Chapter 22: Earful

The next couple of days Felix spent in the village was an eye opener. He heard alot about Gift and her adventures. He was shoked to hear that she had left Sam. Wonder will never cease! You mean Gift is estranged from the same man forwho she broke their engagement?

Lawrence filled him in on the happenings since he left the village and Felix could only listen with lips open in disbelief. ' If you marry Gift,' Lawrence said, I will never visit you or have anything to do with you anymore'. 'Why are you so dead set against me marrying Gift?' ' Not only did she disrespect the memory of your love, she became a dumping place for all men. She no longer waits for the men to do the chasing, she does it. She has lost control and has no modesty or shame left. She even had a sizzling affair with Desmond.'

'You can't seriously mean that, now can you? I mean Desmond is my best friend excepting you. Would he really do that?' ' Ask any other person if you don't believe me.' ' It's possible my dear friend. No wonder he was acting awkward yesterday when I saw him. He must have felt that I had heard of his involvement with Gift but you see she is free to sleep with whoever she pleases because I am no longer interested. Rest assured that I won't touch her talk nothing of marrying her. I won't want to fall into the same pit twice and by the way, she is not marriage material.'

'Are you sure? ' Lawrence asked 'Because I know how you loved her and were always quick to forgive her. You mean if she comes pleading, you won't be affected?

'Friend, it is better witnessed than said. That's the only way I can convince you. I don't think she will want to come back to me, she will be too ashamed to do that but in the unlikely event that she does, I have an answer ready for her.' Felix promised. After Lawrence left, which was quite late because they had alot of catching on to do, Felix could not stop thinking about all he had heard. It was a good thing he had asked his parents to break the engagement traditionally the same way it was contracted. He also remembered how on an impulse the night before his forceful ejection, he had asked Mercy if she would marry him. She had at first wanted to pretend she didn't want it but why would she not want to seeing how they felt for each other and he had wanted her answer because he knew it would help him resist Gift knowing he had proposed to a girl who was eagerly waiting for him to hold true his promise to make her his wife. She had accepted and he had felt a weight roll of his shoulders because he knew that if she had refused and if the refusal had been genuine, he may have had to accept Gift back against his will because he knew that after Gift and now Mercy, he could not love any other woman. The fates had been good to him by making him experience this rare gift of love, twice. He did not want to be greedy by thinking there would be a third time. So he would rather Accept Gift back than marry a totally new person if Mercy disappointed him cause he did not want to be the reason any woman he married would suffer from neglect and unreciprocated love, because he could not love them.