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Gbemisola had reached the pinnacle of his profession, earning accolades and admiration as a brilliant lawyer. He had a loving wife, Alice, who was expecting their first child.
He thought he had it all until his mother dropped a bombshell on him. She had secretly betrothed him to a village girl, a stranger he had never met.
Gbemi felt a surge of anger and disbelief, mixed with a pang of guilt. How could his mother do this to him? How could he escape this trap? His past was a shadow that loomed over his present, threatening to darken his future. 
How would he break the news to Alice, his pregnant wife? And who was the enigmatic woman who haunted his dreams, whispering his name?
GBEMI STRUGGLES IN HIS SLEEP
“Please, please, spare my life, I have a wife and a child on the way, please, please, don’t end me now”
Gbemi pleaded as he sprinted for his life, his heart pounding like a drum, his breath ragged like a torn cloth. Behind him, a woman pursued him with a machete, her eyes blazing like fire, her voice cold as ice.
“So, you think you can escape, eh?” she taunted, her words dripping with venom, her hair wild like a lioness, her clothes ripped and stained.
“Jesus!” Gbemi shrieked in his sleep, his body trembling like a leaf, his face wet with tears. “Please, I don’t know you, I don’t know why you want me dead, please, please, have mercy” Gbemi sobbed in his slumber.
“Gbems! Honey, honey!” Alice, Gbemi’s wife, cried out, trying to shake him awake.
“Ah!” he gasped as he opened his eyes, his nightmare fading away.
“What was that all about?” she asked, her brow furrowed with concern.
“What was what?” he snapped, his expression sour.
“You were flailing your arms and legs, like a martial artist in a movie,” Alice replied, giggling.
“You find this amusing? And no, I wasn’t doing anything like that,” Gbemi said, his tone somehow bitter.
“Okay, okay, calm down, no need to get angry, you don’t want to be late for work, it’s already 6 a.m.,” she said, as she left their spacious bedroom, still smiling.
GBEMI PREPARES FOR THE OFFICE
In the bathroom:
He shouted at his reflection, “You can’t break now, you’re too strong for this!” He clenched his fists and repeated, “Gbemi, snap out of it, you’re untouchable!” He felt a sharp pain in his right shoulder as he closed his eyes and kept muttering to himself.
At the dining table:
“Wow, look at you, fine boy Gbems!” Alice exclaimed as she saw her husband approaching in his 3-piece black Tomford suit, his signature look. He bit his lower lip and winked at her, then unbuttoned his jacket and sat down.
He helped himself to some scrambled eggs and three pieces of pancakes, and after adjusting his tie, poured freshly made orange juice into a translucent glass cup.
Alice and Gbemi enjoyed their breakfast as they exchanged glances and smiles at intervals.
“Please, call me if you feel anything, anything at all, okay?” he said to her as she walked him to his car.
“We’ll be fine, babe, do have a great day at work,” she replied and they kissed each other goodbye.
At the office:
Gbemi arrived at the office an hour early, as usual. He greeted his colleagues, headed to his office, and reviewed all the files he had to present later in the day. At 2 pm, partners from different firms arrived at the law firm where Gbemi worked as one of their best lawyers.
One of the associates was standing by the projector, but Gbemi was feeling uneasy. He saw the face of a woman with blood on her face, superimposed on the man who was addressing the small crowd of suited lawyers with stern and attentive faces.
Suddenly, Gbemi screamed, “You can’t get me!”
He screamed again, “You can’t get me!” He groaned and rubbed his shoulder, the same spot where he had felt a pang earlier. He stomped his left foot on the ground as he tried to regain his senses.
“Is everything alright, Gbemisola?” The colleague nearest to him asked and gave him a soft nudge.
“Uh-huh,” Gbemi nodded.
For the rest of the day, Gbemi seemed fine. Meanwhile, Alice was on her vlog, teaching her viewers new food recipes that she had learned.
ALICE IN HER CULINARY CLASS
Alice has a passion for cooking and that’s her only outlet since she quit her job when she conceived. Gbemi had insisted with his authoritative tone. “My baby will not suffer the stress of this Nigerian road or its traffic from the womb.” He repeated that often.
Alice had to swallow her pride and accept his demand, for Gbemi is the love of her life and she would do anything to please him rather than fight and end up in silence.
What is wrong with Gbemisola? Madness? Witchcraft? I suppose we’ll discover in Episode 2.
Love is a Choice, But Sometimes It’s Not Yours: The Reality of Arranged Marriages
While the concept may seem foreign or outdated to some, the reality is that love is not always a prerequisite when it comes to choosing a life partner In this article, we will explore the various experiences and perspectives on arranged marriages, with a particular focus on Africa.
