man?” Ekaette said humorously to make them laugh, and change the mood, but no one was laughing anymore. They looked at her like she made no sense.

‘I guess it’s a good thing the white man I fell in love with has disappeared,’ Ekaette thought. She couldn’t bear Khalid being regarded unkindly.

Khalid!

He was back in her heart like he never left. Her family drama was not enough to drown him out. 

 A constant ache. 

A familiar memory.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Lagos, Nigeria

“Nobody here goes by that name!” the receptionist said to Khalid the third time that morning.

“E-kathy works here. She told me.”

The receptionist sighed. She didn’t mean to respond harshly to the white man, but she was clueless on how to help him.

From the look on her face, Khalid knew that she was genuine, yet he couldn’t leave there. He was sure that this hospital was where Ekaette said she worked.

There was no other way to meet her than to have come here. His phone was with the U.S military, and they wouldn’t give it back. A Colonel had sent a covert message to him when he was in surgery. The message had been meant for someone else in the military. They had claimed to have wiped it, but for precaution, they seized his phone and gave him a new one. The only thing he knew was where she worked. He had sent countless messages to the hospital email, but got no response.

Thankfully, he had been processing a Nigerian visa since he came back from Dubai. As soon as it got approved, he took the next flight and came to Lagos to look for her.

E-kathy! The love of his life!

How can they not know a woman who claimed to have worked here all her life. 

Khalid was still arguing with the receptionist when a man walked in.

“Good morning, Dr. Jude,” the receptionist greeted the man politely and he nodded in response. He was about to walk away when his name registered. It must have been E-Kathy’s boss, she had mentioned him more than once.

“Dr Jude!” Khalid called out, and the man turned back.

“Are you E-kathy’s boss?”

Dr Jude looked at him quizzingly.

“I am not sure I know that person.” Dr Jude said.

“Sir, I have told him no one by that name works here.”

Dr Jude made to walk away, but there was a genuine look on the man’s face that made him want to help.

“Why are you here to see this person?”

Khalid sighed. He had thought coming to Nigeria and locating the hospital she worked was going to be the hardest part.

“She is my girlfriend. We lost contact and I came here to find her. It’s a bit of a mess really.”

Dr Jude looked at Khalid as though he was weighing him.

“What is this girl’s name again?”

“E-kathy.”

“E-kathy!” Dr Jude repeated and the name sounded familiar.

“Do you mean Ekaette?”

“Yes!” Khalid screamed. “E-kathy! You got it!”

Both Dr Jude, and the receptionist laughed uncontrollably, and Khalid was suddenly confused. Their laughter was a rude shock. What was funny? he wondered.

“Ekaette does not have a boyfriend!” The receptionist said.

“I am happy to hear that!” Khalid replied. He pulled out a picture of himself and Ekaette from his phone, “that is because I am the man in her life!”

“The man that has caused her grief?” Dr Jude retorted, gauging Khalid’s expression, before he could give a response, the object of their conversation walked into the office.

“Good morning, Dr Jude,” Ekaette said cheerfully, and smiled at the receptionist in greeting, “has my patient in Ward 4 been discharged?”

When no one answered her, she was forced to look up at the white man with them, wondering what it was about him that made the others unable to answer her.

“Khalid?” His name was a question. A whisper.

“Am I running mad?” she asked but was already jumping into his arms. Khalid carried her up and swung her like a baby.

“I have missed you so much,” he said, his eyes misty.

“You can take the day off, but that’s it. I want you back on top of your game from tomorrow.” Dr Jude said, leaving them.

Ekaette nodded in gratitude, she literally just got back from her trip yesterday. Today was her first day back at work, yet her boss had come through for her again.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Everything Khalid said made sense! Yet Ekaette was still angry.

She had jumped into his arms in a hug of relief, and pent up anxiety. Now that she had gotten it out of her system, she wanted to vent.

They had gone to Sheraton hotel, where Khalid had lodged, but had stayed in the restaurant.

“Don’t you have anything to tell me?” Khalid asked, frustrated.

Ekaette sipped her drink and looked away.

“What else do you want me to say? It’s not my fault. I came to find you as soon as I got Visa to Nigeria.”

The last part of his statement amused her.

“You actually needed Visa to fly into Nigeria?”

“Yes! Luckily, I had been applying for one since I got back from Dubai.”

Ekaette smiled, gradually loosening up. She then allowed him to hold her hand.

“Khalid, I was losing my mind. I was scared.”

“I am sorry” Khalid replied, bringing her hands to his lips. As if the contact was not sufficient, he rose to sit by her side.

“The U.S military contacted my family to let them know I was safe, just in protective custody. They didn’t contact you because to them, you didn’t exist. I don’t want that to happen again. These past weeks showed me one thing. I want to be with you. I want you to have access to me, at all times. I want to have the same access to you.”

Ekaette scooted closer to him, her head on his shoulder.

“I want you to marry me,” Khalid said. He had been thinking about it throughout his trip. No other woman had ever made him feel this way, and he did not want to lose her.

Ekaette pulled back in shock.

“Marriage is a very permanent thing, Khalid. We are not even dating yet.”

Khalid moved towards her and planted a kiss on her lips, as though to make a point.

“You are my girlfriend!”

“I am?” Ekaette asked, smiling.

“That’s what I told them at your hospital, and with the way you jumped on me when you saw me, I’m sure you confirmed it.”

“Khalid! You disappeared. I just found you, and now we are getting married?”

Khalid smiled and kissed her again. She smiled back at him and quickly ended the kiss.

“We are in public.” Ekaette said.

“So I can’t kiss my fiancee.” Khalid protested.

“Wow, this is escalating quickly.”

“The only escalation I want is ‘wife’.”

Ekaette sighed, and Khalid frowned.

“What is the problem? You don’t want to be with me?”

Ekaette cradled his face.

“You know I do, but everything is happening so fast. I want to catch my breath, get to know you, be your friend, pray with you, and ask God if moving to America to be your wife is the plan.”

Khalid smiled.

“I don’t mind moving to Nigeria to be your husband,” Khalid responded, and they both bursted into laughter, knowing it was not true.

“How long are you here for Khalid?”

“As long as it takes to convince you!” he replied.

“I am confused. Did you quit your job?”

“Desk duty, but after my surgery, I scored another three months leave for recovery, and I plan to spend it here in Lagos, so I can meet your friends and your family. I also want to convince you to leave them so we can start a new life together.” Khalid said, his hands on her shoulders holding her tight.

“I guess it’s official. You are my boyfriend.”

“Fiance!” Khalid protested, and Ekaette smiled.

“Meet my family first, then you can decide if you still want to marry me.”

“Nothing will stop it from happening. God Himself told me.”

Ekaette laughed at his courageous outburst. “Then tell Him to tell me too,” she said.

Khaild smiled.

“You mean He hasn’t told you yet? Don’t worry, I will remind Him.”

Ekaette smiled back into his eyes and he couldn’t resist kissing her forehead.

“This is a done deal, Ekaette, we will be together.” Khalid said. This time, Ekaette didn’t say anything. She just let her head slip unto his chest while he closed his arms around her. For the first time in her life, she felt safe, protected, and confident to face life.

“I am so grateful to Dubai, and that toast.” Ekaette said, and they both smiled, remembering the journey that brought them here.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Wow! What a story! 

Love sometimes comes from unlikely places but is beautiful nonetheless.

Did you enjoy this Dubai Novella, “Love On Toast?” What part of the story stood out for you the most? Please don’t leave without writing a review.