𝐴 𝑇ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑤 𝐴𝑡 𝐿𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝐴𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛

𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑠𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛

'sometimes things don't go as we want, but that is not enough reason to run'.
~anonymous.

𝑇𝑤𝑜 𝑦𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑠 𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟....

Rahma Nda breathed in the fresh Nigerian air deeply, dreading having to go out to the scorching sun she was under minutes before. After a long and exhausting flight, she wanted nothing more than a long hot bath and a comfortable bed to sleep in.

She sat on a chair in the crowded airport and pulled out her phone and dialed her brother's number.

"Ya sudais".

"So, first thing. I can't come to get you". He told her and she felt annoyed as she didn't think she could wait a minute longer in the airport.

"Why?". She asked calmly.

"Something came up but dawud was in the area so he's getting you". Dawud? Dawud? Dawud! No way!.

"What? Why? I'll just order an Uber".

"Don't be silly Rahma, he's almost there I'm sure".

"I'll call ya hameeda, her house is close".

"Hameeda is twenty minutes away and you'll just stress her. I'm sending you his number so you two can communicate".

"Ya sudais..". She about to protest again but he hung up and she scowled.

Seconds later, her phone pinged with a message from ya sudais. Many years ago if her phone pinged and she saw Dawud's number, she'd have been the happiest girl the world but things were different now.

She was about to tap on his number when her phone rang and she recognised his last four digits so she picked the call.

"Hello?". She called.

"Where are you?". Arrogant as always, she thought.

"I'm..".

"I see you". He hung up and she frowned and stared at her screen with irritation.

Surely, a minute later, she saw him walking towards her in the famous clothes she knew him with -- his uniform. She stood up and held her two large boxes and started pulling it towards him even though she had another smaller box.

When he reached her, he took the two boxes from her and she got the small one and followed him to his car. He had changed from the g-wagon to a sport Audi. He put her things in the car and then they settled in the car.

She contemplated whether to greet him or not but she didn't want a scolding from her brother, so ignoring the fact that the scent of his car was threatening to run her mad. She greeted him.

As she expected he didn't reply or even nod, he simply drove out and even though she regretted, she couldn't take the greeting back.

She felt the urge to roll down the window as he was suffocating her, though he did nothing. After minutes of trying to calm her breathing and unable to do so, not even understanding what was going on, she rolled down her window and with that she got him to glance at her. He didn't say anything, simply turned off the AC and rolled down his side too.

She resigned herself to watching the greenery and building and the whole Abuja vibe she missed, it was getting dark and as most people were trying to make it home, it was busier on roads but luckily they did not get stuck in traffic, she thought she'd cry if they did. She watched him take all the wrong turns to her house but decided to say nothing as the roads had probably changed when she left.

Minutes later, he stopped in front of a restaurant and her brows raised, 'was he considering the fact that she hadn't eaten?'. But he didn't tell her to get down, only he did and she thought he was getting take outs but minutes later, she realised she had thought good of him too soon, he returned with a lady trailing behind him and she would have thought they weren't together but the way the girl walked close to him gave it away.