Whimsical beauty ✔️

Chapter 2

Present

Business proposal

"Please tell me!"

I shook my head for what felt like the thousandth time that day. Salma is sooo annoying sometimes. And could be very insistent when she wants to be.

"But mommy sis...!" She whined.

I raised a very critical finger, my eyes fastened on her annoying little face with a warning glare. She started to make a very disturbing facial expression and I just knew she is going to apply the wounded tactic.

"Why do you want to know so bad?" I asked.

She pulled her lips forward in the 'shagwaba' gesture I find really curious.

"Wai you don't even know?" She exclaimed pitifully. Like my lack of knowledge hurts her. I actually feel like I have a right to feel offended by it! Right? I'm not in her head after all.

I nodded in an encouraging manner urging her to speak up.

"Well, for starters, younger sisters are very interested in the affairs of their affectionate older sisters. It's a natural instinct. So considering this actually has something to do with your future, I am absolutely very interested. Like so bad. Just tell me, what did he say?"

I paused, letting her words wash over me. Is it just me or was that a really bad excuse?

"He is arriving tomorrow morning" I finally answered in a grudging manner. I can see that she wasn't very pleased by my vague response and she would've pestered me to death if I let her, so I quickly added "don't dare ask me again!"

With that, I walked away taking care to look very stern to ward away absolute sisterly nosiness.

"Did she tell you? Is he going to marry her?" I heard Zahra whispering. But since she has a very high pitch of a voice, I could still hear her. I knew they sent her! My sisters can be very dubious at times. Knowing I don't wanna say a thing, they decided to look uninterested while sending Salma to do the dirty work. Thankfully, I can be very tough myself.

Actually, I am very anxious.

This really big fat guy who owns a lousy jeep wants to marry me! Each time I see his profile, I honestly can't tell if he is handsome or ugly. It isn't my fault. I'm not all that tall. I'm just fifteen! My eyes could not seem to see above his big tommy. I can't seem to answer his greeting without shaking all over. He scares the hell out of me. Even his voice is the thunderous throaty kind.

Little old me is just a skinny fifteen year old with a body fit for a  kwashiorkor patient in a small Nigerian clinic! No wonder he scares the shit outta me!

Then I went to work the day before yesterday. I cook for a seventy something year old lady. Her name is Iya. As my employer, she was very nice. As the grandmother of my benefactor, she is incomparably sweet. And as my step grandmother, there's practically like no one like in her my life at the moment.

Why did she have those titles?

It's simple. To feed my family, I've worked for her since I was ten. Quite simply, she used to be married to my grandfather before he died. But the first wife was the one who gave birth to my absent father. To help my family out, she employed me to do simple chores for a sum of ten thousand naira which was enough to keep us from starving.

Don't get me wrong, we are still basically family at some point. The most generous deed would be for her to help me out without the work right?

The problem lies with me. I wouldn't have trusted her if she offered me like that. But all that is just family history.