Ada tilted her head, blushing. “A surprise? For me? Obinna, what is it?”

Obinna took a deep breath, his voice tender. “Yes, love. I just want to show you how much I love you… how ready I am to spend the rest of my life with you. Ada, I can’t breathe without you. Without you, my life is nothing.”

“Obinna…” Ada whispered, her heart thumping.

He held her chin gently and stared deep into her eyes. “From the very first day I saw you, I felt something powerful. I knew there was something special about you. You might not love me the way I love you, but I don’t care. All I want is to keep loving you, until the day you finally learn to love me too.”

Ada’s eyes watered. She smiled weakly and shook her head. “You’re making me so emotional. You’re making me remember when Chidi used to say all these sweet things.”

At the mention of Chidi, Obinna’s expression stiffened, but he forced a smile. She still thinks of him… he thought, then brushed it off.

“Forget about Chidi,” he said softly. “This is me Obinna the man who wants to give you the world. And today, I have a surprise for you.”

Ada’s lips curved, impatience dancing in her eyes. “Obim, stop keeping me in suspense. Tell me already!”

Obinna chuckled. “No, you’ll see it with your eyes.” He pulled out a scarf. “Turn around.”

Ada laughed nervously. “Eh? What are you doing with that scarf?”

“Trust me, Ada’m,” Obinna whispered, tying it gently over her eyes. “I just want to make it special.”

“Hmm, I hope you’re not planning to prank me oh,” Ada teased, giggling.

Obinna held her hand firmly. “Even if it’s a prank, it will be the sweetest one. Come.”

He led her carefully outside, guiding her steps. Ada kept laughing nervously. “Obim, where are we going? Please don’t let me fall oh!”

“You won’t fall, I’m holding you,” he assured.

Finally, he untied the scarf.

Ada’s mouth dropped open, both hands flying to her face. “Obinna!!!” she screamed. “A car?!”

Before her stood a shiny brown car brand new.

“Oh my God! Is this really for me? This is so beautiful!” she cried, rushing to the car, touching it like a dream. She ran back and hugged him tightly, almost lifting him off his feet.

“Thank you, thank you, Obim! You don’t know how happy I am. May God bless you!”

Obinna smiled, holding her tight. “Bless you too, Ada’m. I’ve already hired a driver for you. He’ll take you anywhere you want until you give birth. After that, I’ll ask him to teach you how to drive it yourself.”

Ada’s eyes glistened with tears. “Obim, what did I ever do to deserve you? You’re too good to me. Even though… even though I don’t love you yet, you still love me so much.”

Those words stabbed Obinna’s heart like a knife, but he forced a smile. One day, she will love me. I will wait, he thought silently.

Ada jumped again, clapping her hands. “This calls for celebration! Let’s go inside. Let me go and prepare something special for you. Obim, I feel like dancing!”

She ran inside happily, not noticing that Obinna’s smile had faded as her words replayed in his heart.

Meanwhile at the Collins’ home, Mrs. Collins and Chidi were sitting in the living room, chatting quietly. Sandra walked in, swinging her hips, phone in hand, and dropped heavily on the sofa. She scrolled for a moment, then without looking up, said loudly:

“Mrs. Collins, get me water.”

Mrs. Collins frowned. “What did you just say?”

Sandra raised her voice, still staring at her phone. “Did you not hear me? I said get me water.”

Mrs. Collins gasped. “Sandra, have you lost your manners? I am not your maid. Don’t you have respect at all?”

Sandra finally looked up, eyes sharp. “Respect? For who? You? Please don’t deceive yourself. I said get me water.”

Mrs. Collins was stunned, her voice shaking. “So you no longer call me with Respect again? You don’t call me mom anymore Now it’s just ‘Mrs. Collins’? Sandra, is this how far you’ve gone?”

Sandra smirked, her tone dripping with mockery. “Why should I call you with Respect? What respect do you deserve from me? You better get used to hearing your name because that’s all you’ll get from now on.”

Chidi touched his mother’s hand gently. “Mom, please, just get it. Let’s avoid trouble.”

Mrs. Collins turned on him, shocked. “Chidi, are you hearing yourself? In my own house, you want me to serve her like a servant? Never!”

“Mom, please,” Chidi whispered again, worried.

Mrs. Collins hissed, stood up unwillingly, and went to the fridge. She returned with a cup of water and dropped it in front of Sandra. “Here. But hear me well don’t ever send me to get you something again. If you need water, go and fetch it yourself, or call Precious. I am not your slave.”

Sandra smirked, picked up the cup, and instead of drinking it, she poured the cold water straight on Mrs. Collins’ shoulder.

Chidi jumped up. “Sandra!”

Mrs. Collins screamed. “Are you mad?! How dare you!”

Sandra stood, her face twisted with anger. “Shut up! Don’t raise your voice at me again. Do you think I’m Ada that you can talk to anyhow? Do you think I’ll sit back and let you treat me like rubbish? No! From today, whatever I say in this house stands. If I say fetch this, you fetch it. If I say do that, you do it. Otherwise, you’ll see the other side of me.”

Mrs. Collins stood trembling, pointing a finger. “You are crossing your boundaries, Sandra. This is my husband’s house!”

Sandra laughed mockingly. “Your husband’s house? And who do you think I am? A stranger? No, I am Chidi’s wife. This house is mine as much as his. You better get used to it, old woman, because I am not going anywhere.”

Precious, who had been watching from the door, gasped. “Aunty Sandra, that’s too much. Madam is”

Sandra snapped at her. “Shut your dirty mouth, you little rat! If you speak again, I will throw you out of this house myself.”

Mr. Collins, who had been standing at the staircase, suddenly laughed loudly. Everyone turned. He kept laughing, his voice booming.

“Dad, this is not funny!” Chidi shouted angrily.

But Mr. Collins only shook his head, still laughing. “This is just the beginning,” he said. “You haven’t seen anything yet.”

Sandra smirked proudly and stormed off, leaving Mrs. Collins drenched, humiliated, and trembling in shock.

The next day, Mrs. Collins was in the living room ironing her husband’s clothes. She was humming softly, focused on the neat creases, when Sandra barged in. She wore a short gown, her makeup heavy, and her phone glued to her hand.

She sat down carelessly, crossed her legs, and said in a sharp tone:

“Mrs. Collins, go and wash my clothes.”

Mrs. Collins froze, the iron in her hand. She turned slowly. “What did you just say?”

Sandra didn’t even look up from her phone. “Are you deaf? I said go and wash my clothes. Three gowns, they must be ready before evening.”

Mrs. Collins dropped the iron with a clatter, staring at her. “Sandra, have you completely lost your senses? I am your mother-in-law, not your servant!”

Sandra finally raised her head, her lips curling. “Mother-in-law? Please, don’t flatter yourself. You’re just an old woman hanging around in this house because your husband pities you. If I say wash my clothes, you’ll wash them.”

Mrs. Collins’ eyes widened in disbelief. “Sandra! Do you know who you are talking to? I am old enough to be your mother!”

Sandra laughed mockingly. “And so what? Old age doesn’t make you useful. Respect is earned, not forced. You want me to respect you? Then act like someone worthy of respect. Right now, you’re nothing to me.”

Mrs. Collins clutched her chest, trembling with rage. “You wicked girl! You think because you married my son, you can trample on me? Not in this house!”

Sandra’s eyes flashed. She suddenly grabbed the hot iron and yanked it off the board. The steam hissed as she waved it close to Mrs. Collins’ face.

“You see this iron?” she hissed. “One word from you and I’ll redesign your face with it. You’ll be too ashamed to look in a mirror again.”

Mrs. Collins staggered back, horrified. “You you wouldn’t dare…”

Sandra smiled wickedly. “Dare? Try me, and you will see. Don’t forget, Chidi is on my side. Your own son. If I decide to finish you, who will defend you in this house?”

Mrs. Collins’ lips trembled. “Sandra, may God punish you for this wickedness”

Sandra burst into laughter. “God? Keep deceiving yourself with prayers. If God wanted to help you, He would have removed me from this house by now. But look at me still here, still the queen of this home.”

At that moment, Precious, who had been peeping, rushed forward. “Please, Aunty Sandra, don’t threaten Madam like this”

Sandra whirled around and slapped Precious so hard she fell to the ground. “You foolish rat! Keep your mouth shut before I burn you too. In fact, you’ll scrub this entire house today without eating, do you hear me?”

Precious whimpered, nodding, while Mrs. Collins rushed to help her.

Sandra dropped the iron back on the board, dusted her hands dramatically, and picked up her phone again.

She smirked as she walked out, her heels clicking loudly. “Remember my words this is my house now. Whatever I say here stands.”

Her mocking laughter echoed down the hallway, leaving Mrs. Collins trembling, clutching Precious tightly with tears running down her cheeks.

To be continued…
WHEN LOVE BLINDS EPISODE 2