**********

11:20 a.m

Temi felt so sad and lonely with tears streaming down sorrowful face. She felt disgraced and inadequate, like a tiny finger.

"How could he? That pig of a man compare himself to her. Just because has the guts to do so..." Temi questioned herself several as she wiped away the tears, not wanting anyone to notice she was even crying.

Soon, the sky turned cloudy. It was almost midday but a thirty minutes walk to her house.

The violent wind whipped her black veil around her face and tears mixed with rain as a numbing coldness gripped her heart, there was no reason to hide the tears anyway. Temi was already miserable... Thunder rolled across the sky, seeming to crack the world in half and reveal the fury of the gods. It reverberated around the green landscape, eerily echoing as temi's eyes caught the view of her compound.

"It was all Maami's fault. I would tell her everything today." Temilade cried in her mind as she banged the rusty gate wide open. Her eyes caught the wet clothes hung on the rope. Where is maami?' Temi thought as she unconsciously stopped crying.
The washing buckets were still with soapy water.

"Maami! Maami!! Maami!!!"

She called around the house but nothing hit her like the silence in the compound. She ran into the house to check if she was asleep or something but temi noticed her grandmother was nowhere to be found.

'Maami is missing!'

She felt a sudden whoosh of air out of her like an invisible giant knocked her in the stomach. Clutching her head, she tried to regain her breath but it was pointless; the ground reeled before her eyes as she fought to remain conscious.

Ranti, her grandmother had never left the house without telling her first. What was so urgent?...

The thick chilly breeze woke her up again from the thought of it as her eyes caught the wet cloths falling off the rope. She quickly rushed to take them in with the buckets. She locked the flipping windows and clocked the door from inside.

Soon, It began with a slow pitter-pattering of rain, bouncing off the roof and forming puddles. Temi thought nothing of it and continued thinking of what next to do. She threw herself on the almost collapsed sofa chair in the living room. It caused a pain to her butt but she didn't feel it either because she was already used to it or because she's having too much in her mind that moment. Temilade cried as the rain did until she eventually slept off.

***

11: 02 p.m.

Rain, midnight rain, nothing but the wild rain
On this bleak hut, and solitude, and me
Remembering again that I shall die
And neither hear the rain nor give it thanks
For washing me cleaner than I have been
Since I was born into this solitude.
Blessed are the dead that the rain rains upon:
But here I pray that none whom once I loved
Is dying tonight or lying still awake
Solitary, listening to the rain,
Either in pain or thus in sympathy
Helpless among the living and the dead,
Like a cold water among broken reeds,
Myriads of broken reeds all still and stiff,
Like me who have no love which this wild rain
Has not dissolved except the love of death,
If love it be towards what is perfect and
Cannot, the tempest tells me, disappoint.

Temilade was silently woke up reciting this poem in her head as she felt herself sink into a state of ease, for she knew what was coming next. The impending was inevitable and temi could sense it nearing. Thunder rumbled in the distance and a bolt of lightning cracked the midnight blue sky into two. It Jagged flashes of pure light cast a glow against the monochromatic background. For the past-slow hours, she lay in the sofa fervently hoping she would wake up to the gentle touch of her grandmother... But that was just a wish.

From within, temi could sense the tree branches and leaves rustling as the wind blew; it seemed another heavy rain was about to fall again. Temi woke up from her thoughts and sleep, looking so disoriented.

It took her quiet a while to regain her mental balance and, when she did, she realized she had fallen asleep while bitterly sobbing on the chair. She had no idea what time it was and could not say how long she had slept. Since it was still raining and there was no moon to study, Temi could only guess it was about midnight.

The events of the morning came flooding back into her mind as she wondered whether the rain held her grandmother wherever she went. Yet, temi wondered again if grandma had sneakers in while she slept but she noticed the door was locked.

Groping in the darkness, she felt the bolt on the door; it was still in place. Her relief was momentary as her attention was caught by the sound of wind which was still stemming in intensity.

Temi labored her feet and fumbled the way to her own room. It was pitch dark but she managed to find her bed and lay down on her back. Temi's stomach rambled violently as if it was complaining about it's hungry state, but that was least of her problems. Finding grandma was what worried her the most.

Looking into the darkness, her eyes were clear of sleep as she lay listening to the gale outside. The pitty-patter of rain on her windowpane, an escape from the scorching heat; and now, here it was, cascading in diagonal sheets in its full glory. There was a certain rhythm to the downpour that temi caught amidst the darkness...

'Tomorrow morning, I would search for you, grandma.' Temi murmured in her head as she cried to sleep again.

***

7:30 a.m.

The morning sun rose early after the heavy rain fall that lasted twenty hours. The sky looked bright and the young sun came out blazing as if it was in a hurry to complete a task. That day turn out to be a remarkable one for Temilade, as she got up to set things right. First, she dried the wet clothes outside and set to go out in search of her grandmother.

Just about to lock the door, Maami entered the compound. Unable to withstand the surge of joy welling up in her, Temi ran to cuddle her into a tender hug as her happiness knew no bound. There was a sign that Ranti had wept but she cling to her granddaughter like unto a lifebuoy.

"Where have you been maami? I was sick and worried all night?..." Temi cried bitterly.

"Let's go inside first. I'll tell you all of it." her grandma intoned, nearly chocked by sorrow.

Just then, temi took a closer look at her grandmother. She looked so tried and stressed.

"It's all Honorable Sammu's plan. Not long after you left, his boys came to fetch me. The forced me into the car like a goat that wouldn't escaped death." Ranti started.

"What? Are you hurt? Tell me maami!" Temi fumed at herself in anger.

"No my child, don't worry, he only asked for a flower in my garden, nothing more."

"We have no farm maami! What stupid flower is he asking if now?"

"It's you, temi. He asked for your hand in marriage. I think he loves you that muc-"

"Don't start it maami! I hate when you sound like this!" Temi vexed.

She studied the fearful look on her grandmother's face and took out an heavy breath to calm her self down. It wasn't maami's fault. They were just so unfortunate to be in this condition.

He didn't force me, he actually begged for your hand in marriage and he promised to take care of us." Temi knew Honorable Samuel would have never begged, he must have forced her to accept it and she was just here, covering up for him.

"Please say yes and let this go?" Ranti pleased again.

"What if I don't?"

Ranti muttered a 'hmmm?' as if she could do sething about it.

"What would happen if I don't accept any of this... What would happen?" Temi made it clearer.

"He would do a lot, temi. Just say accept him," her grandma broke down in tears.

"What? With who? Tell me Maami! What would he do?..." Temi grabbed Ranti's wake shoulders and searched into her grandma's teary eyes for answers.

"He would take you to court for your father's dept. You wouldn't be able to attend university and my life too would be at stake. He made it clear that I would serve him for the rest of my life. Please, I'm begging you in the name of your parents... Marry Honorable Sammu and save our family's name from this shame. You're to marry him in seven days else..."

Temi stood up, baffled by what she just heard. She locked her self up in her room and cried out her eyes.

This was a terrible fate indeed. Maybe her parents were cursed... Or maybe it was just a curse on her family. That when it was time to enjoy, something terrible just happens. The both of them stayed silent for days, accepting the fact that Honorable was more powerful and wicked than they thought.

***