“We must live together as brothers, or perish together as fools.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

•••

Tiolu.

Anjola felt the cold chill that ran down her spine, freeze in place, compromising her spinal cord and entire blood stream until she was numb with fear, that she thought she’d crack in mortification.

The image before her just couldn’t be true. Her eyes had to be playing some sort of elaborate prank on her. Tiolu and Dayo weren’t due to return from their honeymoon, till next week—yet here she was, in her apartment—dressed in a white turtle neck sweater, faded blue jeans and brown suede low heeled ankle boots, approaching her and Lekan, with an equally bewildered, astounded glare that spoke volumes of her astonishment and incredulity.

Anjola wished she’d melt into water under the vicious heat of her friend’s glare, and trickle down into the sink behind her, so she wouldn’t have to face the inevitable. But that wasn’t possible. She had dug her own grave, and now she had to lay in it.

“You know there is something called a doorbell, right?” Lekan was querying his sister, advancing towards her now static figure—the kitchen island, being the only thing separating them. Anjola finally mustered courage, and hopped off the counter to join them. “It is fixed at entrances to notify house owners, that you want to visit them, so as not to invade their privacy. Even if their door is wide open, manners demand that you notify someone before you barge into their house like you own the place. Just because y’all lived here together in the past, doesn’t free you from that obligation.”

Tiolu who had her arms folded, glared at Lekan condescendingly as if she were royalty, and he was a commoner stepping out of place. “Um, I don’t have to announce myself before I enter my best friend’s house. That’s why she gave me a freaking key, but it’s not like I have to explain myself to you.” Then her friend’s fiery glare transferred to her, and she felt her knees turn to jelly and wobble in fright.

Asides from the fact that Tiolu didn’t approve of Lekan in any way, she was also furious that Anjola hadn’t relayed that much to her. Since the past couple of months, she had never felt that their friendship would cease to be what it is, than she did in the current moment. “Um, are you done hiding in his shadow now and letting him talk like he’s your mouthpiece? If you are, then come out. We have a lot of talking to do.” Tiolu added.

Anjola swallowed, and walked out of the island and then the kitchen, to join her friend by the dining table. Lekan on the other hand, wasn’t done querying his sister.

“And it’s not like she has to explain anything to you, either. You don’t have to frown at her, and talk to her like she’s your daughter that you walked in on, banging the son of your neighbors—” Lekan started.

“Lekan, it’s okay.” Anjola said, over her shoulder and gave him a look that she knew wouldn’t fail to mollify him. His hunched shoulders finally fell, and his hardened posture dissolved, resulting in him leaning over the counter.

She appreciated the fact that he was standing up for her, and wasn’t deserting her in this dilemma but it was something she had to face by herself. If he said any more, he’d worsen matters and Tiolu would only be more furious that she was granting him access, to meddle with a matter related to their ironclad friendship. “Tiolu and I, would be going to my bedroom to talk. We’d be out in a bit. You’re free to go home, though but if you want to wait, you’re welcome.”

Tiolu scoffed at this, and shook her head, like she couldn’t believe her ears. “You should make it clear to him that he’s not allowed to join us in your bedroom. From what I saw earlier, it wouldn’t be obnoxious to think that he frequents there with you.”

“He doesn’t,” For the first time since the grand interruption, Anjola matched the hostility in Tiolu’s voice and didn’t sound remorseful. She got it that her friend was hurt, and absolutely taken aback but it gave her no right to refer to her in such morally, demeaning way especially since their friendship didn’t mean as much as it did before, and her life now orbited round her husband’s axis. “And you can cut it with the venomous voice also. Lekan is right. Last I checked, Lekan wasn’t your husband or anyone you’re romantically attached to, that would give you the right to make comments like that.”

Tiolu’s brows creased, and she stared Anjola down as if trying to discern if there was something else to her façade, as if she were an impostor or a clone and she was expecting the real Anjola to materialize out of somewhere, or rather, unzip the fake layer of skin she was covered with and step out. Her friend swallowed her comment down her throat it would seem, and simply turned around and headed out of the room, to her bedroom. Anjola clenched her fists to summon courage, before following Tiolu but Lekan’s hand on her wrist held her back, and she looked up to meet his affectionate glare.

“Remember that you don’t owe her anything, Jay.” He said. “We both know her. She’s going to act like you just committed the crime of century or did something worse than Judas did to Jesus. It’s still your life at the end of the day, and your decision to fill her in on the details or not. Don’t let her ride you or guilt trip you or something.”

“I won’t,” She forced a smile, and squeezed Lekan’s hand in hers as if to draw courage from it. “But you’re wrong. I do owe her that bit of information. She’s my best friend, and the moment both of us start acting like we can do whatever with our lives, without keeping the other person in loop then everything crashes. It’s in times like this, that things are sort of rough between us that I can’t afford that sort of strain on our relationship.”

“You think everything hasn’t crashed, already?” Lekan’s voice rung in her head, as she exited the room and headed to her bedroom to meet Tiolu. He did have a point, after all. Things weren’t as peachy as they were before, and the honeymoon had gone on to put even more strain on their relationship. It wasn’t farfetched to think the bond they had was past its yield point, and had snapped already. But still, that was the thing about relationship like theirs. No matter how much it had deviated from its original path, none of them could afford to give up. Lest they descended into anarchy.

When Anjola arrived at her bedroom, Tiolu was seated cross-legged on the edge of her king-sized bed. Despite her fear of the gravity of the lurking conversation, she couldn’t help but admire her friend’s dashing appearance. Foreign weather had done her good, as her complexion seemed even fairer and her beauty, more ethereal. Her unusually long hair for a Nigerian, was combed into foxy, seamless waves and left to fall to her shoulders. Her earlier antagonism seemed to have depleted a bit, but she still had a scowl on.

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air, when Anjola closed the door behind her and their gazes locked.

“That’s it? You’re so angry at me, that you won’t hug me despite the fact that we haven’t seen each other, for like a month?” Anjola asked, remaining rooted to the spot she stood. Tiolu heaved a heavy sigh, before standing up from her bed and closing the space between them to pull her in for a crushing, amorous hug. The hug lasted for about a minute or so, and they drank in each other’s scent to their fill. “I really missed you, you know.”

“Me too, A.J. I miss us the most.” Tiolu replied, while still in the embrace. Anjola knew the moment they pulled away from each other, their little window of bliss that shielded them from the breeze of reality, would shatter. Then they’d have to address the elephant in the room, and that’s why she did her best to prolong the hug until they eventually had to pull away.

“I can’t help but feel we’ve been drifting apart since the start of this year. That’s too cliché for people like us, right? We’re way past that.” Tiolu was saying, as she returned to her earlier position on the bed.

Anjola stood in front of her friend, leaning over the wall with a solemn composure. “Well, it was bound to happen at some point. I mean, you’ve been mostly busy with wedding planning and although I partook a great deal in that, most of the time we were working and not hanging out. And then the honeymoon, and the difficulty in communicating with someone else in a different time zone. It’s no one’s fault really, it’s just reality. I guess we have to work harder, if we still want to remain close friends.”

“I guess,” Tiolu agreed, and crossed her legs once again. “Sorry for being snide earlier on in the kitchen. That was uncalled for, I was just angry, I mean I’m still angry that you and Lekan have something going on, and you didn’t tell me, which judging by the looks of it didn’t just start yesterday or something. For someone like you, it looks pretty intense.” Tiolu then locked gaze with hers, and she felt her breathing become labored.

“Wanna talk about that? Why you’re in a relationship or whatever it is, with Lekan of all people? I’m totally and absolutely confused, that I can’t quantify my surprise in words. I was so shocked, I think I stood there for almost a minute. It was a happy-sad type of shock first, because I was happy you finally had someone, but sad that you hadn’t mentioned something so significant over the phone. Then when you stopped, and Lekan turned around, I just…like I said earlier, words can’t quantify how I felt.”

Anjola bit her lower lip. “I understand why you’d be shocked, really and I don’t blame you. I gotta say, you’re taking this whole thing calmly though despite your lash out earlier. You’ve raised your voice at me, for things that aren’t as important as this in the past. So, like I’m really terrified and wondering why you aren’t in your usual…rampage, Thanos state.”

Tiolu chuckled and shook her head. “I know right? The truth is that, I sort off saw this coming. And so my surprise is more of a…I-can’t-believe-this-happened and not how-did-this-come-to-be? Ever since last year, you and Lekan have been sort of all over each other and it didn’t help that the wedding preparations, brought you guys together. I knew it was only a matter of time, but a part of me assured me that I have nothing to worry about, and that you’re the most sensible of all women I know, and so you know what you’re doing.”

“I do know what I’m doing, Tiolu.” She replied, pleading with her eyes.

“Do you?” Tiolu straightened up. “You of all people know exactly the type of person, Lekan is. He doesn’t do relationships, and you’re getting entangled with him. Unless you want to tell me you guys aren’t in a relationship, and you’re just in something casual—then all bets are off and I finally accept that I don’t even know who you are anymore, because the Anjola I know doesn’t roll that way.”

Anjola sighed, plunking down to her thatched rug and hugging her knees to herself. “I’m still the same Anjola, you know. I haven’t changed.”

“Then why are you in a relationship with Lekan of all people?” Tiolu gesticulated towards the door, as a symbol to represent Lekan who was outside waiting on them in the living room. “Since when did someone as…vain as he is, become your type anyway. And how convincing was whatever parable he told you to, get into a relationship with him was? Off the top of my head, the only thing I can think of is blackmail. Because I know you’re not naïve enough to give someone like him a chance, in the hopes that he’d change for you. People don’t really change, Anjola. And even if they do, Lekan doesn’t.”

“How would you know?” She couldn’t help but argue from her perspective. She knew Tiolu wasn’t being forward and was only concerned for her, and had every reason to believe Lekan couldn’t abandon such life, and change for the better—but she of all people, had undergone a change nobody saw coming.

“Why is Lekan not capable of changing, when everyone is? Look at you, Tiolu. When I met you, you were every bit as wild as he was—just without the sex, but the point is that you didn’t fancy relationships and simply indulged in casual unofficial stuff. Then you met Dayo, and everything changed. Any logical person that knew you before Dayo, would have said the exact same thing you are saying about Lekan now, but yet here you are. So please, go on and tell me why it’s different for you? I’m not querying you, it’s a simple question and I need to know the answer.”

Tiolu was rendered speechless for a moment, and it took a while for her to assemble her thoughts into an explanation that was cohesive, because she couldn’t afford to come up short. “Okay, you do have a point but A.J. trust me, you can’t just compare it directly like that. Before Dayo, I had at least been in one or two real relationships in high school, and so I understood what commitment meant to an extent.

“Plus, when I was in those casual relationships before Dayo, I wouldn’t lie that I didn’t enjoy doing it but I wasn’t really…what’s the word, fulfilled. I didn’t want to be tied down by any man, because I was so driven by my career prospects and all, but at the same time I couldn’t just turn off my biological wants, okay? That’s why I resorted to those things. Not like, it was the first thing on my mind that I wanted.

“But Lekan, he loves nothing more in this world than sex. He’s been doing it since college, or maybe high school, who knows and he loves it. And guess what? He’s addicted to it. It’s his life, it’s his thing. And let’s even assume that he met you and fell head over heels in love with you and wants to try and change for the both of you, it isn’t just possible because that’s what he is. That’s his life. That’s like, what defines him.

“Having sex is like breathing air to him. Trying to be committed, is as alienating to him like finding himself in a new habitat or a new planet and having to adapt to many constraints. It’s not like Lekan is the worst of all men. There is a reason he doesn’t bother dating. It’s because he knows he isn’t capable of it, and hence doesn’t want to hurt anyone. Right now, he might even be  trying his best to change…but trust me, Anjola it’s only a matter of time.”

Anjola placed her chin on her propped knees and sighed. All what Tiolu had said was nothing she hadn’t told herself—was nothing her anxiety corrupted subconscious hadn’t iterated over and over again. But she had to do what she was doing. To unravel the mystery behind her feelings for him, she had to conduct an experiment, test the waters to confirm if her feelings for him were borne out of a shallow ground or a stable one. There was the risk of losing herself in it, but totally abstaining from it for the past few years had done her no good. Her feelings for him had rekindled again, and even sublimed into a more intense state. So staying away, was out of the equation.

“For years, Tiolu I’ve sort of had a thing for Lekan.” She fiddled with her entwined hands, unable to meet her friend’s scrutinizing stare. “And I’ve done the most logical thing, anyone could do. Which is staying away from him, and putting good distance between the both of us because I know he is bad news.

“But that hasn’t helped in anyway. It’s something different from a regular crush, that fades away with time. It just keeps getting stronger and stronger. And I had to do something about it. And the most logical thing I could come up with is dating him, trust me. I know it doesn’t exactly make a lot of sense, but I did the best I could.

“My boss at work, who is the deputy head of my department—Delano, you met him on the ferry cruise on your wedding reception. He is the type of person, I’d normally be attracted to. Intellectual, good-looking, emotionally stable and all, but yet I don’t feel anything for him. It’s just a blank space. It all didn’t make sense. Why I didn’t have feelings for someone that’s my type, and why I was drawn to Lekan.

“Then I went to research on the internet, to see if I could find anything helpful and I sort off did. I saw an article, in which a relationship expert and biologist said people have feelings for people, who don’t meet their criteria and could be harmful to them, if said people hold a certain refreshing or liberating feeling. Especially if they’ve been previously suffocated or restrained, and searching for an adventure or something daring.”

Tiolu nodded. “Makes sense. You haven’t been in any real relationship in your life, since you’ve been restrained by your principles and circumstances somewhat, and Lekan indeed gives off an adventurous, dangerous and daring appeal. So? That doesn’t mean it’s healthy to date him.”

“I know, I’m going somewhere. The article then advised that to get to the root of the feelings, and discover if they are legit or something premature that wouldn’t last for a long while, I have to get into a relationship with the person in question, and enforce good precautions that would keep my head above the water, but wouldn’t prevent me from getting to know who the person is intimately. If the feelings last, after knowing them deeply and doesn’t get put off by their personality then it should be acted on, but if it dies then…it is what it is.”

“I get all this, Anjola. But the more important question, isn’t whether your feelings are legit or not. It makes sense to get to the root of the matter, but what if it’s eventually legit? Is Lekan just going to change because of that? That is the main problem at hand.”

“He has promised he’d do his best to try,” Anjola rose to her feet, and Tiolu shook her head vehemently and ran her hands through her hair. “I know you have every right not to trust him, and I won’t even try and make you trust him…but he is still a human being, Tiolu. Everyone deserves a chance to prove themselves, before being written off.”

“But…this price is too costly. He could hurt you—” Tiolu interjected.

“I know,” Anjola said firmly. “But it’s a risk I’m willing to take, and I’m also fully aware of its consequences. Besides, broken heart never kill human being. I won’t die and give up on all men, if he hurts me. I’d be hurt yeah, but eventually I’d get over it.”

Tiolu met her gaze. “That’s it, A.J. Fine broken hearts doesn’t kill people, but you haven’t experienced it or come close to experiencing it. You have no idea how hammering it could be. How it could make you question your worth, how it could shatter your self esteem. You’re underestimating its effect. It’s something everyone should avoid at all cost, no matter if they’d get over it. You will get over it, but it doesn’t mean it won’t have a lasting effect on you and take something, that you might never be able to recover.”

Anjola’s throat bobbed, as the words struck her over the head. But she didn’t want to dwell on them at the moment. She had more than enough incessant hassling thoughts that plagued her head, all day long. Now, her favorite person in the world was here and she wanted to simply revel in the moment and face her worries later on.

“I’d be careful, I promise but can we not talk about this now? For Christ sake, you are back!” A grin broke over her face, as she sidled next to Tiolu on the bed, draping her left hand through her friend’s shoulder. “How come you’re even here! You’re not supposed to be back until next week.”

“Well,” Tiolu shrugged. “We just decided out of impulse to come home early. Both of us are workaholics and being away from life and work for so long was becoming mind numbing and surreal, that we couldn’t help but think that everything we left behind was going to crash on itself and fail woefully, in our absences. At least, that was Dayo’s conviction. I on the other hand was honestly getting tired of the constant travelling. It’d have been great if we had just stayed in one place, all through.”

“I see,” Tiolu’s explanation sounded plausible enough. “And let me guess, you wanted to surprise me, right? And ended up, almost getting an heart attack yourself.”

“It all worked out eventually. I have a feeling you might have tried to hide it from me.” Tiolu pointed out, rounding on her but she shook her head.

“Nope, I was just going to wait for you to return before telling you. Although, I admit envisioning having this discussion with you isn’t pleasant, I’m not stupid enough to think that I can hide something of this magnitude away from you. You’re way too observant. You’d notice something is off and even if somehow you don’t—”

“You’d end up spilling yourself, when your anxiety gets the better of you.” Tiolu completed her sentence with a pompous, cocky smile that emphasized their kindred connection and they both broke out into a hearty laugh. “You know, now that I’ve like, calmed down to assessed the facts you laid out, I can see they are legit to some extent. Two years ago, it was Dayo—my own husband who was the villain.

“Yeah, he hadn’t slept about with tons of women but his devotion to the relationship was just off. He was the laziest person, I’ve ever dated. But here we are today, and he’s trying his best to be the man I need. I can’t exactly say he’s changed totally, but he’s constantly trying to be his best version.

“So maybe change in itself isn’t necessarily about correcting your life course entirely, or something. Maybe it’s constantly trying to be the best person you can be. And you’re also right when you say everyone deserves a chance. Dayo even got a second chance, I mean…so, but I’m just really afraid that this might not end well and my gut feeling has disaster throbbing all over it.

“But that’s my problem. You also advised me not to get entangled with Dayo again, but I decided to go with my heart and I don’t regret it. But still, again…this is too much of a cliché isn’t it? Bad boy, good girl? My thoughts and feelings on the entire thing is jumbled up, but I know one thing A.J…if Lekan hurts you, I’m going to do very unpleasant things to him that you would feel even guilty, for being the reason for my anger towards him.”

Anjola knew her friend was exaggerating the weight behind her words, but also knew she wasn’t bluffing. All she could do from here on out was hope that things didn’t go sideways.

***

Traffic was the one thing Lekan didn’t need. Stranded on the road, in his car, with nothing to occupy his radioactive mind and having no choice than to sit idly and wait for the gridlock, he found himself trapped in to disperse. He had left Anjola’s apartment about two hours ago, as their date had been cut short by his sister’s abrupt arrival. And as expected, Tiolu had been strutting about the place with high shoulders and flashing a look of scorn at Anjola—for not informing her about the relationship—as if she had equal stakes in it alongside them.

The entire thing was infuriating, but he didn’t dare engage in a stand-off with Tiolu. The lady was the crowned queen of all verbal duels and debates. It would be an ineffectual venture, in trying to subdue her. He could only hope she didn’t trample on Anjola’s rights and poison her mind towards him. He wasn’t so concerned about that, because he knew Anjola was a woman with her own mind that could be hardly swayed, when she set out to do something, but once again—discarding Tiolu’s influence on her life, would be underestimating the power of the friendship they had.

She just had to arrive when things were shaping up nicely for him, and when Anjola had finally succumbed to the raging passion that was budding between them. He had half the mind to suggest to Tiolu, that she excuse them so they could resume their evening but he knew Anjola wasn’t for it. Women generally valued their platonic relationships more than men did. Plus, they hadn’t seen each other in a month and he suspected Tiolu might even sleep over—just so they could have the opportunity to converse deep into the late hours of the night—if it wasn’t something unethical or unscrupulous for a newly-wed.

The traffic ahead didn’t seem like it was going to be disintegrating any moment soon. It was well past 9:00P.M., and Lekan was beginning to fear he might be stuck in traffic for the entire night. It wasn’t an improbable thing to think, as it had happened multiple times in the past on this exact highway and the experience was so unnerving, that it wasn’t something he wanted to relive. He had to do something to prevent that time loop, from recurring.

On the second half of the highway, the alternating road was free and he knew if he timed his turning well, he would be able to turn back and escape this ambush. But where would he go? His house wasn’t that way, and he knew no one living around the area that could inhabit him for the night. And he couldn’t exactly park his car on some random driveway, and fall asleep in it. There was no saying to the type of neighborhood he would venture into. It could be one running amok with crime and peril at night. It wasn’t a chance he was willing to take.

Sighing, he looked around his car—his eyes roaming the interior and dashboard, especially, as if there could be a solution, a clue lying somewhere, that would point him in the right direction as to where he could go. Of course, it was a futile action as there was nothing helpful around, but something did occur to him at the moment. He was at Allen, an area that was notorious for the innumerable number of clubs that was in its vicinity. It was weekend, and definitely virtually all clubs were in business—including Fairy Tale, the club Sultan owned.

Ever since deciding to commit to Anjola, he had decided to abscond from all scenes and environments that were highly tempting and capable of damaging his resolve and clubs, were at the top of the list. But right now, he didn’t exactly have a choice. It was either he go to a club, or have a horrendous night in the cramped space of his car. Plus, Sultan owned the establishment which meant he could easily excuse himself from the enlivening, enticing atmosphere and spend the night in a secluded corner set aside for administration or the likes. It was the best call to make, and he took it.

Observing necessary road swapping protocol, he swerved into the free alternating road and ramped up the velocity of his car, because the traffic was gradually closing in on his new path also, and was only a matter of time before it turned to a standstill. It was then he remembered he wasn’t exactly on the chummiest of terms with his friend, but figured it wouldn’t pose much of a problem since their friendship wasn’t one that was greatly sentimental. In no time, he arrived at his friend’s club and was being greeted by the loud, deafening music blasting from the speakers. He weaved through the hordes of clustered bodies, bopping and swerving to the music—and made his way up to the VIP section.

Fairy Tale was beautiful in a bashful, unapologetic way. From its glimmering disco lights, with the most absurd color combinations to the intrepid, gaudy wallpaper that consisted of flames of fire, of an equally absurd tint—it seemed not to give a literal fuck about if its appearance came off as over-the-top or farcical.

When he arrived at his destination, the guards stationed by its entrance—to of course determine if he had clearance for the esteemed area—interrogated him, and luckily, he knew one out of the two sturdy guards, as a result of being a frequent visitor in the past and hanging out with the owner of the establishment. He was going to make his way to an unoccupied table and have a drink or two, before passing out on a couch but a trio of men on the central table, waved him over and he of course knew he was acquainted to them and that Sultan was probably in their midst.

Just like he suspected, the table occupants were Sultan and two other acquaintances of his—Levi and Chibuzor—that he knew from frequenting the club in the past. The round table had a four-person seating capacity, and so he slid into the last seat across, which was across Sultan and on the left and right of Levi and Chibuzor respectively. Greetings followed, and small talk ensued afterwards. Levi and Chibuzor wanted to know what he’d been up to for the past couple of months, and Sultan was curious as to why he visited after proclaiming he was done with such life.

“I didn’t exactly have a choice,” Lekan said, while sipping from a glass of Cîroc. “The hold up at Maryland, was crazy and I know it wouldn’t break off till like ten or eleven pm or something. It wouldn’t be the first time, I’d spend the entire night driving in the car and I wasn’t going to let that happen, while the other road was still free. And since it’s weekend, I turned around and headed here to come crash for the night. Tomorrow, I’d be heading home. Anything to escape not spending the night in a cramped up space.”

“Why would you be done with this life, anyway?” Levi who wore a pale green sweater, asked. He was the most conventionally handsome in the pair, with a radiant, fair skin tone and the type of soulful eyes that most women found hypnotic and dreamy. Just like every man in the group, the man had more than his own fair share of failed relationships, which was mostly as a result of his infidelity or inadequate devotion. “I heard your dad successfully manipulated you into becoming his heir for the company. Partying wasn’t something he insisted that you stopped doing, right?”

“Of course, not.” Lekan shook his head, and took another sip from his glass before picking up the bottle by his side for a refill. “I’m in a real relationship now, and I’m trying to do my best to ensure it works and doesn’t crap out. It’s not like partying or clubbing in itself it’s bad. But if I come here, and say I just want to have a good time without engaging in any funny business with anyone, I would only be deceiving myself. Prevention is better than cure, I guess. So in order to prevent an unpleasant situation, where I’d be backed into a corner and compromised to cheat, I avoid all of these altogether.”

“Wow, you’re in a relationship? I never saw that coming, bro.” It was Chibuzor, the most dark-complexioned person in the group—with a tint so black, one would worry about being stained with hue if they happened to touch him—that replied Lekan. He didn’t have much going for him in the looks department, unlike the rest of them but was of optimum height and physique and that alone armed him with weaponry to exert damage. He was wearing a grey short-sleeved Timberland vest, that would look bland on a regular person but he managed to pull it off with a casual swagger, because of his chiseled frame. “Do tell us about this special person, that managed to convince a hardened baller like you to take a chance on relationships.”

Lekan sensed the underlying scrutiny of his previously liberal ways, and he addressed them. “Okay, first of all, I’m the best of all of you here. You guys might think yourselves better that you’ve been in relationships before, but I decided not to because I care about not hurting people’s feelings. Y’all don’t really give a shit about that, and you just take what you want.”

He paused, so his words could sink in but the boys only scoffed and gave him wave of dismissals, discounting the truth in his words. “Yeah, snort all you want but we all know it’s true, and now back to this special woman? I’d rather not tell you guys about her. I want her far away from this life, and you guys are just nothing to write home about, abeg. So let’s just leave it that way.”

Sultan finally chipped in, after being silent for about a minute. He too was having a drink—a Duse to be specific. “You guys better leave Lekan alone. Let him keep on acting like he’s the first person amongst people like us to be in a relationship. The other day, I was at his office and he literally kicked me out of the place as if I had some sort of communicable virus that he could contact, if we stayed in the same room, together. He also refused to come to the orgy holding next week.”

“Sultan, my man. You’re not really sore about that are you?” Lekan hailed his friend, with both of his hands in the air, but his recipient only snorted and resumed taking his drink. “C’mon, you’re not one to take offence like that. I was just really in a hurry to get somewhere and so I was all antsy. My dad watches my every action and step in that building, and I can’t afford to be sluggish. And the board also, are so hungry to find something that they’d use to query me, since they don’t exactly like the fact that I’m coming out of nowhere to take over the company. I’m literally on my toes in that building.”

“I understand, man. Dads are the worst.” Levi groaned, commiserating with him. Like him, Levi was also the son of a mogul and headed a press printing enterprise. He didn’t know if his friend was being groomed to take over from his dad, but he worked for him and was one of the high ranking executives in the business.

“You think it’d get better when you grow older, and that you’d finally get treated like an adult, but opposite is the case if you find yourself in the position where you’re working for them. Just yesterday, my own pops was reviewing the salary of my staff and was saying it’s bad that I haven’t considered increasing it for a while.

“You know what he is implying directly? Their salaries come from my own pocket. He is indirectly saying I should reduce my own salary. Honestly, sometimes ehn I just wish the man should just be going on his own, as in…” He trailed off, and placed his head over clasped hands after closing his eyes. “I don’t want to wish him bad or want him to die right away, but if I could speed up his time—I definitely would.”

Chibuzor on the other hand seemed genuinely interested in his love life. “Yeah, if you guys want to whine about how it sucks to work for your dads, you might as well open a support group. You know, like the type they have for people suffering from depression and shit. Don’t bring it here, please.” And then he directed his focus back to Lekan. “As I was saying, I can’t believe you’re giving relationship, a trial. Please don’t listen to this two. It’s worth it and you should do whatever you have to do, to make it work.”

“Oshey, motivational speaker.” Sultan mocked Chibuzor with a sly smile, as he finally emptied out his drink. “You’re encouraging and giving him ginger, but where are you? Still the same place we are after discovering relationship is scam and it’s best for you to just have the time of your life, while you’re young and the ladies still want you—”

“Relationship isn’t a scam,” Chibuzor cut Sultan off, who was now sharing a laughter of mockery with Levi. Chibuzor was a hopeless romantic, who had been in involved in more relationships than anyone on the table, and who claimed they ended as a result of his partners not reciprocating his intensity and dedication. Lekan had no reason to doubt him, as he had never seen the man loitering about with women he barely knew.

“You guys don’t know how precious it is to find that one person, amongst billions that is for you. And because you don’t know, you will never open your mind to the possibilities and would eventually miss out on it. I know my soul mate is out there, I just have to find her. All the women I’ve met so far, they’re not it. So please, Lekan give it your all. Sometimes your first might be the one.” Chibuzor said.

Lekan wasn’t one for the soul mate belief. The thought that there was just one person in the entire world that was suitable for him, sounded preposterous. What then happened if a tragedy befell the person? Or if they were million of miles away on another continent? Or if they were unattractive? Did that mean he wouldn’t gain maximum utility from his relationship? But he wasn’t interested in engaging Chibuzor in an argument. Everyone was entitled to their own opinions after all, as far as it wasn’t toxic or hazardous to everyone else.

“Thanks, man. Trust me, I’m doing my best but it’s not easy at all.” Lekan didn’t know what came over him, that made him pour out his worries to these men. Perhaps, it was the fact that he was overwhelmed by the huge toll, his new life was taking on him or it was honesty spurred by the intake of alcohol. Whatever it was, he was compelled to open up and share his travails. “But I think I should pull through. This girl, she’s really worth it and makes me feel things that women I’ve had sex with haven’t and we don’t even have sex, because she isn’t that type of person. I just want more and more of her, upon the passing of every day and I’m afraid what she’s willing to give might not be enough.”

“What do you mean?” Levi frowned, folding his arms and reclining in his seat. “You mean she is apathetic about the whole thing and isn’t really into you?”

“No, that’s not it. She’s into me enough.” Lekan clarified. “What I meant is that she’s not willing to compromise a lot, as per…sexual stuff, you know. The highest thing we do is kiss, and even when we do kiss—there is always this cautiousness about her that could be so irritating sometimes. But I love her, I think I really do.”

It wasn’t until he had said it, that he realized the gravity and truth in his words. It was a conviction that resided in his head, but had receded to a distant thought but now as he spoke it, he knew he meant it. But was that enough? Was that efficient to keep his ravaging thirst under lock and key, and attuned to her wants?

“Oh, she isn’t willing to have sex now. I’m guessing she is the no sex before marriage type.” Chibuzor correctly inferred from his words, and comprehension dawned on the other duo on the table. “Yeah, people like them, do exist. That’s really tough man. Someone like you who is used to regular sex, but you just have to put up with what she’s willing to give you until…marriage? Are you willing to marry her? Or is this just a beta relationship, that you just want to use to test things…”

Lekan sat up at this.

“…If you’re willing to marry her, then it’s a profitable venture. Girls like that are usually very committed, plus she’s definitely going to lose up after marriage and you get to be her first and only. But if this is not heading towards marriage, and you don’t see it as a possibility and you know that sex is very important to you, then it’s a fruitless venture. No matter how much you feel for her, it won’t matter if you feel caged and you’re always thirsting for more than she can afford to give you. You’re liable to end up doing something to hurt her eventually, and you just said you love her, so you definitely don’t want that.”

Chibuzor’s words carried so much weight, that it beleaguered him and plagued his mind. Sex was something he craved for as a primal need, like the thirst for water and being deprived of it  was torture and torment of the most explicit kind, but he had put up with it because he believed Anjola was worth the hassle.

And she was, but it wasn’t a matter of her persona validating such struggle. It was a matter of his willpower and how much farther he could go, before compromising their relationship. Marriage was still something he couldn’t see in a liberating light and so it didn’t hold much appeal to him. And it was the only clause, that would enable Anjola to lower her defenses.

Their relationship was borne out of test reasons, and so he had to evaluate if the pros outweighed the cons in the end, and determine if he was simply wasting his time and risking the prospect of hurting her.

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What do you think of the relationship between Lekan and his friends? Its not exactly ironclad tight, but it's still something I guess. Everyone needs a squad.

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