It was around 7 pm when the doctors came out from the theater; it had been a great surgery given the extreme shock Mrs. Duke went through. The doctors brought good news...
"Please, how was the surgery? Hope my mom is alright," Athira asked weakly.
"She's stable now but in a coma. We can't specifically dictate when she will be waking up," the Doctor replied.
"What? She is in a coma, how did that happen?" Tomisin shouted.
"She hit her head really hard, we had to give our best to put her in that state but as you know, God heals; we just try our best," the Doctor responded.
Athira just stood there, shaking weakly. Just then, Akanni pulled her closer and hugged her. He stretched his hand towards Tomisin too, and they made them sit and rest their heads on his shoulder. It seemed like the best thing to do. Time went by; Mrs. Duke was transferred into a private ward. Tomisin rested on the couch while Athira kept crying gently with her head rested on Akanni's legs. It was late in the midnight when Mr. Duke got there; he had needed to take a flight from Abuja to Ilorin, though he was only told there is a situation about his wife. He loved his wife despite the misunderstanding they always have; she knows him better than anyone else. Immediately he entered the ward, his daughters hugged him, he couldn't do anything but shed tears looking at his wife lying lifeless. He thanked Akanni for taking care of his daughters and drove them home to pick up some new clothes and also for them to take a shower. Akanni left with them but dropped at the intersection to his house; he didn't want to leave Athira, but she insisted that he rest for the day. Athira hugged him and gave him a peck, which Tomisin bumped her for; she giggled and gave her goodbyes.
***********************************************************
Akanni got home feeling tired; he couldn't think of anything other than Athira and her family since he had totally forgotten about his own family. He hasn't been around much; he decided to mix up with his sister before sleeping off. Ajoke was awake as usual; watching a movie, she could watch a film for 24 hours without blinking if she is allowed to. Akanni knew he could get through to her tonight; it seems she is bored watching alone, she always has either one of her friends over...
"Maybe I should get you a teddy bear, at least you won't be watching alone anymore," Akanni proposed jokingly.
"Smiles, I would rather have you spend more time around here. Do you have a new girlfriend now, or are you hiding from the fact that you miss her?" Ajoke teased him.
"Miss who? You have started again with this 'miss her, miss her.' Don't you get tired?" Akanni fought back.
"We both know that you always miss them, especially the one before her. She got you so crazy that you had to stay away from anything close to her. You better confess," Ajoke replied bluntly.
"Enough talk about that; what's up with mom? I hope she isn't having a hard time without Dad?"
"She is might be acting all good, but she is struggling within. You'll know that if you are around much. You used to be so close to her; what really happened to you?" Ajoke asked.
"You know I never supported their decision; I just had to change with the situation. That aside; I need you to meet with someone tomorrow, I hope you don't have any plans?"
"Sure, I would love to know who is occupying your time," Ajoke replied.
"Goodnight sis," Akanni left.
"Goodnight Bro."
The night went well for everyone but Akanni; he woke up sweating profusely, he had a bad dream. "I need to get this letter today," he said to himself. He had been having confusing dreams about the letter. Soon his eyes caught something, what! It's 10 am already. He raced to the bathroom; brushed his teeth, took a quick shower, and dressed up. He met his sister already dressed in the sitting room with her best friend watching a movie...
"Hey sis, you couldn't even wake me up?" Akanni asked with a serious face.
"Good morning Égbòn (Big brother); you have always warned me not to wake you whenever you are sleeping, remember?" Ajoke replied.
"Good morning, bro Ak(Akanni), It's been quite a while," Margaret greeted.
"Hello, Margaret; pardon me I have been busy, how have you been?" Akanni responded while Margaret blushed, she has been crushing on Akanni since she met him during his secondary school days.
Akanni left the house with his sister around 12 pm to the hospital; he had called Athira early and asked about her whereabouts.
***********************************************************
Athira had gotten to the hospital earlier than others; she was determined to revive her mom in any way possible. She couldn't help herself but think about what could have pushed her ever-careful mom to be so careless, that's when her mind went back to the letter. "Oh, it's time that I open this letter," she said to herself; just then, Akanni came in with Ajoke and Tomisin.
"Welcome, everyone. Where is Dad?" she asked while hugging Akanni, and Tomisin eyed her.
"He had to get some new prescriptions for Mom," Tomisin answered and was about to leave the ward with Ajoke.
"You can't even introduce your new friend?" Athira asked, directing to Tomisin and Ajoke.
"Oh! She is actually your boyfriend's younger sister, and we met during the *Unique Vessel's Concert* last year. She can really sing," Tomisin responded, seeming excited.
"Hello big sis, I greeted you earlier, but you were pretty focused on my brother. Nice meeting you, I hope you are alright?" Ajoke declared politely.
"It's my pleasure sis, I'm okay. Thanks. We'll talk better soon. Take care of yourselves," Athira replied, directing to them as they left the ward.
"How is mom doing? Any update on anything yet?" Akanni asked.
"She is stable, at least. That aside, we really need to talk," Athira replied.
"I have been thinking about the letter all morning, I think it's time you open it," Athira proposed.
"I was actually going to ask you later, but you beat me to it. Where is it?"
"It's right here; I brought it along with me, but I want you to open yourself since it is originally meant for you," Athira replied.
Akanni took the letter and opened it, and behold, it was something they never expected...
To be continued...
What did they find inside the letter?
What does it mean to them?
*Remember, whatever you do to others will give results, either good or bad - Omotayo Victor*
*You can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life. - Steve Jobs*
*I believe in karma, and I believe if you put out positive vibes to everybody, that's all you're going to get back. - Kesha*
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