Until You

EUNICE ANSAH-AGYEMAN

UNTIL YOU

Bonus Free Episode

EPISODE 6

The morning after departing from Pearls Ambassador Hotel, Naa stretched on her bed and smiled to herself as she recalled Nii’s outburst at the Spa.

She was not sure why she was so elated by his reaction but whatever it was, she loved it, and it was beginning to feel invigorating.

It felt like power, a release of pent-up emotions, and a fresh dose of freedom from the constant breathless precipice she had been walking on lately.

Suddenly, instead of chasing Nii all the time, begging him to love her, she was beginning to discover that it would be so easy to change that, and turn the flow of the tide.

 

Instead of being breathlessly in pain all the time, she could rather have him experience that same unpleasant situation!

That Sunday afternoon at the hotel when they had gone downstairs for lunch, Nii had stayed with her the whole time. It was as if he was sure when he left her side, she would do something crazier.

He had tried on countless occasions when they were on their way home to find out exactly why she had done what she did, but she had not given him any reasonable excuse. She was tired of living in his shadow. She was tired of always pleasing him, putting him first, and craving for his time. It was her time now. She would rule. She would love herself more.

Since she did not have any lecture that day, she slept in until it was ten.

 

She took a long bath and got dressed. She picked her favourite mauve shorts and same coloured top. Because she was extremely fair and beautiful, almost everything she wore looked good on her.

Leisurely, she went downstairs for breakfast and talked with her Dad for a long time. Her other siblings had left for the states a week earlier. Her parents were flying out that night for their routine medical checks and spend some time with their set of twins.

Naa found her mom in the bedroom trying to ensure they had not left the essentials for their trip.

Her forty-seven-year-old mom still looked shapely and healthy. And her beauty was like wine that only got better with time.

She looked up from the checklist she was perusing and ticking as she went along and smiled broadly at her daughter.

 

“Good morning, Mom!” Naa greeted.

“Good morning, dear. I can see you had a beautiful sleep. You are glowing.”

“Thanks, Mom. I haven’t felt this happy in a while. I did have a good sleep, how about you?”

“I’m doing great but I hope your happy mood has nothing to do with your Dad and I leaving for the States for a while,” she teased, trying to get Naa to share her happy sentiments.

“No Mom. You know I’ll miss you a lot,” Naa replied, feeling a little guilty.  

 

She was not too close to her mom but she loved her dearly. She was very close to her Dad and some times she saw that deep pain in her mother’s eyes because of her preference. That got to her sometimes, and she was just grateful she opened up to at least one of them.

“Anyway, we’ll be just a phone call away.”

“I know, Mom. Love you!”

“Love you more.”

They talked for a while as she helped her mother with the packing.

Suddenly, Naa felt sad and wanted so much to tell her mom about what was happening with her relationship with Nii but she fought it.

Maybe, that was the challenge.

 

Her mom seemed so perfect in everything she did and Naa had always felt she had to be like that too and now was definitely not a good time to talk about her love blues.

Feeling awkward suddenly, Naa left for her apartment and spent an awful lot of time going through her wardrobe. She put away a whole bunch in a box for the Cook’s daughter and re-designed some to make it sexier.

Then, she tossed on mauve sneakers, mauve wristwatch and a mauve rimmed sunglasses, and her beauty and style were enhanced to the maximum level when she pulled out of her car park.

Her car tape volume was set to sixty per cent as P-Square’s ‘Bring it On’ blasted through the powerful speakers of her BMW iX3 as she sped towards the shopping centre near her neighbourhood.

 

Incredibly, it felt to her that the ice in her heart just got colder, and the iron bars just got a little bit longer. What had started as a painful reflex was now becoming a safety mechanism that made her feel a little bit more secure and free.

But, in a way, it was a little bit scary when it dawned on her that for the very first time in years, she had woken up without Nii in her thoughts… and had not bothered to call him and find out how he was doing!

***

The afternoon heat welcomed her when she stepped out of the fully air-conditioned car.

She picked her mauve bag from the passenger seat and activated the car alarm.

Majestically, she strode to the huge Mall and was grateful for the cool air that welcomed her from the central air-conditioner.

The Mall was not too crowded at that time of day but most people, men especially, turned to look at her as she went along but that did not surprise her much. She had seen that kind of reaction from men almost all her life.

After walking confidently through the Mall for about thirty minutes, she came face to face with the glass doors of Crystal Touch Salon.

 

The state-of-the-art salon had five clients when she was ushered in. She greeted and walked to the owner who was seated at a desk at the far end.

They talked for a while and when the client and the stylist settled on something acceptable to Naa, one of the experts was detailed to work on her.

About two hours later,  Naa stepped out with her new look, expertly manicured and pedicured nails and flaunted her brash but amazing new look as she made her way to the next shop.

She looked like an angel with the makeover. Her favourite clothes store was on the second floor of the mall and as she stepped into the elevator with her earpiece in place, Naa did not seem to have a care for anything or anyone else in the world.

 

The smartly-dressed attendants gave out their most charming smiles when they saw one of their biggest clients and hurried to her side to serve her. That was what she got everywhere she went because she was a good tipper.

Naa had on a sheet of paper listed items ranging from clothes, bags, shoes, and boots to other finer accessories. She gave it one of the attendants who vanished backstage immediately she received it.

Naa decided to look around while she waited and was looking at a red dress on display when a voice from behind her broke into the usual silence in the shop.

“That would look absolutely stunning on you.”

 

She turned sharply to come face to face with the familiar voice.

“Yeah, I was thinking same. Do you have it in my size?”

“Yes, and I can treat you to a hot meal when you are done here,” the owner of the store spoke in his usual deep and soothing voice.

Towering over her by two or more inches, Allan just stared at her beautiful and bright eyes that looked like diamonds and held her gaze with his most charming smile.

Naa Shika had always admired him every time she had met him but this particular day, she took a closer look at him. His face was close to beautiful with his long lashes and beautiful big eyes. His nose was nicely shaped with a pointed tip and his lips were full and looked sweet.

 

He was in a navy green T-shirt and a pair of black jeans and Naa could not help but notice how smooth and nicely toned his skin was. And his cologne was the best she had smelled in a long while.  

She admitted for the first time that he looked like a perfect gentleman and wondered if he was good in bed too. Naa smiled at the thought that just crossed her mind because that was the very first time she was finding another man attractive.

Standing face to face with her and without taking his eyes off, Allan felt this was the one opportunity he would get to convince the incredibly beautiful young lady to go out with him.

 

“I don’t bite, you know!” he said, feeling a little uneasy with the exhaustive scrutiny from her.

“And who said you do?”

“Then, I guess you would give me the singular honour to take you out and extend my life expectancy by a year more,” he said charmingly.

Naa was still not sure whether to accept or not.

Granted, she needed to get to know more people and even use them to hurt Nii as much as possible but she had to be careful about her choices. Naa loved this store because they served her needs very well and wouldn’t want to have a reason not to come back to it.

 

She was done with love because she had found out how painful and how devastating it could be. She could cope with Nii, but she wanted to be strong enough to call the shots, to walk away without looking back if the need arose.

Naa just could not afford to have her heart toyed with again.

Looking at Allan, he seemed genuine enough but she was not interested in any sentimental nonsense anymore because she was just out to play and hurt as many men as she could and the guy standing in front of her did not look like he deserved that. But who cared?

Men were the same everywhere. Chauvinistic pricks who thought one woman was not enough for them, who wanted to prove their masculinity by sleeping with women for the fun of it, not caring one whit who they hurt irreparably in the process.

Well, to hell with that!

 

A woman could also be just as ruthless, and just as hardcore!

It was time for a new tact, a different approach to take on a sharp edge, and let men feel the cut and the pain for once in their miserable lives!

This was about the third time Allan had asked her out. She had declined with one excuse or the other but this time, she felt she could use some company and put the next phase of her new resolution and purpose to the test.

“I like your new look, by the way. It’s more classic, more you,” he said, a bit disappointed that she was going to decline again, but her next words surprised him pleasantly.

“Sure, lunch will be awesome but not today. I have a few errands to run for my folks. And there are lectures throughout the week but Saturday should work just fine for me if you’d be okay with that.”

 

“Saturday sounds perfect!  I’ll pick you up at six in the evening. Deal?”

“Sure. Where would you be taking me?”

“A decent place. Nothing a lady like you can’t handle. It’ll be fun. Trust me.”

Allan assured her it would be worth her while and in case she was thinking about what to wear, anything would do because she looked good in everything.

He smiled happily and walked away, his pleasure evident on his happy face.

Later, the attendant brought a huge cart packed with the items she had listed. Naa Shika paid with her credit card and left the store with the attendant wheeling her packed items in a cart to the car park.

 

She tipped the attendant generously after she had neatly stashed the items in the car boot and dispatched her.

As she headed home that late afternoon, Naa felt at peace and in control of her affairs, a feeling that was new because she had lived the past four years of her life around Nii in perpetual worry and pain, wondering when he would hurt her next.

But not now.

That coldness was still spreading around her heart… and the bars of cast iron just got a little bit longer.

Just a little bit longer…

UNTIL YOU

THE AUTHOR

 

Until You, Eunice A, Until You, Eunice A.  Eunice A, Until You, Eunice A, Until You . Until You, Eunice A,  Until You, Eunice A.  Eunice A, Until You, Eunice A,  Until You. Until You, Eunice A, Until You, Eunice A. Eunice A,  Until You, Eunice A.

 

Premium Story:: UNTIL YOU :: EPISODE 5

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