Obiageli - Episode 11

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Uche was in the bush hunting with his friends, Kalu and Kelechi, they watched a rabbit eating grass just a few feet away...

"It will.."Kalu began

"shhsh"Kelechi whispered

"You guys should stay put, I'll dive for it" Uche whispered to them and was about to when Kalu stayed him

" what if you loose it?"

"I won't..if i do i ll give you my next catch"he replied, as Kelechi was about asking "what about me?" Uche dived for it, it shrieked but he already had it in his hands, holding it by the neck, the rabbit wriggled

Kalu and Kelechi looked at each other

"He's good"Kalu said

"I think you should leaving farming and focus on hunting" Kelechi said

"I think so too..but who would help my father, Ekene is married" he said as he hit the rabbit's head on a stone, it went still.

"Sadly..no girl is here to witness your victory"Kalu said

" Victory..over a rabbit" Uche tsked as he shook his head putting the rabbit in his hunting bag

"Are you going to eat it all alone?" Kelechi asked surprised, Uche looked at him thought then

"Kalu owes me his next catch, you can have it"

"When did we make that deal?" Kalu asked incredulously

"Just now?" Uche deadpanned

"Kelechi don't mind him bo..next time we will catch a deer"Kalu consoled

" Maybe an elephant "Uche said with a laugh, and as Kalu made to hit him there was rustling of leaves, Kalu turned

" now there is a girl.."

Ego pushed off the branch and came into the clearing, she stared at them as they stared at her

"I knew I would find you here..can we talk?" She said to Uche

"If you want to talk with him, you have to go through us first,  you just interrupted "

"I wasn't speaking to you Kalu" she said without looking at him, Uche looked at them

"I'll see you guys at the dance"

They looked at him  then her and grudgingly left

Ego came closer "I went to your house..but your sister said you were out hunting"

"Yes..we caught a rabbit" he brought it out and showed it to her proudly

"Wow..this would make a nice pot of pepper soup" she said

"You want it?..just that I promised my sister something when I returned, I have to keep to my promise"

"Okay..next time then"she agreed

"What did you want?"he asked putting the rabbit away

"Us to talk"

"I thought we had agreed to meet at the dance" he said

"I know..just thought you would give anything to be alone with me"she said placing her hand on his muscled arm, he smiled and touched her hair

"Yeah...any man would" she blushed at that

"Uche I want to ask you something"she said with a frown

"What?"

"Is Obiageli more beautiful than I am?"

He stared at her for long , then chuckled

"How am I supposed to know that biko?"

"You are a man, and people have been saying it.. i want to know what you think?" She said looking up at him, his eyes perused her face as he thought of another image

"You are beautiful" he said, she smiled sheepishly at him, looking into his eyes..but Obiageli is like a river goddess, he thought, he didn't tell her that though, just looked up at the sky and told her he had to go, they walked out of the Forest together

"So I'll see you at the dance?" She asked

He looked down her"yes"

"I will look for you" she back stepped then turned and left.

Uche had decided not to go for the dance but changed his mind when his house became empty, it held in the village square every forthnight as a form of social garhering for the villagers, the drummers beat their drums while the villagers displayed their latest steps

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/obiageli

. Every villager was there except the very elderly ones who stayed back in the houses. 

Uche stayed in the dark with his friend Nonso, Kelechi had gone to play his flute with the drummers, Kalu was already dancing

"Are you not joining the dance?"Nonso asked

"No..i came to watch" Uche replied arms folded, he had done this since he was little and it was becoming boring...Obiageli entered the square with her friends and he looked at her, she began her dance, rolling her waist. He stared at her as he knew every young man was doing

"Why is she looking at me like that?" Nonso suddenly said

"Who?"

​​​​​"Chidinma",Uche forced his eyes to look at her friend but looked back at Obi, when he saw another, he went out from hiding

"You are joining the dance however? Nonso asked

" no..there's Ego..handle her for me"

"B..but..", Uche went with the darkness, Nonso looked at Ego who was craning her neck looking for Uche, she finally saw him

" where's Uche?"she asked

​​​​"He couldn't come"he said

"Why?"

"He's not well..but i'm available if you want to dance"he said swinging his hands, she eyed him and walked away, Uche saw her with another man but he wasn't bothered..from the rooftop where he laid his eyes remained on Obiageli.

Two years had passed and many strange things had happened in Mazi Okafor's compound. Adaeze and Obiageli had not settled their rivalry since that morning years ago and Adaeze suffered a lot of attacks before she left for her husband's house. One of such incidence was a snake in the middle of the night. That night, Adaeze who slept on the floor had kept hearing a hissing sound, it continued for long and fear stabbing her heart she decided to put on the light and there it was sitting in the middle of her room, her scream woke everybody up, including the neighbours, soon the men were with sticks and big stones, Eberechi had been in Okafors hut, Oluchi and her daughter had also come out, with Obiageli cleaning her eyes and parting people to see what the matter was, a man had succeeded in bringing it out with a long stick, it curled on the stick, hissing at people, they raised cutlass and stones to kill it...

"Please don't kill it...don't" Obiageli exclaimed, they all turned to look at her

"Don't" she insisted, Oluchi held her daughter

"What is she saying..it almost killed your sister"one of the men said

" she doesn't like seeing animals killed"Okafor said and everyone in the compound knew, her mother dragged her away as she still insisted the snake should not be killed..they massacred the snake into bits and burnt it.

Obiageli could not eat her breakfast of yam and palmoil the next morning, she kept playing with it

"Do you want me to feed you?" Her mother asked

"I am not a baby" she snapped

"Eheh .who told you, you're still my baby" Oluchi said, Obiageli put the plate away

"Mama I can't follow you to the farm today" she said

" Why.. OK..you ll help me sweep the compound "

Obiageli nodded and drank water, she kept it then asked

"Mama..why don't I have a brother?"

Oluchi paused and stared at her"you want to have? "

"Yes mama chiamaka has and she takes him everywhere"

Oluchi sighed"Ikenna is your brother"

"I don't mean that kind..I mean from you mama, I do not wish to be an only child..besides Ezinma's a witch"

Her mother closed her mouth "chei..don't let her hear you".

" But its true.. anyway, where is the broom?"she said in dismissal of what she had just said.

Presently she had been sent to the stream by Eberechi, she took her usual small pot, Nnenna with her, they had become very close over the years

"Why is your pot so small?"Nnenna observed

"Because that's what I can carry"she said

"You are just lazy..when you marry you will suffer it"

Obiageli was silent"well I'm not marrying yet, you will still marry before me".

"Who said, you will be surprised" Nnenna said but at Obiageli's look she admitted there was a man

"Is he a carpenter?"

"How did you know?"

'You think i don't see you playing hide and seek, I think his name is eh..em"

"Donatus"

"Which kind of name is that..why an English name"

Nnenna laughed "His Ibo name is Emenike but he prefers Dona"

"Hmm..Dona"

Nnenna laughed again, she was more down to earth than Ezinma, Obiageli wondered how that was her mother

"So who do you want to marry..farmer?'Nnenna asked her

"what.."

"Okay hunter"

"Anyman that kills animals is my enemy"

"Including papa.." Nnenna said

"Papa no longer hunts"

"So who do you now want to marry..teacher, carpenter, goldsmith?, who would make fine jewelries for you"

"I want to marry a doctor" Obiageli said suddenly

Nnenna burst into laughter "you have to go to white man's land then"she said

"Well I would, even if I have to go there and look for an Ibo man to marry"

Nnenna laughed so hard there were tears in her eyes

"Obi you are really funny, anyway no need..papa would just dash you out to whoever he pleases"she said

That got Obiageli thinking as she realized she was next in line to marry after Nnenna was married off.

. .

Read " Brothers " by the same author ( Funmi Anita Adesina )