“Out of all of the men in the world? Him?” 

Those words circled 25-year-old Sarah’s little head- each time it grew louder and caused her heart to beat louder and harder. 

The words weren’t the only thing that made her worry, but the aftermath of the speech. That’s when all hell broke loose in her living room. She never thought fire would descend on her home like that in the Balogun home. 

But now, there was no screaming, and threats like before, but worse, silence. 

Silence was never a good thing, especially when it came from her parents, who were just like every Dramatic Nigerian parent out there. It was like a ticking bomb was bound to go off. 

Sarah’s father, George, had never been angry like this; the only time she had seen him upset was when he found out that someone had tried to take advantage of his wife. He took his late father’s old hunting rifle and was ready to cause havoc. If not for the policemen who restrained him, Sarah’s father would have been arrested.

This time around, she feared that no policeman would save her. Only God could. 

George kept releasing long hums and his leg kept shaking. It was like the anger in him kept rising. He would release a hum and chuckle out loud. But nothing was funny about this situation. 

Sarah looked towards her mother, hoping that she would step in and make this situation better, lighter like she always managed to do for others. 

Her mother, Yosola caught her glance and scoffed and crossed her arms. She knew that the situation couldn’t be fixed by Pounded Yam, loving, or all that she was skilled in.  

Sarah knew she had to do it herself. After all, this was her fight. She adjusted herself on the couch and prepped herself for hell. “Daddy,” She called out. 

“A Muslim.” Sarah’s father, George spoke in a cool voice. Even though it was, it still sent goosebumps down her spine. Sarah once again glanced at her mother, hoping she would fight for her. Instead, she crossed her arms and let out a hum. 

George stood up abruptly, facing his daughter. Sarah stood up almost immediately, hoping to hide behind her mother for protection. 

“Out of all the men in Lagos?!” George yelled,” Him! What were you thinking?! Are you even thinking?!”

Sarah once again looked at her mother, silently pleading that she would fight for her. Yosola knew of the romantic relationship for about five months and had kept it a secret from her husband. She didn’t think her youngest daughter was very serious about the Muslim, Jamal until she brought him home for an introduction. 

“ANSWER ME!” George yelled at his daughter. Sarah swallowed the lump in her throat before answering in a cool tone,” Daddy, you said we shouldn’t judge-“

George’s loud and unusual laughter stopped her. He laughed and looked at his wife,” Please, what did we do to deserve this? What did we do to deserve such clueless girls? Girls that don’t know how to think!”

“I love him!” Sarah yelled out. George’s laughing suddenly stopped. Yosola’s jaw dropped after her daughter’s bold revelation; she shook her head, saying,” You shouldn’t have.”

George took a dangerous step towards Sarah and consciously, she took a step back. 

“You love him?”

She nodded and found the courage to say,” Yes, I do.” 

George’s hand twitched, hoping to connect with his daughter’s face. He hadn’t beaten his children for 15 years, because they weren’t babies anymore, but it was clear that they needed correction. 

He took a deep breath and asked sincerely,” Where do you think this relationship will get to?” 

Maybe it was just a fling that young people get into for the sake of fun and experience.

She shrugged as an answer. George glanced at Yosola and concluded,” She is not serious, she is not serious. Yosola, listen to your daughter-”

“I hope to marry him.” Sarah acclaimed. 

His heart skipped a beat at her response and how unbelievably sincere it was. Yosola once again hummed. Today, fire would fall and it wasn’t from her incessant mountain of fire prayers. 

“And your faith in God, where does it stand?” George asked the most important question,” How do you intend to be with a man who doesn’t love God, or live for him? What do your Sundays look like? What do your children believe is the truth?” 

Sarah didn’t know what question to answer. George yelled,” HOW WILL THEY KNOW THE TRUTH?” 

Right there and then, Sarah realized what her father was saying. He wasn’t rejecting Jamal because he was a bad boy and into bad things. He was looking out for her and her spiritual journey. 

“Daddy, it will be alright. We know what we are doing.” She assured him. 

He shook his head in disappointment,” I thought you would know better, that you were smart. Do you know how this looks to God?” 

Sarah felt her entire world crash at the sound of those words; George walked past her, mumbling more words of disappointment. Sarah glanced towards Yosola and knew the next thing to come, from the look of her face. 

“I think we need to talk,” Yosola said then took a deep breath. She gestured towards the sofa, asking that she take a seat. Sarah knew that today was the day of decision-making. 

&&&

Jamal’s veins pumped with angry blood; If not that George was the love of his life’s father, he wouldn’t have hesitated to fight him and clear him for all the horrible words he had said concerning him. . How could someone treat him like that?

“Is that how Christians treat others who don’t believe in their God?” He thought.

More of the million reasons why he would never be a Christian. They were all hypocrites. 

Sarah was to blame; She was the one who insisted that they talk to her parents and let them know of their love. He was completely fine with the secret relationship. 

Now, it seemed like everyone was against him. Including his harsh mother, who didn’t want to hear Sarah’s name, or see her anywhere around him. 

He heard the door knock and took a deep breath. Checking through the window, he could see Sarah. He didn’t think she would be here so quickly. Honestly, he thought her fanatic parents would lock her up and seize her phone.  

He sighed before opening the door. Sarah looked as though her entire world had fallen apart. To comfort her, he opened his arms and she quickly ran into it. He pawned her hair as she ranted,” I didn’t think he was going to react like that. I’m sorry that everything turned sideways.”

“Your dad was too mean and reacted without reason” Jamal recalled how George nearly punched him in the face.  

She pulled away from his arms and scoffed,” What did you expect?”

Jamal scoffed,” What do you mean by that?”

Sarah shook her head to the voice that said she should be defensive. The only reason why she was here was to know her true fate and where she stood. 

She interlocked her fingers with his,” We need to talk.” 

The four letter words that he didn’t like to hear. We need to talk. Sarah was fond of talking, even though she was introverted, Sarah had a lot of words to say.

She led him to the couch and once they sat down, she remembered the words of her mother,” Who is ready to compromise?”

The talk with her mother went the way she expected- impactful. Her mother asked her the three questions that she had not been thinking about. 

Do you love him enough to marry him and everything about him? Do you want him to be a Christian? How does this relationship glorify God?

The last question made her cry because she knew the answer. She remembered all those nights she woke up naked in Jamal’s bed and she had been a part of Jamal’s best friend’s rendezvous. 

It was clear. This night was that of truth. 

Jamal guessed that her parents had spoken a lot to her because he could feel Sarah visibly shaking. Her palms were sweaty. She looked at his face and his heart thundered hard, taking in her facial expression. Her eyes were dewy, meaning that it was going to be an emotional day. 

“What’s the matter?” He asked and ran a hand over her thighs. She paused, watching his hands move in a circular motion. Jamal didn’t know the excruciating and intense power he had over her. Just a simple touch and she was ready to leave everything for him. 

Her mind flashed to three months ago- the moment she broke her celibacy oath for him.

“He is making you do things you don’t want to.” Yosola’s voice resounded in her head after she had told her that they had been sexually active. Yosola didn’t hit her or yell at her like she expected. Instead, she handled things calmly. She knew that people in their twenties made stupid decisions. It was her job as a mother to guide her back on the right track. 

Sarah zapped away from her reverie and asked immediately,” Do you love me, Jamal?” 

Jamal immediately narrowed his brows at her abrupt question. He cleared his throat, ready to reassure her.

“Even if you were a potato.” He answered with a charming smile. She shook her head,” No, I mean, do you love me?” 

He looked into her eyes; he thought about it, but didn’t go deep into detail, because it may freak her out,” Yes, I love you.”

“And you would do anything for me?” She was driving to a point. He nodded in response. She exhaled,” Jamal, we’re from different religions-”

At the mention of the topic, Jamal immediately stood up,” Oh no, not that.”

“We’ve been avoiding the talk.” Sarah knew that there was no way to run away from the serious discussion,” And you know we need to have it.”

“Yes, but it doesn’t change the fact that I love you, Sarah. Or what, you believe it’s something else like your father does?” 

Sarah took a deep breath and asked the question at the tip of her tongue,” Jamal, would you ever consider converting to a Christian?”

Jamal didn’t answer the question, instead replied with another,” What good would that do to us?”

“To us? Jamal, that’s one of the things bothering us right now, standing between us,” She said,” The aspect of Religion and I’ve been trying-”

“I know,” He knew that Sarah had been trying to convince him to give his life to Christ,” I see you with the subtle bible messages, the links to prayer time, and all of that.”

“Exactly.” Hope filled her as she thought Jamal would give her the response she wanted to hear. Until he declared,” I am a Muslim. You know we don’t believe in God.” 

She shook her head, refusing to hear his beliefs,” If you love me…”

Jamal shook his head to whatever manipulative thing Sarah had to say,” Sarah, no, don’t you dare!”

“I’ve done everything for you, compromised my faith, my relationship with God!” She cried. Jamal chuckled humorlessly at her claim,” I never begged you to sleep with me.”

“I did it either way.” She frowned,” And God knows that if I wasn’t with you, I wouldn’t have. If I was with a strong Christian-”

At that point, Jamal started to laugh, but Sarah continued,” He would be able to wait with me-”

“I can’t believe it.” Jamal shook his head,” You’re pushing the fact that you were horny, that you couldn’t control yourself on me. Sarah, this is crazy. Did I push you? Did I force you? Did I make you get on your knees-?”

She stopped him halfway by hitting him across the cheek. Jamal shook his head and muttered,” What? You lack self-control, dear Christian. Both here and inside the bedroom.”

She narrowed her eyes at his crude and harsh words,” Shut up.”

“And you think that by seeing how you live, I would want to consider being one of Christ’s?” He threw another jab,” Would rather die”.

Tears streamed down her face. The conversation had taken a U-turn. She had thought Jamal would agree to be a Christian, she would pray for him, he would be filled with the spirit and they would live their lives together, raising Godly children and serving the Lord. 

She took a deep breath before saying,” I love you, Jamal, but I can’t be with someone who doesn’t share the same faith that I do. Sometimes, I have this joy, this internal joy that I can’t explain, and I can’t share with you because you wouldn’t understand. I know it is difficult, but if you just open your mind and think about the fact that God exists.”

“I have a maker.” Jamal said,” And it is not yours.”

“Will It ever be mine?” She asked heart in anticipation of his response. He couldn’t outright say the words. He moved closer to her and cupped her face. That’s when the tears broke out. 

“It doesn’t have to matter.” He let her know,” I want to marry you, not your God. I want to marry you for you, not for your religion. You know that we have plans. You know about them.”

“And the children?” She reminded him of an important factor. 

“Let them figure out who to believe, what to believe.” Jamal said, waving them off,” What matters is you and I.”

“Right?” He moved closer to her; His lips brushed hers; she felt weak in the knees. This was the Jamal Power. 

“My love…” He exhaled,” Don’t let them ruin what we have planned together. Tell me that you’re on the same page with me?”

He pleaded softly” Tell me that you understand me.”

Sarah knew what was right. She knew that each day her heart was burdened with the fact that she was with someone who wasn’t good for her spiritual growth. She knew what to do. 

She muttered her answer against his lips,” That is not the kind of story I have for my life, I have this thought, this vision, of my children worshipping God, my husband and I raising Godly Children.”

Jamal flew off the handle at the sound of children, turning away from her. 

“Then what are you doing with me?!” Jamal snarled. 

“That is what everyone wants to know.” Her voice broke.  

“And what do you think?” He wanted to know. She couldn’t bring herself to verbally answer, instead, she looked away from him. 

Jamal’s heart thundered hard at her lack of response. It meant much worse. He held her hand,” Sarah…”

She didn’t want to look at him, because it would compel her to stay and he knew it. He cupped her face and looked into her dark eyes,” Sarah, don’t do this.”

Sarah knew what she had to do. She couldn’t bring herself to do it now, so she said,” Give me time.”

He nodded, knowing what it meant, but also choosing to believe that something good may come through. 

For days, he waited to see what her verdict was. He texted, called, and asked if she had made up her mind. On the 13th of February, a day before Valentine's Day, one of the most important days of all, Sarah showed up and decided to do what she had been instructed to. 

To leave Jamal. 

That day, Sarah came to his house with a puffy face, tear-stained cheeks, and a box filled with his belongings- He didn’t need her to say the words. She was tired of entertaining the story of dating a Muslim. Jamal thought about what he could do to make her stay.

But how could he love her God? Who was he and what had he done for him to abandon his belief? Or the Maker who had been there for him since birth? 

Unlike Jamal, Sarah had unusual peace of mind after ending things with him. She spent the morning of February 13th, crying and pleading, asking God to change his mind and allow her to be with him. She expected the words,” Go on and be with him.”

Instead, her God had said,” He’s not the one.” 

And not only did he say that, but sent strangers to let her know that Jamal was not the one for her. What could she do but obey the words of her maker?

Even though she mourned her love for Jamal, which was slowly dying, she knew the right person would show up at the right time, and it wasn’t Jamal.