Nathan's Pov
Time: 6:51 PM
Location: Lagos, Nigeria.
Date: September 18th
The sun was beginning to set as I alighted from the staff bus.
"Mr Akinleye, please do take care of yourself, you look pale," one of the junior staff, a woman I had come to know as Charlotte said behind me.
"Thanks Charlotte, will do just that," I threw back as the door closed, making the effort to wave at her as the bus drove off.
I inhaled deeply the faint scents of street food while listening to the distant sounds of honking cars. I was waiting for James, my driver, to pick me up so I decided to grab a bottle of water.
A face that I had longed to see for the past 12 years formed in my head and I couldn't help but smile when I thought about Hannah.
I was happy she was coming back. Soon, I kept reminding myself. But not soon enough. Three months seemed so long to wait after I had found out about my condition. I had a lung disease, one I wouldn't have found out 2 years back if she hadn't advised me to go see a doctor when I continuously experienced difficulty breathing, chest pain, fast heartbeat amongst others.
For 12 years, I'd been waiting for my Hannah, hoping she'd see the need to come home. And here I was, close to getting what I wanted, but with her insistence to wait for the festive period.
Hannah didn't know about my condition; I didn't tell her, partly because I was convinced I could wait and I didn't know how she'd react. I mean, there was no point in increasing her worries when she was so far away.
I was trying not to place a lot of thoughts on it, to trust that she'd be here very soon, but I couldn't seem to get the big question out of my mind: how much time did I even have left to wait?
"Mr Nathan," came James's voice as he honked to draw my attention.
"Oh I'm sorry," I chuckled, pulling the door open to get in. As soon as I settled in, James took off towards the estate where I stayed.
The ride home was short. James held the door open for me to get out of the car. Few minutes later, I sank into the expensive soft couch in my living room, feeling the familiar ache in my bones.
"Ah," I exhaled, hissing as I slowly adjusted myself. The doctors hadn't given an exact timeline but I could feel it in my body that it was tired of fighting.
I reached for my phone and scrolled through old photos. Pictures of us as teens, her bright laughter just enough to lit up my world. We were carefree, with big dreams.
She'd always been the ambitious one, even back then, but I still couldn't imagine she'd drift so far, her work pulling her away from her family, her dreams of a family. And worse of all away from me.
Another bout of pain hit my chest, sharper this time. It wasn't from my lungs infection, rather it was the pain I felt due to how far Hannah had idolized her work. I took some time to catch my breath, for the pain to pass. There was no point in focusing on that now. I'd made my choice to wait, and wait I would.
The doorbell rang, pulling me out of my thoughts. It was my friend and neighbor, Tunde, carrying a plastic bag filled with jollof rice and chicken stew.
"Ah, see this guy!" Tunde exclaimed, clasping my hand happily in a 'Bro handshake' before placing the bag in my laps.
This was something Tunde had always done ever since he saved me months back and then found out about my condition.
"What? You think you can survive on bread and tea, abi?"
I smiled broadly, shaking my head at his question. "I appreciate it, Tunde," I added, gesturing to the bag which I had placed to the side.
He took his seat smiling and then with a look of amusement and concern, he proceeded to speak, "You look like you've been carrying the world on your shoulders. Let me guess…Hannah?"
"I finally convinced her to come home. But she wants to wait until the holidays," I replied, leaning back and crossing my legs.
Raising an eyebrow, he exclaimed, "After twelve years, she still wants to wait? Nathan, don't you think maybe…?"
He trailed off, but I knew what he was getting at. He'd never said it outrightly, but he'd often hinted that I should let go, that maybe Hannah's heart belonged more to her work than to me. But Tunde didn't understand the depth of what we had, of how we connected. I couldn't just walk away from all of that.
"She'll come," I affirmed more to myself than anyone else. "She will come."
Tunde shook his head, worry lines appearing on his face as he stood up. "Just remember, time waits for no man. Take care of yourself, Nathan. You need to look after yourself too."
After he left, I was left all alone in the living room thinking about the words he didn't say. Maybe he was right, maybe I needed to tell her about my condition. Maybe that would be enough to bring her home sooner.
I shook the thought out of my head immediately. I knew Hannah. She was independent, and the last thing I wanted was for her to return out of guilt or pity. She had to want it, to choose it because she wanted to see me, not because she felt obligated.
I leaned back in the chair, pulling the bag to myself to unveil the dish Tunde painstakingly prepared for me.