ITOHAN'S LITTLE CORNER ✍️

  Oh how the journey has morphed from pressure to marry, to each party discovering themselves, healing and deep down realizing the truth about themselves. One cannot love another if they do not accept and love themselves. Thank you for joining Lulu and Clinton on this journey, honesty I did not know how this story would go when I started writing it, I simply went with the creative flow and how the spirit led, and I am pleased with how it went. Enough said.. Let's get to the FINALE. > > >  After Clinton left Lulu's house that night, the drive home felt different. It felt lighter and clearer. Like he had just stepped out of a foggy room and finally found the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Only this time the tunnel was his life and the light was the new found identity he embodied, all thanks to Lulu. He started to wonder how his life really would have been had he not gone for that birthday party. I mean honestly, a 3 y/o birthday party wasn't exactly his i...

  >>> It had been two whole days and Clinton had not heard back from Lulu. Two days! He was going crazy. Every thing was happening so fast and so --- his phone rang and he rushed to check it.  It could be Lulu.  It wasn't.  " Hello mum" , he answered grudgingly,  " Chiemelie what is wrong with you?" He did not realize how enraged he was until he heard that question. He hung up and kept pacing in his living room.  What was wrong with him?  What was wrong with his father?  What was the obsession with wanting to control his life?  He tried to call Lulu again. Still no answer.  She had simply walked away from him that day, ignoring him and everything he tried to say to her. He had followed her to her car outside and watched her drive off after a final look at him from her windscreen.  He had driven out afterwards, not bothering to return inside to his father and/or that stranger next to him.  How dare they!!?? How dare the...

  Oluchi was practically riding on clouds and it was just a week after the official girlfriend proposal.  Yes, I know you want to know how he did it, so that you can steal his idea when you find the girl of your dreams.  I got you!  Now Clinton isn't a typical local man who'll just ask her in the car and move on with his life, no. I believe this writer has established that Clinton is an intentional and intelligent man who really likes Lulu. And when you really like someone, you go the extra mile just to see that sparkle in their eyes and know that you are responsible for it.  He picked her up at her office the next Friday after she closed, asked her to leave her car there at the office. PS: He arranged for it to be driven to her house later that night. Relax. Lol.  They arrived at what seemed to be a restaurant, but when they stepped in, it was redesigned into a comfortable cinema-like booth. With huge projectors, comfortable lighting, loveseats and a huge ...

 UNMARRIED... SO? Part 7 .  .  " Why didn't you tell me you were terrified of water? " I said as I plopped Clinton onto the wall in the shed.  He had started shaking visibly when we got to the middle of the water.  "I'm not terrified of water, I'm terrified of a relatively large body of water."  He said and started laughing. I couldn't help but join in, so I sat on the floor with him.  Right next to him. I could feel the warmth emanating from his body, so I moved a little.  He side-eyed me and I looked away.  "You are cute when you blush" "I don't blush, I'm a grown woman" He turned to look at me fully.  "You are still a girl, Lulu. Don't hide her." I looked deeply into his eyes.  "Did you know you were terrified of water -- large bodies of water-- before today?" "Uhhhhhhhh----"  He scratched his head.  I gasped.  "You knew!! Oh my goodness.. Why did you agree to kayaking?" ...

  CLINTON'S POV*** .  I must have heard wrong, because it seemed I heard the word 'marry' but i was probably glitching.  I opened my mouth to speak and only one word came out again... " WHAT ?" " Carol is the daughter of The Basseys here and we have known her since she was a teenager. She would be a perfect fit for you ." I was staring at my dad as he reeled off words from his mouth, hoping that what I heard him say and what my eyes read would be different.  I got up amd walked away from the living room without as much as another word.  My mom walked behind me, calling my name but I didn't stop until I got to the kitchen. " I'm talking to you Chiemelie!" My mom spoke up behind me as I stopped and leaned on the kitchen island.  "What was that about mom?", I kept my voice steady to keep from yelling. "Why would you walk out on your father and the visitors like that?" "Why did I walk out? You seemed to have it all ...

OLUCHI'S POV After a successful and enjoyable date with Clinton -- yes, it was an enjoyable date, don't wink at me -- , I think I'm a little more relaxed around him.  3 hours at a park with board games and food platters is a good way to really get to know a person. They are more laid back, less on edge, no pressure to impress or overcompensate, just living.  Maybe Aunty Ene finally did something right with her matchmaking skills, but I do not endorse it still.  I should call her.  CLINTON'S POV*** Flipping through a heap of documents is not enough to distract me from thinking about Lulu. Oh, she said I haven't earned that.  A smile curled on my lips.  She's truly intriguing. And when she said she'd plan the date, Lord knows I wasn't expecting a full picnic experience.  She's.. Different. Thoughtful. Personal.  So, why is she single?  A knock on the door jolted me back to the present.  " Sir, your dad is on line 3" I was surprised. Why di...

"Oluchi, you went too far, you should have come to me first--" "Did she come to you first before downloading information about me to a total stranger? Eh-- mommy? Did she come to you before pitching me to eligible bachelors like I'm a hopeless debutante who cannot make her own decisions?  " Lulu--" "Aunty Ene went too far, mommy. She's meddling in my life and I want her nose out of my business. For all I know, this may not be the only thing she did. I'm sure there are more men who have my number and are on an invisible queue waiting to audition for my heart. I'm not interested." Silence on the other end of the call.  "Mommy, I'm not going to apologize to Aunty Ene for bearing the consequences of her actions. If she loves matchmaking so much, let her start an agency or a balloon-popping show. I'm not an experiment for her to test her skills, mommy please.. I have to go now." I hung up without even waiting for her goodb...

 UNMARRIED... SO? Part 3 It took only 2 days before I got a text from a strange number while I was packing up from the office. It was a Monday evening and I was beyond exhausted, but the text made me postpone my 'no screen till I get back home' rule .  "It cost me a little bribe, and a promise to be in my best behavior, but yes..she gave me your number" Clinton.  I stifled a laugh. He's witty. I like it.  I contemplated holding off my response till I got home, but I was giddy, and before I responded, another text came in.  "What do you say about that great food? Friday at 7? " I locked my phone and drove back home. When I got home, I shot him a response.  "I'm not supposed to eat past 7pm but if the food is great, I can cheat. Lol. PS: I HOPE THAT BRIBE WAS GOOD ." We texted back and forth through the week, until Friday came.  After much contemplation, I decided to take my car instead of having him pick me up. No amount of giggles and butte...

.  'Going somewhere?' I heard the voice behind me and it stopped me in my tracks. Shoot! If only I had just walked faster, maybe he wouldn't have caught up wih me.  I put on my best fake smile, took a deep breath and turned around slowly to behold the same man, holding 2 wine glasses, smiling at me as if he caught me in a cheeky secret.  "I was just going to--", I started explaining.  "Sneak out and hope no one notices?", he said, still smiling.  " You caught me..i mean it's a nice party but, I just need to get back home to finish some things." "You are Lulu, right?" "It's Oluchi, but yeah, everyone calls me Lulu" "So, can I call you Lulu?" "Not yet, I don't even know your name" This whole time I was scanning the environment to ensure none of my family members found me here and dragged me back.  "I'm Clinton, And I promise I'm not an alcoholic. This other glass is supposed to be y...

At every family gathering, I have three responsibilities.  1. Greet the family.  2. Eat jollof rice.  3. Defend my life choices  Like clockwork, it never failed.  I would barely sit down before Aunty Ene snuck up on me like a sore throat and asked the usual question.  'When are we getting aso-ebi '?" With that fake smile of hers..  Argh "Soon, Aunty", I always said. With a fake smile of my own.  Only.. No one knew when 'soon' was, and if I'm being honest with myself, neither do I.  At my age.. I have a stable job, a thriving side gig, rent paid, good friends, and blood pressure that rose everytime I heard 'any good news? ' from my family.  To them.. Good news meant one thing. Marriage.  Not my promotion, or something exciting I did, or the fact that I'm finally ticking my bucket lists without looking at my account balance.  No. It was always marriage.  Uncle Ikechukwu, or Uncle Iyke as I like to call him, walked up to me ...

 At some point in your life, you will look around and realize something uncomfortable: The people you once felt closest to… no longer feel like home. And the hardest part? There’s no fight. No betrayal. No clear reason. Just growth. You need to recognize when you have outgrown friendships and circles.  No hate. No shade. No enmity. Just growth. Evolution.  When they said that you are the average of the five closest people in your life. I looked around me.  When they said that you should not be the smartest in your circle and should surround yourself with people who are smarter or at the least as smart as you are. I looked around me.  Do I have close friends?  I thought about it. If I were to host a birthday party now. If my partner were to organize a surprise proposal for me today, who are the people I would expect to be present? If I want to discuss about a dream, an idea that I want to nurture, who do I trust to bear it with me?  I came up blank. And...