F.A.T-Chapter Eight
The clatter of pots and the faint hum of voices woke me the next morning. For a moment, I thought I had dreamt it all. But the emptiness in my chest confirmed otherwise. Dragging myself downstairs, I found Chinaza at the table, her laughter like music in a house that suddenly felt foreign. “Good morning, Big Sis!” She wrapped her arms around me, pressing a kiss to my cheek. Funke was there too, bustling in the kitchen, placing a plate before me with a small, encouraging smile. “Please eat,” she whispered. I obeyed silently, the food filling my stomach but not my spirit. My eyes caught Chinaza’s cheerful pout as she asked for bread, Funke teasing her in a mock country accent. The scene should have been normal, ordinary, but Mum’s absence was like a shadow over every corner. Two Weeks Later The house had become a revolving door of visits. Parents dropping by, neighbors whispering condolences, my friends refusing to leave my side. “Fresh air will help, Ada,” Funke’s mother rub...