When The Tide Of The Heart Changes

Episode 17

LIKE GOLD

The whole scenario was gloomy. a blanket of silent enveloped the house making even the air feel stale.

Soft breezes stole its way into the the house, caressing the curtains making them dance slowly like they were moving to the tunes of a soft music.

Johnny held his head in his palms with his eyes wide open but rarely blinked, visible tears could be detected but none ran down his face.

Yvonne was holding on to him beside him resting her head on his shoulder, the tears on her own face was running freely like there was a highway for tears located through her cheeks slightly past her mouth.

A white envelope was on a little side stool in front of them seeming unnaturally brighter beneath the white light of the electric bulbs.
“Why must the bank strike when things are falling apart” Johnny lamented hitting his hand on the white envelope on the side stool.

The envelope was a notification letter from the bank calling him to notice that his payment date is 2weeks due and he has only a week to pay back his loan of 180million to the bank or relinquish the collateral which happened to be his house and cars.

He has been to most of his friends and business partners and none agreed to have even 1,000 in their account.

He tried calling Onyinye who greeted him with a “Go to Hell” attitude.

“Baby I think you will have to go back to your mum cus where i am about to go you cannot follow” he intoned running his hands through Yvonne’s hair.

Bimbo already seized the keys to Yvonne’s personal apartment, her cars and froze her bank account.

“Baby why do you want to go back to east, cant we squat in one of your friend’s house for the time being” she queried.

“My friends? the ones that have deserted me? I am alone in this Yvonne, i am alone” Johnny sang out stressing the word ‘alone’ like a nollywood actor would, with intruding hisses every now and then.

“Don’t say that my love, you are never alone. I am here to swim and sink with you in all situations. Our baby in my womb is with you and God is also with you”

Johnny turned to face her, seeing in her a figure of pure and unadulterated love.
LIKE GOLD this surely was a test of love and her love have proved to be better than just love.

“I will move down to east with you my love, where ever you go i will go, where ever you live i will also live” She preached rubbing his shoulders.

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Johnny moved down to the east the day after the bank claimed his house and cars.

Moving down the east was unbearably hard for him and Yvonne. apparently johnny never visited his home town after the death of his parents 13years ago.

Onyinye made matters worse showing over the house to mock them as they moved out of the house leaving one wondering how she even got to know.

Johnny regretted never visiting his home town ever since and not even putting up even a one bedroom apartment there when they got to Umunze and Johnny only had a mud house that used to belong to his grand mother.

He met little humans running around the whole compound and had not the slightest incline who and where they came from.

He and Yvonne were subjected to 2hours of introduction and re-introduction by several of the relatives who came to see the long seen son of williams.

They settled in the bright red mud house johnny now called home.

the old iron bed in the room could barely take in 2people comfortably and the constant squeaking and creaking sound whenever you moved was enough to give sleepless night.
The hut had an inner room after the first one through the entrance.

An earthen pot served as the water dispenser and pots black as hell obviously from the long years of toiling under firewood infernos.

Gardens of vegetables and coco-yams adorned the back and side of the relatively large compound riddled with weeds.

“I know this is just temporarily, i must bounce back no matter what” Johnny muttered to himself as he surrendered to his fate.

His only joy and consolation was in Yvonne and his unborn child that grew within her.

Thats how Johnny and Yvonne moved to the village as was introduced in the first episode.