Consequences

Chapter 24

I had to avoid my mother wanting to ask me why I had shouted in my dreams. And I was thinking of how to do that, once I got to the breakfast table.

"Tola? Your breakfast will get cold, o." She shouted. I knew sitting down with her meant going through a question and answer session.

"I'm coming." I replied, as I left my room and headed towards the kitchen. I had to go out of the house without an explanation. And so I decided  to tell her I was running late.

"Mum, I have to rush out as I'm almost late." I told her, the moment I entered the kitchen. I grabbed my tea quickly and drank it  and started heading out.

"Tola I was hoping we could have breakfast together." She was surprised I was rushing out.
"Not today mum."
"Ah Tola, your father left in a hurry. Now you are also rushing out?"
"Daddy has left the house already?"
"A few minutes before you entered the kitchen."
"Well, I have an early start. Sorry to disappoint you." I rushed out and got into my car and drove off. I got to work earlier than usual, and sat in my car. I had to tell Ola about my dream. And so I dialed his number.

"Tola? Good morning baby, how are you?" He greeted.
"I'm fine. Good morning o, my... " Honey, darling, sweetie.  I was stuck and didn't even know what to call him. 
"Tola, hope you are okay?"
"Yes. Ehm, can I see you after work?"
"Hope there's no problem?" He asked.
"No, but I want to see you." There was a sign of urgency in my voice and this may have worried him. He started asking me if my wanting to see him was an urgent case so he could come over to my  office . I told him not to worry, but to wait for me at the restaurant. He agreed and hang up.

When I got to the restaurant after work, he was already there waiting for me. I got out of my car and went to meet him.

"Ola, I thought you wouldn't come." I told him.
"You said you wanted to see me. I had to come." He replied.
"Okay what do we do now?" He looked at the restaurant and then holding my hands asked me if I would like to go in. I looked at the restaurant and then looked at him. The fear of being left there again worried me.
"Yes, only if you won't leave me and go." To this he laughed and placed his hands around my shoulders.
"I told you it won't happen again and you still doubt me?" I smiled as I knew this time was going to be different. We went inside and took a table and sat down.

Once we sat down, we took our orders.  It wasn't long before our food was served. We ate quietly while I thought of a way to tell him about my dream. But he brought up the topic by asking me a question.

"Tola what was so urgent that you wanted to see me?"
"Did I say it was urgent?" I asked
"You sounded that way." I sighed as it was difficult for me to tell him about my dream.
"So are you going to tell me or you just wanted to see me?"
"Okay look, I... " I paused and looked at him. I had dreamed of  seeing him being shot by a woman. Sitting opposite him, there was only one question I really had in mind to ask him. Was he involved with another woman?
"Tola can't you speak up?" He asked.
"Yes I mean, okay look, I mean... are you involved with another woman?" I asked. I saw a look on his face that I had never seen before. It was one of those looks that was almost always accompanied by a slap. He may probably slap me, I thought to myself.

"Who me?" I nodded. "Tola are you serious about what you just asked?"
"Ola I need to know if you are involved with another woman or not."
"Seriously, but why?" 
"So there is, is that what you are saying?" Ola kept quiet and just stared at me. I felt like my heart was about to fail me. Tears were beginning to fill my eyes. If there indeed was another woman, then I had made the mistake of accepting to marry him.
"Tola what is the meaning of all this?" I stared at him as I believed he was avoiding to answer my question. I didn't want to believe there was someone else as this would devastate me.

"Ola, why did you make  me accept your proposal if there was someone else?" Tears were slowly rolling down my eyes and I tried to wipe them. I looked at him and saw that he had bent his head.

It seemed he was deep in thought and was probably thinking of an explanation to give me.  I waited to hear what he had to say, but he wasn't saying anything. I was angry and devastated.

"You don't want to tell me, do you? Fine, I won't ask you this question again. The only thing I want to tell you is this, if you have any dealings with her, try and settle it peacefully." I got up and walked out of the restaurant. I was about to get into my car when he came up to me.

"Tola what are you doing leaving me like that? Didn't you say you wanted to see me?"  I was already opening my car door when he asked that question.  I closed it and turned and faced him. When our eyes met, the only person I saw, was the man I loved. I didn't see the man that had failed to answer my question.

How could I even begin to tell him about the dream, when he couldn't tell me if there was another woman or not? I sighed and placed my hands around his shoulders. I shook my head as he placed his hands around my waist.

"I hate to lose you Ola."
"I hate to lose you too, Tola."
"Losing you, I don't know how I would move on."
"I'm not leaving you for anyone else. Not now and neither in the future." I sighed as he held me tight. I was happy he had assured me of his everlasting presence in my life. But I was still worried. Worried, he didn't answer my question.

"Tola, shall we go?" I looked at him and then held up my keys.
"Will you drive?" I asked him. Without saying a word he took the keys from my hand and held me and opened the front passenger door. I got in and he closed the door. We left the restaurant when he got in and started the car.

There was silence between us until he stopped at a pub. He asked me if I wanted to go in and stay for a while. I simply nodded. We went in and got ourselves a seat. There was light background music and it helped me relax my mind a bit.

Ola sitting beside me with his hands around my shoulders, was comforting. It was the only thing that mattered to me. I had decided not to ask him again, or to tell him about my dream. That is until I got home and my mother still wanted to know why I shouted in my dreams.

I had arrived home after dropping Ola off at his house. We had had a good time relaxing at the pub, and I was hoping we could go there again. Once I entered the house and closed the door, I heard my name.

"Tola?"
"Yes mum?" She had come out of the kitchen with a glass of wine in her hand and went to sit down.
"Tola, abeg come first." She said as she sat down. I went to sit down next to her. I knew she wanted to ask me  about what happened.

"So Tola tell me what happened, this morning. Why were you shouting in your sleep?" I knew there was only one way to end this, and that was to tell her.

"I had this dream of a man and a woman. They were arguing over something, then the man fell to the floor." My mother listened attentively as I finished telling her the dream.

"So did you see their faces?"
"No." I replied.
"But it's like I heard you shouting someone's name. I'm trying remember that name." I knew she wanted me to tell her who that person was. My guess was that she already knew, but wanted to hear it from me. I couldn't tell her the name since Ola didn't answer my question.

I got up and told my mother I was going into my room.
"Anyway before you come out I will try and remembered the name." She said sipping her wine. I went  to my room and quickly got on my phone and sent a texted message to Ola:

'Ola I had a dream in which I saw a woman shoot a man. The man falls and  looking at his face, guess who I see?
I know  the  presence of another woman in your life, if there is,  is something you wouldn't want me to know. I can understand that, but let me know now  before we tie the knot.'

I sent the message and waited for the outcome. I was sure he wouldn't reply immediately. With Ola, I was beginning to understand one thing; that promptness wasn't a part of his life.

He had a laid back attitude, something I seemed not to have. This meant in dealing with him I had to have a lot of  patience. And right in my room, I didn't have that patience. I wanted an answer from him before I told my mother what the name of the man was.

 I knew if I told my mother right away, she would take it so seriously enough to find out what that dream meant. And I didn't want her finding out before I did. But getting Ola to talk about it was a problem.