The desperate daughter-in-law

Her sacrifices

The burning sun blazed on their bodies as they both stepped out of the car. She looked around the serene environment where she heard the chirps of birds from the beautiful garden beside the two storey building in front of them.

She gulped as she reminisced about her childhood days in this building which had served as her home in the past. She felt Daren’s hand in hers and she looked up at his face which wore an assuring smile.

“Shall we?” He asked and she nodded.

The short wooden gate opened and they both stepped into the yard which was beautified with flowers, trees and green grasses. They could see a middle aged man in a blue overall suit walking towards them with his face wearing a smile.

“Sir, Ade,” she called with a smile.

“Oh, Melisa, it’s nice to see you again,” he said with a smile.

“Same here. Um..is my father home?” She asked at once.

“Yes, he is in the garden at the moment,” the man replied.

“Alright, I’ll meet him there,” she said and he nodded.

Alongside her husband, and her baby strapped in her chest with a carrier, they proceeded to the garden which was beside the building.

“It’s beautiful here,” Daren said with a smile as they walked past the tall trees at the entrance of the garden.

The scent of fresh flowers filled their nostrils as they walked into the flower field which was covered with lots of beautiful flowers. They stopped as they saw the middle aged man in a black gardener boot and black overall suit with a hat above his head.

He was holding a shovel with his back facing them and he seemed to be deeply engaged as he moved soil with the shovel.

Her heart skipped and she heaved a sigh. The last time she had seen him was when he had disowned her for getting married to Daren. He had strongly kicked against their marriage due to Mrs. Selina’s dominating attitude and he had made his reasons clearly known to her.

But all the same, she had proved disobedient and against all odds, she had married the love of her life.

But deep down, she still felt the guilt of disobeying her father and each day, she had longed to see his face again.

Her eyes welled up as she saw his back facing her and she looked up at Daren who was holding her hand.

“Fa..father,” she managed to call.

Her heart began to race as he turned slowly to their direction. She sniffed and her heart became heavy as he stood for a moment with his wrinkled face staring at them. He was a little stupefied at their presence and she walked closer to meet him with Daren following after her.

“Father, I’m here. I.I brought your grand baby to see you,” she said but he didn’t reply.

She looked at Daren nervously and he beckoned her to keep speaking. She licked her lips nervously and turned her attention back to her father.

“Her name is May and she has come to say hi to her grandfather,” she continued.

The man kept silent and without a word, he turned with his back facing them and he continued with his work.

She kept silent and looked at Daren again. He sighed and scratched the back of his head nervously.

“Father, we are so sorry for disobeying you. But on this day, we have come to seek your forgiveness. Please, for the sake of your innocent grandchild, give us an audience,” Daren pleaded.

There was no word from him and Melisa broke into tears at once.

“Lisa, It’s enough,” Daren urged as he wrapped his arms around her.

“I can’t believe you are the same man I’ve called father all through the years!” She slammed with her body trembling violently.

“Lisa!” Daren yelled as he saw her angry face.

“You don’t want to speak to me, fine! I will leave, I will leave and never show my face again!” She slammed.

“Lisa, let’s get out of here,” Daren said as he held her hand.

“Leave me alone!” She yelled as she shoved his hand away.

“If only mom was alive, she wouldn’t treat me this way! She wouldn't treat me the way you are doing now!” She thundered with tears trickling down her face.

The baby began to cry and Daren pulled her away from Melisa.

“I will leave and never show my face again. But know that from this day on, you cease to be my father!” She spat as she walked away and hurried after her husband who was proceeding to the car.

The man turned as soon as they were gone. He wiped his brows and let out a sigh as he looked in their direction.

She stormed into the car and Daren followed after her while cuddling the baby in his arms. He looked at her face and he could see her sobbing uncontrollably.

“Lisa, it’s enough. We will find a way out,” he said.

“No, he doesn’t deserve to be my father any longer. I’m done with him,” she vented angrily.

“It’s okay. Family is family, you can’t change that,” he said.

She sniffed and wiped the tears off her face.

“I need to go home,” she said and he nodded.

*

As she walked into the room, she slumped on the bed with her head resting on her palm. She was feeling overwhelmed at the moment. Overwhelmed and angered by the fact that her father had stayed mute on her after all her efforts for them to reconcile. She raised her head as she thought of all she’d been through all these past years.

She had actually made so many sacrifices for Daren and his family, she thought. Not that she was regretting her decisions, but she was pained and angered by the fact that no one would recognize the sacrifices she had made for this family, she thought as tears streamed down her face.

The door opened and Daren walked into the house. He walked over to the bed and knelt before her.

“Where is my baby?” She asked as she wiped her tears.

“She’s with father, downstairs in the living room,” he replied.

“Love, we will pull through this, okay?” He said as he placed his palm in hers.

She sighed and pulled her arms away.

“You don’t get it, do you?” She asked in a rather high tone.

“I do. All this is happening because of me so I get it perfectly,” he said sincerely.

She shook her head and scoffed.

“You don’t know what it feels like to make sacrifices for people who would never recognize nor appreciate it,” she said as she wiped her tears.

He stood up with his eyes still fixed on her face.

“I’m broken, Daren. I’ve been through hell for your family!” She cried.

He pulled a surprised face as he wondered what she meant.

“Now, you’re speaking out of context. Make me understand,” he demanded.

She scoffed as she stood up right.

“You will never understand, Daren. You will never do,” she said as she proceeded to the door while he watched with mouth agape.

*

As she walked into the living room, she could see Dele playing with May who was in Charles Boseman’s arms.

She walked towards them and sat on the couch beside the middle aged man who was smiling.

“Melisa, my beautiful daughter-in-inlaw,” Charles called with a smile.

She forced a smile on her face as she tucked her hair behind her ears.

“Daren spoke to me about everything. I’m really sorry for what you’ve been through,” he said and she nodded.

“Just give him a few more times, he will come around,” he added and she smiled wryly.

“You are just like me, Lisa. We both gave up our families just to be with the ones we loved,” he said.

“Did you ever regret your decisions?”She asked and he kept silent.

“Sometimes, I do,” he said bluntly and her eyes bulged.

Just then, the door opened and Elsa Boseman walked into the house with Diana following behind her. Dele ran over to meet Elsa but she ignored him and walked over to her husband who was carrying baby May.

“Aww..my beautiful grand-daughter,” she praised as she carried the baby in her arms.

Melisa looked at Diana who was wearing a stone cold look. She could see her walking over to Dele who was hugging Elsa Boseman’s knees tightly. She pulled him away and dragged him towards the stairs.

“Diana!” Elsa yelled as she turned to face her.

She stopped and swallowed hard before turning to face her.

“How dare you pull the boy away from me when I’ve not touched him yet,” she voiced angrily.

“Um..I..Um..” she stammered.

“Oh, Elsa, you ignored the boy when you came into the house,” Charles put in immediately.

She sighed and rolled her eyeballs.

“I never ignored him. He is a grown up and I needed to feel my baby first,” she said as she pecked the baby’s cheeks.

“Come here, Dele, come and kiss your beautiful cousin,” she said with a smile and the boy ran over to her. He pecked baby May’s cheeks and they all laughed except Diana.

“I got you a lot of goodies, okay? They’re with your mom,” Elsa said as she caressed the boy’s head. He nodded and ran away to his mother.

Diana took his hand and walked up the stairs immediately.

“Oh, Lisa, have you had lunch?” Elsa asked with concern as she looked at Melisa.

“No, Um.. Daren and I just returned,” she replied.

“Come here, I got a lot of goodies for you and baby May,” she said with excitement as she sat on the couch beside her.

*

Diana pulled off her wig as she stormed into the room angrily. She walked to the window and parted the tall curtains angrily.

“I can’t take this any longer. No, I can’t watch these people treat my family and I as mere trash. Melisa, you’re getting your heart desires, but it’s just for a little while. I will make sure you become nothing but a stench in front of the Taiwo’s family,” she said sinisterly as she looked out of the window.