Fiction

May

The Bomb Shell

Richard Atuya

Andrew sat at the bar trying to comprehend the things that had happened in his life. All seemed to have gone wrong and he didn’t understand why this was happening to him. He was confused and he sat there looking at the available alcohol. Of course, he was surprised at how well beer was selling at such high prices and he had never drunk before, but at that point, he didn’t mind the cost.

Andrew didn’t notice the waiter at his side.
“Excuse me, sir, what will you drink?” The waiter asked.
“What do you have to offer me?”
“We have Kenya Kane, Tu…”
“Yes! Bring that one. The one you called Kenya.”
“Sir, are you sure you want Kenya Kane?”
“I’ll be comfortable with it.”
The waiter left immediately.

As the waiter walked back toward him with his drink, Andrew was not sure of what he was doing. He had learned that one did not have to drink to free himself from stress.

But his was a good reason, he thought.

“Do you know that if my father discovers that I’m drinking he will be mad at me?” he asked the waiter.

“If that’s the case, do you have to drink?”
“Yes, of course. He is the reason why I’m drinking.”

“Don’t trouble yourself young man. All will be all right.” The waiter left.

“Shit! Nobody seems to care about me.” He banged the table and laid his head on his hands in a sleeping posture.

He tried to think of other things but all was in vain. All that was in his mind was this beautiful lady whom he loved, and had turned out to be his step-sister. All was still vivid in his mind. He remembered going to a function in a neighbouring church where he saw Janet, his stepsister—that’s what he learned later. That day, Andrew wanted to become mister perfect so that he could impress the beautiful woman he had seen. All was going right for him. After they finished performing a song, he approached her and introduced himself as Andrew Mwangi. When he asked her name, she told him she was Janet Njoki. When she spoke, her voice was a fountain of warmth, confidence and love. Her eyes winked in a suggestive manner that all was well. She had a chocolate skin complexion that blended with her long, curly black hair spreading perfectly over her back. When she smiled, Andrew noticed that she had dimples on her cheeks. She was dressed in a black mini skirt, a beige jacket and a pair of black boots, making her look lovely.

Andrew loved the idea that they were from the same tribe. That meant that his father would have no problems if they ended up marrying. This gave him the motivation to try and make the friendship grow to love. He wanted to know more about her so they exchanged contact numbers and made a date.

After what seemed to be ages (three days) for Andrew, the day set for their date came. He did not know whether to tell his father about his date since his father had planned some work he was supposed to do. Andrew decided to keep his father in the dark and sneak out. He left his job half done and went out for his date hoping that he would be back soon to finish work.

As a twenty-year-old man, Andrew found his date most enjoyable. The thought of settling in that one relationship had not occurred to him, not until his date hugged him goodbye. It was 6:30 p.m. when he left for home. He knew his father would be mad at him for coming home late but he could not care less.

“Excuse me son, what happened? You never finished your work,” his father said when he entered the gate. It was as if his father was waiting for Andrew, so unusual for him to be home in the early evenings. Andrew knew his father was looking him straight in the eye so that he could know if he would lie to him. His father had done this many times and he always caught Andrew off guard lying to him.

Andrew looked his father straight in the face and told him that his best friend had called him and informed him that he was passing through town so he had gone to meet him.

“You are lying.”
“No!”

“Have you forgotten that I’m a physiologist? Even if you looked me straight in the eye, you forgot you were playing with your fingers. And your pupils constricted, a sure indication that you are lying.”

“Okay, I was with a lady that I met the other day.”
“Did you have to stay for that long, knowing you had work to do?”
“I didn’t intend to stay for that long.”

“Anyway, I have no reason to be mad at you at your age; I used to fight with my father because of such dates. So I do not want to fight with you. I’ll try to understand you. Go now and finish your work.”

“Thank you for being understanding.”

“You’re welcome, but would you mind telling me the name of your date? You know as your father, I like to know who you are with so I can get to know them better.”

“Please, dad, you are meddling into my affairs. I’m not ready to tell you the name of my friend. You have just told me that you used to fight with your father all the time, is that right?”

“Yes!”
“Did you ever tell your father the name of your girlfriend?”

Andrew’s father’s expression changed immediately. He turned and left Andrew standing there motionless, and Andrew was astonished how easily he had beaten his father at his own game.

The relationship between Andrew and Janet was wonderful until the day she informed Andrew that she was three months pregnant with his child. Andrew loved Janet very much but with the pregnancy, he knew he couldn’t take care of her and the baby and his education, and have enough money. And Janet’s education! She would have to drop out of school to take care of their new baby. After taking everything into consideration, Andrew told Janet to abort. She refused and warned him that if he was not ready to take care of his child, she would tell his father.

“Forgive me for that. I’m ready to take you as my wife. I do not want to see you sad.”

They agreed to bring their parents together to discuss it.

Andrew expected his father to be mad at him but he was surprised when he conferred with him. But when his father left without saying a word, Andrew felt guilt build inside him and fear that his father had disowned him.

Andrew was early to arrive to the meeting place as they had agreed with Janet. That day, she looked more beautiful than ever with her velvet pink dress and a black scarf that matched with her slip on shoes.

As they were taking their drinks, his father walked in and after seeing them, he rushed out.

Andrew called after his father but he ignored him. Andrew suspected that something was wrong but he did not know what. He excused himself and followed his father. As he left the hotel hurriedly, he hit a woman at the entrance and the woman fell down. He helped her up and apologized for his behaviour. The woman forgave him and Andrew broke out running. When he reached his home, he found his father in his study opening a tightly sealed manila envelope. When his father turned and saw him, he ordered him out of his room.

Andrew went to the sitting room and sat there trying to figure out what his father was opening and why he had ordered him out of his room. After what seemed like centuries to Andrew, his father came out of his room, his eyes filled with tears. He walked to where his son was and threw the open Manila folder at him. Andrew didn’t know what his father meant for him to do.

“Look at these pictures.”

Andrew looked at the pictures. There were pictures of a little girl being carried by a woman who seemed to be her mother. Beneath the picture was another picture of the girl alone, but older.

“Doesn’t that girl look familiar to you?”

Andrew again took a closer look at the second picture but still he could not seem to recognise the child. He turned to the first picture and the child did not look familiar to him but the mother seemed familiar to him. He tried hard to think where he had seen the woman. It did not take long before the image of the woman was clear in his mind.

“The child is not familiar to me but the woman is. I knocked her down when I was coming here from the hotel.”

“What do you think is the relationship between the woman and your girlfriend?” Words seemed to choke his father as he spoke. Andrew could see that the woman she had knocked down earlier looked alike to her girlfriend.

“I think she is the mother of my girlfriend.”

His father went back to the room and came back with another picture. He gave it to him and told him to look at it. What Andrew saw made his blood freeze. It was a picture of his father seated, holding the child, and the woman behind the seat holding his father’s shoulders.

“Dad, does it mean that Janet is your daughter? And if that is the case, I can see why you have been fighting with mother.”

“There is something you don’t understand son. Please forgive me for this. I…”

“Do you think I will forgive you?”

“I don’t deserve your forgiveness but just give me a minute to explain myself. The truth is that I am a worthless father and husband. I have been hiding many things from you and your mother on the hope that I would rectify my ways. I have been keeping the secret of my affair with Janet’s mother secret for the past nineteen years.”

Andrew’s mother had overheard everything and fainted, leaving Andrew feeling that the entire world had turned against him. He put the pictures on the table and walked out of the house. He left to kill himself, but he came to the bar instead, a place he had never been before.