“So Lara is actually going to get married to that Soji guy?” Ikenna asked as both friends settled on the couch chewing on one of the chickens they’d bought from KFC while watching the commercials after the first half of the match had just ended.
Dapo glanced at him and shrugged. “The least I can do is pray that she sees him for who he is. Other than that, she’s going to see me as the enemy. Anyone who comes between herself and that guy is like the Dart Vader to her. If I was the superstitious kind, I’d think the guy jazed her or something.”
“Wow…” IK shook his head and kept watching the screen though his friend could tell he still had something to say but didn’t want to be too intrusive. He knew the guy had a soft spot for Lara back then even with all their bickering and fights back then in Junior high but with so many waters under the bridge and so many years gone between them, whatever soft spot might have gone or if it was still there, it wouldn’t pass a sisterly affection. He knew he’d been in a serious relationship but something had happened that had marred his friend so much he hardly talked about it.
All he knew was that the girl he intended to marry had gotten married to some other guy, end of story.
He surmised he must have gotten over the incident though. He explained he was in Lagos as he’d gotten a job interview and would be staying in Lagos for a while. They often talked over the phone and Dapo not wanting to intrude into his personal life decided he would only ask if he wanted to talk about it. Ifeanyi had been a beauty to die for and he’d felt his friend had been lucky to have her. He didn’t know much about her but knew she was the quiet kind and would hardly say a word when he tried to have a chat with her.
His friend and girlfriend had together for one and a half years and IK had told him He knew she was the one and he’d prayed about it. He was even planning to propose the next weekend all for her to deliver the news that she was sorry but she did not love him.
Dapo was 5 years older, but that didn’t affect the way they interacted with one another. Though IK was based in Portharcourt, it did not stop their budding relationship which had grown closer than family. IK came once in a while to Lagos and Dapo was usually the one hosting. This time, something told him it might be longer.
His mind suddenly flew to Nimi. He wasn’t sure how she would react around his friends when their relationship grew but one part of him was assured she would do fine. He was still learning so much about her and still had a lot to process. They’d had a great time yesterday and He was glad she did not have to keep giving him a long rope just because he wanted to court her. She was someone who was pretty honest with her feelings and her body language often gave her away sometimes though in the past he’d have readily taken advantage of that but right now, the last thing he wanted to be led by was his hormones and his flesh.
Just holding her hands yesterday had made him remember what it felt like to hold a young woman in his hands though they often landed in his arms and his laps in the past. He would have to watch it. The 7 years of celebacy must be responsible for all this thoughts about Nimi he couldn’t get out of his head.
“I’m sure Lara would be pleased to see you. At least you can’t be in Lagos without saying hello to her. She needs a friendly face asides the spies around her.”
IK laughed. “Spies?”
“Her friends…, that’s if she has any real ones.”
“Hmmn, I doubt she’ll be as excited as you think. I mean has she ever asked about me?”
Dapo tried to provide a positive response. “We hardly talk and all that’s been going on around her has really turned her to something else.”
“There’s no harm in saying Hi then.”
Dapo smiled. “Like they say, out of sight is out of mind.”
“So, wanna talk about your girl?”
He grinned. “She’s one breath of fresh air I haven’t had in a while.”
“Wow, she must be something.”
“She is, but I really want to take things one step at a time. I mean I’ve hinted one or two things about the future but I don’t want to run ahead of God. We’ve both prayed and so we’ll just let the boat sail while the master leads.”
“I’m happy for you. Imagine me being here when all these excitement is going on. It makes me feel like I’m going to be a part of your lives.”
“Of course you’ll be part of it. In a big way perhaps.” The second half came on and Dapo turned his attention back to the TV clapping his hands to support his team while IK sat up to adjust already forgetting what they’d discussed and focusing on what was ahead.
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When Nimi got her alert that on Monday morning, she was surprised and thought maybe there was some kind of mistake her Boss had made. Taking note of it and working on her Boss’ appointments she had lined up especially as her wedding drew close, Nimi wondered if it wasn’t going to get intense as the weeks rolled out. She had her booking appointment for her cake, her dresses and her bridesmaid dresses. Even her fiancé had stopped by the week before and for the first time she saw the man Lara was getting married to.
Yes he had the looks, even the aura around him was that of pride and ego that he had what could draw women to him but there was just something that repulsed her about him. She couldn’t lay her finger on it, but she was in no way drawn to him no matter how Nonye went on and on about how ladies went gaga for him.
Her mind suddenly flashed to Dapo and the past life he mentioned. Could he have been this way too? Taking what he wanted and who he wanted because they couldn’t resist him. She was glad he’d told her about it before they went further because she could pray that God would help her deal with ways her future spouse had fallen short. She remembered Maxine and how the girl had tried to get cosy with him but had ignored it because she didn’t want to sound like a jealous girlfriend in the one and a half dates they’d been together.
But what if other women from his past came to taunt her. Just like the look Maxine had given her, as if to remind her that she had no dwellings with people like the Kitans. She even reminded her who she was.
” You’re the new girl she hired as her PA right?”
She was here only because God wanted her to. When it was time to leave, she would do so gladly. There was nothing she was looking for here, neither was she a gold digger of any sort. She was going to grow into loving Dapo one step at a time with God’s grace and strength, no matter the number of women that wanted to threaten or belittle her. She had to remind herself of who she was in the first place.
She shook her head away from the molesting thoughts and headed for Lara’s office. Knocking before entering, she saw her Boss giggling away on the phone. She signalled for her to come in and she strolled in waiting for her to end the call which she did soon.
“Hey you!” Lara greeted excitedly on seeing her. “How are you?”
Nimi suddenly felt suspicious. Did her Boss know about her and Dapo already? She was acting nice and all giggly.
She confirmed her suspicions. “Just before you think I’m drunk, I’m not. It’s just my fiance. I spent the night at his place and he kept telling me to hang up or he won’t and keeps saying ‘I love you baby like a mantra of some sort. Soji can be really cute sometimes.”
“Oh…” She forced a smile not knowing whether to agree or not and also wondering why her Boss felt it ethical to share something that personal with her PA.
Minutes ago, she had thought she was just a PA and not a friend like her other secular and well to do friends.
“Uh, I’ve made booked your new appointments for the week and I wanted to ask if there was something you might be considering removing because it’s looking kind of crowded. Like on Wednesday you have a meeting at Abeokuta, something about your mum wanting you to visit a relative to tell her about the wedding but it’s clashing with the one you have with your Dad’s lawyer about the flats he rented out in V.I.”
Lara shook her head coming back to earth. “Move the Abeokuta thing to weekend. I’ll just have to explain to my mum that it didn’t work out during the week. I’d rather see my dentist during the week than go all the way to see some old lady.” She laughed at her twisted joke and when she saw that Nimi didn’t join her, she changed the subject.
“Anything else?”
“Oh.., yes, I wanted to ask about the salary.” She began. “I saw a figure twice what we agreed on and I thought I should confirm if it was a mistake of some sort.”
“How much did we agree on again?”
“70k monthly.”
“And you got?”
“140.”
“Yea, consider it as my appreciation for you.” She smiled suddenly looking angelic. “I mean you are running a part-time masters program and here I am using you like I don’t really care what you sacrificed to be here working for me. And ever since you came into my life, you’re like my dream come true. You just put things in place for me and always put me in mind. I feel like if you were a guy, I’d date you. I mean what kind of girl sees someone like you and isn’t blessed to have you in her life.”
Nimi felt creeped out at her mention of ‘dating’ which her Boss mentioned but she smiled. “I’m glad I can be a blessing to you.”
She stood up. “And from now on, I want you to see me as your friend okay? So, whatever is on your mind, just share with me, I would love to help. I’m a very open minded person. I’m sure you could see how I talked about my fiance to you. That’s how I am. I don’t hide my feelings with my friends. I let them know because they’re my friends.”
Nimi swallowed. “Okay.’
Omg!! Does she know already?
“So, how’s that guy who makes you forget everything else?”
“Uh, he’s fine I guess. We haven’t talked today and we’re taking it one step at a time.”
“Oh, I forgot, there’s no sex till wedding night for you.”
“For both of us.” Nimi confirmed.
“But have you ever wondered if he can’t wait. I mean what if he wants you just once and you’re all bent on waiting. Have you ever wondered the torture you might be making him go through?”
“We’ll figure something out.” She desperately wanted her to change the subject or run out of the room. She felt like suffocating. Was the devil using her to get to her? What was all this talk about sex?
“I’m sorry.” She apologized as if she could read her mind. Reaching for her, she patted her gently. “I didn’t mean to make you feel out of place. I’m just curious. I mean ever since you talked about love not involving sex, I’ve been really… “I don’t know. It just sounded strange to me and I was thinking if you could shed more light on it.”
Nimi relaxed. Maybe she was just being paranoid afterall.
“It’s a beautiful thing when it’s between two people God wants together. When its done outside marriage, it only brings hurt, brokenness and degrades what God had in mind when he created it.”
“And your boyfriend understands and sees it this way too?”
“I believe he does.”
“What if he chooses to sleep with someone else since you refuse?”
“He won’t. If a guy does that, maybe he never loved me in the first place. I mean if He can’t be faithful before marriage, what gives the assurance that He’ll be faithful afterwards. Sooner or later, he’s going to start seeing excuses to commit adultery. Maybe his wife is a bore and all sorts.”
“That’s a good way to look at it.” Lara laughed but it was obvious it didn’t reach her eyes this time.
Am I reaching her dear God?
Bring me in.
“But you can’t do this without God you know that right?” Nimi reached to touch her arm when she noticed she seemed to be lost in thought.
She looked at her arm and smiled. “You sound like my brother. He talks about God like he’s obsessed. He believes He holds the solutions to all my problems, like I have any.”
“Everybody has one, maybe you’ve just refused to acknowledge it. Sometimes we tend to live in denial for a long time. I did when my Dad passed. The first stage was denial. I didn’t want to believe it. I just felt my Dad hadn’t gone and this was all a dream that would end soon and we would live together again once more. And then in came shock and anger and running to the only one who could soothe my pains and make me whole again. I may not see him till I die, but I have hope that I’ll see him again in the next life.”
“Next life huh?” She raised a brow like she didn’t buy any of those ‘things’
“Because of Christ, I have eternal life. There’s hope for mankind afterall. All we need to do is reach for it.”
“What makes you so sure there’s a next life?”
“Because there’s just so much going on in this world to think and say it all ends here and the book that predicts all says there’s hope, there’s life somewhere asides this. My spirit confirms it because I have the Spirit of God. Where does the spirit and soul go? The Bible says all shall be judged by one. I’d be crazy if I chose how many years of my life on earth over eternity. I couldn’t chose my parents or the life I had growing up, but I can choose where I’ll spend forever and whom I’d like to spend it with. Even if I loose all in this life, it’s worth nothing to what I have in Jesus.”
Lara watched her for a long while before going to settle back on her chair. “That would be all for now.”
Nimi was sad and that moment, God made her see what was happening to Lara. It was like she was on a crossroad and she was being tugged towards an end she could not see.
She suddenly felt the need to pray for her. She hadn’t considered it, but she would, starting today. She’d extended a hand of friendship, maybe God was going to use it to work to her heart, she couldn’t tell.
But would she be able to bear the fire that came with it?
She excused herself and when she stepped out, that was when she saw the text message.
Missing you already. xo!
She smiled when she saw his message and replied. “Miss you loads. When can we see again?”
“Madam” Nonye broke into her thoughts. “This one that you’re smiling, I hope it’s the same person smiling that sent you these bouquet o or I’d be jealous big time.”
And that was when she saw the roses on her table and headed towards it.
“When did this come in? Who brought them in?”
“One guy from the florist shop came looking for you but I signed on your behalf after explaining you were with big madam.”
She giggled and reached for the card just to plant a kiss on it and place it on her heart.
“Nawa o. Na so your love take reach. Who’s the boo?” Nonye asked leaning close to sniff the flowers and trying to get a peek into what her friend was hiding.
“Just somebody special.”
“The flowers look expensive sha.”
Nimi shook her head. “It’s the heart behind it that moves me not the money.”
“Speak for yourself. Like you don’t know how much things like this cost. It’s someone who has excess that can buy flowers that cost above 10k.”
She ignored whatever hidden malice was laced behind her colleague’s comment and continued admiring it.
Dapo sure knew how to steal her heart. She’d never gotten flowers before, didn’t even think she would get any, but this on a Monday morning was sure to brighten her day.
As if that wasn’t enough…
“Uh.., Hello Miss Adeyemi.”
Her heart went galloping with each thud and she thought she was beginning to hallucinate before she realized he was as real as the word itself.
And the way he was acting so professional like they hadn’t shared a meal two days before. He looked professional too unlike the weekend they’d hung out but with a blue crisp linen shirt and nice pair of pants, he looked like another version of the guy she’d hung out with. He had cleaned up real good and a nice shave that made almost made it seem he’d shaven 7 years off with it.
“Hi.., Uh Hello Mr Kitan, nice to see you too.”
“Lovely flowers I must say.” He glanced at it and smiled like any normal person would.
“Miss Adeyemi has a secret admirer.” Nonye didn’t want to miss out on the fun.
“Oh, lovely.” He turned his attention to Lara’s secretary and asked. “Is Lara available? Could you check that for me?”
“Oh sure.”
It was when she was gone that Nimi noticed the other guy he’d come in with. He’d been on his phone and only put up his head when Nonye went in. He looked good too, though fair in complexion and a lovely dimple in his smile when he smiled at her.
“Hi..”
“I know this is not really a good place to introduce you both but IK is a close friend, like a brother, the guy I told you about during the weekend?”
“Oh…” Nimi lit up when he extended his hand and she received it “It’s so nice to meet you. I’ve heard great things about you.”
Ikenna shook hers gratefully. “And the most amazing things about you too.”
She blushed glancing at Dapo and smiling. “How was your journey all the way down here, I do hope you had the best flight?”
He laughed. “Quite opposite.”
“I’m sure Dapo here took good care of you.” Nimi’s hands rested on her beau’s arm but that was before Nonye came back to the office and saw them all chatting and laughing together.
“Miss Kitan will see you now.” She said stiffly and Nimi knew she had seen something that made her act that way.
When they were gone, Nimi chose not to say anything except she asked which she didn’t. It was after she decided to put the flowers away she spoke up.
“Nawa for you o. Instead of you to tell me that you and Oga’s brother have started sharing things, you just dey do chop alone.”
“I’m not chopping anything Nonye. Stop talking like that.”
“So he sent you the flowers. I should have known.” She shook her head speaking more to herself than to her colleague. “The silent coding you two were sending with your eyes, I just knew there had to be something more.”
Nimi slapped a hand against her forehead. “Was it that obvious?”
“Well, he was good with hiding his feelings, you weren’t.” She giggled suddenly looking like the Normal Nonye she knew.
She heaved a sigh of relief. “Please, don’t tell Oga yet abeg. Dapo said he wants to be the one to tell her first and I really don’t want things going out of hand.”
“Haba, what do you take me for? I may like gist but I’m not a telltale.” She rolled her eyes. “But come, how about the fair bobo wey come with Oga’s brother. The guy dey no be small o. Hook us up na.”
“But how’s that possible?”
“Ahnahn, shey you’re going out with Mr Kitan. Help a sister find a good looking Igbo brother in her life. I’m not asking you to show them my CV, just pop in my name once or twice so he gets the gist. I’m sure I’ve been nothing but good to you.”
Nimi sighed. She already knew the kind of rope Nonye was giving her. It almost felt like a condition.
Almost like she was saying, “Scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thanks girlfriend, I know I can count on you.”
Nimi forced up a smile. She just hoped Dapo would tell Lara before she found out from any other source.
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Lara was in shock for a while when she set her eyes on the young man standing in front of her. She didn’t know what to say, if seeing him was only going to bring back nostalgic parts of her childhood or she would remember when he’d been the only boy she knew understood her just before her world came crashing down.
No one must know
Oh but how she wanted him to be the only one who knew about it. And he’d gone away.
“Lara, are you alright?” Dapo asked suddenly worried about his sister.
She snapped back to the present and smiled. “I-Ken.”
IK laughed. “I’ll take that as a yes, you still remember me.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” She assured him rising and rushing to hug him.
She had forgotten everything. Life had been fine and glorious forgetting everything and living in what was present and not that past.
That past she desperately didn’t want to believe happened to her. That life that belonged to some other girl.
Not her. It could never be her.
“I missed you.” He mumbled when she lingered in his arms.
“I’ve…, I’ve missed you too.” She blinked back tears so that no one could see. No one could never see it. It was past and forgotten.
Even He wouldn’t make her remember. It was nicely safe and tucked where it belonged.
He released her and he could see the smiling and beautiful Lara.
“Wow, you look great.” He praised assessing her. “If someone had told me Lara would one day look like Miss Universe, I would have sworn in my life the guy was crazy.”
Lara punched him playfully. “And if someone had told me you were going to be looking like a cow instead of the handsome man that’s standing here today, I’d bet on it.”
“I see you two haven’t changed.” Dapo grinned at them and asked. “I could leave if you want. IK can always find his way back.”
The duo both looked at each other and grinned. IK spoke up.”I think we can take it from here.”
Lara shrugged in agreement. “Fine by me.”
Much love. xo!
Original story by ITUNU TAIWO owner of http://myglowingscenes.com
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