HER LAST WISH Chapter 30

(Moremi)

Zeemah Writes 📝

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Layla got to dressing up after freshening up, having returned from church a few hours ago.
She put on the white dress she had on her birthday, she loves how simple and comfortable it is and she couldn’t think of a better outfit in this scorching sun.

She sits on the dressing chair to pull her hair into a bun, first time she’ll be doing that since her hair was trimmed to a Bob.
After successful bun-ing her hair, she got to her feet and headed for her shoes, arranged neatly in the corner of her room.
Most of them weren’t even her size anymore, she picked the beautiful not-so-high-heel Fel had gotten her as a birthday present.
She dropped them gently by her door and headed back to the dressing chair, she opened the shelf beside it and brought out the silver earrings Aria had gotten her, though it wasn’t this year’s present.

She dropped the earrings on the dressing table, deciding those are the ones she’ll be putting on.
Standing in front of the mirror, she deliberated wearing a necklace or not as she stared at her neck. It looks noticeably empty and she caressed it. She should better put on one if she doesn’t want to end up caressing her neck frequently in front of Dan’s parents.

Yeah, the rest of the week had passed almost in a blur.

She was still standing in front of the mirror, even though she couldn’t see her head, just her neck down to her hips and maybe a little farther. Yeah, her mirror was that short.
She bent slightly, checking out her face.
The bun highlighted her face so much that it somehow made her look different.

But beautiful.

Well, Dan’s tricks are working on her. She’d almost never thought herself as beautiful, not to talk of saying that to herself.
She smiled, yeah, thinking of her best friend do bring uncontrollable smile to her face, she cherish him a lot and couldn’t be more happy to have him in her life.
Her affection for him is so deep that she could feel it whenever she thinks of him.

What a bond they have.

She settled for a pearl necklace and in seconds it was on her neck, she wore her earrings also and took a glance at the wall clock.
She’s still got enough time but not enough if she’s going to be taking a bus, so she should better hurry.
She applied plain lipgloss on her lips, her lips had looked so dry, though she’d rather lick her lips wet but they’re gonna dry up again and she has to continue the circle albeit she doesnt have a problem with licking her lips as soon as they dry up but doing that in the presence of the Keyes doesn’t sit well with her.

She picked her phone and decided to take few selfies as soon as she steps out.
She already had social media accounts. With tons of followers. Dan had helped her create them, he had put her through the process and explained more things to her and for someone who just got to own a phone, she’s already a pro at operating it. She loves her phone so much, it’s like her baby.
She doesn’t get to take it to school often because of the school rules but somehow Chloe had found out and it was all over the school that an African was using the most expensive phone among the students.
Some had even been bold enough to walk up to her and ask her and they’d almost screech when she confirms it with pride.
It was a big blow to Chloe and she didn’t hide her contempt for Layla and her phone.

Layla’s knows without doubt that Chloe’s gonna be getting the same phone or a more expensive one soon just to have the upper hand.
If only they all knew Dan had even gotten the phone as her birthday present. He had insisted she doesn’t disclose he got the phone for her. That’s Dan-like isn’t it?

She smiled again as she put on her shoes.
She rose and clutch her purse firmly to her body before walking out of her room.

She was a bit surprised to see Phil still sitting at the dining room, eating.
And on second thought, she knew Phil had went for another portion.
She had prepared lunch when she arrived from church, though Phil’s alone or she won’t be able to eat anything at the Keyes and it wasn’t just an invite, it was a lunch invite which means they would have stormed their table with meals by the time she gets there and she couldn’t imagine not eating when the main reason they had set the table was her.

“I’ll be leaving, Phil” Layla said.
“Bye, come back early enough to make dinner” Phil said and Layla nodded.
“You look okay by the way” Phil commended, her gaze sizing Layla up.
Layla’s skin prickled at Phil’s intense gaze and she murmur thank you before walking to the door.

She and Philia are not in a ‘very-talking term since she the night she had asked for Phil why she was suddenly letting her do what she wants. Well, it’s not like they’ve always been in a very-talking term, it just hasn’t been this bad.
They both could feel it. The strained unspoken words between them and until they spill it, things would remain this way.
Until she confirms why Phil suddenly turned nice to her, things are going to remain this way.

She could feel Phil’s stare on her back as she opened the door and she walked out without turning.

She’d forgotten about the selfies she wanted to take as soon as she stepped out, emotions whirled over her as she walked and she felt the sun burning her skin like it had appeared just for her.
She walked slowly now, different thoughts buzzing in and out of her mind that she couldn’t even put a hold on a thought, they came at the same time, spiraling her.
Sudden fatigue washed over her and she stopped walking, she was breathless like she had been running when infact she had been walking at even a slow pace.
She managed to the reach one of the street benches and almost collapsed into it.

What’s happening to her?

This has never happened, not even when she overstresses herself.
Panic sinks in her belly as she saw her skin had gone pale too..
Having realised what was happening, her breathing hitched and the back of her throat burned with tears.

Finally.

Shouldn’t she have expected it? Why then is she so fucking reacting this way.
She had waited for this, longed for it, prepared for it but suddenly she doesn’t want it anymore.

She doesn’t want it? Haha . . Like it’s something she can discard by saying she doesn’t want it.
A hoarse laughter escaped her throat and she wasn’t even aware passer bys turned to stare at her.
She wasn’t aware of anything else at the moment.
She felt almost numb and was even surprised her purse was still clutched in her hand.

Slowly, everything came to a stop. The fatigue, numbness, paleness of her skin.
She could spot the color returning to her skin.
She felt her normal strong self, though her unplaced thoughts were still buzzing in and out of her.
She sat there a while longer and when she was sure she could walk without stumbling, she got to her feet.

*

“I’m sorry I’m late” Layla said, apologetically to the Keyes as Dan ushered her in with a smile.
She looked nothing like a while ago, her eyes sparkled with warmth and her cheeks looked rosy with healthy color.

“Oh my dear. Welcome” Mrs Keyes smiled as she hugged her while Mr Keyes kissed her cheeks.
Anne waved cheerily at her with a smile and Layla waved back.

Layla looked around, not able to stop herself. The last time she had been here was for the party and she hadn’t even had the luxury of time to examine this splendour of a living room.
Yes, it screams ‘wealth’ . It could pass for a royal living room, expensive matching furnitures cleaned so neatly that it sparkled, she was mesmerised as she took everything in and didn’t even know she was holding her breath until she released it.
It’s worth it, this place is grandeur!

They all head to the table with Dan beside her, nudging her with his shoulder, they grinned at each other. His excitement was so obvious that it made Layla feel special.
She’d tossed every unwanted thought before she got here, she would hate herself if she turned up, looking all moody and gloomy, spoiling a lunch planned for her.

They got to the dining room and the storm of meals on the table was more than she had expected.
It seemed as though they were having a feast, she ogled at the delicacies spread across the table and her stomach sang hungrily.

Fantastic.

The meals hadn’t made her notice how grand the Keyes dining room looked until she was halfway through her meal, her gaze finally took in it’s beautiful surrounding.
It’s not just beautiful but majestic, everything about the house seems royal, the golden glint at the end of each furniture even gave it more of a royal look.
The grand hall should have given her a hint of how the rest of the house would look.
The Keyes were wealthy, no doubt.

“So Layla” Mrs Keyes cut through the silence like she speared the chunk of beef on her plate.
Layla nervously turned to her, her nervousness so obvious that Dan noticed it. He rubbed her shoulder to ease her tension.

“Please be free with us Layla, it’s normal to be nervous but let it go. We are your friends too” Mrs Keyes gave Layla a reassuring smile and it kind of eased her tension.
“Just think of me as Dan and Jennifer as Anne” Mr Keyes said and they chuckled.
Layla felt relaxed, she sat up properly on the chair, every trace of nervousness gone.

“So, Dan told me recently that you’re a special friend of his. I’m surprised” Mrs Keyes said.
Layla smiled. “I was too”
“You were also?” Mrs Keyes asked.
“Yes, he made me his special friend just two days after we met after telling me he had spent months studying his special friends before even considering them. I was stunned and he had to pull me up to class” Layla said, smiling.
“Really?” The Keyes laughed.
“Yes” Layla joined in the laughter and Anne also. Dan smiled as he stared at them.

The atmosphere seemed bubbly with the good energy emanating from everyone.

“Okay so, Dan told us a few things about you but I want you to introduce yourself” Mr Keyes said.
“We want to know you better” Mrs Keyes added, spearing a part of her beef once more before stabbing it with a fork and bringing it into her mouth. She did it with an elegance Layla admired.

“I’m Layla Moremi Williams, an African American, my Dad, the African and Mum the latter, I’m seventeen, I stay with my Aunt who owns a Cafe where I help her out everyday except Sundays.” Layla said.
“Your parents?” Mrs Keyes asked before Dan could stop her.
“Do you have a sibling?” Mr Keyes asked.
Layla glanced at Dan . . He hadn’t told them about her parents?
She blinked, kind of admiring the fact that Dan’s not a loose-mouth. Everything she’s ever told him about her family, he has never revealed it to anyone, not even to Anne.

Days back, Anne had asked her the real reason she doesn’t own a phone and Layla knew Dan hadn’t even told his sister about Phil taking ownership of her late mum’s phone or Anne wouldn’t have come to her.
So many other occurrences too.

“Mum, I don’t think Layla wants to talk about that” Dan quickly butt in.
“No, it’s fine. I want to talk about it” I said.
“Is anything wrong?” The Keyes asked curiously sending puzzled looks in our direction.
“My parents are late and . . I had a little brother too” Layla said, surprised she didn’t feel the painful tug at her chest, it happens whenever she talks about her family.
In fact, she doesn’t even like talking about them because it brings a great deal of pain and grief to her even though she smiles to cover it up most times, but surprisingly she wasn’t feeling any of those now, meeting Dan and co had made her talk about her family often and she hadn’t even realised until now that each time she did, the pain and grief subsides until she can’t even really feel it anymore now.

Woah.

Meeting these people had not only been wonderful but a blessing too.
She never thought she would ever recover from the painful death of her family.

“OMG” Mrs Keyes hand flipped to her mouth, her eyes looked shocked and penitent.
“We’re so sorry for bringing that up Layla” Mr Keyes said solemnly.
“We are so sorry Layla, we should never have brought that up” Mrs Keyes said, looking as bad as she felt that moment before shooting a glare towards Dan. “You never told us!”
“I’m sorry” Dan said, looking down at his laps.
“We’re so sorry Layla” Mrs Keyes said.
“It’s fine honestly, it happened long ago. I’m over it” Layla said.
“Don’t feel bad for bringing it up, you weren’t aware and . . I want to talk about it” She added, smiling . They all looked surprised.

“You don’t have to . . ” Mr Keyes was saying.
“I want to, just let me” Layla said and the Keyes nudged her on.

“Will you really be okay talking about it?” Dan asked.
“Yeah” Layla nodded.
He stared at her, a bit worried.

“My father died first, in a war in his country, he was a general, so strong and fierce, I think I got the gene from him” Layla smiled.
There was silence, a silence so loud and thick that it hung in the air .
“My little brother followed after some years and I didn’t even get to mourn him enough because my mum died the same week” Layla said with a sad smile, the grief she had thought was gone, returned with full force, captivating her like a spell.

She blinked back tears and realised Anne and Mrs Keyes couldn’t hold theirs.
Mr Keyes looked so sad and sorry for Layla and Dan looked like he was struggling to hold his tears.
Layla never told him her brother and mother died the same week, that’s just too much for someone who already lost a father.
Sorrow clutch at his chest as he imagined the pain, anguish Layla must have gone through.
Tears dropped from his eyes, he couldn’t hold it any further.

Layla felt so bad to have ruined the lunch with her pathetic story.
She tried for words but none were coming.
Apart from the grief that had clung to her and was slowly subsiding, she felt unbelievably better and somehow . . Free.

Minutes passed, Mr Keyes passed Mrs Keyes a tissue and she wiped her tears before blowing her nose into it.
Her face looked pink, almost red from the tears, Anne’s face did too and she also wiped her tears with the sleeve of her dress.
Dan had stopped crying.

“I’m so sorry about your family Layla” Mr Keyes spoke up first.
“You are . . ” Mrs Keyes paused, swallowing hard. “So strong”

“I’m so sorry for ruining this great lunch” Layla finally said.
“No, you didn’t” Mrs Keyes said almost immediately.
“I did” Layla said.
“You didn’t, Moremi” Dan smiled at her even though his eyes were filled with sadness, she has never seen him look this sad.
But the Moremi he had called her brought a smile to her face.

“Mooore-rayn-min (Moremi)” Mr Keyes tried to pronounce it and Dan, Layla and Anne were still reeling with laughter when Mrs Keyes pronounced hers too. It sounded more terrible and funny to the ears that they all shook with laughter.

“Did I pronounced it that badly?” Mrs Keyes asked after they all stopped laughing.
“That’s the worst pronunciation of ‘Moremi’ I’ve ever heard mum” Anne said, chuckling.
“You and Dan seem to pronounce it better than us” Mr Keyes noted. “You should teach us too”
Mrs Keyes nodded in agreement.
“It’s pronounced ‘More-ray-me” Anne said.
“Like ‘More – More butter. Ray – Ray of sun. Me – Like me ” Dan explained better and his parents got it almost immediately, they glowered, intrigued.

The table was slowly returning to it’s earlier bubbly mood and Layla was glad.

“So, how’s Aunt Esther?” Anne asked, smiling.
She got to talk to Aunt Esther once on Layla’s phone and she loved her vibe.
“She’s good, she asked of you yesternight during our call” Layla smiled. She’s surprised at the bond starting to form between Anne and her Aunt since they talked to each other.

“Aunt Esther?” Mrs Keyes asked curiously.
“Yeah, she’s my African Aunt, my father’s younger sister, I have a nephew also, David” Layla grinned.
“Oh” Mrs Keyes smiled.
“I actually spoke to her on the phone once and It felt like I’ve known her for ages, she’s a full bag of vibe” Anne smiled.
“Really?”
“Yeah” Anne nodded, eating a forkful of pasta.
Dan sneered at Layla and Anne and they laughed. He had gotten jealous Anne got to speak to Aunt Esther and he hasn’t and he doesn’t hide his scorn(though playful) whenever they talk about it.
He had went to get drinks for them when Aunt Esther had called and he got delayed and stopped severally by students and by the time he returned to them, the call had ended.

“But .. the ‘Aunt’ . .” Mr Keyes trailed off and Layla sensed his confusion.
“It’s actually against my culture to call an older person by their name alone, adding ‘Aunt’ to it signifies respect” Layla said and smiled when she remember how Aunt Esther had scolded her when she called her by her name the first time they met, years back.
Aunt Esther had sat her down to give her a full lecture of the do’s and dont’s in their tribe and Layla was almost horrified when Aunt Esther told her she had to kneel to greet elders and not say ‘Hi’ to them.

“Oh, that seems interesting” Mrs Keyes nodded.
“Generally, almost everything about Africa seems interesting” Dan said.

**

They all sat in the living room after lunch, watching an intriguing movie.

Layla sipped her wine and smiled. She was enjoying the movie as much as she was the wine.
It tasted as good as the one she had at the party, if not better. She had actually been secretly craving the expensive wine and now that it’s here before her, she felt like filling her cup to the brim with it but then she restrained herself.

“You good?” Dan asked her in a whisper and she nodded grinning.
They were sitting so close that their shoulders almost touched, Dan turned back to the TV and Layla found her gaze lingering on his beautiful face.

And just like the fatigue had washed over her, a new surge of feeling washed over her.
She swallowed hard and turned back to the TV, not acknowledging whatever she had just felt.
It was the wine that had made her feel that way . . She reassured herself and smiled as she continued watching the movie.

Zeemah
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Thanks for reading 😚❤️