The Sunday Mail
(Adam had tried to help Flora, the film star, by exposing the iniquities of the Zimbabwean film and television industry. The two had celebrated together and then gone up to what the hotel was already calling the “Adam Kok Suite” and spent a delightful evening together. When he got home, Adam realised he had fallen in love.)
ADAM and Flora met every day until she left for the States — without her money and with nothing but empty promises from the filmmakers. She left Adam quite gaga over her — and he felt it was the same for her.
Adam had fallen in love three times in his life. The first time was with Nothando, his first wife. What happened with Nothando should have taught him a lesson. She cheated on him. The second time was with Rudo, his second wife. But Rudo never betrayed him and this maybe lulled Adam into complacency. Now he had fallen in love a third time — with Flora, the film star.
By falling in love, Adam had done something that Don Juan and Casanova never did.
Up until the time he met Flora, Adam had treated all women, except for his wife, in just the same way as they did — seduce and move on.
Nesta was an obvious exception. Adam did not dump her and, because he never bothered to think about it, he didn’t know that he loved her too. But as for all the rest — many women had fallen in love with Adam and, when he dumped them, many of them had gone through a lot of suffering.
What did he care?
Surely Adam was contradicting his own philosophy?
Was he not a sort of Utilitarian who believed in happiness for the greatest number of people?
Did he not believe that if something makes people happy and does not harm anyone else, it is good and right?
Yet Adam had made a lot of women very unhappy!
When I tried to put this to him, Adam just laughed and said: “Listen, comrade, I make a woman happy and she makes me happy. When a woman asks me to make her happy, it doesn’t mean I have to make her happy for the rest of her life.
“If a woman can’t understand that and thinks every moment of happiness is a lifetime commitment, she’s being unreasonable. Anyway, they all know I’m a happily married man!”
It was always very difficult to argue with Adam. It looked like he had won the argument again – until what happened to him with Flora. Being in love with her and confident she was in love with him, Adam couldn’t wait to get on a plane and go and see her again in the States.
He had her address and, without telling her, figuring it would be a wonderful surprise for her, he pitched up at her flat in New Jersey one evening. On the way there he had bought her a nice bunch of flowers. He rang the bell and he heard someone coming to open up.
A very big, very black man opened and, towering over him, said: “Yeah, brother, what’s up?
“Is Flora in?” Adam stuttered.
“Why sure. Honey!” he shouted over his shoulder: “Someone from home for you — or a pal of your old man’s, maybe.”
Flora emerged into the passage. She was wrapped in a towel and her hair was all over the place. Her mouth dropped open. “Adam, what’re you doing here? I had no idea you were coming.”
Adam had seen the writing on the wall long ago. He had done the same so many times to others that when it was done to him, he got the picture very quickly and opted for a dignified exit. “O, hi, Flora. I was in town and I just thought I’d give you a surprise. I can see I’ve succeeded. These are for you.” He gave the flowers to Flora’s big hunk and said, as he turned to go: “Give you a call next time I’m in New York” — and off he went.
Adam’s heart was broken. Asi akanzwa butter — he had it coming. He spent the week he had hoped would be a week of bliss with Flora, drinking Scotch all alone in his hotel room, feeling sorry for himself, walking the chilly streets of New York and joining all the tourists going to the top of the Empire States Building. He didn’t contemplate jumping off. Adam was not really into suicide. But his heart was broken.
I tell you, when Adam came back to Harare, he was a changed man. He started coming home early every night. He was loving and attentive to Rudo. He didn’t even seem to mind the coffee and biscuits! Until one day Rudo said to him: “Don’t tell me, Adam. I know. Something’s happened.
“Did you burn your fingers at last? Listen, my husband, this is just not you. I can’t have you moping around the house every night. Snap out of it. You ought to be a big boy by now — though I have my doubts. You can’t come running home to mama every time you get hurt. Grow up and get out of my hair!”
Adam couldn’t believe his ears. He thought he understood women, but then Rudo always surprised him. He didn’t realise that he only understood one side of a woman – the sexual side. As for the rest he didn’t have a clue.
Nesta, his married girlfriend, was also worried about him. So she made plans to give him lots of her attention. Nesta’s attention, if you could get it, was actually really quite nice.
Until Flora came along, she was Adam’s best. She also didn’t like the Adam who came back from America. She didn’t know what had happened to him in America, but she did her best to remind him that “East, West, Africa is best”.
It wasn’t long before Adam began to make a recovery. Rudo welcomed it. Nesta welcomed it — and many other women who had not yet met Adam but would in time, would have welcomed it if they had been able to read the future.
But we haven’t heard the last of Flora. After the embarrassing evening when Adam had come round to the flat, Flora had written to him. She thanked him for the flowers and then she wrote:
Dear Adam, I know how you feel. You fell in love with me in Harare — and in a way I did with you. We had a wonderful few days together. I never told you I have a boyfriend — the man who opened the door to you. We’ve been going out for over a year and we are planning on getting married. I love him but I did not feel my love affair with you was wrong. I knew it wouldn’t last and I knew it wouldn’t interfere with my love for my boyfriend.
But above all I thought you of all people would understand. One thing I loved so much about our time together was the wonderful discussions we had and in one of them did you not tell me about your philosophy and did you not say to me something about your philosophy being about happiness?
Didn’t you say that if you make a woman happy and she makes you happy, it doesn’t mean you have to make each other happy for the rest of your lives?
And then didn’t you tell me about your marriage with Rudo, how happy you were and how you loved your wife?
When you told me all that I said to myself: “Adam is a great guy and I am enjoying being with him so much but, as he says, it would be unreasonable to expect our happiness to be a lifetime commitment. In any case he loves his wife and I love my future husband.” So I relaxed and had the time of my life. I believe you did too. I hope you don’t feel too sore but I’m sure you understand. Be philosophical, my darling Adam. Have a happy life and thanks for everything.
Love
Flora.
When Adam had finished reading it, he smiled, rather sadly, and said to himself: “Beaten at my own game. I fell for her. Serves me right.” Then he shook his head and smiled. A shudder went over his body. “What a woman!” he sighed.
Then slowly he got up, had a shower and went off to meet Nesta.
