Do For Love

Love is a beautiful thing. When you place yourself to love unconditionally, you tend to eat the benefit therein. Undoubtedly, love is the greatest gift a man can ever share to his neighbour. The story you are about to read is born out of sheer love and the war against it. In the end, love is all that matters. 

Olumide is born in a family of five and he is the first child and son. He has one brother and three sisters. His only brother Seun is a cool headed and reasonable person despite being the last child of the house. 

They were so poor that they could barely eat three square meals. His father, Adegoke works as a security guard in the village market. There are usually traditional rituals carried out in the market at least once in a year. People have attributed Adegoke ill luck to the rituals performed in the market. 

His wife, Adejoke was a petty trader. She sells her wares in the front of their home at Abule-Onipanu. She could not afford to pay for a stall at the market, that's why she decided to build a kiosk for herself at home. She has been very helpful to the family. 

Olumide tried all his possible best to not to fail his parents in the area of his academic pursuit. He was a brilliant chap but handicapped by finance to further his education to the university level. After his secondary education, Olumide sojourned to the city to seek a job so that with what he earned, he could support his family. 

His journey to the city was a predestined one. On the day he was to leave, his father showered him with prayers as he knelt down before him. Olumide was to reunite with one of his classmates who had joined his school in the final year to write the terminal examinations. His mother had provided him with cassava flakes, dried fish and grind melon that could sustain him for the first week of relocating to the city. 

It took him eight hours to get to the city. Trouble started when he could not trace the address of Michael, his classmates that he was depending on to have an accommodation. 

He was lucky to be spotted by Michael who was returning from work. Quickly, Michael alighted and ran towards Olumide and the two hugged each other tightly. They walked home chatting gladly. 

Olumide freshened up and they settled for dinner. After which Olumide asked Michael to help him out with a job. Fortunately, there was an opening at the manager's office where he worked so he requested that Olumide get prepared for an interview tomorrow. 

When they arrived at the office, Olumide was tested and found qualified to take up the job as a personal assistant to the manager. The job has a love benefit that made Olumide shed tears of joy and be thankful to Michael for his help. 

Abike who is the manager of the company is a graduate of the London School of Economics and the only child of Chief Olowonisaye, an industrialist who was well known for his giant strides in the manufacturing industry. 

She accepted Olumide and they worked together without any hitch. One thing led to the other and Abike fell in love with Olumide. It took time before she could express her feelings. 

Her parents were not in support of the relationship but since it was what Abike wanted, they had no other choice than to accept. 

Three years after he had left Abule-Onioanu, Olumide returned with Abike, to present her as a wife to her family. Adegoke welcomed them and became very fond of his would-be daughter-in-law. She felt at home here but that was soon to become a mirage because Olumide's mother had gone ahead earlier to make an arrangement of a village wife for Olumife. 

During this time, Adegoke feel very sick and was on medication. The bills was paid by Olumide but funded by Abike. Baba Adegoke was like a father to her. And she could go all out to do anything to keep him alive. 

One evening, while Abike and Seun returned from the market, they bought some fruits and juice for Baba. He took his medication using the juice and his stomach rumbled which led to his death. 

Adejoke wailed and accused Abike of killing her husband. And that she must observe the seven days ritual to clear the air that she had no hand in the death of Adegoke. 

Unknown to them, Adejoke had conspired with the priest to poison the substance that would be used to ascertain Abike's innocence. 

It was a trying time for her. She wanted to prove to the world that she loved Olumide and that the late Adegoke was a father indeed and she loved him too, so she agreed to drink the water from the washing of his corpse. It was barbaric culture, as she accepted the drink, Seun emerged and dragged her out of the place. He won't allow her to take that thing. He never knew that the liquid substance had been poisoned already, he was just acting by a push from his instinct. 

Meanwhile, Chief Olowonisaye had begin to get impatient with the unusual stay away of Abike from the home that he went in his entourage of security personnel to Abule-Onipanu where he found the state his daughter was. He so disappointed at Olumide and asked his daughter to take her luggage as they would be leaving immediately.

At the appearance of the heavily armed men, the priest and onlookers had taken to their heels to nowhere in particular.  

Abike cried and told Olumide that he never wanted to see her eyes in him anymore. 

It was quite a bad experience for the Adegokes. Adejoke had thought that her son Olumide was a self made wealthy man not knowing that Abike was her pillar. Olumide wept and was traumatised. After the burial of Adegoke, two weeks after Abike had left him, Olumide decided to take his bag to return to the city and never to come back to this wicked village.

His mother and siblings begged him never to do that. Seun asked that he be considered and that mama could develop a high blood pressure if Olumide does not change his mind. 

As they were doing that, Abike emerged with her green jeep. She had been restless two days after she left Abule-Onipanu. Because of the love she had for Olumide, she came back to take her love back with her. 

Tears of joy filled Adejoke's eyes as she attempted to kneel to apologise to Abike. She pulled her up and gave her a tight hug. Everyone hugged each other. 

Abike dropped all the provisions she had bought and gave Adejoke some money to manage the family until when else they visit. 

They set out in the morning of the next day as everyone including Adejoke came to bid them farewell. 

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