LEAVE MY DAUGHTER

LEAVE MY DAUGHTER

In my vivid recollection, the rifle came down on my head with such force and intent to cause some serious damage. The message was painfully clear ‘stay away from my daughter for good’. He looked at the dent in my head and then cast one last satisfied look into my blurry eyes before he hurried away. At that point I couldn’t feel my legs and the numbness spread across my failing body as I clung to the couch for dear life. I mumbled my last prayer, funny enough it didn’t sound the way I had always rehearsed it.

I’m guessing you are wondering how I got to this stage, the truth is you are not alone in that quest.

I remember dressing up smartly because today I would be meeting her family for the first time, to profess my undying love for their daughter; it was a well planned meeting and trust me I had prepared my speech; the humble introduction, followed by my honest intentions and a grandiose conclusion, ‘Shakespeare hath no lines like Me in love’.

I approached the front door of the green lush apartment walking as steadily as possible, shoulders spread, chin raised and a smile on my lips; all to impress her father and mother who were standing on the veranda, waiting for me with raised eyebrows. ‘Good evening Sir, good evening Ma’ I greeted bowing as low as I could in respect. They just stood there looking in astonishment; I turned backwards wondering if perhaps a mad man had followed me into the compound and was standing behind me dangling his flaccid penis.

“Before I open my eyes, you better evaporate from my premises”, her father retorted rather emphatically. I smiled sheepishly looking in her direction, hoping for some form of help, because I wasn’t sure if he meant it or if he was referring to me. Maybe an in-house joke to test my boldness. But this was no test, as I would soon find out. She stood there in the corner squeezing her fingers and trembling shifting her weight from one leg to the other; the aggrieved man quickly ran to the back of the compound and came back with three muscular midgets who promptly surrounded me.

“Young man oga asked you to leave and you are smiling like a fool abi?” one of them said placing his smallish palm on my shoulder; with some effort I took a step backwards to properly assess the situation. Something was not right, at least I remember she told me her parents were nice people and were anxious to have me.

Suddenly, her dad came out with a rifle and fired two shot point blank into the receptive chest of one of the midgets killing him instantly, surely he should know that tiny precious midgets were scarce as it were. Then turning to me he said “Now you know I mean business”, seriously I had allowed myself to that revelation long before now, so to me the demonstration was overkill.pun intended

He aimed in my direction pointing straight to my heart, shutting one eyes for focus. Her mum quickly shut her ears with her hands to avoid being taken unawares by the loud bang from the barrel. The living midgets moved backwards to avoid the blood splatter. My heart was pounding faster than it ever had and it was beating along with a song, some song I really couldn’t make out. The sound track for my moment of death was rolling.

I pushed aside the barrel and ran past the spectators into the living room and through a dark  passage up a fleet of stairs and ended up in a room; couldn’t help but notice the neatness and order that prevailed in the space. The theme of the room was purple, ah! My favorite color.The ultimate mockery;Heart pounding; fists clenched, random thoughts coming and exiting my head. What was I thinking running into this place, I must really be stupid! Maybe I ran here because of the tension, or maybe I just had to see if their living room matched the one I pictured in my head before coming here today. I was in the perfect location, a neat and serene platform to give up my troubled ghost. Every notion of love had fled from me; I was battling for my life now.

The door knob turns gently as her dad carefully walked in, confident that I was trapped in, nowhere to run, and nowhere to hide. He walked gallantly towards me pointing the nozzle at me as I moved backwards against the couch, somebody had to come to me rescue, the director could yell ‘cut’ at this point in time; but no, nobody came, the world would be one living being short. I had come here with the hope of being accepted into her life as the legal occupant of her heart, the benefactor of her love and the son-in-law to be. To receive their acceptance. But today I would be receiving something  else;something cold, piercing and frigid coursing its way through my receptive flesh.

He hissed when he realized he could take me out without wasting the bullet, so he turned the rifle around and held the nozzle with both hands, swinging the weapon backwards, he swiftly brought it down to my skull; the rifle came down on my head with such force and intent to cause permanent damage. All I heard was a thud, the message was painfully clear ‘stay away from my daughter for good’. He looked at the dent in my head and then cast one last satisfied look into my blurry eyes before he hurried away. At that point I couldn’t feel my legs and the numbness spread across my failing body as I clung to the couch for dear life. I mumbled my last prayer, funny enough it still didn’t sound the way I had rehearsed it.

My phone alarm rang and I jumped to my feet, after a moment of chilling reminiscence, I slowly sat back on my bed and smiled brightly.