Little Do You Know

18. THE SPACE BETWEEN US

The night had been long, too long. Sleep had refused to come, so I had spent most of it staring at the sky, watching the stars blink lazily in the darkness. I had tried counting them, tracing invisible lines to form strange constellations, anything to keep my mind from thinking about Enny,  Alex, or Kay's loud mouth.

But no matter how hard I tried, their voices still echoed in my head.

I sighed, rubbing my tired eyes as I finally dragged myself off the cold balcony floor. My back ached from leaning against the railing for too long, and my legs felt stiff, but I barely noticed. All I wanted was to get into my bed, close my eyes, and disappear for a few hours.
...
It was 5am already and luckily for for me I saw a bike after strolling for a bit.
I didn't even bother bargaining

"Mama your money na 2000 naira o, everywhere still dark."

"No problem, make we dey go." I replied.

My brother was in the sitting room when I entered. He had forgot to lock the gate and that was how I was able to enter.

"Egbon, I'm home o"

"Welco.." he muttered, as he opened one eye and then closed it.

"I wonder why you're sleeping here today."

I made way to my room.
The moment I lay down, my body sank into the mattress like it had been waiting for me all my life. I barely pulled my blanket over myself before sleep took over.

*******************************************
The sound of my phone buzzing nonstop yanked me out of sleep.

I groaned, rolling over and reaching for it with my eyes still half-closed. 13 missed calls. I squinted at the screen—most of them from Enny. My heart clenched, but I ignored it.

Then I saw it.

1 unread message.

I hesitated, staring at her name. I didn't want to open it, but my fingers had a mind of their own.

Jummy, I know I don't deserve your forgiveness, but please read this till the end.

The moment I saw the first line, I sat up. My chest tightened as my eyes ran over the words, my stomach twisting the deeper I read.

I messed up. Badly. And I've been scared to admit it. The truth is, I liked Alex too. I've liked him since secondary school, but I was too much of a coward to tell you. And instead of being honest, I also did something else I'm not proud of. I lied to him about you. I told him you said he was just a project partner and nothing more because he actually started asking about you. I even said things that weren't true just to push him away from you. It was selfish. It was wrong. And I regret it every single day.
I didn't do it because I hated you. I did it because I was scared. I felt like if Alex chose you, I'd lose both of you. And I was too much of a coward to face the truth. I see that now.
I know you probably hate me, and I don't blame you. If I were in your shoes, I wouldn't forgive me either. But please, Jummy, I miss you. I miss our friendship. I don't want to lose you forever.
If you never want to speak to me again, I understand. But at least know that I'm sorry. And if you ever decide to give me a chance to fix this, I'll do anything to make it up to you. Hoping for your response. I love you💗

- Enny

So Alex had actually asked about me. But Enny... my best friend... had lied to him. She had made him believe I didn't like him one bir. She made him think I actually said he's just a project partner to me!