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My son, Will was growing so fast. I started to think he was eating too much, perhaps. But I wanted him to be as bulky as possible. I even wanted him to be as muscular as possible. I genuinely loved him and wanted the best for him. I viewed him as a little me and wanted a daughter so I could get a little Claire too. That would be bliss if I was being as factual as possible.
One morning, I finally met Claire in person. She was standing alone in the garden, walking and looking around deliberately. She was probably waiting for me to come out to meet her. I had questions to ask, and she knew it.
“Hey. Why have you been avoiding me? I called you many times.”
“I have been very busy. I’m sorry it seems that way. I just want you to be with me as soon as possible. The last family meeting didn’t go very well.”
“What? What do you mean?” I asked, curious. I had expected her to update me on ongoing affairs within the house, but she had avoided me altogether instead. I could not help but begin to doubt her maturity in the whole issue. It was clear that she was still young. There was no way I could pretend that her maturity wasn’t way below what I expected. But that didn’t exactly diminish my love for her. I love her so much.
“My father was so disappointed. My mother was bent on making me abort my child! My Dad didn’t seem like he was bothered, either way. He was going to make do with whatever decision we took. But he looked so disappointed.” She had to say it again to show he was very disappointed. But I didn’t mind. I was happy that her parents had finally known that I had deposited a child in their daughter. It wasn’t the first time someone would do it, and it would not be the last.
“You should have told me all about this. Do your parents want to see me? I’m sure they would like to meet the father of the pregnancy and I am ready to meet them. Anyway, your aunt knows me enough, and thankfully, I know her too.”
“I don’t want you to meet them yet. I want all the anger to die down before anything else. I am being very careful about my life. While I would be happy to be with you, they are still my family and I can’t overlook them that easily. You have to be patient till it all dies down, then we can meet up peacefully.”
I didn’t agree. I didn’t know if it was about the adrenaline rush or anything similar. I just wanted to see them and get everything over with. The earlier I met them, the better.
“Are you sure about this? I am tired of wasting time. Look, Claire, I’m not scared. I am willing to be with you as soon as possible. Your hesitant attitude towards this is giving me doubts about your stance on this.”
“Come on, Jonah. You know you can’t do this yet. You have to understand me. I want to get things straightened up so I can be with you in the best way possible. You are such a darling and I don’t want my family to be harsh on you. I want good blood amongst you both if we are going to be in-laws.”
“No, why that? I want to see them soon!” I insisted. I just would not hear any other answer and that was because I didn’t want to take any wrong risks. She was such a valuable gem, so I wasn’t ready to joke with her. Besides, Will needed a mother figure in his life even though he was not much younger than she was.
Claire stayed quiet and gave me a long, hard stare. I knew she was getting upset, but I didn’t care because I meant what I said.
“You are so rigid, Jonah. I love you, but you are too stubborn. You need to learn how to bend to the wishes of other people for peace to reign sometimes. If we want something real to happen, you can’t keep behaving like this.”
“And you can’t keep postponing us. I want to be with you. You can’t be behaving as if you are taking this with levity hands. You have to show maturity. If you want me to be with you, communicate better and stop pushing me away. I love you so much, baby. Why do you have to do this to me?” I said.
I knew I was too old for all that, but I wanted to feel love too. I wanted to be a little dramatic and show I still had some of my youthful exuberance locked up somewhere in me. I still wanted to be sure if she loved me or not, but she seemed to be getting turned off with each passing day.
“Do you love me?” she asked, looking unnecessarily serious just to show she was not joking. I almost laughed because there was no reason for her to do that. I was too serious as a person to take anything she said as a joke, especially when I liked her that much.
“Of course, I do.”
“Then change for heaven's sake! Listen to me sometimes and get off your cock. You may still feel you are the boss, but you are not all-knowing. There are times that I have valid opinions to give and you have to listen to me too.”
“You also have to listen to me. Don’t forget I’m older than you and I probably know better. Your aunt and other family members are my mates so I know how I can relate to them. You have to trust me and listen to me. Your family can’t do anything to me. I want to meet them!”
“Okay, then suit yourself!” she said angrily and stormed out of my presence. I shook my head as I watched her hips sway to the rhythm of her steps. Claire was so dramatic. If I didn’t know her better, I would think she was a child. I still didn’t mind. She carried my baby and she was going to be the mother of my child.
“I’m so worried Jake. This girl is behaving so immaturely man. She is so annoying,” I explained to my friend as we shared a drink at the other bar on the street. I had to call him since I was already going crazy because of the whole issue. He was happy to hear that I was going to be a father.
“You know what? Congratulations. Now I want you to know this. No woman ever really grows up. They have to be babied and treated with care. I was very happy to know that you had impregnated her. That last woman in your life fucked you up, making you push away every other woman you met. That is not what I expected from you. I am happy for you!”
I nodded. I knew he had more to say so I decided to calm down and allow him to talk. Jake was one friend I trusted to tell me the truth at all times and I still counted on him till that moment. He was a real friend.
“Overlook all she does. She just wants your attention. You know about women and their antics. Until she tells you she is not interested anymore, everything she does is just to get you worked up. In turn, you have to calm down and behave like a man.”
Be a man. Be a man! I had heard that every day of my life ever since I was grown enough to fend for myself. I didn’t know how to be a man again at this age, and I didn’t care anyway. But I wanted Claire. That was something I was willing to fight for.
I took a sip of the drink in my glass cup and stared at Jake who was gulping down his glass. He had just endured a bad day, but he hardly wore his agitation on his face. He told me a few jokes and I laughed out loud each time. I needed to do that, as it was clear that I was in for a few tough weeks. I only hoped that I would come out of those weeks with my baby, and Claire, the love of my life.
Chapter Sixteen
Jonah
Iwokeuptobad news that morning. Claire was unwell and had been rushed to the hospital in pain. I got out of my bed immediately Will told me he had seen Pauline rush Claire out in the early hours of the morning. It was then I called Claire and got no answer. I called her aunt, Pauline instead, but she sounded cold. But thankfully, she told me the hospital Claire was at out of mutual respect that we had for each other.
