THE STRANGER IN MY HOME

*****

By night time, the three kids had turned the house into a market square. After sleeping through the day, they had regained their energy to cause chaos around the house they had missed so much.

“Mummy, this food is too cold.” Chima complained of the boiled rice and Ofe akwu they ate at the dining table for dinner.

“Shut up and manage it like that. Can’t you see there is no light to warm the food.” Chief Okafor said to him through the darkness of the room.

“We should be thankful that Emeka’s wife even offered to make this food, if not, your little bellies will be dancing makossa this night.” Madam Okafor said while adjusting the kerosene lamp on the table.

“What is makossa?” Chike asked.

The two parents looked at each other and snorted before Madam Okafor said, “It’s the Zanku of our time.”

“What is Zanku?” Chima asked.

“You see why I told you to send these children to government school, but you never listen. Ask them anything about our country, they don’t know.” Chief Okafor said to his wife.

“Honey, they are just 6 years old.”

“After this dinner enh, we will go and play our proper African game in the parlor. None of these PS5 or Coocomango you people like watching.”

“It’s Cocomelon!” Chidinma retorted.

“E get as e be.”

*****

All through the night, Chief Okafor had done everything in his power to teach his 3 little children how to play Whot card game. But it was doomed for disaster.

Soon, they all fell asleep from the frustration of not understanding the game. They all laid together, cuddled on the big couch in the parlor as if they had not fought hours ago. There was still a power outbreak as they slept in darkness with the cool breeze of harmattan weather.

Around midnight, Madam Okafaor had woken up first. She stretched out her arms, making sure not to wake up her daughter who was sound asleep on her belly.

She looked down at her beautiful princess and gently stroke her kinky hair. She smiled and turned her head to the side to stare at her husband and the twins sleeping next to her.

My beautiful and perfect bundle of joy, she thought. My family.

Though her husband snored as loud as the generator in the next house, she couldn’t help but want to squeeze the living life out of those cute cheeks. Silly man.

As her eyes trailed from her husband’s face to the window next to him, she jumped.

A black figure was standing outside the window. Peering right into the parlor.

Madam Okafor quickly reached out for her medicated glasses on the floor and looked outside the window once more.

It was gone. The black figure.

Or was it her imagination?

She stood up with a sleeping Chidinma wrapped around her body and shut the curtain before coming to squeeze herself closer to her husband and the twins. Just in case. In case whatever she saw outside was ready to jump and attack her.