Najib's POV:
"You're here?" Was the first thing she said once she opened her eyes for the past hour that I'd been monitoring her.
"Welcome, did you just arrive?" She mutters.
"What happened?" I sighed.
"Hmm... She mumbled trying to sit up.
Once she gathered herself up, she slipped her fingers under her pillow and pulled out a wristwatch.
"I found your wristwatch while cleaning, it was still broken so...
She stopped and gazed at me for a while, and then she pulled my hand placing the wristwatch on my palms.
"I took your wristwatch for repair since I owed you...
"And?" I was becoming impatient by the way she broke her words.
"And then I contacted Abdul who gave me an address where wristwatches were repaired, so I got there with the driver, the place was shabby and suspicious, but since I didn't know my way around Lagos I couldn't tell the repairers weren't legit...
"I never knew they were thieves." She continued.
"So what you're trying to say is that you got in contact with thieves? And they caused you this? I point at the bold bandage on her wrist.
"Yeah." She nods.
"Are you foolish or gullible?"
"Huh?"
"I said are you a fool?"
She didn't reply but bowed down her face like someone guilty of a shameful act.
"I never knew they were thieves, they don't write their identity on their forehead you know." She mumbled.
"Give me the location."
"Why? What do you need it for?"
"I want to find the criminals that did this to you."
"Just let it be." She smiled.
"It's a crime, they need to be punished for this."
"It's my fault, I trusted them blindly, I thought they were honest boys but unfortunately they tried to rob me, it was while I struggled to run from them, during the struggle their pocket knife tore my wrist causing me to bleed and after then I can't remember what transpired after that but thankfully the driver found me and brought me to the hospital at once."
"They can't get away with this!"
"Please forget this, they are minors and from the appearance of their environment, they look like poor kids who pickpockets just to survive, don't prolong this matter please." She pleaded further.
"Just give me the location."
"Fine, it's Aje...gu." She stammered struggling to pronounce the name.
"Ajegunle?"
"Yes, that's the place, but why do you look surprised?" She asks curiously.
"That place is known for notorious thugs and criminals in Lagos, but I don't blame you, I blame the fool who gave you the address, he's aware of the environment but he never thought of your safety?"
"It's not his fault."
"I should have known you would defend your lover...
"Can you just stop it!" She snapped cutting me shut.
"What? I'm just stating the truth."
" No! There's no truth in that." She yells.
"I was the one who begged him to give the location of the cheapest place I could repair the watch, he did warn me to be careful after he shared the location, and also insisted I waited for him to escort me another day, but I refused, I wanted to get it done today."
"And then you landed in the hospital?"
"Sorry, it wasn't my intention to make you worry, I hope Grandma isn't aware?"
"No."
"I'm sorry for yelling and I want to thank you." She sighed.
"For what?"
"For taking a stand for me against mother-in-law, I eavesdropped yesterday but it wasn't intentional, I was just coming to call you when heard you thanks." She smiled.
"Don't thank me, I just said that too...
"To?"
"Just forget it and rest."
"Okay." She smiled tucking herself back to bed.
It's hard to admit, but seeing her smile was a treat to watch.
Her smile always radiates her face and then it makes it hard for me to get angry at her.
"Was this?" I point at the shopping bag beside her.
Not that I was interested in knowing what it was, but I just wanted to end the awkward silence between us.
"It's food, Abdul brought it earlier, I haven't opened it yet, but I guess it's something nice, do you want to eat? Are you hungry?"
"You accepted his food but not my ice cream?"
"Do you want to eat?" She ignored my question bringing the food closer to me.
"Do you despise me that much?" I sighed.
"Can we just be a normal adult for five minutes without an argument? Do you want to eat?"
"I will get something better to eat." I sighed.
Suddenly, I was tempted to trash the food just like she triggered me to trash my ice cream, and in a second, I trashed the shopping bag into the waste bin.
"What did you do?" She yelled.
"Can't you see that I trashed it? The food restaurant isn't healthy, and you're the reason why I wasted fifty thousand on an ice cream that ended up in the bin, so it's tit for tat," I smirked.
"How do you know the food isn't healthy? Oh wait, are you jealous I accepted Abdul's food, not yours?"
"Jealous? I will never, you both suit yourselves, excuse me, I'll grab dinner."
***
Habiba's POV:
"I don't know what gets into him." I sneered at the dustbin.
The food was good, but he trashed it away, he did that with the ice cream as well.
I didn't mean to refuse the ice cream, but I was wishing he refused to accept them back, and then I'll take them behind his back, but he choose to trash this as he did with the Ice cream.
"What a wasteful man!" I scoffed.
I kept grumbling at the trash bin when I recalled his bitter expression when I told him Abdul bought the food for me.
His face was normal not until I mentioned Abdul's name, I could say he was jealous and lately, he is less harsh with me.
He loses his temper whenever Abdul comes into the picture.
Realizing this made me unbelievably happy, I was pleased he reacts angrily to his illusion that Abdul and I were a thing, seeing that was a treat to watch.
"He is jealous." I smiled.
He should keep assuming Abdul is my lover, maybe through that he might realize he has a soft corner for me as Amina and her friends said." I smiled at my thought.
***
Najib's POV:
"Is the whole nation sick?" I questioned the security once it got to my turn to check in.
"What?"
"I mean I've been at the gate for over thirty minutes, was with the long queue?"
"Sorry sir, no be our fault sir, now na visiting hours for most patient way they for this hospital." He replied in local pidgin that I could say I'd forgotten it existed.
"Well next time do something about it, don't keep me long in such a queue, my wife's meal has turned cold."
"Sorry sir."
"Was going on? Is your car spoilt or what!" The car trailing behind me yells.
"Blame the security," I replied driving off to ease my ears off his blaring horn.
Finding a spot to park was another task, after driving and turning around to get a spot, I found one when out of the blue a black Mercedes drove in blocking my path to pass.
At first, I thought the person behind the wheel drove in by mistake, but the car's flashlight flashed right at my car like the sky was still not bright and the plate number made me realize who it was.
"AA's plate number? Was he doing?" I scoffed, trying to turn away, but he quickly blocks my path making it difficult for me to pass again.
"What the hell!" I yelled getting off my car.
"What do you want?" I sighed once we came facing each other.
"I wanna talk."
"I don't have time, get your car away."
"Listen Najib, let's talk and sort out our differences." He smiled trying to reach for my shoulder, I shoved him off.
"Don't!"
"Najib what has gotten into you? C'mon, our friendship is beyond this."
"Now you talk about friendship? You don't even deserve the term friendship."
"Can you get this out of my way?" I point at his car.
"No I won't, if you wanna be stubborn, so can I."
"Just five minutes and after that I will get your car trolled out."
"Thanks for hearing me out. Najib, I guess your anger is justified, yeah I didn't support you when you needed me, but that doesn't mean our friendship is over, I was only trying to make you see the truth that night."
"Which night, what truth?"
"Your party, please let's forget the past and move on, I miss my buddy you know." He smiled.
"Really?" I smirked returning his smile with a glare.
"I should forget the past and move on? I can, but not your betrayal."
"What betrayal?" He seemed confused.
"Don't pretend you son of a bitch!" I lashed out.
I could feel my temper rising while I tighten my fist trying to calm my nerves, but the innocent face he was making like he wasn't aware of what I was saying made me lose my cool.
"Tell me that you ain't having an affair with Habiba, that you haven't fucked her, taken her out on a date...
"What the hell! What are you saying?"
"I'm saying the truth, I have evidence."
"Najib calm down, all you're saying isn't true, you can confirm from Habiba yourself, we're just friends and nothing more."
"Really? Well let me burst your bubble of lies, she confirmed it herself, you both are having a goddamn affair!"
"What? And you believe her over me?" He asked softly.
"Why not, didn't you believe her over me when I came to seek advice from you, who's side did you take?"
"Najib you let me down, how can you make such a cheap accusation?"
"Stop playing games and accept that I caught a fraud and a betrayal of a friend you are."
"Really!"
"Drop the act, you have been exposed."
"And so what, even if I did fucked Habiba it shouldn't affect you this much you know." He sneered.
"What the hell!"
"I will give you a reality check right now, aren't you also fuking Zaitun behind everyone's back, so why are you bothered if I'm doing the same to your wife?"
"Or are you in love? Are you jealous? You shouldn't be, she is not your type, remember?"
"You son of a bitch!" I growled.
My anger had reached its peak when I pounced on him, throwing hard punches at his face, I kept punching the life out of his face not caring how his blood was staining my fist, he didn't defend himself, instead, he left me to do all the punching with a bright smile on his face.
His arrogant smile riled me up that even after people had gathered around trying to pull me off him, I transferred my anger unto them, not until the securities came to interfere did I realize I was close to killing him by the way he was bleeding profusely.
"Get your fuking hands off me!" I yelled at the security.
"Oga we no dey tolerate fight for here, I go call the police if you no behave o."
"What did you just say? Did you threaten me with the cops?"
"Sorry sir, but we don't tolerate such acts here." Another security chipped in.
"What violent behavior is that...
"Is he not Alhaji Garba the business tycoon's only son...
"That's the industrialist's son, he's so handsome...
"Not handsome but a beast...
"Spoilt rich brat everywhere...
The comments coming from the crowd kept on flaring while I stood panting out the rest of my riled anger, I decided to leave before I do things that I might regret.
"Fuck you all and you!" I point at Abdul who still smiling broadly.
"Get this trash out of my way."
***
Habiba's POV:
It was 11 pm and Najib was still out of sight with no news of him and dinner.
My grumbling stomach had cried a thousand times by now and I could feel my entire body shivering due to hunger.
"What's keeping him? Or has he forgotten me so soon?" I thought to myself while gripping the side of my stomach that had begun to pinch.
I didn't have anything other than the bottle of water Abdul brought along with his food earlier.
My bag was sitting across the room on the couch, and with the drip on my hand, I struggled out of bed to the couch, once I was able to reach for my bag the first thing I searched for was my phone which I couldn't find.
"Where could my phone be? I need to call Najib." I sighed scanning the life out of my bag, but unfortunately, it seems my phone had gotten missing during the struggle with those thieves.
I could feel every inch of my body in pain, the cookies I found in my bag didn't help, rather it increased my appetite.
I finally gave up and went back to bed, twitching from side to side trying to pacify my angry stomach, I pulled up a pillow below my stomach, laying on it, I prayed the night runs faster than it could ever.
***
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