Liberatus the Libertine

Liber was stuck. He didn’t know what to do. The last time he and Bosco had spoken, Bosco had told him off. He had never seen his friend so disappointed in him. Bosco had read him the riot act and walked out. He had made it clear that if Liber didn’t clean up his act, he shouldn’t bother contacting him.

This had hurt more than any other friendship Liberatus had ever lost. In fact, Liberatus was yet to love a woman as much as he loved and cared for his friend Bosco who was like a brother to him. He had always been there for him. Liberatus could remember clearly when he and Bosco had first met.

They had met when Bosco was doing his internship. Liberatus had taken his computer to Nukta (Nook-ta). One of the interns - Bosco had received him. He was kind, courteous, and prompt. In fact had it not been for Bosco, Liberatus had been thinking seriously of taking his business elsewhere. Bosco had done such a good job at his internship that he had been hired right after he had finished his degree at UDiSiM (University of Dar es Salaam). Even though Liberatus had only gone as far as Standard 7, Bosco had always treated him as an equal. So had been born a friendship that had lasted years.

Liberatus recalled the time his business had been crashing. His magazine Babuu! (baboo) had become more of a liability. His manager had been siphoning money and slowly bleeding his company. He had been swimming in debts and had had to let go of his staff. Not that he had that many staff, still…It had been a painful exercise regardless. He had needed to inject some cash, or perhaps fold and start a new company. He had always wanted to start a security company. He remembered how he had agonized over what to do then. Whatever the case, he had needed some cash.

He had thought of asking his big brother and then thought against it. No, his brother would have only rubbed it in - how he always had to bail him out. How Liber was irresponsible and a typical last born. They would have exchanged a few words and maybe, his brother would have bailed him out. He had decided he didn’t need all the drama. He had opted to get a loan from Bosco. He hadn’t wanted to burden his friend but he had felt he had no option.

Bosco had come thru. No questions asked. Liber had almost wept! Liber had folded his company and started a security company instead. That was one of the best ideas he had ever seized. His company had flourished. That had been the best time of his life, Liber reminisced nostalgically. He could have had any woman he wanted; he had money, a good house, a reliable car, and friends. Life was so simple. He had made a few bad decisions even then, but no permanent damage had come to his company.

Liber wondered how his life had ever come crashing to this low point in his life. Looking back, he realized that hubris and pussy had been the reason for his downfall.

Around this time, he had met her. Beata had been like a mom to him. She had been sweet, kind, and caring like the mother he had never had. She had 2 young cute girls who called him Uncle Liber. Theirs had been the place he went to when he needed to unwind. Their home was one place he had never felt judged. They even had a spare bedroom where Uncle Liber slept. Sometimes he would spend a whole weekend with them and leave on Monday so refreshed.

At the time he had been dating Salma. She was hot but trouble. Needless to say, that hadn’t lasted long. He had then gone out with Emelda, Pendo, Dorcas, Rose, Neema, Lailati, Dora…..Being the playboy he was, none of those friendships had lasted. Who could blame the ladies? Sometimes he had dated 3 women concurrently. Beata had never had any trouble with any of those women nor his lifestyle. 

Sadly, his brother and Beata had taken an instant dislike of each other when he had introduced them. Liber could still see in his mind’s eye how awkward that evening had turned out to be. When Liber had demanded answers from Methodius later, Method had simply responded that he didn't trust that woman. He hadn't even wanted to mention her name. Method had even gone further and predicted disaster. Harsh and bitter words had been exchanged and that topic had never been discussed again until his fiasco with Maua.

Maua had moved into the house across his. Of all the females' Liber had met, this one had never shown any interest in or acknowledgment of Liber. It had irked him that she totally ignored him. It had injured his fragile ego. He had tried the usual chat, but she would only answer his greetings and ignore him. So he had resorted to his underhanded methods. He would wait for her to leave in the morning and then drive up behind her. He would offer a ride but she would decline every time. That had always left him flabbergasted. He had never met a Tanzanian lady who passed up a ride. Especially not in Dar with the humid heat! Seeing that this tactic had failed, he had hatched a new plan.

He had bought a new dog. The dog would be the bait. Even now thinking about it, it disgusted him. The lengths he would go to, just to please his ego! He truly deserved what he had got. Franky his dog had been cute and quite selective. One day when Maua was putting her clothes on the line, Franky had run to her. He had peed on her legs! He had marked her as his territory! Liber laughed at the memory even now! He remembered the way he had shouted “Atta boy!” in his heart. Maua had done her best to ignore Franky but eventually had given in and they had become fast friends. Franky had followed Maua to her house and Liber had never felt so jealous.

Franky had then made a habit of going to Maua’s house every morning. It had almost looked as if Franky had more loyalty to Maua than to his owner. Clearly, Franky had been a very good judge of character. No wonder he had had to sell him afterward. He kinda missed Franky now.

All of Liber’s tactics to be invited to Maua’s house had failed. One day Liber had decided to up his ante. He had ‘traveled’ for a week and had asked Maua if she could watch Franky in his absence. Maua had accepted. He had then found the perfect excuse to ask for her number so he could check on his dog. It had taken all his self-control just to chat about his dog with her. She had been very responsive and he had hoped that she was thawing.

A few weeks later, he had decided to push his game further. He had invited Maua over to his house as he had a party. He had used Franky as an excuse of course. He had said it was his way of showing gratitude for her taking care of Franky so well when he had traveled. He had been pleasantly surprised when she had said yes.

She had looked so chic and demure that he had wanted to rip her clothes off then and there. She had dressed so modestly and yet he had felt at the time that she had overshadowed all the other women who had been throwing themselves at him. He remembered how jealous he had been when he had seen Bosco chatting her up. He had made her laugh! Liber had decided then and there not to waste any more time, lest he lost her to Bosco. And yet, she had still eluded him. The more she had played hard to get, the more he had wanted her. In fact, in his then mind she had achieved some sainthood status. She was pure and everything that he wasn’t.

Even though nearly 7 months had passed she had remained aloof yet civil. His plans had then been thrown out of kilter completely. She had met a man and started dating him. That had vexed him. That happy couple had continued for almost 3 years, while Liber had been dating women like that had been the only item on his bucket list. He had even lost count. He would have to consult his journal to see their names. His brother Method had been livid with Liber’s lifestyle during that period.

When he realized that the man had stopped coming over and had seen Maua looking sad, he had seized the opportunity. This time, he had behaved like a perfect gentleman and had played the role of a caring friend giving her a shoulder to cry on.

After 6 months had passed, he had decided that it was time she stopped mourning. He had asked her to be his girlfriend and she had asked him why. Such a simple yet loaded question. He had been unable to answer and she had responded with “That’s why I cannot go out with you.”

He had escaped by spending more time at Beata’s then. Beata’s older girl Yvonne had started blossoming into a fine lady. In her early teens then, she had realized the effect she had on men and had started flirting with Liber. Liber had always laughed at her antics and had never thought much about it.

After wrestling with his conscience for a while, Liber had decided to respond to Maua’s question of why. He still remembered what he had said to her then; “Because you are pure and exactly what I need. You will help keep me in check. I want to settle down and I know you are good for me. I promise you I will never hurt you.” He still couldn’t believe he had said that to her. He had even believed that lie!

However, whenever he closed his eyes, he could see how happy they had been then. She had truly brought the best in him. They had been perfect. The only thing that had marred that idyllic time had been Beata’s reaction to Maua. She had disliked Maua instantly. Maua had tried her best but Beata had acted juvenile. Liber had been quite shocked by that. It had forced Liber to have 2 parallel lives. One had been with Maua and the other with Beata’s family.

Even Method for once had been impressed by Liber’s turn around. He and Maua had got on like a house on fire. That had lessened the sting he had felt from Beata’s reaction.

To his shame, he had cheated on Maua once. Such had been his guilt that he had even confessed to Maua. She had broken up with him immediately and that had been the hardest time of his life. He had never worked so hard for forgiveness! He had then sworn he would never do that again. If only…

After 2 years of dating, Maua had started getting restless. Liber had been enjoying what they had and hadn’t been ready yet to take it to the next level. Nothing he had done then had lifted her morose moods. After a while, Liber had felt compelled to pop the question. He still didn’t understand what had pushed him to do that. Perhaps there was still some good in him, he mused? Granted, that had given them an interlude of happiness for at least 5 months.

Meanwhile, Yvonne had grown. She was then 16 and gorgeous. Round African butt, pert breasts, thin waist. Her butt could make a man come just by looking at it. Liber had been shocked when he had seen her because it had been a while since he had visited them. His groin had stirred. Yvonne had taken every chance to bend deliberately. She had been giving him a come on. His boner had been permanent whenever she was nearby.

It hadn’t helped that Maua had started nagging about a wedding date. Their fights had increased and he had resorted to spending more time at Beata’s to avoid her nagging. One time when he had been washing his hands, Yvonne had come from nowhere, taken his hand, and placed it on her pert nipples. Liber had almost come. After that, it had been harder for Liber to think of anything else. His animal had been aroused and it had been threatening to return to the field. He had gone home and fucked Maua. He had never done that before. Maua had been so hurt.

Their relationship had turned frosty and the fights had become worse. Liber had then started spending every evening at Beata’s. Beata had welcomed him wholly.

Then one night Yvonne had come to his room wearing a khanga. Her body had been wet and the khanga had been clinging on her perfect body. She had dropped the khanga and stood naked. He had just lain down and looked at her. She had gone and held his member, sucked it and he could have happily died then. He had taken her. She hadn’t been a virgin. Yvonne was a naughty girl. She had told him she was on the pill. Since then, they had been bonking whenever Yvonne had been able to sneak and that girl was ingenious.

Yvonne’s energy had been at par with his. She had been insatiable. She had literally worn him out. It had been no wonder that Liber hadn’t realized that Maua had stopped texting him. Since he had been enjoying his freedom so much, he hadn’t bothered much with her. He had just been happy to be free of her nagging.

That’s when Method had decided to visit. Method had noted how resigned Maua had become. Method had been so disappointed because he had known instantly Liber had returned to his Casanova ways. That evening Liber had noticed that Maua looked like she had lost her spirit. Since they hadn’t spoken for a while, they had been like strangers that evening. After Maua had left, Method had told Liber off and said; “You are a fool. Can’t control your penis. You are headed for a disaster. Don’t even bother calling me when you lose everything that you are taking for granted.”

After Methods departure, Liber had returned to his shenanigans. After a couple of days, needing a change of clothes, he had been shocked to find Maua’s house vacant. He had tried calling her but her phone had been busy. 3 days later, Bosco had asked to see him. Bosco had returned Maua’s engagement ring. She had told Bosco that she would never like to see Liber again. That is when Bosco and Liber had a falling out.

His words were still clear in Liber’s ears; “You are the most narcissistic person I have ever met. Everything you touch, you mess. Maua was the best thing that happened to you and you screwed it. You knew I would have made her happy, but you deprived me of the chance. You assured me you had turned over a new leaf. I am so disgusted by you right now. I never want to see you again, unless you stop hurting the people who care about you.” Bosco had even punched him in the face and walked out.

Liber still recalled how Bosco’s words had hurt even more than the punch. He had and still missed Bosco. He had been so forlorn that he had gone straight to Beata’s that evening. That night he had needed Beata’s company and she had sensed it. Yvonne had tired of signaling to Liber and had retired sulkily to bed. Liber hadn’t cared. He hadn’t had the energy for her theatrics in bed. Beata and Liber had finished 2 bottles of good wine. He still didn’t know how he had ended up waking up in Beata’s bed the following morning. Beata had been grinning like a Cheshire cat.

To make matters worse, Yvonne had seen him leaving her mother's room that morning. She had been so furious that she had requested her mother if she could visit her grandma in the village. Liber had been so shocked by his depravity that the next day he had gone back to Beata and they had shagged some more. Liber had practically moved into Beata’s room. Beata had told Liber that she had known all along, Liber would recover his senses and realize he belonged with Beata.

Yvonne had returned after a month, looking rounder and prettier. Around that time Beata had told Liber she was carrying his child, even though she had never looked pregnant. He still wondered about that. A month later it had been obvious that Yvonne was pregnant. Beata had been livid! She had demanded to know the father and had threatened to throw Yvonne out. When Beata had found out the father, she had fainted!

Beata had chased Liber out of the house and gone to the police. She had reported that Liber had raped her daughter -a minor. She had paid enough money to keep Liber from appearing in court. The worst thing is that Liber felt he deserved it. He feared he had lost everything just as he had been warned. 

Now he was stuck. He didn’t know what to do. The last time he and Bosco had spoken, Bosco had told him off. He had never seen his friend so disappointed in him. Bosco had read him the riot act and walked out. He had made it clear that if Liber didn’t clean up his act, he shouldn’t bother contacting him.