Under the Udala Trees

One day while Ijeoma is restocking the store, Chibundu comes in to buy Guinness. Adaora is excited to see him—hugging and welcoming him. Ijeoma remembers moments from their childhood together in Ojoto. For many days after his visit to the store, Adaora praises Chibundu.

Ndidi tells Ijeoma that some of Adanna’s gay male friends have just been killed. Ndidi links this violence to the burning of the previous church/club. Adanna found the bodies, which makes the violence feel closer and more terrifying. The police would not help. Ndidi and Adanna prepared the corpses for burial.

Ijeoma’s next day seems normal: she works at the shop and has dinner at Ndidi’s flat. They go out dancing at the church, and make out in the dark. However, a knock at the front door interrupts their dance floor kissing.

The women slip out the back and into a bunker. They hear screaming and realize Adanna is missing. One girl named Chichi tries to leave to find her, but others hold her back to maintain their hiding place.

Ijeoma imagines crumbling walls and her mother mourning her death. Ndidi holds her hand. Eventually, the screams and noise subside. Adanna’s friend quietly taps on the cover of the bunker, opens it, and leads them out. In the backyard of the church, Adanna has been burned to death in a stack of logs.

When Ijeoma returns home around 7am, Adaora interrogates her about whether she is sleeping with Ndidi. Denying the accusations, Ijeoma claims to have just fallen asleep and hides from her mother in her bedroom.

Several weeks pass. In Aba, the community consensus is that the church burning was “necessary” (210). Ijeoma and Ndidi keep things on the down low, seeing each other less. Adaora is glad—she assumes she has transformed Ijeoma. Still, she fears losing Ijeoma as she did Uzo.

Ijeoma is emotionally drained by her mother constantly reminding her of the burning. Chibundu visits the store regularly, which distracts Adaora. Ijeoma worries that he might still have a crush on her.

One day, Chibundu calls her “Omalicha,” or beautiful, repeating the word in Igbo (212) and explaining that he is looking for a wife. When Ijeoma is silent, Adaora says it’s good to see them reconnecting. Chibundu asks Ijeoma to dinner, and her mother accepts for her. Again, Ijeoma cannot speak.

After work, Ijeoma goes to Ndidi’s flat and tells her about the invitation. Ndidi thinks Ijeoma should try going on the date because she has never slept with a man. Ijeoma only wants to be with Ndidi and is angry at the suggestion that she date anyone else, but eventually agrees.  

For the date, Ijeoma borrows her mother’s perfume and jewelry, and Adaora irons a dress for her. Adaora gives Ijeoma approval to marry Chibundu, briefly indulging in a nostalgic moment about Uzo. Adaora reminds Ijeoma to smile a lot. Adaora watches them leave on the date and prays. 

The narrative jumps forward a month. Chibundu proposes at a bus stop, pulling out a ring near a mango tree. Ijeoma accepts wordlessly. Her rationale is that she “did want to be normal [...] to have a life where [she] didn’t have to constantly worry about being found out” (220).

There’s another time jump to their wedding. First, they have an Igbo ceremony. The sounds of jigida beads (waist beads) accompanying Ijeoma’s dancing. Ndidi watches from a distance. The grammar school teacher and his wife attend, and groomsmen throw naira bills at Ijeoma.

This Igbo ceremony is followed by a white wedding in the church. Ijeoma admits that she has doubts before walking down the aisle, but Adaora insists she let go of her love for women and marry a man. Relenting, Ijeoma agrees and marries Chibundu.