Friday 8 April 2016

Must Read: The Cleaning Lady…

A story written by Metalgear… (5C350257)
“You promise you will not let my aunt know about this? I…I really…she…she can be very wicked at times and I don’t want her to find out.”
“Why would I want to tell her about it? Of course I won’t tell her. Not her, not anybody. This is and will remain between us.”
“You promise? You men always talk about these things after promising not to mention it.”
He placed his right hand over her heart. He could feel it beating rapidly. “Trust me. I won’t tell anybody. The day you hear about it from anyone else would be the day I drop dead.”
She turned around and moved to the other side of the room, her back towards him.
“What if someone tells her? She may send me back home.” She still sounded unconvinced.
He could see she was really thinking hard. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s not such a good idea. Maybe I should just leave.”
“Look Sheila, I’ve told you no one will know. I promise to make it worth your while. Please don’t think I’m toying with you or taking advantage of you. You are not a loose girl. I just need your help. You are the only one I could think of after…you know…I mean I don’t want to force you and will understand if you don’t want to, but please do this for me.”
She thought for a few more moments and sighed. ”Okay. I trust you. But nobody must know. This remains strictly between us”.
Kunle nodded slowly, pleased with himself. Sheila slowly turned around and moved towards where he stood. Reaching him, he quickly pulled her into his arms before she had second thoughts…
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
“Ki ni gbogbo trash yi gaan na?” she screamed at him. “Igba ti o mo pe o le ba obinrin sun, why do you disturb me for sex?”
He was on his knees naked, begging and pleading with her.
“Lara jo. Ma binu. I don’t know why it’s always happening like this.”
Lara stood up and grabbed her clothes from where they had tossed them.
“I don’t think I want to be with a man who cannot perform. This is the fourth time and I’ve had it. Just look at yourself. I brought myself down to your level just to please you and everyone, but look at what I got myself into. I’m engaged to an impotent buffoon. Well, not anymore.”
She yanked off the ring from her finger and flung it at him. The insult stung him to his very core. She dressed up again and grabbed his clothes, flinging them at him.
“Ma ko oshi e lo jare. Iwo okobo oloriburuku yi. Get the fuck out of my house!!!!!”
She pushed him out of the door, not even giving him the chance to dress up properly.
“Lara jo ma shey bayi si mi now”
“Abi o ya were ni? I said get out of here!!!! Aminu!!!!!!!!” she shouted at the gateman. “Come carry this useless idiot out of here. And I must not see him in this house again, or else you are fired!!!!”
Kunle dejectedly dressed up and left. On his way home, he pondered. How dare she do this to him? After all they’ve been through together?
The alarm on his phone buzzed loudly, waking him up with a start. He stretched and yawned, looking at the window as the first rays of dawn began lightening up the sky. It was time to get up and prepare for work.
Kunle lazily threw the covers back. He stood up and headed for the bathroom. Looking at the mirror, he saw a haggard looking 27 year old with bloodshot eyes staring back. He hadn’t slept much since the incident at Lara’s place three days ago. He had tried calling her several times but she never picked up. Afterwards the calls weren’t even going through. He decided the first thing he was going to do that weekend was to apologize to her and surprise her.
Kunle sighed and started his shower. He had just about 30 minutes to get ready and head to the park where the staff bus usually picked him and other workers up. He finished up and jumped into his shirt, tie, and trousers and grabbed his laptop bag. Mama Akosua, the motherly Ghanaian woman who had set up a food kiosk at the park at end of the road should be waiting with his breakfast. He had made it a habit of always having breakfast of hot wakkye, plantain, egg and fish with the woman and she always had it packed, hot and ready for him, no matter how many customers stormed her shop in the mornings.
He stepped out of his one-room self-contained boys-quarters behind the main building of four apartments and almost ran into the cleaning lady. Her cart of mops, brooms, and cleaning products was parked right in the middle of the pathway and he almost toppled it over in his haste to dash out. She came running over.
To Be Continued…

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