————
I awoke late the next morning, by late I mean 6 a.m., went straight into the house and began sweeping, I wrapped up sweeping and returned to the kitchen to arrange it, I sat down in the kitchen patiently awaiting them to wake up so I could tidy up the rest of the house and make something for them to eat.
..... phone rings
I picked up the phone and placed it against my ear, and the voice of my fiancé, Tanimu, boomed into it. We greeted each other, talked about the village, and he gave me an update on the room he was building, which would be mine in a few months. I met Tanimu two months ago when my mother asked me to return home to look for a husband; all of my peer group are married, and at 21, I'm the oldest unmarried woman in the village; I spent two weeks in the village dressing up and going out, purposefully passing through the Boys' hangout.
Getting the attention of a young person was not even on the list because I am categorized as old. Tanimu, who has three wives and 12 children, was introduced to me. He came to my house with the proposal, and my parents accepted him right away. And schedule our wedding to take place after the farming seasoning which is 7 months from now. I accepted Tanimu not because I liked him, but because he was the only option I had and my parents would never give me a listening ear, I have become a stigma to them, they just want to get rid of me.
"Hanne, Hanne, Hanne," someone called. I mumbled in response to the voice. They have awakened to disturb my peace.
I entered the house and met Fatima, the youngest daughter. "Hajiya is calling you," she said as she returned upstairs. I followed her to Hajiya's, where I found Hajiya on the carpet reading a book. I bowed down and greeted her; she responded cheerfully and gave me orders for the day's meals. I quickly left the room and went to start making breakfast for them, while bringing out the leftovers from the fridge for myself.
"Hanne, Hanne," Fatima, their last child, called. I exited the kitchen to hear what she had to say. "Cook noddles for me and Fannah," she said. Who's going to eat the food I just prepared for the entire house, I wonder? The food will stay there until they ask me to pack it, at which point it will be dry and tasteless. But who am I to complain? They have an abundance of food and can do anything they want with it. This took me back to the village where a single meal is often difficult for people to get.
I finished cooking the noodles and delivered them to them. I met them watching TV in the room. I put the food on the bedside table and turned to leave. But they have other plans for me.
"Ke, Hanne, can't you greet?" Fannah asked. I bowed my head, apologized, and greeted her, which was responded to with a loud hiss. I paused for a moment before walking to the door. "Close the door!" Fatima yelled as if I had told her I wasn't going to do it.
————
I went to clean Hajiya's room and the kids' rooms. I understand that they are not children, but given their behavior, they must be addressed as such. I do almost everything for them (packing their dirty clothes, sorting their laundry, cleaning their toilets, and more); the only thing they do in that house is take a bath and get ready. This always makes me wonder what would happen if we were all born with a silver spoon in our mouths. Who will serve these people? Will they do it on their own?
"Yaya and Ya Hanan are returning tomorrow," Fatima told Fannah. My face brightened up at the mention of Yaya, no, it's not what you're thinking, I don't like him, but with him in the house, the workload isn't heavy, because, unlike Hajiya, he always makes sure his sisters do something around the house. I won't be making breakfast again starting tomorrow instead, I'll hand it over to the girls until he leaves; sadly, he doesn't usually stay long.
I finished my work and returned downstairs, where I met Hajiya in the parlor. "Sannu Hajiya," I said, "Yauwa, Hanne take this to my room." She handed me a nylon. I took it from her and began walking. On my way to the bedroom, I peered into the nylon and noticed two bundles of 1,000 notes. "Hanne just remove three" "Hanne remove Five" "Hanne, take the whole thing and lie to Hajiya that you kept it on the bed." "Hanne, don't," different voices in my head urged. But from the little that I know about religion, I know stealing is Haram.
Many girls were sent back to the village for stealing. Why would someone take something that isn't his in the first place? Some even have the backing of their parents. Lantana, a friend of mine who also works in the city, is an expert at stealing, and with the help of her mother, she can sneak items from her workplace to the village before anyone notices.
I headed to the kitchen to start preparing for lunch, I was told to make fried rice along with peppered snails. You're probably puzzled because that's exactly how I felt when I learned that people eat snail dodon kodi fa, they considered it to be meat. When I first saw it, I thought it was a mistake from the market, until Hajiya showed me how to cook it.
I felt my phone vibrate from my body. I often forget about this phone when I'm working. Tanimu got it for me when I was leaving the village two months ago so that he could contact me. When I answered the phone, I was greeted by the sound of my mother's voice! Allah ya taimake ni.
"Inna Ina wuni," I said. "Hannatu, ya aiki," she replied. "Alhamdulillah Inna," I responded. "Toh dama Rabilu is coming to the city tomorrow I want you to get your salary and give it to him" she instructs him. To say I was astonished is an understatement. "Amma Inna, I thought we were going to save it for the wedding?" I said. "eh turo amfanin gona za'a siya," she explained. I have no choice but to send it to them; I know they aren't going to buy any farming products, and the money will be used for something trivial, but who am I to say no to my mother?
————-
I sat in the kitchen thinking about what my mother
had told me, how could I even start asking Hajiya for
my two months' salary without any prior notice?
Another issue is telling her l need it by tomorrow. Our parents can make us appear inconsiderate in our workplace because they are constantly calling us
home for trivial reasons and demanding money without a heads-up.
" Yaya is back" the girls screamed. The mere mention of his name made me feel a little better. I have a good feeling about tomorrow.
