C12 Chapter Twelve

From that day, I gradually started feeling more relaxed and at home in Chidi’s house.

I no longer felt like a stranger, and I stopped feeling uncomfortable around everyone. The people working in the house made everything even easier for me. Madam Mary, the cook, Rita, the cleaner, the security men—everyone treated me with so much love and respect.

They all addressed me as “Ma,” as if I were their madam, even though I knew I wasn't. I was simply their boss's friend.

But they made me feel like I belonged there.

I started seeing them as part of my life and, in a way, part of my family. Their kindness made me happy, and slowly, they helped me forget about Ebere and everything that had happened.

I no longer thought about it all the time.

Every morning before Chidi left for work, he would come to my room, knock on the door, and greet me.

“How was your night?”

“I hope you slept well.”

“I hope you had good dreams.”

He was always so funny, cheerful, and playful around me. His presence made it even easier for me to feel at home.

Then one afternoon, I decided to prepare something special for him.

I wanted to cook for Chidi with my own hands because, as far as I knew, he had never tasted my cooking before.

I had already taken my bath and eaten lunch when I headed straight to the kitchen.

Madam Mary was already there.

“Madam Mary, I want to prepare soup for Chidi today.”

She immediately objected.

“No, ma. This is my work. Please allow me to do it.”

But I insisted.

“I want to do it. I love cooking.”

She shook her head.

“Boss will not be happy if he sees you working in the kitchen.”

I laughed.

“Come on, Madam Mary. I am a woman, and I love cooking. It is not a big deal. Besides, you didn't force me to come here. I am the one who walked into the kitchen and asked to cook.”

She looked at me for a moment before finally giving in.

“Okay, fine. Since you insist, no problem. But I will stay here and help you in case you need anything.”

“Yes, please. Stay with me and assist me.”

I decided to prepare oha soup.

I brought out everything I needed—the oha leaves, meat, fish, cocoyam, palm oil, pepper, onions, and the other ingredients.

Madam Mary helped me wash and prepare some of them while I handled the rest.

We were right in the middle of preparing the soup when I heard Chidi's voice from the sitting room.

He had returned from work.

I heard him ask Rita, “Where is Chinyere?”

Rita answered, “She is in the kitchen, sir.”

There was a brief silence.

“Really? Chinyere is in the kitchen?”

I smiled when I heard the surprise in his voice.

“Yes, sir,” Rita replied.

“Wow!”

A moment later, Chidi walked into the kitchen.

“Good evening, everyone.”

We all greeted him.

He looked at me with a surprised smile.

“And what is my Angel doing in the kitchen?”

I smiled.

“I want to cook.”

He laughed.

“Come on, Angel. You don't need to be here. Madam Mary is here to prepare the food. Why are you stressing yourself?”

“Come on. I am a woman, and cooking is never a bad thing. Besides, I love cooking.”

He smiled.

“Okay, no problem, if you say so. But I guess this soup is going to be a special one tonight.”

He looked around dramatically.

“In fact, I can't wait to taste this soup.”

I smiled.

“You've started again.”

“I'm already feeling the aroma from outside. I couldn't even stand it. Let me just rush and freshen up because I can't wait to have this soup tonight.”

We all laughed.

“Okay,” I said.

He excused himself and left.

A few minutes later, he returned. He had freshened up and changed into his nightwear.

Surprisingly, he walked into the kitchen again.

“Is there anything I can help you with?”

I looked at him.

“You? Help? What can you actually do?”

“Anything. I just want to help.”

I laughed.

“You want to help? Please, go before Inspector-General of Police comes here to arrest me and accuse me of forcing his son to work in the kitchen.”

Chidi burst out laughing.

“Come on. It's not like that. I just want to help.”

“Okay, fine. I have something you can do.”

“What?”

I picked up a plate with some onions in it and handed it to him.

“Cut these onions for me.”

He looked at the plate.

“Onions?”

“Yes.”

He collected the onions and began cutting them.

At first, he didn't say anything. But after a few moments, the onions started getting to him. His eyes began watering, and tears rolled down his face.

He looked at me.

“This is pure wickedness! Why onions? Why onions of all the things in this kitchen? Why are you giving me onions to cut?”

Madam Mary and I started laughing.

Chidi continued complaining.

“Besides, I have never heard that someone puts onions inside oha soup!”

I laughed.

“But that is the only thing you can do for me.”

“Why not fish?”

“Eh! So that you will finish my fish, abi?”

We all burst into laughter.

I looked at him.

“Better do fast o. because you still have more onions to cut.”

“What? More onions to cut?”

He dropped the knife.

“No! I'm not doing this again. I'm done! I'm done with this!”

He started running out of the kitchen.

I laughed.

“Better come back and finish what you started o, husband material!”

Madam Mary and I laughed even harder as Chidi disappeared from the kitchen.

It was so much fun.

After we finished preparing the soup, Madam Mary came closer to me.

“Thank you so much, ma.”

I looked at her in confusion.

“Thank me for what?”

She smiled.

For putting smile on my boss's face.

I smiled slightly.

“But I should be the one thanking your boss. Chidi is the one who made me forget my problems. He is the one who put a smile back on my face.”

Madam Mary shakes her head

“You don't understand ma, since you came into this house, you have made my boss a happy man again. You have made him start smiling.”

I was surprised.

“Really?”

She nodded.

“You don't understand what I'm saying, ma. It is because of you that my boss has been laughing like this. Before you came, he was always angry and withdrawn.”

I listened carefully.

“My boss has never been this happy since his last relationship ended. That relationship broke him badly.”

I became curious.

“What happened?”

Madam Mary sighed.

“My boss loved that woman so much. He wanted to marry her. He brought her into this house and gave her everything she wanted. He was even planning to propose to her.”

She paused.

“But one day, the woman came here with another young man. She told my boss that the man was her brother.”

I stared at her.

“And my boss believed her. He welcomed the young man into this house and treated him like family. In fact, he was even planning to send him abroad and establish him in whatever business he wanted.”

I shook my head.

“Wow.”

Madam Mary continued.

“But we, the staff, later discovered that the young man was actually her boyfriend.”

I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

“The two of them were planning to take advantage of my boss, rip him of everything they could, and then run abroad together. But before they could carry out their plan, we exposed them.”

I felt terrible.

“People can be so mean,” I said. “How can someone be so ungrateful to a person who gave her everything?”

Madam Mary nodded.

“That incident was not the first time something like that had happened to him, and it wasn't the second time either. He had been hurt by women several times before.”

She sighed.

“After that last incident, my boss completely gave up on relationships. He stopped trusting women. He started believing that all women were the same and that every relationship would eventually end in betrayal.”

I felt sorry for him.

“Since that time, no woman has ever entered this house as my boss's girlfriend.”

She smiled.

“But since you came here, everything has changed.”

I looked at her.

“He is different now. He is more emotional. He laughs more. He is happier. I have never seen him behave this way around a woman in a very long time.”

Madam Mary look straight to me

“ You have done something to my boss without even knowing it.”

She smiled.

“I just pray you two continue like this. You are good together, and I pray this ends in happiness.”

I laughed.

“Come on, Madam Mary. We are not together. Chidi is just my friend. He is my ex-boyfriend's best friend.”

I explained everything that had happened between Ebere and me and how Chidi had come into the picture and helped me.

Madam Mary looked surprised.

“Ah! I thought you two were already together.”

I laughed.

“No.”

“The way you two look at each other, the way you play together, and the way you stand up for each other… I see something.”

I became shy.

“Whenever I see both of you laughing and playing together, I can't help but smile. I just know there is something.”

She shook her head.

“My dear, I know what I'm saying. You two are very good together. And it would make me extremely happy to hear that one day you became husband and wife.”

I didn't know what to say.

I suddenly felt shy.

“Please, Madam Mary, I need to go and freshen up. When the soup is done, please help me dish out Chidi's food. I'll come back for mine later.”

She smiled.

“Okay, no problem.”

I quickly left the kitchen.

As I walked away, I could hear Madam Mary laughing and shaking her head.

“Children of nowadays,” she muttered.

Then I heard her praying quietly.

“God, please perfect this. Let this work. Let my boss and this girl be together. My boss deserves happiness, and this girl is his happiness.”

I couldn't help but smile.

But as I walked upstairs, her words stayed in my mind.

I wondered if she was really right.

Was there truly something between Chidi and me?

I didn't know.

And honestly, I didn't want to think about it too much.

As things stood, I wasn't even sure I was ready to enter another relationship, especially with someone who was so close to the person who had caused me so much pain.

Chidi was Ebere's best friend.

That alone was enough to make everything complicated.

So I pushed the thought away and went to my room.

That night, I went to bed, hoping that by morning, I would have forgotten everything Madam Mary had said.