The Legacy

Hi guys!! I miss you so much! Only a few more days until we are reunited. Naa Awula is back with another thrilling piece! By the way, she tells me she is working on a sequel for Instagram Wedding. Give her pressure, like you do with me! 😂😉 Happy reading! ❤️

Sefakor was usually sweet, calm and all smiles but the female homo sapien that stood before Elorm this evening was far from calm. Her face was slightly swollen and she looked tired and worn. She had obviously been crying; her tears had dried now, but not without first causing her mascara to run and make her eyes  look like a panda’s. Her hair looked like she had been briefly electrocuted. Her bright and happy-looking flowery knee-length summer dress was in direct contrast with her current emotional state. Elorm himself wore faded jeans with a T-shirt which, thanks to all the hand-washing, now had sleeves that had a lot in common with elephant ears.

“I don’t get what you mean by ‘more time‘. We were friends for 11 years, not counting the past 7 years of dating, and you’re saying we need more time? Heck this relationship is old enough to drive!” She had started to raise her voice. The only other time Elorm had heard Sefakor raise her voice, was at her dog who had once made the mistake of barking at him. Boy! Had that dog regretted it. The stern look that accompanied Sefakor’s order for silence had sent the poor creature scampering away with its tail between its legs. Standing in the middle of her sitting room today, he understood perfectly how that dog had felt. Even in her current state, Elorm still thought of her as beautiful.

Miss Sefakor Adade.

When Elorm first met Sefakor, he was only seventeen. He had injured his ankle playing for his school team during ‘Interco’. The sun showed him no mercy as he limped his way across the dusty field to the Red Cross Tent. Sweaty, tired and with an involuntarily-acquired tan, Elorm arrived at the tent, to find that the medical personnel had gone to get lunch, leaving behind teenage Red Cross Club member, Sefakor.  Of course he didn’t know her name then but could sense she was special. She carried her duties in a calm, composed, somewhat shy manner. As she tenderly wrapped the bandage around his ankle, he realised she was being overly careful.

“Athletes don’t break,you know.” Elorm said with a smirk on his lips.

“Oh really?!” Sefakor asked in feigned innocence as she gently poked his wounded ankle.

“Ajeish!”

“Don’t you mean ‘ouch'” She teased. The two teenagers burst into laughter.

“Okay. We’re done here.”

“Stop feeling like you’re a doctor, it’s just Red Cross.”

“And yet you were scared”

“I wasn’t scared.”

Sefakor placed her index finger playfully on her lips. “Shhh…it’s okay. I won’t tell anyone that Elorm is a big baby.”

“How do you kn-”

“Here, let me help you out.” Sefakor helped Elorm out of the tent and to a nearby seat. “Don’t put pressure on your foot, ok? Later.”

“Thanks.”

He didn’t see her for the rest of the sports season. He had forgotten about her till they met again in school one evening, just before entertainment began. A movie was showing that night and he had gone to the Assembly Hall ahead of time, as usual, to reserve seats for his buddies and himself. Their favourite seats were those in the back of the hall. On that evening, however, he noticed one of the four seats they preferred was already occupied. As Elorm got closer, he realised who was in the seat.

“Hi. You may not know this but, first years generally stand or sit in the front row.” Elorm said smugly.

“Good thing I’m in Form Two then.” Sefakor smiled. “I see your foot is completely healed.”

“Yeah. Thanks…I guess”

“Your limp gave you quite the cool gait though.” She was such a tease.

“So, not to be rude bu-….”

“…But you usually sit here. Got it.” Sefakor cut in. “I’m going to the dorm anyway. Not a big fan of our movie nights. It’s always one boring old movie or the other.”

“What would you have preferred? Romance?”

Sefakor rolled her eyes. “Something that goes more like: You-killed-my-parents-when-I-was-five-and-now-that-I’m-twenty-three-and-a martial-artist-you-must-die.” She got up and started to head toward one of the doors of the Assembly Hall.

Elorm was as amused as he was intrigued.

He called after her, “I could punish you for not coming for Entertainment, you know.”

“And what’s stopping you now?” She said, still heading towards the door and without looking back.

“Well, to do that, I’ll need a name and a House number.”

She paused, without turning to look at him. “Sefakor. House Four.”  Then she was gone.

During the rest of the term they would occasionally run into each other, mostly brief encounters but it was clear there was a deep connection, a strong bond growing steadily each time they met. They were soon inseparable friends.

After eleven years of friendship and a number of heartbreaks they realised they only truly found solace in each other. They started to date; been seven years since. They had had their ups and downs like any other relationship but the connection they felt was so much stronger than the minor disagreements here and there. They were so certain they were meant to be.

She had been there for him through thick and thin. If a deal fell through at work; Sefakor. If Manchester United lost a match; Sefakor. If he remembered something funny and wanted to share it; still Sefakor. Yet standing in her home this evening, Elorm wished he was anywhere else, but here.

He wasn’t even sure where to begin. He loved her but he just didn’t know how to break the news to her. The initial plan of postponing the wedding for as long as possible had seemed like a great idea but he could no longer lie to her. This was the kind of news that no one could ever recover from. It would break her heart and he couldn’t bring himself to hurt her this way. But with the way things were going tonight, he would just have to confess to her. Elorm turned to face Sefakor again. It was clear she wanted answers. Her stare was so intense he felt the hairs on his arm stand. He could tell she had hit her limit and it was understandable.

“Faa’kor, please sit and let’s talk about this.”

“You’re not going to talk your way out of this this time, Mister. I know you well enough to know you’re hiding something. What is it, Elorm? Why do you keep postponing the knocking and formal introduction? I’m tired of wearing this ring and waiting for you. It’s been almost three years since you asked me to marry you. If you are no longer interested in us, just tell me. Why punish me further by making me wait in hope?”

Oh those almond brown eyes again. Elorm thought.

“Faa’kor, you know I want more than anything in this world to make you mine but it’s just not that simple.” He managed to say quietly.

“Did you find someone else?” She was not giving up until she had answers.

“No. You know I coul-”

“Who is it? Someone from work right? Is it Akua Eduafua? I know you’ve got a soft spot for her.”

“Faa’kor. Stop it. It’s no one at work.”

“From church then? Priscilla maybe?”

“No.”

“Then what is it? We had everything ready when your dad passed and it’s like he took a piece of you with him. You’ve never been the same since. I understand you two were close and he left you a ton of responsibilities but it’s been almost three years. Three years!”

Silence.

Pentatonix’s rendition of  ‘Say Something’ was now playing softly on the TV which they had been watching before this discussion on marriage started. Perfect timing, Elorm thought.

“Elorm, don’t you go mute on me!” Sefakor was desperate for answers.

Elorm couldn’t take it anymore. The dilemma was eating him up from within. It had started to show on his person: the strand of grey hair that had recently appeared in his beard was evidence enough. Sefakor had teasingly called it a biological aberration. If only she could joke about this new development as well. Elorm exhaled with force, his classic tell for when he was stressed or under a lot of pressure. He had waited all this while, hoping he would be called back to the specialist hospital. He just wished he would receive a call saying there had been a mix-up; that everything he’d been told earlier was false. Oh how he wished and hoped and prayed…

“Elorm” She said quietly, “Does this have anything to do with your Dad’s passing? Did he secretly dislike me?” She paused. “Answer me, Elorm.” She had started to raise her voice again.

Everything that he had kept bottled up was pushing forcefully from within. He felt his chest muscles tighten.

“I ca-ca-can’t marry you.” Elorm stuttered.

“And exactly what is that supposed to mean? After all these years? Talk to me Elorm, talk to me!”

Elorm parted his lips slowly and began to explain. Sefakor could never in her worst of nightmares have imagined what hit her next. Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened in shock at the words that rolled off Elorm’s tongue:

Elorm exhaled with even more force.

“You’re my sister. My dad and your mum wer-”

He never finished that sentence. The slender body of an unconscious Sefakor hit the tiled floor with a loud thud.

Thanks for reading!

Interco: Annual Inter-colleges Sports Competition

Knocking: Traditional ceremony where the family of the groom officially informs the family of the bride of the groom’s intent to marry the bride.

Say Something: song originally by A Great Big World, Christina Aguilera

Photo by courtesy of Pinterest