FIRE

I could not explain how I felt. My day had gone from exciting to depressing and now to pure joy as my son had just been born.

“Oga, congrats oh,” My Uber driver said as he made the turn along Akinbola Street. “That boy is fine.”

“Like me,” I said proudly as I looked at my beautiful wife seated beside me in the back seat nursing our newborn.

“Bayo, please if he looked like you, I don’t think he will be this beautiful,” Florence my wife joked. “You know he has my face.”

“That is true madam,” the driver added. “Oga, you are fine but that child is finer than you.”

“One star for you!” I laughed and they both joined in.

It was 8 pm and we were all laughing in the cab, but the day had not been that joyful. The fact I was in an Uber in the first place instead of my BMW was enough to get me sad. But at least I now had a son. What happened to my car?

That Saturday started with me at Surulere stadium, doing what I loved to do the most and that is playing football. My company had organized a charity football match and I was as excited as the next man to be involved. I do watch football a lot, In fact, Arsenal is my favorite team but I could not recall the last time I played. But that day presented an opportunity and at 31, I was sure I still had my skills in my locker. I had totally forgotten that day was my first year anniversary between and Florence had not even bothered to remind me. Who could blame her? I shouldn’t be reminded about a day that important in my life.

Fast forward to me having just scored a goal and my colleague who was seated with our phones called my attention that my phone had been ringing. It was Florence!

“Honey! My water just broke!” She screamed from the other side of the phone.

I went mad for a few minutes not knowing what to do with life as I walked around the pitch looking for nothing in particular.

“I have to go!” I told my colleagues. “My wife is due!”

I got their blessings as I ran to my BMW parked outside the stadium and headed straight for Ilupeju where I lived. I drove like a mad man, horned and cursed anyone who drove slowly in front of me. The traffic made me bang on my steering wheel repeatedly. As I neared Ilupeju, I noticed something was missing. My Wallet!!!

“Oh crap!” I screamed.

But that didn’t matter much. My wife was due to give birth to our first child and I was a mixture of scared and excited. As I drove into our compound, I first heard the loud music. Florence loved music and she loved to play it loud. I always wondered how that would work when we finally have tenants to occupy the other flat. She would be the most annoying Land lady ever.

I rushed down from the car leaving the engine running as I had hoped to just get her and bundle her in and then straight to the hospital. But I was amazed when I saw my heavily pregnant wife seated on the couch, watching MTV with the aroma of Egusi soup circulating the house.

“You are cooking?” I wondered. “I thought…

“Happy anniversary!” She smiled sheepishly. “I just needed to get you home.”

“So you are not due?” I asked in disbelief and her sly smile told me everything I needed to know.

“I’m cooking Egusi and I called Henry to come and pound the yam for our anniversary.”

I knew the anniversary meant a lot to her but that was a bad trick to play on me. I was boiling inside and the only thing I could do was storm into the room.

“I’m sorry!” She screamed but I wasn’t having none of it.

I had lost my damn wallet for this!

I took my bath and went straight to bed to sleep when I heard her scream.

“Honey! My water just broke!”

Fool me once, shame on me. But fool me twice…

“Honey! I’m bloody serious this time!”

I grudgingly left the bed giving her the benefit of the doubt and discovered she wasn’t lying this time. She stood over pool of liquid and I quickly rushed into the house to get my car keys but couldn’t find it. That was when it struck me I had left the engine running. That was over 30 minutes ago!

I rushed out of the house and my car was gone. I felt my legs wobble but there was no time to think much about this. My wife was about to put to birth! I quickly called an Uber and he was there within minutes. We got to the hospital just in time for my wife to give birth to our first baby on our wedding anniversary.

That was how I lost my precious car but the baby was more than enough compensation. As we sat at the back seat admiring our son, the Uber approached our compound and something caught his attention. Smoke! People!

“Oga,” he called and I looked and saw it too. Lots of people were gathered around what was supposed to my house!

“Honey,” Florence called. “Did you bring down the egusi that was on the gas cooker?”

“I thought…” the words stuck in my mouth.

My house had been burnt to the ground and I didn’t even know how to react!

“At least we have a son,” Florence said.