{"id":3223,"date":"2025-12-31T16:56:27","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T16:56:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nine9ja.com\/?p=3223"},"modified":"2026-01-02T13:42:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T13:42:49","slug":"he-promised-me-work-in-lagos-na-trap-i-enter-episode-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nine9ja.com\/es_es\/he-promised-me-work-in-lagos-na-trap-i-enter-episode-2\/","title":{"rendered":"He Promised Me Work In Lagos, Na Trap I Enter (EPISODE 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"

EPISODE 2 \u2013 Cancer Killed My Mama on My Birthday<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I used to love my birthday. At least, I thought<\/em> I did.<\/p>\n

Every year, my mother would wake up early, smiling even when her body was weak. She would still say, \u201cNkiru, come, make we thank God say you add another year.\u201d<\/em> Even when sickness had started to show on her face, she never complained.<\/p>\n

That year, I turned twelve. I woke up excited, expecting at least a small celebration. Instead, the house was quiet. Too quiet. My mother didn\u2019t call my name that morning.<\/p>\n

By afternoon, everything changed. People were rushing in and out. My father was shouting. Neighbors gathered outside. Then I heard the words that still ring in my head today:<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s gone.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

My mother died that same day. My birthday.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They said it was cancer. The same sickness that killed my grandmother on the very day I was born. Two women. Two generations. Same illness. Same pattern.<\/p>\n

At first, people pretended to sympathize. They brought food, sat around, and shook their heads. But not long after the burial, the whispers started again.<\/p>\n

Some people stopped calling it cancer.
\nThey started saying HIV\/AIDS.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat kind sickness no dey kill two people for one family like that,\u201d<\/em> they said.
\n\u201cBetter stay away, just in case.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Slowly, people began to withdraw. Children were warned not to play with me. Women avoided sharing plates with us. Even some relatives stopped visiting.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t understand it then, but stigma had entered our house. And once stigma enters, it never leaves quietly.<\/p>\n

From that day, my birthday stopped being a celebration. It became a reminder. A reminder that death seemed to follow my name.<\/p>\n

Episode 3 Coming Soon<\/strong>
\nAfter my mother\u2019s death, everything in our house changed \u2014 especially my father. And that was when I truly became alone.<\/p>\n

He Promised Me Work In Lagos, Na Trap I Enter (EPISODE 3)<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n