ENIOLA'S POV

"Why did you hit me so hard? What if I wasn't wearing a thick scarf?" Kemi whined, as I passed a bottle of ice to her.

"How did you expect me to know it was you? I thought it was the thieves of the night." I countered, taking a glass of water.

"I am sure you did it deliberately." Kemi scoffed, whimpering in pain.

"What are you doing in my house at this odd hour of the night? And how did you get my address? I inquired, shifting my position on the couch.

"Well you haven't been to the office in two days, you left some of your files on your desk and I guess I opened it." Kemi replied, placing a leg on the centre table in the living room.

"You opened my files? That's infringement of human privacy." I yelled, folding my arms angrily.

"And get your leg off my table." I added.

"You see, that's your problem. You are quick to act and judge without thinking. I came here to check up on you and talk to you, as a woman. I know about your argument with our boss and I know you don't want to see him.That's why you gave yourself an illegal holiday." Kemi snorted, chuckling.

Her words were enough to set a volcano ablaze. I stood up promptly and opened the door to her amazement.

"If you are here to insult me.I won't take that at all. And you are the last person on this planet I would dare talk to." I said, shooting daggers with my eyes.

Kemi stood up slowly, picking up her scarf and erupted into a whirlwind of laughter. She walked up to me stylishly, eloquently and whispered into my left ear.

"I am the only person you can talk to about this and you know it, Eniola."

******************

"So, let's talk." I said, pouring out a glass of red wine.

"You drink wine? And you judge me in the office." Kemi said, holding her swollen forehead in pain.

"That's part of the great circle of life." I chuckled, coldly.

"So I guess you have some painful moments in your life, that's tearing you apart up till this very day." Kemi said, ignoring my former statement.

"It's more than pain. What do you know about pain anyways? You don't know anything." I stated, taking a drastic sip of the wine.

Kemi laughed out of the blues, banging the couch lightly and holding her stomach.

"You think this is funny? You laugh at any opportunity you get. I really hope you are not bipolar." I said, with a smug look on my face.

"I am definitely not bipolar and I have felt immense pain than you have ever felt Eniola. You may have lost a person or people that mean so much to you. I lost more than that. I lost myself." Kemi said, with a weak smile.

"I am guessing you are about to tell me a tale." I said, chuckling in laughter.

"Of course, Do you know any influential personality in this country named Ojo?" Kemi inquired, dropping the bottle filled with ice.

"Well there are many people bearing that name. So you really have to be specific. But I vividly remember that the former governor of Lagos state few years ago was Durojaiye Ojo." I replied, folding my knees.

"Would you believe if I told you, I am his daughter." Kemi said, raising her shoulders slightly.

"No way." I exclaimed, dropping the glass cup on the table.

"Now I want to listen to me attentively, because you are going to hear the story of my life." Kemi said, shifting closer to me.

I shifted closer as well, anticipating and eager to hear the words roll off from Kemi's lips.

"Well my life was a Cinderella story. I had maids at my beck and call. I have never cooked a full course meal in my entire life. But my life was closed. I couldn't go to the shopping mall, the maids did the work. I couldn't visit my friends because my father was scared that I might be kidnapped, since I was a governor's daughter. I was homeschooled,so I didn't have the idea of competition or the opportunity to know people. The maids rarely talked to me. My father was never around. My mother died at childbirth. My brothers were abroad and they refused to return back to the country."

"My only friend was the driver. He had a diploma degree. He was young and he could understand me. He was the only one that could understand a eighteen year old. We became closer and the communication between my father and I slowly died. We moved from being friends to lovers. There was no way I couldn't fall in love with him. He had everything I wanted in a person. I explored my sexuality with him. I gave away my virginity to a driver. Can you imagine that?" Kemi exclaimed, laughing loudly.

"I actually can't imagine that." I replied, nodding my head dramatically.

Kemi continued, placing her legs on the couch.

"I became pregnant eventually and decided not to abort it, amidst the huge pleas from the driver not to. I wanted my father to notice something about me, even if it was just a tiny detail. My father knew about it and he was furious with anger. I told him I wasn't going to abort it. My father told that I would never keep that bastard. Months flew by ,my pregnancy advanced and the shrill thought of my father accepting my demands warmed my soul."

"One morning, I woke up in a pool of blood. I tried to recount how I got into that situation. Then I remembered having a drink with my father the previous night. I couldn't believe that my father spiked my drink with abortion pills. I was rushed to the hospital. Unfortunately, I lost the baby. Then the doctor dropped a bombshell in my face. My womb was destroyed permanently. I cried to the extent that my bed watered in tears. Do you know what my father said?"

"He nonchalantly said that a destroyed womb is the least of problems in life. He said that I could easily forget that mistake. He said that I had the potential of becoming a minister and that would overshadow the pain I felt. I knew from that moment on,I needed to be free. Apparently he had sacked the driver. One night, I ran away with nothing. Not even a single cloth or jewelry I had on me. I wanted freedom."

"I didn't know that the outside world was different from the life I have lived before. The world before me was cruel and harsh. It didn't respect anyone. I stumbled from one job to another. I lost hope completely in myself but I refused to go back home. I wasn't scared of the wrath of my father because I knew he could easily get another child from another woman. I became a prostitute eventually. I sold my body to men that were not even in my class."

"I realized, I was foolish. I decided to go back to school. I entered a college and finished from it. Then I decided to look for a stable job. That's how I got a job in the law firm, Eniola." Kemi finally said, inhaling sharply.

"I have no idea of what to say. I guess I misjudged you." I said, with a smile playing on my lips.

"I don't want you to have pity on me. I just wanted you to know that I felt pain too." Kemi said, beaming with smiles.

"Everyone has their painful and traumatizing experiences at one stage in life. It's up to you to kill it inside so it won't affect you on the outside. The pain may hurt, but it will pass. If you bear it for just a bit. It will pass by and it will all be in the past." Kemi said, placing a reassuring hand on my thigh.

"I never knew you were this wise. I think things between us are going to change from now on." I said, patting her hand on my thigh briefly.

"So do you have a guest room? It's past midnight and there's no taxi alive on the roads." Kemi inquired.

"Would you like to sleep in my bedroom? The other room is empty, except you want to sleep on the ground." I said, tilting my head with a smile.

"Sure, that will be nice." Kemi said, grinning like a fool.

"Danjuma's hearing is tommorow. Would you like to come to the court and watch it?" Kemi added.

"I don't think so. I'll just stay at home and read for my forth coming exams" I said, spreading my lips.

"Is it because of our boss? It's alright Eniola. It's his decision not yours." Kemi said, dropping her legs on the floor.

"That's not it." I said, nodding my head in disapproval.

"Then what is it?" Kemi inquired further.

"Because I know Danjuma would win and I don't want to see a guilty man declared innocent" I said, staring intently at Kemi.