Zara || A Nigerian Lesbian

𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚠𝚘

𝚉𝙰𝚁𝙰
━━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━━

The whole day I was busy listening to my mother bicker about how I was too old to be single - at twenty-five.

My single life was all panic attacks and crushing loneliness at first because it made me feel a little ashamed, failed, and rejected. It felt as if society and my mother had labeled me defective. That made me throw myself into the arms of so many men - not knowing the difference between lust and love.

Instead of jumping from one man to another, hoping to find love - I needed time to breathe. Time was what I needed to learn, how to rise from such a challenge and trust myself. It was something I needed to grow in confidence and grow in psychological maturity. But no one was going to understand me because Nigerian society had already depicted how one should live life. I let my mind swirl in thoughts of fantasy while waiting for our guests.

"They are here, o!" My mother screamed one second later. Rushing into where I sat with my glass of wine, her hands went straight to her waist. "Is this how you are going to dress?"

I looked at my attire and saw no issues with it. "Mummy, it's just jeans and a t-shirt."

"That's the problem! It's just jeans and a t-shirt. You should have worn something more se... What do you children of these days call it?"

Laughter was all that came out of my lips. "Mummy, sexy. Stop acting like you didn't go to school. You don't want to embarrass yourself in front of The Wellington's," I said, winking at her.

She scoffed at me, as usual, and walked to greet the guests at the door.

When he walked in, I didn't know what to expect. Some people wore a smile, but this guy was a smile. Everything about him was a soft and understated joy, especially when he greeted my mother.

Then I lost it. The young lady who was behind him caught my attention. She had a kind of charming beauty, perhaps because she was so disarmingly unaware of her beauty. Her black skin was flawless. I doubt she used those face masks or expensive products I used to enhance my face from persistent acne. I suspected that really wasn't her mode of operation.

She was so simple, and when she smiled, I couldn't help but smile, along too. What's wrong with you Zara, she's a woman, not a man.

"Zara, won't you stand up and welcome your guests?" My mother questions through her clenched teeth, plastered with a pretentious smile.

That was when I realized that I was still sitting down, smiling sheepishly. "Good evening, guys. It's nice to have you here."

"Glad to be here, Zara," the man uttered.

The lady behind him kept smiling but didn't say a word. That intrigued me the more, which made me want to hear her speak badly - or even say my name.

My mother nudged me, clearing her throat. "Won't you go change?"

Not here. "Mummy, not now. Let's all have a seat."

The young lady sat beside the man on the sofa, across from me. She didn't bother to look at me anymore. Instead, she was busy with her phone.

"So Zara, your mum tells me you own a tech company. How come I haven't heard of it?" The man asked, unbuttoning his suit.

Who was this one? Coming into my house asking unwarranted questions, and this was the man my mother wanted me to throw at me. "What's your name again?"

The young lady began to chuckle before she let out a few words. "Don't mind my brother. He tends to be a jerk. My name is Nnenna, but you can call me Nena, though. And this big dude is called David."

She finally spoke. When my mother mentioned The Wellington's, I assumed it would be their parents walking in. Obviously, to talk about how their son and I made a good match. I had never met the kids before it was the first time. "Nice to meet you guys. I own Zartech, and even though we just came into play three years ago, I believe we are doing so well."

David scooted forward, putting down his glass of wine and staring at me like I had laid a golden egg. "Wait, you mean to tell me you are the tech guru behind Zartech. You are the one all gurus have been talking about in town. My guys have to hear this."

With that, the young man immediately got on his phone and began to type helplessly. He wasn't my focus. She was. "So, Nena, what do you do?"

"I'm rounding up my studies at Georgia State University in the US. Plan to get into the tech business too."

Her dark hair framed a heart-shaped face filled with laughter and expressive eyes that were overshadowed by a dazed look. Her voice was low and echoed around the room. Her cheekbones sat high on her face, and her lips were curved, with a smile that sent people running and screaming. All that because of what she said? My inner being asked me.

Before I could respond to her, my mother pulled me close to her and whispered in my ear, "You should be talking to the young man, not his sister. Try and make this work, please."

I shook my head in disbelief. My mother wasn't going to give up, was she. "So David," I stated, looking at my mother and looking back at him. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Jesu, Zara Ebitemi!" My mother exclaimed quietly. "You don't have to throw yourself at him."

I was confused because I knew that she wanted me to have a conversation with him, and I was trying to have one.

"Don't mind my mother. So do you have a girlfriend?"

"You mean girlfriends?" His sister interjected.

In sync, we both began to laugh. Our laughter did not softly build-up but exploded just as good as a TNT. The look on his face said otherwise.

We spent the evening discussing more of his conquests. Thanks to Nena, who did her best to rip her brother apart. He enjoyed the conversation, but not so much Mum - she had to leave us halfway so she could make dinner for Dad.

It was fun watching her talk and smile. Her lips, it was pale pink, that struck a chord in my memory of a rosebud. The top lip was thinner but not extremely thin. Even though it had a natural cupid's bow - the underside one was larger and plusher.

"Zara." I heard David say, snapping his fingers.

"Oh yeah. That was so intense," I responded, not knowing what we were even talking about nor laughing.

"Were you even listening," he laughed. "Anyway, we have to leave. I am so glad we got to meet you."

I was glad to meet her, not you. "Same here. Hope we can hang out soon."

It seemed Nena was trying to search for something in her bag, only for her to get out a card. "Here's my brother's business card. You can call him whenever you want. Don't know why he doesn't know how to sense when a lady is giving him a hint."

Girl, you are the one I am hinting at, my mind screamed.

"Oh, I wrote my number behind. You can reach out too, and maybe we can go hang out at the mall or do some shopping..."

"Or watch movies at home," I blurted out. Zara! "I am more of an indoor person."

They both laughed as we walked out to the driveway, into their car. Waving them goodbye, I turned the card to see her number - it made me feel some type of way. The way I have always wanted to feel in my heart.

What was wrong with me?