Till Death Do Us Part(Fiction)

 Written by Etinosa Egharevba 

Photo Credit: istock

I have never been a fan of weddings. The sickening laughs that resonates out of the gluttonous throats of the guests when the “all-so-loving” couple make a fool out of themselves under the guise of “couple goals.”

The worst part of the repulsive wedding ceremonies were the vows. How the couple were forced to stare lovingly into each other’s fatigued faces and propose undying love for each other; then they would slip the golden circle into their ebullient fingers and conclude with the hackneyed “till death do us part.”

Yet, it was in one of these abominable events that I met her, Idaresit. She was dressed in resplendent yellow with her kinky braids tightly packed into a bun. She was part of the bridal train, with each step she took, I could almost see myself beside her one day, walking toward this same altar.

I was seated on a plastic chair covered in linen, closest to the aisle, he flare gown brushed against my exposed arms and goosebumps riddled my dark skin.. Her skin was the shade of smoothly swirled peanut butter, my favourite. I had never done this, but I knew I had to, she was too pretty to let go.

I walked up to her summoning the courage of a thousand men and I asked for her number. She smiled. Her smile was ethereal. I died and came back, how does someone get more beautiful? Her teeth were straight and white, her tongue ran along them intermittently like she wanted people to notice her pearly whites. She had a birthmark just above  the cleft of her upper lips.

Three weeks later, we were on the phone every single hour. Whenever I wasn’t texting her, I was video calling her. I always wanted to see her pretty face. I had found out that beneath the layer of beauty was another complex layer of intellect. I was officially whipped. She was the Ying to my Yang. She complemented me in everyway possible. A lover of good music, a horror enthusiast, a food addict, what more could I ask for? She loved me.

Two months passed and the Ying to my Yang wasn’t “yinging” anymore. I had felt this sudden repulsion toward Idaresit, this disdain. The late night conversations which would take hours turned to minutes till it eventually stopped. She would call and instead of the butterflies, I felt this hot boiling cauldron of resentment.

Another thing that pissed me off about weddings was the commitment. Why would someone want to be bound to another for the rest of their life? To wake up and see the same face everyday? Idaresit was beautiful, she held good conversations but I wanted more, I wanted others. To her, she had found the man of her dreams, to me, I realised it had been pure lust. So after I had slipped on the “gold circle,” not on my finger, I got bored of her.

I blocked her on every social media platform I had, I blocked every new number she called me with, I reported her account with other accounts, everything to make her stop. I was wrong, Idaresit didn’t love me, she was obsessed with me. Everywhere I was, she was there. She was in front of my classes waiting to talk to me, she was there when I went to the cafeteria to buy foodstuff, her stalking habit irritated me.

But one day, I knew the true extent of a woman scorned.

It was evening and the stress of the classes had tightened my already rigid muscles, I needed a cold bath to relsx my stiffened myscles. I was in the bathroom which was dark due to the absence of a functional lamp holder. The only source of light was the security light which was positioned directly outside the bathroom. It reflected light on the opposite end of the fence which ricocheted the light beams into the bathroom.

Standing outside, you would have to squint very hard in order to view who was inside. But if you were inside, it would be easy to spot whoever was outside. 

I turned off the shower when I heard a steady crunch, the sturdy steps of a foot on dry leaves. I paused, I held my breath just in case. 

I saw her, Idaresit was outside my bathroom window staring directly at me. My breaths became laboured, one would think I was about to be delivered of a child. I was afraid, afraid of Idaresit.

I quickly left the bathroom and rushed to the room when I heard the sound of my backdoor opening. I cursed myself in different languages for leaving my phone with a friend as collateral to attend night class.

As I entered the darkened room, I hid in the wardrobe, praying that she hadn’t seen me. I was dripping water all over the clothes strewn in my wardrobe, clad in a pink towel. The door creaked open and my eyes flooded with water. What have I done?

Even with the thick doors of the wardrobe which was barricaded by glass, I could hear Idaresit scratch her nails along the wall looking for the light switch. She found it. She switched it on and like the light that descended upon Jesus after his baptism, the orange radiance hit my damp skin.

Then she…

***

“Joseph.” Dr Peace called him with finality.

“We both know that is not what happened.” She stared at him through the rims of her Coke bottle-like thick lenses.

“Th...that is wh...what happened, Doctor.” Joseph spat the title with disdain after he stopped stammering.

Dr Peace adjusted the length of her linen skirt on her crossed knee, removed her glasses and sighed. She had given him numerous opportunities to tell the truth but he had somehow convinced himself to believe the lie.

“Joseph...you became obsessed with Idaresit. Your parents had to intercede and separate you from her. But you found out where she lived and you invaded her home, had your bath in her house, and she caught you. You stalked her classes, in the cafeteria, everywhere.” Dr Peace finished off with a stern face, she had to tackle the matter differently, confront him with the truth.

“No... You’re lying.” Joseph shook his head rapidly. Dr Peace realised she needed to tell him the truth as it was.

“Joseph, there was no wedding. Idaresit was never your love interest, she was your sister. You dug her from her grave and placed her at the altar.”

Joseph slammed his hands on the desk, “No! I’m telling you what happened, stop lying to me!” Joseph screamed as spittle hit the therapist on the cheek. He pressed his palm against his temples and rotated it, trying to blur out the details.

“Joseph, why are you here?” Dr Peace had calm down from her reverie, feeling sympathetic that she had confronted him with the truth his brain had blurred out. She wiped the spit off her cheek. Joseph kept muttering no’s. She asked him again. He had been placed in the mental facility by his parents.

Joseph looked at her with teary eyes “Because Idaresit...”

Dr Peace was tired, he needed him to face the whole truth.

“Joseph, you scribbled ‘till death do us part’ in your sister’s blood after you raped and murdered her.”