I found him when I was doing my national service. He worked at the rural bank I went to withdraw money. He helped me once and said hello. He helped me twice and got my number. He called, and we became friends. He said he had come to the village from Accra to work, and because I also came from Accra, we bonded very quickly.

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A few weeks later, it was a love story. We dated for five months before my service period came to an end. When I was leaving the village, I couldn’t take all the things in my room along. I sent my fridge, microwave, and tabletop cooker to his place for safekeeping.

He promised to bring them to Accra anytime he was coming to visit. I was very happy about the offer to help. He came to Accra twice in two months, but he didn’t bring the items. All he did was give me excuse upon excuse. I told him, “If that’s a problem for you, no problem. I will come for them myself.”

He countered, “No, you don’t have to. What kind of boyfriend will I be if I’m not able to honor my promise? My next visit will be the visit I bring those things.”

I suspected he came to town, but because he didn’t bring my things, he couldn’t visit me. So, out of frustration and too many failed promises, I picked a car and went back to the village to collect my things. I entered his room, and he acted like he had seen a ghost. None of my things were there. I asked, “Where did you take them to?”

He said I didn’t tell him I was coming, so he had left them in a friend’s house where there was a bigger space to store the items. I was there for two days, but this guy couldn’t come with my items. I was getting impatient. I started acting out until that evening, he came with my tabletop cooker. It looked dirty, and even the plates were hot, as if they were in use when he removed them.

A few minutes later, a lady followed with anger and shouting, “Who are you going to give the cooker to that you won’t even let my food finish cooking? I want to know who that woman is.” She entered, and she saw me. She took her anger out on me: “So it’s this woman? Madam, don’t you have the money to buy your own? You’re dressed like a queen but have nothing. I won’t let you have it.”

By the time I was able to explain to her that the cooker was originally mine, this lady had caused a scene, and a lot of people had gathered in the house. My boyfriend couldn’t be found anywhere. I asked the lady if she knew about the fridge and the microwave. She asked, “Ah, those things are yours too?”

He had given the fridge to the lady’s mother, and she was using it to sell water and drinks. The microwave, we later found out he had given it to another lady he was dating, a national service lady who came right after I had left.

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I gave the cooker back to the lady, but I wouldn’t leave my fridge and microwave there in the village. I went with the lady to collect the fridge and also located the service person to collect my microwave. The microwave brought a whole new drama. I was nearly beaten by the lady who had it, had it not been for some men who followed me to her house. All through that, that boyfriend of mine couldn’t be found anywhere. I left the village at dawn. He didn’t come to sleep in his own house that night.

My sister, fear men wai. He hasn’t picked my calls again till today, though he comes to watch my status.

—Esther 

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