Otieno yawaa...

I dated a luo boy, while in college for a few months. He never used to stay in the hostels and on most days, his clothes smelled of a mixture of paraffin and omena. One weekend, as we were eating our lunch, he asked me to move in with him and because I was hopelessly foolish, I agreed. 

Every evening, I'd carry one outfit from my room and walk with him to where he stayed. We would buy food and cook together like lovers, feeding each other like fools and promising each other endless nonsense .Then I'd go to school the following morning smelling like a tank of paraffin, for two weeks. Two good weeks.

His tin house used to be at the furthest corner, one row had 15 houses facing another row of 15. If one person in the plot cooked omena, the whole plot would know. 

Us? We were comrades so omena was a must eat meal but at least we ate meat more frequently compared to his neighbors, of course from my pocket money. I used to look at his neighbors with bombastic side eyes and they'd look at me with palpable pity. Like they were waiting for my premium tears. 

I would walk to class like the married woman I was, smelling paraffin and sins especially the ones my ancestors told me not to do. I wasted all my marriage bundles by the way, I even redeemed all my marriage bundles. But I blame the devil. 

One early morning, after my Otieno had come back from pouring my urine outside, (gross?I know. I refused to be walking to the latrine at the corner of the plot every night to pee, so he brought me a tin to pee in. He was a genius my Otieno.)

He was just getting back to bed when we heard a knock, followed up by succession knocks. 

"Otis, amka fungua mulango," Said a woman's voice.

"Ni nani huyo?"

He looked at me then at the door like a lion was about to enter.

A man's voice joined the woman asking Otis to open the door.

"Otis hao ni kina nani?" I asked with a shaky voice.

"Huyo ni brother yangu na bibi yake." He said shamelessly.

That house was his brother's who had gone to the village for two weeks. Otieno had married me in his brother's house. Eeeiii Otieno yawaa..

Anyway, I left the house at 5 in the morning  with all my clothes in a juala na hivyo ndio ndoa yangu iliisha.

But did i die🤣