Kamsi's lips parted a bit the moment her widened eyes fell on Chidiogo. She stared at her for a few seconds before blinking. At that same moment, she let go of Amarachi's hand, almost pushing it away as if it burned her.

She turned to Chidiogo afterwards, the firm smile on her face a contrast to her entire demeanor. She clasped her hands together, as it that would stop them from shaking, as she approached Chidiogo.

"H-h-hey..." She cleared her throat. Her next words came out rushed. "Mmachi I was just-"

"Chidiogo."

She blinked at Chidiogo-whose face remained deadpan-for a while before sighing. "Oh, it's you."

She glanced over at Amarachi, who was still sulking, before speaking again. "I was just telling Amara something. She seemed very upset when I met her here and... I just couldn't bear to see her like that."

She lowered her eyes for a second, her lips trembling. Unshed tears made her eyes shiny but they disappeared in a single blink. She sniffed before putting on a smile.

Chidiogo just stared at her; face straight, lips unmoving.

"But she's been like that a while." Kamsi glanced at Amarachi with wistful eyes. She stared at her for a while before turning back to Chidiogo as if just realizing that she was still standing there.

"What brings you here anyway? There's no prep today."

"I could ask you the same question."

"Oh... Yeah... I... My book. I came to get my book." A smile graced her face after her words.

"Where is it?"

Kamsi looked around as if realizing that nothing was in her hands. "Oh..." She face-palmed herself.

"Silly me, I was so distracted I forgot why I even came here. On my way here I saw Amara and the thing just"-she flipped her right hand to demonstrate-"flew right out of my head. Funny right?"

She chuckled afterwards, a short one which died out when she realized she was the only one laughing.

"Why don't we go back to the hostel?" she asked when she got uncomfortable with Chidiogo's stare.

"Let me first check on Amara."

Before Kamsi could reply, Chidiogo started heading in Amarachi's direction. Kamsi grabbed her hand just as she walked past her, her nails digging into her skin. Chidiogo winced. She tried to free herself from Kamsi's grip but Kamsi released her hand almost at the same moment.

"Oh my..." Kamsi's hands flew up to cover her mouth. "I'm soooo sorry. I didn't mean to... I-"

"It's alright," Chidiogo said, forcing a smile.

She turned again but Kamsi's voice stopped her this time.

"She isn't going to budge. Why don't you just leave her!?"

Chidiogo turned to face her with raised brows.

"Let's just go back to the hostel."

She tried to grab Chidiogo's hand again but Chidiogo stopped her.

"Give me a minute." The words escaped through her clenched teeth and tight smile as she removed Kamsi's hand from her wrist.

Kamsi returned the smile but she noticed the way the end of her lips twitched and the not-so subtle glare Kamsi gave her.

She ignored it and walked to the marble bench where Amarachi still hugged her knees while rocking herself.

Chidiogo touched Amarachi's arm in an attempt to get her attention but she flinched and scooted to the extreme edge of the bench, her dilated eyes not leaving Chidiogo for a second.

Chidiogo tried to go closer to her but she began screaming.

"Stay away from me! I said DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!"

Chidiogo took in her demeanor and decided not move any further.

"Okay." She raised her hands up as a sign of surrendering. "I won't come any closer."

Amarachi stared at her for a while. She didn't say a word, just sat and observed her. To prove that she didn't mean any harm, Chidiogo further scooted away from her.

She relaxed a bit afterwards, letting go of her knees.

"I just want to know what's wrong."

Her golden brown eyes remained fixed on Chidiogo. Her lips parted but Kamsi's voice filled the air.

"MMACHI!"

The suddenness of her voice forced Chidiogo to snap her head towards her direction. She looked around but didn't find Mmachi anywhere in sight. Waving it off as Kamsi's last resort to interrupt her discussion with Amarachi, she turned back to the brown skinned girl but something was different.

Amarachi had an indescribable emotion in her eyes, she narrowed them, her lips pressed tight against each other. Chidiogo could almost feel the burn from her stare.

She gulped but put on a smile.

"You can trust me."

She could already feel the effect of her overstretched smile but she kept it on, taking the chance to inch closer to the girl who just kept glaring at her.

"Why were you-"

Her statement got cut in her throat as a fist connected with her face. The impact sent her head flying in the opposite direction. It smashed against the marble slab, staining the white surface red on contact.

For a moment she felt numb, only aware of a distinct sharp sound ringing through her ears, before the pain spiked through her head. She couldn't tell what part of her face throbbed as the blood flowing from her forehead blurred her vision.

She swiped at her eyes in an attempt to get rid of the blood but it only worsened it causing her to wince as she jerked away her hand. She could see a vague vision of Kamsi who still stood where she did before.

She had a smile on her face as she watched Chidiogo. Chidiogo tried to blink to be sure she wasn't seeing wrong but her throbbing head didn't let her process anything.

From her peripheral vision, she could see Amarachi had withdrawn again and hugged her knees to chest while rocking herself. Her brain still lagged as she tried to get on her feet.

The sound only became louder and she tried not to think too much about it as she attempted to get on her feet again. This time, someone's voice came cutting through the sharp sound.

"What did you do to her?"

With much effort, she looked up, unable to place the voice or understand why the dreadful sound wouldn't stop.

"How many times have I warned you to STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM HER!?"

Through hazy vision, she could make out a brown skin which seemed to bask in the dying rays of sunshine. She tried to focus on the face but couldn't since her eyelids grew heavier by the second.

Kamsi had a dark skin but it was much darker than this one, ebony black in fact. Plus Kamsi had been standing a distance away and the voice did suggest it was a guy.

A guy. A guy. A guy!

The words replayed in her head as though placed in a loop. She felt the banging in her head once more when a name finally clicked.

Wale.

The name forced her to shoot up from her seat but she fell back the same moment, another wave of pain shooting through her butt as it collided with the marble chair.

"I... She..."

She found herself loosing breath from the two words she just said. It was hard to concentrate and keeping her eyes open felt like a challenge.

"The next time I see either of you anywhere near Amara, I'll make sure it'll be your last."

Chidiogo had given up on trying to keep her eyes open and she concentrated on steadying her breathing.

Did Wale not see her condition or was he just blind when it came to Amarachi?

The throbbing in her head didn't let her come up with an answer, neither did the retreating footsteps of those who were supposed to help her.

Again she tried to help herself, forcing her eyes open as she tried standing with the aid of the marble chair. She felt arms wrap around her at that moment and she tried to make out a name for the face which appeared in front of her.

She hadn't seen it before, she was certain. She stared at the little she could make out of the almond eyes, trying her best to not give in to dizziness. But that didn't stop her from eventually resigning, letting her eyes draw together and leaving her fate in the hands of the stranger.

A/N: OKAY, I THINK I MIGHT HAVE DRAGGED THIS STORY A LITTLE BIT TOO MUCH. I'VE HONESTLY TRIED EVERYTHING TO GET IT TO END BUT THE STORY JUST DOESN'T WANT TO END. I EVEN CONSIDERED CUTTING OUT SCENES BUT I DON'T WANT TO END UP WITH A BOTCHED WORK. HOPEFULLY THE STORY DOESN'T GO PAST FORTY CHAPTERS.

NOW BACK TO WHY I ACTUALLY DECIDED TO WRITE AN AUTHOR'S NOTE TODAY. I'VE BEEN REALLY BUSY WITH SCHOOL AND SO I'LL APOLOGIZE ON TIME FOR LATE UPDATES BUT I'LL TRY TO UPDATE AS MUCH AS I CAN ON EITHER SATURDAYS OR SUNDAYS OR MONDAYS SINCE THAT'S WHEN I GET FREE TIME.

I KNOW I HAVE SPENT PROBABLY THE MOST TIME ON WRITING THIS BOOK AND ALTHOUGH I PROMISED MYSELF I'D FINISH IT LAST YEAR, I HOPE IT DOESN'T GO PAST THREE MONTHS FROM NOW.

ANOTHER THING I WANT TO MENTION IS THAT THIS CHAPTER ISN'T EDITED. I DON'T EVEN KNOW HOW I MANAGED TO SCRAPE IT TOGETHER BUT I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH TIKE TO EDIT IT, PLEASE BEAR WITH ME.

I THINK THAT'S JUST ABOUT IT. PLEASE DO ME A FAVOUR AND HIT THE STAR BUTTON🤗.

RANDOM QUESTION, WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE CHARACTER?