Dedicated to Odunola Olasoji ❤❤

Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. --1 John 3:1 (KJV)

When they were done with their food, the trio decided to do the clean up together. A water fight almost broke out before they decided that wasting water wasn't a wise decision.

After finally cleaning up, they settled in the living room chatting before Posi cleared her throat making the two look in her direction.

"I just want to say thank you to you guys for being here for me. I don't know what I'd have done without you," Posi said with a watery smile on her face. Funmi just squeezed her hands while Gerald patted her in the head.

She sniffled and began to wring her fingers. "I know Funmi must have told you what happened," she said without looking up. But they all knew who she was addressing.

"Anyways, during the period that my mother was depressed, my father got fed up with the situation and he wasn't also a strong-willed person. So, when his mum, my grandmother, brought up the idea of another wife again, he succumbed pretty fast and went on to have another family. He continued to check on me as I grew but I couldn't stand seeing him so I cut off from him. My mother blamed me for my dad's abandonment. And I in turn blamed myself for being unworthy of love and affection."

"My self-esteem has been at ground zero for years. And the only way I knew to protect myself was to push everyone away, just to avoid getting hurt. Again. At some point, I considered going for therapy but I couldn't still find it in me to take that step and there was no one to push me towards it."

Wringing her fingers, she continued, "You two however seemed to not take no for an answer, no matter what I did to push you away. And I'm grateful. Because of you, I haven't been too lonely or alone."

As Posi finished her story, she finally summoned on all the courage she had and looked up. What she saw blew her away. Her friends were wiping off their own tears as they looked at her with what seemed like thirty-three years' worth of love and affection.

She could feel the remainder of Fort Posi cracking and shaking from the very foundation. All her fears and insecurities were rattling at what she felt was real love. The two stood from where they were and came to her. They held her hands and began to whisper again in that alien language she was growing to love.

The same feeling of peace she felt the previous night descended on her again. Peace. Peace she hadn't felt for years. Peace she couldn't explain with words. Peace that she needed. No, peace that she wanted.

All of a sudden, she spoke. "I want this. I had a very frightening nightmare the other night. I don't want that again. I don't want to feel unwanted anymore. I don't want to feel like a cracked piece waiting to shatter anymore. I want this peace I felt and I'm still feeling right now. I want the peace I see on your faces and even on Toyin's face. I want that. How do I get it? Show me how?" Her broken voice was almost pleading as she looked from one to the other.

She watched as a look of joy and triumph took over her friends' features. They stood up from their kneeling position and sat with her, one on either side of her still holding her hands.

Gerald spoke in a clear voice. "God has wanted you for as long as you have been on earth. Even way before that. We may never be able to fathom why those things happened to you. What we do know is that God alone is the reason why we have peace even in the midst of the storm. He is why you feel peace now. If you're ready--"

"I am ready!" Posi all but shouted. "I am ready," she repeated calmly.

It was about time to let someone in. And let herself out of the self-inflicted prison she's banished herself to. It was time for Fort Posi to go. She had tried protecting herself but it obviously wasn't enough. She was ready to begin to chip away at the rocks and blood and sweat and tears that held the fort together. Even if it took the same number of years, she was ready.

They held onto her as they led her through the Salvation Prayer. "Dear Lord Jesus, I come to you today..."

As she repeated the words, she felt a deep conviction that she was finally in the right place, with the right Person.

She heard that alien language again, this time from deep within her. She opened her eyes to check her friends but what she was hearing was way different. It was like a mono-syllable.

She said it aloud the first time. Then, a second, and a third. It felt like she was speaking in encrypted codes and boy, did it feel good?

Smiling, she continued with her hands finding their way up.

An encrypted mono-syllable that somewhere deep within her seemed to understand.

********

Tayo woke up to his alarm which was so loud that it could have awakened even the dead.

He was having a swell time with his family and he began to question himself on why he hadn't visited them earlier. His siblings were all around him, with smiles and tales of what they had been up to.

Just being in the palace was enough to bring him bliss. He was surrounded by love and his family was truly glad to see him. He had taken a stroll round the palace the previous day to just re-familiarize himself with the surrounding.

The Palace of the King of Igbohon Kingdom stood on roughly thirty hectares of land in the most expensive and most popular but reserved part of town. It was a two-storey building that could very well be named a mansion, with its gold-painted pillars and the symbol of the kingdom inscribed for all to see.

There were about twenty rooms all en suite in the eastern part of the building which served as the residential area for the entire resident royal family. The king and his two queens occupied the last floor which also held the King's study, the royal terrace that overlooked the kingdom and the royal art room where pictures of past kings and queens were displayed. While the western part of the building was for administrative purposes.

The second floor held all the other rooms for the princes and princesses, along with a gigantic library which held books from all works of life. The ground floor held the throne room where meetings were held along with the chiefs of the kingdom, the royal kitchen, three other living rooms for receiving guests of varying importance or intimacy with the royal family.

On the palace grounds was a garden/green room, about five gazebos, and a parking area that could hold about fifty cars at once. The palace was closed off to outsiders via a large and tall iron gate manned by huge security guards. The royal maids and other workers on the ground resided in a separate building right behind the palace's main building.

It had been almost unnerving for Tayo as he walked round the palace with the workers bowing at every turn. He had even caught some of the female servants giggling when he walked by. He had to live with it.

He was always glad that he was many positions away from being next in line for the throne. That was if it ever got to his turn. He felt like Moses in the Bible most times-- a royal but not meant for the palace. It was why he mostly used his second name outside the palace walls.

Prince Adekiitan held too much weight for him to carry.

Godspower and Adetutu were busy playing the I-look-at-you-when-you're-not-looking game. It was hilarious to watch. Tayo was too perceptive for their game and he caught them each time. He really didn't understand why his friend was dawdling.

Suddenly, he heard a bell ring and he smiled. Glancing at his phone, it was 5:30am, time for morning devotion. As he shrugged off his duvet and searched for his slippers with his feet, he remembered how his parents and entire royal family had gotten saved. They had told him when he returned from London shortly after he got saved and graduated from school.

He remembered it like it was yesterday. It was that remarkable.

He had just returned from school when he noticed a different aura around the palace. It was like a lighter, joyful fragrance had been sprinkled everywhere in the palace. He had wanted to question his parents about it but they were too excited to see him.

It wasn't until the next morning when he heard a strange sound like a bell ring and then, his sister, Adetutu, had knocked on his door to wake him.

Still yawning, he opened the door and asked, "Adetutu, ki lo n sele? What's happening?"

"Egbon, it's time for morning prayers." She was smiling at him, probably trying to gauge his reaction.

"Really? Which morning prayers?" He had queried.

"Morning prayers na. See, let's go. Dad will explain," she replied, pulling him along with her.

Tayo was in awe throughout the morning devotion. He couldn't believe his eyes. All his family members were on the floor, worshipping and praying. He joined in the devotion.

After the devotion, he began to ask questions and his parents narrated how they had decided to join one of the princes, Prince Adegbenro, to watch a sermon by a prominent evangelist on TV. Apparently, Adegbenro's new lifestyle had drawn everyone's attention to their need to know the One Who had turned the prince's life around.

After the sermon, they had felt convicted and had taken the Salvation Prayer as he led them. Adegbenro had aided in explaining some scriptures. And they decided to join a church they believed was for them.

What astounded Tayo was the fact that they said they also began to pray for him to get saved too. And when he traced the date, it was around that same period he had had his encounter while in London.

Since then, his father had decided that they'd hold a yearly Thanksgiving to thank God for His magnanimity towards the royal family.

God was indeed faithful. He thought as he walked towards the living room where he could hear praises being sang.

"Kai! The Prince is so handsome!" one of the palace maids said to her partner, as they washed the dishes used for breakfast.

"I know, right. It's like seeing a live fairy tale Prince Charming. I had to keep myself together yesterday when he was walking round the palace grounds," the other gushed in response.

"Be thankful for your dark skin. I was blushing every second he passed by me."

They giggled again, but kept quiet when Princess Adetutu walked in to pick a bottle of water from the refrigerator.

She gave them a glance, smiled and walked out again.