The Blue House S03 E09

“Go!” Joke whispered to Ayodele who had begun trembling all over.
“Ayodele!” Dapo yelled again.
“I’m coming sir!” Ayodele said and finally walked out from behind the curtain, his entire body cold. Surely his father would kill him today, there was no way he could escape death after this kind of embarrassment.

“Come over here!” his father pointed to a spot beside him. Peace was looking at Ayodele, trying to tell him something with her eyes but Ayodele gaze was fixed to the floor, his mind imagining how his father would kill him.
“This girl is pregnant” Dapo waved a hand in Peace’s direction. “Are you the… did you impregnate her?”
“Err… no….”
“No? No? So who did? You are so wicked! If you didn’t impregnate her then who did?” Iya Ibeji was on her feet shouting at the top of her voice.
“Please keep quiet! This is not a market!” Dapo yelled at her.
“Don’t tell me to…”
“Sit down.” Iya Ibeji’s husband said calmly to her but she shook her head vigorously. “Sit down!” her husband yelled this time around. She sat down huffing, trying to suppress her rage at Ayodele and his parents.
“Young man,” Peace’s father began calmly. “When my daughter came to this house she was a virgin.” Iya Ibeji nodded her head in agreement.
“How do you know that?” Ronke said, suddenly angry.
Baba Ibeji held up his hands. “Madam please allow me to finish. When my daughter came here she was a virgin. You’re the only one that has been sleeping with her and now…”
“How do you know that?” Dapo asked this time around, this man was too calm for his liking, he made him question his Christianity. “Why don’t we ask her?”
Baba Ibeji took in a deep breath, he was a patient man but he didn’t like his intelligence being insulted just because he was poor. “Alright. Toyin, is there any other man you have been sleeping with?”
Peace placed her hands on her head and began to cry. How could she explain? She shook her head wishing she had never come to this house.
“Do you see? She shook her head, my daughter is not a promiscuous girl even though she has been doing an abominable thing with your son. She was well brought up and I believe your son was too. They have both made mistakes and she is already pregnant…”
“It was no mistake! The both of them were sinning happily!”
“Please let me finish sir. We have not come here to fight you or blackmail you we just want you accept that the baby she’s carrying belongs to your son according to our tradition. We do not have bastards in our family and it will not start with my daughter. That is all.”
Dapo laughed. “That is impossible! I will never do such a thing.”
“You have to, I‘ve not addressed the issue of my daughter being raped and…”
“She was not raped. I spoke…” Ronke said shaking her head.
“Keep quiet! What do you have to say?” Dapo dismissed her.
Ronke ignored him and spoke on. “As I was saying, I spoke to….”
“I said keep quiet, if you had been doing your job as a mother this would never have happened. You have nothing to say!”
“Dapo, if you had been doing your job as a father this would never have happened. Your irresponsibility and useless pride has brought us to this point. I told you to talk to your son but you refused, you were too afraid to talk about sex now see what has happened.”
Dapo slapped Ronke on the cheek angry that she had dared to reprimand him in front of their guests. Ronke took a few seconds to get over the shock of being slapped and then slapped him swiftly on both cheeks.
“You coward! If you ever raise your hands to me again I will cut it off!” Everyone including Joke who was still listening behind the curtain was stunned.
“Ronke you slapped me?”
“Oh yes I did and I will do it again. Look I’m no longer the same person you almost killed a few months ago. If you raise your finger to me I will raise my hand and if your raise your hand to me I will cut it off!” Ronke was wild, something in her had gone off.
The guests quietly rose, the conversation was over. “Iya Ibeji my son did not rape your daughter, I know that in my heart. We cannot accept a child that is not ours. Please leave.”
Baba Ibeji signaled to his family members and they walked out still stunned. At the door, Baba Ibeji turned back and said: “This is not over, our conversation is not over.”
“Get out!” Ronke screamed. Dapo rushed into the house and Ronke thinking that he was going to get something to harm her equally rushed into the kitchen.
“Get your siblings and stay in your room, don’t come out until I say so.”
“Yes ma” Ayodele said and dashed in.
Dapo rushed out of the room with his keys and storming out of the house. “I will deal with you.” He said to her as she reached the door.
“So will I” Ronke said pointing a knife at him, her eyes glinting like possessed woman.
**********
"Alright, bye!" Obiora ended the call.
"Who was that?" Helen came into the room with a plate of sliced apples.
"Ada."
"And you didn't let me talk to her?"
"I'm sorry. You know how she can be, I got tired of talking!" Obiora rolled his eyes. Ada was his kid sister and she was very close to Helen.
"Anyway how's she?"
"She's fine, she's been posted here in Lagos."
"Really? Wow that's great! So... where does she plan on staying?"
"Well she was more concerned about where to serve. She doesn't want to teach."
"Let her come and stay here!"
Obiora was relieved, Helen wouldn't miss him so much in his sister's company. "That's actually not a bad idea! Why didn't I think of that before?"
"Because you don't really love me." Helen rolled her eyes in mock exasperation.
"Aww...you know I love you so much!" Obiora grabbed her and pulled her to the bed.
"Obi please! I'm eating, don't distract me!"
"Well I want to eat you..." He whispered into her ears.
"Oh my God Obiora please don't repulse me! I'm enjoying this cold fruit." Helen shrugged him off pretending to immensely enjoy her apples.
"You better give me all the attention you can now before I leave!"
"Whatever Obi, please let me call Ada."
"With my phone?"
"Yes now!"
"It's going to cost you!" Obiora winked at her running his hands down her thighs.
Helen stopped and stared at his hands in mock disgust. "Please get your hands off me."
“Are you sure?" Obiora slid his hands higher enjoying every moment of his wife's seeming discomfort.
Helen rose gracefully and walked out of the room, "I'm not affected by you!"
Obiora laughed hard. "Let's prove it. Helen? Babe? My yellow candy? My heart is breaking...Helen?"
"It's not working!" Helen tried hard to stifle her laughter, the man did affect her.
**********
"What is going on at Mr Dapo's house?" Olayinka came into the sitting room with a tray and set it on a stool.
"Wait!"He was listening hard. He sighed after a few minutes. "Hmmn... Na wa o!"
"What's going on?"
"Apparently Ayodele and Peace had been having sex and now she's pregnant."
"What?"
"Yes o that must have been the reason she left."
"Wow! I can't believe it. The boy looks so quiet! I can't imagine what his father would do to him."
"Please let's decide when we want to talk to the kids on sex education."
"Yeah. Thank God Posi is not there."
"Yeah" Posi and the other kids in the compound had gone to a party on the street.
"The chicken looks good!" Effiong walked hastily to the tray and picked up a succulent shiny piece of roasted chicken.
"Delicious! I missed your cooking."
"And I've missed your compliments"
"Things are going to change." Effiong quickly gave her a kiss on the mouth before he convinced himself otherwise.
Olayinka's lips were set on fire.