Dedicated to I_am_Jazzy ♥️, she's a joy giver and her book, Shattered Heartstrings makes so much sense. It's one of my fav teen fictions and you guys should please check it out. You'll definitely love it ♥️♥️
~KUNMI~
We returned to Lagos the next morning and all through the night, my mind just kept replaying what I had seen or what I thought I saw. Kunle did not pick Aminah's call and he only called back when Sophia returned to the room which was almost an hour after Aminah and I got back to the room. I don't even know what to think. Aminah had finally given up and she had laid on the bed, her duvet covering her whole body. Her phone rang immediately Sophia entered, Ariana's voice filling the entire room and almost piercing my eardrums. I could tell that she must have turned the volume up to the highest.
"Babe, where were you? I've been calling since forever."
Was what she said before she slipped out through the door. I remained on my bed, mind still blank, still trying to process what I had seen downstairs. Could it have been an ordinary hug? And again, they must have been together all these while but doing what?
I had to blank out to force the images that started conjuring in my mind at that thought.
I was almost asleep when my phone vibrated beside me. I picked it up, swiped up to see a message from an unknown number. I frowned, wondering who could be the sender before I opened it.
Looks like you left and you ain't coming back. Good night and sweet dreams.
I stared at the screen for a very long time, knowing that it could only be one person.
**********
Now, I was sitting back at the back of the car driving me home. Sophia was sitting beside me. She had hopped in for a ride immediately the driver arrived to pick me and I wondered why. I just wanted to be left alone, especially by Sophia. Everything about her was too confusing and weird. At first, she hated Aminah and she made no pretense of that fact, then she started pretending to like her, then now, did she really like her now or what? God ehn!
"I saw you yesterday night."
She stated plainly, jolting me out of my reverie and I looked away from the window to look at her.
What?
She was sitting very close to the door, her legs crossed over each other, her arms wrapped around her chest. She was looking out of the window and I frowned.
She saw me?
"Why did you leave like that?"
Leave like what? Was I supposed to just join in the hug or whatever they were doing?
"Did you think I was doing something with Kunle? Maybe making out with him or something?"
My mouth dropped open and I had to consciously close it back. What the fuck?
She turned to look at me when I said nothing and she searched my eyes for something I did not know before she smiled, wistfully.
"That must have been your thoughts."
She resumed stating out of the window and she said nothing till she got down. Not even a good bye.
I heaved a sigh as the driver drove away from their house, my thoughts all over the place. Why did she sounded so hurt when she said, that must have been your thoughts. Why would she even care about what I think?
This Queen Weirdo ehn. She confused the hell out of me. I even doubt if she understood herself at all.
***********
~ADAM~
To say I was extremely surprised when I stepped into the house and I saw my parents sitting at the dinning, the dinning table elaborately filled with foods, the aroma of jollof rice, fried rice, fried meat, chicken and all that would be an understatement. I walked further into the dinning room, taking in the elaborate ceramics of foods on the table and my parents actually sitting there and smiling at me? What on earth was going on? Someone walked in from carrying a covered ceramic and I could tell that it was Aunty Kate, one of the maids that worked in the house during the week.
The maids were even here? And what the fuck were they celebrating?
"Korede, how was your journey? We've been waiting for you. Freshen up and join us."
Mom's voice jolted me out of my reverie and I blinked to see that she was already in front of me, her face and eyes smiling as she looked at me, peered at me even and I had to breathe in deeply before I looked away from her to dad who was still looking at me, expectantly, especting me to greet him.
"Good afternoon Sir."
His face dissolved into a huge smile and he nodded at me.
"Welcome son. You should freshen up and join us before the food turns cold."
I nodded before I turned to look at mom again, she was still looking at me, probably expecting me to say something and I found myself forcefully smiling before I sidestepped her and I climbed the stairs to my room. While showering and changing, I just kept thinking the reason why they had to throw a feast. Dad wasn't a fan of elaborate feasts so this was really surprising...
Minutes later, I was sitting durectly in front of mom dressed in joggers and a top and dad won't stop smiling at me.
Creepy.
"Why this elaborate feast?" I found myself asking, halfway through the meal. I was barely eating anyway. This pretense was making the food taste like chalk in my mouth. "Are we celebrating something?"
Dad laughed, a boisterous ring to his laughter.
"Yes, your dad's company won some major contract. It's apparently going to be a huge turn over for the company."
I hissed underneath my breath. Of course, it was going to be about dad winning something. Everything in this house has always been about him.
"You should have heard about it. It's all over the news."
I looked up from my plate because of his tone, of the laughter and happiness in his voice and I frowned before I looked down at my plates again.
"Hmmm?"
So I was to answer that.
"I've been offline."
I replied curtly, focusing my attention on the food I had initially depised now.
"You're not getting any younger, you should start showing interest in how the company works and all that."
The headache was so sudden and instant that I almost had to grip my head instead, I pushed my chair back and I stood up calmly.
"I have a nagging headache because of the journey. I'll just take a nap."
Mom was up in an instant.
"I'll bring some pain reliever for you."
I only smiled and I shook my head at her.
"I'll be fine. I just need to rest."
She looked at me doubtfully before she sat down again and I dismissed myself. I was halfway up the stairs when I heard dad say, look at the boy that'd soon start travelling all over the world for company having headaches because of small trips.
I almost laughed our loud. Who told this man I was interested in his construction company at all?
*******
~KUNMI~
The rest of the term after we returned from the excursion passed in a blur, the prefects election, Sophia even skipped school on both the campaign and election day but she ended up getting an honorary post as the the Laboratory prefect female while Kunle got the Laboratory prefect male. Aminah got elected as the social prefect, Gab as the head girl without a competition and Adam as the labor prefect.
Since we got back from the excursion, Sophia had literally said no words to me. Infact, I hardly saw her throughout the exams period. It was almost like she was purposefully avoiding me. Aminah, on the other hand had been herself, almost overactive even. We just finished watching a basketball game between our school and a neighboring school. I could not even get excited even if I wanted to, I basically understood nothing about the game. Aminah had screamed her lungs out during the game because Kunle was the star player for our school and we won because of him.
"You've gotten so good. It's hard to believe I used to compete against you. It's going to be a waste of my time now."
We were back in the classroom now and we were all clustered around our seats. Aminah was practically sitting on Kunle's laps and the later smiled at the compliment of a classmate that I did not remember his name.
"It's hard to believe to believe that you still think of basketball as a mere hobby. Our school basketball team would be nothing without you."
How possible was it for the captain of the basketball team to think of it as a hobby?
"I've not always been this good. Constant practice, I guess."
"Guy, I remember when Sophia used to play better than you. Funny how long ago it seems now."
"Hmm. I probably won't be this good if not for her and she is probably still better than I am. We have no way to tell. It's like she gave up on playing. with me."
Sophia's face remained impassive. She did not even do like someone just mentioned her name or something. She just continued flipping through the fashion magazine with her shades on.
These two ehn, I cannot even start to understand them. Only God understand the kind of relationship they have.
Nobody said anything for a while afterwards and when I looked up at Adam who was half leaning, half sitting on my desk, he was staring intently at Sophia, as if trying to read her.
Well, Good! I wasn't the only one who found her puzzling.
"Should we hang out during the break? Thinking about it now, we've never hung out before. We should definitely do that. It's good for friendship."
Sophia's hands stilled almost calculatively on the page of the magazine she was reading and I was sure that I did not just imagine her lips turning up in a sneer.
This babe..
"Sophia, what do you think? Are you going to be chanced?"
The air grew tense and Sophia just continued to flip through the magazine. Wait, what she going to ignore her? I almost counted up to 60 before she finally closed the magazine and I could see that the picture of the girl on the cover was that of Tamara Wright.
"Of course, I should be."
Came her curt reply and I released a breath I did not know I was holding.
"Yes. I can't wait."
The former said again, undeterred by Sophia's demonear and she started to squirm on Kunle's laps. Sophia looked at them for one long agonizing minute before she looked away. I heaved a sigh, feeling bad for her, understanding her because I wouldn't even know how to act I had to watch Adam with some other girl.
Hmmm?
What was that?
I blinked repeatedly at that thought. What was that!!!
"Guys, we'll be back."
Kunle said, jolting me out of my wild array of thought and I watched Sophia watched them go, her eyes dark and unreadable. I could tell that she was feeling dark, vengeful, blind envy coursing through her veins. How much longer would it take for her to reach her breaking point? And what would her breaking point mean for Aminah and Kunle?
"Are. You. Okay?"
I looked up Adam's words but the question wasn't even directed at me, it was directed at Sophia. She turned to look at him, mad fury in her eyes.
"Do I look like I'm not okay to you?"
The mad fury in her eyes was nothing compared to the anger in her voice. I was startled because I've seen Sophia as everything, but definitely not this almost dark Sophia.
A minute or two passed in absolute silence before I heard Sophia audibly breathe out, deeply.
"Pretty boy. Don't mind me. I did not mean to snap."
Hmm?
Adam actually chuckled and shrugged at her words.
"I understand, it's okay."
She smiled at him and I was actually at how quick and vast she was quick to just change demonears. One minute, she was a witch and the next minute, she was this smiling, excited girl.
She really must be experiencing dissociation or something along that line. It's just not normal to be her completely sane. I felt someone snap their fingers in front of me and I blinked back into reality to see Adam looking at me in his own Adam's way, a small smile on his lips.
"What......"
The words died in his throat when someone grabbed his forearm and wrapping her hand successfully around his elbow. He nearly tripped as he tried to pry her hand off him but the girl just held on, tightly. I did not even know the girl's name. She wasn't our classmate but I know she she was probably in class A or so.
"What are you doing?"
"Hey Adam." The light girl beamed in reply to his question and I frowned, looking at her and wondering what the hell was going on with her. She was directly in front of me, beaming at Adam and all the while, glaring at me or looking at me in disgust. I wasn't even interested in deciphering the way she was looking at me. She was still holding on to his elbow as if they were so sort of item and she was leaning against him so that her chest was directly pressed against his upper hand.
Now, who is this girl?
"Hey Sophia."
Another girl said and she sat down on their chair directly in front of Sophia, the one where Aminah and Kunle sat on before they left. It was then I realized that the first girl wasn't alone, she was in the company of two other girls, the one sitting in front of Sophia and another one leaning against Sophia's desk. The three girls had three something in common, their two light skin that doesn't scream natural, their skinny bodies that looked like they don't eat at all and the fake smile that was bitter and cold and also very full of sneer.
The first girl still has her arm wrapped around Adam's elbow and he looked bored to death, his hand urgently trying to pry hers off. He honestly looked like he was using all his self restraint not to push her off. The one in front of Sophia was still looking at her earnestly, waiting for a reply that I was sure wasn't forthcoming and I wasn't wrong, Sophia said nothing, she just kept staring at the girl blankly, waiting for her to say whatever it was she wanted to say.
"So, I'm throwing a party during the break and I'd like to invite you and...."
She looked at me or rather looked through me or past to Adam whom she smiled at fondly.
"and Adam to the party. I hope you'd be able to attend."
The girl was looking at Sophia, hopefully, as if Sophia saying she'd come to the party was going to authenticate the party or something like that. Sophia did not say anything immediately and I thought she was actually contemplating her reply until she picked up the Magazine in front of her and she started reading, completely disregarding and ignoring the girl.
Oh Med. I nearly disappeared into the my chair in embarrassment on her behalf.
"Adam, are you going to come too?"
The girl holding on to Adam's elbow asked, her voice and almost seductive?
"We should come."
He finally replied tightly, his hand finally prying the girl's hands from his elbow.
"Okay. I definitely can't wait to see you at the party."
The girl beamed again, her face very close to Adam that the latter had to move several inches back.
"Alright then. Take care of you guys and bye Sophia."
Thst was the girl whom Sophia had outrightly ignored. I watched the three of them walk away and they reminded me of the crazy cliques my former school had. It was only when the girls walked out of our class that Sophia looked up from her magazine.
"Sophia, try not to treat people like trash. I felt so bad for them that I had to reply them."
"They're trash."
She replied curtly and Adam shook his head.
"Mehn, I fear who doesn't fear you. You could have just said I won't be able to attend your party instead of making them look that bad."
"Why should I care about making them look bad when they obviously don't care about making others look bad?"
"Who was that leech by the way?"
She raised her eyebrows at him as if she couldn't believe he just asked that.
"After you allowed the leech to grab your elbow like that?"
He looked at me briefly before he looked at her again.
"I. Did. Not. Allow. Her. To. Grab. My. Elbow. I don't even know the girl's name."
"Shioo, if I were Kunmi, I'd have slapped the both of you together the moment she grabbed your hand and you did not yank it off."
What???
I looked at the girl who just uttered those words and she just looked nonchalant. This babe! I looked down at the fingers as they suddenly became an object of fascination. I did not look up even when I heard someone's phone vibrating.
"Who's it? Why are you frowning?"
I looked up at Sophia's words and yea, Adam was kind of frowning at his phone.
"It's Mister Adisa. Looks like I have things to do in the art studio."
"And you're frowning?" She asked again, her interest picking up. "Shouldn't you be happy or something?"
"Hmmmmmm." He paused mid sentence, turned to look at me, like really look at me before he looked away. "Well, I guess I have to go. I'll see you guys later."
It was after he walked out of the classroom that Sophia turned to me.
"Let me tell you a tip, ignore him for two days, nah, two weeks, no no, a month is enough. That'd make him have sense and he won't allow a random girl to hold him like that."
I eyed her suspiciously before I moved back a little. Queen Weirdo had not said a single word to me for almost three weeks and now, this? Ignore him? This one would make one crazy girlfriend.
"Why would I ignore him? He did nothing wrong."
"Look at you speaking up for him already."
She trailed off afterwards and the both of us said nothing for a while. I glanced at her, feeling a little bit uncomfortable and she was drumming one of her fingers on her desk. She looked torn, as if she was debating whether to say something or not.
The Sophia I knew would have said whatever it was on her mind without thinking twice. I kept looking at her, puzzled by the fact that she was really having an internal debate. Nothing, absolutely nothing prepared me for what she said next.
"I missed you."
I blinked ten times repeatedly. What? Sophia missed me? Me? Sophia? As in Sophia? Sophia Williams, the witch? Was this some sort of sick joke to her or something?
"I'm used to people assuming the worst about me but I just felt really bad that you assumed something like that about me. I basically don't care about what others think about me so I don't why yours bothered me that much."
What's this? What's this babe going on about? Was her bad mood really because of me? Because she was hurt by my conclusion? No way! No freaking way.
"And then, I felt bad for ignoring you all these while and then....."She trailed off and she messaged her forehead gently.
"I guess I just really like you and the fact that I'm even saying this, God, it's unbelievable."
Oh wow. Just wow. Really wow. Was this babe serious right now? Sophia? Nah, this is unbelievable.
"Maybe, I'm in love with you self."
She continued and I rolled my eyes. This babe ehn. In love with who?
"I can even become bi for you, that's if you want."
What? I cringed and I moved back on seat. She was still looking at me earnestly, as if waiting for me to actually reply her. I opened my mouth to say something but nothing came out. She just continued to look at me before she burst into laughter.
"Oh my God! You should have seen your expression just now. I missed your expressions when you're dumbfounded like this. You look cute and pretty and flushed at the same time. I can see why Adam is smitten."
Adam? Smitten? With me?
I was jolted out of my thoughts when Sophia reached over and she tapped my cheeks.
"I know you missed me too. It was so obvious."
I rolled my eyes at her words. This babe just kept giving me more and more reasons to call her queen weirdo but then, she was right, I missed her.
************
~ADAM~
I was in my room, headphone on and sketching on my sketchpad so I did not hear mom enter my room until she sat down beside me on the bed. I removed the headphone from my ears and I sat upright, back against the headboard. She was looking at me cautiously, as if she did not know what to say, as if she was scared of saying something wrong. It's been three weeks since I got back from Oyo State and for the first time in years, Dad was at home for almost every seconds of the three weeks. They've gotten closer over the weeks but my relationship with mom had gotten strained. It was almost like we did not know what to say to each other but now, she was in my room and apparently, it looked like she wanted to say something to me. She said nothing for a while and I just stared at her, her light and flawless face, her effortless beauty and how she looked calm and at peace. I knew it'd take just one of dad's dark moment to suck everything away.
"Your dad is traveling out of the country in two days time."
I frowned, wondering why she was telling me that. Dad was always travelling so this information wasn't necessary at all. I nodded and she paused for a while before she spoke up again, her eyes meeting mine.
"Your dad, he's trying to change. He......."
She trailed off and I realized why she was here, it was to advocate for dad.
"We're seeing a counselor. He just has a little bit of anger issues. He's...."
A little bit of anger issues? Seeing a counselor? I looked at mom and I realized that she was desperately holding on to that belief that the man she loved and married was one day going to return to her. I wondered how long it would take for her to realize that that man probably never existed. She desperately wanted, needed to believe that we could be one happy family.
Too bad.
I don't even know if this was normal, a mother and her son talking about her abusive husband?
"So, you're insisting on not following me to Abuja?"
She asked, injecting a forced cheer into her voice and I shrugged.
"I'm not. I'd just stay at Caleb's."
She eyed me suspiciously as stood up from the bed.
"That's weird, you choosing to stay over at Caleb's instead of travelling to Abuja."
I only smiled and said nothing. Only I knew the reason to that.
Hmmmm.
Sophia ♥️♥️
Jealousy and blind envy can make someone a dark and twisted human. I just felt the need to say this.
Adam's mom, a lot of people hate her, a lot of people blame her but then, we shouldn't blame victims for the culture of silence. We live in a very judgemental society and no matter how you look at it, it's never easy to speak up.
I wrote this chapter for _Victoria_yemi my wattpad baby. It was her birthday six days ago and I missed it. Happy belated birthday dear. Too bad you had to celebrate your birthday during all these unrest.
And guys, stay safe and see you when I see you ♥️♥️♥️♥️