The sacred bride episode 33

The Sacred Bride
Written by Bunmi B. Gabriel
Segment 33
Leila
‘Eric, I don’t want to go see your mother,’ I whined as Eric drove me to his parents’. ‘What if she hates me!’
‘Leila, you are being paranoid. You have been chatting and speaking to her on phone since we started fake dating, how can she hate you.’ He stated as a matter-of-factly. I rolled my eyes.
‘That’s two different things!’ I yelled, throwing my hands up.
‘And the difference is….?’
‘Social distance,’ I said sheepishly.
‘Leila, mom loves you, you know that. Just see her in person for once.’
‘I don’t have a ring on my finger,’ I said pettishly.
‘Remember the deal we made,’ he said, glancing at me. We made a deal; he would join me watch my favorite movie, isn’t it rom-ntic, a movie that he rather stare at the wall clock than seeing and quit his baby idea. He had been very insistent on me having a baby, for reasons best known to him. Whether I liked it or not, he wanted his baby forming in my womb and that is annoying. The deal was for him to leave me alone until I was ready.
‘Whatever,’ I murmured, folding my hands under my br-asts childishly. ‘What about the video launch? I read online that you called off the public launch, why?’
‘I’m tired of the press prying too much and asking useless questions so I will just play the video in my channel and upload it at the site. Anyone who wants it will have to download it for high rate before any other site will buy it from me. Don’t worry about it, we will handle it.’
‘And I get paid right? Boyfriend or no boyfriend, you will still pay for my services,’ I said seriously, dropping my hands on my laps.
‘I know,’ he smiled. He slipped his palm under mine and flashed me a c*cky grin. ‘I still think you will look s€×y with a baby bump….’
‘Eric,’ I drawled. ‘We have discussed this, I don’t want a baby.’
‘But us having a kid isn’t bad, right?’ He asked poutingly. I snatched my hand from his and looked out of the window. The beautiful flowery street was a sight for sore eyes, if you love lot of colors that is. The wind smelt like flowers too, keen and soothing for the skin. ‘We are here,’ he announced grouchily. I dropped my hand again and swallowed, feeling my unsteady heart changing gear again.
The house was big, brown and tiled with lotus flowers surrounding it. Eric drove into the compound slowly and took my hand again. ‘You are going to be fine, I promise. My family isn’t the best of family though.’
‘How?’
‘Unlike yours which can make everyone laugh, mine build up thick tension.’
‘Tension? There is nothing worse than a mother who finds joy in embarrassing her children,’
‘It is far better than a father who you don’t get along with, trust me when I say your visit here will end badly.’ I looked at him weirdly but then averted my eyes to my outfit. I went for a green jacket over a black camisole and green ski-ny jeans, black sneakers and black stud earrings. I wore black l¡psticks, brushed my lashes up and added little foundation and blush; Bloom’s kind of makeup. I wore black brackets and carried a black bag, not my style of dressing but I must look decent.
‘Eric, do you think I look decent enough?’
‘Leila, you look good enough,’ he sighed, removing his seatbelt. He opened the door and walked out to open my own for me. I smoothened my hair which was up in a chignon and unbuckled my belt. ‘Here,’ he gave me my hand and helped me out even though I didn’t need it. I sniffed in the lotus air, wonderful for a nice evening breeze. ‘Uncomfortable situation stage one.’ He said chucklingly as his mother ran to us; she’s round but beautiful.
‘Leila darling!’
‘Mommy!’ I squealed, running to her too. We fell into each other’s embrace and squealed, I felt safe with her. ‘You are looking good mommy, look at your round body!’
‘I know right,’ she said smugly and then pushed her b-obs up. ‘I have gotten so round these babies stood up again, now my husband can’t keep his tongue away.’
‘Ew mom, ew.’ Eric said with a disapproving frown.
‘What? Come Leila, I have some friends who are here to see you.’
‘Some,’ Eric snorted sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and followed her into her house, the interior was better than the exterior. Eric’s father is one of the men with the largest estate management. Finally in the living room, I was met with a 21 set of eyes.
‘Okay ladies, she’s here!’ Mom shouted. ‘This is my daughter in-law; Doretta’s first fruit.’ She added proudly.
‘Wow! She looks a lot like Doretta!’
‘Your daughter in-law?’
‘Where’s Eric?’
Soon I was surrounded by all women; commenting on my beauty, touching me here and there, playing with my hair and yelling into my ears. I felt like passing out with the different questions and everything. Mom Eric sat down elegantly, throwing me apologetic laughing stares while Eric smartly went in through the backdoor. Speak about the devil, he walked in and sighed seeing my predicament. ‘Help me.’ I mouthed.
‘I can’t believe I’m about to sacrifice myself,’ he mouthed. ‘Hey ladies!’ They all squealed and turned around.
‘Her son!’
‘He’s so cute!’
‘My daughter is a huge fan of your songs!’ Soon they had rushed to him. I was wondering if they were really older women, not teenagers.
‘Leila, come with me,’ mom whispered. I quickly followed her to the kitchen. ‘Sorry about that.’ I marvelled over the beautiful blue kitchen, it was like a grotto.
‘You have a lovely home mom,’
‘Thank you Leila,’
‘Those women are your friends?’
‘Bookclub members, half of them. They are some idiotic set of wealthy pompous women who loves flaunting their husbands’ achievements, children success and the expensive things they buy into each other’s faces.’
‘So, they are bunch of jobless women who loves spending their husbands’ money.’ I stated smirkingly.
‘Pretty much,’ she chuckle, shutting the refrigerator; she had a bottle of juice and two glasses between her fingers. She walked to the kitchen island where I was leaning on and set down the cups and bottle.
‘And what are you doing with them?’
‘The doctors advice I rest to avoid the swell in my brain, for four months. I was bored so I joined a bookclub to pass time.’
‘Couldn’t you join another?’ She shrugged. ‘Why were they allover me?’
‘They had been bragging about their daughters’ fiancés, sons fiancées, their bags too and all. I’m not the kind of woman who fancies parties, don’t give a hoot about the latest fashion or talking about my husbands’ achievement with some bunch of nonentities. However, they had been wiggling their noses and I needed to stop it, since I Cant’s use Eric’s sisters….’
‘Wait what! Eric have sisters?!’ I asked quizzically. ‘I thought he only had a sister, the one taking care of your dance school?’. She chuckled.
‘He haven’t told you, I won’t blame him. My older girls love their private lives too much, so much he has gotten too use to never talking about them to anyone, including himself. Honestly, it sometimes skips my mind as well.’ She said with a laugh as she took her glass of juice to her l-ips. I quickly gulped down mine and dropped the glass.
‘I will love to know about them,’
‘Well, my first daughters are adopted,’ she said with glistering eyes. ‘I faked a pregnancy with my husband’s support and adopted Lou, that smart angel. The doctors confirmed me barren, it stung like hell so we went into adoption. Two years later, I adopted my second daughter, Carly. They were our blessings, bundle of joys….’
‘And your husband didn’t cheat?’ I asked with a stunned look.
‘Uriah is a good man, equal to none. He loved me nevertheless, encouraged me in my traumatizing time. I even started wondering if he was the cause but pretended it was me, his action in bed proves otherwise.’
‘Any idea what caused the barrenness?’ Her eyes flashed with hurt. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to ask….’
‘It’s okay, I don’t mind. My mother almost ruined my life.’ She said bitterly.
‘How?’ I asked curiously, taking a seat on one of the island stool. She repeated my action.
‘My father died when I was just a girl, left everything for my mother who later wrecked everything with her lavishing lifestyle. When he was alive, she was a adulteress, when he died,’ she chuckled. ‘She went crazy, jumped from one bed to another for fun and money. Somehow, we became broke so she turned the house to a full time wh-re house where she and my older sisters serviced men generously. Soon other girls joined them, the house was always crowded.
I was the only one who wasn’t like them, I preferred my books and dancing and that irritated them. When I turned fourteen, I got drugged and raped, got pregnant and then she forced me to do an abortion that almost caused me my life. After that, I stole her money and ran for my life, ran as far away as possible and worked hærd to train myself in school. Later in college, I met your mother who helped me open a dance school, I started with a room then but now, I’ve got a large academy. I met Uriah a year after my school hit it big; his sister, Sebastiano’s mother worked for me as an assistant, he came to see her. We fell in love and got married.’
‘And your family?’
‘Dead, died of diseases but I don’t give a f-ck.’ She said coldly. I fidgeted nervously and cleared my throat.
‘Eric is your son, right?’
‘I didn’t believe it until nineteen more hospitals confirmed it,’ she said with tears of joy running down her cheeks. ‘God gave us Nancy as addition, she’s your age.’ She whispered, dabbing her tears away.
‘I guess now I get why Eric is so respectful of women, like father like son.’ I said with a bright smile.
‘Eggactly,’ she said with a wink. ‘Well, those women out there now have another reason to envy me,’ she said with a c*cky grin.
‘What’s that?’
‘Your mother,’
‘My mother?’ I asked confusedly.
‘They are huge fans of your mother; the way she carries herself with pride and dignity, her influential and authoritative aura. I am her only friend, many women dreams to be her friend but she’s a loner. My husband is rich, my son is not just popular and successful, but also the best friend to the great Alisdair Kendrick. My first daughter owns the biggest hospital in Canada with her husband and I am the only one who owns my own money in the club. To finalize it, the first daughter of the Wellingtons is now my daughter in-law.’
One: Eric haven’t given me a ring.
Two: mom is in the list of wealthiest woman in US, one many wish to befriend but fail at because she’s not the kind that cares about nonsense friendsh¡p. I think we took her crowd pulling gift from her.
‘Well, mom had great advice to take her there,’ I said, remembering Meghan Blues.
‘I really admire your mother Leila, she was the one who taught me how to be a woman for myself; keep my activities a secret. She protects her family so much that until now, no one knew how her girls looked like. If it wasn’t for the wedding, I wouldn’t have known how Bloom or Bernice looked like, even you. Odyn still had his mask on, she’s a protector.’ She admitted with true admiration in her eyes.
‘Mom always wanted to keep us safe, it was her way of protecting us from harm.’ I said sheepishly, feeling proud about mom.
‘It is unlike your relatives who won’t leave the Internet with one scandals to the other,’ she said in disgust. ‘Sorry to say this Leila, but aside from you and your siblings, your other relatives are useless.’ What she said got me thinking; truly from the history of my family, they all died useless deaths without achieving anything good thing to write home about. Even dad and Odyn would have been like that if not for mom caging dad and me tormenting Odyn.
There is more to this covenant than we were let on.
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To be continued.
Don’t you think so too?
I know you are expecting Alisdair’s and Bloom’s POV, calm down, turn by turn.
Thank you.