The guy I met at the club

When I woke up the next morning, I started recalling events of the last night. I could recall a guy danced with me at the club. I could recall he walked me to my taxi and said something to the taxi driver. I forgot what he said. I could also recall that he gave me his number and told me his name. Everything was blurry because I had too much to drink while at the club. The following weekend, I went to the same club again with Belinda my friend. Just when we entered the club, a guy walked up to me shouting my name, “Hey Pricilla, how have you been? You never called.”

I asked, “I never called? What do you mean?” The laughter on his face vanished. He asked, “Are you not Priscilla?” I said, “Yeah that’s my name. Please where do I know you?” He said, “You were here last weekend. I walked you to the taxi, said good night, and gave you my number. You told me you were going to call immediately you get home. Remember?” I said, “Oh so you’re that guy?” I’m sorry I lost memory of events. I could remember a few of the things that happened but I didn’t know all these you are telling me.” So that night we hang around again. When it was time to dance, I danced with him. Belinda sat with her boyfriend watching us throughout the night.

Anytime I tried drinking something, he would say, “I hope you’re not going to forget this night again. Please calm down on the drink.” He looked like a guy who takes himself seriously. From the way he was dressed and the way he handled me while dancing. He wasn’t scared to hold me but he held me in a way that suggested he knew his boundaries. Throughout the night we danced and talked. I got to know he worked at MTN. I got to know where he lived and what he’s been doing with his life over the past years. I told him something about me too. When it was 1am, Belinda came to call me so we leave.

We said our goodbyes and he gave me his number again. I said, “Let me save it before I lose it again.” He walked us to the car and waved us goodbye. I still remember everything clearly today because that night, I stayed off the bottle. I forgot to call him when I got home and for a week I didn’t call him. He only came to mind when I and Belinda were planning on what to do at the weekend. I called him. I said, “This is Priscilla, the girl you met at the club.” He was excited to hear from me. He said he had been waiting for my call all week. I said I was sorry for not calling earlier. We met again at the club and continued from where we left.

One month later, we were always keeping in touch. One day I told him, “Do you know I don’t know your name?” He said, “So what name did you use to save my number on your phone?” I said, “Club guy.” He said, Keep it like that but I’m Elvis.” Two months later we were inseparable, moving from club to the beach and from the beach to wherever we found happiness. To date, I don’t know when Elvis proposed and how he proposed. I don’t remember saying yes to him but one day we woke up in bed together, puffy eyes and stinky breath, meaning we had a lot to drink the night before. We stayed together all day and we had no problem kissing and doing things. We became lovers who don’t know when they became lovers.

We would go our separate ways all week, doing our things but on weekends, no one could separate us. He’ll come up with a list of places to go on the weekend and I will just say, “Yes, let’s go.” We felt we were on top of the world. There was no place we couldn’t go and there was no distance we couldn’t travel to find happiness. Four months into our relationship, he celebrated his birthday. That was the day I asked his age. He said, “I’m going on twenty-eight.” I asked, “Twenty what?” He repeated his age.” Of course, I heard him the first time. It was our age difference that made me asked him to repeat himself. He was going on twenty-eight when I had five months left to be thirty-two.

I said, “Do you know I’m older than you are?” He said, “You don’t mean it.” I said, “Yeah. I would be thirty-two in a few month’s time. He said, “Thirty-two and you don’t have sense like that?” I said, “You are not worried?” He said, “Would you beat me because you’re older than me? I said, “Stop being foolish and answer my questions.” He said, “Or else you’ll beat me?” We both laughed over it but I needed an answer. He said, “Look at us. Who will ever think you’re older than me if you don’t open your big mouth to say it?”

“You’re calling my pretty lips big?”

“I’m calling your pretty lips big, what can you do?”

I jumped and held his neck “Retract or else?”

And then his parents said we couldn’t marry because I don’t attend their church. He told them, “I don’t even go to church so why can’t I marry because of church?” They said, “You don’t go to church because of her. If you got yourself a decent woman who kept you grounded, you would have known the reason to go to church.” For a whole year, he went back and forth with his parents, while assuring me to keep the faith. We went to his church together oftentimes. I learned a lot and fell in love with the church. I went there and took part in many of their activities. His parents saw my effort and softened their grounds.

So we got married and three months later, I was pregnant—something we didn’t plan. Pregnancy didn’t stop us. We went to places together. We continued going to the club until I was six months pregnant. In my eight months, I found it very hard to sleep. One night I told him, “Take me out.” He looked at the time and said, “It’s already 11pm, where can we go?” I said, “It’s Friday night. You know what I mean? He said, “In this your condition?” We dressed up and went into the car. By the time I opened my eyes, we were parked in front of the house and both of us sleeping in the car. He said, “You slept on your way to the nightclub so I brought you back.” From then on, anytime I couldn’t sleep, he put me inside the car and drove around until I fell asleep.

Until I gave birth, we spent most of our night sleeping in the car as though we owed our landlady some rent. When our baby came, he cried every night. We were so helpless we didn’t know what to do. One night, his father put the music on and he stopped crying immediately. He turned the music off and he began to cry. He said, “You see what you’ve brought to this house? Club baby—baby DJ! Give him a turntable already.”

That’s how come to date, we continue sleeping with the music on!

—Priscilla