Against All Odds (Completed)

Chapter One

A soft knock came at the door and Ellie jumped happily from the sofa.
Straightening the blue tank against her slender body, she quickly shoved her feet inside the pink fluffy bedroom slippers by the sofa and rushed to the door. With her hand on the knob, she moistened her lips with a swift lick and finally opened the door.

"Baby!" She called with a wide smile. Her eyes took in the light-skinned man by the door, dressed in a black T-shirt and blue denim jeans. He was tall and muscular; his biceps and chest straining against his shirt.

"You're here. Finally." She grinned.

He nodded and smiled briefly.

"Come in." Ellie opened the door wider and stepped aside. Closing the door behind them, she led him to the brown three-in-one sofa. The only chair in the small room.

"Have a seat. I'll serve your meal soon. I made jollof, your favourite."

"Ellie," he called after her before she could make her way into the kitchen. "We need to talk."

She looked over her shoulder at him and frowned. He'd said that in his text message when he'd told her he was coming over. Was everything alright?

She turned to him and nodded. "Of course, but at least eat something first. I don't want your meal getting any colder. You can tell me what's on your mind later."

"Just listen to me." He said in a stern voice, "I didn't come to eat."

Ellie was taken aback at the tone of his voice. She flinched. "Are you okay?"

"I don't think I want to continue with this relationship." He blurted out and with his jaws clenched, a grim look appeared on his face.

"What?" She looked at him and her heart skipped a beat. "What is that supposed to mean, Michael?" She held her waist, standing akimbo.

When he said nothing, she frowned and lifted up her chin towards him.

Michael sighed and narrowed his eyes, "It means, we should break up. I don't think our relationship is working." He refused to look at her as he said those words.

Ellie was silent for a while, she just stared at him and suddenly tossed her head back in laughter, "You're kidding, right?"

"No. I'm not." Michael looked at her and answered, his eyes boring into hers.

"Really?" She asked, her voice almost a whisper. This had to be a prank! She thought, squinting her eyes at him.

"I think it's best for both of us, Ellie. I'm not feeling us."

"Why? What happened? Just yesterday you told me you loved me!" She asked, trying hard not to let the tears welling up in her eyes flow.

Michael took a step closer and reached for both her hands. "I'm sorry, Ellie, but I'm not sure I'm in love with you. I'm surprised you can't see that this relationship is not working. There's no chemistry."

She gulped and glared at him. "There's no chemistry? I thought you said I was your dream girl. You said I complete you! And now you want to break up? We've barely past a month, Michael! Our relationship is still young!"

"And that's a good thing, Ellie." He said softly, "At least we can back out with neither of us getting hurt. It's better than staying longer when things are obviously not working."

"But I love you, Michael! Did I do something wrong? Look, I can change. Just tell me what I did and I'll fix it. Let's not part like this, please..." Her voice softened on her last statement, and this time she couldn't help but let the tears roll down her cheeks.