CONUNDRUM - by Queensley Okon

Uwakfon woke up to the sound of her television. It was happening again; the endless loop of waking up, getting drunk and falling asleep. She was definitely getting tired of this routine and needed a break from everything. She walked to the refrigerator and checked for the poisoned wine. She had contemplated this day and continually dreaded and relished the moment it would happen. The paradoxical mix of emotions she was having heightened every emotion she had been quelling She remembered how he had looked at her while he forced himself in. The incessant screams for help were nothing to him and he kept going like his life depended on it. Jarvis was the new guy from work and for some reason, she thought he was going to be a good friend who she slept with occasionally. Dating had been rough for some years and nothing was significant anymore so meeting Jarvis felt like a relief. At least that's how it was supposed to feel. They loved meeting up for drinks and talking about the world. She took him to special sights and he introduced her to new moments. It felt like an acceptable match and she was having the best time. That is until Tuesday He had come over and she wasn't in the mood for their usual reverie. She didn't know whether it was a slap or he used something on her but all she remembered was seeing black as she landed on the floor. She was trying to talk but the words weren't coming out. She only remembered her clothes being ripped off and a voice she didn't recognize from him screaming "YOU DON'T SAY NO TO ME!!!!!!" If she wanted to fight, she couldn't as it felt like her whole body had gone into an intense state of shock and whatever was happening felt like a movie. By the time it was over she only remembered him grunting with satisfaction and her laying down as a log of wood, lifeless and waiting for nothing. She recalled Tanya running in to find her on the floor and taking her to the hospital and the doctors doing whatever they could to get her back to a bubbling human She did not tell them what happened to her but they found the semen so the rape kit confirmed their worst fears. Even when she was told about the HIV, she had no reaction. It was as if something had left her and this was a shell waiting to wither She had not gone to work in weeks and her manager understood. Tanya came in but was no successful getting her back. Today felt like the right moment and as she dragged herself to the couch to give in to her last breath after a large gulp of the wine, she got a text. It was Jarvis inviting her to his wedding. The nerve of him!!! She could not fight anymore and let herself float into the abyss... Then she woke up!! She looked around and not sure where she was, she tapped her husband. "Honey, Jarvis, wake up, it happened again" "Oh dear, could you stop doing this? I have told you that it's just a dream and everything is fine" "But it felt so real this time" she quipped. He gave up and drew her in for a hug. "Don't worry honey, we will get through this, let's go see Dr Weber tomorrow and then we would see the Pastor, is that alright?" "Yes honey, thank you." She felt lucky to have him and relaxed. The next morning on the news, there it was "GIRL COMMITS SUICIDE AFTER BEING RAPED BY FATHER" She was staring, not at the girl but at the man The man was her father She slumped....

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