He’d had a couple of
girlfriends through his years in the University. He didn’t have to lift a
finger. The girls always came to him. Sometimes, he didn’t know whether his
good looks were a blessing or curse. The only exception was the lady who had
captured his heart. Witty, good-natured , energetic and strong, Lisa had been
the love of his life. The lady he could die for and spend the rest of his life with.
A car in front of him refused to move even after the traffic light had changed
to green. He horned for the car to move. Realizing the car was stuck; he signaled
and pulled away. He hated what the traffic in Lagos did to him on week days. As
if work wasn’t stressful enough, he had to deal with the traffic on a regular
basis. He prayed for alternate means of transportation in the state. Hopefully,
Lagos State would have trains that would run effectively one day. That would
make life easier. His thoughts returned to Lisa. Honey, I’ll call you back had
been her last words to him. She had died in a ghastly car accident on her way
to a friend’s traditional wedding in Eastern Nigeria. That had been a month to
their wedding. The house was all set for her to move in. The wedding planning had been going smoothly. When he had tried ceaselessly to reach her hours later to
know whether she had gotten to her destination without any luck, he’d begun to
panic. His instincts told him something was wrong. Very wrong.
Five years had gone by
so swiftly. He has thirty- four and unmarried. His friends had tried without
luck to get him to date. Ladies made passes at him. His present secretary,
Omotara wasn’t sparing him daily. She was single and available and she made it
a point of duty to let him realize that every time. She didn’t say it with
words. Her eyes, dressing and body language said it all every time. He’d been
celibate for a while. There were times he was tempted madly. Nana pressured him
every time he spoke with her on the phone or traveled to see her in Ghana. His
siblings were worried too. That was what drove him to ask Aduke to go with him
to Ghana. She had been a friend for as long as he could remember. They attended
the same high school in Ghana. While abroad, they exchanged e-mails
occasionally. He couldn’t think of anyone else apart from her but her voice had
been sharp and frank when she’d called him to let him know that she wouldn’t be
going ahead with his game plan. He felt like a complete fool for asking her.
His life had been about work and more work. He was fast getting tired of going
home to an empty house. Perhaps, it was time to go back to the dating scene
again.
Suddenly the desire to have a family overwhelmed him. Lisa popped up in
his mind again. I’m sorry he said aloud. I have mourned you for five years. I
think it’s time to move on. Contemplating whether to stop over for a drink with
his friends at Mason’s Bar or go home, he turned right and headed for the bar.
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