Preordained #ProjectNigeria

37- Now Or Never

"Mama, I don't understand..." is what I manage to choke out before bursting into tears.

Mama Uju sits there with her laughter filling the sitting room. "He's hooked."

My faulty Nokia torchlight lies a few meters from me on the floor, held together by a rubberband. I stare at it, lost for a moment.

"He got me a phone," I whisper. "A new phone."

"Let us drink wine for this one," Mama Uju says with a whoop. "Our boyfriend don buy phone oo."

She quickly gets up to go inside.

I wipe my tears away, still sniffling, and dial Maduka's number with my Nokia, but get no reply. Maybe he's busy.

How did I deserve this?

Later in the night, Maduka calls me when I'm in the sitting room with Adanna and I answer with my new phone.

"Ah, finally," he says. "I can hear you better."

"Thank you." My throat constricts again. It's a phone, but the gesture is what gets to me. That he considered that I had a troublesome phone and decided to go all the way and replace it for me...

"Are you there?" he asks, when I remain silent for a while.

"Yes," I reply.

He hears the tears in my voice. "What happened? Are you alright? Don't...dont you like it?"

"I'm fine, and I love it. Thank you. It's just... I'm surprised. I'm overwhelmed. I wasn't-"

"Expecting this?"

"Mmm."

"It's something I've always wanted to do since you fell into that pool."

I laugh, remembering how annoying that night had been, and how rudely I'd acted towards him even when he was trying to help me. Impatient, he had thrown me over his shoulder and literally stuffed me into his car while reminding me that I didn't appeal to him in anyway in my messy state.

"Thank you. For everything."

"Everything hasn't even started."

I imagine a grin on his lips while he says that.

"I'll be seeing you this weekend? I miss you," he says in a whiny voice that makes me giggle.

"I'll think about it."

"I'll have to learn how to scale walls and jump through windows so I can abduct you when everyone is asleep. Your shakara will end."

"Adanna will catch you."

"I'll bribe her. We both know she likes me. One cup of ice cream or an elaborate castle with her building blocks, and you're all mine."

"That much is true."

"I have had the most stressful day at work. An accidental fire took almost half of one of my buildings away."

I gasp. "You're all fine?"

"It's all fine."

"Are you sure?" I don't know if it's me or if his voice sounds strained all of a sudden.

"Absolutely. I'm driving home now; I'll call you tomorrow, alright?"

"Okay. Drive safely."

"Wish I were driving home to you."

"I'd have prepared a good meal for you, and we'd have showered together before eating."

"I'd love to lather you well." His voice drops, sending delicious shivers up and down my spine.