Cold At Dusk

Chapter Twelve

Kamsi brought out a notebook she had turned to a diary . The diary just had dates and list of things she did want to forget . It was a reminder for her. On that book she wrote down her activities for the day: she was visiting the hospital for her first antenatal check up, she had to meet Joseph to submit her curriculum vitae, she had to buy things from the market.

She chewed the cover of her pen as she racked her brain hard to check if she could remember anything else she needed to do but nothing more came up. She stood from the bed and marked the date on the calendar, it was something she planned to do until the ninth month of her pregnancy.

Nauseated. That was how she felt immediately she walked into the large reception of the hospital . Her bag was hanging down from her shoulder and she was clutching a big khaki envelope containing her curriculum vitae .

She sat on one of the orange colored plastic chairs that were arranged in the reception. People were sitting around and waiting to be called. They all had their tallies - a blue card with number on it. She was not going to get one. She had the boss's number. She clicked on the contact that she had saved with the same name Michelle had sent it on WhatsApp, "De Okey"

She was saved from an awkward introduction of trying hard to explain who she was as they met once and he could have possibly forgotten her name. Michelle had also shared her number with him. It made her laugh to think that he would also save it with the contact name he was sent, "Pumpkin "

"Are you in the hospital? " he asked without pleasantries . Kamsi even felt he sounded annoyed.

" Yes, yes" she replied.

" I'm sending a nurse to you. Stand by the stairs. What are you wearing? "

She rolled her eyes before she started describing her dress which was quite easy. A jean trouser and her husband's polo. She walked to the stairs and waited for the nurse. She was surprised when the nurse came down and it was a man, a dark man that was round and brief. He could pass for a robust child but his face did not approve that.

"Miss Kamsi Nwoko? " he asked.

She nodded and followed him up the stairs.

"You are a nurse? " Kamsi asked, unable to keep it in. She almost laughed at her question which had an obvious answer. It did not prevent the brief nurse from smiling at her as he replied,

"Yes"

He stopped at one of the doors at the centre of the hall way and Kamsi was grateful. She was tired already. Those stairs drained her energy.

"Just knock," he said before leaving.

She obeyed and without waiting for a permission to enter, she turned the door and peeped in.

"Come in," Okechukwu said quickly without raising his head from the papers in front of him.

She walked in and stood closer to the long leather brown cushion at the wall wishing he would say, "please lie down " but instead he said,

"Please sit."

She had truly wanted to lie down and sleep for sometime. She would prefer a change of environment also. The smell of air freshener, dettol, drugs all were trying to dominate themselves with little results. It had a displeasing smell.

"Just give me a minute," he said. He used his pen to travel each line of sentence on the paper before him . Kamsi watched him, playing with the hand of her brown sling bag.

"I'm sorry. Most times these lab scientists make silly mistakes," he said, putting the paper in a file.

Not knowing what to reply, she just nodded with a smile.