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My Eternal Love Episode 1 (Part 1) - UJU
I woke with a start as I struggled to escape from the nightmare. This was the sixth time that I was dreaming about the accident. Yes, the accident that had rendered my mother crippled. A hit and run driver had done that to us.
Though my mother was alive, she didn’t live with us, because her bones were severely damaged and she needed professional care. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I thought about that woman.
Sometimes, I wonder if my ex boyfriend, Yomi, had been behind the accident. Yomi had been very abusive and wicked to me. When I had broken up with him, he threatened to ruin my life. And the accident took place three days after the break up.
I pushed the disturbing thoughts out of my mind, and climbed out of bed. I had my whole life waiting for me. This wasn’t the time to show weakness. My father was dead. All that I had was my brother, Emeka. I had no one to motivate me. But I was going to motivate myself.
I crawled out of bed hesitantly, not wanting to put my mind on the work that awaited me in the office. My head was throbbing, and my neck hurt badly. I found it difficult to sleep at night. I had been battling insomnia for some months now, and it was getting worse.
I found it difficult to sleep because I was worried and anxious about many things. One of which was my life choice to work in the “Honeycomb Magazine” I’d always dreamed of having my own business. I’d always wanted to travel to a lot of amazing places in the world and taking lovely photos of the culture, the people and the natural habitats I saw there.
Somehow, I found myself stuck in the same town I’d known all my life. I wasn’t depressed or discouraged; I just felt empty. I felt underachieved, like what I had wasn’t enough and I was already twenty-four years old. Back in school, I’d taken a course in creative writing, and I remembered what one lecturer in particular; Professor Obiageli said in class regularly..
“Don’t ever sacrifice your dreams for anything; keep chasing until you find just what it is your heart is looking for.”
The weather was a bit chilly, and the air that accompanied it was dry. I ran a tongue over my flaky lips as I stared at the mirror. I knew I was attractive; I heard that a lot. I got looks from men a lot. But as I stared at my reflection, my eyes lacked fire. I was a shadow of myself and it all boiled down to the thoughts that plagued my mind.
The shrill cry of my phone broke the silence of the room. I wasn’t expecting any call, but I guessed my older brother, Emeka may have called. Though we lived in the same building, we stayed on different floors. He and his best friend, Christian, lived on the first floor, while I took the third floor alone. There wasn’t any elevator around, so getting to the third floor could be tiring. Emeka called mostly when he needed to speak with me urgently or ask if I had something he needed.
I released the breath I held and hurried back to the bed. I picked the mobile phone and took the call at once. I hadn’t checked the caller Identity, so I was surprised when an alto voice spoke to me.
“Hi, good morning?”
At first, I wanted to hang up, but the voice sounded familiar. I had heard this voice somewhere, but I couldn’t tell where.
“Good morning.Uju Igwe on the line, please who am I speaking with?”
The response I got was a deep guffaw. I bit my lip in annoyance, wondering if what I’d said was funny.
“Hey, I don’t know who you are or what you want from me. This must be a wrong number.” I was about ending the call when she spoke to me,and my annoyance vanished into the wind.
“It’s me come on. Don’t you know my voice Uju?”
“Fatima? Why did you have to play tricks on me?”
Fatima was my coworker at Honeycomb Publishing. We weren’t really close, because I was mostly reserved. But I liked Fatima for her honesty and hard work. I always admired the way she kept her cool whenever we were really stressed. I wondered why she was calling.
“I trust you had a goodnight…” she began.
“Yes I did, how about you?” I lied. My night didn’t go well. If I had my way, I wouldn’t go to work today. But I had bills to pay,and I never wanted to depend on my brother, Emeka He had a lot of burden on his shoulders right now; I just had to take care of me.
“I am not too well Uju. I have already called the boss and told her about my present condition. I’d love for you to cover for me this morning. In the next thirty minutes, I am supposed to be having an interview with one of the best players of West African Lions…”
My mind drifted away as she continued to speak. Two facts were quickly established in my mind; I had to leave for work as swiftly as I could,and I had to interview with a famous person! Hell, I wasn’t even prepared!
“No, no, no. Fatima, you cannot do this to me. I am not prepared. Why can’t you ask someone else?” My eyes ran to the huge clock on my wall. I had forty-five minutes to prepare.
“I couldn’t think of anyone else. I have already told the boss, and she agrees with me. I am sorry to put you in a position like this.” Fatima apologized, but I could do little with her apology.
I inhaled sharply and tried to calm myself because I was already nervous. The West African Lions was one of the best football teams in the country. I wasn’t nervous because of their reputation, but my history with one of the players.
“Who will I be interviewing?” I asked in a shaky voice.
“Chinedum Ike,” Fatima replied, and I felt my insides swirl in a clash of emotions.
“No,” I whispered, but she had heard me sigh.
“No? Girl, you should be happy that I chose you for this interview. Many people wanted my slot. He is the sexiest man alive, and he has a good heart. Over the years, Chinedum has donated to charities and orphanages. He is a one in a million man….” Fatima went on and on about the footballer.
Of course, I knew who Chinedum was. We had been neighbours once, and we got attracted to each other. But he had left town one morning without telling me, and he’d never reached out. He was gone,and I had been left with the pieces of a broken heart.
How would I face such a man again?
After the call, I dashed into the bathroom and hurried with my shower. I was nervous. I didn’t know how I would face him. I couldn’t reject this interview; I had to prove my worth to the boss.
I grabbed my purse and scurried out of the house like a little rabbit. One thing was certain; I was never going to be the same after this interview.
To be continued…
Source: Davina diaries
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