[STORY] IMPERSONATION (Episode 03)

Episode 03.

The Trip to Port Harcourt was a bumpy one.

Kate and I took turns, driving.

The twelve hours journey by road took Kate and me two days.

If I’d been the kind that loves to embark on very long road trips, I’m sure I would have thought this trip more exciting than I currently think it was.

We had a lot of stops on this trip.

Kate had insisted that we relished the moment by indulging in as many exciting activities as we could. And we did (to the best of Kate’s abilities anyways).
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Kate finally pulled up in front of a giant, black gate. The honk of the car had woken me up from my sleep to the sight of the “beauty”, that was “Royal Villa Estate”.

We arrived around past eight, that night.

This estate was illuminated so beautifully, I got Goosebumps just by the sight of it.
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A security man at the entrance gate came out to verify who we were and who we were there to see. He recognized Kate and immediately commanded that the gate be thrown open for us.

The broad smile on his face and the small display of immense respect at the sight of Kate was rather surprising.
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I don’t really know why I thought this supposed nice gesture towards Kate, surprising, especially since somewhere in this estate, laid her home. Besides, this was Kate, one of the most amazing humans I know. One of her numerous kind gestures towards these security men must have accorded her this lofty rank in their hearts.

I tried not to make a big deal out of “this” until we pulled up in front of this duplex that was to belong to Kate’s parents.
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You needn’t be told to know that its occupants were loaded.

You needn’t be told that everyone living in this estate was loaded.
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Kate had never discussed her parent’s financial standing with me before.

Even though we’ve spoken about virtually everything that could possibly come to mind, for some reason, Kate had found a way to leave this part of herself out of our conversation.
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Kate never struck me as someone from a wealthy home. She has never for once acted in any way that should have pricked any suspicions.

I’ve always known and seen Kate as a “hustler”.

I’ve always known Kate to be very hardworking. To be someone who has had to burst her back to achieve all that she has come to have.

Never for once would I have imagined that Kate indeed, got a very good start.
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The door to the main building soon opened and two beautiful ladies (both dressed in a very sexy attire that looked like a uniform) ushered Kate and I in, with a very broad smile.

We were ushered into this amazing edifice to meet cheers.

I could not believe my eyes. Kate’s entire family members had somehow been looking forward to our arrival.

Arguably, every single family member was there, in attendance.

I hugged and shook hands until I was literally tired.
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Kate has a very huge and beautiful family. They were very welcoming. Too welcoming.

They were nothing like I’d envisaged, based on a lot of things Kate had told me about them, especially about their constant complaints and the pressure they posed.
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I felt an instant connection with Kate’s brothers. Barely an hour after we’d met for the first time, and we were already bonded as though we’d known ourselves, our whole lives.

No wonder Kate is as amazing a person as she is.

This Apple didn’t fall far from its tree after all.
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Kate’s father still looks very young. He still looks very fit, too agile for a man in his mid-seventies.

Kate’s father held me to his chest and held me there for about five seconds.

Kate’s mother literally had to pry me off of him to continue from where he’d stopped.

Apparently, this is a family of “huggers”.
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We were shown to our room.
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“Dinner will be ready by the time you are both freshened up”. One of the ladies who’d brought our bags upstairs said to me, with a smile I might have read more meanings to.
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It wasn’t so awkward to have had to turn my face, while Kate got out of her dress, then in a towel, to go into the bathroom.

It wasn’t the first time we’ll be in such a situation.
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We were soon freshened up, then downstairs, to the dining table.

Everyone had already taken their seats on this very huge table, waiting for us to join them for dinner.
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I pulled out a chair for Kate to sit before I took mine right next to her (after asking to be sure she was fine).

This act, somehow threw everyone’s eyes wide open in surprise at my gentlemanliness.

For some reason, this thing I can do for “literally” anyone, seemed such a big deal to this amazing family. This same family I was in the presence of, playing who I’m not.
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The second, the lid to our food got thrown open, the aroma of this very palatable dish began to hit me from all angles.

I was salivating like a starved dog that’d just seen a bone from across a display mirror.

Then I remembered that all Kate had fed me with all day long, were junks. This was the first real food I’d been presented with, all day.
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I didn’t even need to have a taste, from the sight of the food alone, I already knew it tasted amazing.

The vegetable soup inside the bowl seated just an arm’s length away from me, was seriously fighting with the “animals” it’d been garnished with.

The pounded yam that’d been prepared to accompany this mouth watering soup, sat beautifully in another bowl, daring me to do whatever I wanted to do with it, “If dem born me well”.
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In my mind, I’d eaten the entire plate of food served and still wanted like two plates, extra. But in reality, I knew I mustn’t finish my one plate of this food.
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I must not be seen as a “hungry future son-in-law”.

“But since when is it wrong to eat to one’s fill when he’s hungry na? Does this faces i am seeing like this, look like one that’ll complain, when they see that their supposed future son inlaw is someone with a very large appetite?” I asked myself.
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But during orientation, for whatever reason, this was one of those things Kate had warned me about.

If i went ahead to do what my village people were whispering in my ears to do, I know Kate would “k!ll me”.

“But shebi all die na die”.

To be continued…