It is said that, three things are of necessity, or in better terms “wants” in a woman's life; Money, love and family. Teni, a candid young woman had all three necessities or... So she thought.
Downright devastated by the news, “Jide is dead!!!”, Teni's eyes turned blood-red hazed and her face stunned by the looks of it. One can only imagine what was going through her head or if anything was going through her head at all. It took a while for her mouth to open and screams that could possibly wake the dead was heard. She collapsed on the ground, rolling her body through the floor bathed in sand she wailed till she had no strength in her to cry anymore.
The next day Teni had become catatonic,, neither speaking nor eating. Her eyes were just widen like she is still trying to process the news. Days became weeks, Teni a once endowed curvy ebony skinned woman had now become thin and pale. It was more like she placed herself on an island, isolating herself from everybody and everyone. No one could talk to her, not even her mother or friend could bring her out from her state.
Jide was Teni's husband and confidant. He and Teni had been together since college up to the point of his death in a fatal car accident. Being in the phone with his wife had distracted him from seeing the truck in front of him. There wasn't even a body to be buried, just Jide's insides as his car was crushed by the truck on his way back home to Teni.
Guilt filled the mind of Teni, as she stared into the night thinking, thinking about her husband's death being her fault. If only she had not engaged him in that argument. She had always been the one with the issues in their marriage due to her paranoia and tendency to stretch matters. Tears dropped from her eyes as she pictured Jide's face, his tender heart and the happiness he brought into her life.
The smell of cake brought her back from her thoughts for a moment, a pastry shop in her neighborhood, doing what it does best, baking its pastries while the sweet aroma spreads through the entire area, Teni was taken back to her 25th birthday when Jide baked her a cake, the happiness, the joy she felt, that entire memory that was once about love they shared, has all now turned into bitter.
Lost in her thoughts, she thought further about her fight with jide, how she said those words “I hate you jide, I wish you were dead”. Bursting into tears she screamed in her thoughts, “why did I say that, why those words?” How could she have thought the man who had been with her for years was cheating on her, due to her paranoia she saw signs that weren't there; calls from co worker's were her husband's sidechicks, his late nights were due to illicit sexual activities at hotels and bars. Could she have ever been so wrong, her loving husband who cared for her and worked harder just so he could cater for her a life where she'd have no worries.
Apparently his late nights and calls were due to a surprise trip he was orchestrating for their anniversary. But she was so blind to see it. Nay, she was too paranoid to see it.
Oh how she curses herself and condemns her soul. She curses the day she said those words, “I wish you were dead”. She curses herself further because the last thing her husband heard was her screams of hatred for him, and vulgarity. Had she known better she would not have been on the phone with him that day of his death, and maybe just maybe her Jide would not have been distracted, he would have drove safely home and would be seated there with her, explaining to her that she was being paranoid for nothing.
She had killed her husband, she thought.
Sadly, she is the witch in her own life's story.