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Nebechi's POV:

Following week.

Exam day. All hell are let loose.

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My phone alarm woke me at 4:30 AM. Since my in-laws came to live with us, I started waking up earlier than my actually time. I would wake suddenly at 3:00 AM then swoop away from bed admist my husband's snoring and would rush to iron his work clothes and leave for the bathroom with my tooth brush still stuck in my mouth. The flat we rented had at least seven small but comfortable rooms so guest rooms were at least four after The twins had occupied one and Nebechi with her junior sister occupied one. So Mama and Ogechi were living in different rooms now. I was done with cooking beans and potatoes at 5:37 AM. Then, rushed inside my room for a shower. I didn't want to be late. Because my bank shareholders decided to promote our current manager and bring a new manager for us. He was promoted to work in Abuja while our new manager was said to hail from Anambra state, my husband's hometown. Ikekwere was sitting on the bed, staring blankly at the floor as if he was carrying a burden. I was too busy to care but his attitude that early morning disturbed. After wearing my casual work clothes, I turned to him.

"What's bothering you this early morning?"

"Nothing important."

"Is it business?"

He looked away in annoyance. I thought as much. It was about business that he looked like he was going to cry. I went forward and sat beside him and kissed him. He was stunned then frowned. "Ngozi, I'm not the the mood for this right now."

"Is that why you are upset?" I pecked him again, smiling mischievously.

"Ngozi."

"Ikekwere."

"Leave me alone please. I don't want to get angry."

"What happened to your business? Is it your goods? Have they not arrived?"

" It's already two months. I don't get what's happening." He finally opened up.

" Was your investment much?"

" I put a lot of money in that, Ngozi. Millions. It was bound to make me rich." He stood, pacing around the room as he raked his low hair.

"I'm sure your goods will arrive in no time. You haven't heard of any bad news so there's still hope." I replied softly. He stared at me as if relaxing his nerves. "Stop panicking, hubby." I replied coquettishly as I caressed his arm when he sat beside me. "Do you want to make me a widow at this age? I don't want your mother to scrape my head clean with tiger razor."

He guffawed, falling back on the bed and pulling me to himself. We stayed in that position with intimate kisses and caresses for as long as I remembered.

......

When I reached to the office, The manager was laughing at the midst of people as they were bidding him farewell and commenting on how they would miss him. They stopped abruptly when I came in and for once in my life, I thought I was in the wrong bank. Their eyes punctured holes into my body and left me like a drenched chicken. Then the manager smiled.

"Mrs Osita. The popular late comer. Welcome." He gave a mock bow that other staffs laughed at his little curtsey. " But I must warn you o. The new manager is a no nonsense man. So, you're still bent on coming late, then you're in hot soup. And he's not accommodating as I am. Everybody is different so if you people think you're doing your best then you must fire your best for perfection. His motto is perfection."

"I've heard you, Sir. Thank you." I replied.

"We will miss you, sir. Please do come to visit us often on your free days."

"Yes, Sir do come to visit o."

"Don't forget o."

" No problem." He beamed.

........

"Babe o." Neche called excitedly as she galloped to the our office. Sometimes I worried that she might fall on those heels if she continued jumping like that on those things! "Guess what? Guess! Guess!" It was only the two of us in the office. Our third colleague didn't come to work because of a certain sickness disturbing her. So Neche did as she liked because she didn't like our colleague, Mrs Sylvester. To Neche, she was a know-it-all, stuck up woman.

"What is it?"

She gave me the typical eyeroll, "Don't you know the meaning of guess? Guess na!"

"You've finally found a suitable suitor." I said.

" Is that what your ear is itching to hear? Really?" She was annoyed.

"If you want to get upset, I'm sorry to disappoint you, you've found the wrong person. The right person didn't come to the office."

"Since ya spoiling for a fight. Let me break it to you." She sat on my desk without warning. " There's going to be a farewell party for Mr Ajewole."

I smiled and continued with my creating of accounts for new bank customers on the computer. The news wasn't actually exciting for me because I knew I wouldn't be able to come knowing fully well the triple trouble I had at home.

"Is that your reaction? A simple fake smile?" Their was a tinge of fury in her voice that her intonation was even clear.

"What else do you expect me to do? Scream and start dancing azonto?"

"But you aren't even excited. You reaction tells me that you're not for the party."

"Exactly. It's too obvious." I glared at her.

" Is this about your husband?"

" No."

"Then why aren't you coming?"

"Neche. I have in-laws in my house. Do you want them to consider me a loose woman for staying out late?"

" Is that what you're worried about? What they would think?"

" Not only that. I will have to cook and care for their needs when they need me."

" What are you? A married slave or and in-law helper? Isn't Your husband's sister there? Can't she cook for her mother?"

" You aren't going understand what I'm passing through because you're single."

"And that's where I'll have to cut you, girl. Everytime I talk about this, you just shove my singleness to my face. I'm only single. I didn't kill anybody. So stop acting like being single is a crime!"

I jabbed the the enter keyboard with fork that it jerked with a little wobble. Neche was huffing to my face. "I like my marriage and I'm not complaining."

" If I don't tell you now, you're going to blame me for the rest of your life when you wake up. Girl, you are an adult, you should know the difference between love and respect. Your husband does not respect you as his wife. A man will stay as long he wants outside, clubbing, drinking, sleeping. Then come home to ask you to prepare another food on top of the one you specifically prepared for him despite your tiredness. He won't listen to your opinions but consider his opinion as the best just because he's the head of the house." She ranted. "You know, I blame you for this."

"Me?" My voice rose.

"Yes. You allow him do this. Can't you see what your husband is doing? He's trying to make you quit your job so he can take full advantage of you and live his life."

" Neche. If you weren't my friend, I would have sued you for falsely accusing my husband. So please, learn to keep your mouth shut. Or else it will land you in trouble." I slammed on the table as I rose and stomped out of the office to the nearest toilet.

We didn't speak to each other throughout the afternoon. I was too angry to care. To hell with her. She would understand better when she marry. If she didn't care about what people would think about reckless life, I do care. No woman with a sensible brain would watch some outsider accuse her husband without proof. Neche was also busy with her tasks. She was a proud one. She is one person who would stay mad at someone for a whole year without uttering a word. I couldn't stay angry for so long. I was unhappy that she wasn't smiling at me like she used to when I would glance at her. She did not even spare me a single glance. Such an angry bird. I hated the fact that I had to be the one to reach out after a fight. But what could I do?

"Neche." She ignored me the first time. "Neche." Ignored. Totally ignored. Her eyes was more focused on the screen as she furrowed her eyebrows, typing furiously. "Be typing fast. You mistakenly put Q on a personal information. Las Las na market woman go comot that ya wig and clean d concrete wey dey ya face. Wehdone o."

She snorted as she tried to suppress her laughter. "I thought ya proving silence. Are you tired?"

" Mtchwwwww" I hissed.

"We are still going to the party tonight o. Even if ya proving ya werey silence."

" You're not serious."

" Nothing you'll do or say will make you change my mind. I'll handle your husband and others. Just come with me and stay for a while then I drop you home."

It was a matter of seconds before I realized how fast Neche could change her countenance. It was amazing how she was angry minutes and and so excited and relaxed now. I shuddered at the sudden realization.

We arrived at a discreet club far from the bank and close to my home street. I even wondered if our old manager was living close to my home street all this while and I've been oblivious. The party was not quiet. Popular Nigerian celebrity songs played from different speakers as the DJ switched to one song or the other with a huge Bluetooth headphones stuck to the side of his head. Some couples were already dancing intimately. Neche dragged me to the VIP table where most of our bank staffs were drinking and eating barbecued meat. They greeted Neche excitedly as soon as we stepped in.

"We didn't know Mrs Ngozi comes to these kinds of events." One of the staff commented and they guffawed. I was tongue-tied but still kept a smile on my face because I didn't know what to say. They offered us vacant seats as they waited for others but engaged into deep conversations with the host and fell about with laughter. I had to smile throughout the ordeal. The place, the atmosphere, the people; it was so uncomfortable for me. Neche thrust a bottle of coke into my palm as she opened a can of star beer and gulped. My eyes widened. In my days as a woman, I never drunk beer. Seeing Neche gulp them so hard made me cringe. She looked at me, then laughed.

"Should I open the cap for you?"

"I'm not even in the mood for drinking. You said you were going to drop me off. But I'm worried you'll get too drunk to even know me."

She laughed admist the chatters, clinking and loud music, "Are you worried I might ditch you?" She raised a the beer can, "I don't get drunk so easily." She smiled and gulped more. "By the way, I gave you coke because I wanted to be least lenient with you. Be comfortable."

I still panicked. Earlier she had sent my husband a text message about me going to the farewell party and switched off my phone without him replying. I knew Ikekwere was going to be angry but he wouldn't take it that I switched off my phone. After a while, Neche grabbed my hand and led me out of the VIP table to a scheduled customer area admist the couples who came to dine and date, bill and coo. "Why did you bring me to this place? The VIP section is actually better than here."

"Guess who's at the table besides us? Close to the second VIP section?" She smirked.

I looked besides our table at the right, At the couples who were busy with their hands and then some people who looked familiar to me. Lo and behold, it was my husband, with a woman sitting beside him, massaging his loins. Opposite him was a man who seemed well to do and another slay queen busy with his loins. The sight repulsed me. Anyone who just glanced at them wouldn't notice what was going on, unless he took a closer look.

"Why don't we get to take a closer look?" Neche smiled at me.

"What's the meaning of this?" I retorted at her, "have you come to take revenge for reminding you that you're single?"

"Revenge ko Revenge ni. Which revenge? Abeg sit down and get to listen to what's unfolding before you." She berated. I turned to the table. My tears stung me, threatening to fall. It was too painful to watch your husband being caressed by another woman.

"You don't mean it. So she hasn't quit her job yet? She's still rubbing it to your face that she's the bread winner?" His so called friend guffawed.

" Seriously, living under the same roof with that woman is oppressing. Oh boy, Men dey suffer o. Sometimes we gotta come and and take few shots and calm nerves, you know." Ikekwere stated as he gulped the Hennessy beer, groaning under the lady's caresses.

"My friend, drink up. You know how marriages can be. This life na once o. So enjoy while you still can." His friend poured a glass full of Heineken beer for him self and gulped. He motioned the last stroking his loins to go faster and she complied.

"My wife has literally turned to a boring manipulating woman. Everyday I see her, I just want to leave the house. Just a simple thing and she's complaining. When I come to touch her, her words are «I'm tired». Can you imagine?" There was a clink of glass as the ice cubes floated above the Hennessy beer, then a gulp.

"If your wife can't handle you, I'm here. She can't do it like I do." The woman working on his hardness, fluttered her long fake lashes at him, smiling and licking her lips seductively.

At that moment, I grabbed my coca cola bottle and stomped towards them to break the girl's empty skull.