SARA'S SECRET

“You better not tell him.oh!.....Hian!......, are you crazy?” Tina said to Sara looking at her like she had suddenly developed horns.
 Sara sat down, and fixed her eyes to a  spot on the rugged floor.

“Sometimes you can sound so naive” Tina continued shaking her head.

“But I don’t think it's a good idea to keep it a secret, considering that he has told me all his own secrets” Sara said defensively.
Tina's eyes almost popped out of their sockets when she said;

“Who told you he doesn't have secrets? Some things are better left unsaid Sara. Men cannot be trusted. He will  use it against you one day. Trust me, have I ever lied to you?”She asked  as she sat next to Sara on the couch.

Sara shook her head “No you haven't” she replied in a small voice.
She suddenly felt very foolish for even considering it in the first place. That was why she had come to Tina. Tina was the only friend she had, and was wiser when it came to such matters.



Looking at both women seated on the couch, one couldn't  help but notice their differences.

Tina was tall and slender, with legs that seemed to start from her shoulders. She didn't have much going on in the Boob area, but that didn't in any way hamper her femininity. She was ALL WOMAN....No doubt.
She had full lips,and eyes like a Vixen. She was dressed in a way that flattered her body.

 Sara was also tall, but that was where the similarity ended. She had the kind of boobs that drew the attention of both men and women.She was a very curvy woman.
Her eyes were small on her Pretty face.Her lips though not as thick as Tina's, seemed very Kissable nonetheless.
She was beautiful.
But unlike Tina, she seemed to have dressed with the intention to hide her feminine side.




BIODUN looked up from his work, as Sara walked into his office.
 As usual,she had a hypnotic effect on him  as he could barely  avert his eyes.
She walked towards his table. As always, her presence was Electrifying and Powerful like a Magic spell.Everything about her was seductive...everything.

He stood up and gave her a hug.How did I get so lucky?He thought to himself. As always on such occasions, she had a  shy smile on her face.
“I didn't realize it was time already baby." He said, staring into her eyes and losing himself for a few seconds.
"Please sit down and give me a moment to round up, then we leave okay?” he said
“No problem dear” she replied, sitting down

Sara watched Biodun as he worked on his computer, and got that surreal feeling she always got whenever she thought about him.

She had met him barely eight months ago at the airport when all flights had been delayed due to bad weather.
 He was heading out of the country on business, while she was going to Abuja for a conference. They got talking, and the connection had been instant. He was the closest she'd ever come to a Love-at-First-Sight scenario.

He took her number and two weeks later, they started dating. Biodun was a hardworking entrepreneur, and dating him was blissful.

Suddenly after eight Months, he was talking about being together forever, and having babies. Sara was thrilled, but she just hoped he didn't find out about her...."secret".
 He thought she was perfect and she hoped it remained that way. One silly mistake could spoil all this happiness and like Tina had advised, it was better to keep her mouth shut.

Two weeks later, Biodun proposed to her, and she accepted.
Sara was so excited; she called Tina and informed her. Tina sounded very pleased for her, and they decided that they would have a 'Girls Night' out to celebrate.

Tina had been born into a wealthy family, and was used to  having  anything she wanted.

She traveled to all parts of the world, and didn't need to be in the office 24/7, as “Daddy” owned the office.
She and Sara had met on their first day of resumption at Queens College, and had become best friends.
Tina had taken Sara under her wing, and was always there to save her from bullies. When it was time to go to the University, Tina Insisted on going  to Unilag, just because she couldn't leave Sara.
Sara lost her parents in a car crash that year.
In a sense, Tina became her 'family'


"How hard can it be to marry me?"Tina asked Andre as he lit another cigarette. As always, he was calm and seemed a little withdrawn.
 "I DON'T  BLAME YOU!" her anger was rising.It had been rising all day, since she found out about Sara's engagement.

"I blame myself for sticking with a Mama’s boy!"she was frustrated by his "Passiveness"

"Tina, we've only dated for three months....why the sudden 'marriage' fever?"he asked, staring at her curiously.
Tina leaned in Aggressively towards him.

"ISN'T THREE MONTHS ENOUGH FOR YOU TO DECIDE....EH?" She roared into his face.

Andre was unfazed.

"The man decides to propose to the woman.....when he is ready.The woman shouldn't insist at gun-point when he should do so",he said casually.

"And what if the woman can't wait for when the man is....READY?" Tina asked evenly.

Andre scoffs and says;

"Then maybe she should be with someone else that wants to get married in her TIME FRAME"

Tina paused.

She stared at Andre in shock.

"Are you telling me to leave the relationship...because you are not ready for marriage?" she asked, pointing a finger at him.

"I'm saying,if your sole reason for being in a relationship is to get married,then you shouldn't be in a relationship." Andre said in a small voice as he took another drag from his cigarette.

Tina looked like she'd just been slapped.

"So marriage is not important to you,?....we should just  be  dating Indefinitely???" She asked

Marriage is important to me.....but compatibility, respect, peace of mind, security and love are more important to me,...they need to be established first" He said raising his voice slightly.

"People...." He continued
".......who get into a relationship for the sake of marriage, most times overlook these things...and then end up in an unhappy wedlock,...I don't want that for myself."Andre said finally as he flicked away his cigarette.

Tina glared at him in silence.Then went;

"Mtcheeeeew!I have told you what I have to say, so think about it and make up your mind”.With that,  She picked up her bag, and walked out of the house.

Andre watched her leave, and lit another cigarette. He was used to Tina’s drama. He wondered what this one was about though. Tina had never struck him as the kind of girl that was in a haste to get married, until today that is.

They enjoyed their relationship as it has always been fun fun fun. Sure they would get married, he had already decided he would propose in the next four months or so.

Now she was demanding a ring, out of the blue? She must have smoked some really expensive stuff.

He was now having second thoughts about their relationship.
In a relationship,what a woman 'claims' she feels for you can't be trusted if ALL she wants at the end of the day is marriage.
 He thought to himself.



As Tina stormed out of the house, her thoughts were on her friend Sara.
So Sara will marry before me? the thought frightened her.They were best friends Yes,But she didn't want to be single on the day of  Sara's wedding.

The thought of Andre made her want to puke.
For three months he hadn't said anything about marriage. Now her best friend was getting married and he was "speaking English" for her. Mtcheeeew!
Then she had an idea.




SARA wondered what the urgency was about. She had received a text from Biodun, asking her to be at his office ASAP. The text struck her as odd.
She hoped nothing was amiss.
When the door opened, she noticed  Tina was seated in Biodun's office.
Odd.
Sara thought.
She wondered what they were up to.

Tina was shocked to see Sara walk into the office.She wondered what sort of  coincidence this was.

Biodun stood up, and gave Sara a hug. They looked good together, Tina thought.
She always felt  a pang of jealousy whenever she saw them together.

Sara sat down, and looked up at Biodun expectantly.
Biodun stared at both women, and smiled.

After a long silence, he cleared his throat and said. “Baby I want you to listen to me, very carefully. .....Tina came into my office, and told me certain things......”

Tina couldn't believe her ears. She felt Sara’s eyes on her, and immediately knew that she had just made a very terrible mistake. She had thought that by telling Biodun Sara's "secret", he would rethink the whole engagement. She never anticipated this...

“Tina,...." Biodun continued
" ......I want you to know that Sara has  already told me EVERYTHING about her...'secret'...., and I love her in spite of all of that.....I do not know your motives, but I know that my fiancée deserves a better person than you as a friend. What have you gained in betraying her trust?” Biodun asked.

Tina had tears rolling down her cheeks. She stood up, and walked out of the office in shame. She wondered why she couldn't have been the one to meet such a good man.


As the door closed behind Tina, Sara looked up at Biodun  as if, seeing him for the first time.

 She was feeling a variety of emotions;
 ANGER at her friend who had just betrayed her,
LOVE for the man who had just saved her face and covered up for her,
And SHAME at the secrets just uncovered.

“I am sorry,” she said to him, trying to read his face.
“I wanted to tell you, but she said it was a bad idea. I don’t know what she just told you, but you deserve to know the truth” she continued

Biodun listened as Sara recounted how her life had turned into chaos at the death of her parents. Being sent to Ibadan to live with her Aunt, who starved her most of the time.
Sara was maltreated by her Aunt,and raped severally by her Aunt's husband.
Eventually, Sara got pregnant.
She had an abortion and ran away from Ibadan.
She came back to Lagos,and prostituted herself for years just  to see herself through school.

"It's funny....", Sara added. "I don't recall Tina ever assisting me financially in all that time"


When she finished, her eyes were swollen as she had cried through her tale. Biodun stood up and walked to where she was seated.

“I am sorry to have kept this from you. If you don’t want me anymore, I would understand” she said with a stream of tears in her eyes.

“I meant everything I said to Tina,"he said.
" I love you , and I still want to be with you. But on two conditions” he said

Sara couldn't believe her ears. She looked at him, and saw that the look of love in his eyes had not changed.  “What?????” she asked

“No more secrets” he said

“No more secrets, I promise” she nodded with a sob.

"And no more 'Tina' in your life....she doesn't deserve to be your friend" he said.

" No More Tina" Sara whispered.She couldn't believe what was happening.

Then they kissed.



Biodun held her close, and Sara breathed a sigh of relief. She was home at last.



LIFE IS A CHOICE MY FRIEND
SO CHOOSE WISELY
ENOUGH SAID.