CHAPTER 3
1082 Words
The Historical Context
Paul's POV
There was silence in the room. Following Paul's final remarks, even the air appeared to freeze.
I muttered, "You're joking," even though I knew he wasn't.
Paul's hand gripped the envelope firmly. "No. I mean it. I can only put things right in this way.
With her hands clenched at her sides, Rose rose from the couch. "So, unless we accept them, we are no longer important?"
"I didn't say that," Paul said quietly. "You are the most important thing. However, they also do. I will not continue to punish them for my mistake.
Slowly, my heart pounding, I stood up. And precisely what error did Paul make? You keep using the word "mistake" as if it were a broken plate. However, you lied to me for more than ten years, had an affair with another woman, got her pregnant, and left her.
Paul's mouth tensed. It wasn't a falsehood. I buried the secret because I felt embarrassed about it.
With a shudder, I took a step forward. After that, remove it from the ground. Tell me everything. No more hiding.
He gave Salma a quick glance. She gave him a single nod, letting him talk freely.
Paul massaged his temples before starting. Years have passed since then. I was twenty-seven years old. broke. occupying a single room. I was working part-time at a small warehouse outside of Lokoja after my business failed.
I cut you off, saying, "You never told me you lived in Lokoja."
He answered, "Because I didn't want you to know how far I'd fallen back then." I got to know Salma there. She worked at a clinic in the area. She was the on-call nurse when I visited there once with a bruised ankle. She treated me with kindness. I felt alone. When I had nothing, she paid attention to me.
Silently, Salma looked down.
He went on, "We weren't serious." More like comfort, actually. In those dark days, she was the only thing that kept me afloat.
I yelled, "So she was your mistake."
"No," he snapped, turning to face me. "It was a mistake to get her pregnant and then leave without checking back." Salma was never at fault.
My throat tightened with breath. I wasn't prepared for how painful his words were.
"I felt afraid. I had nothing. I became anxious when she informed me that she had missed her period. That same week, I departed for Abuja. I was looking for business opportunities. attempting to reconstruct. I mailed a letter, but it never arrived. I had no idea what transpired next. Perhaps she wasn't even pregnant, I told myself. I didn't wish to find out.
"So you simply... forgot?" I inquired.
"No," he muttered. "I never forgot." I tried to locate her after I achieved success. hired private detectives. I searched everywhere. However, she had relocated and changed jobs. No trace was found.
At last, Salma spoke in a calm tone. In order to keep my daughters safe, I relocated. I didn't want a man who abandoned them to raise them.
With an almost imploring tone, he told her, "You could have told me." "You had the option to get in touch."
She acknowledged, "I could have." "But you weren't someone I trusted."
Paul faced me once more. "I know I didn't succeed, Nadia. I assumed it was all behind me, so I kept it from you. However, I knew right away when I saw their picture in an article about a local school function. They resembled me exactly. In the same week, I located Salma's contact.
I said, my throat clenched as I spoke, "And you brought them here without telling me."
He stated, "I had to." "I absolutely had to see them. Take them in your hands. Make up for the years I was unable to attend.
I put my arms around myself because I felt unsteady on the ground. "So what? Do you want me to greet them with a smile and a warm welcome?
"No," he uttered softly. "Please take your time," I said. However, I also want you to know that I won't turn them away once more.
Rose laughed. "This is absurd. Are we simply expected to accept sharing everything? Even our inheritance?
Paul stepped toward her and declared, "This is not about money." "It's about doing the right thing."
Ruby's eyes were wide as she sat quietly on the stairs. "Is my room taken?"
"No, dear," Paul uttered hastily. "No one is stealing anything from you."
She questioned, "So why are they here?"
Nobody knew the answer.
Salma got up and signaled the twins to get up. "Perhaps we ought to go."
Paul turned to her and said, "No." "You won't get anywhere."
I gazed at him. "So, this is your ultimate choice?"
"Yes."
The girls and Salma waited silently. There was tension, emotion, betrayal, confusion, and pain in the room.
I said icily, "Then I'm taking the girls upstairs." "We need some time to discuss. By themselves.
Rose was furious, but she and Ruby followed me.
I sat next to Rose in her room that night after putting Ruby to bed.
Rose whispered, "She doesn't even appear depressed." "That lady. Like she belongs there, she simply sits there.
I whispered, "She's keeping it together for her daughters."
"Now you're standing up for her?"
"No," I answered. "I'm attempting to comprehend how this occurred. I have no answers as of yet.
Rose's eyes were watering as she gazed at me. "Does he even care about us anymore?"
I gave her a strong hug. "You don't realize how important you are."
I went back to our bedroom later. Poul sat with his head down on the bed.
I muttered, "You broke something in me today."
Slowly, he raised his gaze. "I understand. And I'm prepared to work on fixing it for the rest of my life.
I took a seat next to him. "I'm not sure how I can forgive this."
He remarked, "I don't expect you to do it overnight." "But I'm no longer hiding."
For a long time, we sat in silence.
Paul then faced me. "There's another thing."
I tensed up. "Now what?"
He took a swallow. Salma didn't get married. They were raised by her alone. She still feels something for me, though.
*Paul's startling admission causes Nadia's heart to churn even
more. The past may seek a place in the future rather than simply making a comeback.
- Writer
