Five
Camera light...
Action...
Fake smiles...
Fiction...
Dollhouse...
Image...
Family ties...
Pretense...
"She said she wants a divorce and she's adamant about it this time," were the words that came out of our father's lips before we watched him sip his black coffee in an attempt to hide his face and shame away from our lingering eyes.
"This time? Mum has asked for a divorce before?" Tiwatope sat up, finally doing us the honors of dropping her phone.
"Severally," he admitted without a single trace of doubt in his tone nor eyes and I could tell that he was trying too hard to keep it all together for our sakes—we didn't need to be told how much he loved mummy.
"Is it the rumors? Is she believing the lies?" Titilayo asked and I could almost sap out and taste the pain that erupted from her questions, especially because she'd almost been responsible for breaking a home herself plus before Tobilola came, she'd been the last child for almost seven years and it's been hard to get over her last baby syndrome.
I watched as dad quickly licked his lips, looked around, and sat up before finally rubbing his hands together and placing the warmth of his hands over his face for less than 2 seconds.
"Not all the rumors were untrue." He finally admitted our deepest fears and gladly, we were mature enough not to burden him with the reaction he probably expected from us—I mean, we'd seen the videos and pictures of him in the vlogs and all and none of them looked photoshop at all. I watched him search our faces for some kind of reaction, but the closest to the disappointment he could get was how Titilayo closed her eyes; she didn't take his hands off when he placed them over hers thankfully— she just kept her eyes beautifully closed—still maintaining beauty.
"You're not kids anymore," he started. "Tolani, you'll be 27 next month, Tiwa, you're 25 or so," he rubbed Titi's hands before handling them tenderly into his own, "and you just turned 22...none of you are little girls anymore so, I guess I can start telling you some of the things that have been happening between your mum and I back in Nigeria," I wanted to stop him, I wanted to tell him that he didn't have to— that we understood— but did we? Or was I just trying to spare my heart the fall?
"She won't...she hasn't...we've not had anything together for over 11 freaking years, girls, will you believe?" He dropped the bomb and this time, it was Titilayo holding him back from tearing up in public. It was days like this that I wished we met at one of our places, not some damned open restaurant in Madison Square. "Some days she'll lock herself up in the room praying and some nights I'll catch her staring into space. Your mother has become something else, girls and if I truly love her, then letting her go would be the best way to prove it. She's not happy with me anymore." He couldn't hold it in anymore, he broke down and I watched him get consoled by Tiwatope and Titilayo, I just watched in silence. This was it, the fall.
"Have you ever tried asking her why? Why she changed so much?" I finally took his hands when he was calm enough to talk and my sisters were back in their seats.
He held on to his coffee mug tight like he needed it for strength and that was when I began to watch his bottom lip quiver.
He knew the answer to my question and he was either too heartbroken, to tell the truth, or he was cooking up a lie in his head. I'd bet my life on the latter.
"Dad?" Titilayo took note of his awkward silence and looked from him to me in confusion. Tiwatope had begun to type on her phone but it was short-lived when she noticed the silence too.
"Alright, what's happening, Dad?" She squinted her eyes and dropped her phone back on the table very slowly.
"I'm so sorry," he started, snatching his right hand away from his grip on the coffee mug and to stop the tears that threatened to drop from his eyes, "I didn't know how to tell you...to be fair, everyone thought you girls should know but I stopped them from telling you, please forgive me." He broke down again but I was too agitated and frankly speaking, losing my head to watch him spend any other second keeping whatever it is from us.
"Pull yourself together dad and tell us whatever it is," I could feel my own voice begin to betray me as fear took over me, pouring down as tears as the evidence.
"Is it Tobiloba, Dad? Is he...," Titilayo covered her mouth with her hands and began to shake in the realization of her thoughts.
"Oh my God!" Tiwatope shot up more painfully than dramatically. Out of all us three, she was the closest to Tobiloba and she personally took it upon herself to shop for his clothes and also send him the latest video games and gadgets.
"Calm down," dad's words came out initially like a whisper before he found his voice and commanded us to compose ourselves. "Your brother isn't dead although...,"
"Although what, daddy?" Tiwatope asked with her hands folded up into a tight fist and fixed to her quivering lips.
"Please, Daddy, you said it yourself that we're grown now, don't hold anything back. If there's something we need to know about our brother; your heir, now is the time." I said and bit my lower lip down in fear right after.
"He's currently undergoing treatment for AD."
"What's that?" Tiwatope shot at him.
"Asperger syndrome," Dad announced and my heart broke and my face fell as I watched my sisters bring out their phones to obviously Google out whatever that meant.
Tiwatope landed her head slowly on the table and Titilayo threw her head back, blinking back what I knew were hot and painful tears.
Rate this book 1/10
And please...
Vote!
I've lost my former IG account to Internet scammers but I'm grateful for reasons I don't even understand. It was distracting and I'm glad to start afresh. Follow me now (cinmithewriter) on IG AND I'll follow back!
Please vote and leave comments.
And please tell your friends about this book because it's more than a book, it's a movement!
I've decided to use my voice to change things in my little ways--this is an attempt.
You can listen to me telling this story on my podcast (Middle Of The Night Stories With Cinmisola) follow me up on IG (mnswcpodcast)