[WE 116] The Stranger-sister for the Weekend.

One of the oddest things happened to me on Friday evening while returning home from the supermarket. I met this old man in his mid 80s or so, he looked really aged and feeble. His hair was scanty with grey and in his right hand was a rickety walking stick while in his left, he held unto a young lady.

As usual, I was walking and minding my business, my earphones were plugged in and 'Real Friends' by Camila Cabello was on play. Then suddenly, I felt a gentle tap on my shoulder, it was startling though.

“Good evening my daughter”. The old man said with a grin. “Good evening sir”. I responded awkwardly as I removed my earphones.

“My granddaughter is homeless at the moment, could you please take her in for the weekend? I'll come back for her by this time on Sunday”. He said. I was dumbfounded at first 😳... Like, do I know you from somewhere? But of course I didn't say that out loud, lol. I have my manners.

I looked at the girl, she was quite the beauty, about my age, pretty pleading eyes and a brown skin that managed to glow despite the filthy clothes she had on. I turned my eyes back to the old man and his facial expression was pitiable.

Ugh! I really can't refuse old people or babies. They're the only ones who can charm me effortlessly. So, I obliged and even offered to take in the old man too but he refused. Since I didn't sense any impeding danger from their countenance and luckily my parents were out of town, I thought it was alright. Even though mom and dad would kill me if they ever found out I took in a stranger at our house. (So please don't tell on me 🤫).

Getting home, I made sure the girl had her bath first, gave her a few of my clothes to wear, and dished her some of the Egusi soup and eba I prepared earlier that Friday. Judging by the way she emptied and licked her plate, she must've been really hungry all day. I couldn't help but watch and pity her. She didn't say a word about what led to her situation or her grandfather and for some reason I chose not to ask.

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Saturday started off well for the both of us, we cleaned up the house, ate breakfast and enjoyed the rest of the day indoors because she didn't want to go out. Anyway, we got along so naturally like we'd known each for years.

We laughed, played games, watched movies, cooked, shared jokes and stories together. Did I mention that she was witty? Oh she had an answer to every life question and a solution to every problem.

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At some point, I began to wonder if she was my Godsent angel. And because we shared so much in common ranging from our hobbies to our personalities, mindset, goals, etc. she became my new bestie, a real friend and a sister I never had. In her, I found comfort and someone who could fully understand me. In a way, it was odd because I'm not the type to grow attached to someone so easily.

Time flew so fast and Sunday came. We had a good time too. Though indoors, it was still do much fun. She shared with me some of her cooking recipes and a her singing skill. Not only was she beautiful, her voice was too. Together, we sang along to many songs. I totally forgot she was just a stranger... A stranger who became a sister.

Evening came and I heard a knock on my door, I wasn't expecting anyone and wondered who it could be. As I opened the door, lo and behold, it was that same old man I met on Friday. How on earth did he locate my house?? At that moment, I had a flashback of the last words he said to me.

The old man took his granddaughter and left after offering many thanks and prayers which I can't recall because I was still pretty much in a perplexed state. We parted too quickly without a proper goodbye.

Now, I know you must be wondering why I kept using the “she” pronoun and not her name 💁. Well, that's because I never even knew her name. I just realized we didn't tell each other our names 🤦. Can you imagine that? 😅 We were literally just stranger-sisters for the weekend 🙂.

It's disappointing and still feels surreal that our bond had to end that way. I can only hold unto to our little cherished memories and hope that we'd meet again someday.

I wrote this for @galenkp's weekend-engagement concept [WE 116] on the weekend experiences community. I hope you enjoyed it ☺️. You can read here for more details about the concept.

THANKS FOR READING! ❤️