A Woman and Her Daughters

  

A woman and her daughters. She sits on the tiled floor with her back against the wall. She is clothed in a wrapper which is tied around her waist, leaving her saggy breasts exposed. Oluwashikemi, her firstborn, sits on the floor in between the robust thighs of Opemipo, her last daughter. Taiwo, her second daughter is lounging on the sofa while staring at the ceiling. She appears to be present only in the flesh. Kehinde, her twin sits on what used to be her father's favourite chair. Like an exiled dictator, the man of the house is in his study which he rarely leaves since he retired. 

 Shikemi, aged 25, by having lived longest with their mother knew what was on her mind. She is the one to slice open the silence. 

“Guess who I saw at the bank yesterday?”

“Another fine bobo to be your brother-in-law,” Opemipo replied without missing a beat as she made her sister's hair.

“I saw Lanre.”

An audible sigh came from the sofa.

“That guy is in serious money,” she bent her neck to give Ope better access, “he came in to get another loan. Fifty million naira this time.”

“Why is he always taking a loan if he is in serious money? Didn't he take one just six months ago?” Kehinde quipped.

“Mtchww…you don't know anything. He needs it in for his expanding business. He paid off that loan. He is going into cosmetics retail.”

“What does a guy know about cosmetics?” Ope asked.

Shikemi sighed dramatically, “I'm living with Neanderthals. He has advisors and all of that,” turning to address Kehinde, “Ehen! He now drives a Porsche Boxster. Can someone without money be driving a car that costs more than 30 million naira?

This was the cue for their mother to join the conversation.

“30 what!” Their mother piped up like an experienced actress.

“Mummy, you don't know what these Lagos boys are doing for money,” Kehinde said.

This time, Shikemi directed her speech at the Taiwo. “After we negotiated the terms of the loan, he asked after you Taiwo.”

Silence radiated from the sofa. 

“Are you not saying anything Taiwo? Ki lo de?” Their mother asked. 

Pretending not to have heard, Taiwo asked, “Mummy, did Tunde come to your shop today?”

Kehinde gave her twin a quick look.

The sudden arrival at the conversation's destination made everyone perk up.

“Your sister said Lanre asked after you and you are asking about Tunde. Are you sure you are okay?”, their mother said in reply.

Sitting up on the sofa, Taiwo looked at her mother in the eyes and asked another question. “Tunde said he had something to say to you.”

“Oho! So both of you planned it together, shey?”. Their mother was no longer leaning her back against the wall.

All traces of subtlety had been abandoned.

Tunde was an entrepreneurial young man who supplied Iya Shikemi with the Holland fabrics she sold at her shop. He was sharp, witty and had a charming personality that made him a favourite among the women traders at Balogun market. 

“I should have known that all the time you were shining teeth at each other, it would lead to this rubbish,” their mother's voice had steadily risen into a shout.

“It is not rubbish,” Taiwo shouted back, then in almost a whisper, “I love him.”

Their father, a grey-headed bespectacled man appeared on the balcony overlooking the sitting room. 

“Is everything okay? I heard shouting.” He said.

Their mother, tying her wrapper on her chest replied “its nothing.” Her daughters were silent. With a grunt, he was gone.

Shikemi who was close enough to hear what Taiwo had said, replied: “but it is not Love that's going to feed you.”

“What do you know about love, Madam bank manager?” Kehinde retorted in support of her twin, “all you know is money money money!”

“See ehn, I'm not even going to answer you. Let's be realistic here. These Nigerian men can be stupid sometimes. They want you to struggle with them inside poverty all in the name of love. Is it love that will feed you and your children? That's why a girl should go for an already established man like Lanre.”

Taiwo spoke up again, “Tunde is doing well in his business. He has plans. We have plans.” She added as an afterthought, “Why not marry Lanre yourself?”

 This was a weak attack. It was a universal truth that Iya Shikemi passed all of her business sense to her first daughter. Although Shikemi wasn't going to be a trader, she was a career woman who was already a manager at a prestigious bank. As far as Iya Shikemi was concerned, that was as good as a husband.

 Iya Shikemi could see the stubborn glint in her second daughter's eye. Depending on the issue at hand, this stubbornness was inherited from either parent. Today, Taiwo inherited it from her father. So she tried a different approach. 

“Ọmọbìnrin Mi Ọ̀wọ́n, my precious daughter. You know I only want the best for you,” she said in a cloying voice. “Why don't you go out with this Lanre first? Just see whether he does not have what you are seeing in Tunde? Ehn? E joor. Please.”

In the silence that followed, Ope in a poorly timed effort to lighten the mood with her wit said

“But shebi, Lanre can date Kehinde instead? After all, he won't know the difference.” 

Taiwo got up and walked out. Kehinde followed.

The End

Author's Note

Life is unpredictable. I couldn't find a way to predict what my characters would do after this scene. I'm okay with that. 

However, if you would like a more definite ending, indicate that in the comments. If you can, tell me what you'd want to happen. I'd be happy to oblige you.

Thank you for reading always.

Mister P