Black Coffee (Tara's Dream)|Dearest Diary, - Book 1 (unedited)

XVIII

"Mum?" I called out as I entered the living room. My gaze fell upon two strangers that were lounging contentedly on one of my cream leather settees and I froze in my tracks.

"Attara! Remember Grace and Caleb? They're your cousins. You used to vacation together when you were younger."

"Uhm...Hi?" I waved shyly as I took the seat that was farthest from them.

"Don't you remember us?" The young man said with a smile and I shook my head no as anxiety continued to build up within my chest.

"Of course she doesn't remember us. She was so little back then." The lady whose name was Grace told him while fixed me with a reassuring gaze.

"Technically speaking, you were all very young," Caleb said and a sneered formed on Grace's lovely features.

" Pfft! Oh please! You're only seven months older than me, so that makes you very young as well."

Confusion crowded my mind and my forehead furrowed as I turned to confront my mum with that piece of information.

"I thought you said they were siblings."

"Nah. She wishes, I mean, hakuna vile anaweza kaa poa kama mimi." Caleb responded as my gaze flew back between the two of them. At that, my mother chuckled as she nodded at the statement and an offended Grace gave Caleb a sharp poke to the ribs using one of her elbows. I weighed in on the drama still feeling very confused and slightly apprehensive, the fact that I now knew that they were my relatives doing nothing to shake off my anxiety.

"Hapana. We are not siblings. Sisi ni macuzo." Grace told me as she strung in some Sheng which was a form of Swahili slang.

"Yes, Grace is your auntie Teresa's daughter." My mum said as she took a sip of her favourite strawberry flavoured green tea.

"Wait, I thought she was the one in Germany?"

"No, that's auntie Tabitha. Tunaishi Kiambu, plus Auntie Tabitha hana watoto."

"Oh okay. What about you Caleb?" I asked as I turned my gaze on my other cousin.

"He's auntie Asterid's son. They live in the US." Shea says as she dropped a tray with various snacks and juice on top of my massive glass coffee table.

"You remember him?" I asked her with a look of surprise.

"No, they told me, right after I started asking the same questions that you are asking now." She said seating down with a bag of marshmallows in her lap. " By the way, how many siblings do you have mom?"

"Eight." our mother replied as she set her cup down. Shea's mouth fell wide open, her brown eyes morphing into huge saucer shapes as her gaze turned to our mother with a question.

"You're kidding me!" She popped another marshmallow into her open mouth.

"No, she's not." I replied tapping into the knowledge that I had dredged up in order to write my very first book.

"Our Granddad had two wives. It was very common back then."

"Attara is right. Take my uncle for instance. He had three wives and over twenty children!" mother told us.

"What?" Shea's mouth gaped for a second time and she bent forward as she fell into a fit of hearty laughter. "That is so crazy!" She insisted amidst her laughter.

"It's true." I told her. "Polygamy was and is still widely practiced in many African societies. It may not be as rampant as it used to be before, mostly due to the spread of Christianity and Westernisation, but many people still hold on to that culture and it has allowed for many non-monogamous arrangements to continue up to today."