[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-115869-en":3,"doc-seo-115869-105":29,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":91},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":11,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":11,"is_downloadable":11,"audit_status":11,"page_count":20,"language":21,"language_code":22,"site_id":23,"html_lang":22,"table_of_contents":24,"faqs":25,"seo_title":26,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":27,"read_time":28},115869,2336475104042,"Skyler","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/22000c4c32af1715be0?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1786537525561427321",1,"Story & Novel","The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives - Lola Shoneyin - Chapter One - Bellyache","Abolition of patience and the pressure of childlessness set the story in motion as Baba Segi wakes in recurring pain and decides to seek drastic help from Teacher. The visit unfolds against the charged, secretive atmosphere of Ayikara, a place shaped by forbidden desire and clandestine male gatherings. Through tense interpersonal dynamics, the narrative establishes Baba Segi’s motives, the stakes for the wives, and the looming consequences of seeking solutions outside ordinary bounds.","The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives  \nLola Shoneyin  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nfor Tinuoye and Yetunde Shoneyin …and for Olaokun  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nContents  \nTheAlao Family  \nChapter One  \nBellyache  \nChapter Two  \nPolygamist  \nChapter Three  \nHeavy Period  \nChapter Four  \nCracks  \nChapter Five  \nSharing  \nChapter Six  \nRat Head  \nChapter Seven  \nQueen  \nChapter Eight  \nTrade  \nChapter Nine  \nIya Tope  \nChapter Ten  \nRogue  \nChapter Eleven  \nIya Segi  \nChapter Twelve  \nTheater  \nChapter Thirteen  \nIya Femi  \nChapter Fourteen  \nHomeward  \nChapter Fifteen  \nNight Noises  \nChapter Sixteen  \nNote  \nChapter Seventeen  \nResults  \nChapter Eighteen  \nSeed  \nChapter Nineteen  \nBaba Segi  \nChapter Twenty  \nHomecoming  \nChapter Twenty-One  \nWashing Day  \nChapter Twenty-Two  \nVictor  \nChapter Twenty-Three Out  \nChapter Twenty-Four  \nTaju  \nChapter Twenty-Five  \nFarewell  \nChapter Twenty-Six  \nSilence  \nChapter Twenty-Seven  \nStaying Power  \nChapter Twenty-Eight  \nBolanle  \nAcknowledgments  \nAbout the Author  \nCredits  \nCopyright  \nAbout the Publisher  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nTHEALAO FAMILY  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nCHAPTER ONE  \nBELLYACHE  \nWHEN BABA SEGI AWOKE with a bellyache for the sixth day in a row, he knew it was time to do something drastic about his fourth wife’s childlessness. He was sure the pain wasn’t caused by hunger or trapped gas; it was from the buildup of months and months of worry. A grunt escaped from the woman lying next to him. He glanced sideways and saw that his leg had stapled Iya Tope, his second wife, to the bed. He observed the jerky rise and fall of her bosom but he didn’t move to ease her discomfort. His thoughts returned to Bolanle and his stomach tightened again. Then and there, he decided to pay Teacher a visit. He would get there at sunrise so Teacher would know it was no ordinary stopover.  \nAs soon as his driver parked the pickup truck by the gutter that circled Ayikara, Baba Segi flung open the passenger door and reinflated his large frame. Without a word or a backward glance at his driver, he dashed down a narrow alleyway. If his eyes hadn’t been entirely fixed on Teacher ’s shack, he might have noticed that his driver had scrambled after him. Baba Segi stepped aside to make room for the schoolchildren on their daily pilgrimage. These children went to great pains to bid Teacher good morning, just to see him steam up the louvers with his response.“God mourning,” the smoky-eyed sage hummed. The children waved happily and toddled off to school. Baba Segi shook his head. If their parents ever discovered that they had strayed from the dusty road that led to wisdom, stepped wide-legged over spluttering gutters and shifted between random buildings, those children would be in grave trouble. Teacher ’s shack was in Ayikara and Ayikara was not a place for children.  \nIt wasn’t a specific place but when you asked for directions, people looked away from their twirling wrists. There were three reasons for this. First, absolutely no one wanted to admit to knowing where it was, in case their neighbors were listening. Second, Ayikara didn’t have distinct  \nboundaries. Last, Ayikara was more than four or five parallel streets laced by lasciviousness: it was a spirit. The dark buildings were full of women whose faces glowed under ultraviolet lights. These women lived for other women’s men. They cooked for them. Drank with them. Fought over them. Fucked them. Nursed them. Slapped them and loved them. And when the longing love caused made them ill, they surrendered their lives and died for them.  \nTeacher ’s shack, with its shiny glass windows and gleaming shot glasses, was sandwiched between two brothels. Mostly, the skimpily dressed women brought their clients to drink of the shack-made whiskey, but on certain days they would get to the doorway and retrace their steps. These were the days when men glared at them through squinted eyes—the days that men came to meet m","cbCaiaGGYs2WnW7g","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiaGGYs2WnW7g","pdf",1309309,194,"English","en",105,"# The Alao Family\n## Chapter One: Bellyache\n## Chapter Two: Polygamist\n## Chapter Three: Heavy Period\n## Chapter Four: Cracks\n## Chapter Five: Sharing\n## Chapter Six: Rat Head","[{\"question\":\"Why does Baba Segi decide to visit Teacher?\",\"answer\":\"Baba Segi wakes with the same bellyache for six days and believes it is linked to his fourth wife’s childlessness, so he chooses to seek help from Teacher at sunrise.\"},{\"question\":\"What is Ayikara, and why do people avoid it?\",\"answer\":\"Ayarika is described as a spirit-like place with hidden brothels and women, where people refuse to admit knowing directions and where children are warned not to stray.\"},{\"question\":\"How do the men’s gatherings at Teacher’s shack work?\",\"answer\":\"Meetings occur spontaneously when a few men gather, starting with a man’s troubles about a quarrelsome wife, followed by others offering advice on what might work, what might fail, and what could kill him if he’s careless.\"}]","The Secret Lives of Baba Segi’s Wives - Lola Shoneyin - Chapter One - Bellyache | PDF",1785477455,299,{"code":4,"msg":30,"data":31},"ok",{"site_id":23,"language":22,"slug":32,"title":13,"keywords":33,"description":14,"schema_data":34,"social_meta":86,"head_meta":88,"extra_data":90,"updated_unix":27},"the-secret-lives-of-baba-segis-wives-lola-shoneyin-chapter-one-bellyache","",{"@graph":35,"@context":85},[36,53,68],{"@type":37,"itemListElement":38},"BreadcrumbList",[39,43,47,50],{"item":40,"name":41,"@type":42,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":44,"name":45,"@type":42,"position":46},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":48,"name":12,"@type":42,"position":49},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/story-novel/",3,{"item":51,"name":13,"@type":42,"position":52},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/the-secret-lives-of-baba-segis-wives-lola-shoneyin-chapter-one-bellyache/115869/",4,{"url":51,"name":13,"@type":54,"author":55,"headline":13,"publisher":57,"fileFormat":60,"inLanguage":22,"description":14,"dateModified":61,"datePublished":62,"encodingFormat":60,"isAccessibleForFree":63,"interactionStatistic":64},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":56},"Person",{"url":40,"name":58,"@type":59},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-08-16","2026-07-31",true,{"@type":65,"interactionType":66,"userInteractionCount":11},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":67},"ViewAction",{"@type":69,"mainEntity":70},"FAQPage",[71,77,81],{"name":72,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":74},"Why does Baba Segi decide to visit Teacher?","Question",{"text":75,"@type":76},"Baba Segi wakes with the same bellyache for six days and believes it is linked to his fourth wife’s childlessness, so he chooses to seek help from Teacher at sunrise.","Answer",{"name":78,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":79},"What is Ayikara, and why do people avoid it?",{"text":80,"@type":76},"Ayarika is described as a spirit-like place with hidden brothels and women, where people refuse to admit knowing directions and where children are warned not to stray.",{"name":82,"@type":73,"acceptedAnswer":83},"How do the men’s gatherings at Teacher’s shack work?",{"text":84,"@type":76},"Meetings occur spontaneously when a few men gather, starting with a man’s troubles about a quarrelsome wife, followed by others offering advice on what might work, what might fail, and what could kill him if he’s careless.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":51,"og:type":87,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":58,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":89,"canonical":51},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":23},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":92},[93,96,100,104,109,114,119,124,129,132,136],{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":94,"slug":95},90,"story-novel",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":97,"show_sort_weight":98,"slug":99},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":101,"show_sort_weight":102,"slug":103},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":105,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":106,"show_sort_weight":107,"slug":108},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":110,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":111,"show_sort_weight":112,"slug":113},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":115,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":120,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":121,"show_sort_weight":122,"slug":123},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":125,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":126,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":128},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":130,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":131},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":133,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":134,"show_sort_weight":133,"slug":135},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":137,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":45,"category_name":138,"show_sort_weight":105,"slug":139},19,"General","general"]