A Beautiful Pain

#5DaysToVals

The strangest happenings in life come with the most sincere intentions from familiar people, and such sincerity is what hurts us the most.” That was the consolation I got from my friend, John, after the astonishing reply I got from Tutu earlier that day. I had asked her “will you marry me?” in a bar somewhere on Atican beach where we decided to celebrate her birthday. The ovation was high, it was a well packaged surprise; I invited few of our friends, including a saxophonist to usher in a romantic aura, and John even went out of his way to invite Wande Coal just to make it look extraordinary. “Forget it, this guy is the best male vocalist in Naija.” Tutu is also a big fan of his. The stage was set for me to shine, and I was quite confident she was going to say yes. I sipped on the wine I held in my left hand as the saxophonist set my heart ablaze with the melodic tune he played. Not quite after that, Wande Coal stepped forward; you need to see the way Tutu’s friends were screaming, “Black Diamond!” What’s it with girls and glamour? I can’t comprehend. Wande’s voice finally brought decorum to the room. He sang his onetime chat topper and R&B single Ololufe and concluded by walking up to Tutu and asked her as he pointed at me, “t’iku bade, s’oma baa lo? – when death comes, will you go with him?” and then the ladies echoed, “awww” “he’s going to propose.” That was my cue. I approached Tutu as Wande faded from her presence. I deep my hand into my pocket and retrieved the Tifanny diamond ring I had prepared for that moment. I hit it on my wine glass as if I was going to make a toast and declared, “ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention for a minute?” Silence enveloped the bar.

*****

I drove to the nearest bar on my street and sat there for hours in an attempt to drink off the pain; but for every shot of vodka I took the agony became more evident. My fiancée had just broken up with me. I wasn’t pained because she decided to quit, I was hurt because she didn’t give me a reason. I have always been a victim of breakups, but Gbemi’s exit was traumatically dramatic. Who ends a relationship without a reason? “Maybe I am not just good enough” I muttered to myself, and then I got an unexpected response from a lady who was sitting opposite to me, “good enough for who, the vodka?” Before then I didn’t notice anyone was seated in front of me, and so I was surprised to hear a stranger question me. However, the boy within me who was hurt and seeking for attention couldn’t ignore her presence.

“Maybe I wasn’t good enough for her, my ex. She broke up with me,” the alcohol aided my speech. She simply smiled and snapped,

“Your girlfriend broke up with you. So? How is that the end of the world?” I was perplexed at her response, I expected to hear a “sorry” or “why?”

“Mister, if you choose to drink away the memory, you’ll only wake up from a hangover to discover how a beautiful girl walked pass you.”

“Who are you?” my curiosity heightened

“I am Tutu.”

“I am Omotayo, and if I may ask…”

“Ask” she interrupted. Truth is if she hadn’t interrupted I wasn’t sure of what I was going to ask her. She technically afforded me few moments to think,

“Are you here alone?”

“Yes”

“Okay, I can see you are also drinking. If I am drinking to cure my pain, why are you drinking?”

“Every passing moment is but a privilege. You never know when death will come knocking, enjoy the life you lead while it last. I am simply enjoying the moment.” She winked at me and made a toast, “to forgetting about the past and focusing on the future.” Our glasses kissed and that night became history.

That night I got her contact and we decided to hook up some other time. While we conversed, she exhibited a strong personality trait; she appeared to me like an angel with a broken wing who was helping others survive. There was something about the words she spoke; they came with precision and definite messages.

Meeting her birthed a new me, she became my counselor and no night became dawn when we didn’t reach out to each other. Then something happened, I called Tutu’s phone on a Sunday and it was switched off. I sent her messages on the social media networks she operated, I didn’t get a reply. Things remained that way for two months, and for each day that expired all I did was stare helplessly at the last text she sent me:

I am going to bed now dear. I just want you to know that meeting you has made me a happier woman.

 

One day, I was on my way back from work when I saw her standing outside my door. I matched the brake impatiently and rushed out of the car leaving the door opened after I had managed to pull the handbrake. We reached for each other and hugged. I fell in love with her afterwards. We did everything together; she spent more nights at my place. She helped me plan my life and with her by my side I was able to exceed certain milestones. I soon learnt about the dreadful things she had gone through in life; her mother died while birthing her and her father was a soldier that lost his life to the war against the Boko Haram insurgents. Learning about her sufferings made me love her more, hence I decided to will my loyalty to her.

*****

“Today marks the beginning of another year for a very special woman in my life. She is someone I like to refer to as the hallmark of my existence, because she gave me a reason not to drown myself with alcohol,” I smiled and winked at her before continuing.

“Tutu, you made yourself a perfect reason for me to love again. You nurtured the boy you met in that bar into a man. Your presence in my life has made it more colourful. I cannot imagine a future without YOU. Tutu,” I knelt on both knee and asked her, “Will you marry me?”

She gazed into my eyes as I watched tears drop from hers, and as I reached for her hands, she ran outside the bar and I went after her.

“Tayo, I cannot marry you.”

“Why? What have I done wrong?”

“You haven’t done anything wrong; I just don’t think this is right.”

The memories of the times I have been a victim flashed through my mind. I searched my mind for answers I didn’t get, “am I about to become a victim again?”

“Tutu, do you doubt how I feel about you?”

“No Tayo. I don’t, but love isn’t about the feelings alone. It is a decision that has to be made.”

“Then decide, marry me. I have made up my mind.”

“I cannot afford to enslave you with my burden,” she replied. I became confused and nervous; I couldn’t comprehend what she said. I held her hands as I pulled her closer, kissed her forehead and whispered, “No condition will change my conviction about you Tutu.”

She murmured “I love you Tayo”, pushed me away and exited the beach.

*****

My baby,

By the time you get this I will be dead. I was diagnosed of leukemia, and the few months I have to live expired yesterday. I was on chemo the two months I was away, but I missed you so much I had to return and spend the rest of my life loving you. I almost said yes to marrying you, but that would have made you a widower. I loved you till my last breathe.

Tutu.

 

She died two weeks after her birthday. I dropped the ring on her coffin with a note that says …the history we shared will never fade away. I wasn’t a victim after all.

 

“True love knows when to say NO.” – Olufemi Fragile

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119 comments

  1. ‘ A Beautiful Pain’ is a touching, interesting and romantic piece. Am impressed

    1. FRAGILE!!! AWESOME…THERE’S ALWAYS A FLIPSIDE TO LOVE, JUST THE IRONY OF LIFE SOMETIMES…YOU HAVE SHOWN THAT HERE. KUDOS MAN. #BlackRooney

  2. Hmnnn beautiful pain indeed. Love though. Its just for a couple of people and those who found it; kudos .nice piece femz..

  3. I don’t read fiction, but this one got me interested in reading every fiction on this blog… This story is pure, touching, and a lesson.. big ups to the writer.

  4. “The strangest happenings in life come with the most sincere intentions from familiar people, and such sincerity is what hurts us the most.”. Nice one Sir fragile

  5. Femi u are a great writer n u had a bright future ahead ………..this is interesting!

  6. Can’t stop these tears… What a beautiful story.. ” I can’t marry you” doesn’t always mean ” I don’t love you”.. Nice one..

  7. Your writings gets better and better each day, u always know how to carry your readers along till the very end…. *smile*

  8. Femi has never disappointed me n he will never do, u’ve got a nice writeup here,love to see more.

  9. Love the suspence in between, got me really interested and super eager to read the story to d end. Good job

  10. *sigh* I loveeeee. I like how the insecurity in the country was put into this.There is nothing as splendid as loving the one who loves you.

  11. Am so proud of u femi, this piece is so touchy and awesome. Thumbs up dear!! C u at d top

  12. Great Story. Awesome and very interesting. Keep it up my Brother. God is your Strength.

  13. Life is complex. Love is not enough. Life is too short to hold back your love. Too many lessons in one story. The way Fragile painted this thing, you can’t be asking if it actually happened, you just believe him.Cool story! The back and forth flow between happiness and sadness is sweet. Well organised too.

  14. Wooow am so speachless by this! Femi is a natural born writer….thumbs up brother.

  15. all i can say is, i now know there is another blog in naija.. elsieisy.com…. nice story

  16. Fragile can write as much as he can drink… No jokes this story just made my babe cry… Haba…

  17. Wow! Most times i say ‘wow’ when i am in awe and so speechless. I almost had a tear drop. Wished Tutu survived d cancer but Tayo can derive a whole lot from her strength. Femi, this is a great piece!

  18. Fragile. Quit writing stories. Start writing scripts… You deserve better than a competition.. Aim for oscar.. This is heart melting… Great one

  19. Wow!!!!! This is so touching….true love is still out there guys….be patient to find one.

  20. Wow this is a great story very touching and amazing.the person that wrote this story must be a genuis it got ma attention and hearth

  21. Femi certainly knows how to keep his writers glued to his stories till the end, great suspense, these days u find it difficult reading a long piece but with femi it never gets boring… proud of you my creative director, the sky is your starting point, you are a rare gem of our time. more initiative and grace

  22. Whao this is indeed awesome… great write up/story. I enjoyed every tin on it. U should come up with a mag like doing hints mag of those days. Awesome awesome

  23. I totally enjoyed reading this…..the last line ” True Love knows when to say No” does it for me. Good job FemiFragile

  24. I once called this guy a super story writer…lol but seriously, this is more than ‘superb’…..I pray nollywood do not get dis script, Alaba will so sell!!!…well done bro, well done!

  25. I don’t know if this story is actually real but I can tell this is a heart touching story that brings one reasoning closer to reality of life… beautiful things don’t last forever rather they are temporal.

  26. I don’t usually read long articles but this one surely got me glued to my device. Beautiful write-up that I created pictures in my mind while reading. Kudos to the writer.

  27. Ok… I usually dont put comments on writeups… dis is just too awesome to let slide… great piece bro… greatness awaits you

  28. Ok… I usually dont put comments on writeups… dis is just too awesome to let slide… great piece bro… greatness awaits you

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