Hey guys, I know I've jokingly said you should get tissues and all but as I type this, my heart is beating gbim gbim. This was one chapter I could not find the strength to write.

But, you all must understand above all things, that this was bound to happen. Nothing could have changed it. I can only tell you all to please be nicer to other women, to be your sister's keeper. To stand with your sisters in name, blood, by association and even sisters you do not know, even sisters not in the same religion as you are.

Because, this life, as a woman, is hard. We cannot even imagine how hard it is for many women. What we mustn't do is make it harder for other women.

Happy reading.

"I hope you enjoyed yourself?" I sent him a nod and a smile as I sidestepped a puddle that came from a light drizzle that rained while we cut Layla's cake. Sa'ad, Layla, Ma'mun, Kamil all children of Abdullah Lamido. I heard that much from Layla.

Ma'mun is the first, Kamil the second, Sa'ad the third, and Layla the forth and only child of her mother. The rest were from Alhaji Abdullah's late chadian wife who died when Sa'ad was six which explains his exotic looks and hair. Layla who apparently likes me a lot, found a way to whisper to me details of their family that even Google could never have given me.

"Ya Ma'mun is a neurosurgeon. Ya Kamil is a Lawyer and busniessman while Ya Sa'ad is the family's protector. They are all unmarried and a source of headache for Baba and Maama." We had giggled together like teenagers when she said that, before her friend called for the cake to be cut.

When I got to the car, he opened the back seat door to place the party pack I received as thanks on the seat. He shut the door and walked forward to me where I was cleaning water off the edge of my strapped sandals. I adjusted the jeans I'd worn to cover my ankles well before continuing my chore.

"Thank you so much. I am very thankful. You came here even after I was so rude to you that day." He shifted his feet and I suddenly saw how shiny his shoes were. I raised my eyes back to his face and nodded.

"It's fine. It's all settled now. Okay?" He nodded and gestured for me to get in, he shut the driver's door after me and I  unbuckled my sandals before turning on the ignition. Zainab had messaged to tell me she had to leave early and I'd let her. I waved at him and put the gear on reverse to leave the parking lot.

As I drove, my phone rang and I emptied my handbag on the seat beside me looking for my airpods to receive my call with. I found it in the last ring and quickly swiped the call with my eyes on the express.

"Ma?" I asked her. She sighed and my heartbeat suddenly soared. "Is everything okay?" She sighed again and I had to find somewhere to park as my hands were shaking hard. I was cussed at by other drivers but I didn't care.

"Abdul is back and his wife threw me out." A dull sound started at the back of my head and in less than three seconds, my whole body was shaking from the anger I felt deep in my soul.

"I'm coming." Ma tried to say other things but I cut them off and drove like a mad woman from where I was parked. There are two things to never annoy me with, my parents and my parents, I'll kill you in blind anger.

Soon, I was turning on my blinkers to drive into my street. Some car was idling at the entrance but I horned till the driver was forced to jump into the vehicle and move. Less than a minute later, I swerved into the parking lot making my car tires screech.

I found Ma in the lobby. Her luggage beside her and the little words I'd said to myself to calm down flew out of the window. I'll beat that useless witch till she receives some measure of sense.

I pulled the box without a word to my aunt and pulled it down up the stairs since the elevator was suddenly not working, it seemed to fuel my anger even further that the complex Technicians have had just one job, one single job which is to make the elevator work and they can't even do it. It just made me even madder.

When I reached the landing of the fire escape to our apartment. I set the box down and pulled the sliding door open, one side hit the frame of the aluminum with the force I used to slide it. I didn't care, I just ploughed on.

"Amal!" I called the moment I ducked under the curtain and got inside. "Amal!" I called again. She didn't come out and I walked further into the apartment, looking for her. I found her in the storeroom attached to the kitchen and I walked to her in a haze of anger and pulled her to the living room angrily.

"What gave you the audacity to push my mother out of my house?" She hissed and I shook my head, wondering what part of her body to start beating first.

"That old hag is your mother?" The dull sound came back in full force and I don't remember it. All I can see is the print of my five right fingers on her fair face and the sound of Ma's gasp in my ear.

"This is my house. Amal. Let that sink. In." I spelt each word out with gritted teeth. "My house. You. Are. Not. Allowed. To. Make. Decisions here. Am I clear?" She nods with tears running down her cheeks and her left hand on her cheek.

I nod and walk back outside to get the box I left and wall straight back to my room, hissing when I remember I poured out the contents of my bag earlier unto the seats.

A few minutes later, inside my room. Ma is drinking a cup of tea I made her and myself when she sighs and I know she's about to lecture me on my temper.

"I know you're about to say I should not have slapped her. But she deserves it, and more sef. Many more. Imagine how much effontery she has to call her mother and grandmother a hag. Useless child." Ma didn't speak anymore since I took the initiative to speak already.

I got up and went back to my wardrobe, then I looked down at the peach Abaya, seeing no visible stains, I picked my phone, a small ring light and my phone stand. I walked out of the room. I'd planned an IG live session and nothing will stop me, not even an untrained disrespectful just out of her teens girl.

I meet her sniffling at her camera, presumably to take photos of the slapped cheek so that she can present evidence before it disappears. I scoff and put all the stuff in my hands on the soft plush purple chair and begin pushing it out the sliding door to the side balcony that is close to the ten feet high fence that separates our complex from a duplex next door. I admire houses like that greatly; wide lawns, pretty yellow paint, shiny brown tiles for the upper pillars and nice balconies. That's how I want my dream house to be, unfortunately in this Abuja, I'd need to work a little more hard to get that sort of house.

I pushed the chair to the very end of the balcony and looked down, wondering with a laugh how it would be to fall down this place. It would be tragic, so I shake my head and begin to put together the stand, I plugged the small microphone to my phone and set it on the stand.

I looked at the time on my phone and saw that it was exactly five ten pm. I was ten minutes late to my own IG live session, I quickly logged into my own Instagram account and started a live video, while it booted, I adjusted myself on the plush chair and waved when people's greetings began to roll into the comments bar. I smiled and waved again.

"Hi guys, welcome to the live session. I'm so sorry I'm late, I had an household emergency. Today, I'll be replying some questions people asked during my last Q and A session, so I'll just read them out.

The first question is from @Hanan_Abdul and she's asking when my next movie is coming out." I smiled a bit and watched for a few seconds how many people commented that it was an important question.

"Soon. Hopefully before the year ends. That's for sure. I had fun filming it, and I'm sure In Sha Allah, y'all will have fun watching it too." Many multicolored love emojis flowed unto my screen and I smiled with a deep sigh.

"My second question is from @her-pen-sword and she's asking how it feels to be an Uwargida?" I forced myself to belt out a nice chuckle. People can sure ask heart rending questions.

"Well, her pen sword. To be honest, I have no idea how it feels like because I'd not lived with her for so long before going away to film Amina of Zazzau. If you ask me what she does, I have no idea." The sound of the door slid open and I smiled, hoping it was Ma. It wasn't, it was Angel Abdul-Mumin. He was walking towards me with a thunderous look on his face.

When he reached me, he picked me up with my neck and pushed me to the railing with a growl. My heart rate quickened and for the first time since I set my eyes on Abdul, I feared for my life. I shook his hand off me, all to no avail. I watched as he swallowed and his mouth opened, I smelled Tom Tom mint  on his breath for a second before the sound reached me.

"Why did you slap Amalu like that? Are you not ashamed of yourself? She's so young yet you hit her like that?" I shook my head, his hand moved to my collar bone instead of my neck so I could speak.

"She threw my Ma out. It's my house Abdul, I paid for it with my own money. I don't think I need to ask your wife for permission on whether or not to bring my mother to my own house." He growled even louder and my heart beat out of control.

"So you slapped her. You're mad Labeebah. Mad." I shook my head and tried to cough breath back into my lungs. "You're choking me." I wheezed out tiredly, I saw stars for a second there.

"I don't care. I wish you'd just die. Die!" In my near death state, I saw my Ma rushing through the door in her old red atampa wrapper and lemon Amour cardigan, her braids out there in the open. I shook my head at her. Ma don't come close, my camera is on and thousands of people are watching live.

I decided to goad Abdul one last time. "Even if you kill me, the apartment goes to my parents. Every last Kobo of what I own goes to…them." I could no longer wheeze and tried to cough. A thought occured to me that many times in the movies, in seconds a person would choke another to death. It's untrue, it takes about two minutes to successfully choke a person.

"Just die." He reached out and flung me.

Four things happened. I saw my scarf fall off first, second, I saw my life flash before my eyes like a movie and third, after my fall unto the fence, I felt the pain of the broken bottles the developer used as guard for the fence dig into the skin of my back.

I smiled and tasted blood in my mouth and saw my Ma scream loud but didn't hear her.

******

Hey guyssssss.

Tell me your thoughts about this chapter. Please don't pass this by without speaking, God bless you.

See you all soon. I'm totally not in the mood for any long talks.

TheOmoope 💙💛