Living With The Dead by Francis Agamah

LIVING WITH THE DEAD

Francis Agamah 👈

I have been an active member of my church for a very long time. It had always been the same routine. Church on Sunday, work from Monday to Friday and funeral or wedding on Saturdays.

Now , my parents were putting pressure on me to get married. Well, they were right. At 34 years, I have no boyfriend, let alone a fiancé, to even talk about a husband.

One day, a strange looking man visited my church. He was charming but had a sad and forlorn look on his face. All the ladies planned to talk to him so when we closed from church, almost all the above- 30 -year -old ladies found a way of befriending him. He somehow liked me and approached me saying, ” you behaved differently from your desperate colleagues. I’m impressed with you.”

My head got swollen due to the acknowledgement. He became close to me , much to the annoyance of my female church members.
One of them openly called me “boyfriend snatcher.” As he became close to me, I became inquisitive and wanted to know more about him.

Me:What did you say your name was?🚺

Him:My name is Emmile. 🚹

Me: Emmile? That’s a strange name.🚺

Emmile:Yes, It is. 🚹

Me:Where do you come from?🚺

Emmile:I don’t know. My mum never told me.🚹

Me:Why?🚺

Emmile:she said my father was irresponsible, so she will never make me know my father’s family. 🚹

Me:Where is your mum now.🚺

Emmile:She abandoned me at an orphanage and left after things became extremely difficult. 🚹

Me:How then did you become successful? 🚺
Emmile :An NGO sponsored me.🚹

Me:I see.🚺

I felt sorry for Emmile . He doesn’t know his families, and he is lone wolf in this wilderness. His story melted my heart and increased my love for him. It wasn’t long before I allowed him into my private garden to taste ‘my sweet fruits.’ I Fell so much in love with him. A minute without seeing him made me feel empty and solemn.*

We cohabited for three years before finally doing a court wedding which was attended by just a handful of people. Out of our concubinage ,we had a male child by name Deoité. After marriage, we settled down officially to enjoy marriage life. The years past, and we had another child, a female , called Dion. In my five years of marriage we had never quarreled before, and he had never put his eyes on another girl again.

Deep down in my heart , I was still not comfortable with not knowing his families. What if something happen to him. Who will I contact.? I decided to check through his phone.

In the middle of the night, I broke into his phone after getting his password. I searched through his phone and came across a name saved as “uncle Wireko.”I was a bit confused . If he said he doesn’t have any family, who then is “Uncle Wireko?.” A voice in me suggested I ask him about it but if I do that, he will know I invaded his phone. Then I decided to pick the number and called to see who this mysterious uncle was? I decided to call the uncle when I go to my friend Nana yaa’s engagement .

The next day, I told him I was going to my friend’s party. When I was going , I could feel he was looking at my back. I turned and our eyes met. “Why are you looking at me like that ?” I asked him.

“Because you looked so hot in that dressed,”he answered.

“Please give me a hug before you go,”he demanded.

Please I’m getting late. “Don’t worry, if I return from the engagement , You will pray in My sweet temple all night long till you become tired ” said I.

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“I may not be around before you return,” he said.☻

“Where are you going ,” I asked.🙄

“Somewhere you don’t want to know,”he answered. ☻

“I don’t like that joke ooo,I said .” Is it because of a simple hug you are been silly? 🙄

I got closer to him, kiss him a passionate kiss and a warm hug. Somehow, he felt much heavier than I knew. After all, I have been holding him tighter during our , oh- my- God, oh- my- God, honey- you- are so -sweet -moments.

I rushed , took a taxi and within 30 minutes .
The engagement was a very joyous one. After greeting the newly engaged couples and presenting them with gifts, I went out to call Emmile’s uncle.

Me: hello sir.👩

Emmile’s uncle : Hello, Please who are you? 👴

Me: I’m Nora Nyamekye. I’m Emmile’s wife..I mean your nephew Emmile’s wife.👩

Emmile’s uncle: (line went dead)👴

I thought it’s network problem. You know MTN can be troublesome sometimes. I tried the line again, and again but no one picked it. Then as I was putting the phone back into my bag, my phone peep. I picked.

Emmile’s uncle:look, young lady, if this is a joke, It’s in a poor taste. 👴

Me:Sir, I don’t understand. It’s not a joke. I’m married to your nephew.👩

Emmile’s Uncle :hmmmmmm. Where are you know?👴

Me: I am closer to Kotokraba market in Cape coast. 👩

Emmile’s Uncle : Please , come to Koforidua. When you reach, Take a taxi to the Koforidua polytechnic. Then call me.👴

My heart skipped. What exactly is happening? Quickly, I took a car from Cape Coast to Koforidua. No sooner had I arrived in Koforidua Polytechnic than I pressed my phone and dialled the number.

He came and met me after a few minutes. “I am Emmile’s uncle, Wireko” he introduced himself.

I said, “I’m Nora Nyamekye.”

OK. Did I hear you right when you said you are Emmile’s wife?

“Yes, We even have two beautiful kids,” I added.

His uncle looked at me with shocked expressions and held his head in his hands, like how Ghanaian football fans held their heads in their hands when Jordan Ayew missed the goalpost and did a side netting.
In fact , he almost fell had I not held him in time. He is quite old , around 65 years , fair, slim, gray hair, but immaculately dressed.

After gaining some level of equipoise, he asked me to follow him. We reached his house, and he showed me an Obituary. Emmile’s Picture was on the OBITUARY.🙄😒😬
His full name was Emmile Wireko Kwesi and he was aged 35. He had a wife and three kids.

I felt my knees weakening and the ground was about to open its mouth to swallow me. For a moment, I saw myself jumping out of my skin, and sweat broke from my pores, sending cold shivers along my spine line. It was a miracle I didn’t blackout instantly.

“Please control yourself and follow me,”he said.
He took me to the Cemetery and pointed to his grave.I saw his name on the grave .

RIP
Emmile Wireko
Born: 1980. Died 2015.

Suddenly, my brain malfunctioned, and I collapsed. I woke up in a hospital. Three hours later, I was discharged . I was so confused.
So, I have been LIVING WITH THE DEAD for Eight (8) years. I don’t know how I will go home now. I tried calling his line, but the number doesn’t exist. I took a taxi and headed home.

When I reached , no one was in the house. No husband, no kids.Everywhere was dead quiet. One day, two, five , one week , one month, six months, one year, two years. I couldn’t find my husband and kids. Till date, I kept crying . How did I end up like this?
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When you meet a guy or girl, and you don’t know anything about his or her family background between three and six months, Advice yourself.
Be warned.