Jeremiah

Barely three o' clock, and I was back to waiting again. My hands, folded calmly on the table, with my wrist facing me, so I could see my wrist watch easily, without having to raise my hands to my face whenever I wanted to just check the time. Not like I really had a choice. I had to wait, I wasn't going to just leave without doing what I had come for this time, without meeting her. This was the only chance I had, the only chance I had to see her, before I was back to my movements being restricted the moment Manny was back home. I was going to be patient for as long as it took. I had to.

I turned back to the tiny shopping bag on the table where I sat, a tiny smile appeared on my face. Come to think of it, the timing was just right. I just really hoped she was going to like the necklace, when I gave it to her.

"Sir?"

I raised my head to the lady in front of me, the smile on my face withering as I watched her smile back at me, the manager of the restaurant. The only one that had the power to tell the workers what to do. The only one that was supposed to help me secure a chance to talk to her just once, even though she just never did her job right. I was beginning to wonder if all the money I had spent for this was even worth it, it definitely was.

"Let me guess, she has refused to see me?"
It was the same old drill.

"She's really going to keep ignoring you. It doesn't look like she ever wants to meet you."

I let out a tired sigh.

"My advice to you is to give up, or find another way to meet her. I'm not supposed to do this, because we have a strict rule on the privacy and safety of our workers, but you don't look like someone that can hurt anyone."

She looked around like she was scared someone was going to hear the next thing she was going to say. Then she leaned closer to me. I pulled myself to her too, I wanted to listen to what she had to say. If there was another way I could get to see her, a better chance than this, I wanted to hear it.

"I can give you her address, and the time she closes from work, if you'd like." She whispered to me. "For a price of course." I raised my head to her. "Three times the normal payment."

Okay, now it was obvious this lady was trying to take advantage of me, but I couldn't help it, or look away from it. However, it didn't change the fact that I was worried about how she could give out her address so easily? If there was a chance I could get to talk to her privately at her house, or meet her on her way from work, it was going to work. I knew I had to take that chance, I had to take every chance I was given.

I exhaled, and then reached for my wallet. I could watch her stare into my wallet, and her jaw drop from the corner of my eyes.

"Wow." She told me. "How can a teenager like you possess all that money? Your parents must be really wealthy."

Not like I cared about anything she said. I just wanted to get it done and over with it. I took out all the cash in my wallet. I wasn't even sure how much it was, yes, I was that desperate, I dropped them on the table. You should have seen the way she grabbed it, every piece of paper.

"Is that enough?" I asked her, as I watched her count it. She wet her fingers with saliva, so she could count it without any mistakes, typical Nigerian style. I drummed my fingers on the table nervously, waiting for her to be done.

I watched the smile on her face broaden, that was my cue to know she had more than enough.

"Thank you, sir." She told me. "I'll get the address now-" she turned to leave when...

"That won't be necessary." A voice said from right behind her.

We both froze when we saw  her standing right in front of us, her eyes focused on the woman standing there, she looked— angry.

"O-obianuju ." She stammered. "I-I was just about to call for you." She said. "T-this young man has been-"

I watched her gaze narrow on the money in the other woman's hands. I also watched the other woman hide it behind her immediately.

"Good thing you decided to come out already."
She turned to me, chuckling nervously. "Looks like you won't be needing that address, she's here."

I frowned. I didn't think I understood what was going on.

"Return it." I heard her say, still glaring at the woman in a suit. "Return the money to him."

"W-What money?"

"Is this your job?" She asked her. "Is this why you were employed? To take advantage of kids?"

"Take advantage? Look here Obianuju-"

"So you're just going to keep taking money from him all the time, even when I asked you not to?"

"I didn't force him to do anything. He did it all on his own. Maybe if you had just showed up when I asked you to, none of this would have happened."

She scoffed.

"This is all your fault, not mine. Watch how you talk to me, remember, I'm still your employer. Run your mouth again and you're fired."

I could see how she clenched her fists and bit . I could tell she was so angry, really angry. It was like she was holding a lot back, just as she always did, just as I remembered. I just sat still, watching them exchange really awkward and angry glances, right before she took a deep breath, and then turned to me.

"Come with me, now!"
She walked away.

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

Kora

It was a sunny day, really sunny. I could feel beads of sweat form around my forehead, even as I got down from my Uber, all my eyes and attention was focused on the red building in front of me, with the words "Mr Eggiy's" written on it. I could see all the empty chairs from the big transparent glass in front of it. No one really cared about Mr Eggiy's anymore, people didn't really eat there, like they used to. It was a wonder how they hadn't wrapped up since then. I held on firmly to the cake in my hands, there was a tiny gift bag in my hands too, as I made it to the front door.

"Good morning!" I greeted everyone as loud as I could, right after the bell, the moment I walked into the building. I could see how busy they all were cleaning the tables and making sure everything was okay, even though there was literally no one showing any interest in coming inside at all.

"Kora." One of the girls at the counter called me, as I hurried to the counter and dropped the cake on it. They all walked to me with huge smiles on their faces, all three of them.

"Hello, hello, hello."
Unlike the rest of the restaurants I've been to, the girls at Mr Eggiy's had to be the most friendly and welcoming attendants I had ever seen. Not like it wasn't expected, since there was a time I used to spend all my day with them, helping them, helping my nana.

"Longest time." One of them told me. "It's been so long since you visited. Me I come think say you don travel go obodo oyibo."
that was her way of asking about my whereabouts, since I hadn't visited the restaurant in a while. She thought I had relocated oversees, in pidgin of course.

"No, no." I tried to explain. "I've been around. Just occupied with school, and all that."

"Ehn eee." Another one said. "So you're in school now? Ahn ahn. Which school? Why you no come tell us say you don gain admission?"

Thank God I wasn't a stranger to pidgin English. That was one thing that made communication with these girls a whole lot of fun.

"Yes I did, a while back." I chuckled. I wished I could keep the same energy they did, but my pidgin wasn't all that fluent. "I school at NAUN now."

"NAUN?" The first one said. "That rich people's school?"

Exactly. I nodded.

"Ahh. You school there now?"

"Which one is NAUN again?" One of them asked her. I watched how she turned to her immediately

"Don't you know NAUN? That school in Maitama na. That biiiiiiiig school that all those big big men send their children to. The one big big cars drive in and out of." You should have seen her facial expression. It brought laughter to my lips.

"Oh oh oh. That school. I know the school." She turned back to me. "Is that where you go to now?"

"Yup."

"Anyway, who can blame you ? It's rich people like you that can afford to go to a school like that. Some of us have never walked on the streets of maitama, talk more of going to that school."

"You, you're talking. Some of us sef didn't go to school at all."

I chuckled. Why did they have to exaggerate everything a lot? I looked around the room now, letting the girls argue amongst themselves with hope that I could see her somewhere around.

"Where is my Nanny?" I finally turned back to ask them.

"I was wondering when you'd ask." One of the ladies said. "No wonder you came here with all these goodies. I just knew it had to be for her."

"Na us she wan buy cake for before? Don't you know how close Kora is with her Nanny?"

"She's at the backyard." One of them told me. "Talking to someone. I doubt you can wait for her anyway. It doesn't look like they are going to be done anytime soon."

"Talking to someone?" I frowned. Since when did Nanny Obianuju ever talk to anyone?

"One guy like that weh de find her come everyday everyday."

"It's one guy that has been coming here for a while now. He has been trying to get her to talk to him, but she refused, I don't know why, but she has been really avoiding him, but it's weird because it looks like she knows him from somewhere."

"A guy?" I asked them. "What guy?"

"I don't know o. All I know is he's very tall and handsome, and has a lot of money. I feel like I know him, like I've seen him before. He looks like all these celebs, dresses like one too, and he smells so nice."

"I've told you all to stop stressing yourselves." Another one said. "That boy must be her sugar baby, because the way he comes to look for her, it's not just normal. Why else would she be trying to avoid him? Maybe she doesn't want anyone to suspect."

"Hmm, if you see how angry she gets whenever he comes around ehn? I wonder who he is. They might even be fighting now as we speak."

I turned to the small door leading to the back. Were what they were saying really true? Was Nanny at the back, talking to some guy? Was it possible that they could be fighting too? Who was he, and what was going on? Was she okay? I didn't know why, but I could feel my legs leading me towards the door

You never learn, Kora. Just mind your business.

A voice in my head kept telling me, but I really wanted to know what was going on. I really wanted to know if she was okay, like I said, my Nanny and I were really close, and if there was a man trying to bother her, I just had to know who it was, and why.