CONFLICTED

Chapter 53| Soulmate

"Chi, don't make this harder for me than it already is. It's not like I can just forget what we shared and everything he's done for me."

"I knew it would come to this." she wiggled her finger into space, "I just knew. I knew you would misinterpret his nice gestures as some shared feelings. That's why I specifically told him to keep his hands to himself in case you made advances only for him to shove his face into yours."

Oblivious of my growing rage, she rambled on. "I also gave you that makeover at the wedding which you finally agreed to for once just so you can spite him and move on from playboys like him but you go on and fall for his lies the slightest chance you got?"

It all sort of made sense after patching the missing pieces together. Christopher being all jealous boyfriend on me when he thought I was seeing Charlie, to him trying to kiss me when I confessed I like him. Heavens, maybe he's been wanting to kiss me a long time now but held back because my friend here had been busy preaching to the choir.

"You told him to turn down my feelings for him? How could you, Chi? And how dare you make me feel dirty for all these? Oh I know! This is just your way of spiting us for what Ike did to you. Well guess what, I'm not you and Chris is not Ike so you can as well keep your filthy advice to yourself."

Chioma stared at me with a pained look but I wasn't having it with her. It felt unfair because for once I liked a guy that bothered to look at me a second time while she got so busy plotting ways to tear us apart.

"And I'm not even trying to snatch Christopher from anyone," I rattled on, "so you can stop running to Anna's defense every time. I have genuine feelings for this boy whether or not he set me up with a producer and I'm getting signed because I worked my butt off for this. For all we know, he actually likes me back because if not, he wouldn't have kissed me after everything he went through with his ex. Hear that? Ex! His ex-girlfriend for crying out loud not someone he's been dating the whole time while I was happy seducing him into being his side chic."

A moment of silence passed before my chest tightened despite letting it all out. I let my anger do the talking and whether or not Chioma was in the wrong, slamming the “you were a wanton slut that got dumped so don't interfere in my business even if there's a slight chance you're just looking out for me” talk in her face was not it.

Chioma sniffed and wiped her face before getting up to swipe her jacket off the desk.

"I'm sorry." I blurted but she ignored me and slammed the door on her way out.

My heart dropped to my stomach, staring at the door and it hit me that I just drove away the only friend I had with words that weighed twice my size. My eyes threatened to water but instead, I grabbed a pillow and threw it at the door before faceplanting the bed.

~~~

Christopher

I stepped down the stairs while drying my damp hair with a towel and entered the living room to see my dad on the phone.

"Okay then... See you on Monday." he got off the phone and gave me a wide grin the umpteenth time in the past couple of hours. "We're meeting Waec's board of directors at your school on Monday. Be in your uniform."

"That ugly costume?" I grimaced and lied through my teeth, "I burnt it."

"Then your school will provide you with another set. Point is, you'll be in the ugly costume on Monday." he stated and I grunted a dismissal under my breath.

After my dad made a huge deal out of my results, like I'd expected of course, we had an heated face off on my college choice and both of us remained unyielding. Then I steamed off on the treadmill in our house gym, fearing I might have just a month left.