Dedicated to julianelson24 and Cupidhoneegold. Thanks for the love.

***

"Answer na! Or don't you know the guy I'm talking about?" Annabelle asked, snapping me out of my trance. She revealing she had a crush on Peter took me aback and I couldn't bring myself to believe it. Just when I thought everything was going fine, she just had to reveal this.

"Uh, yeah... I don't know... he's intelligent sha." I stuttered.

"Are you okay?" Annabelle looked at me suspiciously.

"Yeah, why?" I frowned as I asked.

"If he's not intelligent, you don't have to hide it. It wouldn't change the fact that I have a crush on him. But wait just tell me, how does he do in class? Is he quiet or gentle? Boring or interesting? Tell me! Tell me!" Annabelle moved closer to me in a curious gesture.

"Hmm, Annabelle! See how you're just attacking Daniella with questions. How do you expect her to have answers to all of these questions? Except she herself is crushing on him." Amanda lips quirked to one side with her last statement. My heart skipped when she said that. It was as though she knew already about Peter and I, but she just indirectly said that for me to own up. Who knows? What if Amanda and Annabelle were actually playing me right now. I needed to be careful with my responses, unless I might just give myself away.

"Pfft!" I grimaced, "Why will I crush on him?"

"Better don't even think of crushing on him o. Because your heart might just be broken when I start dating him first." Annabelle said. If only she knew the reserve was the case, she would retract her statement.

"But Daniella, this one you're asking why you would crush on him, is he not crushable. He's literally the finest boy in your class." Amanda said.

"Yeah, except that he's a bully." I said in a bit to convince them that I didn't have a crush on Peter and also to convince Annabelle why she shouldn't crush on him.

"He's a bully?" Annabelle eyes widened as she asked.

"Yeah, a disgusting one at that." I added spitefully. I felt so disappointed in myself for speaking ill of my recent boyfriend all in the name of trying to convince them that I couldn't crush on Peter.

"Has he bullied you before?" Annabelle asked.

"He tried to, but I didn't allow him."

"Are you sure or you're just trying to make me see him in a bad light?" Annabelle looked sceptical.

"Why will I do that?"

Amanda answered immediately, putting on a duh look. "Uh... Because Annabelle is crushing on him and maybe you're also crushing on him, so you feel the best way to win him over is by painting him bad so that Annabelle loses interest in him. I mean, that's a possible reason." She shrugged her shoulders.

Annabelle chuckled, "That's ridiculous Amanda! So you really think Daniella is crushing on Peter?"

"I'm not crushing on Peter o!" I spoke up immediately.

"I don't think so. I just needed to give her a possible reason why she can call Peter a disgusting bully." She shrugged. "Because for real though, it's hard to believe that that helluva cute boy bullies. He's too handsome for that."

"Whoa! Whoa! Hold it right there Amanda!" Annabelle held up her left hand. "You happen to be forgetting that he's my crush, my crush Amanda! The handsome and cute adjectives are getting too much. Besides you have your own boyfriend. I'm sure he wouldn't like to hear you call another guy cute."

"Abeg! Just because I have a boyfriend doesn't mean I can't admire other cute guys. Not like he doesn't even flirt with other girls in front of me." Amanda said.

"Don't admire Peter too much sha." Annabelle said.

"What's your own sef. He's not yet your boyfriend, so what's with the possessiveness?"

They went on like that quibbling about boyfriends and crushes. Initially, it was fun watching them, but later it got exhausting. Out of boredom, I went to my room to get a baggage where I could put all the clothes they gave to me. Before long, I returned to their room and they had stopped quibbling. Their eyes were now glued to their phones.

"Una don stop arguing?" I asked in pidgin English.

They both looked at me and snorted in a chuckle. I bent down and started packing up the clothes from the floor and stuffing them in the baggage I brought from my room.

Once done, I thanked them once again for the clothes and struggled to carry the baggage as I made my way to my room. As soon as I got to my room, I locked the door and tried out all the clothes—dropping my preferences on the bed and tossing the ones I didn't like on the floor.

I eventually finished with making my selection and I went to the kitchen to warm all the leftovers, do the dishes and tidy up the kitchen. By the time I finished, it was late and uncle Henry was already back from work.

The down section of the house was silent, but I could still hear muffled sounds from upstairs. I walked to the living room and checked the time. It was past nine o'clock. I switched off the light and made my way to my room. When I got to my room, I plopped faced down on the bed, with my arms spread apart. What a day! I stayed in that position for long, enjoying the comfort the bed gave me. Then memories of mama and papa began to play out in my head. I couldn't help but wonder what they were doing at the moment. If they were fairing well. It had been so long since I heard from those amazing souls and I was really missing them so much. I'm sure they missed me too.

Little me ran as fast as my little legs could carry me to meet papa, who was going out to get firewood. He wasn't too far from our house, so I was able to catch up with him.

"Papa! Papa!" He turned around as he heard my squeaky voice.

"What is it Daniella?" He asked, looking worried.

"Papa!" I tugged on his shirt, tears streaming down my cheeks.

"Daniella, why are you crying? Talk to me nwam!" He crouched down to my level and held my chin.

"Our house is burning and mama is in there." I said.

"Chinekeme! You don't mean it!" He quickly ran back to the house, leaving me behind. I ran after him immediately.

Before I could get to the house, I saw papa coming back. "Daniella, I thought you said the house was burning?"

"April Fool papa!" I laughed and ran as he chased after me. It didn't take long before he caught me. He spanked my butt and then hoisted me up. I screamed as he kept throwing me up and catching me- something he knew I was scared of- he did it to punish me.

I smiled at the moment. I had not been so happy in the city like I was in the village. Life was so happy then. Less drama. Positive vibes only. But here in the city, it was from one issue to the other. To think I would even love it more in the city than in the village!

Memories of mama and papa kept flooding in my head and the more I thought about them, the more I had the urge to speak to them. Heaven knows, I really did miss them. Aunty Caro hadn't even allowed me to talk to them since I got to the city. This was unfair! I stood up from my bed and made my way to aunt Caro's room. I wanted to talk to my grandparents and I wanted to do it now! I knocked on the door to the room.

"Who's that?" Uncle Henry voice boomed from inside.

"It's me." I mumbled.

"The door's open." I heard him say and I cracked open the door and walked into the room. The white bulb was still switched on and uncle Henry and aunt Caro were both lying down on their bed, with their duvet covering them.

"Oh so it's you that want to break my door!" Aunty Caro immediately said, sitting up from her bed.

"What do you want?" Uncle Henry said gently.

"Em aunty, I want to reach out to mama and papa. It's been so long since I heard from or spoke to them. Since I came to the city, I have not even reached out to them to know how they're doing. They'll be thinking I have forgotten them just because I'm in Lagos." I said rather confidently.

Aunty Caro exchanged looks with uncle Henry. "Are you okay?" She double hit her index finger on her temple sneeringly.

I ignored her.

"I'm not sure you're okay. Because if you are, you wouldn't have the gut to come to my room at this hour to spill this gibberish to me. Now before I open my eyes," She said menacingly, shutting her eyes. "You must be out of this room."

I hesitated before turning around to leave.

"Or on a second thought," Uncle Henry's voice made me halt in my tracks. "Come and scratch my back."

Oh hell no! It took everything in me not to throw my hands up in the air. I frowned my face as I made my way to him.

"Eh, so why are you frowning your face?" He asked.

"I'm not frowning my face."

"Then what are you doing?"

"That's how my face is."

He snorted, "If you like, frown your face till thy kingdom come, you'd still scratch my back today."

His words got me more angry and I fought the urge to slap him. He was so annoying!

He turned his back for me to get to work and I eyed his back sneeringly before scratching it. Because of the anger in me, I scratched his back roughly to the point where a fragment of his skin peeled off. He winced and sat up immediately and slapped me across my cheeks.

"Witch! Get out of this room!" He barked.

Although I wanted to cry that he slapped me, I also wanted to laugh by his reaction. So he was human enough to feel pain and he could inflict pain on others. Serves him right! I left his room feeling fulfilled by what I did. It was an evil act, but for some reasons, I didn't feel guilty about it. He got what he deserved. Simple!

I shut the door behind me and threw myself on the bed. I chuckled as I remembered the scene that just took place before sleep slowly shrouded me.

"Daniella! Daniella!" I heard uncle Henry whisper my name in my dream, but when I felt a tap on my legs, I woke up to see uncle Henry on my bed. AGAIN! I jolted up and withdrew backwards.

How did I forget to lock my room door again?

"Daniella, I'm so sorry for slapping you back there in my room. I did it on impulse and I'm really sorry." He held up the palm of his hands together pleadingly.

"No need to apologise sir." I said, still withdrawing back till my back hit the wall. "Sir please I'm scared of you coming into my room in the night. If aunty Caro sees you here now, she would think something else."

"Don't worry about your aunty. She would never see me. She's a deep sleeper." He said.

"Okay, so sir you can go now. I'm feeling sleepy."

"How can you talk like that Daniella?" He said as he stood up from my bed and moved closer to me.

"Talk like how sir?" I said, panicking. I didn't like the fact that he was moving closer to me.

"You know I like you and I've been thinking about you since. I can't get you off my mind. I think I'm in love with you Daniella."

As he moved closer to me from the right side of the bed, I stood up from the bed and moved to the left side. "Sir, don't start this again, unless I'd report you to your wife."

"Don't threaten me because it won't work this time around. Do you really think your aunty would believe you if you told her that I tried to sleep with you?" He asked and then snorted in a chuckle. "Think again Daniella! She would never believe you because she thinks I hate you. And if you still wanna try your luck, I'd make sure she doesn't believe you and I'd also make sure you suffer in this house. So better just keep quiet."

I shook my head at how petty he was being, as tears trickled down my cheeks. "Why are you doing this uncle Henry?"

"I love you. That's why." He shrugged, "And I promise to relieve you of all the chores in this house, if you allow me make love to you just this ones." The moved closer and beckoned on me at the same time.

I started for the door in order to escape, but he caught up with me and threw me on the bed. My head ached.

"You think you can run away. It's both of us tonight." He loomed over me and tried to rip off my skirt but I struggled with him- pinching his arm and hitting him forcefully. Yet he didn't bulge. He really was bent on getting laid with me tonight. Hot tears ran down the side of my eyes and lingered in my ear.

"Honey!" We froze as aunty Caro's voice boomed from a distance.

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Dun! Dun! Dun! Let's just wait for the next chapter. How was this one though?

I'm now in college so the update might not be as fast as it used to be, but whenever I'm free, I'd try and update.

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