Kenneth returned to his three-star hotel and fell on the thick, welcoming mattress. The man savored the sensation and the privilege of not having to leech on publishers when it came down to accommodation and other expenses.
What was this bedroom and Amityville hotel? He had to get Monday out of there.
Kenneth took a shower at ten and headed to the fair. Though only a few hours separated their last encounter, the man was eager to see Monday. It had been a while since the man had a stake-less conversation where he knew no judgment or hasty conclusion was drawn from his speech.
Monday too wished to see the man. She knocked on a few doors to see if anyone had an iron for her dress. She had packed one just in case, and the case was then. The hotel service was lousy. The staff made no effort to help her.
For once, she welcomed the images that flooded her mind with open arms as she ironed her dress. The night spent with Kenneth was a first in her adult life. Never had she just shared a bed with a man in a chaste manner. Kenneth didn't try anything. They kissed; apart from his hugs, the man kept his hands to himself.
Monday quickly got accustomed to his beard and his Tom Ford Oud Wood Cologne that devoured any other fragrance in a room.
The woman's mind was in total meltdown, and the danger wasn't imminent. She practically swam in it. She was taking a risk with her heart by accepting the feelings she held for him. Again the man didn't explicitly say anything, but what were words in reality without action?
Now it was time to observe what Kenneth would do.
Kenneth was older, wealthy, a public personality, a white man; she already imagined how some people, notably her family, would react if they found out. It was her life, but a life with many pairs of eyes watching on both sides. Monday threw out a lasso on all the renegade thoughts and tied them up in the corner of her mind. It wasn't the moment to chicken out on the situation.
She grabbed her phone and dialed.
"Luce."
"Dayé, what's the matter?"
"What do you mean?"
"You never call when you're away. You usually send texts."
"I needed to speak to you."
"How is it going there?" Luce asked while she popped the coins in the Selecta distributor of her ward's floor and pressed the button of her choice.
"Good, Kenneth is here."
"He is?" The woman said as she picked up the apple juice that fell from the distributor.
"Yes, we spent the night together."
"Eh, eh, again. Ha, I guess the man is giving you good medicine."
"No, we slept in the same bed, but nothing happened," Monday touched her forehead, "we talked."
"You just talked?"
"Yes." Why did it sound odd to say they had a conversation? Also, why did Luce seem so surprised?
Perhaps because many placed sex above other factors and the mind inconconclously registered the equation man x woman in bed equaled the action.
Despite the extrovert image people plastered on her, Monday was a sensitive person governed by her emotions. Her all-night conversation with Kenneth scaled higher on her fall in love barometer than their raunchy nights. She needed the discussions and exchanges that most deprived her of having. Sex was never enough; a man needed to make love to her mind before hoping to claim her if Kenneth understood that she was definitely in danger.
The orator showed a more vulnerable and human side that he didn't hide; people just didn't pay attention to Kenneth. They preferred the gimmick they saw on the stage. A vulnerability was something no one wished to see in a leader. Yet Kenneth taught otherwise.
Good leaders were those capable of showing empathy; it also meant the person had a high capacity of listening and accepted not to be the one with all the answers. Kenneth explained everything, but did people hear? Or were they just swayed by the trend that made them feel like deep thinkers or faux-semblants philosophers while they assisted in his talks?
"You like him, don't you, Dayé?"
"I don't know, Luce. O leku[something serious or hard]I have that feeling you know the one where you'll slip no matter how hard you resist."
"Monday, why are you so scared?"
The woman frowned at herself. Why did Kenneth scare her more than any other man?
You could love him.
"Luce, I'm tired of failing. I'm sick of hoping and always meeting a dead end with men. It's worse with him; he's not my type. He has these dumb theories and groupies. He lives abroad, and he's older. I mean, the guy was practically in high school when I first opened my eyes to this world of sin."
Luce chuckled, "it has to be overdramatic with you, doesn't it. Why don't you just take it a step at a time? Use him as a pacemaker. Don't give more than you get."
They spoke for a while. Luce explained how she saw pastor Lennox again and decided to stop going to church.
"Luce, I thought you enjoyed attending the service. He shouldn't impact your desire to communicate with God," Monday said.
"I do, but I can't take it anymore. I want God to give me a sign or to send me someone because I clearly can't go on like this."
"Oh, Luce."
"Anyway, I've got to go. Keep me updated. Bye, babe."
"Bye."
A feeling of guilt cloaked Monday. She spent her time complaining and running to Luce forgetting her cousin had her issues as well. The woman decided to keep her uncertainties about Kenneth to herself for the time being. Monday looked at her phone screen.
"Damn."
She was late; Monday grabbed her sneakers and hurried to the fair.
"Wow, Monday, what's with the green light?" Ben teased when he saw her arrive.
"Aww, I love the color. I wish I could wear electric yellow like that," Dagmar added.
Yellow or green, the long asymmetric slip-on silk dress was a pretty in-between on Mondays' skin. She associated it with a long grey cardigan speckled, pink, and purple threads. The sneakers were off-key, but the woman had no choice. They were the only shoes she bought with her.
"Sorry, guys."
"No worries," Ben said, giving her a wink.
Monday smiled, posed her bag, and hurried to start working.
In the meantime, Kenneth, who got ready for his talk, wondered if Monday had arrived. He would have liked her to attend.
"Kenneth, are you ready?"
"Yes."
Meredith gave a go-ahead the conference was recorded. Kenneth climbed the steps.
"Hi guys, I hope you're happy today. I know that I'm extremely pleased to be here with you. Today is a FAQ special, and I'll be answering the questions left in my booths' urn. I'll just run through them. There's no particular order of importance. Take away what you need and erase the rest. Okay, let's get cracking. Yesterday, one of the questions deposited in the FAQ urn was how to stay happy? ㅡSo how? Say you've found happiness. You are on cloud nine; well, the only thing that can bring you down is yourself and your lack of reactivity," he paused.
"For example, if your job makes you happy, you must strive to keep it. Not by working harder, but by working better. How to do that? Improve your skillset, adjust and adapt to change. Contribute to improving the workspace and environment. By doing so, you can increase your charge of happiness at work. If it's your car, the element of your happiness, you must take care of it. The same goes for your pet dog Yoda, buy his favorite biscuits, go for walks, talk to him. ㅡBasically, to keep your happiness, you must take care of and protect what makes you happy."
While Kenneth spoke, Ben tried to convince Monday to go and hear him.
"No, I don't want him to think I'm stalking him or something."
Ben lowered his gaze under his glasses rims, "Monday, don't be silly. I'm sure the man will be thrilled to see you. It's like a school recital, won't you thrilled to see your parents come?"
"Eh, my parents were back in Nigeria."
"Come on, Monday, you know what I mean." Ben turned his focus to the thriller novel queen, "Dagmar, say something."
"I say I'm going," the woman said and got up from her seat, "see you in a bit."
Ben glared at Monday, who sneered at him before grabbing her bag and following in Dagmars' lead.