Name: Clara Honester Chikuni
Genre: Short stories
Profession: Nurse/ Midwife
Location: Lilongwe, Malawi
Period of writing: 14 years
THE VOW
“Please Paul stop it you are hurting me, I beg you in the name of God please stop” I pleaded with my husband to stop beating me but Paul turned a deaf ear to my pleadings, he kicked me hard in the stomach with his foot then started punching me with his fists all over my head and face then he grabbed me by my hair, dragged me from the bedroom to the lounge room, dropped me on the floor then he sat on my belly and continued punching my face, I covered my face with my arms to protect my eyes, I screamed on top of my voice apologizing for something I did not do but to no avail, then everything went dark.
I met Paul seven years ago at Natural Resources College, we were both pursuing diploma course in Food science and Nutrition, he was in the final semester when I was in the first, I knew him because of my room-mate Chikondi who said they were neighbours 10 years ago in Chiwembe. Paul was about 5feet tall, he was slim and light brown in complexion and he had low charming voice. He used to come to my room to chat or to help me with my assignments and studies, and even to help me with my laundry as well as to take me out for shopping in town. He was buying me groceries if I had run out of some, since he was coming from a well to do family so money was not a problem to him. He was my guardian when I was sick, my comforting friend when I was in a bad mood and my best friend throughout the semester. My first year at college was easy and fun, I was doing well in class and enjoying life more than any of my friends on campus.
Paul finished his studies and left college. The first semester without Paul was hard, I had no friends to talk to apart from my room-mate who was busy with her other friends. Life was hard, I was not doing well in class like the previous semester and I was not enjoying life any more the way I used to when Paul; little by little I started making friends. The whole semester went by without Paul coming to visit me. I lost hope thinking that our relationship was over but Paul was assuring me that things would be fine when he finds a job. Communication was poor in the beginning but later when he found a job things got better, he was coming to visit me during weekends, bringing me groceries and sometimes taking me out.
Everything was going on well until one day when Paul came to visit me at school in the middle of the week without informing me, it was lunch hour and I was going to the cafeteria with two of my classmates Elizabeth and Martin, then Elizabeth turned back to class to take her room keys which she had forgotten on her desk, I continued my journey to the cafeteria with Martin when I saw Paul in the corridors near the cafeteria door.
“Paul? What are you doing here? You didn’t tell me that you were coming” I said. He didn’t respond, he grabbed my wrist like a small child and dragged me behind the cafeteria towards the school bar, “What are you doing Paul? Leave me alone you are hurting me.” I forcefully tried to remove my hand then he stopped, his eyes were burning with anger and he had a face of a monster, I had never seen him like that before.
“Yes, I didn’t tell you that I was coming because I wanted to see what you do behind my back and now I have seen with my own eyes and I don’t need any explanation or proof.” Paul said angrily,
“Since when did you stop trusting me?”
“Since my guts told me so”
“But this is not fair, because I don’t know what you are doing behind my back as well, who knows how many skirts you have chased out there?” I responded
“How dare you speak to me like that?” He slapped me with all his strength, I held my cheek in disbelief.
“Really Paul? What was that for?”
“That was a reminder that I need respect, and from here I am going to find your stupid boyfriend and beat the hell out of him” Paul said.
“You could have asked first who he is, he is just my classmate and there is completely nothing between us, so go on and beat him, you will just end yourself in jail and also it’s over between us, I don’t want an abusive boyfriend, if you are beating me like this while we are dating then how are you going to beat me when we get married? I am afraid you are going to kill me.”
When I mentioned about ending the relationship Paul started apologizing, “I didn’t mean to hurt you my love, I don’t know what came over me, I am really sorry please forgive me my sweetheart.”
I forgave Paul since he apologized and I assumed that he would never do that again because I felt that I was the one who was wrong. Paul returned on the same day to his workplace, our relationship continued, everything was going on well like the way things were in the past.
I finished my course and found a job at a certain non-governmental organization while Paul was working with the government. I was staying in Chirimba while he was staying in Lirangwe, he proposed to me and we got married on 2nd December, 2017, it was a colourful wedding at Zomba botanic garden. After the honeymoon we were staying together in Chileka, I was living my dream life with the man that I loved most. The first four months of our marriage were awesome, Paul was helping me with house chores, cleaning the dishes, preparing supper and even cleaning the house.
When going home from work Paul would always pick me up from my work place. I made friends with almost all of my workmates starting from the manager to the watchmen at the gate, I was talking happily to everyone at work and to avoid confusions like the one which happened at school I introduced all of my close friends to my husband, every day when he was coming to pick me up he was finding me at the gate where I was chatting and laughing with the guards and my colleagues.
One day when I arrived at work I found that my supervisor had not yet arrived, then I received a call that he would not report for duties because his brother was very sick at Mwaiwathu hospital so he requested I ran his official duties in his place being the only person he trusted and who was directly tasked to the on-going project amongst other few colleagues. I had a lot of work to do on that day and since I was new in the office I was a bit slow in carrying out tasks because I was working with extra caution to avoid making mistakes, my colleague Samuel took over my usual tasks so he had a whole heap of tasks to do as well, therefore we lost track of time and knocked off late when everyone else had knocked off. When my husband came to pick me up he found that I was not on my usual place waiting for him, he asked the guards on the gate and they told him that I was still inside the offices, he called my phone but he did not get any response because it was on silent. He sent a guard to call me, he found me outside the office locking the door and Samson was there as well waiting for me. The guard went ahead of us and we followed him behind, when I was approaching the gate I met my furious husband who looked like a hungry lion which was about to eat its prey.
“Good evening sweetheart, this is Samuel I hope you remember....”
“Have you finished? Or maybe I should come to pick you up later after you have finished everything?” Paul asked angrily before I finished explaining
“What do you mean Paul? I have knocked off….”
“I don’t think so, because I had to send the watchman to call you, you couldn’t even pick up my calls.”
“You called? I didn’t know, my phone was on silent” I opened my hand bag to search for my phone but Paul took hold of my hand and snatched my bag.
“Don’t bother little prostitute, let’s go home”
“What did you call me?” I asked furiously
When the air seemed to be getting tense, Samson interrupted, “I have to go now, I am sorry for causing all the confusion, but trust me Mr. Phiri, there is nothing between me and your wife, we are jus……..” Paul interrupted him.
“Don’t bother with explanations idiot, just go your way” Paul responded
I was so angry with the way Paul answered Samson, but there was nothing I could do, I just kept quiet. We drove home in silence; when we arrived, I went straight to the bedroom to change my clothes, then Paul entered the bedroom, his eyes were blood red and he looked like a beast. I remembered that look when I was in college on the day that he slapped me. When I saw that look, chills ran down my spine, I could feel my heart beating in my throat, my legs were shaking with fear. I decided to act strong, so I held my head high and tried to walk out of the bedroom but Paul stood on the way.
“Why did you do that to me Tiyamike? Have you forgotten our vows? We vowed that we would be together, just you and me and nobody else till death do us part, but you have decided to be sleeping around with other men, today I will teach you a lesson” Paul said while walking closer to me.
“Let me explain, it’s not what you think…..” before I could finish my words Paul started slapping me on my cheeks continuously, I held my cheeks and cried loud begging him to stop.
“Please Paul stop it you are hurting me, I beg you in the name of God please stop!” I begged him to stop but it was like I was pleading with him to continue beating me, he pushed me back and I fell on the floor near the bed hitting my head with the headboard, then he kicked me hard in the abdomen with his foot, punched me all over my body with all his strength, then everything went dark.
“Where am I? Why do I have all these tubes?” I asked. My whole body was weak and in pains, I could not move a muscle.
“Tiyamike, it’s me your sister Esther, I am here with uncle Henry. Your husband was beating you last night, all thanks to your neighbours who heard you crying, when they gathered courage and entered the house they found you unconscious, so they called the police and they arrested him, and then they brought you to the hospital.” Esther narrated
“Uncle, please I want a divorce. I can’t stay in this marriage” I said with tears all over my face.
“I have heard my child, you have made a good decision to leave him, don’t be fooled by the vows that you made on your wedding day that till death do you apart, if he is mistreating you then leave him. Domestic violence is not tolerated anywhere, a man who beats his wife is a coward,” my uncle said.
Then the door opened and a female doctor entered, she instructed my relatives to leave because visiting hours were over.
“Hello Mrs. Phiri, I am doctor Moyo, I want to tell you that you have sustained multiple injuries, we found that you have brain hematoma, concussion and hip fracture, and also I am sorry we could not save your baby” she explained
“What?”
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