(043 - Machiavellian.)
Another shout-out to the second position of the quiz we had last week Friday Goldastar . Well done babe. Also, a shout out to chiomachris. You guys should check out her book "Perspective". Y'all will certainly enjoy it.
And yeah, I wanted to say this. I told you guys that if you want to join the group chat for my book, y'all should send me a dm so I can send the link. I meant a Wattpad DM o. I thought what I meant was clear enough, but someone went on my message board and started asking for my WhatsApp number so that she can send me a dm there and I'll send her the link. What kind of Israelite Journey is that 😂💔?
Please enter my Wattpad dm for the link. The same goes for you guys that have been asking me the send the link on my Message Board. Wattpad doesn't allow any link on message boards except book links. Enter my DM, or else I won't reply you.
And yeah, Ghostreaders I see you o💀. I've never seen some of you vote or comment on this book, but you are majorly the ones demanding for the group link. Issorite. If you are not active here, I don't expect you to be active on the group chat either, so if I air your DM... pele.
I'm talking too much. Let's see what sister Semeeha has up her sleeves now💀.
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𝐒𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐇𝐀
(Semeeha Iris Malik)
"You sure took your sweet time to get here,"
Those were the words Kizito welcomed me with as soon as I walked through the barbed wire gates of the American Football stadium.
It's been twenty minutes since Lase rang the bell for break, so technically, I was twenty minutes later than the time Kizito asked us to meet. I'm pretty certain he had gotten here within five minutes after the bell went off, but here I was, strolling in twenty minutes after like I had the luxury of time.
It was intentional, anyway.
I got here late on purpose because I wanted to spite him.
The last thing I wanted was for him to know that I care. I needed to show that I really didn't give a fück if they wanted to speak to me or not, if he wanted to speak to me or not. I don't want them thinking I was desperate for their attention... or for his.
But It was hard.
It was really hard trying to pretend, especially with him standing just a distance away.
But I still maintained the act like it was nothing, holding my head up high as I took my time to walk up to him, trying my best to exude a demeanor of nonchalance.
"You are also taking your sweet time to walk," He said again, referring to how unnecessarily slow I was walking. If he knew I was doing it on purpose, he didn't say anything about that.
Still, I wasn't deterred.
Instead, I let my face scrunch up in a little frown.
"Don't rush me," I told him, my voice coming out harsher than I intended. "You are the one that called me out, not the other way around so if I decide to take my time, you will have to be patient," I stated matter-of-factly,
Kizito looked on like I had not just raised my voice at him, folding his hands across his chest.
"Except you want me to turn around and go back to class," I added in an afterthought. "I really have something better to do than to be here with you, so you should count yourself lucky that I decided to make out time to be here," I said.
It was a big lie. Possibly the biggest lie I have ever told. I wanted to be here with him, in the same space, standing close to each other, breathing in the same air with him. But he doesn't know that. And I don't want him to know that either... not yet at least.
So instead, I resolved to get on his nerves. Trying to get some sort of reaction from him.
Anger, maybe. Or at least frustration.
Something... Anything that would show that he's just as affected by our fallout as I was.
But rather than get offended as I expected, Kizito looked...amused.
Even with the distance between us, I couldn't help but notice the slight twitching of his lips, tugging up a bit into something between a smirk and a smile while he kept his eyes trained on me, watching me take so long to walk up to him.
That simple, seemingly harmless, and innocent gesture from him froze me on the spot.
I legit stopped walking.
Here I was, intentionally trying to rile him up by first coming late, then walking annoyingly slow, then being rude to him. I was expecting him to get frustrated at my lack of enthusiasm and nonchalance, was trying to get a reaction from him, a reaction that would put me in the position to hijack the situation on ground and use it.
But instead, he was smiling at me.
A simple smile that shut my entire system down. Including my mind. I forgot everything I wanted to say. Everything I had already rehearsed to say to him disappeared into smoke.
Poof. Gone.
And I couldn't still move.
What the fück?
What is this sorcery?
"Fine," I didn't hear him but I saw his mouth move, mouthing that word. Then he started walking. Towards me.
My eyes widened.
What is he doing? Where is he coming to?
I couldn't voice out my thoughts as well. My mouth was suddenly sealed shut, unable to produce any sound from them. It almost felt like there was an invisible finger holding my lips together because I couldn't open my mouth. I could only stand still and watch silently as Kizito made his way to me.
And in less than five strides, he was standing right in front of me.
Dear God. My breath caught in my throat.
Kizito was now standing just a few inches away from me. I had to crane my neck up to get a better look at him, gulping inaudibly as soon as my eyes met his piercing ones. He held my gaze, bobbing his head a bit to the side as he stared down at me.
Staring at me like he was looking deep into my soul.
I took in a breath, but that was another mistake I made.
The rousing scent of his cologne hit me hard like a truck. I tried so hard to keep my eyes from fluttering close and tried to stop myself from inhaling the intoxicating scent. But it was everywhere, emitting from him in a bizarre amount of waves.
I couldn't help myself. I just had to inhale again, biting the insides of my cheek to stop myself from sighing out loud like I was high.
But truth be told, I was high. High on Kizito Alade-Martins.
Kizito was oblivious to the effect of his closeness to me, the effect of his eyes on me. His eye was simple, his gaze innocent, yet they were enough to set my body on fire. How can he not see how much I was quivering beneath his stare? How can he not know what he's doing to me?
Or maybe he was seeing it.
Maybe he knew what he was doing to me but was trying to act ignorant.
It's a possibility, right?
"And now, you are not going to talk," He spoke, his voice cutting through my thoughts. I blinked, trying to clear my hazy mind and get my lips to say something.
Anything.
I needed to get my mind working again.
"W-What are you d-doing?" I asked him, mentally cursing myself for sounding just as disoriented as I looked. If Kizito noticed, he wasn't showing it. Instead, he looked more confused by my question.
"What am I doing?" He sounded just as confused.
"Why are you standing so close to me!" My voice was clearer now but for reasons I couldn't place, my tone was harsh and I sounded irritated. It was as if I was disgusted at the idea of having Kizito stand close to me.
That must have been the same interpretation in his mind because he looked taken aback by my outburst.
"What do you mean? I can't stand close to you anymore?" He looked and sounded appalled, a little humorless laughter in his voice as he spoke.
"Just move away," I told him, averting my gaze from his.
"Semeeha-" He still moved closer to me like he had not heard my request. That caused my head to jerk up and my heart to pick up at an abnormal speed in that same instant.
"I said you should fücking back off, Kizito! Jesus!" I snapped, cutting him off harshly. My voice echoed through the quiet stadium, shocking both Kizito and myself.
Kizito was dumbfounded, his eyebrows quirked upwards with surprise marred across his face, his mouth hanging open slightly. He kept staring at me, looking at me like he was seeing someone different, someone, that wasn't me.
Then he chuckled humorlessly, shock still evident, shaking his head as he muttered a barely audible Wow before he slowly began to back up, creating an ample amount of space between us just like I wanted. I exhaled, folding my hands across my chest as I averted my gaze from his again.
I didn't mean to yell at him like that. God knows I didn't. But if he had even the tiniest idea of what his closeness does to me, he'd be doing us both a favor by staying at least five hundred feet away from me.
Bullshit.
It won't work still. Because I know myself.
At the end of the day, I'd still be the one to close up the gap because I cannot bear losing Kizito. I cannot stay away from him. I can handle staying away from Dawn, and even Hilary, but never Kizito.
Else, I'd lose my mind.
"I shouldn't have yelled," I whispered.
"No, you shouldn't have," He agreed, his voice more controlled than I expected. "And though I shouldn't be surprised, I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that you did," He added, peering down at me with a confused mixed with hurt expression creased across his face.
I exhaled, looking away from him briefly before looking back.
"I didn't mean to yell," I said under my breath.
"Then why did you?" He asked me, folding his hands across his chest again. That simple action caused his defined muscles to bulge, almost ripping through the thin material of his white school uniform shirt. I couldn't stop my eyes from following the movement.
It was then I noticed that for the first time in a very long while, Kizito didn't have his varsity jacket on.
It made him look different. Hotter.
"What's going on with you, Semeeha?" His voice tore through my lewd thoughts. I focused my mind back on him, on what he said. I could hear the concern sipping through his tone like he was worried about me.
Or it could be that he wasn't, perhaps, grasping the reason why I acted the way I did.
His next statement proved that it was the latter.
"You have been acting so strange lately," He said to me, causing a frown to crease over my forehead because I could sense the accusatory undertone in his voice. "Hilary said you exchanged seats. Not just that, you haven't been speaking to any of us for more than a week. And now, you just woke up this morning and left the group chat without so much as an explanation?"
And we are back here again.
"Wait, so this is why you wanted to talk to me?" I asked, looking at him incredulously. "You called me out here to scold me for not speaking to you guys when it's the other way round?" I scoffed out a humorless laugh. "You guys have been ignoring me all week, giving me attitude for days now, yet I'm still the one at fault because I decided to leave the group chat."
"The girls decided to stay away from you because they needed the space, especially Dawn," Kizito tried to explain, picking his words one by one as if they'd have some sort of effect on me and make me see reasons.
They didn't.
Or rather, I allowed myself not to see the glaring reasons.
"You said some really insensitive things to her, Semeeha. Triggering words that you cannot take back." He went on despite my silence, trying to get me to understand why they were keeping their distance from me. "Hilary was there and she witnessed it all. They are completely justified for wanting to keep their distance."
There it is. The perfect slate.
"And are you?" I asked, mimicking his stance by folding my hand over my chest. My question must have confused him because he stared back at me, his right eyebrow quirked in question.
"Sorry?"
"Are you, Kizito Alade-Martins, justified for keeping your distance away from me?" I asked, keeping my eyes trained on his boldly.
He didn't reply, staring back at me quizzically and I almost smiled, knowing that I had him right where I wanted him. But I didn't, trying to keep my face as stoic as I could.
I went on when he still didn't speak.
"Even though there was absolutely nothing wrong in what I said, I can still try to understand why Hilary and Dawn are staying away. But you," I paused, shaking my head as a sound of disbelief escaped my lips. "I can't seem to understand why you stayed away from me. You weren't there and you don't know the full story, yet you stayed away!" I snapped.
"I don't have to know the full story-" He began.
"Oh, so you are taking sides now, aren't you?" I cut him off.
"I am not taking sides, Semeeha. I'm trying to do what is right.-" He wanted to defend himself but I wasn't going to easily let him.
"Right for who? For me or for them?" I cut him off again, asking him. He didn't answer me, taking deep breaths as if to calm himself. "Because you weren't thinking of doing the right thing this past week when you segregated me and left me all on my own. All of you!"
"Fine! I'm sorry!" He shouted. I felt my lips twitch in a small smile but quickly collected myself before he could see it. "But what was I supposed to do?" He sounded frustrated like someone caught between the devil and the deep blue sea.
"I don't know, stay with me?" I replied in a tone that said the answer was obvious. "You should have stayed with me, or at least, heard my side of the story, giving me a benefit of the doubt instead of constantly and repeatedly picking their sides over mine.-
I literally didn't exist to you this past week, Kizito. It took me leaving the group to actually get your attention. Is that how far apart you and I have drifted?" I let my voice quiver slightly and blinked repeatedly so that my eyes would water.
That did the trick.
I saw his demeanor falter right in front of me and it gave me some Joy.
Averting my gaze from his to the ground, I wrapped my hands around my body and squeezed my eyes tightly, trying to force out tears from my lacrimal gland, quaking my shoulders lightly in a bid to give off that I was really upset.
I needed Kizito on my side. I needed him to be on my side for once and I'm going to do anything to sell it, even if it meant twisting this whole situation in my favor and acting the victim.
And from my peripheral vision, I saw the way his shoulders slump in dejection, a deep sigh escaping his lips.
It was working.
"No," He whispered as he slowly walked towards me, gradually closing up the distance between us. He was delicately taking his steps towards me as if to give me enough opportunity to tell him to stay away.
But not this time. Not when I was this close to getting exactly what I wanted.
"Semeeha," He whispered again when he got close to me, his voice soft and hypnotic, like he was trying to cajole me to raise my head and look at him. But I didn't. I kept my gaze fixated on anywhere but his eyes, letting out soft, faux sniffles.
Kizito sighed again, muttering a small come here before closing the remaining distance between us by pulling me in and wrapping his hands around me in a hug.
Sold!
I had to stop myself from squealing in delight, burying my face in his chest and drowning all my senses in his exhilarating scent. I wrapped my hands around his middle, sighing in contentment at the feel of his strong arms wrapped around my body. It was meant to be an innocent hug, a hug to soothe me, but instead, they were making me think things.
Unholy Things.
I bet Gigi Esho has gotten the raw feel of his hands on her, bringing her undiluted pleasure in ways I cannot begin to imagine. It made me wonder what kind of skills he could do with those strong arms of his except being able to throw a football with them.
Soon, Semeeha. You'll find out soon. Just be patient.
That time will come.
"I'm so sorry, Semeeha,"
He mumbled against my head, bringing me out of my risqué thoughts. His deep voice caused his chest to vibrate against my face, eliciting a deep humming sound from me as I buried my face further into his chest if that was even possible.
When he buried his fingers into my braids, I had to stop myself from moaning out loud at the feel of his fingertips on my scalp, absentmindedly running through my braids.
Was he doing this on purpose? He has got to be doing this on purpose.
Right?
But watching him, it looked like he didn't know what he was doing.
"You know we are not drifting away, right?" He asked me, oblivious to the havoc he was reeking on my very soul. When I realized he was pulling away, I quickly went back into character.
"Then why does it seem like it?" I asked, pulling the sides of my lips together into a pout, scrunching my face up to imitate a sad expression. Kizito was still buying it because of how his shoulder slumped even further.
"I'm sorry," He whispered again, apologizing for the umpteenth time.
When his eyes dropped from mine to the floor briefly, I knew he was beginning to feel guilty. In fact, his expression said it all. This was the point where I was supposed to stop speaking.
But I still kept speaking.
"This isn't the first time, Kizito," I said, causing his eyes to drag back to mine wordlessly. "I know I said I'd be understanding with how your attention is divided now, but the truth is that it's hard for me to understand it feels like I'm the only one getting left out."
"It's not like that-" He began to explain himself again but I scoffed, cutting him off.
"Then, it's like what?" I queried him, unwrapping my arms from around him to fold across my chest, trying to sell my points as best as I could. "Because if you are not with your girlfriend," I tried my best not to cringe as I said that. "You spend your time with either Hilary or Dawn. Never me!" I beat my chest in emphasis, my voice coming out hoarse and pained.
Exactly how I intended.
There was a moment of silence after what I said. Kizito didn't say anything back, staring right at me intently like he was trying to digest my words. I held his gaze, catching the mild look of hurt in his eyes that made my breath hang in my throat.
He's hurt by what I said?
Maybe I should have stopped.
But then, there was no way I could have made my point clear without saying all that I said.
"Semeeha," He called my name gently, his voice coming out hushed, deep, and strong. Almost fruity. He might not have meant it to come out that way but that was the way it sounded to my ear.
I was this close to asking him to call my name again, but I held myself from displaying any form of desperation here. I was already doing so well.
I can't ruin it.
"You of all people should know that I try to make out enough time for the three of you," He spoke after another brief silence, and I knew he was referring to Hilary, Dawn, and me.
"I'm doing my best," He continued, a pleading tone in his voice like he was trying to make me understand him. "I'm doing all I can to make sure I create ample time for all of you. Hilary and Dawn have never complained to me before." He stated.
"That's because like you, they have other people in their lives now," I answered and he sighed. "People that seem to now hold more priority than me." I forced my voice to quiver and my eyes to water again.
"I-I have n-no one, Kizito. I-I'm a-all alone," I choked out, letting my head hang low as my shoulders began to quake.
"No, No," He muttered, cupping my face in his hands to raise my head back up so that my eyes would meet his. I blinked, causing a teardrop to fall down the corner of my left eye.
"You are not alone, Semeeha," He whispered, using his thumb to brush my tear away, his other thumb unconsciously caressing my cheek. I tried not to sigh at the rippling feeling that action coursed through my body.
Still, it looked like he had no idea what he was doing to me.
"You are never going to be alone," He continued, his gravelly voice speaking deep into my soul. "You are always going to have me at your beck and call Semeeha. I'm always one call away. You know I'll leave anything I'm doing for you girls, right?"
Even your girlfriend? I almost asked, but stopped myself.
I don't have to ask that. Kizito Alade-Martins has already said words I'll use to use against him and that's enough for me.
It was enough, for now.
"Promise?" I asked instead, pulling my lips into a pout. Kizito mustered a small smile and nodded.
"I promise," He answered.
Sealed. I bit down against my lips to hide my smile, nodding at Kizito, who pulled me in for one more hug.
"I'm going to fix everything, okay?" I heard him mutter and I hummed, snuggling more into his chest. In that position, I was able to let myself smile, as wide as I wanted to.
The leverage I had over Kizito right now was the fact that he had not been there to witness what happened that day at the garden so he didn't know the in-depth of the story. It might not be easy swaying him to my side completely, but Kizito had a soft spot for us, his girls.
He can do anything for us. Anything just to satisfy us.
And right now, I Am the one he wants to satisfy.
I don't give a damn what anyone else thinks. He might be in a relationship with that Bitch but the truth remains that we, his girls, held a higher stake in his priority list, not Gigi Esho. We were more important to him than Gigi Esho would ever be.
I Am more important than she will ever be.
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"An ambush," I whispered, eyes scheming through at the duo in front of me before looking back at Kizito who stood tall beside me. "Very classy Kizito." The sarcasm in my tone was very evident.
When Kizito had said in school that he was going to fix everything, I thought he meant our relationship - Just Me and His. All through the week, he tried to make out time for me like he promised, checking up on me regularly, even with video calls.
But I wanted him to take me out. Just the two of us.
So, when he called me this Saturday morning that he wanted to take me out to Gomery, I didn't think twice before jumping at the offer. It was exactly what I wanted and thankfully, Mother wasn't home so Mama Marie gave me the go-ahead.
I thought it was just going to be the both of us, Kizito and I. What I didn't expect was for Hilary and Dawn to show up barely five minutes after we got here.
Hilary was just as shocked as I was when she sighted me, though she was quick to mask it, throwing a simple greeting at me. The shock was enough to tell me that Kizito had also tricked her into coming here, just like he tricked me. I couldn't tell for Dawn though.
If she was just as shocked when she saw me, nothing gave her away. She just held my gaze for a bit, gave Kizito a look I couldn't decipher, then shrugged, after which she brought out her phone and started typing on it. Unlike Hilary, she didn't even acknowledge me with a greeting.
She disregarded me. Like I didn't matter.
What is she even feeling like? I couldn't stop the deep frown that creased my forehead.
Who does Dawn even think she is? I asked myself again, giving the curvy girl a thorough once-over, forcing myself not to scoff out loud.
"Hey," Kizito's voice tore through my thoughts, and I looked away from Dawn to face him. "I hate seeing you girls fight," He said, his hands raised in a gesture of surrender. "I told you I was going to fix everything, didn't I? This is me fixing everything." He said, folding his hands across his chest in a way that said I couldn't back out of this.
"Who is fighting with who?" I retorted immediately, earning an indescribable look for Hilary, followed by a small laugh. I decided not to pay attention to it and went on. "If someone is fighting with me, then that's their problem. I know I'm not fighting with anyone."
I know I sound very petty right now, but I couldn't help it.
"You are not fighting with anyone," Hilary repeated, and I turned to her,y eyebrows raised in question. "You are not fighting with anyone, yet you left your seat beside me and exchanged with Collins." She stated matter-of-factly, throwing her hands to the side in emphasis.
"Can we at least sit down-" Kizito started to say, but I cut him off, my attention on Hilary.
"I left my seat because you were giving me attitude," I defended, eliciting a sound of awe from Hilary, looking at me with surprise as if I was lying.
"I was giving you attitude," She repeated, like she wanted to understand what I meant, a small surprised smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "Semeeha, all I did was tell you how much you hurt Dawn's feelings and asked you to apologize. Maybe I yelled at you, which I'm sorry for, but there was nothing wrong in asking you to apologize to a friend you hurt. Your best friend for that matter."
Apologize my ass.
"I still don't understand why you are asking me to apologize for telling her the truth!" I retorted, and that evoked a slight reaction from Dawn. Her fingers paused whatever they were typing, her eyes looking up from her phone to meet mine. And I saw it.
The same intense hurt I saw in her eyes just like that afternoon at the garden. And again, it was meant to be my cue to stop talking before I say something I might not be able to take back.
But again, I didn't stop.
If there was anyone that could tell Dawn the truth without any filter, it was me. She might be hurt now because of the harshness of my words, but she'll get over it eventually like she has always done.
She just needs to learn how to grow some damn balls first.
"Semeeha, don't," Hilary warned. But of course, I wasn't one to take orders from anybody. Kizito looked frustrated, and confused. He was still in the dark about the details and I was going to make sure to keep it that way.
"What?" I fired back at Hilary. "You guys call me out every single time when I'm wrong. Why should you be pissy because I called Dawn out for being ungrateful?" I queried.
Dawn is even funny. She's always so eager to give her unsolicited opinions and corrections about my attitude, but here she was, not being able to take what she dishes out.
It's the hypocrisy for me.
"Semeeha," Kizito began in a chiding tone. I was going to reply him but I was beaten to it.
"Can I leave now?" Dawn spoke for the first time since she got here, her attention on Kizito. Her voice was clear and controlled, almost like my words didn't affect her.
"No, Dawn," Kizito answered quickly, his voice pleading like he was trying to pacify her to stay. It sorta irritated me, like we were begging her to stay.
"We are going to sort this out, we all can just sit down and have a civil discussion," He said, talking to all of us. Hilary plopped down on the chair, sighing and I followed suit. Only Dawn and Kizito were left standing because of course, Dawn wasn't ready to sit down.
"Sort this out? Have a civil discussion?" The curvy girl asked incredulously, a laugh escaping her lips as if she had just heard something incredibly funny. "There is no use trying to have a civil and honest conversation with Semeeha when she obviously doesn't feel sorry for what she did,"
Again, what's there to be sorry about? I hissed under my breath.
"Dawn," Hilary tried to appease for reasons best known to her, but Dawn being the stubborn person that she was didn't want to let it go.
"It's not that deep," Dawn continued, shrugging nonchalantly. "She's not going to apologize, and it's fine. I just don't understand why I have to sit here and waste my time listening to her spill more and more rubbish."
Wow.
So, I'm the one spilling rubbish.
The audacity of this-.
I stopped my thoughts from trailing further so that I won't get angry.
"I'm leaving." She maintained.
"Dawn, please don't leave." Kizito pleaded and I almost screamed at home to stop begging her.
Seriously, what's she feeling like? Does she think the whole world revolves around her or what?
They were begging her like this because of one tiny misunderstanding, but when it's my turn, they will never beg me this way.
"Dawn, let's resolve this once and for all," Hilary chipped in, trying to persuade Dawn as well. "I know you have made your decision, but It's better to just talk about this at once. Please," She pleaded, holding Dawn's gaze.
"It's not going to make a difference," Dawn answered, speaking more to herself than to the rest of us, but we heard her and I almost scoffed at her words. She's feeling too entitled and I don't like it.
I don't like it one bit. But I didn't say anything out loud.
'You can't be so certain," Kizito spoke. Dawn chuckled humorlessly, shrugged then finally took a seat to sit down.
"Fine. Let's talk,"
She said, before turning her head in my direction and looking directly into my eyes. For what felt like hours which I was certain was just a few seconds, she stared right at me undeterred. I tried to hold her gaze but couldn't, stylishly looking away saucily to where people were playing games at the Arcade.
For some reason, that stare made me feel completely uneasy. It was either because of that or because I haven't had any good meal in days.
But then, hunger doesn't give you a continuous pang in your chest, does it?
I brushed the feeling off.
"Now, that we are all seated," Kizito began after a brief moment of silence. "Can we just table this matter the way it is? Guys, let's talk about this and end this fight for good." He said, looking between the three of us.
None of us spoke. Kizito sighed.
"I wasn't there when whatever happened, happened," He continued. "And it's better I don't know the full details so it won't seem like I'm taking sides at the end of the day. But I know enough to be sure someone needs to apologize to someone." He was now looking between Dawn and me.
"Well, I was there when it happened," Hilary pipped in. "And I'm not going to change my mind on who is supposed to apologize to who. Semeeha," She pointed to me. "Is supposed to apologize to Dawn, undisputed." She maintained.
"Bullshit," I scoffed in disdain.
"Then it's settled," Dawn announced, a big smile stretched across her lips like I had cracked a funny joke. "Can I go now?" She asked Kizito again.
"You are not going anywhere," He quickly said, gesturing for her to calm down before he turned to me. "Semeeha just apologize, abeg. Let's end this." He pleaded with me, but I adamantly refused, folding my hands across my chest and looking away from him.
"Even if she apologizes, the decision I have made concerning the both of us is still going to stand," Dawn stated matter-of-factly, the firmness in her voice causing me to look at her.
What decision has she made concerning the both of us?
Well, whatever it is, I'm sure I can handle it. If there is anything I know about Dawn, it's that she can't hold a grudge against any of her best friend to save her life.
"Semeeha is never going to apologize," I heard her continue punctuating her words with a shrug. "Even if she eventually does, it won't make any difference because this is not going fo the first, nor the tenth time she'll be doing something like this. You don't have to know anything, Kizito. She knows what she said to me, I know what she said to me and Hilary was there too so that's enough of me.-
The most painful part of that day was the fact that she saw how much her words were hurting me, yet she kept going without any remorse. What kind of insensitivity is that? What sick pleasure did my so-called best friend derive from putting me down and treating my feelings like they didn't matter? I am honestly very curious to know how you felt saying those words to me, Semeeha." That last statement was aimed at me because she turned to me and looked me in the eye as she said it.
I stared back at her, asking myself the same thing.
How did it make me feel? I'm not sure how to answer that. But all I know was that, seeing her crying that day was the highlight of it all. It made me feel good knowing that my words were effective.
Was that the real reason why I felt good.
"Okay," I breathed out, rolling my eyes "Maybe I am sorry for how harsh I presented my words to you, Dawn," I drawled on her name and she looked on. "But I'm not going to apologize for everything I said to you because you and I know they were nothing but the truth," I told her plainly and she chuckled, muttering a low Wow. From the corner of my eyes, I saw Hilary's facepalm but that didn't deter me.
I kept my eyes on Dawn and went on.
"You really need to learn to suck it up and grow a pair, Dawn," I said and she chuckled again, shaking her head slowly. "You overreacted and that's it. Stop making it seem like your problems are the biggest in the world. There are far bigger problems that people are going through compared to yours."
"And gives you the right to invalidate her feelings and shove her insecurities back in her face? Semeeha!" Hilary was quick to attack me again, hitting her hand on the table.
Kizito on the other hand looked torn. He wanted to intervene, but he had to stand by his word and not take sides because, at the end of the day, he might have to.
I felt my lips twitch a bit.
"You know what," Dawn finally spoke, a small smile playing on her lips as she stood up. "I'm done with this," She said. When Kizito wanted to speak, she held her hand up to stop him. "Don't try to talk me into sitting back down, Kizito. I'm done with this discussion, and I'm done with Semeeha." The tone of finality in her voice shocked me.
Is it that deep?
"It was nice knowing you Semeeha Malik," She said to me, flashing me a smile despite my confusion. Then she looked at the others. "I'll talk to you guys later, I have a date to get to."
And with that, she picked up her things and walked out of Gomery.
"She's just going to leave like that?" I asked, turning to Kizito who in turn gave me a look. A scoff from Hilary's corner made me look at her.
"I can't believe you, Semeeha," She told me. "Before, it was just your unnecessary bluntness we had to handle. But now, you are acting like an entirely different person." She sounded sad and hurt. It made me almost laugh.
Why are they being dramatic?
"You are still welcome to sit down in your designated seat. I never chased you away," She said, before getting up. "But you are so wrong, Semeeha. So wrong. I just hope you realize it soon."
She also left as soon as she made that statement.
"Why is everyone being so dramatic?" I scoffed out a laugh, looking at Kizito who was already peering at me, looking at me like I had grown a pair of horns on my forehead.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" I asked him, my eyebrows quirked in question.
"How can you be so comfortable with Dawn and Hilary leaving the way they did?" He asked incredulously, staring at me with utmost disbelief. "How are you so comfortable with them being pissed at you?" He asked me, and I scoffed, rolling my eyes.
"It's Dawn and Hilary, Kizito," I answered him. "They can't hold a grudge to save their lives. They will come around,"
"And if they don't?" He asked me, sounding concerned. "Semeeha, you are really not going to let your friends of almost five years go just like that, are you?"
"No one is going anywhere," I assured him. Hilary and Dawn will come around when they finally realize that I mean well. They always do.
"Besides," I went on, stretching out my hand to hold his that was settled on the table, watching his eyes follow the action. "I have you to keep me company for now." I smiled, though he didn't smile back, uncertainty in his features.
At that moment, the screen of his phone came on and started to ring. The phone was between us, so I could see the caller quite clearly.
Babe❤️.
The caller was Gigi Esho.
The smile on my face wiped off in that instant.
I needed no one to tell me that if Kizito picks the phone call, he'd leave me in a heartbeat. There was no way in hell I'd let that happen. She has taken a lot from me already, I wasn't going to sit back and watch her take more.
When Kizito reached out to pick up the phone, I quickly grabbed his hand. He looked at me, confused and I mustered a smile.
"You still owe me for lying about the hangout this morning," I told him, bobbing my head to the side with a pout. By this time, the phone had stopped ringing. He glanced at the black screen for a moment before looking back at me.
"Okay," He said, trying to attention to me even though his eyes kept shifting to the phone. "What can I do to make it up to you?" He asked, and I smirked.
"Spend the whole day with me," I said. His eyes widened slightly, shocked by my requests.
"The whole day!" He exclaimed and I nodded, my lips stretched in a grin.
"The whole day. " I repeated. "With no distractions whatsoever," I added. At that point, the phone started ringing again. And yeah, it was still Gigi Esho. Kizito stared at the phone for a moment before trying to grab it again.
I beat him to it, picking the phone from the table and hitting the end call icon.
"Hey! That wasn't cool," He told me, his face in a frown.
"I said, no distractions." I pouted, feigning innocence.
"Including phone calls?"
"Especially phone calls," I answered and he sighed, running his hand through his face.
"Well, can I at least text her? Let me tell her I'm going to call her back in the evening." He said, beckoning for me to give him his phone.
I rolled my eyes, but gave him nonetheless, watching him send a message to his girlfriend. When I saw that he was done, I hijacked the phone again and stuffed it into the back pocket of my jeans.
"Come on, Semeeha. Now I can't keep my own phone?" He asked, laughter in his voice. It eased me to know that He found my actions funny and didn't read any other meaning to it. I pouted again, feeling cute.
"I'm going to be holding on to it for now," I told him, while subtly holding down the power button so that the phone would go off and we won't have any disturbance. Especially from her.
"Yes ma'am," He gave me a mock salute and I laughed.
"So, where do you want to take me?" I asked and he shrugged.
"Well, where do you want to go?" He asked, a charming smile stretching over his lips. I giggled, feeling light-headed.
This is exactly what I wanted. Just two of us. No, Dawn and Hilary... and certainly, no Gigi Esho.
Another leverage I had over Kizito was the fact that he can do just about anything to please us, his girls. But now, it was me he wanted to please because he already made a promise to never leave me alone. Now I have him in my corner and I know what exactly to do to keep having him in my corner.
Yes, it's a petty move. But I've got to do what I have to do to get what I want, no matter how long it takes.
And not even Gigi Esho can compete with that.
𝐀/𝐍
Nawa oo💀.
For those that don't know the meaning of Machiavellian, it means Manipulative. That should be enough to explain everything that happened in this chapter, especially in the first part.
Let me just tell you now, Semeeha has tons of tricks up her sleeves and this is probably the least of them all. If one doesn't work, she has another to try and she knows how to be very subtle about it. Either that or Kizito just trusts his friend way too much.
He obviously doesn't know what he has gotten into and this is only the beginning. Let me just leave it like that.
The next chapter coming up is our final Dawn and Chima (for now), and trust me I cannot wait to start writing it because it's gonna be so emotional... and romantic of course. Are they finally going to have their first kiss? Well, you'll have to wait to find out 🌚😌.
Till then, I think we need to start praying for the #Gizito ship 💀. Kisses 😘.