Rejected At Birth
Bonus Episode 1
It took two weeks for Julian to finally say something, although I was waiting patiently because she needed to talk.
Grandma still held unto her word that my sister needed to talk before we could go to school.
It was a Tuesday, everyone had gone out, and the children were in school, leaving both of us at home alone.
I pleaded with grandma to take me to church for her meeting, but she refused, saying I should come and watch over my sister.
We were both turning six, and my sister was no longer a baby.
Coupled with the fact that I was still upset that she didn’t apologize for what she did, I avoided her at all costs and didn’t want to talk to her.
Grandma left after much pleading, which fell on deāf ears.
I left my sister inside the house to sit outside and communicate with the birds, drawing things I myself didn’t understand on the floor.
I spoke with just nobody at all. I was very happy that I could speak, so I didn’t stop talking. I began to be talkative.
I had imagined what I missed from not being able to talk.
Then my sister came out of the road and signaled that she was bored and we should play.
I was not interested. I thought she went back inside, so I concentrated on writing what I was writing on the floor without paying attention to her.
I had seen her walking out of the compound.
She didn’t know anywhere, and we were always going out with grandma.
“Where are you going, Julian?” I asked her. But she didn’t even turn to look at me.
Instead, she continued on her journey out of the compound without even taking a second look at me.
“What could this girl be up to?” I asked myself.
She was upset that I didn’t play with her.
I thought within me that she would come back when she realizes that she didn’t know anywhere, so I didn’t even bother running after her.
Shortly after, the other kids came back from school, and I asked them if they saw Julian on the road.
But they all shook their heads, indicating that they hadn’t seen her.
My sister could be quite dramatic and would do anything for attention, and I wasn’t ready to deal with her antics.
Deep down, I thought maybe she had found the woman who had been helping us or followed someone home like she had done before.
I figured she would come back when she was done.
We waited until evening, but Julian didn’t return. When grandma came back and asked about her, I initially lied, saying she was somewhere in the house.
But when grandma asked me to call her, I called her name, knowing full well she wasn’t inside.
It was in the evening, after everyone was back and Aunty Kate returned, that I had to confess to grandma that Julian had left the compound.
I wasn’t even bothered because she had done it before, so I thought she would be fine.
I had no idea what she was up to this time. “Chinedu, you mean your sister left the house all by herself, and you didn’t stop her?
Where does she think she knows around here?”
grandma asked, her anger starting to show.
“If it’s 9pm and she still hasn’t come back, I’ll give you a lantern to go search for my granddaughter because it’s your fault,” she added.
I wasn’t ready for grandma’s anger, especially since she had never shown that side of her before.
So I went inside the house, not just to go inside, but to pray that Julian would come back home.
She was really good at getting me into trouble, and I didn’t want grandma to be upset with me because of her.
It was late at night, and I had already brought a chair outside to wait for Julian’s return.
I wanted to scōld her before grandma could.
I stayed outside while everyone else went in because I didn’t want grandma to ask about her.
Then a car entered the compound, different from the one the woman who helped us drove.
It looked brand new. The car stopped in front of me, and at first, I thought about running away.
But then I decided to stay put. The woman got out of the car, crying and alone this time.
I wondered what was wrong with her. She looked at me and asked, “Where is your grandmother?”
I didn’t answer her. Instead, I hurried to call grandma because it seemed like something urgent.
It was tough waking grandma up since she slept a lot, and she didn’t like being woken up.
But since it was urgent, I took the rīsk.
When she finally woke up, screaming and waking everyone, including Aunt Faith, I told her, “The woman who wanted to adopt Julian is here, and she’s crying.”
She went out to see the woman dragging her feet still she finally got there.
Grandma asked me to bring a chair for her.
I rushed inside to get a chair, and when I came back, grandma was sitting on the floor, crying.
I asked her, “What’s wrong, grandma?” She didn’t speak at first, but then she said, “Your sister is deād.”
I dropped the chair and collāpsed to the floor. After a moment, I got up and dusted myself off.
“She had an āccident close to my house, and I had to rush her to the hospital where she died,” the woman said, sobbing.
I couldn’t believe her lies because something felt off about her being nice to us, especially since she mentioned adopting my sister.
“She’s lying, grandma. Tell her to show proof of Julian, and if she’s really dead, where is the body?”
I asked confidently. Grandma asked me to go inside and took the chair from my hands.
I was sure that the woman had already processed the adoption documents for my sister, and grandma was falling for her lies.
Thessycute Ekene
