I was 7 years old at my parents 10-year anniversary party. The celebration was magical. You could smell the freshly cut flowers that made up the center piece at each table and the incredible flower backdrop. The decor was gorgeous – shades of pink and bling everywhere and the mood lighting was perfect.
Mum made her entrance in a beautiful golden glittery dress. She looked like a princess with her natural hair pulled back in an updo, that complemented her eyes. Dare, Mayowa and I were up front standing across from Dad as she walked in. Right before her entrance, we had been bickering like you would expect siblings to but her entrance commanded silence as the music filled up the space.
Gush, she was everything I wanted to be and as she got closer to the front, she mouthed to me and my siblings “I love you”, then she looked over to daddy with a heartwarming smile and winked at him. Dad was so proud. He watched her like she was the only person in the room. He stepped forward, took her hand and said “Hey gorgeous”. She blushed and the pastor took over.
I had always thought the most of my parents and adored their relationship and our amazing family. Dare is the best big brother. We had our moments of total sibling hate but for the most part he was my protector and friend. Mayowa is the baby of the house, incredibly thoughtful and would get anything done you needed him to but he has a solid sense of self and does all things on his own terms.
“Hey Bro, how you doing?” It had been a few days since the date gone bad and I needed to talk to someone. Dare responded within a couple minutes “ Yooooo, getting off work. Call you in a few minutes.
True to his word my phone was ringing in a few minutes. “Hey Teni, you free this evening? Want to go get something to eat?” “Oh that sounds good”
Dare picked me up in a brand-new Benz. “I love this! Congrats Dare!” Dare had worked incredibly hard all his life to get to where he is now. He was just promoted to a Partner at one of the top consulting firms in the country. I knew him well enough to know that getting this car was a gift to himself but he probably gifted himself double the cost of the car in investments to support it.
We walked into Giovanni’s – my favorite Italian restaurant. It was further away from campus but it was one of the perks of having Dare as my big brother. Our waitress was Kafi, a sweet fair skin lady with great attention to details. As usual, I ordered the Spaghetti Bolognese and gelato for desert while Dare got the Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo and Tiramisu.
Kafi brought over their delicious freshly baked breadbasket and brought Dare a glass of red wine and a sprite for me. “So how’s school and life?” Dare said. “Good good” I looked away like I was avoiding eye contact. “Mum called me” he paused and looked at me with a mild smile – “What’s going on with you?” I was surprised “What do you mean mum called you? I am good, what did she say?”
“Well, she didn’t say much. Just that when she spoke to you on Sunday, you sounded a bit off. She said she could tell you were holding back but she couldn’t tell why” “Oh goodness” I put my hand to my head. I had planned to talk to Dare about Jide but now that I know Mum was on to me I feel the strong need to add a disclaimer.
“Dare, I need to talk to you but Mummy can never find out, at least not until I have a better understanding of what I am dealing with” Dare gives me a reassuring look “OfCourse Teni, you know you can tell me anything” So I tell him all about the night that I can remember, Jide ignoring me after and the conversation we had before he walked away.
Dare rose from his seat “Where is this kid?! I need to have a chat with him” No Dare, please don’t. I just need you to hear me out and think through it with me. He was visibly upset but he took a deep breath and came to sit beside me. He wrapped his arms around me and it was exactly what I needed. “Teni, I love you so much. I can’t un-know this but I don’t want to break your trust. We both know you should never have taken the gummies regardless of what he called them. I appreciate you holding yourself accountable but taking the gummy does not mean you deserve to wake up on park bench with ripped clothes. Teni, none of this is ok and I strongly advise that you report it to school authorities at the least.”
I heard Dare loud and clear, what he was really saying was “I want to blow this up and tell everyone so this guy can own his actions but I respect your decision and I’m fully here for you” it meant everything to me.
Dare gave me room to respond, but he read the appreciation in my eyes and took the hint that I was done talking about it. “Oh, did you see what Uncle Jimi posted in the family group chat?” Dare said. I burst out laughing. “I can’t with Uncle Jimi! His posts are so inappropriate and cringe” Dare was now laughing too when he responded “I loved how Mum sent that prayer video shortly after like she didn’t just see those women gyrating in the video” I was laughing so hard that tears came down my face. We both knew the tears were deeper than the joke but it was the perfect way to change the topic and give me room to just be.
Chapter 6->
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