Mariam's POV
It was today or never, the day that she was certain all her iniquities were to be unfolded.
When her phone, she battled within herself whether to pick or ignore.
Ignoring that call was nay, it was like ignoring death at its call...before looking at the callers ID, She knew who was calling by the racing heartbeat and the sweating palms. She changed the position of the baby in her hands and reached for the phone, yea, here he is, Joe....he was already in town.
When she finally picked the call, there was a pin fall silence that was tangible, within that silence she could hear the loud warning from it and the frozen smile on the other end, that smile that was always unreadable, but today she could sense its implication. Through the silence she could hear that sweet masculine voice of a winner. The deadline of her secrecy was near.
When he eventually spoke, there was both command and finality in his voice.
"Hello.."
"Hi...I am home. Where do we meet"
In his action plan he had intended to be as solid as possible not to pave way for any reading of his emotions.
"eh...any place of your choice,"she answered not sure of what she was saying. She knew even if she proposed a place if meeting, he would decline and and dictate a place of his choice.
"At the mango tree. Suitable," Though the last statement was meant to be a question, it never sounded like so.
"Hey...are you there," He enquired when she was silent for long.
"Yea, I will be there" She said, not sure sure whether to say she was already there and had been for some hours now. That mango trees housed so many of their lifetime encounters.
To say the least, they planted that tree together when they were kids, not really planting but they ate a mango together and buried the seed at the same place. They used to play together at that same place, sometimes with water. when rains came the seed germinated and they found a young plant,
"wow!" They had all exclaimed when they saw the seedling. They nurtured the young plant by watering it daily till it grew.
That was then, when they were kids, their friendship was just like that. Playing, visiting each other and so.
At the same mango tree, when it had eventually grown into a tree bearing mangoes, they had their first kiss.
This was when they had completed their primary level education and joined secondary school. During one of the vacations they met their for a chit chat and emotions got the better of them and their lips brushed...brushed and kissed. It was a virgin kiss with non of them having its knowledge.
That is when their friendship took a new turn. It was somewhat love, or THE MANGO TREE AFFAIR .
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Joe's POV
When he picked the phone to call Mariam he had two words, a hi and a place of meeting. The place of meeting was blur in his mind and to the point when she picked the call, he was not with an answer as to where they were to meet. The moment she picked the call, her voice was so neutral that he went blank for a sec but she didn't realise. Her voice was as innocent as that day, at the mango tree when they shared a lifetime experience, a kiss that closed their initial friendship and opened a new phase. A begging that was equal to an end. Yea, an end...say the end of childhood, the end open friendship. It was the beginning of jealousy, a jealousy for love, jealousy that bore trouble.
He decided to rule out the venue, that same place where there innocence was buried should be the same place to level up things.
' At the mango tree' he had said out of the blues.
When she sounded cool with the place he released a breath he didn't know he had held. Just like that, hex felt relieved.
This relieve confused him. He was supposed to be going for war yet he was feeling insecure. Insecure and choosy. He had to choose words carefully because the woman he was meeting was a mountain to climb and a valley to level. A nut hard to break.
"To hell with the fears"
He was determined, this was to be settled!
He was an African man and she was a woman, a woman was inferior before a man, however learned she is, so what was he to fear?
She was meant to bow before him, he was the sole decision maker. The ultimatum was with him.
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This was a convincing voice inside him that was helping him eradicate those butterflies that were gathering.
He picked bodaboda man to take him.
"Twende bro...mbaka wapi boss" The motorist said as he started the engine of the motorbike.
" At the MANGO TREE"
"Mwembe gani boss," the motorist was perplexed, that station was unknown to him.
"Nitakuonyesha tu, twende route ya Mkoroshoni" Joe directed, and off they went.