Midnight Shrub

Prologue

“Tell me you’re joking; it can’t be true! How could you do this to me? You said it would not end this way. You promised.” His facial expression had a mixture of anger and sadness. I could see him fighting back all the tears while pacing around the room. I wanted to console him but I knew better.
I mean for god’s sake I was getting married. I was lost in thoughts when he said something that brought me back to reality.
“Let’s run away” The three words I feared would slip from his lips. “Yes, let’s run somewhere far and hide”
“Udoh,” I said with a soft voice while fighting my tears back. “I love you so much. I do but I can’t. I’m the only daughter of my father. He is royalty…and….and” I began to stammer; I couldn’t bring myself to say it so I just kept quiet.
“I am a commoner” he broke the silence. “That’s the truth, isn’t it? I am a southerner so I can’t be your lover or even think of marrying you”  Fact “Hauwa”, he called my name.
He came closer, a foot away from me and looked deeply into my eyes. The eyes I love losing myself in. “Baby, let’s run away”
“We can go somewhere far and hidden to start a life there”. He pleaded with his eyes. “Baby, please tell me you will follow me. Trust me with your heart. Prove that the promises you made were not just empty but held the world in them.”
I lost my voice. I couldn’t bring myself to turn him down but I knew better than to accept his proposal. Being logical was always the right thing to do, even if my heart was shredding into a million pieces.
“Udoh”, I said with a cracking voice, “I can’t follow you. You know what will happen if we end up together. Even if, even if we do run away” I said, biting back my sobs. “Who says we can run away from the gods? You know what will happen if we get married and have a child. He or she will come to this world to only suffer. It’s taboo for us to be together. The shame, the curse, the…”
“Who? Who said so?” He interrupted me with a sharp voice. “Who made the law that people of different tribes can’t end up with each other? Then what’s the point of this thing called ‘unity’? Why can’t I end up with the girl I love?!!” he roared.
The way he was saying all these just made things worse for me. I couldn’t control my emotions anymore so I began to cry. I had no trouble leaving with Udoh but I know where I come from. I know my father. I know what he’s capable of.  It won't just end with Udoh having to be denied access into the Central City throughout his lifetime. He was going to kill Udoh, I knew him that much.
I hugged him. I needed to comfort his heart. “He’s going to kill you”.
“I know,” he replied.
“You must be mad to be okay with it.”
“Who is ever okay with the fact that they’re dying? Look Hauwa”, he tried to sound reassuring “I love you a lot, and I’m not sure I can do without you. I don’t want to regret not holding you back and begging you to go with me. So, I’ll ask you one more time. Will you go with me?”
If there is anything I'm sure of, it is the fact we aren’t the first lovers to think of this madness. However,  now no one has survived going through with it, and I don't want to add us to the list.
I pulled away from his hug so I could see his face better. His eyes were studying me with a look of sorrow and desperation.
Udoh is very handsome with his dark brown hair and slender stature. His eyes were the colour of his hair and he had this very warm face that can melt your heart without even trying. Did I want to leave all this behind? A nice, funny and understanding man? He is just twenty-five years old but he advises one of the advisers in the council of elders. I always imagined him taking that position later in life. This is the man I want and need. I wasn’t going to let my father take this away from me. I was over a hundred per cent sure that I was going to regret taking this action, but like what youths who are in love do, I made a crazy decision.
“Yes, I will. When do we leave?” his face lit up.

My eyes fly open. I’m welcomed by the familiar sounds of the owl hooting.  Trying to calm my nerves, I breathe in and out of relief. I am me; I say sitting on my bed touching my body for confirmation. Thank goodness it was all a dream. Thank the gods, but then-
Dream?!!
Dream?!!
Dreeeeam?!!!
Oh no, it can’t be. I stared at myself in the mirror close to my bedside.
It wasn’t the dream that terrified me, it was the fact I could dream me wish I didn't wake up.
The pain I felt in the dream felt so real. I could feel my heart ache so much. My chest was in pain from all the crying I did. It felt close. Why did it feel so real?
As I stared at the mirror, I remembered my dream. The girl I saw wasn’t me. I saw someone that looked familiar but wasn’t me. I tried remembering the girl in my dream.
“Hauwa”. That was what he called me. The name sounded familiar yet foreign to my ears. Mama? Mama’s name was Hauwa. Could it be?
Someone scared of her father, just like I am. Her lover, there was something off about him. He also looked familiar. Udoh, his name, wasn't northern at all. More like the name of a southerner. This was confusing.
All these don’t matter Nabila, I slapped myself so I could start thinking straight. Why did you dream? I can’t afford to have something wrong with me just a few months before the Crown. Worse, I can't afford to die now.
Trying my best not to be tensed up and forget it all, I listened to the stillness of the wind, inhaled the fresh morning air and emptied my thoughts. I closed my eyes, forgetting the itch in my veins, blocking out whatever happened to me while I was asleep and not tapping into the fact that the girl was going to get killed for running away. I try to search for the peace that is locked in my mind.
Peace.
Peace.
Peace.
Breathe in, breathe out, meditate. Focus Nabila. Focus. Focus. Focus
Arrrggghh!!!!
What’s wrong with this stupid camp???!!
I am trying to find quiet but instead, I hear training weapons clashing against each other, people doing their morning war chants. But nothing ticks me off more than that stupid dog. That stupid dog! Whose idea was it to use a dog as a wake-up call and not a bird? I hate it!!
After a very long sigh, I finally stood up, put on my combat attire, carried my training weapon and decided to leave my comfort zone.
“Yes! This is going to be a bad day” I said with a beautiful smile on my face.
It’s not the dream that worries me.
It’s the fact I could dream that had me scared for my life.
I need answers to why I could dream and who those people were.
I hope it was all a mistake. The Gods must have made a mistake.