Preordained #ProjectNigeria

30- Olfactory Stimulation

Song-- Starving by Hailee Steinfeld Grey & Zedd.

Nwanyieze's POV~

He effortlessly grabs my attention, and I wonder how he does it. I go through my days, thinking of him and smiling when I remember his jokes.

Someone actually enjoys my company without sex, I marvel.

When he calls, our conversations are long, and I always ask him if he has a contract with Airtel. It makes him laugh, and then he makes me laugh, too.

You're playing with fire, Nwa, my beloved inner voice tells me a million times. This is just temporary, and when your secret is out, he will hate you so much that you'll probably be forced to disappear. Or jump into the lagoon.

Maduka surprises me by showing up in front of my department one hot afternoon. I have just finished my last lecture for the day, the heat is unbearable, and I am currently having my monthly 'visitor', with the cramps coming and going. I know he hadn't been able to reach me via calls for two days.

At first, I tell myself it has to be someone else, but it's Maduka, leaning against his car and still taller than most. I hide behind a pillar and watch him, feeling pleased despite my surprise. His eyes are on the crowd of students leaving the building before me, narrowed in concentration, trying to pick me out. Girls give him stares, even greet him as they saunter by, and he nods in reply but doesn't take his eyes off his task.

Why wouldn't they stare and approach him? He is dressed in work clothes, but his tie is gone and his shirt is a pale pink colour, it's top buttons undone to let air in, and sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing his hairy forearms. His trousers are dark, still retaining their lines. I look at his feet and hold back my laughter. Maduka has swapped his leather shoes for a pair of trainers but that doesn't affect his looks.

He scratches his head in frustration, pulls out his cell phone, and begins to make a call.

My phone, that Nokia torchlight I had bought to replace my iPhone, had fallen into water two days ago, courtesy of Adanna. She had sniffed and started to cry when I'd heaved a deep sigh of annoyance after picking my phone out of the bucket of water, and my anger had melted away immediately because I couldn't stand the sight of tears falling out of her big, brown eyes. She'd apologised sincerely, and all was forgiven.

I step out from my hiding place and descend the stairs, pretending that I haven't seen him. Out of the corner of my eye, I see him push himself off the car and cut through the crowd, and in a few seconds his hand closes around my wrist.

I can't help the grin that spreads itself across my face.

"Why do women like shakara?" he teases me knowingly.

"What if I didn't really see you?" I reply.

He leads me back to his car, laughing.

"I was worried about you," Maduka tells me. "What happened?"

I tell him about Adanna's recent shot at ruining my life and he shakes his head.

"Children are the most angelic little beings, aren't they?"

"Tell me about it," I reply. "Anyway, you've seen me and I'm doing fine." I fold my arms and look up at him, my smile unable to leave my face. "Won't you be going home now with peace of mind?"

He jams his fingers into his pockets and looks up at the sky. Then he rocks back on his heels. "Well, I'm here to take you out, if that's okay with you. Just say the place, and we'll go there. But if you'd rather not..."