[STORY] MY CHILD (Final Episode 03)

Episode 03. (Last Episode)

As Uche and his father held each other in a warm embrace, Uche whispered “father, I am your son forever and nothing on earth would change that”, softly and assuring into his father’s ears. His father held him more tightly as a few drops of tears escaped from his eyes. After that moment, each of them retired to their separate rooms.

The next morning, Uche woke up with a decision concerning the recent revelation but his father dissuaded him from carrying it out. He (Uche) had decided never to have anything to do with his biological mother, stressing that she gave up the right of being his mother the moment she dumped him in Mr Nweke’s care. But his father calmly reminded him that it would have never been easy for a mother to abandon her child unless it was beyond her control. He (Mr Nweke) advised that they should hear her story before taking any decisions. For the love and respect Uche had for his father, he agreed to do as he had advised.

It took five more months before Uche’s biological mother came visiting him in the hospital again. Uche, with a mean face and harsh tone told her that his father wanted to see her. She instantly declined seeing Mr Nweke. She also openly told Uche that she could not face Mr Nweke after putting him in such a difficult situation years back. It took Uche’s threat of never giving her audience again if she refused to come with him before she accepted to go and see Mr Nweke. They drove for a few hours before they arrived at Mr Nweke’s house. Throughout the journey, they didn’t speak to each other. Uche was angry within him for being abandoned while his biological mother was scared of talking to him because of his countenance.

They drove into Mr Nweke’s compound and alighted from the car. At the entrance of the house, she (Uche’s mother) became hesitant. She was so scared of seeing Mr Nweke. Uche left her there and walked into the house. Few minutes later, Uche and his father came out of the house. “Chinaza”, Mr Nweke called on seeing her. She quickly ran to Mr Nweke and knelt before him, pleading for forgiveness in tears. Mr Nweke pulled her up and led her into the house. Immediately they were seated, she started begging for forgiveness again. “Nna anyi, please forgive me. I was going to die and you were the most kindhearted man I knew then. I wanted him to have a good life and I knew you could give him that”, she pleaded. When Mr Nweke heard her saying she was going to die, he became curious and asked her what she meant by that. It was then she told her story.
……..
Chinaza was working as a cook and housekeeper for a rich family back then. The family had a wayward son who was expelled from the university for engaging in cult activities. He came back home and became a menace to his parents and everyone at home. He was always taking and squandering any money he laid his hands on. Alcoholism and taking hard drugs were his hobbies. At a time, he started making sexual advances at Chinaza but she turned him down severally. Then one afternoon, he came home high as usual and asked Chinaza to fix him lunch. They were alone in the house. When she brought the food, he left the food and pounced on her instead. He overpowered her and had his way with her.

When his parents came back, Chinaza reported the incident to them in tears but they didn’t take any action. They rather warned her never to say a word about it to any other person and gave her some pills. Few weeks later, Chinaza discovered that she was pregnant. She told her hosts about her pregnancy and that became the beginning of her problems. They accused her of intentionally allowing their son to sleep with her and not taking the pills they gave her because she wanted to use the pregnancy as a means of becoming a part of their family. They sent her away and she went back to her mother who was her only family.

She joined her mother in doing the menial jobs she did for survival. Four months into her pregnancy, her mother was attacked by one of her employers’ dog and she died a few days later. From then henceforth, Chinaza became on her own, catering for herself and her unborn child. She managed to carry the pregnancy until she was due for delivery with no medical care. Eventually, she put to bed in the wooden house she and her mother lived in with a neighbor improvising as the midwife.

Fending for herself and her child became more difficult. Pap which was the cheapest baby food could not be afforded. She only fed him breast milk from her malnourished breasts. She was living in hell. Many times, she had thought of taking her life and ending her misery but the thought of her child had stopped her from doing so. Then one morning, she made a decision to leave this world behind.

She had planned leaving her child in the care of the only compassionate human being she knew before going back home and ending her misery. She was convinced that ‘nna anyi’ would take care of her baby more than she could even if she lived. She believed her child deserved a better life other than what she had to offer. After taking that decision, she set out to accomplish it. She went to Mr Nweke’s shop and left Uche with him. On her way back to her sham where she was going to commit suicide, she was knocked down by a vehicle. The owner of the vehicle was a business expert who had come into the town for a business summit.

She was in coma for three weeks before she woke up and all the while, the man never stopped checking on her and paying the bills. When she regained consciousness, she told her story to the man, leaving out the part where she left her child behind. The elderly man took her with him to his base out of compassion and that was how she lived. She later became educate and got married. Her marriage was blessed with two sons.
………
“Uche my son, when you were seven, I came looking for you. But then I saw what a wonderful family you have and the love you were showered with, I wasn’t ready to disrupt that. I swore never to come back for you again because I know you’ve got the best life. But I don’t know what brought me here. I didn’t come to lay claims on you or take you back. I rather came to let you and ‘Nna anyi’ know that I did not leave you because I wanted to, that I left you with him because I needed you to live and I knew he’d be the best father to you. I also came to thank ‘Nna anyi’ for taking care of you and nurturing you into this fine young man you have become. I never stopped loving you my son”, she concluded in tears.

Before she finished her story, everyone present was already letting out streams of tears. She went closer to Mr Nweke, held his hand and added “Nna anyi, he is forever your son”.

Did she take the right decision or not?
– THE END.

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