If you haven’t read the first part of this story, here’s the link. Kindly read it before starting this one.

I would see Sammy’s call on my phone and my heart would freeze for a second. I would pick up the call and all he would say is, “I hope the baby is fine. Now that you’re not around, we look like a face missing a tooth. It doesn’t look the same.” He didn’t know what was going on. I knew about it and was keeping it from him. A sin is a potent poison. It can kill before your time. I died anytime he called because, in my mind, I was keeping something he ought to know from him.

I gave Richmond an ultimatum but everything showed he wasn’t going to confess and the sad thing was, everything showed I wasn’t going to carry on with the threats. He saw it through my eyes that I lacked the courage to tell Sammy what had happened. He relaxed and even stopped visiting the way he used to. I was angry, not with him but with myself. I was angry that I knew what to do but somehow lacked the courage to do it.

One night I prayed and asked God to show me the way. In the prayer, I mentioned my husband’s name. I mentioned Sammy and his wife. I was unknowingly too loud with the prayer so my mom heard what I was saying. Immediately I said “Amen” and opened my eyes, she was standing there looking at me. I bowed my head down in shame. From the way she looked at me, I knew she heard everything.

“I heard divorce. I heard cheating. I heard Richmond and also heard Sammy and his wife. Who is divorcing who? Who cheated on whom? What’s going on, Miranda?”

You should see her face when she was asking me the questions. The same face she wore anytime she wanted to punish me when I was young. I panicked but later reminded myself that I was an adult so she couldn’t do anything to me. I responded, “Mom, I wasn’t talking to you. If you could solve my problems, I wouldn’t be talking to God about it.”

READ ALSO: I Want To Marry Her But She Says Her Money Is Hers Alone To Spend

She sat next to me, this time with a sober face. She said, “From your childhood to this day, have you seen God around here solving problems for us? It was hard when you were young. We prayed to God for help but he didn’t come. He used people to solve our problems for us. So a stranger would dash us money when we went broke. When you fell sick, a doctor came through. Talk to me. It’s not for nothing that God allowed me to hear a prayer that was meant only for his ears.”

So I confessed to my mom. She didn’t act shocked or troubled. She said, “Don’t mind me. Please continue talking to God.”

The next minute, my dad was at my door knocking. “Is it true,” he asked me. “Your mom just told me the true reason you’re in this house. Richmond did that to you?” I buried my head under my pillow and asked God why he allowed my mom in on my issues. I spoke to Dad at length. He had a lot to tell me but in the end, he left everything in my hands; “To leave your husband or not is not for us to tell. You’re the one sitting next to the fire and know how it burns. We didn’t raise you a timid woman. Do something and the whole family will be at your back.”

Sammy called one morning and we talked about the usual stuff we talked about. Before he hung up he said, “Please I want you to do something for me. I trust you can do it so help me. It’s about Matilda. There’s something she’s hiding from me. Her lips say all is well but her eyes exude the troubles she’s trying to hide inside. Tickle her. Girls-girls talk. She may be comfortable to confide in you. Whatever the issue is, please come and tell me when you find out. It’s eating her out and I want to help her but she won’t open up to me.”

I sighed heavily. He asked why and I told him, “I think I know the problem but we can’t talk about it on the phone. We may have to meet somewhere and talk.”

He screamed on the phone, “You know about it and you haven’t told me? I thought we were friends. What don’t we share? How long have you been keeping this from me?” I asked him to calm down; “When you hear the full story, you’ll understand why I’ve been keeping it from you.”

We met in the evening. I was shaking with fear but I knew it was the right thing to do. I looked straight into his eyes as I narrated the whole story. “This is going to hit you like a bullet, straight into your heart just like it did mine but you’re a man. Promise you’ll handle it calmly without any drama.”

When I put a full stop to the last word, he smiled and asked, “Are you telling me a fiction you read recently or…or…or…”

“Sammy, I wish it was a fiction. I wish it was a dream I would wake up from one day. I’ve been waiting for that kick that would jolt me out of this messy dream but now that I can see you, I know it’s real. Richmond did that to us. I was the one who read the messages. Do you think I would be here living with my parents if I had a peaceful home? Call Matilda and let her deny it. Just call her.”

He kept saying wow…wow…wow like a broken ambulance, visibly shaking and spiritually breaking apart. His next words were, “I should have known but I thought…”

KINDLY DO THIS; Follow Silent Beads on WhatsApp Channel for exclusive behind-scene content

Then he got up and left. The next call came from Matilda. She was crying. The other call came from Richmond. He was barking. I smiled through his barks because the kind of peace I felt inside my heart was something I’d never felt in a very long time. While he shouted, “I thought we agreed we would resolve this peacefully,” I said in my head, “This is also part of the peaceful resolution.” While Matilda chirped through tears, “What do you gain from destroying us?” I said in my head, “My peace. The health of my heart and clarity through the tears. You guys were selfish so it’s time I learn to be selfish too.”

I didn’t hear from Sammy for a week. The next time he called, he asked, “What are you going to do now? I mean you and Richmond.” I answered, “Currently, I haven’t made a decision but if anything, his attitude since I spilt the beans is helping me to make a decision quickly. It’s like he has given up already and that helps me. I will let go eventually but I’m buying myself some time.”

I didn’t ask what he was going to do with Matilda but he said, “You women have heart ooo. What are you thinking about again? Matilda packed out the very next day you told me. I wish she would tell me it wasn’t true but she confessed and asked me to forgive her. I left the house and told her to pack out before I return.

He went ahead and told his parents about everything and with the help of his parents, he went to see Matilda’s parents and told them everything. He had already taken a step and I respect him for that but he’s a man. That fact is not lost to me. If I was the one who cheated the way Richmond did, the sun would not rise to see me in his house but here I am, a woman so I have to give it some time so people will know at least I thought about it carefully before making a decision.

How I Met The Woman Of My Dreams

I don’t have my marriage and it’s ok. I didn’t have it when I was a girl but I was fine. In the absence of my marriage, a lot of things are growing in its place; peace, harmony, love from parents and siblings. When I pray, I feel God hears me. It’s the reason I have this peace. What will be will be but before that, I need to see ahead, what I’m going to do once everything is over and what I need from him as the father of my child. When these are resolved, it’s a day.

—Miranda

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.

******