Jamal's POV

"I'll finish you today." Somadina hollered as he pressed the console, taking the lead in the PES we were playing. I growled as I pressed the console aggressively, trying to beat him but I lost the game.

After the whole Tolani fiasco, Somadina called few minutes after to know if I was at home and when I told him yes, he hung up and ten minutes later, he was at my door. We've been up in my room, playing PES like no man's business instead of us to be working on our assignment.

"I won! In your face." He mocked me and I hissed.

"Yah mad. In fact, get out of my house." I pointed to the door but he laughed me down and threw himself on my bed.

"You are such a sore loser. Calm down na. It's just a game." He picked up his phone.

"We should start our assignments though." I told him, going over to my study table.

"Abeg, leave assignment for now. Let's gist." He said, his eyes shining with excitement. I groaned.

"Soma, you are a genius and you can do your assignments in thirty seconds. I don't have that kind of super power. It's not me you will come and cobalize." I told him.

"I'll do your assignment for you, no sweat at all." He threw that away with a wave of his hand. Having Somadina do your assignment for you is like having an A* in a very difficult exam. I tossed my books aside and turned ti face him.

"Well, you have my full attention now." I said and he laughed.

"Olodo." Somadina said and I stretched my fingers at him in the normal waka gesture.

On cue, my alarm rang signaling the time for my drug. I rose my index to Somadina, indicating he should give me a minute and he nodded. I went to the small fridge by a corner of my room and brought out a bottle of water before taking my tablets. I threw them into my mouth and downed the water in a gulp.

"You good?" Somadina asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I nodded, using the back of my palm to clean my mouth.

"I've been meaning to ask though. What changed? You are looking more refreshed than before. Have you been getting enough sleep? What happened?" Soma asked and I chuckled, the events of the weekend coming back to me.

"Elyon happened." I told him and that peeked his interest. He quickly sat up.

"Ol boy. Tell me something." He said and I started to gist him of the events of the weekend and his eyes widened at every word.

"Somadina, no one has been able to put me to sleep in years and she did it in one night! Forget, she's an Angel. Ever since then, I've been able to sleep on my own. All I need to do is think about her and I'm gone...into a sweet peaceful sleep." I said and Somadina laughed.

"I'm shocked! Wow. Have you told your parents?" He asked me and I shook my head. I didn't want my parents knowing anything yet, and I made Skye promise never to say a word to them.

"I am not going to tell them yet. I wake up before them most times so when they meet me awake, they are still of the notion that I didn't sleep. So, I'm just leaving it as that." I shrugged.

"You should tell them. They deserve to know that their son is already doing okay. They deserve that much." Somadina said and I nodded.

"I know but they will feel indebted to Elyon and that's the last I want. That's probably the last thing Elyon wants as well. I'll tell them but not now." I said and Somadina nodded in understanding.

"Meanwhile," Somadina's expression became teasing and I rolled my eyes because I already knew where he was going.

"I've been noticing the way you keep stealing glances at her every five minutes at school. Are you going to ask her out soon?" He asked and I chuckled humorlessly, my mind going to Mateo's threat.

"No, I can't do that. At least not yet." I replied and he frowned.

"Why not? What's holding you back? She probably likes you back too." He said but I shook my head.

"For one, I cannot gamble on just a probability and two, shit just got more complicated." I replied and he rose his eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Mateo likes her." I replied and Somadina's face remained impassive.

"So? Old news? Is that it?" He looked unimpressed with my reply.

"...and he is going to ask her out." I told him and I saw his eyes slightly widen.

"Who told you?" He asked.

"He did...in a not so friendly way, actually. He sorta threatened me. Told me that he was going to ask her out and I would sit back and watch them date." I relayed and Somadina's eyes widened.

"Ewelewe!" He exclaimed and I just had to chuckle with his use of words. "You are right. Shit just got complicated. Has he asked her out yet?" He asked and I shrugged.

"I have no clue, but there is a possibility because they have been spending most of their times together in the music room. I don't want to assume though." I brushed off the jealousy I was feeling. Somadina saw right through that anyway. Like he has always done.

"How do you feel about this?" He asked and I chuckled humorlessly, trying not to loose my shit.

Be cool.

"How am I supposed to feel?! If she says yes then I honestly don't know what I'd do because knowing Mateo, he wouldn't hesitate to rub it in my face." I snapped at Soma and he exhaled.

"Calm down. Look, this is the more reason why you should tell her your feelings." Soma repeated and I shook my head. I couldn't do that to Elyon.

"I can't do that to her. I can't put her in a tight corner of choosing between two friends. At the end of the day, she would have to let both of us down." I replied and he rolled his eyes in response.

"That would even be better. Both of you loose. It's a win-win situation." He shrugged and It was my turn to roll my eyes.

"That is a pretty dumb idea, Somadina and that's a surprise because you are a very smart person. Everything would be awkward between the three of us. I don't want that. I can still pretend that everything is okay, if she says yes to Mateo. I'm used to pretending everything is okay. It's a cake work. He can have her if he wants to. I'm supposed to be a supportive friend." My shoulder unconsciously slumped as my mind gave up.

At least we would still be friends.

"Jamal, you like doing this." Somadina said, disappointment written over his face. I scrunched up my face in confusion.

"Do what?" I asked him.

"This. Giving up! Especially for Mateo. Maybe it's not in my place to talk because I joined your group late, but I am not blind. He is your friend but are you really his friend?" He looked at me and I looked away, getting an hint of what he was talking about.

"That was a long time ago. Please don't bring it up." I told him and Soma sighed.

"Jamal, you are hurting yourself. This is not about Elyon alone, this is about you. For the first time, you have found someone that is giving you what you have craved for years. Peace. And you are just going to throw it away, for someone who doesn't have your back?" Somadina asked rhetorically.

"Elyon and I won't be apart. We will still be friends. I can live with that." I looked away, not knowing what else to say. Soma sighed again, frustrated.

"I really hope you know what you are doing." Somadina said.

I hope I know what I'm doing, too.

Faizal, if this doesn't work, you are dead.

The conversation soon changed to Somadina and Vanessa. While helping him to practice how he would ask her out I couldn't help my thoughts wander away.

What if she says yes?

*****

Third Person POV

It was a new school day and inter house sports practice had already started, which meant half day of class and half day of training. Jamal, Elyon and Vanessa were in green house. Skye, Mateo and Somadina were in blue house but everyone used the field. Each house had one thing or the other doing and no one was ideal.

Red house was practicing all track events. Blue house was practicing some field events like javelin, discus and shotput. Green house was warming up to practice some of the field events as well like long jump and high jump, the set up was pretty close to where Blue house was learning their own field event. Yellow house students were running laps.

"How does this work again?" Elyon asked Jamal and Vanessa who were standing by her side.

She was dressed in an army green tank top and black spandex. Every girl wore either spandex, joggers or leggings. No jeans for sports. Guys on the other hand were either in armless or sleeved jerseys and sport shorts. Everyone had trainers on. It was mandatory.

"It's pretty simple. This is still rehearsal and heat is coming up in two weeks which means we also have to work hard and work fast. " Vanessa started.

"Each house would be competing against each other definitely, except for football and basketball ball. We are facing blue house first while red is facing yellow. The winner of each match would face each other for the finals." Jamal concluded the explanation, watching her as she cracked her knuckles and chuckled silently. It was pretty cute when she tried to act tough.

"That sounds easy except it's pretty hard. I'm so thankful I'm only choosing one track and field." Elyon chipped in and Vanessa giggled, pushing the glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"If only it was that easy. Coach Adesola is the one that will choose. If he sees potential on you, you are going to be doing more than one track and one field event." Vanessa told her and she widened her eyes.

"Are you serious?" She groaned and Vanessa laughed again while Jamal nudged her.

"It's very fun. Besides, you will be putting those beautiful long legs of yours to good use!" He winked at her and she gasped dramatically.

"I should have worn joggers." She muttered to herself but he heard anyway.

"Hell no. Why would you want to cover those beauties." His eyes darted to her legs slowly and back up to meet her widened eyes.

"You are such a pervert, Inioluwa." She nudged him and he laughed, loving the way his middle name rolled off her tongue ever so sweetly.

"So you have moved to middle name basis, nice one. Wehdon ma. I see you." Vanessa teased and winked at Elyon who flushed pink as the trio moved to the long jump pit.

Just about thirty feet away from them, Mateo stared at the trio, but mostly at Elyon and Jamal as they walked to the long jump pit. His grip tightened on the Javelin and his knuckles almost turned white as he kept staring at them with nothing but contempt. He was pissed, very very angry.

"What did the innocent javelin do to you that you are having a death grip in it." A voice shut through his reverie and he turned around to see a smirking Skye. He looked at his hand on the javelin and loosened his grip, throwing it to the floor.

"Sorry, I was a bit lost in thought there. Is coach calling me?" Mateo asked.

"Not at all. The other guys are still throwing. I was going to run few laps with the girls when I saw you staring into space. What were you thinking about?" She shifted her weight on one  leg, pairing at Mateo through her emerald green eyes. He shook his head and flashed her a fake smile.

"Nothing, it's just family issues." He half lied. He was having family issues. Coupled with Jamal trying to take Elyon from him, he was pretty a wreck. Skye's expression turned sympathetic is a second.

"How is everything going. Is it getting any better." She asked and he shook his head again as flashes of what happened at home this morning came rushing back.

"It's getting worse. Mum came back home drunk again. Dad tried to talk to her again but she shoved him and threatened to..." Mateo trailed off and Skye placed her hand on his shoulder. "I couldn't watch, I just had to leave the house. She wants a divorce but dad isn't giving it to her." He quickly added.

"I'm so sorry. Maybe you should take a break. Go to class or the music studio and take a breather." Skye suggested but he shook his head again.

"No. I'm fine." He smiled again and she cocked her head sideways, unsure. Mateo noticed this and smiled again. "Don't worry, I'm fine, really. Go on and run your laps. You need to keep fit." He smirked at her she rolled her eyes.

"I'm always fit." She stated before she began to jog away, throwing him a smile.

Mateo smiled at her back but when she was out of view, his smile left his face as he looked back at where green house was training. Elyon had just finished taking a pretty good jump and her house mates were cheering her. He saw Jamal help her up from the sawdust and helped her dust the sawdust from her curly messy bun and her dress before they both laughed at something Jamal said. He felt his blood boil.

He found one good thing in his life and he wasn't ready to let that thing go.

No, not without a fight.

****

Elyon's POV

After practice, the bell rang for close of school and we all dispersed to our various classes. Most of the guys had to hit the locker room showers because they trained more. I told Venus to wait with Skye while I went to get my stuffs from the class. At this point, school was almost empty so I was the only one in class. I began to stuff my things into my bag.

"Elyon." I looked up to see Mateo standing by the door and I inwardly groaned. I've been avoiding him since he asked me out and when he chats me up, I tried my best to keep it casual. Now, he had me cornered, sort of anyway.

"Hey, I thought you'd have gone home." I said casually, my voice not giving anything away at all. He shrugged and came into the class fully.

"I had to look for a way to talk to you. You have been avoiding me since last week." He stated matter of factly, his hands jabbed into his sport shorts pocket. I tried not to look fazed by his revelation.

"Avoiding you? Of course not. I've just been extra busy. We had house meetings twice last week." That wasn't totally wrong. Immediately we were distributed into our various houses, coach Adesola called for an emergency house meeting.

"And you were also busy with Jamal." There was something about his tone that made it seem like he was sneering, but I overlooked it as my imagination.

"Yeah, and that too." I smiled unconsciously. Mateo nodded and smiled.

"It's fine." He moved closer to me and I unconsciously moved back. If he noticed that, he didn't seem fazed. "You know we need to talk. You haven't replied my request." He said, his voice coming out as soothing.

"Ohhh, right." I chuckled nervously. I exhaled, getting ready to tell him.

"So, what's your answer? Are you going to go out with me?" He asked, positivity laced in his voice, making me feel extra bad for what I was about to do. But it had to be done.

It's now or never.

"Mateo, you are a really amazing guy and girls would definitely want to go out with you. But I'm not that girl..." I trailed off, watching as his smile turned upside down. "I'm sorry, but I don't like you...like that." I added quietly.

An awkward silence followed my statement and the air was basically pregnant with it. Mateo just started ahead, with a blank expression on his face, I almost thought he had turned to a statue but he looked at me. Something flashed in his eyes but I couldn't place it.

"Is there someone else?" Was his simple question and I frowned in confusion.

Ehn?

"What do you mean?" I asked and he rolled his eyes.

"That's a pretty straightforward question, Elyon. Is there another guy?" His tone was sharp and I didn't like it one bit but I didn't show.

"No, Mateo. There is no guy. I didn't say no to you because of anyone. I said no to you because apart from me not having feelings for you, I'm not ready for any relationship." I replied and he looked at me. I sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry. You are my friend and I don't want to loose you or your friendship. I'm also sorry if I led you on in anyway, it wasn't my intention. I hope we can still be friends." I was playing with my fingers. This was too weird and awkward for me.

"Hey, it's fine. No pressure." I looked at him, surprised. He was smiling like nothing happened.

"Really?" I asked and he nodded, flashing me a grin.

"Of course. Na smallz. You are still my friend, no matter what." He said and I sighed in relief.

"Oh thank God. I was pretty worried you won't talk to me again." I chuckled and he laughed. On cue, Skye came in.

"Jamal is done, the driver is here." She told me, waving at Mateo.

"Okay, that's me." I told Mateo who nodded. I bade him good bye and followed Skye out.

"How did it go?" She quickly asked me and I smiled.

"Better than I expected." I grinned.

A/N

Another update!

I'm back guys!

Okay I don't know for sure if I'm back yet. I've submitted my project sha, and all my assignments and I'm very free, for now sha. My lecturers are mean people.

Jamal is giving up. Somadina said he always does that for Mateo. What does that even mean?

So Mateo seems to have a back story for why his acting the way he is acting.

Elyon is pretty oblivious on this one.

What do you think will happen next. Find out in the next chapter, coming soon (I hope).

Don't forget to comment, vote and share like you always do.

I love y'all. ❤️❤️