Echoes Of Midnight
Sefa could not bear it any longer. "You lied to me, Jane! " he thought out loud.
He and Jane have been college sweethearts. Their love has blossomed so quickly that,
their family and friends were not surprised when they announced they were getting
married.
He thought they had come so far in their relationship for Jane to have betrayed him by
having an affair with his best friend, Nick.
Like a cascade of water falling from a height, the events that had taken place came
flashing back to his mind... That evening, he had wanted to surprise Jane, so he
arrived at her apartment without a hint to her of his impending visit.
On arriving at her apartment complex, he could not help but notice the familiar black
Mercedes Benz parked next to Jane’s Toyota Camry. Immediately, he had so many
thoughts competing for attention in his brain; but Sefa did not want to give in to
negative thoughts and imagine the worse, so he pushed aside the idea that Jane and
Nick might secretly be having an affair.
He quietly reached for the door knob and turned it open to allow himself into the
apartment. On entering the living room, he noticed it had never had any human
contact as things were neatly arranged.
He continue to the kitchen as he called his fiancé’s name. On the third attempt, he still
didn’t get any response to his calls. He then checked the kitchen but found it empty as
well. It suddenly occurred to him that Jane usually spend most of her evenings
reading in bed, so he went straight to her bedroom. As soon as he opened the door to
the bedroom, he couldn’t believe the display before him. Right before his eyes, they
were in Jane's bed portraying a picture of great passion. Without thinking, he
screamed "oh noooo!" and everything went black.
Suddenly he brought himself back from thinking about that appalling event he had
witnessed that day. He loved Jane, but couldn’t comprehend how she would have
betrayed him like that. He has refused to see and has totally ignored her calls. He has
even gone as far as call off their engagement and cancel all wedding plans with
vendors.
He couldn't believe he actually walked in on his best friend and his fiancé naked in
the laters’s bed. The bed he had shared with her just the previous night. The bed he so
believed he was the only man who had the right to be in it. The bed he thought he was
going to share with her for the rest of their lives. The bed he knew he had all to
himself. Hmmm, how the mere thought of Jane stirred up rage inside him. He was
disgusted whenever images of that fateful night came to his mind. Something he
wished he could avoid, but his mind had full control over him.
It was almost midnight and Sefa was still awake; tossing and turning in his bed. He
finally got up and started interrogating himself on what he might have done to drive
Jane to Nick. He knew the two had become close after they had been introduced by
him. Why hadn’t he observed that the two were more than just friends? He had his
suspicions but he always brushed it off.
"Ding dong" the door- bell rang. Sefa was surprised to hear the door bell so late. Who
was the unwanted visitor at this unholy hour? He muttered under his breath. He
wasn’t expecting anyone and not at that time of night or day. Not even Jane; she never
visited him at such an ungodly hour. He rushed to the door to feed his curiosity.
As soon as he opened the door, he first reaction was to slam it back in the face of the
unwelcoming visitor. But he couldn’t resist her charms. Jane stood in the door way,
beautifully dressed in a short denim skirt and a lemon green turtleneck blouse. He
knew he still loved her. God he was so much in love with her, so much so that it hurts
him so much to love her. He felt so much pain and rage at the same time. He was sure
he could never forgive her. Oh how he wish he could just strangle her and end it for
both he and Nick.
"Are you going to invite me in or not?" Jane asked with a smile while interrupting his
thoughts and feelings.
"You have no business in my house, so why should I allow you in? And what are you
doing here at this time?’' he spat out angrily.
"Sefa, you're being unreasonable. Please let me explain things to you,” she pleaded.
“Jane! There is nothing to explain,” he said furiously.
He finally allowed her in and suddenly; the two started talking above their voices,
throwing their hands in the air in a fashion that someone looking on from outside will
conclude that it was indeed a heated and a fearful argument.
He could not contain the heat in his heart any longer. It was beginning to consume
him like a wild fire spreading to neighboring surroundings. He was so hurt, and the
pain he felt was too much to bear. He reached for her, shook her small body against
his and threw her in the air. Jane lost her balance, falling on her back and in the
process hit her her head on the hard marble floor. She fell unconscious and her whole
frame was surrounded by a pool of blood.
"Jane! Jane! I’m so so sorry. Are you alright?'' he stammered with a fright.
There was total silence from her. His knees and thighs started to shake as he knelt
down to feel her pores. There was none. He began to notice that the stream of blood
was slowly beginning to trickle beyond where he knelt to other parts of the room.
Suddenly, he was gripped with fear; nothing he has ever felt in his life.
Whilst on his knees, a part of him felt sorry and guilty for what he had just done, but
he could not also help but notice that there was the other part which was glad he had
done it.
He slowly lifted her lifeless body from the cold hard floor, held her in his arms and
looked into her beautiful face. He raised his head towards heaven, and screamed with
what appears to be the last strength in him : “ohhhh God! I've killed her!!''
His words echoed back to his ears in the depth of the mid-night quietness; so loud that
it could make him deaf. He cried and knew that it was all over. He knew he had just
lost everything he had spent the last five years of his life putting together. How stupid
and childish he had been. He wasn’t without fault. He had had countless affairs with
other women and had kept them from Jane. But what did he do when he accidentally
found out about hers? he was filled with so much jealousy and insecurity that made
him lose his mind, and now he had killed her as if she was the only sinner alive. Now,
he had no choice than to call the police and turn himself in. His shame hanged on his
head like a dark cloud.
THE END.
My name is Obiribea Ampofo-Addo (my friends call me Ob). I am originally from Ghana (West Africa) where I was trained as a Lawyer; but currently live in the Chicago area with my family. I am passionate about the promotion and protection of the rights of women, children and persons living with disabilities. I also believe in the equality of all persons, and my dream is to see a world where the fundamental freedoms and rights of all persons are truly respected. I run a platform on Instagram called The Sisterhood of Women (@thesisterhoodofwomen) dedicated to celebrating, empowering and inspiring women from all walks of live. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, writing and volunteering with organizations that promote the human rights agenda.
With regards to my writing, I'm currently working on a short story and hope to finish soon so I can share that with you and your lovely readers. For now, I'm sending you some poems I wrote on women. Two of them "Destination" and " When?" were written about 15 years ago for my Creative writing Class project at the University. The other two; "Their Strength" and "The Joy of Motherhood" were written about 2 years ago as a result of some life changing experiences I went through.
