It Ended This Way - by Obinna Chilekezi (Flash Fiction 2021)

Obinna Chilekezi lives in Lagos, Nigeria and is an insurance practitioner with a background in librarianship. His poems and stories have appeared in newspapers, journals and anthologies. One of his insurance textbooks won the African Insurance Organisation Book Award in 2016. He has traveled extensively in his West African sub-region and dreams of traveling to other parts of the world.

It Ended This Way

by Obinna Chilekezi

It was not more than an hour until the police arrived, but he was already dead. Stone cold dead from the knife his wife pulled during a fight. Fighting was not unusual for this couple. It had been part of their marriage until this last fight.

This time around, Ngozi, Ben’s wife of three years, had stumbled on a text message from an unknown number which had read, “Darling, why didn’t you come over as promised? You made me waste the whole day waiting.”

Ngozi did not know that the sender was her husband’s male colleague who was just joking around with Ben. But the joke ended up becoming one that would cost too much.

Mike, Ben’s office buddy and he used to send each other such messages as if they were from the opposite sex, just to tease each other throughout the day.

After reading the message, she smiled strangely and said to herself, “This is the evidence that I have been looking for to show that he is cheating on me. He will pay dearly for playing with my emotions.” She smiled to herself wryly again and walked to meet her husband.

Ben was resting on the couch when Ngozi walked to him with his phone in her left hand.

“Who is this idiot that has the audacity to text you like this?” She demanded.

Ben was not in the mood for a fight today, so he remained silent. This infuriated her even more. Ngozi violently threw the phone, shattering its face. She ran to the kitchen and returned with a newly sharpened kitchen knife.

Initially, Ben had thought that it was the same fight of the past where she would make threats and never carried them out. So he remained unperturbed.

“I asked who is the idiot that sent that message?” She demanded again.

“Woman, please. Please allow me to …” Ngozi did not allow him to finish the sentence when she landed the knife forcefully in his stomach. She repeated this several times and Ben crumpled to the ground.

Blood gushed out like that of a newly slaughtered cow. His shouting attracted the neighbours who had contacted the police.

Everyone knew that Ben and Ngozi had been in a very toxic relationship from the day they got married. Ben’s parents had warned him to exit from the marriage, but he had refused. He had told his parents that although his wife was stubborn, she would change. She did not.

Some of their close neighbours were not surprised that it had ended this way. One of the neighbors had called the couple advising them, “Don’t lose your life trying to save your relationship. Kill the relationship, and save your life. Life goes on.”

But they did not listen.

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Setu, April 2021 :: Setu Special Edition: Flash Fiction 2021