16/10/2026
Sunday came slowly. I woke up early, even though I had nothing to do. I changed my dress three times before I finally settled on a simple blue gown my mother used to say suited me. I looked at myself in the mirror for a long time.
"Stella, relax," I told my reflection. "He said he wants to tell you something. It might be about work."
My reflection didn't believe me either. At exactly 5pm, Benjamin's black GLE stopped in front of my compound. He came down and opened the door for me like he always did. He was in a simple white shirt, and he looked calm, but I noticed he kept touching his wristwatch the way he did when he was nervous.
"You look nice," he said.
"Thank you. You don't look bad yourself."
He laughed. "That's the first time you are complimenting me."
"Don't let it get to your head," I said, and he laughed again.
He drove for almost forty minutes. We didn't talk much. When we finally stopped, we were beside a quiet lagoon, far from the noise of the city. There was a small wooden table by the water with two chairs, a lantern, and a covered tray of food. The sun was going down slowly, and the water looked like gold.
"Benjamin, did you plan all this?" I asked, my hand over my mouth.
"I just asked the restaurant to set up a table," he said. "Come and sit."
We sat down. For some minutes, we just ate and watched the sun go down. The silence wasn't awkward at all. It felt peaceful, the kind of silence you only have with someone you are comfortable with.
Then he cleared his throat. "Stella, at the village, I told you I would explain everything after the burial. About why I had somebody watching you in the city."
"Yes," I said, putting down my fork. "I have been waiting."
"The day I dropped you at your house from the hospital, I went home, but something kept bothering me. You were so scared, and you wouldn't tell me why. You said you would manage, but your eyes said something else. So I asked someone I trust to quietly keep an eye on your street and your shop. Not to disturb you, just to watch."
"And?"
"After some days, he told me a man in a black cap was always around your shop. Always looking at your door. I didn't know who he was, so I called a friend of mine in the police and told him what I heard. He said they would start tracking him quietly. That was before you even called me that evening to tell me about him."
My eyes widened. "So when I called you, you already knew?"
"I did. I didn't want to frighten you, so I let you talk. The rest, you know."
I sat there quietly, my heart heavy. "So all this time, I thought I was alone, and you were already fighting for me."
"I wasn't fighting," he said gently. "I was only making sure you were safe. You were going through too much already. I couldn't just watch."
"You should have told me," I said, but my voice was soft.
"I know. I'm sorry. But I didn't want to give you another thing to be afraid of."
I looked down at my hands. "Benjamin, I have something to tell you too."
"What?"
"I did my findings on you."
He blinked. Then he started to laugh, a real laugh that made his shoulders shake. "You did what?"
"I asked Happiness to check you out," I said, embarrassed. "Your company, your documents, everything. I'm sorry. I had to be sure."
"Stella, why are you apologizing?" he said, still laughing. "I would have done exactly the same thing. In fact, I would have been disappointed if you didn't. After what Richard did to you, you should be careful with everybody. Even me."
"So you are not angry?"
"Angry? I'm proud of you."
I let out a long breath. The sun was almost gone now, and the lantern was giving off a soft yellow light on his face. He suddenly became serious.
"Stella," he said, "that night, when I almost hit you with my car, I told myself it was only a small accident. I told myself I was only helping a stranger. But from that day, I couldn't stop thinking about you. I watched you cry for your father, and I watched you stand up and carry that burial on your shoulders even when you had nothing. I watched you sell your own chairs. I watched you fight for people who weren't even your family. And somewhere along the way, it stopped being about helping you."
My heart started beating very fast.
"I love you," he said quietly. "I'm not asking for an answer today. I just didn't want to keep it inside any longer. You deserve to know exactly what is in my heart."
I couldn't say anything for a while. The water moved gently beside us. Somewhere far away, a bird was singing.
"Benjamin," I finally said, and my voice shook. "I like you too. I think I started liking you the day you sat in that hospital room and didn't leave, even when I didn't care that you were there."
His eyes lit up.
"But," I continued quickly, "please listen to me. My father has just died. My whole life has just been turned upside down. I am still learning to breathe again. I don't want to rush into anything and spoil it. I don't want to say yes today and wake up in three months confused. You deserve better than that, and I deserve better than that."
"I'm listening," he said.
"Let me heal first. Let me start my life again properly. Let's get to know each other the normal way, no pressure, no drama, no emergencies. If after some months we still feel the same way, then we can talk. Six months, maybe. Is that too long?"
He was quiet for a moment. Then he smiled, a slow, warm smile that went all the way to his eyes.
"Stella, I waited this long without even knowing what I was waiting for. Six months is nothing. Take all the time you need. I'm not going anywhere."
I felt tears coming, but this time I didn't mind them. "Thank you for understanding."
"That's what love is," he said simply. "It doesn't rush you."
We stayed there until it was completely dark, talking about everything and nothing. When he finally dropped me at home, I stood at the gate for a long time after his car had gone. I wasn't sad, and I wasn't afraid. I was just happy, quietly happy.
The next few weeks passed like a soft dream.
I did exactly as Benjamin had insisted. I rested. I slept late some mornings. I cooked small meals for myself. I walked around my area in the evenings, and I started going to church again, sitting at the back and listening to the choir sing the same songs my father used to hum. Some days I cried, but even the crying felt lighter.
Every Friday, I visited Ella. Some weeks Vera came with me, some weeks Happiness did, and some weeks it was just me. Ella's recovery was slow but steady. First, she started talking in full sentences. Then she started asking for her phone. Then she began to laugh, a small, shy laugh that made her sister cry the first time she heard it.
Benjamin kept his promise. He called every morning and every night, and he never once pushed. Sometimes he sent me small messages in the afternoon, like "Did you eat?" or "Don't forget to drink water," and I would smile at my phone like a fool. Once a week he took me out for dinner, and we talked about everything, my mother's business, his work, my sibling's school, silly things that happened that week. Without even noticing, we became friends in a way I never had with anyone.
But somewhere in the third week, something started to bother me. I couldn't even say what it was. I would wake up, eat, tidy my room, and then sit on my bed with nothing to do. Rest was good, but my hands were not used to being empty. For years I had woken up with a plan for the day. Now I was just waiting for the day to finish.
One evening, I realized I had run out of water and detergent, so I stepped out just to buy a few things from the provision store down the street. I didn't dress up at all. I wore an old T-shirt, a wrapper tied loosely around my waist, my hair packed under a scarf, and a pair of slippers that had seen better days. I wasn't going to meet anybody.
I was walking back with a small nylon bag when I heard somebody scream my name from behind me.
"Stella! Stella Chukwuemeka! Is that you?"
I turned. A shiny white SUV had stopped a little ahead of me, and the driver was already parking properly by the roadside. The door opened and a woman came down, one hand on her back, the other on her big, round belly. She was pregnant, maybe seven or eight months, and she was dressed in a flowing gown that must have cost a lot. Her hair was neat, her nails were done, and her perfume reached me before she did.
It took me a second. Then I knew her.
"Mercy?"
"Ah ah! It's me o!" she laughed and opened her arms. I hugged her, a bit careful because of the belly, and suddenly I was thinking about our secondary school days, the two of us sharing one desk and running from the school gate seller whenever we owed him money.
"Mercy, how are you? It's been ages!"
"I'm fine, thank God! Stella, long time! Ehn, where have you been? Nobody has seen you since after school."
In the back seat, I could see two small children in school uniform, one asleep on the other's shoulder, the other pressing her face against the glass to stare at me.
"Those are yours?" I asked.
"The two of them, yes," she said proudly. "And this one is coming soon," she added, patting her belly.
"Congratulations, Mercy. God will see you through."
"Amen. But you, you stay around here?"
"Yes, just up the street."
"Hmm." She looked at me from head to toe, slowly, from the scarf on my head down to my slippers, and then back up. It wasn't exactly rude, but I felt it. I suddenly became very aware of the faded T-shirt and the wrapper that was almost slipping. "I live in GRA o. One of my daughter's classmates stays around here. Her parents couldn't make it on time, so they asked me to help drop her. We are more like family friends. I just dropped her now and was about to go back."
"That's nice," I said, smiling. "Please greet them for me."
"Ah, I will." She tilted her head. "So what about you? Do you have kids? Are you married?"
"No, not yet."
"Ha! Stella, not yet?" She put a hand on her chest like I had said something shocking. "What are you waiting for? Aside from the fact that we were classmates, you were even my senior! Time no dey o. The earlier you start, the better."
I felt it land somewhere in my chest. I thought about Benjamin and the six months I had asked for, and for a second I wondered if I was being foolish. I didn't show any of it. I only nodded slowly and smiled the way you smile when you don't want anyone to see what you are feeling.
"God's time is the best," I said.
"Of course, of course," she said quickly. "I'm only saying o. So what do you do now? You have a business?"
"Well..." I shifted the nylon bag to my other hand. "Not yet, Mercy. I'm still planning."
"Ahh." She nodded in that careful way people nod when they are being polite. "It's well, Stella. It's well."
From the car, the older child started calling, "Mummy! Mummy, I'm hungry!"
"I'm coming, my dear!" Mercy called back. "Stella, let me run along. These ones are getting tired and I need to get them some snacks on the way." She opened her small handbag and brought out a card. "Here. This is my business card. I'm the CEO of Mercy Snacks. Don't know if you've heard of it."
I looked at the card. The name was printed in gold letters. I looked up at her, genuinely surprised.
"Mercy Snacks? Wait, that's you? I buy your chin chin!"
"Ah, really?" she laughed, pleased. "Thank you o! God has been faithful. We started small, you know, just from my kitchen. Now we supply to supermarkets in four states."
"That's amazing, Mercy. Well done. I'm really proud of you."
"Thank you, thank you." She squeezed my hand. "Call me, Stella. We will talk better. I might even create a space for you in my company. Have a nice day, okay?"
She hugged me again, climbed carefully back into her SUV, and waved as she drove off. I stood by the roadside for a while holding my nylon bag and her card, watching the car disappear around the corner.
I wasn't jealous of her. I was happy for her. Truly. But as I walked back home, her words kept following me. *Not yet. I'm still planning. What are you waiting for?*
When I got to my room, I dropped the nylon on the table and sat on the bed. I looked at the card again, then placed it beside the mirror. I didn't want Mercy to create a space for me. I had a space somewhere inside me that I hadn't touched yet, and it had my name on it.
I looked at myself in the mirror, scarf crooked and slippers dusty.
"I don't want to be 'still planning' forever," I said quietly.
Something shifted inside me then, small but firm. I thought about the ring light I had cried over, the chairs I had polished every morning, the first customer who had paid me and said, "You did my face well." The shop was gone, but the hands that did the work were still mine. Nobody could take those.
That night, I didn't sleep early. I sat on my bed with my phone and started making a list. Tools I would need. How much they would cost. Streets with good foot traffic. What I would do differently this time. By the time I finally dropped the phone, it was almost two in the morning, and for the first time since my father died, I was not just surviving. I was planning.
The next evening, Benjamin invited me to eat at his house. His chef had cooked ofe onugbu, and he kept serving me more even when I said I was full. After we ate, I took a deep breath.
"Benjamin, I've decided what to do about the makeup business."
He looked up. "Tell me."
"I'm going to open it again. A smaller one this time. I know you said I should rest for a month, and I have rested, thank God. Now I want to work. It is what I know how to do, and it will keep me busy while I think about the other thing."
"The doctor thing?" he asked gently.
"Yes. I'm still thinking about it. But I can't sit idle and wait for it to happen. Let me earn my own money first."
He nodded slowly. "Do you need money to start?"
"My mother gave me some from what she has. I also kept a little. I think I can manage a small shop."
"Stella," he said, "I'm not going to force you. But if you ever need anything, just remember that I'm one call away."
"I know," I said, smiling. "And I'll call you when I really need it. I promise."
"Okay." He picked up his fork again, and I could see he was trying not to look too proud of me. "I'm happy for you, Stella."
The next week, I found a small shop on a busy street not far from my place, much cheaper than my old one, and I paid a year's rent upfront this time. I made sure I kept the receipt safe, in three different places. Then I started buying my tools again, little by little, ring light first, then brushes, then a mirror. Vera and Happiness came with me on most of the shopping trips and they both contributed and got me two customer chairs. Benjamin always come in the evening with Ken to see how the place is being set up.
He offered to get me the items remaining but I declined the offer, I just wanted to open this shop by myself this time.
Then came the day of the court judgment day.
Happiness had been preparing for weeks. She barely slept the night before, and when she came to pick me and Vera up that morning, she was in her black suit, her hair tied neatly, her file held tightly against her chest.
"Are you ready?" she asked us in the car.
"No," Vera said honestly.
"Neither am I," I added.
"Good," Happiness said, almost smiling. "That means we are normal."
The courtroom was full that day. Policemen stood at the door, reporters sat in the back rows, and family members of the other victims were there too, some of them holding pictures of their daughters. When I saw that, my chest tightened. We were lucky. Not everybody got to come home.
Then the accused were brought in. Daniel walked first, with his head down. Harry followed him, looking smaller than I remembered, nothing like the man who had held my wrist outside my shop. A few others came behind them, and then, last of all, Richard.
My heart stopped for a second.
He had lost weight. His face was tired, and the handsome, confident man I once knew was gone. He walked slowly with his hands in front of him, and when he lifted his eyes for a second, they met mine across the courtroom.
I didn't look away. I felt no anger, only a heavy sadness, like looking at a house that burned down.
His lips moved. Without sound, he said, "I'm sorry."
I didn't nod. I didn't smile. I simply looked at him, and then I turned my face forward.
The judge walked in, and everybody stood. The air in that room became so heavy that I could hear my own breathing. The judge read the judgment slowly, line by line, listing the charges: human traff.icking, kidn.apping, illegal org.an trade, conspiracy, and mu.rder. With each word, I felt Vera's hand tighten around mine.
Then the judge looked up. "After careful consideration of all the evidence presented before this court, I hereby sentence the first, second, third, and fourth accused persons to life imprisonment without the option of a fine."
For a moment, there was complete silence. Then the whole courtroom exploded. Somebody screamed. Somebody started to sob loudly. A mother in the second row fell to her knees, shouting, "Thank you, Lord! Thank you!"
Vera put both hands over her mouth and began to cry. I held her, and my own tears were already falling. Beside us, Happiness stood still for a moment with her eyes closed. Then she turned to us, and her face was wet.
"It's over," she whispered. "It's finally over."
Outside the courtroom, we held each other for a long time in the corridor, none of us saying a word. All the sleepless nights, all the fear, all the running, everything seemed to pour out of us at once.
"Let's go and see Ella," I finally said, wiping my face. "She has to hear it from us."
When we got to the hospital, Ella was sitting up in bed, dressed in a simple gown, her hair freshly done. Her sister was there, and the doctor was standing by the bed, writing something in a file.
"Ah, you people are here," Ella said, smiling when she saw us. "Why are you all crying?"
"Ella," Happiness said, going to sit beside her. "We have news."
Ella's smile slowly faded. Her sister held her hand.
"The court gave its judgment today," Happiness said gently. "Daniel, Richard, Harry, and the others, all of them have been sentenced to life imprisonment, for what they did to you and the other girls."
Ella just stared at her for a long moment. Then her eyes filled with tears, and she covered her face with both hands.
I went and sat on the other side of the bed and held her. She cried loudly, the kind of cry that comes from a very deep place, and I cried with her. Vera joined us. The four of us stayed there, holding on to one another, while her sister wept quietly in the corner and even the doctor looked away to wipe his eyes.
When she finally calmed down, she looked at me, her face swollen and shining.
"Stella," she said, her voice breaking. "I need to say something to you."
"You don't have to say anything," I said.
"No, please. Let me." She took a deep breath. "Before all this happened, I was not a good friend to you. I used to be jealous of you. I thought you had everything, a good business, good people around you, and I felt like life was unfair. I said things behind your back that I'm ashamed of now. And yet, when I was in that place and I thought I was going to die, you were the one who fought for me. You didn't even know if I would thank you, but you did it anyway."
"Ella..."
"Please forgive me," she said, tears rolling down her face. "I'm so sorry. I will never be like that again."
I held her face between my hands. "Ella, there is nothing to forgive. You are my friend. You are alive. That is all that matters to me."
She cried again and I held her, and I felt something heal inside me that I didn't even know was broken.
The doctor cleared his throat gently. "I have good news too, if you ladies don't mind. Ella has made very good progress. Her tests are clear, and if everything stays the same, we will discharge her by next week."
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The whole room erupted in joy. Her sister dropped on her knees and began praying loudly. Vera started clapping. Ella laughed through her tears, and Happiness said, "Chai! God is good! We must celebrate today!"
That's how we ended up at a small restaurant that evening, the three of us, sitting by a window with the city lights coming on outside. Benjamin had called to say he was in a meeting but wanted to hear how everything went. I told him everything, and I could hear in his voice how happy he was for me.
"Go and enjoy yourselves," he said. "You deserve it."
So we ordered way too much food, jollof rice, grilled fish, peppered chicken, plantain, and cold drinks. We talked and laughed and shed tears again, going over everything from the first day, the voice note, the warehouse, the night Vera called me from the bush.
"I still can't believe I ran through that bush barefoot," Vera said, shaking her head. "If I told you what I was thinking at that time, you wouldn't believe me."
"You were very brave," I said.
"I was very scared," she corrected, and we all laughed.
After some time, I noticed that Vera had gone a little quiet. She kept turning her glass in her hand, and every few seconds, she looked across at Happiness. Happiness, on the other hand, was suddenly very interested in her plate, and she was hiding a small smile.
"What is going on with you two?" I asked, putting down my spoon. "Why are you looking at each other like that?"
"Nothing," Happiness said too quickly.
"Vera?"
Vera put down her glass. She took a deep breath and looked at me.
"Stella, there is something I want to tell you. I wanted to tell you earlier, but you were still going through a lot. I was waiting until you were fully back on your feet. And now that you are okay, and the case is over, I think it's the right time."
My heart started to beat a little faster. "Is it bad news?"
"No, no, no," she said, laughing nervously. "It's good news. At least, I think it's good news. I hope you will think so too."
"Vera, just say it," I said. "You are scaring me."
She looked at Happiness again. Happiness nodded at her, smiling.
"Stella," Vera said slowly, "Ken and I are together."
I blinked. "Ken and you are... together?"
"Yes."
"Ken, Benjamin's friend, Ken?"
"Is there another Ken?" she asked, covering her face with her hands, and her whole face turned red.
I looked at Happiness. She was laughing silently, her shoulders shaking. "You knew?" I asked her.
"Of course I knew," Happiness said. "I'm the one that had to pretend to be asleep in the back seat."
"WHAT?" I almost shouted. A couple at the next table turned to look at us. I lowered my voice. "Since when? How? You people met at my father's burial!"
"Exactly," Vera said, uncovering her face. "That day in the car on our way back to the city. Remember, Ken drove us. Happiness 'fell asleep' in the back seat, and Ken and I talked the whole way. It was just a normal conversation at first, but he was so kind, Stella, and so calm. When we reached the city, he asked if he could call me. I said yes. Then he helped us carry your things from the shop, and we kept seeing each other, and one thing led to another."
"That was over a month ago!" I said.
"I know," she said, almost laughing. "It happened so fast that I didn't even believe it myself. I kept telling myself it was too soon, that I had just escaped a nightmare and I shouldn't be thinking about anything like this. But Ken never rushed me. He just kept showing up."
I sat there with my mouth open. I couldn't even form a sentence. All those times he drove us around, all those small looks I had thought nothing of. How did I miss it?
"Then yesterday," Vera said, and her voice dropped to almost a whisper, "he asked me to marry him."
I dropped my fork.
"He WHAT?"
"He said he knows it's fast," she said quickly, tears coming to her eyes. "But he said when he knows, he knows, and that he is not the kind of man who plays games. But I told him I'm not ready to rush into marriage. After everything I've been through, I need time. I told him I would think about it. I told him maybe we should wait at least three months, so we can really be sure, so that nobody can say we jumped in because of fear or trauma."
"And what did he say?" I whispered.
"He said three months is fine," Vera said, laughing and crying at the same time. "He said he will wait for me as long as it takes."
I put my hand on my chest. My eyes were burning. Happiness was wiping her own eyes, laughing at the same time.
"Stella, say something," Vera said nervously. "Please. You are not saying anything. Are you angry that I didn't tell you earlier? Do you think it's too fast?"
I shook my head slowly. Then I reached across the table and grabbed both her hands.
"Vera," I said, my voice shaking, "I think it's the best news I have heard in months."
She burst into tears. Happiness jumped up and hugged both of us, and for a moment, the three of us were laughing and crying so loudly that the waiter came running to ask if everything was alright.
"We are fine," Happiness said, wiping her face. "Please bring us more drinks. We are celebrating."
When we finally calmed down, Vera held my hand tightly. "Stella, I want you to be my chief bridesmaid. Whenever it happens. Please."
"Of course I will," I said. "Even if it is ten years from now."
"It won't be ten years," she said, laughing. "It will be three months. And before then, you have to teach me how to say 'yes' without being scared."
I laughed. "Ask me again in three months."
Happiness looked at me suddenly, and then at Vera, and then back at me, and a mischievous smile spread slowly across her face.
"Three months, you said?" she said, raising an eyebrow at me. "Interesting. Because somebody else I know also asked for six months from somebody else."
My mouth dropped open. "Happiness!"
"What?" she said, innocent as a lamb. "I didn't say any names."
"Who? WHO?" Vera screamed, almost jumping out of her chair. "Stella! Who asked you for what? What are you hiding from me?"
I covered my face with both hands, my cheeks burning, while Happiness laughed so hard she nearly fell off her chair.
"Stella Chukwuemeka," Vera said slowly, pointing a finger at me, "you are going to tell me everything. Right now."
I peeped through my fingers at the two of them, both looking at me with the same hungry eyes.
"Okay, okay," I said, laughing in spite of myself. "But you have to promise you won't scream."
"I can't promise that," Vera said immediately.
And just as I opened my mouth to start, my phone rang on the table. I looked at the screen, and my heart skipped.
It was Benjamin.....................The story continues at Ihuoma's Diary TV. Do you want to know what Benjamin is going to tell Stella? Then don't miss the next episode. F0ll0w so Facebook notifies you when I post the next episode, also share this story to reach more audience.
