Last updated on April 7th, 2023 at 06:29 pm
The last time Jude came, nurse Sade was in the room and it seemed as if she was in a no-nonsense mood that evening. In this mood, I dared not argue with her, I swallowed my drugs as she instructed and did whatever she asked including dropping my phone and sleeping.
“Mr Jude, have you come with food for your wife?” Nurse Sade asked.
“No, good evening. How is your work?” He asked with contempt. As usual, he was sitting at a distance from me as if moving close to my bed could make him ill.
“So, you just came to visit?” Nurse Sade replied shooting daggers at Jude. Jude shifted uncomfortably in his chair and gave no response. The nurse left and Jude faced me if looks could kill.
“Lape, have you been feeding this nurse some trash about me?” He asked after being pensive for some minutes. To say I was horrified would have been an understatement. “What trash?”
“You want to say you didn’t see how rude she talks to me.” He put a lot of emphasis on the last word.
“How’s that my business? Does she look like someone that wants to gossip with anyone?”
“Lape,” He said harshly then looked towards the door and cautioned himself. In a lower voice, he continued, sounding like a threat, “if I find out that you told that silly nurse some dumb things about me or us, you would hate yourself. I mean it.”
“Ah, okay o. This guilty conscience sha.” I mumbled loud enough for him to hear. I think his attitude really got to me this time because I couldn’t remember ever talking to him like this.
“What did you say? Ehn? Don’t try me, I am warning you. Even in your condition, I can send you back to your father’s house. When you deliver my child, you bring my child to me!” He was so upset that he didn’t hear the nurse walk in, he had finished his statement before he saw her. He visibly flinched as soon as he saw her. She ignored whatever she had heard and faced me.
“Madam, it’s time to eat, can we go?” I usually ate in the room but I could not argue with the nurse as she suggested I went out of the room to eat.
“Okay,” I replied like a child even though I had no appetite. I was thankful that she came to save me from Jude. I followed her out and we left Jude sitting with his stony face. I had not seen him since then.
***
“Madam, we have to induce you, it is the safest thing to do.”
“Would this reduce the cost of her staying here more than necessary?” Jude asked. The doctor had called him to leave work and report to the hospital as soon as possible.
“Cost? Two people’s lives are at stake here. I can’t really think of that until they are both safe.” The doctor replied.
“Ehn, induce her.”
“Induce her?” I cut into Jude’s statement. He was not even asking how I felt. I had been in the hospital for three weeks and he had only come thrice The last time, he spent five minutes and said he had to rush back to work. Right now, I could not hide my anger. His attitude and nonchalance were embarrassing; it probably would not have been this bad if he did it within our home.
“Ehn, did you not hear that doctor said you have to be induced? Are you deaf?”
“Jude, I am not deaf. Don’t you ever tell me that in your entire life!” The whole facade came crashing and I spilled, he was about to talk but I held up my hand. I doubt he had ever seen me that mad before. “I am carrying your son, and you are acting like I cheated and got pregnant. Don’t ever say I am deaf; do you think this is easy? I could actually die!”
“Is that why you are-” Jude was saying when the doctor decided to intervene.
“Okay okay, let’s press the break now. Considering her health and the fact that she’s about three weeks to her EDD, it makes sense to just induce her so everyone is safe. Her blood pressure is not normalizing and things can get out of hand within the next three weeks. I think she has actually tried.”
The room was quiet, as quiet as a graveyard. Until Jude got up and told the doctor, “Please call me when you have decided, she owns her body after all.” He gave a nasty smirk and left.
The doctor looked truly confused when he faced me and said, “Madam, let’s prepare you for that. Your nurse would be here soon.” Then he left, I am sure he went to probably pull his tie from sheer exhaustion.
***
I closed the tab and moved to the next tab, ‘How does an induction feel?’
I had been googling for almost thirty minutes on what an induction meant and I was scared. The nurse had not come in and I did not even want her to come in. I was considering begging the doctor to allow me to wait, I promised I would be fine. Different women told stories of how they felt when they were induced and had to wait to dilate. Pure torture.
I dropped my phone and fanned my face with my hands even though the AC was on. I should not have gone down this rabbit hole. God, why me? Why am I even a woman? Should I run away? My phone rang and I stopped thinking to focus on who it could be. It was mummy.
“Hello.”
“Lape, Jude said the doctor said you have to be induced and you are refusing ahhh. You want to kill me?”
“Where is this mumu news coming from?” I said, irritated.
“Do you want me to die of high blood pressure on your matter? Should I go and enter bus from Ikire to Osogbo and be coming?” She was screaming and sounding hysterical.
“Mummy, abeg I don’t have the strength for this.”
“Lape, you are talking to me like this. Get induced and give birth to this child that wants to kill you, let him come out.”
“Mummy, did you not ask me to get pregnant? Were you not part of the people that told me to do what I have to do and get pregnant again?!” I screamed.
“Lape, calm down-” I did not hear the rest of what she said as nurse Sade came in and requested my phone. I burst into tears—hard sobs and to my surprise, Sade sat by my side and hugged me without a word.
