Chapter Sixty

CYNTHIA

We look like twins, don't you think?" Grace asks as we stare at our reflections in the mirror.

We have just finished dressing up for the party. Both of our hair are combed and straightened out and we are both putting on ripped jeans with a similar type of T-shirt. The only difference is my T-shirt is cream in colour with what looks like pearls scattered on it while Grace's is light brown in colour but with the same pearls too. The both of us are also putting on white sneakers and everything is all Grace's idea.

We are putting on light make up and I do have to admit that we look alike.

"Yeah, we do." I tell her while wondering if it was okay to be dressed identically. Not like I am complaining.

I glance at the clock on my table and realised the time is currently fifteen minutes past nine and I'm already feeling nervous. Grace on the other hand won't stop smiling, she's so very excited.

"Should we start going now?" She asks eagerly.

"It doesn't start until 10." I reply monotonously and move towards the bed to sit on it, taking deep breaths.

"Why do you look so anxious?" She asks, trying to hide her amusement but she fails.

I roll my eyes at her smile before replying, "Maybe because it's my first time going to a party in a while or maybe it's because I'll be seeing Michael for the first time after knowing for sure that I am in love with him."

"And there's that important thing he has to tell you too. Also you'll be seeing Peter too. I hope you haven't forgotten that you have to ask him about what he feels for you." She adds and I sigh.

"Yeah, there's those too." Already feeling like the night might not end well.

"Now that I think of it, it's also the first time that I'm going to see Femi after realizing that I'm in love with him and it's also making me nervous."

"You guys are dating already and I'm sure he's in love with you too. It's not going to be hard for both of you so there's nothing to be nervous about."

She nods, "Maybe."

A knock on the door interrupts us and Nanny comes in.

"Oh, my babies are looking very lovely." She beams as she enters.

"Thanks, Nanny." Grace replies.

"Why are you girls not on your way already?" Nanny asks.

"It's just 9:20." I tell her

"Oh." She says, realising it's the truth. "Then what are you girls doing to pass time?"

"Nothing, we are just talking." Grace responds and Nanny comes to sit beside me.

"Really? I want to join too." She smiles as I lean into her, patting my arm lovingly. "Actually, there is something I want to tell you guys."

I glance at her curiously, "What's that, Nanny?"

She looks at me and then Grace, "It's about the date I went to this afternoon."

Grace smiles knowingly at her.

"So it was a date after all."

I smile too then remember that she went with Sam, "Hope Sam didn't ruin it?"

"Nope, he also brought his daughter."

"Really?? Wasn't it supposed to be a date with just the two of you?" I try not to be too dissatisfied with what her date had done since she had brought Sam along too.

"He's a single father, Cynthia. The person that was supposed to watch his daughter had something to do last minute so he had no choice. Besides, they got along well." She explains.

I shrug, deciding to let it be. "I guess it's fine then."

"So, what about the date?" Grace asks, curiousity obvious.

"He asked me to go out with him officially." She announces, a bit shy.

"Oh My God!" Grace shouts, looking very pleased. I gasp, grabbing Nanny's hand excitedly.

"Why are you all surprised?" Nanny questions with a small laugh.

"We are actually just very excited." I tell her and Grace nods in agreement.

"That's good news." Grace beams.

"Yeah, it is but I didn't give him any answer yet." Nanny replies, looking a bit sorry to ruin our excitement.

"Why not?" I ask.

"Well, I just met the love of my life after many years and just got closure from that chapter of my life. It seems wrong to be jumping to another man immediately." She explains.

"What about those times you have been alone without anyone else?" Grace questions.

"I'm not ready to open another chapter just yet and he doesn't even love me, he is just looking for a good mother for his child." Nanny counters.

"And is that so bad?" I ask.

"Nanny, you aren't getting any younger. You're thirty five years old already and I'm not trying to be disrespectful but you have no love life. I don't want you to die single-"

I nudge Grace so she will stop talking.

Nanny's smile turns sad, "I guess you're right. I really am not getting any younger."

"I'm sorry, Nanny. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings." Grace says remorsefully, guilt evident in her voice.

"It's okay, dear." She says and gets up. "You should get going now if you don't want to get there late. Call me whenever you are back so I can open the door for you. Make sure you have fun."

She smiles at us one more time and leaves the room.

"I feel so bad. I probably shouldn't have said that." Grace groans once Nanny is out of the room.

"You said the truth but yeah, you should have kept it to yourself." I reply and she gives me a sulky look.

"Thank you for making me feel better." She replies sarcastically. I shrug like it wasn't my fault because it wasn't.

"We better be going." She sighs and stands from where she is sitting.

"Yeah, we should."

***

"Is this Michael's house?"

I ask with awe as I stare at the huge mansion in front of us through the car's window. Our car is parked from a distance so I can see just how big the house is.

"Well, according to the directions Wole sent me, it is." Grace replies, leaning over to also look at the building through my window.

The muffled sound of music playing can be heard so it is definitely his house.

"When should I come back to pick you guys?" Lanre asks.

"We'll call you." Grace replies with a smile. Lanre nods in response but I could hear him sigh silently.

Poor man.

Driving teenagers at ten in the night and coming back to pick them up later in the same night isn't part of what he signed up for.

Grace and I both get down from the car and walk towards the gate to Michael's house. As we walk nearer, I discover that there are two men standing in front of it.

"Good evening." Grace greets cheerfully. "We're here for Michael's party."

"What's the password?" One of the men asks solemnly and I come to the realization that they are both Michael's bodyguards. In fact, the one who hasn't spoken looks like someone I've seen before.

"Do I know you?" I ask him which makes him look at me for the first time.

I can swear he is beginning to smile but I might as well have imagined it because the smile was gone within a blink of an eye.

"What password? Do you know any password?" Grace turns to ask me, looking all panicky. "No one told me they were going to ask for a password."

"We've met before, right?" I ask the bodyguard, ignoring Grace.

"Yeah, we have." He replies and I immediately smile.

"Of course, I know we have but I can't quite remember where."

"I accompanied you and the boss's son to that girl's house in that local neighborhood." He replies and I'm suddenly struck with realization.

"Oh, I know. You're Kunle, that bodyguard." I say excitedly. "It's so nice to see you."

"You remember my name." He replies with a smile that doesn't disappear this time around.

I return his smile, "Of course, I do."

I discover that Grace is now quiet beside me and I turn to see her and the other bodyguard giving us a 'what-is-going-on' look.

"Well, it's nice that you have caught up with your long lost friend and all but I need you to realise that we are stuck outside because we have no idea what the freaking password is." Grace hisses, earning herself a raised eyebrow from me.

"You have your phone with you so give one of the boys a call. Why are you acting all dramatic?" I ask drily.

She glances at the phone in her hand like she is too dumb to not have realized that she could have called someone before proceeding to dial a number.

"Let them in. She's a special friend of the boss's son. I'm sure they are invited." Kunle tells the second bodyguard who looks unsure for only a second before shrugging.

"Thank you, Kunle." I give him a grateful smile. He smiles in response before opening the gate for us to enter.

"I guess knowing him actually paid off." Grace murmurs as we walk into the compound, cutting off the call.

I look around the yard, fascinated by how huge it is. It is huge enough to accommodate another one of Michael's house and that is saying something because Michael is living in a mansion. I glance around and see a couple of cars parked in it. I recognise Peter's white jeep right away and my stomach turns nervously at the thought of seeing him tonight and asking him about his feelings for me.

"What's the password?"

The deep voice of the bodyguard cuts through my thoughts and Grace suddenly holds my hand to stop me from walking. We both turn around to see that it is some of our school mates that are being asked the same question by the bodyguard.

"Why did you stop me?" I ask Grace with confusion.

"I want to know what the password is." She replies. I shake my head at her curiousity for something that's no longer needed but still stood to hear what the password is.

"Rock and roll." One of them replies easily and Kunle opens the door for them.

"Oh, so it is rock and roll." She says with a nod of her head and releases my hand.

"That's a funny password. I won't be surprise to know it was Femi who chose the password." I comment

"What are you trying to say?" She asks as we get to the front door.

"You know what I'm trying to say." I reply and she shrugs.

"Well, you aren't lying."

I get startled when I discover that there is another bodyguard right beside the front door.

Is he trying to tell everyone that he is the son of a Senator?

"You know the party is high-profile when there are bodyguards everywhere." Grace whispers in my ear and I roll my eyes at her words. She then smiles at the bodyguard who allows us to enter after scanning us with a metal detector.

Everything seems to be exciting for Grace because she has this wide grin on her face even while the bodyguard is scanning her but for me it's already so tiring.

What kind of party is so security conscious?

'The kind where you were promised that only the school members would be allowed into it.' My subconscious reminds me and I let out a small smile.

When we are finally in the house, I'm almost deafened by how loud the music is playing. The building must be sound-proof because the music we heard outside is nothing compared to how high the volume is on the inside.

I take a quick scan of the area and I'm momentarily confused as to whether we are in Michael's house or a club. There are disco lights everywhere with a make shift dance floor that already has tens of students dancing amongst each other.

There is a bar with an actual bartender serving drinks to some of the students. Some who are too sophisticated to dance or sit by the bar can be seen seated in one side of the house talking amongst themselves as they sip their drinks.

I find myself glancing once and then twice at my outfit because I suddenly feel underdressed. Most of the girls here are in heels and dresses and makeups that is probably enough to paint the whole living room.

Opposite the sophisticated ones are guys and girls that probably dressed up for the party to look badass. There is no single person in the group that isn't putting on a leather jacket but while almost all of them have this hardened expression on their faces, there are few of them who look out of place, like they are innocent and are just getting initiated as one of them.

One of those with the hardened face gives one of the innocent looking ones what I suspect to be weed and I watch with interest as the boy collects it with trembling hands while the others cheer him on.

He takes what seems to be too long of a drag and also holds it in for too long. I've never smoked weed and I'm not about to start anytime soon but I know for sure that what he did was wrong. His eyes bulge out of their sockets as he splutters, smoke coming out from his nose and mouth and I hold my breath when he collapses unto the floor, hitting his head against it.

He gets up not too long after and I breathe a sigh of relief as I watch him smile at his friends and probably assure them that he is alright. He then puts his hand on the back of his head and my eyes widen when I see that he is bleeding, probably from where he had hit his head on the floor.

I'm not the only one who is surprised at this occurrence because as soon as the boy sees the blood in his hand, he collapses again.

The others rush to him and I see one of them go to talk to someone, probably another bodyguard that is stationed there to take care of things.

I sigh as I realize that so much is already happening at the party and it was meant to start just fifteen minutes ago.

I stop looking around when I discover that I've been in the same position for a few minutes now and that Grace has disappeared from my side to probably look for Femi without bothering to tell me.

I laugh a little. So much for sticking to my side till the party is over.

Speaking of Femi, is he not the one peering down at girl's faces and mumbling something to them?

I open and close my eyes to make sure I'm not mistaken and it's indeed true that he is the one looking down at them. I watch amusingly as he does this but then I notice something off about him.

Wait, is he- drunk?!

He is already drunk??

With just fifteen minutes into the party??

Or did Grace get the time wrong?

I watch him as he moves on to another girl and stares closely at her too, muttering something. This girl tries to pull him closer but he shrugs her off quite strongly.

I glance around for any sign of Grace but she is nowhere to be found. I can't find any of the other boys too.

Where the heck is all of them?

With a dramatic sigh, I head towards Femi just as he pushes the girl he just finished staring into away.

"Femi." I call his name and he turns towards me. He staggers as he approaches me and then stares down at me like he did to the other girls who are now watching him with confusion.

"Are you Grace?" He asks, more to himself than me and then shakes his head. His breath stinks of alcohol and it only proves that he is indeed drunk.

"You aren't Grace." He answers his own question and raises his hand to probably push me away but suddenly drops it. He then peers down at me again.

"Do I know you?" He asks and I sigh.

"Just snap out of it already. Why are you so drunk this early into the party?"

He scoffs and glares at me, "You know nothing. So you have no right to scold me." He replies almost angrily.

"You know nothing." He repeats again and I stare down at him almost helplessly.

What's wrong with him?

"Fine. I know nothing. But first let's get you away from all these noise." I tell him gently and try to put my arm around his waist but he pushes me away.

"Go away, you aren't Grace." His voice cracks and I stare at him bewildered.

Is he about to cry now?

What the hell happened to him?

"Don't worry, I know where Grace is and I'll take you there. Is that okay?" I ask tentatively. He looks doubtful at first but he finally agrees.

"Take me to Grace." He almost shouts and this time, he allows me to put my arm around his waist.

As soon as I put his arm around my shoulder and he is balanced against me, I realize I have absolutely no idea what to do with him or where to take him.

I don't even know anywhere in the house.

I struggle to bring my phone out of my pocket so I can call someone but thankfully, at that moment, Grace and Wole appears in the living room, searching through people as if they are looking for someone.

I try to call their attention by waving my hand and fortunately, Wole looks in my direction. I watch as he taps Grace who is still looking around and points at me and together, they both approach Femi and I.

"Grace!" Femi squeals excitedly as they get to us, almost pushing me away.

"What's wrong with him?" Grace asks me with a look of both annoyance and worry.

"He is drunk." I reply and she sighs then turns to him.

"Why the hell are you drunk when the party just started?" Grace tries to reprimand him.

Femi gives her a sad look and it looks as if he is almost on the verge of tears.

Does he turn to a cry-baby when he is drunk?

I smile at the thought of him being the opposite of his cheery self all because of alcohol but it soon vanishes at Wole's words.

"He went to see his mother today and she is suffering from breast cancer." He announces.

What?!

Grace and I are too shocked to say anything. After few seconds of silence, Grace pulls Femi into her arms.

"She abandoned me all these years, Grace, and now she has cancer. I'm so torn right now." He sobs into her arms and she rubs his back soothingly.

"I'm so sorry. I had no idea and scolded you. I'm so sorry." Grace murmurs quietly, tears also brimming in her eyes.

The whole situation is quite emotional and I find myself on the verge of tears too.

Femi doesn't deserve what is happening to him right now, especially when he has such a wonderful personality.

"Can you take us away from these noise?" Grace asks Wole and he nods.

"Follow me."

"I'll come with you too." I say but Grace is quick to shake her head.

"I know I promised to stay with you but Femi needs me right now."

I nod in understanding, "It's okay. He really needs you. I will be fine." I assure her.

"Look for Michael or Peter. And call me immediately if anything comes up. Hmmm?"

"I will." I tell her and she nods. She then follows Wole out of the living room.

I watch them leave until they are out of sight then sigh. This is definitely not what I had in mind when I wanted to come to this party.

I look around for any familiar face but my lack of social life in school has finally caught up to me. Peter and Michael are nowhere to be found and none of the students around me can even be considered an acquaintance.

I decide to go to the bar to have a drink, maybe a Cola or Fanta. I remember what drinking alcohol at the last party I went to had almost cost me and know fully well that I just cannot make the same mistake.

As I approach the bar, I decide that I would call Michael after I get my drink instead of waiting around. He still hasn't told me everything he had promised to. And I am still curious about the phone call he had received during our date that had ruined everything.

Let's just say he has a lot of explaining to do and I can't wait to hear them.

I'm however startled to find Peter seated on one of the stools at the bar, sipping on what is definitely beer.

Then I remember that I actually have a question to ask him too.

He looks up to see who his new company is and smiles when he realizes it is me.

"Hey."

"Hey."

"When did you get here?"

"Like twenty minutes ago."

"I bet the others don't know you are here yet seeing how you are alone."

"Actually, I've met with Wole and Femi but Femi doesn't seem to be in a good condition. He is drunk already."

"Really?" He seems genuinely surprised.

Does he not know what happened with Femi?

"Yes. I think he got in contact with his mother only for him to realise that she has cancer." I tell him and his face falls.

He really doesn't seem to know what had happened to Femi which is weird considering that they are friends and Wole seems to be aware already.

"You don't know?" I ask him and he nods.

"We haven't been in contact since morning and I just got to the party not long ago." He explains and I nod in response, trying to make sense of the situation.

Maybe Wole already knows because he already met with Femi while Peter wasn't around.

But why wasn't he around?

I say nothing in response since there is nothing I can come up with and take a seat next to him.

The bartender asks for what I'd like to drink and I ask him for a Coke.

The bartender places a cup in front of me and I smile gratefully at him.

"Why aren't you partying and dancing like the others? They seem to be enjoying themselves." Peter suddenly asks and I just shrug.

"Maybe it's the same reason you are not dancing." I tease. He grins, his dimples showing and I can't help smiling too.

We stay silent after that, sipping our drinks and watching the others dance but that's when my subconscious chose to remind me that I'm meant to ask him how he feels about me.

So I can put it to rest once and for all.

I close my eyes and take in a deep breath. All I have to do is to ask him if he likes me and he'll just have to reply yes or no.

What if he says yes and I turn him down? What happens after that? Will things get awkward between us?

And what if he says no? It'll be so embarrassing to face him for jumping into that conclusion.

This is really going to be difficult.

"Cynthia." He calls and I open my eyes quickly, turning to look at him. "Are you alright?" He asks with worry.

"Of course, I am." I reply with a shaky smile and he nods.

"Do you want to dance?" He asks so casually that it takes a while to realise that he had just asked me to dance with him.

Or maybe I heard wrong.

"I just realized I don't really have a particular reason for not dancing and since it's the same for you, why not try?"

Wow. He is really serious about dancing with me.

Do I say yes or no?

"Hum-

My phone vibrating in my pocket stops me from replying and I quickly remove it to see who the caller is.

I smile when I see that it's Michael and mutter a quick 'excuse me' to Peter before picking the call.

"Where are you?" He asks.

I notice that he is in a different place because the music playing in the background is different from the one playing here and it isn't as loud as this.

"I'm in your living room." I shout back into the phone.

"Okay." He replies and just hangs up.

Really?

I remove the phone from my ear to check if he indeed hung up and he actually did.

I try not to be disappointed with our short conversation and go back to sitting next to Peter.

"That was just Michael." I tell him as a form of explanation and he nods in response.

"So, do you still want to dance?" He asks.

The music has changed to a slow one and the dancers that were busy rocking themselves just now can be seen holding themselves close.

Do I really want to be in that position with him now?

'You can use that opportunity to ask him the question', my subconscious says.

I swallow a sigh and decide to just go along with it. "Yes, let's dance."

"Shall we?" He asks and puts his hands out to me. I glance at his palm then at him. He is looking at me with a smile but there's a slight hint of uncertainty in his eyes.

Like he's not sure that I will take his hand.

I place my hands in his and I almost smile as he visibly relaxes. He leads me to the dance floor and puts his hands on my waist. Slowly I put my hands on his shoulder and together, we begin to move to the beat.

"Cynthia, relax. You're so stiff right now." He murmurs into my ear, making me even more rigid. I didn't know I was holding my breath until he spoke and I was more startled to hear his voice so close and to feel his breath against my skin.

I let out my own breath and smile weakly at him.

"I'm sorry. I've just never done this before."

He chuckled a bit, "What exactly? Dance with a guy like this? Or dance with me?"

My smile widens and I relax a bit, "Both of them actually."

"Hope I don't make you uncomfortable?" He asks, his face suddenly unreadable.

"No, of course not." I reply, trying for a genuine smile this time around but he only nods.

I guess he's not really convinced.

We sway for a little while on the dance floor while I keep wondering when the right time to ask the question is.

Should I just ask him now?

Finally, I clear my throat slightly, "Peter?"

"Hmm?" He responds almost absentmindedly then pulls back a little so he could look at me.

Refusing to meet his eyes, I speak, "Do- do you like me?" What comes out is a shaky voice, and I am not sure he even heard me.

"What did you say? You should talk louder because of the music." He tells me then leans into me like he did when he told me to stop being stiff.

"Do you like me?" I repeat and this time, he definitely hears me because he immediately freezes.

Before I could follow up with something else, he is pulling me away from the dance floor.

"Where are we going?" I ask, confused at his sudden action.

"Somewhere we can talk better." He responds and I stay silent. I guess it's best to talk about everything and have it all cleared up.

We haven't made it out of the living room when we run into Michael.

My heart literally stops beating for a second following his appearance and for a moment, I forget everything that I was just talking about with Peter. Nothing mattered except his presence.

And then I realised that I missed him. The last time I saw him was last night so it explains why I had that realisation.

He smiles at me and I am returning the smile but then he glances at my hand in Peter's, his smile slowly fading and I unconsciously remove it from Peter's grip. I watch as Peter's hands curl into fists and I glance up to look at him, feeling sorry that I had forgotten about him for a moment.

He doesn't look happy.

"Cynthia, I came here looking for you." Michael turns to me with a smile, totally ignoring Peter, "Were you two going somewhere?"

"Yeah, we were." I reply, telling the truth and he raises an eyebrow.

"To where?"

"It's none of your business." Peter responds this time.

Michael takes in a huge breath as if to calm himself and I see that his hands are also fisted. They are tightened so hard that they are trembling badly.

"Well then, I guess she'll be coming with me." He finally says and pulls me to his side.

"And you should leave. No one invited you to this party." He tells him with so much venom in his voice that I glance up to look at him, feeling confused.

He doesn't even wait for him to respond because the next thing I know, I'm being pulled out from the living room again but this time, Michael is the one pulling me.

I glance back to look at Peter but I can't make out the look on his face as he is standing in the shadows.

Why did Michael treat him that way?

We both enter his backyard and it's like there's another party going on here. If the one in his sitting room is a disco party then this is definitely a pool party.

There is a barbecue stand with some of the students around it. There is a big pool with tens of students in it playing with a beach ball. There are others sitting at the edge of the pool, their legs in it and sipping drinks.

Soft music is playing in the background and there are some students dancing to it.

I must say I prefer this party to the one inside.

But instead of commenting on the party, I say the one thing that's bothering me.

"Why did you talk to Peter in that manner? As if he was an enemy? As if he wasn't a friend?"

"He isn't my friend." He announces slowly.

I almost laugh at the irony of his statement. "What do you mean he is not your friend? Since when?"

"Since he has been acting like an asshole! Since I found out he betrayed me! Since he wouldn't let go of that stupid deal we made!" He shouts, startling me but also letting me know that he is really angry at him and they are far from being friends at the moment.

But the Peter he just described isn't the one that I just spoke to a while ago in the living room. It's almost like he is talking about another person.

He betrayed him? Really?

He looks so angry and sad and confused that I want to do nothing more than hug him and console him.

And so I did. I wrap my arms around his waist and pull him to me, resting my head on his chest. He sighs before returning the hug and rests his chin on my head, squeezing me to himself.

"Do I get to know what he might have done that could make you think of him this way?" I murmur against his chest.

He pulls away but not totally, his hands resting on my shoulder.

"I will tell you. I'm going to explain everything to you. But not now. Now is not the right time." He tells me.

"No problem." I smile encouragingly at him. Letting him know that he can choose to tell me whenever he wants.

He leans forward and kisses me on my forehead before finally letting go.

"Come. Let's grab a drink." He holds my hand and pulls me towards a man that's serving cocktails.

That's when I notice the number of eyes that are watching us. For a moment, it had only been the two of us in my head and I had totally forgotten that we are in the middle of a party.

"Ignore them." Michael tells me and I look up to see him watching me. "You are with me and that's all that matters."

I nod at him and he smiles at me.

He then leads me to where the man serving the cocktail is and orders a cocktail for the both of us.

I intend to take a small sip from my drink but as soon as the flavours explode on my tongue, I end up taking a long sip.

I notice Michael looking at me with an amused smile, "Do you want another glass? It looks like you're almost done with that one."

I grin before replying, "I couldn't help myself. It's delicious."

He orders another glass for me and this time, I sip on it slowly.

We both stand next to each other in silence with me sipping my drink way too often and he playing with his own drink.

In the end I break the silence, "Is something bothering you?" I gesture to the drink he is busy rolling around with his straw.

"What were you and Peter going to talk about?"

I look at him intently and then smile to myself.

Is he getting jealous now?

"Come to think of it, I don't think the way I left Peter was polite and what we were going to talk about is really important."

He rolls his eyes, "I don't give a damn about being polite with him but I'm very interested in knowing what you were going to talk about."

I open my mouth to start telling him but I'm suddenly unsure.

Would it make sense to tell him that I was asking his friend if he has feelings for me because I suspect that he might and I want to lay it to rest?

But then he claimed they aren't even friends anymore so that's probably even worse? Right?

Ugh- I don't know.

"I want to use the restroom. Can you explain how to get there?"

He stares at me for a while, wondering if I am changing the topic or if I just really need to ease myself.

When I don't say anything, he explains how to get there to me.

"Or do you want me to go with you?"

"No, I'll be back soon." I reply and head back into the house.

Deep down I know I'm just trying to escape  from the situation but I need to clear my head even if it's just for a while.

I follow his directions to the restroom and used the toilet. I can hear the gagging sound of someone vomiting in the sink so I quickly wash my hands and get out of the bathroom before I end up vomiting myself.

I'm however shocked to find Peter standing at the entrance of the restroom.

Looking like he is waiting for someone.

Was he waiting for me?

"Peter." I call his name and he looks at me. He doesn't smile this time around and instead he looks upset.

"What are you doing here? Is something wrong?" I ask with worry.

"I was waiting for you. I want to give you the answer to your question."

My question??

The one where I had asked if he likes me!?

His words sound slurred, almost as if he had been drinking.

"Are you drunk?"

"No, I'm not." He shakes his head and staggers forward to cup my face with his hands. The smell of alcohol on his breath.

He is definitely drunk.

"Cynthia, I don't like you." He blurts unceremoniously but I instantly feel a sense of relief washing over me at his announcement.

I didn't know how I was going to gently put him down if he had said he liked me so it's nice to know that I don't have to worry about that.

He is still cradling my face and staring intensely at my nose and then my mouth and then my eyes.

That's when I noticed that he still had something to say.

"I don't like you, Cynthia." He repeats again but this time he adds not long after, "I'm in love with you."

I stare at him stunned, blinking once and then twice. Not sure how to react.

"I love you." He says again and then starts to lean towards me.

***

Cliffhanger 😁😁. Well, not exactly a cliffhanger because there's the next chapter already but then...

Things are about to get interesting.

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Hikmah.