OYINLOLA

"Oyinlola! Ha! Shame! Shame on you!" Rebecca buried her head in her palms, starting to sob and shake. She got up and started pacing the room, suddenly landing her 17 year old daughter a heavy slap. 

Rebecca had believed that threatening to disown her daughter if she ever came home pregnant, would keep her away from boys. She was wrong. 

Oyinlola bowed her head, hot tears running down her checks, confused, angry. How would she tell her mother what had really happened? She couldn't find the words.

Oyin started to tell her story. 

I was the only daughter my mother had, after trying severally. There were 5 boys before me. My mother was determined to discipline me as much as she was ready to spoil me silly. We were comfortable enough; we didn't have to beg neither did we live lavishly either. Mummy always told me...

"Oyinle-ola! You must never take this terrible habit to your husband's house".

 " If I see any boy come to look for you in the house, you are in big trouble! You hear??". 

"Make sure you never in your life, allow any boy or man to touch you. If you even dream of getting pregnant, I will disown you! S'ogbo?!"

The list was endless. My brothers never got half of the 'training' my parents vigorously put me under. They were always in the sitting room, constantly disturbing the peace of the house, whenever there was a football match or playing one video game or the other. Sometimes they would go out and not come home until 3am. My room was the one closest to the gate, so I would hear the banging and car honks whenever they got back. My mum was always traveling and my dad lived with his second wife. He would just pop in sometimes to see us and hand us money to get whatever extra things we needed. They both felt I was old enough to take care of myself. I was alone in the house most of the time. Friends? I snuck them into the house sometimes. I entertained all sorts of people. I needed them to think I was the rich and cool kid. A lot of them didn't even have half of what I did.