CHAPTER FORTY FOUR “CONVINCED”

©Opeyemi Akintunde
Inspired by the Greatest Storyteller

Teju’s POV

By the time my phone rang, Beauty and I had entered another round of prayer.

Not the kind you say politely and move on from.

This was the kind of prayer that drains you and fills you at the same time… the kind that forces you to confront things you have tried to ignore… the kind that leaves your voice rough and your spirit alert.

We had found a quieter corner again, and for what felt like hours, we had been calling on God… not gently, not casually… but with the desperation of people who knew something real was at stake.

My marriage.

My sanity.

My future.

At some point, my voice had started cracking, but I did not stop. There are moments in life when you realize that silence is more dangerous than exhaustion.

That was one of those moments.

Then suddenly, my phone began to ring.

The sound cut through the atmosphere like a sharp interruption.

At first, I ignored it.

But it kept ringing.

I reached into my pocket reluctantly, my heart still beating from the intensity of prayer.

When I looked at the screen, my breath caught.

Imade.

For a few seconds, I just stared at the name.

I could not remember the last time she had called me.

Our communication for the past two years had been reduced to short, emotionless messages… instructions… updates… cold, distant exchanges that felt more like business than marriage.

But now…

She was calling.

“She’s calling,” I said quietly, almost in disbelief.

Beauty looked at the screen, then back at me.

“Pick up,” she said gently.

My fingers hesitated for a brief moment, then I answered.

“Hello…”

There was a slight pause on the other end.

Then I heard her voice.

Soft.

Gentle.

Unfamiliar.

“Hello Teju… I am sorry.”

For a moment, I could not move.

I could not breathe.

I could not even think properly.

It did not sound like the Imade I had lived with for the past two years.

It sounded like… the Imade I used to know.

My mind scrambled to catch up.

What was this?

Was she leaving me?

Was this the apology that comes before someone finally walks away?

I swallowed hard.

“Imade…” I began, my voice shaking despite my effort to stay composed, “this marriage can work.”

The words came out of me before I even realized I was speaking.

And as I said them, tears rolled down my face.

I did not even try to stop them.

They carried everything… the longing… the exhaustion… the silent prayers… the nights I had asked God if I had made a mistake.

Then she spoke again.

“Yes… I want to ask that you come back home and try again.”

My heart skipped.

For a second, I genuinely thought I had misheard.

“What did you say?” I asked, my voice breaking completely now.

“I said… can you forgive me and let’s try again,” she replied.

There was a pause.

Then she continued, her voice steady but vulnerable.

“I am sorry, Teju. I let the voices around me get into my head… the media, novels, friends… all saying why should my parents determine who I should marry.”

I closed my eyes.

Each word was landing deeply.

“And what I failed to realize is…” she continued, “if your parents are in the Lord… like ours… they can actually guide us in the right direction, even in marriage.”

By this point, I could not speak.

Tears were flowing freely.

I had prayed for this moment.

But I had not imagined it would come like this.

“Teju… you are a good man,” she said softly. “I believe you now… that you had nothing to do with Beauty.”

I opened my eyes slowly.

Beauty was standing a little distance away, deliberately giving me space.

“Please come home,” Imade continued. “I have some explaining to do.”

Then she said something that broke whatever was left of my emotional control.

“What would you like to eat? I would love to prepare for you personally.”

That one hit me deeply.

For two years…

Imade had never cooked for me as her husband.

Not once.

And now she was asking what I wanted to eat.

I broke.

Completely.

I turned slightly away and wept.

Not the quiet, controlled kind of crying.

But the kind that comes from a place that has been locked for too long.

“I am sorry, Teju,” she said again. “Or… where are you? Should I come to you?”

I tried to compose myself.

I wiped my face quickly, though the tears kept coming.

“I am coming home,” I said finally, my voice still unsteady. “But there is someone I am bringing with me.”

“Okay,” she replied softly.

“See you soon.”

The call ended.

For a few seconds, I stood there holding the phone, staring at nothing.

Then I broke down again.

This time even more deeply.

I bent slightly, holding my head as the tears poured out.

Two years of pain…

Two years of confusion…

Two years of praying and waiting…

And suddenly…

God had answered.

Beauty did not come close.

She understood.

She respected the moment.

From where she stood, she only said quietly,

“Everything will be fine.”

I needed those words.

After a few minutes, I wiped my face again and turned toward her.

“Can you come home with me?” I asked.

She looked surprised.

“Don’t let me,” she said gently. “She may think otherwise. It’s better she doesn’t even know you met me again.”

I shook my head slowly.

“No.”

My voice was calmer now.

Stronger.

“I am not about to build this new beginning on secrecy.”

I stepped closer.

“If you are worried about how she will react… then let’s trust God for understanding when we get there.”

Beauty studied my face for a moment.

Then she nodded slowly.

And for the first time since I got married…

Home felt like a safe place to go…

To be continued

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