One late night, a number called me. He asked if I was Moses, and I said yes. He asked again, “Are you the one dating Priscilla?” I hesitated before saying yes and then asked, “Is anything the problem?”

He said, “Nothing is the problem. Bye-bye.” He then cut the call. I called back, but he didn’t answer. I called several times until I got the feedback that the number was switched off. I called Priscilla. I mentioned the number and asked if she recognised it. She said no.

I saved the number as “Priscilla’s Caller.”

READ ALSO: Three Years Later, I’m Still Paying for Having An Affair With a Married Man

About a week or so later, the number called again. He went straight to the point. “Your girlfriend owes me money. If you guys don’t want any trouble, decide when you’re going to pay me.” And then he cut the call.

I called Priscilla and asked who she owed money to. She swore she didn’t owe anyone and was shocked the person was saying that.

I tried sending MoMo to the number just to check the name. The name on the number was Freda, but the person who had been calling me was a guy. Though I was playing it cool, I felt there was something Priscilla was not telling me. I asked her to go through her memory lane and see who she owed. I asked, “You don’t think your ex can do that?”

She answered, “David? No, I don’t think so. I don’t owe him anything, so how could he be the one calling to say I owe him?”

Another late night, the call came through again. Luckily for me, I was with Priscilla. When I showed her the call, she took the phone from me and answered. On loudspeaker, the guy said, “I’ve given you guys enough time to pay, and still nothing. Do you want me to go crazy with you?”

Priscilla said, “David! Oh, so it’s you. How did you get his number, and what money are you talking about?”

The guy flipped. It turned into a heated argument on the phone. The guy said he had spent a lot of money on her and even took care of her when she was in school, and he wanted all that money back. I got angry about the pettiness of the guy, so I asked from behind, “How old are you again? Is that the reason you’ve been playing games with me? Grow up!”

Then I told Priscilla to end the call. The guy screamed, “Oh, you’re telling me to grow up? Has she told you that she’s HIV positive? We’ll see, you and I, who has to grow up. Let her explain how she got the HIV virus…”

Priscilla quickly cut the call while screaming, “Enough!” We both went quiet, visibly exhausted from the exchanges. She asked me to block the line. She said the guy was determined to destroy her happiness. I asked about the HIV thing. “Is it true?”

She smiled and said, “If you like, I’ll do a test tomorrow for you to see. I’m as clean as a whistle.” I believed her, but you see, whatever is said plants a seed in you. You might disregard it. You might say it’s not true, but that seed will still germinate. Slowly but surely. I believed her, but it didn’t stop me from opening my eyes.

When I visited her, I watched every step she took and even assessed her emotional state. I don’t know what I was looking for, but I knew there was something to be found. One day, while she was bathing, I went through her bag. There was a plain little bag that contained tablets. There was no inscription on the bag. I took a photo of the drug and also took one of the tablets with me.

When she came, I asked if she was sick or had been sick. She asked, “Do I look sick?” I answered, “These days, you’ve become a little dull, so I’m wondering.” She said she wasn’t sick and hadn’t been sick in a very long time.

I sent the photo to a pharmacist friend. I asked if he knew what drug it was. He said the photo wasn’t clear. I took another photo of the one I had picked. He said he couldn’t tell because it could be any drug. He asked where I got it from and who was taking it. I told him it was for my girlfriend. He asked me to bring it to the store the next morning. He still couldn’t tell. But he asked me to leave it so he could ask his nurse and doctor friends.

A few days later, he asked, “How long have you seen her taking them?”

I answered, “I’ve not seen her take them, but they were in her bag.”

He said, “One of my doctor friends thinks it’s an antiretroviral drug. He can’t tell for sure, but it looks like that.”

My heart started thumping in my chest. I went to her place and put the tablet on her table. “I took this from your bag. What do you take it for?”

She exhaled. I said, “Be honest because I’ve asked doctors about it.”

She said, “So you believe what David said, right?”

“Forget about David. What is this tablet for?”

She confessed that she was indeed positive, but she wasn’t able to spread it because she had been taking her drugs diligently. I nearly collapsed. “You’re wicked, Priscilla. Do you want to kill me? Do you want to take me with you? What did I do to deserve this?”

I nearly cried, but I was shaking. I was so sure I’d gotten it. She kept telling me I was negative because she couldn’t give it to me. She said she could take me to the hospital and do the test with me.

Is There A Man Out There Who Doesn’t Cheat?

I walked away, broken and shattered. I even dreamt of death. But one day, I got the courage and did the test. I explained everything to the lab guy. He said, “Then you might be negative if what she’s saying is true.”

I was negative. Right there at the lab, I called her and thanked her for everything and said I couldn’t continue the relationship because of the lies. The fact that she hid her status from me. She responded, “Thank you,” and cut the call.

I think of her sometimes. She was a good girl to me. But whenever I get to see how lucky I’d been, I thank God and move on. I also thank her ex for warning me. Exes are not always bad people. I’ve tried calling that line to tell him he was right, but it’s still off. Anyway, I can only thank God. He did it.

—Moses

This story you just read was sent to us by someone just like you. We know you have a story too. Email it to us at [email protected]. You can also drop your number and we will call you so you tell us your story.

******