Entranced 18+

Twenty One

They were late to dinner but their hosts didn't seem to mind, Chike had greeted them warmly, exchanging slaps on the back with his friend and greeted her with a handshake and smile. They'd gone on about the wine Zubby brought and Chike ribbed him for bringing alcohol to the home of a pregnant woman.

Ijeoma got the same warm greeting at the table too. The women hugged her and gushed on about how pretty her outfit was and Kachi smiled at her from across the table. Zubby pulled out her chair and she sat, directing a small smile his way. He pulled out the chair beside hers to seat when Kachi started laughing. The table turned to him.

"What's that? Did you get into a fight with an animal?" he finally managed to ask.

Zubby looked down at himself , his brows slightly raised. "What are you talking about?"

"There are bites on your arm and the back of your palm," Aria supplied, having the same vantage point as her man. "What bit you?"

Ijeoma was grateful for her dark skin at that moment. If she was as light as Zubby and Ada, everyone would see the embarrassment that washed over her as she thought about the bites she'd given him; one from the day before when he'd placed his palm over her mouth and the other from today. The latter looked redder and she could see she had broken the skin even. Across the table, her eyes met Aria's and the woman began to giggle, drawing more attention to her.

"Did you bite him?" Ada asked her, plating food and passing it to her man. Aria did the same, placing a plate of Jollof rice in front of Kachi.

Ijeoma cleared her throat, refusing to meet any of their inquiring gazes. Zubby set a plate in front of her, smiling as he began serving himself.

"I'm sure he deserved it," Kachi said.

"What are you doing to the poor girl to make her bite you?" Chike teased.

"Can we not talk about it?" Ijeoma finally spoke. At this point she wanted to get under the table and hide. This was the most embarrassing thing she'd ever experienced.

"Whatever it is he did, if he does it again, kick him in the nuts," Ada advised. "It would teach him to do better."

The three men at the table winced, their gazes turned down as if checking that their nuts were safe.

"Let's just eat please," Chike pleaded.

Conversation continued, thankfully away from the topic of Zubby and the bites, and Ijeoma found herself listening and laughing along with them. Not much questions were directed at her, as if they knew she didn't like to talk about herself, but the few times she spoke, they all listened to her, smiling and chatting along.

Was this what having a community was like? She had not had lots of dinners with Amara. By the time her sister came home, it was the early hours of the morning when she was in bed, and when Ijeoma woke up for breakfast, Amara would be in bed. The few times she was off work, she spent it with her friends and running errands. At that time, Ijeoma had no problems with that. They had lunch together on those rare free days and her sister made sure every need of hers was met. She was just grateful to have a roof over her head and not have to go back to their parents in the village.

"Wine?" Zubby gently shook her thigh, pulling her back into the conversation. She mouthed an apology for zoning out and he smiled in response, filling her glass with the wine.

Ada and Aria were up, clearing the dishes and Chike was no longer at the table. "I'll help," she announced, standing up to clear her plates and Zubby's. She followed the women into the kitchen where Chike was at the sink, clearing leftovers into a plastic bag. She set the plates beside him, then used a spoon to scrape the leftovers into the bag.