Page 63 of Cursed Daughters
VII
In the evening, they had a guest. Osagie finally made it into the Falodun compound. It was odd seeing him inside the house. She had come to think of him as a sort of gate gnome, guarding thethreshold and pining for the princess inside. But here he was in a black blazer, white shirt and blue jeans, looking uncomfortable and blushing under Grandma West’s scrutiny.
“So, you are a soldier.”
“Air commodore, ma.”
“Is that not a soldier?”
He gave a charming smile. “In a manner of speaking, ma.”
“Then don’t confuse me.”
There was a fizzing in the air; even Grandma West was affected by it. She had descended from her room to see if it was true, if Ebun had really brought a man home.
Then her mother came down the stairs, and Eniiyi saw how Osagie looked at her. His mouth was a little slack, and he gazed at her mother as though he had never seen anyone so beautiful. It made her like him even more. But who could blame the man? Ebun rarely drew attention to her looks, but she could certainly hold her own. That night, she was wearing a simple navy-blue draped midi dress and kitten heels, but she looked regal. She had even put a little colour on her lips.
“Why is everyone staring at me?”
“Who could look away?” was Osagie’s response.
They left soon after, the sound of Osagie’s laughter echoing behindthem. And then Grandma East had Eniiyi help her to the taxi; she had a rendezvous with a friend. “Keep an eye on your grand-aunt,” she said as the taxi started to drive away. By the time Eniiyi was back inside, Grandma West had already retired to her room, where she’d sleep for the rest of the evening. So Eniiyi messaged Zubby, telling him it was safe to come over.
Her phone buzzed almost straightaway and she assumed it was him, but when she swiped to open the message, it was Funsho.
You haven’t been picking up my calls.
Má bínú. I’m sorry. I’ve just been busy.
Busy with Zubby?
She didn’t bother responding. The next message that came in was from Zubby. He arrived thirty minutes later, and they spent the evening watching a documentary about a man who killed his wife and then claimed that she had just gone missing. It wasn’t the most romantic TV show, but still, at some point Zubby started kissing her, and his hand was moving slowly but firmly up her thigh. Her heart was racing. She hadn’t told him how little she had done with boys, how slight her experience. His hand reached between her legs, thumbing her gently just over her underwear. She moaned into his mouth, which seemed to excite him. Her hand was shaking, but she stroked his jeans and found him.
“Monife!” Zubby jumped off her and Eniiyi tumbled off the sofa. She smoothed her skirt and stood. “Monife! What are you doing with this boy?!”
Grandma West stood in the entrance with her blouse on back to front and tissue stuck to the sole of her foot, trailing her like a snake.
“Grandma.”
“I thought I told you to stay away from this boy?”
Zubby was staring, frozen. She needed to get her grand-aunt up to her room and calm her down. Without saying a word to Zubby,she closed the gap between herself and the old woman and firmly held her arm.
“Grandma, let’s go upstairs.”
Grandma West twisted her body to the left and right, trying to look at Zubby as they walked away from the living room. Once they made it back to her room, Eniiyi poured her a glass of water. She sat by her side and stroked her arm, easing her under the cover. In less than fifteen minutes, Grandma West was asleep.
Zubby was sitting on the sofa, flipping through the shows, when she returned.
“What was that about?”
“Which part?”
“Why does she want you to stay away from me?”
“It…I don’t think it is about you. Or me, for that matter. I think it has something to do with Monife.”
“That’s the other thing. Why did she keep calling you that?”
