Rhoda got dressed and walked out of her husband's house. He had gone to work and since she had no work to do, she spent most of her time with her boyfriend who had no idea about her sudden marriage yet.
Nas, her boyfriend, also arrived in the country a few days after her marriage. Rhoda knew she should keep no secret from him, but not something like marriage. She knew him well enough. He was quick to make decisions. He was very quick to jump to conclusions. She could lose him and that was the least thing she wanted.She pressed the ignition button on her car and drove out of the compound, making her way onto the road. She could not stop grinning from ear to ear and humming throughout the drive to Nas' house.She slighted from her car and walked into the house. She must confess that she loved the house even though it was nowhere near her husband's. Jeff was a billionaire, but her boyfriend wasn't and that was perfectly fine. She still finds it hard to believe that he was the owner of the house. He had made it a surprise and had not talked to her about it until the first time she was here. And he had revealed his intention of them moving in after their marriage. Not that he was going to marry her soon, though. He was studying to become a chartered accountant. According to him, he wanted to become more established before getting married. Nas was goal-driven and that was a good thing for her. Perhaps, she would have found a way to get herself out of the mess of a marriage she had gotten herself into. Rhoda saw him in the living room and her smile broadened. She rushed over and hugged him. "Hey, baby!" She said, "I missed you."Rhoda pouted her lips. "So, you don't believe me?"Nas chuckled. "I do, ma'am," he said and held her hands, placing gentle kisses on the back of her hands. Rhoda suddenly started feeling guilty about everything. Maybe she should tell him about the marriage. He might understand. No. He would understand because he loved her. And who knows? He might be able to come up with the perfect solution to get out of the marriage.She sighed. She should gather every ounce of courage she had.Nas leaned over and kissed her on the lips a few times before standing up with a smile. "I should get you a drink."Rhoda sighed again. Maybe she should tell him later. "Rho?" Nas called.She glanced up. "Huh?"He sat back down. "What's wrong? You keep sighing."Rhoda felt more guilty. He was too kind to be hurt. She suppressed another sigh. She was about to tell him nothing was wrong, but he cut in before she could utter a word."Rho," he knew she loved being called Rho. "Don't tell me nothing is wrong. You know I won't buy that."She nodded. She should just spill the beans. "Okay. Do you trust me?"Nas smiled. "You know I do.""Okay. You also know I love you, right?" She asked, fighting the urge to cry.Nas smiled and held her hands. "I know. We've been together for four years. How could I not know that? Just tell me what the problem is, babe.""I… uhm… I feel so terrible right now, babe. But I do not want to lose you. I really don't want to," she cried.Nas drew her closer to him and gave her a hug. "You won't lose me, baby. I promise."That calmed her down a little. Nas was always a man of his word. She just hoped that would be the case at the moment. She pulled back and looked at him. He wiped her tears with his thumbs."My parents got me married the day I arrived in the country," she confessed and stared keenly at him to see his reaction. His face went blank. His fingers froze on her cheeks before dropping. "What?" He asked, but she said nothing. "What do you mean? I mean, uh… I don't understand you. I must have heard you wrong," he said and smiled briefly.Rhoda started crying. "You did. I… am... married,"she sobbed and explained everything to him, without leaving out a single detail.It took him a while before he opened his mouth and recovered from the shock. But what he said shocked her more."Let's break up, Rhoda."Rhoda was shocked. He only called her by her full name when he was talking about something serious. But how could he be serious about breaking up? Maybe she heard wrong. "Wh.. what?" Her voice came out as a broken whisper. He stood up. That meant the end of their discussion, but Rhoda wasn't done. "No!" She sprang to her feet and went to stand before him. "Please. You can't do this to me.""Really? Well, I clearly did not expect you to get married to someone else and lied that it was arranged, either.""No, babe. It's not a lie. Please, don't break up with me, I beg you." She got on her knees and pleaded. "Nas, I love you, please. You promised that I won't lose you.""I never thought it would be a drama."She looked up at him from the ground. "Dr..drama?""Yeah. It's obvious you've been cheating on me and that's why you didn't tell me about it. I just don't understand why you would make up a story like that, you cheat!" He screamed."Nas, no! Listen to me, I…""You know I should have never trusted you in the first place. What commitment was I expecting from someone who was deprived of parental love? I am so disappointed in you, babe. And I hate you so much for this. You're just a whore!" With that, he dragged his leg from her grip and walked out on her, but not before saying, "See yourself out and never come back."“Oh, gosh! Rhoda!” He exclaimed as soon as he barged inside. “How did you fall?” He asked as he rushed to her side. She was in tears and couldn't utter a word. He helped her up and hugged her. “It's okay now. You're fine,” he consoled and she tried to subdue the tears. She shook her head in disagreement to what he said. “I'm not fine, Jeff. I don't think I'll ever be able to walk again. I can't even stand up by myself after falling. I am doomed!” She cried. “Sshhh!” He said, looking her in the eyes. “Don't say that. You are not doomed and you'll walk again. I'll make sure that happens,” he assured, wiping her tears with his thumbs. She sniffed and nodded. He lifted her up in his arms and was about to put her back on the bed when she stopped him. “I need to use the restroom,” she said, looking everywhere but him. He smiled at her shyness and helped her to the bathroom and waited outside to help her back to the bed when she was done. “Are you okay now?” He placed her on the bed, po
After being discharged, Rhoda decided to go to Jeff's house. He didn't oppose it. He was surprised instead. Why would she want to go to his place instead of her boyfriend's? And why would the guy agree to it? No matter how he looked at it, it seemed odd to him. She wouldn't even go to her parents' house. Well, Rhoda gave him the excuse that she had to stay with him because of her parents since they didn't know about the boyfriend. Made sense, but at the same time didn't. He said nothing as he drove her to his house and helped her out of the car onto her wheelchair. She has not been able to stand and walk on her own properly even though there has been improvements in her condition, but the doctor insisted that she should keep using the special chair for a while. And of course, just as Jeff had predicted, Rhoda had been against it but had been left with no choice. As he was about to put her on the chair, she glared at him. "Are you kidding? I am not sitting there. I have legs," she
Few days later, the doctors finally concluded that Rhoda had had enough rest and could be visited, but one after the other. Rhoda said nothing as she saw her father walk in. Her mother had just gone out and she knew he was going to do the same thing her mother did. Apologize. And she was already tired of that. She had forgiven them and had told her mother that. She hoped she would relay the message to her father. She was getting bored with the apologies. When would he even come in? She thought. "Dad," Rhoda called and smiled. He held her hand and squeezed it a little. "I am glad you're better now. Rhoda, I am …"She nodded repeatedly. "I know, dad. I know you are sorry. You regretted it. Not telling me about Sharon, the marriage and sending me abroad? I know. I've forgiven you. So, you don't need to apologize."When would anyone ask her how she was feeling and not just assume that she was better? It seemed no one was interested in that even though she had just been to the moon and
Rhoda got rushed to the hospital in an ambulance without much time. Her pulse was very weak and she was bleeding profusely from the gunshot and was barely holding on. Jeff drove behind the ambulance with the family and his friend. He had been warned a couple of times to slow down his speed, but he paid no heed to them. He tried to. It just wasn't working. "Jeff, calm down. You don't want to kill us all and then get to know in heaven that Rhoda made it to your funeral," his sister said and he shot her a glare from the rear view mirror, but said nothing and slowed down. They arrived just as Rhoda was being wheeled in. He ran to her and kept calling her name, begging her to hold on. "You have to make it, babe. Please," he pleaded as he pushed the wheel alongside with the nurses with bloody hands and into the emergency ward. He was asked to wait outside the ward as the doctor and nurses attended to her, so he obeyed hesitantly, but not before using everything he knew and believed in t
Jeff's phone started ringing. He rolled over on his bed and looked at the phone beside him to check who the caller was. He didn't bother picking up when he realized it was his best friend. Ex-best friend. Moments later, it started ringing again and that happened a couple of times more until he got frustrated and forced to pick up. He put the phone to his ear. "What's up?""There's something I need to tell you," Francis said from the other end. "And it's urgent. Can you come over now? Please?"Jeff was still sleepy and it was evident in his voice. "Why would I? Sorry, but no. Bye…" he said and put the phone out of his ear. "Rhoda," Francis said as fast as he could before he hung up and Jeff put the phone back to his ear and sat upright immediately. The sleep left his eyes all of a sudden. "What's wrong with Rhoda? Oh, wait! Is she your partner too? Is that what you want to confess?" He was irritated and annoyed and he didn't bother hiding that from his tone. "Jeff, no. You know she'
Rhoda paced her room back and forth as Steve told her about the man he had seen that was following her. From the description, she knew who it was. He had found her. It seemed that fate wanted them to cross paths again. "I told him I am your husband –"She squeezed her face as she tried to re-listen to what he had just said. "You did what? You told him that you're my husband?" That would make him confused. "He wasn't sure if it was you. Well, with the look on his face, he was quite sure, but I stopped him from following you," Steve said as he crossed his legs and relaxed on her bed. He sensed and noticed the anger that was building up in her, but chose to ignore it. She wouldn't get mad at him. And if she would, he was ready for it. He would readily take her anger. He was going to be protective of her until the end. Rhoda had been an amazing person and he had grown to love her. He wouldn't let her go back into a life where she wasn't valued and appreciated. He was even ready to fathe