It was our fifth anniversary. This very year was different. The spark in our eyes and tingles in our stomach that we felt as the day approached was gone with the wind. While i was busy around the house, my phone rang
“ Hey babe, can we go out tonight?” It was my husband. I stuttered a bit out of shock, before I could get myself to respond
“ Of course! I'll really love that” I replied with excitement in my voice.
Tobi, my husband of five years, had been emotionally and physically distant for almost a year. Our marriage no longer had the spice that immersed it when we first started. He could barely exist in the same space with me now. We were merely flatmates.
Source
“I want a divorce” Tobi said, during our anniversary date.
My cutlery dropped instantly, snd I didn't know when tears began to trickle.
“Why? How? Tobi, what have I done wrong?” My voice was shaking all the way as I managed to ask these questions. For five minutes, he had remained silent after my questions, before he gave the lamest excuse I had ever heard. He needed someone with more energy and drive, and I wasn't giving all of that.
Nine months after Tobi had torn my heart to shreds, I tried to get the pieces of my life together, but it wasn't working. I was away from my store for months. Thank God I had my sister, Shola, who held brief for me, not until she began to complain.
“Sister, you know you can't continue like this.” She said, looking very concerned
“You need to continue with your life,” She added. I looked at her, nodded, but refused to speak.
Tons of missed calls had been registered on my phone that morning. I was so deep in sleep that I didn't hear my phone ring. It was Tobi. He had even dropped a message. He wanted to see me. I didn't know if to feel excited or annoyed. I had always wanted him back, so his message made me feel even more vulnerable. He was the man I loved, and there was no harm in taking him back, I thought.
The park where he had asked me to see him was where he had proposed to me. I lost all my defences seeing him there, that I didn't even know when I told him we could do a fresh start. The next day, Tobi moved back to the house.
This fresh start was like I existed in a new world. More than a year before our separation, he had not done anything romantic with me nor cared about my business. Currently, he would stop by the store, spend moments to ask about the business and even take me out for lunch. This was too good to be true, but I had been starved of love for too long to care.
I was expecting new supplies at my store, so I had to be there myself to take stock. I woke up early to prepare to leave the house. As I made to leave, Tobi interrupted
“Babe, I could be of help with the new orders, you know” Tobi said, sounding so sweet. The thoughtfulness alone melted my heart that I gave him the go ahead to join me, which he did.
Source
The stress of sorting new supplies had taken its toll on me. I was down with a terrible fever. It was even difficult to get out of bed the entire morning. Tobi saw my state and quickly asked to get to the shop and stand in for me. This sudden concern about the shop, again, got me suspicious. Since I wasn't in good health, I accepted his offer.
That evening, Shola, my sister, had stopped by. I gave her a full download of my husband's return. Shola didn't seem pleased to hear any of it. She felt something was amiss, but I dismissed her insecurities and assured her Tobi was a changed man.
Two months after the last supply, my boys began to complain that we had few goods left in the store. This didn't make sense. The number of supplies we had should have been enough to last us for six months. I was always in the shop, so I could vouch that my boys didn't play a fast one on me, but I couldn't explain the disappearance of my materials. I got very worried. Who could it be? Thoughts flashed regarding Tobi’s stay in the shop while I was away, but I didn't have any way to prove this.
As early as possible, I was at the store. There were CCTV cameras around, so I checked the footage. None of my boys were around, so I was all alone. I checked from the day the supplies had come in. My heart started beating fast as I checked. My legs became numb as I went through each day. As the tear engine that I was, tears began to flow effortlessly.
“ I'm dead!” I exclaimed.
I quickly tried to check my balance, and realised a deficit of about a million.
I couldn't let my boys resume for the day to meet me in the state I was in. I couldn't go home, so I drove to my sister's place.
“Shola, Tobi has killed me” I exclaimed
“He has been stealing from me for months, and I even entrusted the store's account in his care.”
My hands shook as I tried to dial his number, but it didn't go through.
“Sister, I warned you na” My sister said
“ Shut up! You don't have to do this now, Tobi is gone with my money oooo!” I yelled, rolling on the floor.
I screamed and shouted as much as I could, but it didn't make things any better. Tobi was gone, and had broken my heart a second time. The police had declared him wanted, hoping he would be arrested as soon as possible. Once again, I was single and miserable.