'Can we...' Tobi made an almost inaudible strangling sound. Showing how very reluctant he was at saying that. His phone was on his ear as he paced a few metres of the large living room while he talked.
'.... We need to t...alk. I....want...' He squeezed his face in embrassment before continuing.
'I'm sorry. Can we meet and talk about it?' He finally let the words out flawlessly before looking back at Tife, who sat on a couch, leg crossed in some sort of bossy way for approval. It appeared he wasn't making any call. Just a little practice and how to apologise to Tori.
'If I were to be Tori, I would hangup after throwing a few swear words at you.' Tife added as she shook her head in disapproval. Settling more comfortably into the couch.
'Do you have a better idea.'Tobi threw her a competitive look.
'I've been thinking about it. But I don't know if you'll agree to it.' Tife said, uncrossing her legs and looking intently at Tobi like a wise old sage.
'Okay. Let's hear it first.' Tobi said, not sure how to interprete the suddenly 'serious-playful' countenance on Tife's face.
'The plan is, you'd go to one of the tall buildings or bridges in town and I'll take a video of you all aggressive and threatening to jump if Tori doesn't show up. I'll send it to her and Voila! after a few minutes, she'd show up right beside you.' Tife said as she smirked.
Okay, that plan is amazing.
Like amazingly stewpid. Tobi shook his head in dissapointment.
His sister had been watching a whole lot of telenovela these days.
'Do you have a better plan?' He asked looking at Tife with little hint of hope now.
'Yeah. What about you taking a mild poison and I'll be right there with the antidote...' Tife suggested again and Tobi cut in.
'Do you please have a better plan that doesn't involve me all desperate and suicidal?' All Tobi could do was ask that.
Tife laughed. 'If only you could just see your own face This is so hilarious.' She said trying to subdue her laughter. 'There is nothing better than pulling Tobi's legs for breakfast'
'It's not funny.' Tobi moaned.
'It sure is. I wasn't the one who asked you to push her out.' Tife said smiling up at her brother, adding more to his agony.
Tobi groaned then flung himself on another couch beside Tife's.
'I know. I am regretting my actions already but I'm just so lost. I'm not even sure if she would pick up my call. That's if she hasn't deleted my number off her contacts already. There is every possibilities she hates me so much she doesn't even want to see my shadow.' Tobi said. The worry in his voice made Tife stopped playing around.
'Why don't you go to the hospital and talk to her?' Tife suggested.
'That would have been a great idea if I know how her shift works or if she would even try to listen to me.' Tobi said then added. 'I don't know what to expect if I see her. I don't even think I'm ready to see her because I'm not so sure she wants to see me.' He replied reclining on the couch as he held his face with his palm depressingly.
'You need to work on your temper. You shouldn't make decisions while you're angry because you'll eventually end up making the wrong one. A decision you may forever regret.' Tife lectured.
Tobi was silent nor did he make any move. He remained in the same position while Tife only continued.
'You remembered that time we threw a surprise birthday party for you? Me and Mum? You remembered how you reacted? You made mum cry that day. Of course, she cried after you stormed out of the house obviously unaware of the backwash of what you did. Seeing mum cry made me so mad at you.' Tobi managed to look up at his sister to see a mixture of fury and sadness on her face. Only the fury was masking the sadness. It was apparent she was trying so hard to hold back the tears that flooded her eyes.
Tobi was surprised. Surprised because the one thing he admired about his sister is her ability to hide her hurt and he had never once see her cry.
A quality he has seen in no other woman but seeing her trying so hard to resist breaking down somewhat breaks his heart.
'Do you think you were the only one hurt by Dad? Mum was too and so was I! I may be young and never know him but he is my dad too. Atleast you had a memory of him. I don't! You guys don't even consider my feelings when you talk about him but I deserve to know cos he is my father too! Whenever I asked you or mum about him, you guys become mute. Things I know about him have always been the few details you guys spew when an unpleasant arguement ensued because of him.' Tife quickly rubbed off the tear that fell on her cheek and kept a straight face.
'That's not the point right now anyway. All I'm asking of you is to try and shove your own demand aside, consider Mum's happiness and my need to know my father. I can't just judge him based on what I hear you say!' Tife continued and it felt like she was letting out all she had been holding back for a long time.
'I know you think you are trying to protect Mum from making another mistake with dad. It's great you don't want her to get hurt but Mum had been sad for too long and don't you think she deserves to be happy now! And since her happiness lies with Dad and with you, if interviewing Dad and asking him for his own part of the story is all it takes to get her happiness back, then don't you think it's worth it?' Tife said and with that she ran up the stairs holding her face as she did.
Tobi doesn't just get it. Tife was okay just a few minutes ago why was sge being like this?
She had been holding that back, that's obvious, but was she supposed to add to his guilt by letting it out right now?
Tobi was left alone to brood. Brood about his sister and Tori at the same time. He never knew knew this was how Tife felt about their dad.
She was right.
They never talked to her about him. They don't want her to know about him but Tobi never knew there is something wrong with trying to protect her from being hurt like he had been all his life.
He never knew trying to protect his family is a crime.
He went up the stairs and stopped before Tife's door which was the first room on the right. His hand rested on the door handle then he changed his mind about pulling it.
She needs to be alone and he can as well give her that.
He strolled and stopped in front of the next room.
The guest room.
Tori's room.
He opened the door and let his eyes rove around the room while he still held the door handle. After a few minutes of eye-searching for nothing in particular, he entered the room gently closing the door behind him.
He thought about searching the room. He may find something that belonged to Tori even though he was sure the possibility was low because he had made sure to pack everything that belonged to her in the closet. If he was lucky enough to find something belonging to her, he would take it to the hospital and that would be an excuse for meeting her.
He saw a piece of paper on the floor and picked it up.
What good could a paper possibly do?
It was a receipt. A receipt for purchasing a Hublot wristwatch worth fifty five thousand naira by Toriola Metelewa.
Why the hell would she buy a wristwatch worth that much?
He crouched beside the bed and ransacked under it. His hand touched an object and he brought it out from under the bed. It was a square white box. He sat down on the bed to look at its content. It was a golden wristwatch.
And there was a small piece of paper beside it and what was written on it got Tobi's heart thumping.
Thumping so hard he thought his heart was bleeding.
'Happy Birthday Tobi!' Was carefully inscribed on it in ink.
She went this far to get him such a wristwatch when she doesn't even have that much?
How much could possibly be left with her to get her own place?
Something closed to nothing probably.
He crouched under her bed again and found a huge shopping bag. He groaned as he dragged the weighty bag out first while checked for other things under her bed. There was nothing else to see under her bed. The shopping bag was heavy and Tobi wondered what could possibly be inside.
Tobi brought out a square shaped frame from inside the bag with shaky hands. It was a canvas painting of him in suits. He was smiling widely while he stood with his hands in his pocket in the painting.
He looked authoritative and the painting signifies him a boss.
Tobi could feel his heart hammering at his chest as he brought out another frame. A rectangular frame now and it seemed like that was all that was in the bag.
The frame was a painting of his family. It was like that old picture he took with his dad and his mum with Tife holding her doll. It was that picture he was looking at the other day when Tori came into his room. She never gave the picture back that day.
Tobi looked at the tiny calligraphic lettering on the edge of the painting and read;
'A family is one of God's greatest gift to any man,
A family is also one of God's greatest task to man,
Only a great man will succeed in the task of keeping his family together.
Happy Birthday Tobi!
With love from Tori.'
Amazingly, Tori's voice dictated that to him in his head. He turned the painting over and boldly written there was;
'YOU SHOULD TALK TO YOUR DAD!'
Tobi didn't realised he was running. Running out of the room and down the stairs. The next thing he realised was he was in his car, driving in the direction he knew was the way to the hospital.
He got to the hospital and ran all the way through the halls and down to the hall he always find her. He felt relief sweep over him when he saw her walking with another female doctor as both walk towards him completely oblivious of his presence as she was engrossed in the conversation with her colleague.
She raised her head just in time to see him at the opposite end and she stopped walking as she locked gaze with him. Tobi didn't care whether she was going to punch him or bite him for what he was about to do. He didn't care about the consequences of his incoming action.
He just ran to her and engulfed her in a rib-breaking hug while he mummured I'm sorry with tears flooding his eyes.
*******************
Yemi Metelewa got off the cab she hired from the car park. She was determined to talk to her granddaughter who she knew wasn't going to come to her like she promised to. The driver helped her with the few things she had in the trunk and he zoomed off. Yemi stood by the roadside, obviously tired from the trip with her small luggage by her side.
She knew her granddaughter wouldn't be happy with her trip to Lagos without telling her beforehand. But she was sure if she had told her granddaughter in advance, she wasn't going to approve of her coming. Tori was that stubborn
Yemi was aging quickly and she needs nobody to remind her that she was. She worries a lot about Tori who she termed clueless and unaware of a lot of things. She loves her granddaughter and that had been the reason while she held it all back.
But it's time now.
Time to set all things straight.
'Ma, do you remember me?' Yemi adjusted her gaze to see the woman standing before her. Her sight was failing in contrast to her healthy body but once her sight adjusts correctly to something or someone, her memory works with the speed of light. She has a good memory for a woman in her late 60's.
Yemi realised the woman standing before her was clothed in an expensive lace attire with expensive jeweleries adorning her neck and ears. A big car was park a few distance away from where they were and it had the back door opened. A car, Yemi concluded thr woman before her got down from.
Yemi looked at the woman's face intently and her brain did the magic interpretation. Her face lit up in amazement, surprise and anger.
'Please come with me to my place. We'd talk when we get there.' Yemi was mute but consented after a while.
The woman ordered her driver to help Yemi with her things inside the almost filled trunk while Yemi went ahead to sit at the backseat and the woman came to join her after ensuring her driver loaded everything that was Yemi's inside the trunk.
©Fiyah
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