A Little Too Late Episode 1 by Sonia Okehie

A Little Too Late Episode 1

Written by Sonia Okehie

Patience is a good virtue not everyone possess. Some beautiful things of life takes a little time before they happen and are mostly worth the wait. A happy ending isn’t always the case in many relationships today simply because, most people lack patience and don’t see the need to go through the refining and hard times with their partners. Brace yourselves as I take you all on a ride down the memory lane of Nathan and Maria.

Nathan was an example of a hardworking man. He was known for giving his best in anything he does and always strived for ways to break free from the shackles of poverty that had held him bound for a long time. Due to his lack of money, he didn’t see the need to pursue any lady, as he felt love was meant for the rich only. Nathan’s future was so bright that one would need a sun shade to see through it, but it was so sad that he always failed and came back to square one in any business venture he did, no matter how much effort he put in and how hard he tried.

Life wasn’t a bed of roses for him because he wasn’t born with a silver spoon. Nathan had to work for everything he ever owned as there was no one to help him. The worst of it all was that he was a graduate with a first class and that put a lot of pressure on him. His family members expected a miracle after his graduation, but it was sad that they were still faced with the same struggle as before.

Due to Nathan’s condition, he kept less friends because he didn’t want anyone to ridicule his predicament. The struggle continued for a long time, leaving him friendless and without any relationship with a woman. Life was often lonely for him till something happened one fateful day.

Nathan was invited to a wedding by his boss whom he occasionally worked for. It turns out that his boss daughter was getting married, hence the invitation. At first, he didn’t want to go for the wedding so he turned the offer down, but his boss insisted. “You need to start living and stop letting your present life’s struggles get in the way. Treat everyday as a blessing and thank God that you are alive to witness it, whether broke or rich” His boss advised. Those words of advice touched Nathan that he finally agreed to go for the wedding.

The scheduled day for the wedding came and Nathan had no confusion on what to wear because he only had one suit; which he bought for his graduation ceremony. That suit was only worn for important occasions and interviews. Nathan brought it out and prepped it for the wedding.

In no time, Nathan arrived at the church looking dapper and handsome in his fine suit. He gently walked inside the church auditorium and quietly took his seat. The couple were already taking their vows by that time so he smiled as they said ‘I Do’ to each other.

Deep down in Nathan’s heart, he felt broken and sad that he still didn’t have anyone to call his own. “When will this be me and someone I love? When will I be this happy?” He sadly asked himself. The sad reality of his life suddenly dawned on him at that moment but he tried to maintain a positive outlook.

A Little Too Late

The church wedding ended and everyone headed to the reception venue. Nathan arrived a bit late after the couple had done their entrance dance. He first went to greet his boss before finally sitting down to watch the whole wedding event unfold.

As everyone was happily dancing and having fun, Nathan’s attention was drawn to one cheerful beautiful lady, dancing in the crowd. The sight of the dancing lady was angelic that his heart raced uncontrollably. There was just something about her that distinguished her from every other person that danced on that stage. Nathan swallowed his saliva continuously and started sweating under air condition.

With the look of things, Nathan could tell that the girl was above his league but still didn’t think he could be stopped from talking to her at least. The dance ended and everyone went back to their various seats but his eyes were still glued to her. Nathan was silently going crazy as he kept thinking of what his course of action would be. “What can I possibly offer this lady in this my current condition? These kind of girls have not come to this world to suffer and I can’t give her the kind of lifestyle she’s already used to” He thought to himself.

After much deliberation, Nathan finally decided to shun every thought about the mysterious lady and focus on what he was there for; which was the wedding celebration. No matter how much he tried to ignore any thought of the lady, he just couldn’t. Nathan was in his early thirties and obviously needed to at-least have someone he could call his own and rely on. The reason he didn’t want to enter into any relationship was because he felt he was too broke to be in one; which is a misleading and wrong mindset.

As the wedding celebration drew to an end, Nathan stood up and walked towards the newly wedded couples to present to them some money he packaged in an envelope. As he gave them his little gift, he headed towards the exit door to leave. Just as Nathan stepped his foot out of the hall, he caught a sight of his mysterious angel talking on phone outside the hall. At first, he wanted to ignore and pass but just couldn’t because he figured she was in a sad mood.

Nathan finally summoned courage and walked towards her, “You had a nice smile while you were dancing back there, why are you sad now?” he politely asked and she looked into his eyes. “Don’t worry, it’s nothing actually, I’ll be fine” she replied with a faint smile on her face.

Her reply was enough to end their conversation but Nathan wanted more. “Is there anything I can do to make you happy?” he inquired, “No, you have already done enough” she replied. Nathan took a deep breath and asked, “Can I at least know your name?” and she replied by saying “Maria”. “That’s a beautiful name” he complimented and she smiled, “What’s yours?” she inquired, “My name Nathan” he said.

A Little Too Late

Nathan realized he was slowly breaking her walls, so he decided to act faster. “I don’t mean to be pushy or too inquisitive but I would really love to know you more because you seem like a very nice person” He said and Maria smiled, “What exactly do you want to know?” she asked, “Anything you feel comfortable telling me” he replied.

They walked to a nice place and sat down as they conversed. Maria was a good company and so was Nathan. They talked and laughed as though they had known each other before then. Nathan felt genuinely happy within and wished Maria could be his.

From their conversation, Nathan got to know that Maria was a hardworking lady who was doing everything she could to be successful in life, just like him. She was a struggling make-up artist and the bride’s friend. Nathan was scared of telling her his own side of the story because he was afraid she would leave him. He tried to avoid anything that would result to Maria asking him of his occupation.

Unfortunately, Nathan ran out of luck when she finally popped the question “What do you do?”. At that moment, he was tensed and nervous. He really wanted to tell her the truth that he was between menial jobs and was living in a one room apartment at his age, but just couldn’t. Maria figured he was delaying in his response, so she asked again, “What do you do?”.

Nathan took a deep breath and said “I’m a Driver!”

A Little Too Late
Written by Sonia Okehie

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