Feel

Chapter 4

No one

He was rich. He built himself from the ground up. Started at the ripe age of 18. Then, he was a year into school. The University of  North Carolina at Pembroke; that explained his slight American accent. But it didn't change the fact that he was a Yoruba boy to the bone. Majoring in both Biology and Chemistry came easy to him. Graduating with first class honours was nothing to him. He was an intelligent man and he knew it. He also had a thing for poetry. Most people had said"You're a Science student and you read Allen Poe. Omo nawa o" People like that amused him. They just would never get it.

He didn't come from a rich family. They were under the ' Middle class '  category. They didn't have too much and they didn't have too little. Growing up in Ikoyi and then the GRA was alright for him. As a child, he was observant. He watched the ongoings with a keen eye and a sharp mind. He couldn't afford to let his father down. The man had spent too much money on him and he had to repay him one way or the other. He loved his parents dearly. That was it. All love.

Now, as he laid in his plush king-size bed, in his home in Lekki, he couldn't help his smile as he thought of her. Flashes of her laughing embedded in his mind made him think long and hard about nothing in particular and then many things all at once. When he saw her that day, he felt something tug at his heart. He didn't know what it was about her but, he was willing to find out.

He wondered why she had been sitting alone. A beautiful lady such as herself couldn't possibly be alone. But, he knew not to judge based on appearance. A brown t-shirt and black flared pants. That's what she had worn that night. His upper teeth found his bottom lip as he remembered her lips. Lips he wanted to bite and then suck. As much as she tried to hide what she had, he saw it all. Those thighs would make him beg one day. He knew it. She was pretty tall too. Tall with those curves. She was perfect in her own way with that skin of hers and her nose. He didn't want to get started on those bewitching eyes.

He got up, his senses suddenly clouded with arousal. An arousal he wasn't familiar with. Arousal so thick that he had to sit down and calm himself. He didn't understand why he felt that way. He needed a bath.

Now seated in his Victorian styled living room, cool with the air-conditioning, he got up quickly as he remembered she had given him her number. He found the piece of paper tucked into the pocket of the pants he had worn earlier.

09040477004. He studied the numbers, appreciating her neat writing. Truthfully, his mother wasn't the only reason he was at the Uni. He was there with the hopes of seeing her. But, she saw him instead. He would've loved to stay with her, but work called. The way she gave him space made him chuckle. Like she was scared to draw closer. He huffed in amusement.

In the living room, he dialed her number, expensive iPhone in hand. He didn't know if she'd pick up or not because it was quite late. 10:50pm. It bothered him that he had forgotten to ask for her name. What could he say? She scrambled his thinking. He smiled. His smile grew wider when he heard her voice over the phone.

"Hello?"  She probably didn't know it was him. Her disinterest was clear from the tone of her voice. It amused him. Would she be like that if she knew it was him? He didn't know. But he hoped not.

"Hi" He made sure his voice was calm, cool even. That was him. He couldn't fake it.

"It's you" He didn't know if it was just him but, he could almost hear her smiling. He liked her voice. It was enticing. She didn't bother faking an accent and yet, the accent shone through.

"Yes,it's me. Did I call too late?"

"No. Not at all" He shut his eyes in relief.

"Good" His nod was firm. His smile was ever present.

"I never got your name" Her voice held a hint of desperation. Sweetie, I want to know yours too. His voice echoed in his head. But he had to do her back.

"That's because you never asked" He was always quick with comebacks. Witty comebacks. It was his thing. He laughed lightly at her reply.

"You never asked for my name either. So, we're both guilty"

"I'm Ovie (Oh-Vieh)" Ovie was a lovely name to him. It fitted her person.

"Well, Ovie, your name is lovely" He liked it.

"Thank you" He continued after her thanks.

"I'm Ladipo. Funny story. An old roommate of mine, Jeff, called me Poe because he had a hard time pronouncing my name and it just stuck. My family came to visit one day and they heard the nickname. Now, I'm Poe to everyone" Her laugh was loud and beautiful. He laughed too. Laughing with her felt right.

"Well, Poe, your name is lovely" He laughed again as he realised she had used his compliment.

"I might just call you Ladipoe" He considered it. It had a nice ring to it.

"I like the sound of that"

"Ladipoe it is then" They both shared a laugh.

"How did we forget to ask for each other's names?" She continued. We were probably lost in the little moments we shared. He answered in his head as he laid on the couch. He was attracted to her. It was instant. He decided to tease her a bit.

"I don't know. You tell me" He bit his lip, waiting for her response. It was exactly what he expected.

"I don't know either" He hummed in response.

He switched positions, listened attentively, laughed and huffed as they spoke into midnight. It wasn't his thing but it came easy with her. From her love for earthworms, to his love for milk, they were both interested in each other. He could tell. He found her interesting. He listened as she told him about a book she had read a month ago. Americanah. She was in the middle of her narrative when she yawned.

"Poe, are you sleepy?" She asked him. He smiled, understanding that she needed sleep. He wasn't sleepy. Sleep always came at the early hours for him. He liked the way she said "Poe" It made him warm inside. He smiled.

"Naaah. I'm a night owl. You go ahead and get some sleep. I just want to know something"

"What's that?" She asked. He wanted to see her on Saturday. He took a deep breath.

"Would you like it if I took you out? Whenever you're free" He had the perfect place in mind. He had gotten inspiration from the conversation.

"I would love that, Thank you. When?" He smiled big as he heard those words. The excitement was there in her sleepy response. He was thankful she didn't turn down his offer.

"Is Saturday okay for you?" He rolled over on his back.

"Saturday is perfect, Poe"

"I'll be there by 12:00pm sharp. Sleep well" He couldn't hide that he was happy. Ecstatic even.

"Goodnight. Pray before you sleep" This girl. The girl he liked had just told him to pray before he slept. Is she religious? He wondered. His interest grew.

"I will. Goodnight and Ovie?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you" He hung up smiling silly. He, Ladipo Eso had just spoken to a lady he barely knew till past midnight. He let out a breath as he got off the couch. He walked to his study with their conversation on replay in his head.