Ajoke’s letter got delivered to Kokumo’s department a day before his exams were about to start. He was handed the letter by the departmental secretary. As he collected it, a smile played on his lips as he recognized Ajoke’s handwriting. He closed his eyes briefly and imagined being right by her side. He had missed her so much. He put the letter in his book folder and quickened his steps towards the hostel. He longed to read from her and he wanted to do it while relaxed. He knew she would have written to fill him on the happenings in her village and also gists about her friends.
As he hastened towards the hostel, he thought about when next to pay her a visit. Exams were scheduled to end in a month’s time and he looked forward to going home just to be with her. This time, he was going to take her home and make sure his mother accepted her. He was now a grown man and if he wasn’t in the University, he knew she would have been asking about his marriage plans.
He sauntered into his room, all his thoughts on his beloved. He took out the letter from the book folder and dropped the folder on his mattress which lay by a corner in the room. As he lay on the mattress, he tore the envelope carefully. He took out the letter and began to read.
“My darling Kokumo,
How are you and school? I hope you are doing well.
I am writing this letter with so much pain because my father is marrying me off very soon. The man to whom I will be married to is coming for my mò mí mòó o in two weeks’ time.
My eyes are filled with tears as I have no choice in this matter. I wish it did not have to be this way.
I don’t know what to do any longer. I am confused. I love you with all my heart.
See you whenever you come home.
Ajoke.”
Kokumo must have read the letter a thousand times but each time, he failed to understand what he had just read. Marrying her off? To who? Why? What about our plan to get married once I graduate from the University? Then it hit him like a thunderbolt. Ajoke had mentioned during his last visit that she had overheard her parents discussing about marrying her off just like her peers. She had been so worried and told him so.
The moment it dawned on him, his eyes filled with tears and he felt like he had been stabbed in the heart. Ajoke, Ajoke, I can’t afford to lose you. God why? First, you took my father. Now, you want to take Ajoke away from me. He put the letter on his chest as he cried silently, hot tears making their way down his cheeks. What do I do? Should I risk going home today? If I do, how will I read for my exams? Would Ajoke’s father grant me audience? Will he think I am insane? So many questions but no answers were forthcoming for Kokumo.
He sighed. Ajoke wasn’t the only one confused; he was as well. His exams were starting tomorrow and it did not make sense to go home now. Besides, from the date on the letter, the introduction had already been done. His mind was in disarray as he thought of what to do.
Throughout that evening, Kokumo could not concentrate. He knew he was meant to read for his paper the next day but every time he did, he saw the words in Ajoke’s letter dancing before his eyes. As much as he tried to get his mind off it, he kept on seeing the words; the man to whom I will be married to is coming for my mò mí mòó o in two weeks’ time.
After a fruitless hour of not being able to concentrate, he decided to pack up his books and go to bed. Maybe when he woke up, he would realize it was all a dream; Ajoke would still be waiting for him to finish school and they would get married – and they would laugh about a letter which he supposedly received from her. He would caress her as he told her he thought he had lost her forever. He would tell her that he was glad their wait was not in vain.
*****
Kokumo woke up fitfully the next day. He could not remember how he slept or if he did at all. He kept on seeing Ajoke crying out to him for help. While she did, he stood afar with his arms folded and watched as she struggled with someone he couldn’t recognize. The person held her tightly by the hand and he made no attempt to rescue her. Her cries filled his ears, calling him and pleading with him to save her from her captor but he shook his head, turned back and walked away.
As he was walking away, he saw his mother walking towards him. She pulled his ears as she got to him and repeated their last conversation over and over again.
“Sé bàbá ömö náà mò é?”
“Does the girl’s father know you?”
“Rárá mà.”
“No ma.”
“Kí ló wá fi é lókàn balè pé to bá padà láti ilé ìwé gíga, o yì ma ba l’ómidan?”
“What gives you the assurance that when you graduate from the University, she would still be single?”
“Àdéhùn t’émi àti è jö ní ni.”
“That is the agreement between us.”
“Ölórun á bá ë sé o.”
“God will do it for you, I hope.”
He sat up on his mattress and noticed that the tee-shirt he wore to bed clung to his body. The tee-shirt and his mattress were wet with sweat. He shook his head as he sighed deeply. What sort of nightmare did he just have? He would do anything within his power to rescue Ajoke from danger but why didn’t he do that in his dream. It made no sense to him. He loved her and would never allow anyone endanger her life. Who could have been holding on tightly to her? Was it her father or the man she was to be married to? Why had he made no attempt to save her from her captor? Instead, he had turned his back on her when she needed him most. The dream was so confusing and he could not fathom what it meant.
He stood up from his mattress and stretched. He looked at his other room mates who were still sound asleep. He needed to concentrate if he wasn’t going to fail his exams. He thought about responding to Ajoke’s letter but words were not enough to convey everything he had to say. He would rather see her in person and they could discuss their next line of action. Just give me three weeks and I will be with you, Ajoke. He said to no one.
He picked up his bucket and decided to get ready for the day ahead. As much as he loved Ajoke, he also wanted to make her proud and graduating with good grades was of utmost importance to him. Her friends who had gotten married had been given out in marriage to secondary school certificate holders and artisans. Just like Ajoke whose parents could not afford to send her to the University, most of them either could not afford to do so or did not see the importance of sending their daughters to a tertiary institution. Those who failed to see the importance believed it was a waste of funds as she would eventually get married and be confined to taking care of her husband and her children.
Kokumo reckoned it would be a thing of pride when Ajoke stood in the midst of her friends to say she had gotten married to a graduate. She would become the envy of her friends just as his mother’s friends envied her in the market where she sold her fruits. She was no longer referred to as Iya Kokumo. She had been given a new name and was now called “Iya Gradue.” Even though, he had tried to correct them that he was still an undergraduate, it did not matter to them. The fact that he was in the University had upgraded his status and that of his mother. He also wanted the same change of status for Ajoke and he was going to make sure he worked towards not just being a graduate but one that finished with good grades. Once they were married and he had a good job, he would ensure Ajoke’s dream of going to the University was also fulfilled. She deserved it and much more. Even with his mind in a state of chaos, a small smile lifted his lips and just like it had come, it left and he was thrown into sadness again.
He walked towards the bathroom to take a shower. Once he was done, he sat down to read as he pushed the contents of Ajoke’s letter behind his mind. In three weeks, he would be done and if he needed to present himself to Ajoke’s father as the man who loved his daughter and wanted to get married to her, so be it.
——
The story continues…..
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