Chapter 70

YOU CAN HAVE IT

Obiefune arrived at the hospital by 3am, he had been on his way to an important meeting concerning his book, but broke off his engagement as soon as he heard how critical things had become for Benjamin. The traffic congestion caused by an accident kept him on the road with his car for hours. He questioned the nurses at the reception, before they directed him to the room where Benjamin was kept after certifying that he was a relative.

Obiefune saw doctors and nurses in Benjamin's room and he felt relieved that he was alive. They were probably tending to him, his plan had failed when he discovered what Benjamin did.

He discovered that the doctors and nurses were just immobile on a closer look. They seemed to be speaking to a person in the room. He quickly approached them weaving through the barricade they had made at the door with their bodies. Then he saw Obiukwu standing before Benjamin holding his hand and weeping. At that moment he knew something had happened to his cousin.

"Mrs. Igwe we need to move him, could you please step aside". The doctor pleaded yet Obi didn't flinch. It was as if the words were not related to her.

"Please ma, he needs to be kept in a conducive environment, this room is not..." The nurse was interrupted by a glare Obi threw at her.

Obiefune crept out from behind and questioned the doctor, who whispered into his ears. "She has been like this for hours, this room temperature is not suitable for his corpse". She decided to lie on the bed with Benjamin and after some minutes stood to hold his hand, as if she was trying to wake him.

Obiefune proceeded to where Obi stood weeping, she glanced at him then focused on her husband. "He said he'll wake me by 11pm" Obi sniffed while Obiefune glanced at the clock.

"He can't die, he's not supposed to. He said he'll take care of me." She chuckled wiping tears from her eyes

"He said he won't blink, I want him to..... He has to. He's so cold, I was here with him, his hand was warm. We... I was sleeping. He can’t leave!" Obi sobbed and whimpere.

"I shouldn't have, he made promises" She sniffed and held Benjamin "He needs to keep them, he has to wake up"

Obiefune stared at a lifeless Benjamin on the bed and his heart cringed. He never wanted this to happen but Benjamin was too smart, he did not want help.

He slowly placed his hand on Obiukwu's shoulders while the medical personnels hoped he could get Obi away.

"What.. What do I tell them? My sons. How do I... How am I supposed to? He was happy! He... We are having a baby"

"Obi they need to take him away, he's not here. They need to take his body away"

Obi brushed Obiefune’s hand from her shoulder furious with his statement . "He's here, he just needs to wake up. I can't,.... I can't go home. What will I tell them? Benjamin needs to wake up. It's a prank" Obi laughed hysterically

"Ben please tell me it's a prank"

Obiefune did not know what to say to Obi to calm her but he knew she had to let go of his hand.

"Ben.. Ben... Ben, I won't leave till you wake up."

Obiefune turned to the doctors who were contemplating on moving Obi with force. The longer Benjamin's body stayed under such unsuitable conditions the more worried they were. They had suggested her coming to the morgue with them but she wouldn’t hear them speak of removing her husband.

Obi still stood softly whispering Benjamin's name like her voice could wake him.

"Ben..Ben"

"Obi he won't answer you, we need to leave the room biko zie" Obiefune pleaded

"Leave, you can leave if you want. I am not leaving my husband! Isn't that what you do best leave!"

"Obi biko" Obiefune reached out to hold her but she slapped his hand away, leaving Benjamin's hand to fall on the bed spring. The sound made Obi flinch and she hoped to hear a yell of pain but she didn't.

She quickly rushed to hold Benjamin's hand and apologized for letting it fall. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."

Obiefune realized that She was not ready to bulge and he quickly grabbed her from behind and carried her away.

She was hysterical, kicking, screaming, cursing Obiefune and holding onto her husband's hand. The nurses quickly rushed to hold Benjamin's corpse as she was being dragged out so that he wouldn't fall.

"I need to stay with him! Obiefune leave me alone"

Obiefune carried her out of the hospital and it seemed her noise woke a lot of patients who peeked at her while she was being removed. The nurses who were aware of what happened shook their head in pity

When Obiefune got out, he slowly loosened his grip and let Obi go. She turned to face him with so much anger. Obi tried to get into the hospital but Obiefune stood in the way. She couldn't slip past him, with how fast he was. Obi glanced over his shoulder as she struggled to run past him and saw that the same people who were in Benjamin's room were carrying out a body that had been wrapped with a white sheet.

"No! No!" She jerked away from Obiefune and shoved his chest, but he didn't bulge." They're taking him away, he's leaving me, just like my mother did"

Obiefune was almost in tears as he watched Obiukwu fighting him with all her strength. She fell limp in his arms as soon as the men disappeared.

While Obi cried in his arms she felt an item drop on to her body. She recognized the bracelet from the road trip she had with Obiefune and immediately her rage shot up. The doctor had told her that Obiefune was aware of Benjamin's adamancy to receive professional help.

Obi jerked away from his hold and slapped him across the cheek. Why was he carrying the bracelet around? Was he trying to remind her of the times they spent together, when she had just lost her husband? Everything began to irritate her at once. She had let herself think of another man when she should have focused on him

Obiefune's hand flew to his cheek and he was not too surprised with the reaction. "You! You.. B.. Bastard!"

"You knew he wasn't going to get a trans.. P.. Plant and you did not tell me! You kept it from me for your own reasons!"

"Obi it was not my place to tell you, I couldn't tell you. Trust me , I wanted to help"

"Your place! Your p.. Place. Was it your place to disclose the paternity of my sons to me! If you had told me! I would have done something! We could have saved him!" She yelled

"Obi the surgery is two days away, he didn't make it till then, nobody could have stopped this from happening besides, they're much my sons as they're yours"

"I could have! We would have pushed the date forward. You knew and you did nothing! Did you want him dead? I mean he has everything you wanted right!"

"Obi I never wanted my cousin dead, I.... loved him"

"Yes you loved him, of course you did. You loved him so much that you were kissing his wife while he was sick !"

"Obiukwu I understand that you're going through so much pain but don't just say something that you'll regret"

Obi scoffed before bursting into a hysterical laughter "Something I'll regret! What I regret is ever loving you! What I regret is calling you and hoping you would have come on time, but just as always you disappointed me. Maybe if you had arrived on time he would still be alive!"

Obiefune grew quiet, he felt that Obi needed to vent to overcome the shock of the loss, her accusations were pointless.

"I hate you! "She declared coldly after glaring at him.

Obiefune stared into her eyes and saw how dark they had become. He hadn't expected her to turn to rage and bitterness but she did.

Obiukwu' walked away from him and headed into the hospital probably to get her things. Obiefune made an attempt to follow her but she brushed him off. "Stay away from me!"

She continued to walk until her feet began to wobble. Her vision blurred and her mouth clamped shut. The world began to revolve and the ground shook beneath her feet. A voice lulled her into darkness and Obi felt like her chest constricted.

"I can't breathe" she managed to mutter before she fell.

Obi slept for hours owing to exhaustion and pain. She dreamt Benjamin was cooking for her in their house. He smiled at her and handed her two plates to set at their table and when she returned to the kitchen he had disappeared.

Her eyes flew open and she felt a sharp ache in her head. Her head seemed to be pounding like there was a welder beating iron objects to shape. Obi held her head and managed to get off the bed.

She knew it wasn't her house or the hospital because of the room she found herself in. Obi could hear a conversation going on in a hushed tone and decided to see them.

"She's not herself, I don't know what to do for her"

"I still can't believe he's dead, we spoke on the phone and he texted me, he was asking about your genotype. How did this happen?"

"When she called me I thought he was still alive"

"God! what is she going to tell those young boys?"

Obi walked into the room after she overheard Obiefune speaking with Chioma. Their eyes locked on hers and she nodded at Chioma.

She turned to Obiefune and spoke to him "Take me home, I need to be with my children"

The two siblings exchanged stares, terrified that Obi was not in a good state of mind but nonetheless agreed to her request.

Ifenna, Oluebube and the boys were playing in the living room when they arrived. Prior to that Obi had called her father in law and broke the news to him. Obi could feel the old man's devastation even though he was miles away. He told Obi that he would relay the information to his sister in laws and advised her to rest.

Her sons embraced her as soon she arrived and her sisters did the same. She could tell they were excited and wanted to hear about Benjamin's state of health.

Obi called them into ifenna's room and broke the news to them. Her heart was shredded into more pieces as her sons embraced her and wept, even her sisters were devastated with the news.

She had wanted to cry but it seemed as if her eyes had run out of tears. The children were called by Chioma and the girls left with them. Obi knew it would be easy for the boys to get over the information, they were young.

She went to the kitchen and took two slices of bread but the taste had somehow disappeared as it touched her tongue. Obi spat the food out and headed to her children's room. She had a bath and threw on some of her clothes that she had left in their room. She was very terrified of going into her room and when she saw Benjamin's shorts hanging amongst her sons' she quickly ran her hands across the fabric.

"Tata! they drew on my shorts! These boys are evil! What happened to the book they sketch with?"

"I hid it, Chukwuemeka has wasted all his crayons and it's because of that book"

"I hula nu, so you were the one that caused this! I'm hanging this short here, a constant reminder that my wife encouraged my sons to ruin my cloth!".

Obi laughed at his statement "Just take it to the laundry room I'll wash it".

"Mba I'll leave it here, so that when I'm not around it'll be a constant reminder of how mischievous you and your sons were to me".

Obi laughed so hard when her husband pulled off his short and hung it.

"So you're walking back to the room naked abi, Ben you act like an overgrown child"

"I will never forgive you for this! Giving me a walk of shame in my own house!"

Obi was amused when Benjamin walked out of the room naked, she had been thankful that they were the only ones in the house. She laughed at him and teased him of having a very small butt. She quickly folded her own clothes and picked up the shorts. On second thought she decided to leave the cloth there till Benjamin asks for it.

She was brought out of her thoughts when her sister came to announce the arrival of Mr. John. Obi realized that indeed she dreaded condolence visits and wished there was a way she could change everything.

The lawyer handed a material over to Obi after offering his condolences. Obiefune went to see the lawyer off while Chioma tried to engage Obi in conversations just to get her mind off things.

Obi felt like a shadow in her own house, she could hear, see, speak but she couldn't feel.

Chioma decided to stay the night while Obiefune went away. She didn't even want him around and was not disturbed when he announced his leave.

Funmi came over very late at night with Jude and the pair decided to sleep over with their children. They helped tuck her children to bed and often checked on Obi who barely spoke to any of them.

She had been sitting in Ifenna's room when she overheard her speaking with Tobe. She had spoken with her brother earlier and he agreed to come home after an examination that he was supposed to take the next day.

"She's worse than she was when mother died. She's not speaking to anyone and she hasn't gone to their room ever since she came back from the hospital.

"Yes we will, aunt Chioma is around, no he left this evening. The boys are fine, I don't think they understand much about death, ngwanu bye"

The girl was startled when he saw Obi on her bed. But Obi pretended not to hear her conversation. She quickly slipped out the material Mr. John had given to her and read through it.

Her husband had planned his own funeral and had stated how things were to be carried out. He did not want his wife to be stressed were specifics. A tear slipped out of Obi's eyes as she read some more.

I don't know how many more years I'll spend on earth, but I am certain that I want to leave this earth a happy man.Maybe I could lay beside my wife thinking about the years we've spent together and how happy I am, if indeed I am married and happy then"

I would want to be buried a week after my death, what is the point in keeping the living from moving on when the dead will never return?

I am 25 years old today, I am counting down till the day I finally rest.

Obi wiped her eyes and read other instructions written by her late husband. He seemed to have started planning his death ever since he turned 25. Obi decided she didn't have to run from her room, she had to show strength so that others could lean on her for support.

When she got to her room, she remembered the last moments spent in there with Benjamin and tremors racked her body. His scent greeted her nostrils and his cologne hovered in the air.

Obi got on top of the bed and lay on her portion of the bed staring into space. She lifted a pillow and cuddled it, her mind only went back to days spent in the room with Benjamin and the more she thought of him the more terrified she grew that she would have to sleep alone.

It felt like he was in their bedroom in a way, his scent hovering in the air, the warmth emanating from his side of the bed as Obi's hand caressed it.

Obi shut her eyes hoping to be engulfed by sleep, but just then it seemed as if she heard someone who sounded like Benjamin. Obi opened her eyes and saw his cologne lying on the spot she had taken the pillow from. A note was placed under the bottle "you can have it".

She grabbed the bottle and sprayed the content on her hand, maybe if she smelled like him, she wouldn't be so afraid anymore. She rested her head on the bed and moved over to Benjamin's side before she was lulled to sleep. Obi folded her leg and spooned the pillow like a baby while she sleepily heard a faint voice lulling her to sleep.

"Tata"