Sadness & Joy – Part 1 (The Meeting)

Today, I start serialization (3-part series) of a short story I am currently working on. I hope you enjoy it!

 

Part 1 – The Meeting

The massive ship traveled down the ocean, trawling its way through the winds and the waves of the autumn night on the Atlantic. The crew was not in the least bit fazed by the weather. It was calm enough for the time of year, and they were mindful of their nearness to land. It was the last lap of a ten day ocean cruise and everyone was looking forward to home and family, even the passengers.

The captain did a final check of the statistics and went down below to join the party. It was not really a party by normal standards, but it was the last night of the cruise for the passengers and they were determined to enjoy it to the last minute.

Loud music blared from the speakers and he heard the roar of laughter, loud conversations and merriment, long before he entered the hall. There was a live band playing and a few passengers were dancing. Most of them had finished dinner and decided to stay behind to enjoy the music and entertainment before retiring for the night.

He looked around to be sure everything was going well, before heading to his designated table to have dinner. The band leader chose that moment to change the beat and started playing a very upbeat tune, a mixture of afrobeat and pop, very African. Out of the corner of his eye, the captain noticed a couple at the next table get up to join the dancing couples on the floor. He did not pay much attention and continued with his meal. It had been like any other trip and he was glad that it was ending uneventfully, especially as his experience had taught him that anything could happen at sea. He had   learnt never to heave the sigh of relief until the last passenger had safely disembarked.

The heightened noise drew his attention once again to the dance floor. Most of the dancers and some of the watching passengers were now hailing a particular couple. He noticed that they were the ones previously seating on the table next to his. He smiled. The couple were doing a very good job at dancing and moving in tandem with each other and the music. They were not your regular young couple. The man would be in his fifties, he had some grey hairs to show for it. The woman would be younger, maybe only slightly, but they were dancing like a young couple in love, unashamedly moving very close to each other and the man had kissed the woman twice already within minutes.

The couple had become the centre of attraction on the dance floor and now provided additional entertainment for their fellow passengers. The band leader encouraged them on.

x x x x x

Mike had been moody all evening. He was tired of the bimbo he had with him and couldn’t wait to get off the ship. She had been a waste of time and money. The teen days  spent on the ship were boring, to say the least. Her bark was worse than her bite and she had proven to be very uninteresting in bed. To make matters worse, her skin had been bleached so much, he was irritated by the sight of her naked body. Everything was almost transparent! His efforts to find a side kick on the ship proved abortive, as she was always with him, clinging like a pair of bad shoes. His eyes were wondering again, when they fell on the dancing couple. He froze. The woman looked like Linda from the back, but it couldn’t be. Linda was fatter than that. And Linda would never dance in public like that, with a man touching and kissing her. Not possible. He couldn’t keep his eyes away from her, though. He got so involved, that the bimbo had to ask what the problem was.

‘Nothing’, he replied, regretting her presence once again and wanting to be alone. ‘Why don’t you go to our cabin, I’ll join you in a bit’, he said, in a bid to get rid of her, if only for a few minutes.

Okay’, she grudgingly replied. I’ll be waiting’, she said, dragging out the ‘ting’. She got up and left, leaving him to once again concentrate on the dancing couple.

Linda. It had to be Linda, he thought to himself. Linda. His mind went down memory lane.

x x x x x

It was the sound of crashing furniture and screaming that woke the neighbours that early morning. It was to be the last day of their marriage, though neither one of them knew it then. Their fights were usually violent and frequent. To say that Mike was a bully would have been putting it mildly. He always wanted his way, and his understanding of peace was that everything was going his own way. The neighbours were used to their fighting, but nevertheless, each time it happened, they tried to pacify Mike and admonish Linda to be more cooperative with her husband.

They lived in a 2-bedroom apartment, located in a block of 4 flats, all similar in size and layout. Mama Ibeji, the elderly woman living in the flat across from theirs banged on the door.

‘Mike! Mr. Mike! Open the door, it is me, Mama Ibeji! Don’t gif the devil shance o. Open the door!’

The elderly Yoruba woman had intervened more than once in their fights, and even though she had counselled Linda severally, the fights still continued.

Mike landed one more punch on Linda, and thereafter left her and went to the door. He did not open it but shouted at her through the door.

‘Mama, it is alright. Go back to your flat. There is no problem’.

Mama reluctantly left, but not without saying he should take it easy. She waited in her flat, knowing that he would soon leave for work. Once he left, she knew she would be able to help Linda and counsel her once again.

Mike returned to their bedroom and shouted over Linda, who was now curled up on the bed, in foetal position, groaning and crying at the same time.

‘I don’t know what gets into your head. You don’t even do any work in this house. Once I go now, you will be sleeping all day. I’m going to have my bath now. Just make sure you’re not lying down by the time I’m through’.

Linda sluggishly got up and went to the kitchen. She had no intention of cooking anything, but felt it would be safer to be out Mike’s sight when he came out from the bathroom. She heaved a painful sigh, considering her life and wondering what the best decision would be in her circumstances. Fresh tears came to her eyes. She had been warned!

x x x x x

Mike got up and relocated to a table nearer the dance floor, so he could see the dancing couple better. When he confirmed it was Linda, he felt a burst of emotion that surprised him. He felt a strong urge to get up and beat the daylights out of  both of them. He held himself back and considered his feelings. They had not seen each other in at least five years. The divorce had been finalised six years before. After that, he had run into her at his brother’s wife’s funeral a year later. He was not surprised to see her there. They had been close friends. He tried to analyse his feelings. It a mixture of anger, jealousy, envy and love. He questioned the last one, love. Love? Did he love her?

Mike prided himself in being the man’s man. He considered loving a woman as infra dignitatem (beneath his dignity). Even during their courtship, he had never told her he loved her. He deliberately used other words. In his opinion, women were a necessary evil, meant to serve men and should be seen and not heard. He could never understand why Linda felt she had the right to talk back to him, or have an opinion about anything. This was usually the cause of their many quarrels. She tended to have a mind of her own and a refusal to be quiet or submissive. Hence, he had to beat her into submission. That was what his father did with his wives. He saw nothing wrong in it.

His eyes went back to the Linda and her man, dancing closer now, holding each other and moving in line with the soft music. He had been lost in his thoughts and had not realised that the music had changed. He suddenly felt hot and uncomfortable and stood up to leave. About the same time, the music ended and the dance floor emptied. He noticed that Linda and her partner were walking towards him. There was no way to avoid meeting them. He sized up the man and realised that he looked rich and content. He had that rich, confident look and must have come from a privileged background, judging by the way he guided Linda, with his hand on her back. They were both smiling, as the crowd cheered.

Linda lifted up her eyes and her heart missed a beat as she saw Mike standing ahead of them. She froze for a second and her husband noticed immediately. She whispered in his ears and he turned to face Mike. In a moment, they were in Mike’s face and the man stretched out a hand.

‘Hi, I am Samuel. Samuel Idako. Linda’s husband’, the man said, looking firmly at Mike. Mike felt intimidated and small. Instead of taking the outstretched hand, he smiled wryly, and said ‘And so what?’, making to walk away from them. Samuel was not in the least bit daunted.

‘That is very rude of you, if I may say so. You have never met me and there is no reason to act like that, while I am trying to be civil to you’. Samuel’s tone was slightly aggravated, but still under control.

Mike continued smiling and looking at Linda, who avoided his eyes. He crossed his arms across his chest, while replying Samuel.

‘I didn’t ask to meet you. I don’t want to meet you. And if you like yourself, you will clear out of my way, with your stupid wife. How much did you buy her anyway?’, Mike shot out loudly.

Linda looked around, fearful  that Mike could start a fight right there and then. She pulled her husband away from Mike. Samuel looked at her and she shook her head. He stood his ground and replied Mike through clenched teeth.

‘Don’t you try me. You understand? If you know what’s good for you, you will stay out of our way and never refer to my wife like that, ever again’. He stuck a finger in Mike’s face for effect and looked him in the eye sternly.

Mike stepped back and let them leave. He looked on after Linda, who did not look back.