She didn’t expect a proposal on Valentine’s day but the sight before her left her speechless. “The decorations and the planning put together for the surprise proposal must have cost him a fortune,” she thought. She had woken up that morning feeling dejected because her love life was nothing to write home about. Cephas didn’t behave as if he was going to propose to her anytime soon, in fact, she had always thought the relationship was one-sided and she was forcing herself on him. She sometimes wondered if a curse had been placed on her or what else could have been the reason she was not yet married at 28 years. Education was not a barrier; she had completed her bachelor’s degree at the prestigious University of Ibadan before proceeding for her master’s degree at Alabama State University in the United States. She was wealthy too having built a company in her name with many branches all over the world. She didn’t have the luxury of time to dwell on the thoughts of the possible cause of her misfortune because she had an outing with her twin sister that morning. It had been their tradition to hang out every Valentine’s day since they were 20 years old. She wouldn’t want to keep her twin waiting so she dashed off to the bathroom.
Getting out of the bathroom, she realized that she had not selected the outfit she was going to wear for the party. She hurriedly browsed through her collection of clothes before settling for a royal blue turtleneck top, black jean trousers, white blazers, and a matching white stilettos and handbag. She had headed for the door before she remembered that she didn’t know the venue of the restaurant she was to meet her twin sister. After many failed attempts to communicate with her twin sister, she sat down on her bed feeling unhappy about the situation. Out of frustration, she laid on her bed while reminiscing; how she lost her parents in a ghastly accident, how she had to move from one orphanage home to another because no one was ready to accept twins, how she finally had a foster mother who took good care of her, how she eventually became reunited with her twin sister at the University of Ibadan. She was brought back to reality by the sound from her phone. Her twin sister had sent the location of the restaurant.
She got to the restaurant only to discover that her twin sister had not yet arrived. She wasn’t surprised because her sister was not always time conscious. She chose a comfortable place to sit and placed an order for a drink while she waited for her sister. Thoughts of Cephas filled her mind. There were a lot of things bothering her. Was he planning to propose or was he just playing with her feelings? If he planned to propose, when would he propose? They hardly spent time together, he was always traveling for one business trip or the other. It was not as if she was bothered about the trips, she was only scared that he wouldn’t have time to remember to propose to her even if he planned to. She scrolled through her chats with him as she sipped her glass of juice. He had been in London since the beginning of the year which was quite unusual. His business trips usually last for a maximum of three weeks. Cephas had been so caring, always asking about her whereabouts and getting her gifts anytime he came back from his trips. She wanted to move the relationship forward but he didn’t seem like he was interested in taking the relationship to the next level.
She was taken aback by a sudden shout of her name. She recognized the voice anywhere and anytime. It was Mercy, her twin sister. “It is nice to see you Favour.” Mercy said looking all radiant with a beaming smile. She stood up to hug her as a response to her greetings while Mercy kept on talking about the weather and how she was forced to wear blazers. It was then Favour realized that she and Mercy wore matching outfits. The only difference was that Mercy wore a navy blue turtleneck top while she wore a royal blue turtleneck top. Mercy kept on teasing her that she had aged backward over the years and had become more beautiful. Favour had to place an order on behalf of her twin sister because Mercy didn’t seem as if she was going to stop teasing her soon. It was then Mercy noticed that her twin sister had been unusually quiet and withdrawn. “Is something wrong? You look worried and worked up. Are you fine?” Mercy asked. Favour only nodded her head and requested the menu from the waiter.
“There is a lot to talk about. I have gist for you ranging from my career to my relationship. A lot has happened in the past year.” Mercy said excitedly as she anticipated her twin sister’s response but Favour only nodded and signaled to her to continue. Mercy continued talking about her fashion industry. She was the CEO of Mercy Fashion and Beauty Industry, one of the best fashion industries in Africa, that specializes in skincare products, hair products, make-up, clothing, and other accessories. It was a fast-rising multimillionaire company. She also told her twin sister how she had to fire the manager she had employed to oversee her company in Ghana because he embezzled the funds and almost made the company bankrupt. “Is something the matter? You don’t seem to be in your jovial mood today.” Mercy commented after noticing that Favour had been unusually quiet. Favour was about to talk when Mercy’s phone rang. It was Maxwell, Mercy’s boyfriend. He wanted to ask about her whereabouts. He had suggested the restaurant when she asked him for a suitable place she and her twin sister could hang out. It was then she remembered that she had not told her sister about accepting to date Maxwell.
“Who was that?” Favour asked suspiciously immediately she ended the call. “It’s Maxwell” Mercy said beaming with smiles. Mercy had to remind Favour who Maxwell was after seeing the blank expression on her face. It took Favour a lot of time before she recollected that Maxwell was the guy that once asked Mercy out while they were in the university but she had declined claiming she had to focus on her academics. Mercy went on talking about how she had kept in touch with him since their university days but had not had the opportunity to see him after she graduated. She also talked about how they met the previous year at a restaurant near her company in Abuja. They had greeted each other cheerfully and he toured her company, they’d been close since then. He had asked her out again in July and she had gladly accepted. He had been the nicest guy she ever came across. He had all the qualities she wanted – handsome, caring, wealthy, and classy. They had been in close contact since then and sometimes traveled together to tour. They also discussed various business ideas and growth strategies and she found herself loving him deeply.
“How is Cephas?” Mercy asked after seeing her twin sister had been staring at her without uttering any word. Favour sighed before she responded that he was doing well and was currently on a business trip to London. She also told her twin sister how she was not sure Cephas wanted to marry her because he had not talked about marriage since they started dating two years ago. She was certain a curse had been placed on her so she won’t get married and bear children. She had met Cephas at a time she had given up on romantic relationships. She accepted to date him because he was a close friend, besides, she was aging and needed to settle down as soon as she could. Cephas was her kind of man; very industrious and creative. He also had his multimillionaire textile company which was the best in Africa and one of the top ten worldwide. She was indeed blessed to have a man like Cephas in her life but she was scared that he would eventually leave her and dump her for ladies who were younger than her. She was scared that he wouldn’t find her attractive with time. She remembered envisioning getting married before 25 years when she was a teenager. Alas! fate was against her.
Mercy smiled sadly. She could feel her twin sister’s pain. Favour had always been someone who wanted to settle down and have her family early while she believed that there was nothing wrong with a late marriage. She could remember a particular day at the orphanage home when they were around 13 years, Favour entered the room shouting excitedly that the number of years that remained for her to get married was not up to the years she had spent on Earth. Little did she know that she was not going to get married early. Mercy could not blame her, it was the vision of her starting a family of her own that kept her going. It was her way of escaping reality. They had been separated since they were 15 years. A rich family had come to adopt Favour. It was a tough moment for them. Two days after, another rich family adopted her. They were an elderly couple with grown-up children who were not in Nigeria. They treated her like a queen and she was glad to stay with them, nevertheless, she was unhappy because she wasn’t with her sister, nor did she know her whereabouts. Her joy knew no bounds when they met at the University of Ibadan. They became inseparable since then. They both did their masters in America before relocating to Nigeria to settle down. Favour had always been the industrious type while she had been the fashion type.
They had celebrated their last birthday together. It was a large party and friends as well as acquaintances flew from all over the world to grace the occasion. Some who were not able to attend extended their greetings and sent gifts. They received lots of gifts and were the talk of the town. They became the headline of newspapers and the subject of discussion. They were interviewed by various TV stations and their fame grew. They had promised to share their story with the world on their next birthday which was fast approaching. They had to plan on how to celebrate it. This was one of the reasons they were having the valentine’s hangout. Favour was not talking so Mercy had to look for a way to introduce the topic but before she could say anything Favour’s phone started ringing. It was Cephas and from the way they spoke, it seemed as if he was back from his trip.
Favour ended the call and started smiling excitedly. She told Mercy that Cephas said he was back and he had a surprise for her and was on his way to the restaurant. Though she didn’t know what the surprise was, she knew it couldn’t be a marriage proposal because he didn’t seem like someone ready to get married anytime soon. She was optimistic about the gift and waited anxiously for his arrival. Not long after, Maxwell sent Mercy a text that he was almost at the restaurant. Mercy was happy and showed Favour the text. Favour was also excited because she was going to meet Maxwell officially and Maxwell was also going to meet Cephas. It seemed like a family mini party. She hoped they all got along well so that the relationship between her and her twin sister will remain cordial. Mercy reassured her that Maxwell and Cephas would get along pretty well and would have things in common. They went ahead to discuss their next birthday party which promised to be huge and fun.
As they were talking, a waiter handed over to Favour a letter with a rose attached claiming it was from an anonymous man. She opened the letter and she read out the words “I have a surprise for you. Follow the waiter. From your one and only.” She smiled because she knew only Cephas could have written the note. Mercy volunteered to accompany her for the surprise. The waiter led her to a room that looked like a mini hall and urged her to open the door. She didn’t expect a proposal on Valentine’s day but the sight before her left her speechless. The room was beautifully decorated with a sign that read “Will you marry me?”. Mercy squealed excitedly for joy on her behalf. Favour anticipated seeing Cephas with the ring but she received a phone call from him instead. He asked about her whereabouts. It was then she discovered that the proposal was not meant for her. “It is not meant for me. There’s a mix-up somewhere,” she said as she burst out in tears. Just then Maxwell came in, apparently, the proposal was for Mercy and not her but the waiter had mixed them up because they were identical and dressed the same way. Oblivious of what was happening, Maxwell proposed to Mercy and she accepted but Favour ran out of the room in tears.
Mercy ran after her but stopped in her tracks when she heard Cephas calling her name. He had been searching for Favour and her and had no idea of where they were because Favour didn’t pick up his calls. Mercy explained what happened to him and they searched for Favour together. Maxwell joined them in the search. Mercy eventually found her inside the female’s toilet sobbing. Mercy brought her out and they drove to her house after telling Maxwell and Cephas that she had been found. Favour ran to her bedroom immediately they arrived at her house. She didn’t expect a proposal on Valentine’s day but her hopes were raised when she saw the decorated room at the restaurant. She slept off but was woken up by a loud melodious sound coming from her sitting room. She wondered what was happening. She went to the sitting room only to discover that it had been decorated. She glanced around the room and the only person she saw was Cephas kneeling on one knee with a box containing a ring in his hands. “Will you marry me?” he asked. Out of excitement, she jumped on him as she said yes. It was then she saw that Mercy and Maxwell were present as well. She didn’t expect a proposal on Valentine’s day but Cephas proposed.
About the Writer
I am Excel Olunusi, a geology student of University of Ibadan. I am passionate about motivating people so as to make the world a better placeI. also design graphics and can be reached via ebullientexcel@gmail.co.
