GIVE ME A HEART
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CHAPTER1??5??
An hour and half later, I came out of the steam room and dried myself with a towel. A shirt was already for me on the bed. I wore it along with the trouser and walked downstairs where Victoria and Veronica were waiting for me.
I sat down on the armchair and waited as these two ladies stared at me.
” So what’s this all about?” I asked.
Veronica waved to Victoria. ” She’s my junior sister.”
I glanced at Victoria, surprised to hear that. ” But you look older.”
” I grew up faster than Veronica,” Victoria said. ” Still, she remains my senior sister.”
I returned my eyes back to Veronica. ” I still don’t understand what’s happening.”
” When I heard your story at Grills garden I knew it was you. At first I was frightened but then, after listening to you, I started to feel really sorry for you. But I wanted to be sure that you’ve changed. So I told my sister about you. She already knows what happened back then in high school. Victoria suggested that I get you the job first,” Veronica paused as she fidgeted with her fingers. ” The rest went according to plan. When you came for the interview, Victoria brought up your past to stir up the waters and make you uneasy. We wanted to see how broken you are about what you did to me ten years ago, if the incident was really still fresh in your mind. There after, after the interview, we hired those two thugs to harrass you just like you harrassed me back then in high school by pouring water on my school uniform. Then the next day, Victoria frustrated you with work to dull your mind and keep you tired with pressure. I wasn’t at the board meeting. It was Victoria and I who put a substance into your hot chocolate coffee that made you ran to the toilet in the basement. It was also Victoria who locked you up. That was Victoria’s idea and we decided to let you spend the night there so that you’d know what it feels like to be locked up in a confined space.”
Victoria chipped in. ” Thereafter, I took the trouble of building up your tensions, calling you names, and doubling your amount of work to keep your mind preoccupied off that incident. I made you suffer just as you made my. Sister suffered when you bully and called her the diseased girl.”
Veronica cut in. ” I was at the hospital then, I went for my weekly check up. Today, before you left for your presentation to the board of directors, Victoria swapped the video you’re supposed to present with a different one. This was to give you that embarrassing, hurtful feelings I felt when you called my mother a whore that gave birth to me with no heart. I took you into my office to grill you so that I’d make you understand how much pains you’ve caused me in the past and how much I wanted you to feel those pains too. But I guess I might’ve taken it too far,” she paused, covering her eyes. ” I knew you’ve changed. I just couldn’t believe it. I deeply sorry for everything you’ve been through because of me. You might not know this but ninety five percent of this plan wasn’t my ideas, it was Victoria’s. At some points I’d be worried about you but I desperately wanted to know if you have really changed or if you were still the same old Andrew. I’m sorry for everything, I truely am.”
It all made total sense now. So Ronnie was Veronica all these while. And I was too blind to see it. I went down on my knees and fell before her feet. ” Veronica,” I sobbed. ” You don’t have to be sorry for anything. It’s all my fault. Everything you ever did was for the best. Now that I felt what you went through back then at school, I asked that you please forgive me.”
Veronica and Victoria stared at me as I held her legs and pleaded with my heart.
” I am really sorry. I hope that you’d find it in your heart to forgive someone like me. I don’t deserve anything better. I thought I might never see you again. All I ever want is your forgiveness.”
Veronica fell to her knees and rose me up to face her. She gave me a warm hug. ” It’s alright, Andrew. I’ve forgiven you ten years ago.”
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” I’d like to see Cain once again before I go for the surgery,” Veronica said as we prepared dinner the next day for Veronica’s parents arrival.
I was dicing the onions. ” I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
” Why not,” she asked. ” He’d be glad to see us again. It’d be a friendship reunion.”
Victoria was off to the office to handle my affairs. Veronica took a sick leave due to her surgery tomorrow.
I stopped dicing the onions and bowed my head. ” Cain and I are no longer friends. Ever since you left, he hated me for what I did to you.”
” That was ten years ago,” Veronica pointed out, as she tasted the soup in the fire. ” By now he would’ve forgotten about that event.”
” Veronica,” I called gravely. ” He lost one of his legs in an accident because of me. He lost a lot of blood too. It was gruesome.”
Veronica stopped cooking and turned to look at me. ” No kidding.”
I nodded.
” That’s awfully bad,” she said returning back to her cooking with a frown on her face. ” Did you two get in a fight?”
” Yes we did,” I answered.
” But he promised,” she raised her voice. ” He promised me you two wouldn’t get in a fight because of me.”
” Veronica, if I may ask. Were Cain and you going out back then in high school?” I asked curiously.
She shooked her head. ” Cain and I never dated. We were best friends. He usually comes around to play with Victoria and me because we didn’t have much friends at that time. Sometimes he clears our bushes. Other times, he takes us in his bicycle to places of interests. Our relationship with each other was platonic. Cain didn’t have time for dating and neither did I. We were merely happy to keep each other’s company.”
It was then I understood everything. I began to feel sorry for Cain and angry at myself for not understanding him ten years ago.
” I’d definitely love to see him again,” Veronica said. ” Wouldn’t you?”
” I guess so,” I replied, not sure if I’d want to face Cain again after everything I’ve done.
” Great,” Veronica came over and took the diced Onions from my hand. ” He’s on his way to Lagos now. He’d be joining us for dinner tonight.”
I started out of my skin. I turned around and gaped at her. ” Say what?”
Veronica laughed. ” It was going to be a surprise but I got soo excited I blurted it out before I knew it.”
” Cain is coming here?” I asked.
” Yes,” she answered. ” I booked a flight for him today. He seemed interested to know I was still alive. He might be here in a couple of minutes now. Victoria will pick him up at the airport.”
Just then, the doorbell ranged. Veronica turned to me. ” Oh would you be a darling and get the door for me please.”
I walked towards the living me, my heart beating wildly like a drum. Cain would be standing outside, what would he do if he saw me. I stopped at the door and stared at it without attempting to open it.
Ding dong!!!
Why does this feels soo scary. I raised my hand and opened the door slowly and gently. Standing outside was Veronica’s parents. They stiffened when they saw me.
With relief I waved at them. ” Evening sir, evening ma.”
I didn’t see the slap coming. Veronica’s mom hitted me across my cheek. ” What are you doing here?” She raised her voice at her husband. ” What is this monster doing in my daughters house?”
” Mom, dad,” Veronica ran from the kitchen and hugged her parents. I held my cheeks and watched as they talked and embraced each other like a big family. I immediately thought of my family. My mom, my dad and my step sister. I decided after Veronica’s surgery, I’d pay them my first visit in ten years.
” Why do you have this, villian here with you,” Veronicas mom asked, pointing at me.
” Mom,” Veronica said, edging her towards the kitchen. ” It’s okay, he’s not a villian, okay. He’s changed.”
I didn’t hear the rest but I knew she would explain everything to her mom in the kitchen. Veronica’s dad patted me on the shoulder.
” It’s been a long time, boy. See how you’ve grown,” he smiled.
I like him. He was such a gentleman. Veronica takes after him. I bet Victoria took after her mother. I stared at his grey hair and I wondered how old my parents must’ve been by now.
I bowed and greeted him properly. ” I’m really sorry for everything I caused back then sir.”
He patted me again. ” It’s nothing, boy. It’s all in the past.”
Ding dong!!! The doorbell sounded again.
” Excuse me, sir,” i said and opened the door again.
Staring eyeball to eyeball with me was Cain. He’s eyes grew with shock as he saw me. I opened my mouth then closed it.
He smacked me a punch in the face. Because I was lightweighted, the punch threw me over head into the room.
Cain walked into the room, raising his other crunches at me. ” Andrew, you monster!!!” He shouted.
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Everyone sat around the dinning table, eating in silence. Victoria and Cain sat beside each other. I sat beside Veronica, nibbling my food without saying anything. Veronica and her parents were talking, the rest of us just stayed quiet and ate our food in silence. From time to time I’d glance up at Cain. He had this big frown on his face.
” So, Cain,” Veronica’s nothing said. ” What do you do now.”
It made me feel like Cain was the family friend.
Cain shrugged. ” I’m a mechanic. I couldn’t finish school because things went tough for my family and since I had only one leg, I decided to learn how to fix cars in order to make a living and support my family.”
” That’s so sad,” Veronica’s father said. ” You’re married?”
Cain nodded. ” I have a child now.”
This surprised me but I was more surprised Veronica wasn’t surprised. So Cain has a family. It made me feel I’ve been lacking far behind in everything that’s been going on at home.
I wanted to ask about my parents but the courage to speak to Cain wasn’t there.
Moments later, Veronica and Cain and I stood outside the gates.
” We can’t all stay in the same house,” she maintained. ” So I suggest you stay with Andrew.”
Cain didn’t say anything. He held his crunches close to him as if he was straining himself with an effort not to swing the crunches at me. It made me sad to see Cain like this. He only had one leg. I couldn’t bring myself to look at him.
” Cain, you heard me right?” Veronica asked.
Cain growled under his breath. ” I’m going to book a room in a hotel.”
Veronica raised her hands in the air. ” Oh come on, Cain. Why waste money booking a hotel room when you can just stay the night at Andrews place. I mean you guys can hang out tonight and paint the town red. It’d just be like old times.”
Cain chuckled and turned to look Veronica in the eyes. ” You didn’t tell me Andrew will be here with you. Why did you drag me all the way from my family to come see this j*erk.”
I raised my face and looked at Cain. Veronica opened her mouth then closed it. ” I…I…I thought if you two see each other again, you might reconcile and become best friends again.”
” Become friends?” Cain laughed. ” Wait, so you honestly think I’ll just fly all the way to Lagos, meet this villian and suddenly forget about everything and we’d hug and laugh about everything?”
Veronica didn’t say anything and neither did I. Cain turned to me and pointed at me. ” This monster caused me my legs. He ruined my future and made my life miserable. You might’ve forgiven him but I have not and nothing, absolutely nothing is ever going to make me forgive him.”
Veronica wanted to say something but he cut her off. ” And don’t tell me those stupid saying of ” to err is human to forgive is divine nonsense,” till I die, I’m never going to be friends with this man.”
” Cain,” Veronica called. ” If you can’t do this for me, nobody else can. Remember you came here for me….”
” Exactly,” Cain interrupted. ” I came here because your surgery is tomorrow. I’m here to stick to your side until you make it out of your surgery. I didn’t come here to see this…this…this murderer.”
” Cain, he is not a murderer,” Veronica argued.
” Fine,” Cain said and started walking down the street.
” Where are you going?” Veronica called.
” I’m going to get a taxi,” he said over his shoulder.
Veronica turned to me. ” I’m sorry about that. Look I’m going to get my car so that I can drop him off at a hotel. You wouldn’t mind using a taxi home.”
” No, I don’t mind,” I didn’t recognize my voice. It sounded like a frog.
” I’ll meet you at home,” Veronica said and ran inside to get her car. She sped up to Cain, pleaded with him to get in the car and they drove off together.
Thirty minutes later, I was on my bed, staring at the ceiling, my mind lost in thoughts. Just then, a knock came on my door. I knew who it was so I bellowed. ” Come in.”
Veronica came in. I didn’t stand up from the bed to welcome her. She came over and sat beside me.
” I’m sorry about Cain,” she said. ” I should’ve known it wasn’t going to be easy for Cain to….”
” That’s fine,” I said without looking at her. ” You did your best. It’s not your fault.”
” You know,” she continued. ” If I hadn’t shown up, you and Cain would still be best of friends.”
” You don’t know that,” I said.
” You really think he was serious about not ever forgiving you?” Veronica asked.
I nodded. ” Probably. Cain always means what he says.”
Then there was an awkward silence that filled the room. I turned and stared at Veronica. She was dead worried.
” Andrew I’m scared about tomorrow,” she said. ” I get this vibes that keeps telling me I’m not going to make it from the surgery.”
I sat up. ” Don’t say that. I’m going to pray for you. You’ll definitely make it. I’m sure of that.”
” The doctor says there one chance in a million of survival,” Veronica explained.
” Isn’t there any other way around this,” i asked. ” You can’t die. There just have to be another way.”
” We have to buy a heart,” she said. ” But hearts are very expensive. Even with all my savings in my account I still can’t afford a strong heart that matches with my system. The only way out now is this surgery.”
I didn’t know what else to say but I said it. ” It’s going to be alright.”
She smiled and drew closer to me. ” I know I’m going die tomorrow, Andrew.”
” Stop saying that,” I rasped. ” You’re not going to….”
She cut me off. ” Hear me out first, Andrew. I know you’re trying to be helpful but it’s no use. There’s something else I’ve always wanted to do before I die. I’ve never had slept with any man in my life. I’ve always wanted to have children and grow a family but every man I met was afraid of my heart disease. No one wanted to marry me. I couldn’t find love. So before I die tomorrow, I want you to show me what it feels like to be loved.”
I didn’t say anything. I was too shock to speak. ” Veronica, you don’t mean that do you?”
She stood to her feet and began unbuttoning her shirt.
” Wait,” I said backing off. ” You have to give me sometime to prepare myself.”
Veronica slipped on the bed next to me and covered us with a blanket. She laid her head on my chest and whispered. ” There’s no time for preparation, Andrew. Take me.”
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12:57.am. I was sitting on my study table, writing on my journal. Today was Veronica’s surgery. In the next eight hours, she’d be in the theatre.
I turned and stared as Veronica slept peacefully on my bed. It seemed a sad thing she was going to die today. I returned back to my journal and finished my writing. At the front cover of my journal I wrote in big letters:
GIVE ME A HEART ? ??
At the end, I got down on my knees and did a silent prayer. ” Lord, I have always prayed for a heart. Now you’ve given me a heart, I want you to give Veronica a heart too. Amen.”
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