Pelumi's Memoirs - 41

The drive from Lekki to Banana Island was very enjoyable. Celeste found herself laughing as Liyel told some silly jokes. “Oh my goodness! I forgot that there was a comedian on the inside of you.”

“You did? You forgot me so soon?” Liyel teased with one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand on Celeste’s side tickling her.

Celeste chuckled. “Focus, bro!”

Liyel laughed.

It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon. The weather was perfect for a garden or tea party. They were on their way to the Akenzua family home in Banana Island.

“We’re here”, Liyel said as he punched in the code leading to the estate.

“So soon?” Celeste asked. She had dozed off a little bit as the air conditioner in the car caressed her smooth skin.

“Liyel!” Nkoyo rushed at her brother and hugged him.

“Nkoyo, do you always have to jump on me every time you see me?”

Nkoyo chuckled. “Sorry, bro! You know you are the world’s best brother.”

“Ha!” Liyel exclaimed. “Wait till Ivan hears. He’s going to be very hurt.”

“He’ll be okay,” Nkoyo responded, giggling. She turned to face Celeste who was standing to the side watching the exchange between the siblings.

“Celeste, Oh my god!! Don’t tell me that you came with this pig-headed brother of mine.”

“I did,” Celeste replied flashing Nkoyo a smile.

“Wait, you two...” She pointed from Liyel to Celeste. “You two mended the fences between y’all? You are both here as a ….”

“Slow your roll, girl. Celeste and I are here as two friends who care about each other.”

Nkoyo wrinkled her nose. “Bro, you are speaking too much grammar!”

“Celeste, I’m truly glad to see you both together. Let’s go in. Mum and Pops have been waiting for everyone to show up.”

“You look great.” Celeste stated.

“Aww, thanks.” Nkoyo replied. She was dressed in palazzo pants and a tube top. Being trim and fit meant that she didn’t have to worry so much about how clothing items looked on her. Everything was nice and Tare always told her that she was lucky to have such a stunning figure.

“Celeste, darling. Such a pleasure seeing you as always." Nengi Akenzua smiled walking in Celeste’s direction. She hugged her and the two women kissed each other on both cheeks.

When Liyel walked up to Celeste and placed his hands in hers, Nengi raised a brow and looked at both of them. “Should I start calling the event planners?”

Celeste giggled and Liyel drew his mother’s hand and kissed it.

“Keep your fingers crossed mum, and maybe say a prayer for us.”

Nengi smiled. “I like that. Good start. Come on, guys. Ivan and Pelumi are here too.”

“Oh great! We both left the house at the same time. He said he wanted to pickup Pelumi from her home.”

As though, Ivan and Pelumi had heard their names being uttered, they both walked to the door side where Nengi had been gushing over Liyel and Celeste.

Pelumi stood to the side and watched Ivan hug the tall and beautiful lady who had just walked in with Liyel. She was gorgeous. Pelumi wondered if that was her hair or if she had extensions in them. She guessed this was the much talked about Celeste.

“Hi handsome,” Celeste said, hugging Ivan. “So good to see you. It’s been a while.”

“I know right,” Ivan replied. “I heard you and Liyel have patched things up. I’m delighted.” Ivan said in his serious baritone voice.

“Celeste, meet the love of my life, Pelumi Jacobs.”

Celeste’s eyes grazed Pelumi taking in her features from head to toe.

“Beautiful…..” she stated with a smile plastered on her face. While she was surprised that Pelumi wasn’t Ivan’s normal spec, she couldn’t deny the fact that she was beautiful.

“Hi, Pelumi.” “I’m Celeste Braithwaite. Such a pleasure to finally meet you.”

“Same here,” Pelumi answered.

They all walked into the sitting room on the lower level of the house.

“Where is Tare?”

“Right here!” Tare answered loudly.

Celeste squeaked! “Sisteh!!” She said in a heavy Ghanian accent.

“Chale!” Tare responded, giggling. She embraced Celeste and whispered into her ears. “You and Liyel are back. I’m so glad.”

Celeste winked.

“Hi everyone!” Another baritone-voiced spoke loudly and Tare did a 180 degree turn around. “Ineye!”

“Here comes the groom!” Everyone sang.

Ineye burst into laughter. “I thought it was here comes the bride!”

Everyone giggled. Ineye bowed his head and greeted Nengi.

“My son, how are you? Good to see you.”

Ndifreke walked down the stairs and joined the group in the sitting room area. His heart was joyful. He and Nengi shared a knowing smile. They couldn’t wait to start pampering their grandchildren and watching as they played with each other.

The new cook walked to their midst and announced that lunch was ready.

“Nkoyo, so when are you going to introduce your boyfriend to the family?” Ivan asked, smirking. “You are going to be twenty-five in a bit. You should be dating by now.”

“Says who?” Tare replied. “Please don’t pressure the poor girl.”

“Nkoyo, take your time. No rushing.”

“Defensive much!” Ivan retorted. “Can’t a big brother show some concern?”

Tare returned his smirk. “Whatever.”

Ivan shook his head. Pelumi watched the exchange between the siblings. She loved this family. Despite their wealth, they were down to earth and she didn’t feel like she was out of place among them. She dug into the combination of fried rice, jollof rice, coleslaw and croacker fish in her plate. Ivan had opted for pounded yam and melon soup instead.

“So Ineye, we haven’t seen you here in a while. What’s going on? How is life?” Ndifreke asked in a voice that sounded very much like the actor, Pete Edochie.

“All is well, Sir. I was awarded this contract a few months ago. The project has grown beyond what we anticipated. Several complexities arose that need to be sorted out.”

“Ah, I like contracts,” Ndifreke replied and everyone on the table chuckled.

“Talking about contracts, how are things looking with the Citadel Technology account?” Ivan looked across the table.

“Bro, it’s going...” Liyel responded.

“Gerald and I have a meeting with their Corporate Communications Director on Tuesday.”

“Good. We need that account.” Ivan said with a twinkle in his eyes.

“Yummy!” Nkoyo moaned as she dug her fork into soft plantain and gizzard. “Mum, Ugo is good. Isn’t he? To think you didn’t want to hire him initially.”

“I’m glad that you were able to convince me.” Nengi said, reaching for her glass of sparkling apple cider.

“Ugo is the new cook?” Ivan asked.

“Yep,” Nkoyo replied.

“Pelumi, you’ve been quiet,” Ndifreke remarked.

“I’ve been savoring the taste of the delicious meal,” Pelumi answered, lifting her head slowly. She smiled at Ivan’s father.

Celeste looked at Pelumi again. She liked her. She was one of those people you met who came across as sweet and simple. No wonder, Ivan was smitten with her. She observed the way his eyes scooted to her. Innocence was the word she had been trying to put together. Pelumi was the picture of innocence.

“Even the devil knows how to disguise himself as an angel of light.” A voice within her said.

She shook off the thought. While some people were not quite what they seemed, her spirit had opened up to Pelumi. She had the uncanny ability to discern people. Call it intuition, call it sensitivity. It had worked for her again and again.

“Tare, how is the wedding planning going?”  Ivan quizzed.

“Going pretty good. Mum here is the real event planner. All those Lagos girls who call themselves wedding planners have got nothing on her. She and aunty Tamuno can plan everything to the nines.”

“Yeah, Mum and aunty Tamuno have been awesome.” Ineye chipped in.

Pelumi had been observing Ineye and Tare. The duo displayed a certain level of maturity every time she was around them. She thought that they were a match made in heaven.

“Pelumi, I heard you moved to the Island now,” Nkoyo uttered, reaching for the jug of tropical fruit juice.

“Yes, my friend Itoro also moved with me.”

“Super nice,” Tare replied. “How do you like it here on the Island?”

“We love it. It’s a lot easier to get to work now.” Pelumi answered, smiling.

“So, Ivan, will you be traveling out of the country any time soon?” Nengi probed.

“Errm... No, mum. Just traveling within the country.”

“Oh okay… Business travel?” Nengi questioned further.

“No, actually, Pelumi and I will be traveling to Asaba to see her parents.”

“Hmmm...” Ndifreke exclaimed.

“That’s good. How long will you both be away?”

“We’ll be gone for about four days,” Ivan answered.

“Ah, my Asaba….” Nengi uttered.

“Mum, did I ever tell you that I met with Mrs. Kema Edewor? She’s Chief Rogers Edewor’s wife. She told me you had both attended the same secondary school. Your friend was her school mother….” Ivan elucidated.

“Hold it there….. Kema? I know Kema.” Nengi laughed. “The world is such a small place.”

“Aunty Kema is Pelumi’s aunt.”

“Aunt as in family?  Or just someone you happen to know, Pelumi?”

“She’s my mum’s sister,” Pelumi answered.

“Wow, you need to link us up, Pelumi. It’s been a while since I last set my eyes on her.”

“Of course, ma. I’ll let you have her phone number.”

“That’ll be splendid,” Nengi responded.

“Nkoyo, when will the family get to meet your boyfriend? All your siblings are here with their significant other.”

Nkoyo rolled her eyes. Not again. “Dad…..”

“Thanks, dad. That was the question I asked shortly before you joined us. Tare was almost going to chop off my head.” Ivan blurted out.

“My husband, you’ll meet him when the time is right.”  Nengi looked at him with a serious expression. They had promised to never pressure their children into having relationships with the opposite sex. Their job in their children’s lives was to provide counsel and direction. It was not to pressure them.

“Honey, I know…. “ Ndifreke said to his wife.

Ugo brought desserts after everyone was done eating the main meals.

“Ah, queen cakes!” Liyel exclaimed. “I haven’t had this in a minute.”

“Same here.” Ineye chipped.

“Delicious!” Nkoyo said loudly. The cakes didn’t have too much sugar in them. The quantity of sugar in them was just right.

“We get pudding too?” Pelumi questioned when she saw Ugo approach with another tray.

Ivan laughed. “ I told you that mum knows how to feed one fat!”

“You are right!” Pelumi said laughing. Tare and Nkoyo who both lived with their parents weren’t fat though.

“Nkoyo and I both put in adequate time at the gym every week to compensate for all the delicacies mum feeds us with.”

“I concur,” Ineye replied chuckling.

Liyel excused himself. He went to his car and retrieved the boxes of Monopoly, Chess and Scrabble games.

“Tada! I brought games along with me.”

“What games did you bring along?” Ineye asked leaning into the sofa. He had worked long hours through the night and attended the first service in his church so he’d have time for a good nap thereafter. A call from the Project Manager at work had left him turning on the computer and putting some documents together. He couldn’t help yawning.

“Tired?” Tare asked, slipping her fingers into his.”Yes, I worked throughout the night.”

“Babe, you need to take it easy. Just know that once we get married, I’m going to ban work after hours. Family time should be family time!” She said sternly.

“Yes, Ma’am!” Ineye answered.

Tare punched him on the shoulder. 

“Ouch! Ouch! Meanie!” Ineye yelled.

“You think I’m a meanie now? Wait till we get married.”

“Oooh, I’m trembling,” Ineye said, feigning shivering.

Tare tossed a throw pillow at him.

****

Nkoyo woke up on Monday morning feeling tired and wishing that it was weekend all over again.

An hour and a half later, she found herself in traffic honking loudly at the driver in front of her. She was so thankful that her drive to work was short. She couldn’t imagine living somewhere far and having to head to the Island. The government needed to diversify the mode of transportation in Lagos. Having a formidable railway system would go a long way to make the lives of every citizen better.

She parked her car and walked into the building praying for strength to sail through the day.

“Good Morning, Nkoyo. How was your weekend?” One of her coworkers, Nadine asked.

“It was great. How was yours?”

“I wish we would have one extra day!” Nadine replied, biting her nail.

Nkoyo laughed. “Everyone wishes for a three day weekend.”

“I know right!” Nadine answered. “So, I hear the boss is back.”

“Oh really? I’m aware he’s due back in the office today.” Nkoyo replied, rolling her eyes in her head. Her boss should have been gone forever. Shoot! That didn’t sound right. She didn’t wish him dead though. She just wanted him to leave the company and go somewhere else!

“Nkoyo, I’m not sure you like wearing jewelry but I have gold, silver, sterling silver and some costume jewelry for sale. They are all in my car though, just in case you’d like to take a look.

“Hmmm… Okay.” Nkoyo responded. While she loved long dropping earrings, she was not a fan of necklaces.

“Okay, I’d like to take a look at them. Probably during lunch?”

“Yes, of course,” Nadine answered, pleased.

Nkoyo’s outlook calendar notification informed her that the monthly one on one meeting with her manager was in one hour.

Shoot! She usually checked her calendar in advance to know what meetings she had on a particular day. For some reason, she hadn’t checked her calendar on Friday. Tired of working off-hours, she had refused to check it during the weekend as well.

“Arrghh!” She muttered under her breath.

“Are you okay?” Nadine questioned.

“Yes, I am. Just got a lot on my mind.” Nkoyo excused herself and went to the café downstairs to get herself a cup of coffee. Her stomach rumbled. She’d better get herself a sandwich as well.

****

Celeste was busy debugging a code she had written that had been failing system testing. This code was messing around with her and she would prove to it that she was a boss! That’s what she had been telling herself for an hour now. Frustrated, she let out an expletive before catching herself. “No swearing,” She said silently, under her breath.

So engrossed was she on the task at hand that she hadn’t noticed that someone had tapped her on the shoulder twice.

“Celeste!” A voice said sharply.

“Hey, Bode!”  Celeste let out a silent sigh. Of all the times for him to show up, it had to be now when she was neck deep in work?

“How are you?” She asked.

“Been busy. Thought to check on you. I feel like I haven’t seen you in a month or so.”

Celeste laughed. “No, it hasn’t been that long.”

“I’m sure you’re busy so I’ll take my leave. Let me know if you’d like to do lunch any time soon.”

“Sure. Thanks for stopping over. I know you’re always very busy.”

“You already know.” Bode winked at her before turning to take his leave.

“See ya!” He said to her.

“Later...” Celeste replied.

She gazed at him slightly before looking at the code on her screen.

Her phone vibrated suddenly. She glanced briefly at her phone screen. It was her mum.

She read the text message quickly and made a mental note to call her once she had some free time. She was about to put her phone inside her bag when it vibrated again. Now wasn’t a good time to get distracted.

“Hi Cupcake, how’s your day going?”

Celeste shook her head. Cupcake! Liyel was such a Romeo.

“Hi Buttercup. Can be better.” She typed.

“Buttercup? Sounds so mushy.” Liyel replied. “Aww, what’s going on?”

“Trying to crack some fancy code and it’s proving to be a real Debbie Downer!”

“Sorry, dear. I’ll let you work. Thinking about you and just wanted to make sure your day is going well.”

“Thanks, sugar! I’ll talk to you later.”

The phone was finally in her bag. No more distractions.

****

Itoro’s first day at The Morgan Hospital was everything she had imagined and more. Her manager took her around introducing her to her colleagues and superiors.

The Hospital was even larger than she had imagined. It was a state of the art facility that truly awed her. Excellence wasn’t dead in her country after all.

She was shown her work space and after greeting her new coworkers, she settled at her desk. She had been told to spend the day observing. Her onboarding was still in progress but she’d have all the tools she needed within a few days.

Her thoughts roamed as she thought about Pelumi and how lucky she was. She was glad to be her friend. She loved their new home. With time, Itoro hoped that she would mix and mingle and finally find someone to spend her life with.

She hadn’t dated in over three years. Not for want of male attention but for the fact that the guys that came her way just never struck anything inside of her. She had zero attraction for them.

While she understood that love was more than a fancy feeling, there was no way she would allow someone she wasn’t attracted to, see her nakedness. The only way that he’d get through was if he forcefully had his way with her.

This was a rather drastic scenario but this was how she felt. Like Pelumi, she was also a first child. She sent money to her parents regularly for the upkeep of her three siblings. Her dad retired early due to a stroke. It was only by a stroke of luck that he had survived it. Her mother was a teacher at St Paul’s Secondary School in Akwa Ibom. Her salary wasn’t much.

She really looked forward to meeting a great guy soon. She wasn’t particular about him being the wealthiest man on earth. He just had to be hardworking, resourceful and someone who would support her and give her wings to fly. It would be great if he was handsome too. Who didn’t like a fine face? She smiled slightly as she realized that she was day dreaming at work.

“Hi…. First day here?” A tall lady walked up to her with her hand outstretched. Itoro shook her hand. ‘Yes, it’s my first day here.”

“Wow…. My name is Bodunde Adelekan. I’m an infectious disease consultant. I consult for this hospital as well as Reddington Hospital.”

“A pleasure meeting you, Bodunde. I’m Itoro Henshaw, Trauma Specialist.”

“Oh, fantastic! Know what, Itoro, why don’t we have lunch together today?”

Itoro smiled at Bodunde. “Sounds great. Thank you. I’ve been dealing with the first day blues…”

“I know how that feels.” Bodunde smiled. “Lunch is in two hours. I’ll come get you.”

“Okay…” Itoro answered, watching as Bodunde took her leave. Judging from the look of things, Bodunde couldn’t be more than a few years older than her. Thirty-one at the most!

At twenty nine, Itoro knew that she acted older. She had matured at a fast pace. The “blessings” of being a first born child.

After Bodunde, some other folks came to say hello to her and introduced themselves. Itoro felt like she was in the right place at the right time. Her first day at Morgan’s had been better than she’d imagined so far.

****

Tare picked up her cell phone. “Yes, Tare Akenzua speaking. How may I help you?”

“Oh, Lami from the flower shop. Great!”

“Why don’t you let me stop by later this afternoon? Say around 4, 4:30 ish?

As soon as she dropped the call, another call came in.

“Yes, Tare Akenzua speaking… Are you the decorator from Mrs. Giwa?”

“Okay, why don’t we meet tomorrow around 12 noon?” She fiddled with a pen on her table as the voice on the other end of the phone spoke.

“Wonderful! I’ll see you at 12 noon tomorrow!” Tare cut the call and let out an exasperated sigh. Why did Mondays always have to be so busy?

George, the Head of Talent Acquisition walked into her office. “Hi Tare,” He sat on the chair across from her and crossed his legs. “How are you?”

Tare glanced briefly at him.” It’s a Monday. You work here. You know how it is.”

‘Right…..” George said, gazing at her face. “Carol told me that you wanted to put a hiring freeze in place for the Finance Department?”

“Yes, George. We have reached the Finance hiring cap for this quarter.”

“But, I thought that Alistair was looking to hire someone soon?”

“So I heard but Alistair will have to hold off for now. We are over the budget for this quarter by millions already.”

“Yeah, I know….” George answered fiddling with his tie. “Alright, thanks for confirming.”

“Anytime. I’ll let you know if the situation changes.”

“Okay, thanks.” Tare watched George’s retreating back.  She needed some sugar in her system. She suddenly remembered that she had a box of Chocolates that Liyel had given her after his trip to Canada.

After retrieving the box from the fridge, she popped one of the chocolate bars in her mouth and stood at the window in her office. She watched as a lady who backed her baby got off a motor bike. Gosh! This was so dangerous. What if the child fell off?

The sound of footsteps approaching caused her to turn back sharply.

“Hello, Bae…”

“Ineye, darling. She rushed forward and hugged him like she hadn’t seen him just the day before.”

“Sugar…” Ineye kissed her on the head slightly.

“What’s in the bag?” Tare probed.

She stood on her toes and took a peek into the bag. “Food!”

“Yeah, I stopped by Designer rice.”

“Gosh, you are the best, Ineye Ogbeha!”

“And you my darling are the apple of my eyes.” Ineye winked.

“Do you cross your heart?” Tare teased.

“I cross my heart and hope to live.” Ineye said, smiling.

“I don’t want you dying either.” Tare stuck out her tongue.

Ineye tittered.