Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Kelechi
“You’ve been so quiet the entire evening. Are you sure you’re okay being here?” Chukwuma’s voice pulled me from the mental sanctuary I’d retreated to, that secure place where I could pretend I was anywhere else but here.
I blinked and forced a smile, lifting my gaze from the untouched plate of chow mein in front of me. The restaurant hummed with soft jazz and easy laughter, the delicate clink of silverware underscoring other people’s contentment. But all I could focus on was my own heartbeat.
“I’m fine,” I said, surprised by how naturally the lie slid off my tongue. I was getting way too good at this.
He smiled and reached for his wine glass.
Chukwuma was everything my parents had always described as perfect.
He was handsome, successful, and also from a good family.
He was the sort of man who looked right on paper and even better in photographs.
Yet sitting across from him felt like watching my life happen to someone else through thick glass.
“You’re not eating, honey.”
The endearment made my skin crawl, though I managed not to flinch as I picked up my fork and took a bite, forcing myself to chew even though the pasta tasted like nothing.
We were at Tamberma restaurant, one of those upscale places in Victoria Island where Lagos society came to see and be seen.
He had called it a romantic evening, his chance to officially propose since he hadn’t actually given me a ring.
His mother had already called mine to share the news before he’d even asked, and I had come to understand that this was how things worked in his world.
Everything was planned. Everything was supposed to be proper. Everything was decided in advance by a committee which included his mum and elder sister.
I touched the enormous diamond ring on my left hand and felt my chest tighten.
Three carats of other people’s desires, glittering on my finger like a beautiful shackle.
“Can I ask you something?” My voice came out smaller than I intended, but I pressed on.
He nodded, still chewing. “Of course.”
“Do you ever feel like your life was chosen for you before you even had a chance to decide what you wanted?”
His fork paused halfway to his mouth, but only briefly.
“Well, I think that’s how it works for everyone from good families. Our parents guide us because they know what’s best. I mean, they’ve lived longer and seen more.”
The knot in my stomach pulled tighter.
“But what if what’s best for them isn’t what’s best for you?”
He actually laughed, but it came out indulgent and dismissive.
“Happiness comes from doing your duty, Kelechi. And to be honest, I like to think that everything else is just selfishness dressed up as freedom.”
I winced.
“Oh, and do you think it’s possible to have a good marriage without both parties being in love?”
The question slipped out before I could stop it.
He shrugged nonchalantly.
“I am a firm believer that love grows over time. Respect and compatibility are the things that make marriages last.”
Respect and duty.
Doing what’s expected.
All the lessons I had absorbed since childhood. All the reasons I was sitting here wearing his ring and planning a wedding I didn’t want.
None of it explained the emptiness clawing at my ribs, or why thinking about Marley felt like coming up for air.
I leaned forward.
“Would you want to spend your life married to someone who was hiding half of themselves from you?”
A shadow crossed his face, more like a flicker of unease, but his voice stayed steady.
“If it meant keeping peace in both families, then yes. Sometimes we have to sacrifice our personal desires for the greater good.”
This was it.
This was the life he was offering.
The life everyone expected me to choose.
A marriage built on silence and pretence, where love meant swallowing yourself whole to keep everyone else comfortable.
I stared at the ring on my finger. Then at this man who would never really know me. At the constructed future stretching ahead like a prison sentence.
And suddenly I knew with absolute certainty that I couldn’t do it.
Even if he had answered with the right words, I knew deep down that I would still find the courage to do what I should have done long ago.
My hands began to tremble as I slid the ring off my finger. The sound it made hitting the white tablecloth was impossibly loud.
His fork clattered to his plate.
“Wha—what are you doing?”
I looked up at him.
“I can’t marry you.”
The silence between us felt thick enough to cut, but the world didn’t stop. Around us, other diners continued their conversations, oblivious to the small earthquake happening at table twelve.
“Is this about those questions you just asked me?” His voice hardened. “You’re overthinking everything and letting your imagination run wild. You’re going to ruin both our families’ reputations over what? Some fantasy?”
For the first time in months, I smiled genuinely.
And it wasn’t the pleasing expression I’d perfected for scenarios like this, but something real and mine.
“This isn’t about imagination or fantasy,” I said, standing up and gathering my purse. “This is the first honest decision I have made in years. And it’s not your fault. It has nothing to do with you at all.”
His face went pale as reality sank in.
“Kelechi, sit down. We can talk about this. Whatever’s bothering you, we can work it out.”
“There is nothing to discuss. I wish you a good life, Chukwuma, and I’m so sorry for any embarrassment this might cause your family. I’ll make sure to cover whatever deposits have already been made.”
I walked away before he could respond, my heels clicking against the restaurant floor as I pushed through the glass doors.
My chest felt like it might explode, like I’d been holding my breath for years and had just remembered how to finally breathe.
I pulled out my phone with shaky fingers, adrenaline still pumping as I opened the ride app.
My reflection stared back from the black screen.
Wild eyes and red-stained lip.
God, I looked like a wild untamed woman…but one who had just chosen herself for the first time in her life.
While I waited for my Uber, one thought echoed clearly in my mind.
I had to get home, pack my things, and book the first flight back to Canada.
Back to the love of my life, back to Marley.
Back to the life I actually wanted.
The car finally pulled up, and as I slid into the back seat, I whispered the words I’d been afraid to say out loud.
“I’m coming back to you, my love.”
The gate creaked as I pushed it open, my hands still shaking from adrenaline and the weight of what I had just done.
I barely made it up the front steps when my mother appeared in the doorway, her wrapper hastily tied and confusion written across her face.
“KC? What are you doing home so early? I thought you and my in-laws would still be celebrating.” She looked past me toward the empty driveway, searching. “Where is he?”
The words stuck in my throat for a moment.
“Mummy, the wedding is off.”
Her face went blank, like she was trying to process what I had just said.
“What did you say?”
“I called off the wedding.” My voice was steadier this time, though my heart hammered against my ribs.
She stared at me, her mouth slightly open, before following me into the house. I could hear voices from the sitting room. My aunties were here, probably discussing bride price details or wedding preparations.
The bitter irony wasn’t lost on me.
I headed straight for my bedroom, my mother’s confused questions trailing behind me. The only thing in my head was that I needed to pack quickly, before anyone could stop me or talk me out of what I knew I had to do.
My hands moved on autopilot, pulling clothes from hangers and shoving them into my travel bag.
Then my fingers brushed against something hanging at the back of my closet.
It was Marley’s jacket.
The one she had lent me that night months ago. The one I’d never gotten around to returning.
Because I never wanted to return it.
I pulled it out and held it to my face, breathing in the faint scent of her perfume mixed with cigarettes and a scent so uniquely hers.
The tears came suddenly, months of suppressed emotion finally breaking free. I buried my face deeper into the fabric, my body shaking with sobs I’d held back for too long.
My bedroom door burst open without a knock.
“Kelechi, what do you think you’re doing?” My mother stood in the doorway, her hands planted firmly on her hips. “You cannot just start packing your things. Well, nsogbu adiro*. Your father is on his way home, and you will sit and explain yourself properly.”
I sank onto my bed, still clutching Marley’s jacket like a lifeline, and covered my face with my free hand.
The weight of everything pressed down on me like a boulder.
The years of pretending to be perfect.
The engagement I never wanted.
The life I’d been trying to force myself to accept.
I didn’t know how long I remained in that position before I heard my father’s heavy footsteps thundering down the hallway. His voice boomed before he even reached my room.
“Kelechi! What is this nonsense I’m hearing? Chukwuemeka’s father just called me, saying you embarrassed his son in public and called off the wedding. Do you know the shame you’ve brought on this family?”
He appeared in my doorway still in his work clothes, his handsome face flushed with fury. My mother stood behind him, wringing her hands nervously.
“We are deeply disappointed in you,” he continued, his voice rising with each word. “How could you throw away such a good match? Chukwuemeka is everything we could have hoped for. He is educated, wealthy, and from a respectable family. And you just walked away from all of that?”
Something inside me snapped.
Years of swallowing my truth.
Years of bending myself into shapes that pleased everyone else. I stood up abruptly and faced them both with a fire I didn’t know I possessed.
“I’m in love with someone else!”