“I have always feared change. But why the embrace now?” She looked at him hoping that all the hatred she felt towards him then was conveyed. The message was passed. He could feel each one of her intense emotions through her heated stare. The animosity her eyes showed could not be mistaken. Nonetheless, he knew that it had to be done. There was no other way, and if he had to disregard the feelings of the person, he most loved, so be it. It was either her or everyone else.
“You of all people should know we must do this!” he said, angrily. He wanted her to understand the situation.
“So what? I can’t just go against everything I believe in,” she said.
“Is this the time to let your pride take over?” he asked. “I know you don’t like this, but I don’t like it either. I just know that we must do this. You should know that too – the world doesn’t revolve around you.”
“It did before, why can’t it now?” she said.
“Stop being a sore loser and accept the fact that things change!”
Chepngetich looked at him, silent, dormant, unmoving. It was as if all the fight disappeared. The effect of being given the truth as it was. But it was the very thing she needed. It was what everyone needed. If no one was willing to accept the dire situation as it was, how could they rise from it? If they were not willing to do so, then they were all fools; they were guaranteeing their doom.
“You must accept that things cannot go back to how they were. From there we can move forward. But if you can’t,” he said as he turned around, “I would rather leave you here to rot.” A braveness for him to say considering all that the duo faced together and what was happening right then. They were lucky to even have the chance to talk as long as they did. This is because outside the little dark hut they chose to hide themselves in, raged at them. They could hear the shouts of the brave young men who chose to risk their lives to fight for their safety. They could hear the horses of the opposition and their enemies in the dark times. They could hear their hooves heavily fall on the rocky grounds. And they could hear the shouts of the men upon them.
As they were speaking, Chepngetich was having a hard time staying conscious – a stray arrow notched itself at her side. Its broken edge stuck out like a sore thumb. Ribbons of crimson ran down from her wound, creating an ever-so-grotesque sight. Swallowing back his fear, he held the broken arrow. “Brace yourself,” he told Chepngetich. In a few seconds, he pulled it out, its iron head glistening in the red hue of fresh raw blood. Kiprono tried to show how worried he was about her. His panic grew as her breath became rugged and grew further as he saw how she physically struggled to breathe.
He tied a piece of cloth tightly around her wound; he had heard that applying pressure to the wound could lessen blood loss. But he was, unluckily not able to do that. Still, one would wonder why she was passionately arguing that she couldn’t abandon the principles she grew up with when her situation became grave. That was another thing to add to his list of things to worry about. Yet he managed to keep his cool ,calm demeanour and took strength which he wasn’t sure he would recover, but that is how he always was.
Chepngetich could not recall a time he crumpled under pressure. That was a part of him she always admired; it was one of the reasons she began to provide likeness for him. Yet there were a few aspects about him she didn’t quite like – she didn’t like how headstrong he could be. He could be quite determined if there was something he wanted, he always had it. She never liked that side of him because she knew that it would sometimes force her to accept the things that she never wanted to. He was always right, but that did not mean she was willing to accept it. As they were in that hut, the representation of what they had for refuge, deep inside her heart, she knew he was right. She declined.
She dared to hope that things would become better for her, that things would go back to how they were. She never thought that there would come a time when she would have to part with the kind of life she lived. To say goodbye to her precious memories. She would never agree to that; she would rather fight to hold on to everything till her dying breath. That time came sooner than expected. She didn’t know what to think, neither did she know what to say to Kiprono; that, to some extent, she believed him. Her pride caged her. The worst part is that even though signs conceived of the war era were lucid, her reluctance heightened the arrival. It was as if all the air was pulled out of their lungs the moment a gunshot was heard. To use such weapons in a small-scale battle was only proof that things were more serious than anyone would have anticipated.
“Chep, please,” Kiprono shouted, “I’m begging you, don’t let this be the end!” Chepngetich was surprised by the desperation he voiced. Her senses dulled due to both the shock she felt and the blood loss.
“Don’t let it end – I still need my family. I can’t lose them. I can’t lose you!” Tears brimmed in his eyes. She was lost for words. Were her poor decisions the cause of all this suffering? Was she the reason that Kiprono was crying? She feebly held onto Kiprono’s hand as her own eyes started to water. She couldn’t believe that she let her own selfish pursuits lead to the potential doom of her family and her community. In her mind, she saw her mother’s sorry face as the strange men entered their home and apprehended her husband, the father of Chepngetich. She heard her uncanny screams as she tried to resist them. What they did to her, she wouldn’t dare try to remember. She wondered where her humanity had gone as she saw the limp bodies of the attacked. The only thing she thought about was the fact that she would be able to keep things as they were. She was sorry that realization hit too late. So much damage had been done, was she able to right her wrongs?
“Kiprono, I shouldn’t have conspired with the enemy,” she began to say. Tears crawled. Kiprono did not expect that sort of sincerity from her so suddenly.
“Tell me.” Her voice was so much stronger. “Look me in the eyes and tell me that I can fix this.” Against all odds, Chepngetich saw the corners of Kiprono’s lips curved into a smile. He lifted his hand and placed it on her brow. “As long as you have the will to completely change everything, you can.”
Chepngetich was completely reassured that Kiprono’s words were enough to put her at ease. The warmth in his gaze further contributed to her sudden sense of relaxation.
“It’s nice to see that you have finally grown, Chep.” Perhaps she had finally grown; she may have gotten rid of that selfish side of her that only wanted everything to be done for her benefit. But to redeem herself, she would have to make amends with many of her demons. She would have to face her father and her entire community. Of course, she would not evade punishment, but she would save so many people from suffering the consequences of her poor decisions.
“Do you think I’ll make it through?” Chepngetich asked Kiprono.
“I will be there, right by your side, and make sure that you do.”
“Okay then,” she said as Kiprono pulled her up. “Let’s do this.”
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Read – The Gender Reveal – A Short Story by Imade Ehigiator – Nigeria
