Chapter 12: The Choice
406 Words
Adunni stared at Daniel in disbelief.
“Run away?”
The words echoed in her mind.
Daniel tightened his grip on her hand.
“Yes.”
His voice was calm, but his eyes were filled with desperation.
“If we stay here, your father will force you to marry him.”
Adunni looked away.
She knew he was right.
Every day, the wedding plans moved forward.
Every day, her choices grew fewer.
But leaving was not simple.
Running away meant abandoning her family.
Her home.
Everything she had ever known.
“My mother would be heartbroken,” she whispered.
Daniel’s face softened.
“I know.”
“And my father…”
Daniel sighed.
“Your father will never accept me.”
The truth hurt because it was true.
For a moment, neither spoke.
The night air rustled through the branches above them.
Then Daniel reached into his pocket.
He pulled out a small cloth bundle.
Inside was a modest amount of money.
Every coin he had saved for years.
“I’ve been saving this to build a future.”
Adunni stared at the money.
Daniel closed her fingers around it.
“We can start over somewhere else.”
Tears filled her eyes.
The sacrifice touched her deeply.
But fear remained.
“What if we fail?”
Daniel smiled sadly.
“What if we don’t?”
The question lingered between them.
Before Adunni could answer, a sudden sound came from the darkness.
A twig snapped.
Both of them froze.
Someone was there.
Watching.
Listening.
Daniel stepped in front of Adunni.
“Who’s there?”
Silence.
Then footsteps.
Fast footsteps.
Whoever it was had started running.
Daniel chased after the figure, but the person disappeared into the darkness.
Breathing heavily, he returned to the tree.
Adunni’s face had gone pale.
“You think they heard us?”
Daniel didn’t answer immediately.
Because deep down, he already knew.
If someone had overheard their plan to run away, everything was about to become much worse.
And back at the chief’s compound, a servant knocked on Chief Adeyemi’s door.
“I have something important to tell you.”
The chief looked up.
The servant’s expression was grave.
“What is it?”
The man swallowed hard.
“It’s about Adunni and Daniel.”
Chief Adeyemi slowly stood.
The look in his eyes was enough to make the servant step back.
Whatever hope Adunni and Daniel had left was now in danger.
- Writer
