I could hear doctor Audu's high-pitched voice as he tried not to sound so loud.
"Mrs. Peters, you are supposed to take your medication always... Why did you stop?!"
"Audu please... I don't feel so well. Can I have some peace, please? I'd like you to leave now"
Audu, as my mom called him, looked surprised, sad, and disappointed.
"Mrs. Peters, before you do this, think about others too. If not for your sake and your husband's sake, then do it for your daughter's sake. She needs you. She's only fourteen.
Then he picked up his bag and walked out the front door. I have never seen him so cast down. Immediately after he left, I opened the door and walked back into the sitting room. I looked at the mom but she turned to stare at the wall, suddenly picking up interest in it.
"You shouldn't have eavesdropped Ruby"
"But mom..."
"No Ruby... Not again please"
We sat in silence for what seemed like ages. After a few hours, the front door was gently pushed open. Mom and I turned simultaneously to see who was coming in.
It was dad.
He looked so disheveled and... His hair his beard, and his clothes were so rumpled. And his eyes were red, almost like blood.
"Kate... I am so sorry... I'm sorry I left you to fight this alone... I'm sorry for all the horrible things I said to you", he began to sob, and mom did too. I just sat still and stared at them. Dad engulfed mom in an endearing hug and planted kisses all over her face.
"I promise to stand by you, I'll fight with you and for you... We'll do this together. I love you, Kate"
Mom didn't say a word. She just hugged him back silently.
I could see the sun peeking through the thick clouds. Everything was going back to normal. I was happy, very happy. Mom would continue taking her anti-retro and dad would start loving us again as he used to right???
Days rolled into weeks. I got used to coming home from school and seeing our sitting room filled with strange faces. They all came to pay visits to my mom. Her health had worsened as the weeks progressed.
They always said loud and long prayers. Sometimes I felt like clamping my hands on their mouths. I know that most of them had come to see for themselves and gossip too.
I was also getting distracted at school, and no matter how hard AB tried to cheer me up, I was never a cheerful Ruby anymore. On my way to school, from school, and even at school, people would always avoid me. Sometimes I'd hear them saying they didn't want to get infected by me.
Neighbors pointed fingers at me and used me as an example and warning to their daughters.
"Like mother, like daughter", they'd say. "Don't be like her, they all look innocent but their hearts are as black as coal, very dirty" and then they'd give me disgusting looks.
I didn't care, but it was affecting my mental and emotional health. Crying became my only solution and where else would I do that if not on AB's shoulder? Now that I think of it, I pity him for the many times he had to scrub off tears and mucus from his clothes.
Then, one bright and sunny day, in the middle of harmattan, it rained heavily. The sun was shining bright but it was raining heavily. I was soaked to my skin before I got home from school. I ran into the house and as usual, I saw strange faces.
This time, there were more people, a lot more from the church than usual. They saw me and shook their heads. Weird.
Mom was not there. I also noticed that someone had left the back door open and the house was a bit cold. I went towards it and met dad there. Our pastor was there too and dad was crying. He looked up when he saw me and stood up to hug me. My heart skipped several beats. My heartbeat was really loud in my ears and it beat so fast I thought it'll rip my chest open.
"Dad... Dad... Wh... What happened? Where is mom?", my voice was barely heard so when he didn't answer me, I screamed louder.
"Where is mom??!!!!!!" I began to cry too.
Then he pointed the way to the bedroom and I ran towards it without waiting for him to say anything else.
I got there, pushed the door open, and stumbled into the room. Mom was lying on the bed and doctor Audu was bent over, listening to something she was saying. Her voice was just a whisper, she could barely be heard.