UWA
Joy joy joy
In my heart is singing
Joy joy joy
Jesus set me free
I don't know why but my mood on this monday morning is something else today. I am just unneccesarily happy. I hum the song in a low voice as I make my way into the office building, smiling at everyone whose path I cross. It's a brand new day; of joy, love and happiness and God has made me a recepient of all three. Tell me why I should not be happy. Give me a reason why.
The elevator dings, signalling that I have reached my floor and I step out, dropping my bag on my desk before heading to prepare coffee. One for the boss and one for me.
"Come in!" He answers from inside and I walk in, dropping the cup on his table.
"Thank you." He says, smiling at me. He opens his mouth to say something but just keeps quiet. Silently, I take my leave. He has been like this for more than a week now. He does not shout nor insult me anymore. He says simple things like please and thank you to me. Often times, it seems like he wants to say something but decides against it and keeps mute. This man is just difficult to figure out sometimes. Well, if he has anything to say to me, I believe he will eventually speak up.
•••••
The time I have finally been waiting for is here. I had made up my mind from home to see Kayode during lunch break and get clarity on this matter. He used to come to my desk every morning but recently, he said we might have to reduce the visits so that he does not get me into trouble. That was so thoughtful of him because boss man started acting better towards me when he reduced frequenting my office space.
I finish eating at the cafeteria with Natasha and Catherine who could not stop teasing me about him. The remaining fifteen minutes left in the break, I head to his office to see him.
"Hey, babe." He says, kissing me on the cheeks upon ushering me into his office.
"Hey." I smile back and take my seat.
"How has work been?" He asks.
"You know, the usual. Working with the CEO has its highs and lows but we move." I say, shrugging to which he just laughs and walks to his seat to sit down.
"Catch." He throws a pack of Beloxxi cracker biscuits to me.
"Thank you." I smile, opening it and munching on it.
"So, someone came to my house this weekend." I state and reach into my purse which I had carefully slipped the envelope into before leaving my desk. It is easier this way due to the complexity of carrying a bag everywhere.
"She dropped this. I know it is not true but I just want you to confirm it for me." I add, smiling and sliding the envelope across his table to him.
He picks it up and scans it before opening its content. His eyes widen in surprise before he speaks up.
"What is this supposed to mean?" He asks.
"Same thing I wondered." I say with a shrug of my shoulders. He just laughs and replies me.
"This is not true, please. This is probably photoshop editing." He says, debunking her claims. I sigh in relief and smile in his direction. I am glad that I did not go ballistic on him by taking what she said to be the truth.
"Okay, my work here is done. Take care." I say.
"Not so fast." He stands up to slide his hands behind my waist and gaze into my eyes before leaning to give me a kiss on the lips.
"I love you." He says, catching me off guard.
"I.." I say.
"Shhh." His finger goes to my lips before he speaks again.
"You don't have to say it back." He says and I nod my head. His other hand reaches to open the door and I walk out of the office, smiling to myself. He says he loves me, do I also love him? I sigh as I reach my desk and sit. Timi walks pass my office, waving at me before going into boss man's.
DEJI
Since my discussion with Timi weeks back, thoughts on the best way to break the ice between us has been on my mind. For now, I settled with being nice to her. The thing is, whenever I try to initiate a conversation with her, I am lost for words because I don't usually know what to say and I would rather keep quiet than blurt out rubbish from my mouth. So, here I am, still contemplating on what steps to take and how to approach her in the best way possible.
My door opens and I speak without even looking up.
"Timi, one day I'll set a trap for you on that door." I know he is the one because Timi and Shalewa are the only ones who enter my office without knocking. My parents give me notifications before hand so I know when they want to come visiting which is once in a blue moon.
"What?" He says. I hear him seat and look up to him. A mischevious smile is dancing around the corner of his lips as he leans back to observe me. Then in a flash, his legs are on my table.
"Remove those sorry excuses of legs you have from my table." The guy just chuckles at what I say without dropping his legs.
"Mr. Lion. Why are you roaring?" This one hardly takes me serious when he needs to.
"How far?" He makes a head gesture to the door.
"Nothing yet. Just being nice." I reply him.
"Who nice don epp (who has being nice helped) ?" He asks, sarcastically.
"There are nice bosses who are still not friends on personal basis with their staff. If you want anything to work out between you both, you may need to be her friend and not always her boss." He says.
"This does not mean I am saying that you should throw away all the rules you have in that your imaginary office book which you keep." I nod my head at what he says.
"Meanwhile, your sister says to tell you that your mum said she has been calling since morning to invite you over for dinner today." I reach out for my phone in the drawer and true to what he said, thirteen missed calls display on the screen. Ten from my mom and three from Shally.
"I turned off the sound since." I say to him.
"No problem. I have passed my message to you. Till later." He stands up to leave my office.
•••••
Remind me again why I make it an effort to reduce how often I go to my parent's house? Simple. Marriage this, marriage that.
The marriage talk is what my mum is currently talking about again.
"There is even this picnic that my meeting women are organizing and we are coming with our children. Shalewa has even agreed to come with me." Shalewa chokes on her food the moment she says that.
"Mummy, when did I agree to go anywhere with you?" She asks her. Mum just looks at Shalewa and ignores her question.
"And you will go with me too. It is this Sunday evening. Since you have decided not to see the woman I picked for you, you can make your choice on that day. I am sure there will be single ladies there." God help me and save me from my mom's torment. Can dinner ever go on smoothly without her mentioning marriage?
"Before the two of you even continue, mummy I have plans and I am not going anywhere with you. I don't know about Deji but you see me, cancel my name out of that list. Thank you." Shalewa says and adds a sweet smile at the end.
"I can't go with you, mum. I have some urgent work that day." I state. Of course, it is just an excuse.
"Deji? Work? On Sunday?" Mum asks with her exaggerated expressions.
"Yes. Work." I reply, holding my grounds.
"Can we just forget all these and eat in peace?" Dad says.
"Tayo, you too? You are taking sides with them." She says in a low voice. I just roll my eyes in my head because she is trying to play on the man's emotions and I know he will feel bad because he loves her so much.
"No. Oya, sorry." He drags her chair towards him and hugs her, showering kisses on her face. She starts to chuckle and turns to me and Shalewa, bringing out her tongue to spite us.
Everyone chuckles at what she did. I have one very funny mother. When she is not talking and bombarding me about marriage, she is actually so sweet but once she brings up the talk, she becomes like a lioness, wanting to imprint her idea in my head.
I understand she is trying to look out for me like a good mother that she is amd it is normal for her to want grand children. However, I think she should allow me pick a woman of my choice and stop trying to play matchmaker with all her friend's single daughters.
I am thirty, so what? There are some men who are older than me but are still not married. It's not like I plan to be thirty five or forty before I finally tie the knot.
This woman should just let this matter rest.
"Thank you." I mouth to my father, who just nods his head in understanding.
"So, Deji how has business been?" He asks when we finish dinner as we sit by the balcony, sipping on our wine and enjoying the fresh air.
"Good, Dad. I am launching a branch in Ghana very soon. The building is ready; staff recruitment is already in progress. Will launch once everything is settled, which is soon." I say to him.
"I must confess, I am very proud of you, son." He says, tapping my shoulders.
"When you got back from your studies and wanted to be independent, I was skeptical to give you the chance, hence my ultimatum. However, after that time frame, you became a formidable force in business here in Lagos and still on the top. I am proud." He says, smiling.
"Thank you, Dad. This means alot coming from you." Growing up, my dad was my mentor and I used to admire him so much because of his strong will and strength. I wanted to be like that too but I knew I could not do it by still being in his shadows. That was why I opted to be independent and I am glad I made that decision at that time because it is paying off now.