Episode 1
Twisted Identity
I came back from work one Tuesday evening and noticed that my wife was keeping a long face. The usual smile she puts while welcoming me from work every evening was replaced by frowns.
“What’s the problem?”. I asked, innocently.
“Nothing”. She bluntly replied.
She placed my meal on the table and went off to bed without bothering to check whether I eat or not.
From experience, I have learnt to always let her be any time she had such mood swing. So I just ate my food, took my bath and went to bed. I made sure to leave enough space between us.
When we were having breakfast the next morning, she made an abnormal demand.
“Could you drop Junior at school?”
“Why?, what happened to your car?”. I asked.
“I don’t feel like driving this morning”. She replied.
“Why do you want to punish me?. When will I drop him off and go to work? and you know how far the school is”. I complained.
She didn’t reply as she lifted the school bag on the dining table, picked the lunchbox and went outside with Junior.
I was thinking they were gone, not until I was done eating and ready to leave, I discovered that my car key wasn’t on the dining table where I thought I dropped it earlier.
I went outside to check if I had left the it in the car the previous night, only to see my wife, sitting in the front seat with the bag and lunchbox on her laps. Junior stood at the back.
“What’s going on here?”. I asked.
“I told you you’re driving junior to school”. She replied
“Okay. I understand that, but what are you doing in the car too?”. I asked
“I have something to tell the teacher”. She replied.
I knew if I allowed it, the argument may extend too long and I will be very late for work so I went into the house, picked my bag and came out again.
I got into the steering and wee drove off. We didn’t utter a word to each other until we got to the school gate.
There wasn’t space for me to drive in, so I parked outside the gate.
“I will just take him to the class and join you, you will drop me in the store”. She was saying and was gone before I could say anything.
I watched on until they disappeared into the gate.
I waited patiently for at least, 10 minutes before I started getting really angry
“What is she doing inside there?”. I asked myself.
I picked up my phone and dialed her line but then it started ringing on the seat beside me.
Damn!. I cursed.
I got down and went into the gate.
“Please, where is nursery 3?”. I asked one of the security men.
He led the way to the corridor and pointed at door. I opened it and went in, and there was my wife, sitting and laughing with the teacher.
“Mercy, what is the meaning of this?, I’ve been waiting in the car”. I confronted her.
“Oh, I’m sorry. She said and stood up
… take a look over there”. She said, pointing towards the edge of the class.
I looked, but there was nothing there to see, except that junior was dragging a pencil with another kid.
“Take a look at what?”. I asked, impatiently.
“Look again”. She repeated.
I looked and that was when I saw it…the two kids playing there were just splitting images of each other, they look almost like identical twins, I even had tough time trying to identify who’s my son among the two.
“What is going on here?”. I asked, confused.
“I should be asking you that”. She said and walked out of the class.
Ah ah!. I looked at the kids again, turned to the teacher, who acted as though she wasn’t really interested in whatever.
I jammed my hands together and went after my wife.
I didn’t understand why she was behaving strange.
She was leaning on the car when I got outside.
“What was the meaning of that attitude you displayed in there?”. I asked, trying as much as I can to be calm.
“Fidelis, you need to explain why there’s a child who looks exactly like you in that class, something is fishy here”. She insisted.
It was only then I understood what it’s all about.
She suspects I cheat on her and had a child with someone else. That was why she had brought me to the school and also lured me into the class.
She had it all planned out.
“Wow!, now I see where you are coming from… God, Why will you ever even think of me like that?”. I asked.
“Why should I not?, even a f0ol knows that this can never be ordinary, you need to explain it to me?”. She retorted.
I wanted to reply, but then I noticed we were already creating a scene… people has started looking at us. So I unlocked the car and got in.
She opened the door, snatched her phone from the seat and banged the door hard.
I watched her started going back into the gate.
I turned on the ignition and drove to work.
I lost concentration throughout that day. I couldn’t believe that my wife would ever accuse me of inf!delity after all these years. I have tried the best I can, to be a caring husband to her and a loving father to my lookalike son.
She is the only woman in my life, and she was supposed to have known this by now, because I have never given her any reason to doubt my faithfulness.
When I got back that evening, I went straight to the room, had my bath and off to bed.
I refused to come out for dinner, though, I was hungry. I was still angry and expecting an apology from her. But she didn’t care. She came to bed around 10 pm, laid down and faced the other side, without saying a word to me.
I couldn’t bear the hunger, so I woke up at midnight and snuck out of the room to the kitchen to look for food.
As I was getting ready for work, the next morning, I got a call from Junior’s school.
“Mr Okafor, please, we need to see you and your wife in the school this morning”. The voice pleaded.
I wondered what Junior had done.
After I was done, I drove alone to the school while my wife was still getting Junior ready for school. We were not in talking terms, so I don’t know how to tell her we were called.
“When I got to the office of the proprietor, a couple were already seated with him.
“Good afternoon, Mr Okafor, you’re welcome”. The proprietor greeted.
I shook hands with him. Then turned to shake the gentleman but I was surprised by his reaction.
He held my fingers with one hand and with the free hand, he pulled off his eye glasses.
“Good morning”. He greeted.
I nodded as I withdrew my hand from his grip.
His action made me uneasy so I took a seat closest to the proprietor.
“Where is madam?”. The proprietor asked.
“She will be here soon”. I replied.
“I think we have to start, there is no time”. The woman said.
“Okay. Mr Okafor. This is Mr and Mrs Bassey. Their son is in the same class with your boy. The proprietor started while I nodded, still trying to understand where he was driving to.
…. Mrs Bassey here, brought a report to us yesterday about your wife, she…”. The proprietor was saying, but was interrupted by Mrs Bassey.
“She almost fought me, if not for the teachers’ intervention….she said that she knew I am her husband’s baby mama, but I better stay away from him with my bas+ard, my own son, a bas+ard, imagine that”. She cried.
All the while she was talking, the husband was staring at me weirdly. I was battling eye contact with him.
“Are you not saying anything?”. The proprietor asked.
I hummed.
“Why will my wife do a thing like that?”. I finally said.
“You have to caution her, caution her, caution her, because, not everyone will take it lightly on her”. She warned.
“I’m sorry about that”. I apologized.
“Honey, why are you not saying anything?”. She turned to her husband who smiled and shook his head.
“He said they’re sorry”. He hummed.
I thanked the proprietor and left the office.
I wondered why Mercy will be embarrassing an innocent woman.
“What has gotten into her?”. I was asking myself as I unlocked the car door
But when I was about getting in, I heard someone whistled from behind me.
I turned and saw Mr Bassey walking towards me. He had a wicked grin on his face.
Strange man. I thought.
“You’re Mr Okafor, right?, I’m Randy. He reintroduced, as soon as he got closer to me.
..may I have your contact?”. He requested, handing his phone over to me.
I input my number and handed the phone back to him.
He held me on the shoulder and chuckled
” I’m taking a DNA test tomorrow, just pray it’s not what I’m thinking”. He threatened and turned away.
I stood transfixed, watching as he disappeared back into the school.
Am I dreaming?
#Twisted Identity
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ยฉ Joy Ifunanya
