The rising sun bathed the small town of Amaokwe in a golden glow as Chijioke prepared for another day at his workshop. As the village's most skilled carpenter, his life was a routine of shaping wood and crafting furniture, but something deep within him yearned for more. At 35, he was considered long overdue for marriage. Elders in the village teased him at every opportunity, while younger women shyly hinted at their interest, but Chijioke never found the connection he craved.
It wasn't as though Chijioke didn't try. He had courted before—twice, in fact—but both relationships ended in heartbreak. The first, with Amaka, had ended when her family insisted on marrying her off to a wealthy trader. The second, with Nkem, collapsed under the weight of her jealousy, her suspicions poisoning every tender moment.
On a particularly humid afternoon, Chijioke wandered through the bustling marketplace to purchase supplies. He weaved through stalls of yams, vegetables, and dried fish until his eyes landed on a small booth draped with vibrant beads and jewelry. Sitting behind the counter was a woman he had never seen before. Her skin glowed like the smooth bark of mahogany, and her soft, deliberate movements drew him closer.
"Good afternoon," Chijioke greeted, his voice unexpectedly unsteady.
The woman looked up, her dark eyes locking with his. "Good afternoon. Looking for something special?"
Chijioke nodded, though he wasn't entirely sure why. "I was just passing by... but your work caught my eye. Do you make all these yourself?"
The woman smiled—a soft, knowing curve of her lips. "Yes, every piece. My name is Nneoma."
They talked for what felt like hours, exchanging small stories about life in the village and their respective crafts. Nneoma was an enigma—kind and polite, yet guarded when it came to personal details. When Chijioke asked about her family, she simply said, "I lost them a long time ago. It's just me now."
As the sun dipped low in the sky, Chijioke found himself lingering by her stall. When he finally summoned the courage to ask her to dinner, she hesitated for only a moment before agreeing.