I rushed out of bed immediately my alarm rang at 6 a.m., and while saying my prayers, I heard my siblings chatting in the living room.
It's very unusual for them to be up at that time of day, especially during the holiday. I do force them out of their rooms for the morning chore, but that day was different.
Our parents had traveled for about three weeks now, and they would be returning that day before noon. We have all missed them and had a small preparation to do before their arrival.
"Good morning!" My siblings chorused immediately as I stepped into the living room.
"Good morning, trust you guys slept well?" I replied.
"Yes! My immediate brother replied.
"What happened, Deola?" I asked the lastborn upon noticing he was frowning.
"Bro Enny disturbed me with phone calls all through the night," he stuttered.
"Sorry about that. You should take the visitor room for yourself." I replied while patting him on the back.
"I will take care of the dad and mom's room while you guys attend to the other parts of the house,"
"No Enny, go take care of the kitchen. That's your punishment for disturbing Adeola overnight." I shared the chores and went straight to our parents room.
I could hear my siblings still arguing about the chores, but that was the least of my concern at that moment. I just wanted to get the room ready and prepare a nice welcome home dish for the family.
I dusted the room, changed the bedspread, and swept every corner of the room. I was about to leave the room when the thought of checking the wardrobe crossed my mind.
"Is there need?" I thought, staring at the wardrobe from the door.
I dragged myself back to the wardrobe, and upon opening, I saw some files unorganized.
"Dad must have forgotten to keep these files properly. I am sure he isn't careless with documents." I stuttered and packed the file.
"Certificate of adoption." I read slowly, and immediately one of the documents heading caught my attention.
I moved away from the wardrobe to the window side and carefully read the content on the document.
"This mustn't be, was I adopted? How can they keep this away from me?" So many questions kept coming to my head, but there were no answers to them.
I felt devastated and couldn't just process everything I read because my parents never treated me differently from their children. I went through the document again with tears gently dripping from my eyes and had to sit because it felt like my energy had been drained and my head was been hammered.
I was definitely losing my mind at that point and didn't know what next to do.
"Big brother, aren't you done? It's over an hour now," Enny said to me, and I didn't even realize when he entered the room.
"Are you going through dad's stuff? Are you crying?" He asked, switching his attention from the document to my face.
"When did you get in?" I stuttered.
"Just now? What's with the tears?" He replied.
"I miss mom and dad," I replied.
"Med oooo! Everyone have to hear about this," Enny teased and left the room immediately.
I returned the file and left the room as well but couldn't continue with the other chores.
I locked myself in the room and wondered why they kept it a secret from me. What surprised me more was how they have treated me even better than the other boys.
It wasn't long before I heard a vehicle drive into the compound, and I stepped out shortly after washing my face.
My parents had arrived, and there was no pinch of excitement left in me. I watched their children run around happily moving bags, but I was angry.
"Who are my biological parents?" I asked mom immediately she asked why I wasn't excited to see them.
"What do you mean, who are your parents? Have you started drinking?" Mom asked.
"No, I saw my adoption certificate. You adopted me," I screamed, and all eyes were on me at that moment.
"You can't be serious, and why did you look through my documents?" Dad snapped back, and I just walked out of the compound immediately.
"Dee! Dee!! Wait! Come back here." Everyone started calling, but I didn't answer.
They didn't stop calling, and I could hear someone banging on a door at the same time.
I turned to look at where the sound was coming from and realized I had been dreaming.
"Who is that?" I asked.
"It is Enny, dad and mom are back. We have been knocking since," he replied.
"Oh, I am coming. I slept off," I stuttered and got out of bed immediately.
I dragged myself out of the room and went to welcome my parents. Honestly, I wasn't excited, but having them around made me feel better.
"Welcome dad! Welcome mom!" I greeted and just sat.
"Hmmmm, did anything happen when we were away?" Mom asked.
"No, nothing happened. Big brother just started acting weird after cleaning your room this morning," Enny replied.
"Is that true?" Dad asked.
"I am fine, dad," I replied.
"That's the iPhone you requested," mom said, stretching a box to me.
"Really? Thanks mom," I quickly grabbed the box.
"No hug?" Mom replied and I struggled to hug her.
"What of mine?" My immediate brother stuttered.
"Only Dee deserves an iPhone, so you all should stick to your Android," Mom replied.
They all grumbled, but mom's response made me wept uncontrollably. I couldn't comprehend why they kept showering me with so much love, even more than their children.
"The iPhone must have made him emotional," mom said, but that wasn't the case.
They distributed the other items they brought and retired to the bedroom.
I waited a few minutes before joining them, and my heart raced as I walked into their bedroom.
"You don't look good," my dad said to me.
"Yes, dad, I am not fine," I replied.
"What happened?" Mom asked.
"I saw my adoption certificate." I paused and kneeled before them.
They moved close to me and helped me up immediately.
"We have been trying to tell you, but it's difficult," my dad replied, hugging me tightly.
"You don't need an explanation because you will be my parents no matter who my biological parents are," I replied and burst into tears again.
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At that point, we were all crying, and mom wouldn't stop apologizing for not telling me earlier.
We hugged each other for a while and promised to never let our other siblings know forever.