#JUST_BEST_FRIENDS

Author: Sam Freddy

CHAPTER 42: GOODBYE.

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It is said that just before one dies, their whole life flashes before their very eyes, and that was almost the case for Yomi tonight. He should've died after taking that pill, but somehow, he opened his eyes and found himself on a sick bed, right next to his friends who surrounded him with gloomy faces.

Despite his blurry vision, he could pinpoint the four people in the room, which were Tayo, Danladi, Isioma and Idara, who sat right beside him on the bed with her head down, worried, while the rest of them sat on their respective chairs and had their eyes fixated elsewhere, apparently worried too, judging from the silence in the room.

The only thing that could be heard was the constant beeping of the machine that was connected to Yomi's wrist to monitor his heart rate.

“Idara, is that really you?” He mumbled.

Idara raised her head at once, amazed. “Yomi!”

Her voice attracted the others, and they all stood up immediately.

“Hey, guys.” Yomi coughed, feeling his stomach churning. “I'm still alive?”

“Yes!” Idara testified with delight. “Yes, you are!”

“Very alive.” Danladi added, somewhat angrily. “You're lucky I was around when you took that pill. What were you thinking?”

Yomi was speechless. He definitely didn't understand what was going on. How could he be alive? How on Earth was he still breathing? Candice took the poison and died in his presence under three minutes, so why was his own case different? Why was he still living?

“But how?” Yomi coughed again. “How am I still alive?”

“Well,” Danladi frowned, “you know I live upstairs, right above Candice's apartment, so I noticed something was off about the loud music coming from her place and I decided to check it out, and that was how I found you unconscious on the floor and she, dead. Shocked, I rushed out and called on an elderly neighbor of mine who sells herbs, and she gave you a little something to slow the poison, and that gave me enough time to bring you here, man. What the hell came over you?”

Having known why he was still living, Yomi shut his eyes and sighed, attempting to facepalm, but he was too weak to move his hands. They felt so numb, so fragile, so lifeless to him.

“You should've just left me to die.” He uttered gloomily. “I would've been at peace by now if you hadn't saved me.”

“Bro, don't say things like that.” Tayo advised sharply. “The tongue is very powerful. You should be proclaiming life for yourself instead of death.”

“Yes,” Isioma agreed. “Don't say that again, please.”

“Why are you guys sugarcoating your words to him?” Danladi attacked Tayo and Isioma. “You had better tell him the truth.”

“What truth?” Yomi opened his eyes back, wincing a little bit from the stomach upset he was suffering from.

“Danladi, don't say a word yet.” Idara cautioned him with pleading eyes. “Please.”

“What truth, Danladi? Tell me.”

“Well, the truth is that you haven't really been cured of the poison,” Danladi disregarded Idara's plea without hesitation. “You've only been given some meds to slow it down, at least until an expert surgeon arrives, who would look into your case properly. Your chances of survival are very, very slim as we speak, because whatsoever you took is too strong to be controlled with ease. You might die by internal bleeding soon, Yomi. It's better you know the truth now.”

Everyone except Yomi shot Danladi a mean look for spilling the truth, especially in Yomi's present condition.

“Y'all should free the guy,” Yomi attempted to laugh, but his lungs restricted him so fast that he found himself coughing instead. “Argh!”

“Are you okay?” Idara asked, alarmed. “Do you need a doctor?”

“No, no, I'm fine.” He said, coughing his last. “Do not call a doctor, please.”

“I don't care what he says. I'm calling a doctor.”

“Wait, Isioma,” Yomi called out, “don't call anyone, please.”

“Like I said, I don't care what you say.”

“Chill.” Tayo held Isioma's arm before she could leave. “Maybe you should just hear him out. He's serious about it.”

Scoffing, Isioma retained her position and earned a weak smile from Yomi.

“Thanks,” he felt the increasingly awful churning of his stomach, as though it was infested by bugs. “God, my insides hurt like hell!”

“You deserve it.” Danladi fired at him. “You're a murderer, after all. Congrats.”

Everyone offered Danladi another mean look, including Yomi this time around.

“Danladi!” Isioma scolded him sharply. “How can you make such accusation in his condition?”

“To hell with his condition!” Danladi blasted Isioma too. “This guy killed someone, for God's sake, and you all are busy pretending like you don't know, like it's a normal thing! It's sickening!”

“What makes you think that he killed Candice?” Isioma asked. “What if he's just a victim of circumstance? What if he walked in there and saw her dead, and then took the pill out of so much grief, huh?”

“What are you saying? Are you even listening to yourself at all?” Danladi shook his head, his frown thickening. “Look, just so you know, the police are flooding the building as we speak, and the last time you saw me walk out of this room was to answer a call from my dad. He told me that Candice's body has been taken to another hospital for investigations, and that the doctors there suspect that she was murdered, judging from the awful position she was found and the bruises around her neck. I didn't want to talk about it before, but I can't hide it anymore. Somebody killed her, and we are looking at him right now.”

Initially, everyone but Danladi had thought that Yomi had taken the pill under pressure, considering how much he loved Candice, but Danladi had just brought up a fresh perspective to the whole issue that seemed logical enough to them and aroused their suspicions immediately.

“Yomi, is that true?” Idara asked, gazing at him, hoping it wasn't. “Did you kill Candice?”

Without holding back, Yomi admitted with, “Yes, I did. I personally killed her. She deserved it.”

Shocked, Idara stood up from the bed and stepped away from him. “Oh, my God!”

“She deserved it,” he repeated without remorse. “She did.”

Everyone except Danladi was surprised with their eyes popping out and their mouths agape. How could it be? How could Yomi of all people, who couldn't even harm a fly, kill an actual human being? How?

“But why?” Idara's lips trembled. “Why, Yomi?”

“She ruined my life!” Yomi said bluntly. “All thanks to her, I am now HIV positive, in case you all didn't know.”

“What?”

“You heard me correctly.” Yomi said to Isioma. “And I'm sure that you guys must've seen the viral video of her humiliation today, so tell me why I shouldn't have killed a cheating slut who infected me with HIV, please?”

Idara hadn't even grasped the fact that Yomi was responsible for Candice's death yet, and he went on to reveal his HIV status, which she found extra hard to fathom.

“Yomi, this is a very expensive joke.” Idara warned. “You better stop it before someone hears you.”

“See, believe it or not, I'm not joking here. She died a painful death by my very own hands… I killed her, and I don't regret a single thing!”

“I'm not sure you'll still say that with confidence by the time the police arrives, though.”

“Danladi, that's enough!” Isioma said, despite her state of shock. “Can you step out, please?”

“In fact, all of you should go out,” Yomi stated with annoyance, “except Idara.”

“Why?” Danladi asked. “So you can kill her, too?”

“Bro!” Tayo gripped Danladi's wrist. “That's enough, let's go!”

“Get your hand off me!” Danladi jerked Tayo's hand off and stormed out of the ward, angrily.

Then Isioma and Tayo followed suit just after Tayo whispered to Idara with the words, “I'll be right outside if you need me. Be careful.”

Once they were gone, Yomi looked at Idara and saw the shock, fear and anxiety in her eyes, and it broke his heart to know that he was responsible for her discomfort.

“Idara, please sit down, we need to talk.”

“But why, Yomi?” Idara questioned, keeping her distance. “You didn't have to kill her, regardless of what she did. You went too far!”

“I know,” he groaned, “but I don't have much time left. I can feel this thing eating me up. Please come closer, let's talk.”

Giving Yomi a frosty glare, Idara pulled a chair and sat close to him, keeping her guard high. She didn't trust him like before. He was no longer the coolheaded guy she knew him for, so any silly move from him would result in a loud scream from her, or a nasty bite on his hand, or a kick to the groin if he stood up—whichever way she deemed it fit.

“I heard your call on radio.” Idara ignited a conversation, crossing her arms. “So this is what you meant when you said you were going to do something stupid. Hmm.”

“It's good to see your face again, Idara.” Yomi deviated from the subject at hand, smiling weakly. “But I would appreciate a smile from you, though. You're looking at me like I'm a monster, and it's hurting me so bad.”

“Yomi, it's hurting me, too. You have no idea how I feel about this!” She said in a high-pitched voice, grimacing. “How could you do something like that? It's so hard to believe!”

Yomi groaned again. “I did what I had to do, what I felt was right, and I'm not sorry about it.”

“And that's the problem here!” Idara countered, shaking her head. “You feel no remorse at all, despite knowing the abnormality of what you did, and it's disgusting! Do you even know the consequences of your actions?”

“Idara, please, enough!”

“No, you shut up! We have to address this issue!” She rambled on. “How can you be so relaxed after killing your fellow human being? How can you-”

“I said enough!” Yomi yelled at her. “Enough! Please!”

The result of his action, however, was an instant pain in his lungs that had him coughing again, albeit this time severely.

“Relax, relax.” Idara held his hand impulsively, soothing his chest with her other hand. “Just breathe. Breathe.”

When he was calm, Idara disconnected her hand from his, but he held it back before she could take it away, and that was when he felt something odd around her middle finger.

“What's this? A ring?”

“Yes.”

“What're you wearing a ring for?” Yomi scanned it quickly. “Wait, hold on, this is not just any ring. I can tell it's special to you.”

“Yes, it is.” Idara admitted softly. “It's my engagement ring.”

“Your engagement what?” Yomi's eyes widened. “Who are you engaged to?”

“Tayo.” She said. “I'm engaged with Tayo.”

On hearing that, Yomi did nothing but stare at Idara in profound shock, apparently at a lack for words. He knew that Tayo and Idara had a thing together, but he never expected their relationship to blossom so fast like this.

While processing what he just heard from Idara, he spotted a necklace around her neck that had her face in its locket, which was beautifully drawn to perfection.

He then released Idara's hand and held the locket, marvelling at its elegance. “This is beautiful. Did Tayo give you this?”

“Yes.” Idara smiled, seeing the budding tears in his eyes. “Yes, he did.”

At this point, it was clear to Yomi that Idara loved Tayo just as much as he loved her. It was now that he really realized what he had lost. He always had the advantage but he never took charge of it.

She could've easily been his if he had taken her seriously, instead, he left a diamond for a stone, and now she was off the market, absolutely gone for good.

“I'm happy for you.” A tear ran down Yomi's cheek. “Congratulations.”

Teary eyed, Idara said, “Thank you.”

“You know, we could've been more than friends.” Yomi muttered, holding her hand again. “But I guess fate wanted us to be just best friends.”

For some inexplicable reason, Idara found herself holding him tight, while withholding the tears that threatened to drop from her eyes.

“But seeing you happy makes me happy,” Yomi continued, “and if Tayo gives you happiness, then I'm in full support of you guys as a couple. I've seen the way he treats you. He treats you like an egg. He loves you, and it's obvious you love him, too. You guys are perfect together.”

Idara gripped Yomi's hand tighter, stroking his forehead with the other.

For what it was worth, she appreciated his support for her relationship, even if it wasn't timely. It gave her a sense of value in a way, maybe because Yomi never knew her worth before, until now.

“I wish I could rewrite the past,” Yomi added, his breathing unsteady. “I wish I could right my wrongs, but there's not much I can do now. I will die soon.”

“Stop!” Idara's tears broke free at last. “Just stop! You won't die! Nobody else has to die today!”

“It's an undeniable fact, Idara. My body is shutting down,” his breathing became haggard, making the heart rate machine beep louder and faster. “I can feel it.”

“Nurse!” Idara got up, fidgeting. “Nurse!”

“It's of no use,” he was running out of breath real fast, his eyesight becoming blurry again. “I'm sorry for everything. Find a place in your heart to . . . to forgive me.”

“Nurse!” Idara yelled again on seeing the thick blood oozing through Yomi's nostrils and ears, and more tears dribbled down her face. “Doctor!”

Tayo rushed in with Isioma and Danladi, asking, “What's going on?”

“Call a nurse!” Idara screamed. “Now!”

Isioma ran out for that, but Yomi had already started convulsing. His heart was constricting, yet he managed to look into Idara's eyes and said, “I will never . . . ever forget you. I promise.”

“No, no!” Idara cried out, feeling Tayo's arms around her. “Not now, Yomi! Not now! Not now!”

“It's okay!” Tayo comforted her, pulling her back. “It's okay!”

“It's okay.” Yomi stopped shaking, as his hand slipped off from Idara's. “I love you, forever and always. Always remember this . . . Always…”

Alas, Yomi gave up the ghost, once and for all.

Forever.

Permanently.