EPISODE 42 – SCALING ANOTHER HURDLE

Every now and then, even the very best of us fall sick in various forms. Sometimes, it is minor stomach trouble or a skin rash. It could be a headache or toothache. It could also be a cold or catarrh. There are numerous forms of illness and an outline of these would create an inexhaustible list. I have definitely been sick a good number of times too but lately, especially in the last couple of years, I have been blessed with excellent health. However, if I were to rank illnesses in accordance with their level of discomfort, I would rank catarrh and cold as the worst of the lot. It’s like a wicked interference with one’s ability to breathe comfortably and a most despicable condition. I would rather have malaria, stomach trouble (now not really), toothache (hmmm, kinda), a fracture (Now, let’s reconsider) and any other form of illness than cold and catarrh (of course excluding HIV/AIDS too. lol). Of all the good things of life, the ability to breathe freely is most priceless and should definitely not be taken for granted.

I returned smiling and happy and of course breathing easily. lol. I ended up spending the weekend at my mum’s place before returning. My mum proved to be the best mother in the world and I could hardly believe my good fortune in spite of the precarious situation. She was obviously disappointed but she remained calm and encouraging, dishing out every motherly advice she could muster. I imagined she was afraid I might go ahead to do something crazy or hurt myself and that was probably why she was so angelic instead of raining fire and brimstone on me for what I had done. She assured me that she would come around to see BG’s family as soon as possible to straighten things out concerning the BG’s pregnancy.

I called BG up immediately after I settled in and she came over to see me. I studied her carefully and still marveled at the fact that she hardly looked different from how she had always been. It was rather unbelievable that she was already over four months pregnant.
“Geebee, you ran off without letting me know. Why?” she attacked.
I sighed. The last time we had spoken was about three days before, on the very day I set out to see my mother. I had not told her I was traveling especially because I was still unsure of my plans at the time. While I was with my mum, my phone had been turned off just to relieve the pressure I was bound to get from being hounded by BG’s calls. I had no regrets however because as it were, everything had turned out well and in fact I could not wait to break the news to her.
“I’m sorry, BG,” I said, holding her hands tenderly. “You can’t imagine how confused I have been all this while.”
She looked at me angrily. “Confused? Do you know what I have been going through as well? I needed you to be there and you just disappeared. How do you think that feels?’
“Come on, it was just for three days,” I countered. I am sorry, baby” I added, drawing her closer to me. “I did what was best. I went to see my mum.”
Her shock was evident. She sat up immediately. “You did what?”
I smiled. “You heard me. Things are going to be fine. You wouldn’t believe what happened.”

I went ahead to tell her how things went and how my mum reacted in the exact opposite of what I had imagined would happen.
“Wao, that’s great news,” she muttered, sighing gratefully.
I nodded in agreement. “Yes it is. I feel like a great weight has been lifted off my shoulders. My mother has promised to come and see your family as soon as she can.”
“My family?” BG queried nervously. “I have not told them about it yet.”
I shrugged. “It’s no big deal. I have told my mum so you can easily let your folks know as well and everything would be okay.”
She shook her head slowly. “You make it sound so easy. They’ll kill me. My father must not even hear about it. It would kill him.”
“How about Cher, your sister?” I asked nervously.
“That’s another impossibility. Cher believes we have gotten rid of the baby since December. She knows nothing about the current situation.”
“And no one in your house suspects a thing?” I asked.
She shook her head. I was not at all surprised. Indeed, she hardly looked pregnant.
I sighed in frustration. Now, this was another problem. I was tempted to shout at her and tell her to find a way to break the news because I had done my part and I was not going to go through the ordeal of having to convince her annoying sister to help us again.
“BG, we don’t have a choice here. We just have to find a way through this.”

Cher was irritating as usual when she was brought into the picture this time around. In fact, she was pretty shocked to find out that the abortion attempt almost two months before had failed. She did not hesitate to express her disbelief.
“Are you guys sure this is not a fresh pregnancy?” she asked, looking at me.
I shook my head. “I wish it was but believe me, it is the same one.”
She hissed. “I wish you had listened to me then. Obviously, your doctor was a quack. That pregnancy was less than two months for crying out loud. Any third year Medical student would have been able take care of it successfully.”
I ignored her comments and BG went ahead to sell her the ‘twin foetus’ theory. She laughed for a good while. “Come on guys, you really don’t believe that, do you?”
I shrugged. “I really don’t know what to believe, honestly.” I said. “The issue here now is, there’s nothing we can do about the pregnancy except have the baby.”
“What?” Cher said, visibly shocked. “You want to have the baby?” She looked at her sister.
“That’s why we need your help again,” I said, hating myself so much at that moment.

Cher sighed. “Why must I always be the ‘fixer’ for your problems? What do I have to do this time? Adopt the baby?”
I winced at the annoying remark. The lady was driving me up the wall and I was tempted to tell her to go to hell but it was obvious if I did, BG would be the one to suffer the consequences. Cher hardly seemed like the type of person who would stand by her sister alone especially after the guy responsible for the pregnancy had insulted her. I kept my cool.
“We want you to help us break the news to your sisters,” I said.
She was silent for a while and we patiently awaited her response.

I tried to imagine what would be going on in her mind. Her task did not seem as difficult as the last one. This time, there was no risk of death through abortion complications. All she was required to do was break the news to their elder sisters; something BG would be unable to do considering that she was the culprit in question. The only issue there seemed to be was the fact that the pregnancy was already over four months old. Besides that, there seemed to be no other problem. Once that hurdle was scaled, I foresaw a smooth sprint all the way to the finish line. After all, my mum was already aware and had accepted the situation. Three days later, Cher called and informed BG and I that she had informed her eldest sister and the woman had requested that I come see her. At that moment, I felt a wave of uneasiness wash over me and began to wonder if indeed the last hurdle had been scaled.

SEE YOU IN THE NEXT EPISODE OF THE GEEBEE CHRONICLES.