AIDA'S POV

Sundays were supposed to be peaceful. Mine wasn't I woke up with a heavy chest, the kind that felt like someone had placed a wet blanket on my lungs. Caleb left at dawn. He didn't make a sound. He  just left He  had already texted me twice before 10 a.m. Caleb: "Morning. We need to talk. Don't ignore me". As if talking was ever optional with him. I dropped my phone face-down and exhaled. The energy to deal with him simply wasn't in my body. So I stayed in bed longer than usual, staring at the ceiling, trying to convince myself that today would be better. It wasn't. I could feel the bed vibrating but I didn't want to move, I allowed it vibrate three more times, if he really wanted to talk he should come back. I lazied around some more, stood up, stretched every single bone in my body, nearly broke some but it was worth it. I grabbed my phone to put on some music before starting my day "JESUS", I screamed   OH MY GAWDD, this girl is going to kill mee Turns out it was Paula calling me and I ignored her "YOUR'E DEAD" her voice finally came through after dialing her 5 times I'm sure she did it on purpose . "Hi babes" i said nonchalantly  "Hi babes, ARE YOU SERIOUS, didn't you see my call" "Omo im really not in the mood for this thing right now" "What is it" I can sense her tone change, it's more calm now. "I don't know" "Is it your rubbish boyfriend " "Who else"? "Do I need to call people to beat him for you"? I laughed. "Nooo seriously, if you need me to gather boys for him, you know I will do it happily" she continued "One day i think I'll let you do it" i said, the thought of him being beat up actually made me smile some more "I'm coming over to your house let's discuss the whole thing" "Okay, bring food for me, I don't know what to cook" "I cooked beans, you want"? I love how she knows I hate beans yet asks me if I'd want to eat my worst food" "Girl NO"!! "I'm coming empty handed then" "Just come fast" I said, ending the call. Now I turned and looked at my scattered room and started arranging it  .............. By 1 p.m., Paula practically forced her way into my room. I don't know why she did that, she was never gentle with my things, my door, my plates , my house , basically anything I own were hers  Except Caleb. She despises him. After barging into my room She came straight to my bed. I lived in a one room, self-contained house in Lagos, it was basically what the poor masses could afford. Not saying I'm poor but it was what I could afford when I first moved here from Enugu and since then, it has been my home. "This Sunday cannot pass us by o" she shouted loudly, like as if I wasn't laying beside her on the bed  "What do you mean" I knew she'd want us to go out but I wasn't ready for it  "Let's go....." "NO"!!!!!! I shouted loudly before she could finish  "You're not even going to do this today" "I don't feel too good" that was a lie "Well we have to, you need to tell me every details about what happened yesterday" A creepy smile came on my face when I thought of Mike "Please stop whatever it is you're doing with your face" I burst out laughing "There's a new guy at work"  "Hmmmmmmmmm" "And he's cute" I was still smiling weirdly  "More reasons to go out". She went back and forth on reasons why I should go out while I was giving her reasons too why we shouldn't. In the end I gave up when she decided to pay for my food. You can actually kidnap me with a plate of rice . Well made rice. At around 3 we started preparing, till we finally left  By 4.00, we were seated at a small restaurant on the Island quiet, warm lighting, nothing too fancy. Paula was already talking, cracking jokes, trying to force laughter out of me. It worked... a little. I was able to smile. Even laugh. But my mind wandered. To work. To Caleb. To the way Mike had looked at me yesterday when he offered me a ride. I tried changing my mood by tell her about Mike, And it worked.  I was mid-story when she paused. "Wait-" she whispered, leaning closer to me. "Fine boys incoming." I turned slightly. My heart dropped. A tall handsome fair guy passed and behind him.... Mike  Fresh. Clean-shaven. Wearing a white shirt that did absolutely nothing to hide how good he looked. I instinctively sat up straighter, smoothing my dress, then immediately felt stupid for caring. He wasn't here for me. Obviously. People go on dates. Men go on dates. Especially men like him. Still, when his eyes lifted and found mine, my breath caught. Just for a second. And then I looked away. My pulse stuttered. What was he doing here? Paula's eyebrows shot up. "I know you and Caleb are having issues but the way you're looking at this guys, especially the dark one, do you want to eat him raw with your eyes?" I swallowed "That the Mike" I couldn't even hear my voice  "IT'S A LIE" she shouted it very loudly, drawing attention to our table. "Take it easy na, everytime you'll be acting like mgbeke" shame covered me like a shield I ignored her. Or tried to. But when the tall, pretty girls walked toward Mike and his friend's table, something twisted sharply in my chest. And when I felt Mike's gaze brush over me,  just for a second.  I pretended not to notice, pretended not to care. But the truth sat stubbornly in my throat: Why did seeing him with someone else bother me this much? I watched him sit down with Charles and two girls. One of them tall, dark, stunning clung to Charles like she'd already decided he was hers. The other sat directly across from Mike. Of course. "Babe, are you okay?" Paula asked, finally noticing my distraction. "I'm fine," I said quickly. Too quickly. She followed my line of sight and smirked. "So are we going to talk about your office trainee?" She glanced towards them " you didn't tell me he was this fine o, and I'm single too, maybe you could hook us up" she said very shamelessly. I shot her a look. "Paula." She held up her hands. "I'm just saying." I tried not to watch them. I really did. But my eyes betrayed me, how he listened more than he spoke, how he smiled politely, how his body leaned back instead of forward when the girl talked. He didn't look interested. Then I saw it , the girl's legs brushing his under the table, deliberate, confident. My stomach twisted. Ah. So this is how he is. When our eyes met again, I looked away first. Whatever this was, I told myself, it wasn't worth my peace.

CALEB

 If I don't beat that rubbish newbie today, I might live to regret it. The thought sat comfortably in my head, like a plan waiting for execution. I straightened my shirt in the mirror before leaving the house, adjusting my collar until it was perfect so I didn't look angry. I looked put together. Respectable. That mattered. Men like me didn't lose control in public. We managed situations. The drive to work was longer than usual. Traffic. Horns. Noise. Food sellers. Even the gala people had started running around this early morning. Everyone in Lagos moved like they had somewhere important to be. I was cramped up at the back sitting in between two fat women that smelled like they had not taken their bath in two days.... It was early morning for Christ sake, the least they could do was BATH, jaw tight,I started replaying the last couple of events that had happened in my head. My girl is laughing. Not with me. With him. That girl is beginning to lose respect for me. Abi is it because I don't have a car yet, and that small boy does? I quickly removed my mind from the whole event and noticed I had passed my normal bus stop "DRIVER"!!!!!!!!! I screamed  The bus came to a stop abruptly pushing a few people out of their seats. I couldn't even offer an apology because those two women suffocated life out of me. And now I have to trek back to my office. stepping into the office building, I greeted musa  the security man with a nod.  No one needed to know what was running through my mind. Then I saw him. Mike. He was already there. Of course he was.  Standing too straight. Too tall.very masculine. He has very broad shoulders too, compared to mine. I  looked like an SS3 senior.  Oh my God this man was built differently. like he belonged somewhere better than this office. Men like that always arrived early. They liked being seen. I watched from a distance. People noticed him. I noticed them noticing him. The glances. The whispers.  He soaked it in quietly, pretending he wasn't aware. That annoyed me more than confidence ever could. I quickly gathered myself, walked towards where he sat, gave him a very stern look and walked to my desk. Aida was yet to come. She has been quite different lately  I clenched my fist. No weapon fashioned against my relationship will prosper. She is mine and mine alone I picked up my phone to call her and just then I smelt her familiar perfume. She was smiling as she walked in, but not at me. AT HIM. She didn't smile at him the way she smiled at me before. It was smaller. Controlled. But it was there. That same softness she claimed she didn't have energy for anymore. I made it my life's mission to watch both of them like a hawk throughout the day. I watched her walk towards her cubicle. She has a higher position at the office which made her have her own cubicle while we with the lower positions shared a center table that has been divided into 6. I stood up and followed her to her office. " we need to talk" "And good morning to you too," she said sarcastically. Why the sudden change of attitude, wasn't she the one who was begging me the other day. But then she didn't actually return my texts on Sunday. Was she with him? "Babe," I said casually. She looked up. Just for a second. "What." No pet name. No warmth. I noticed Mike glanced up too through the glass. I held his gaze. He didn't look away. That was mistake number one. I smiled. Slow. Polite. The kind of smile that showed my intentions to kill very clearly. Men like him thought silence was strength. Though being calm made them untouchable. They always forget one thing. This was my territory. And nobody took what belonged to me and walked away clean. Not today. Not ever. I dragged out a chair and sat down opposite her.  I was just about to speak. When the door swung open. "Ah-Aida!" Mercy. Of course. She barged in like she owned the place, heels clicking sharply against the tiled floor, with half of her breasts pouring into our eyes, why didn't she just come naked. And yet Biodun allowed it. "I've been looking for you," she said briskly. "I need help with something ." I turned slowly, irritation flashing across my face. "Can't you not see we're in the middle of a conversation?" I asked, voice calm but edged.I was already pissed and I didn't need anyone to add to it. Mercy blinked once. Then laughed, short and dismissive. "Oh please," she said. "You people should stop bringing relationship issues into the office. This is not your living room." The words landed like a slap. Aida's shoulders stiffened. I could swear I heard her laugh.  Mercy didn't even look at me again. She turned fully to Aida. "Abeg, help me show Mike around properly," she continued. "Teach him the ropes. Mr. Biodun said you should handle it." "You and I both know that that is a lie, you this deceptive daughter of jezebel"  I watched them in silence while they bantered. My chest tightened. Mike. Mercy gestured toward the glass partition. I followed her hand without meaning to. Mike was standing there. Watching. Aida hesitated. She looked at me. Then at Mercy. Then back at Mike. "Okay," she said finally. "I'll do it, but you owe me one." That was it. Just like that. She walked past me, not meeting my eyes, grabbing her notepad as she went. Mike stepped aside to let her pass. As he did, his eyes met mine again. And this time, I didn't hold it, I looked away .  I waited in the office as I watched the both of them walk away.

This was getting out of hand.

 AIDA

 I couldn't even look Caleb in the face as I followed mercy outside  By the time I stepped out of my cubicle, my chest felt tight. Not because of work. Not because of Mercy's sudden intrusion. But because I could feel Caleb's eyes burning holes into my back. I wasn't ready to have any conversations with him just yet till he was ready to be reasonable since he thinks I always try to get with every guy I smiled with. Even though I already promised him not to do anything stupid, I couldn't help but imagine what it would feel like to be truly loved and not controlled  I didn't even understand my anger........was I even angry? I don't even know what I'm feeling. Mike waited a few steps away, hands tucked casually into his pockets, posture relaxed like he was the first time I saw him. He had this aura. I just can't place my fingers on it. His face was neutral, too neutral. Definitely not giving out any room for me to decipher his thoughts. But I caught it. The slight tightening of his jaw. The way his shoulders stiffened for half a second when Mercy mentioned his name. "Are you okay?" Mercy asked, already walking ahead of me. "Yes," I lied automatically. She didn't press it. Mercy rarely did. "Shall we?" he asked quietly, gesturing toward the hallway. I nodded. "Yeah. Let's get this over with." "Sorry," he said quietly as we started walking. "I didn't mean to... interrupt anything." I let out a short laugh. "You didn't." "Well it seems like I'm the reason you were dragged out of your office like that" His voice was calm. We moved past the glass partitions, the low hum of printers and keyboards filling the space between us. I kept my eyes forward, professional mask firmly in place. "This place can be confusing at first," I said. "But you'll get used to it." "I believe you," he replied. "You look like someone who knows her way around chaos." I glanced at him. "That obvious?" A corner of his mouth lifted. "A little." We reached the records room first. I pushed the door open and flicked on the light. "All archived documents go here. Nothing leaves without sign-out approval." I explained filing systems. Where confidential documents were kept. What not to touch unless instructed. Mike listened. Really listened.  "You sound like someone who's been here too long," he said lightly. "I've been here long enough," I replied. There were huge piles of books in this room, which made it scary. I rarely come here, I always had someone get something for me. I couldn't help but notice how close he was standing behind me. That was when I realized how small this place was. The records room had always felt big when I wasn't alone in it. Rows of tall metal shelves, stacked with files that smelled like dust and old paper. But with Mike standing just a breath away, the space shrank. Or maybe I did. I shifted slightly, trying to create distance, but the shelf dug into my hip. Of course. I cleared my throat. "So... um. These files are arranged chronologically. Older records on the left, recent ones on the right." "I'll try not to get lost," he said. His voice was closer now. Too close. I felt it then, his presence. Not loud. Not aggressive. Just... there. Solid. Calm. Like he knew exactly how much space he was taking up and was doing it on purpose?. I turned halfway, meaning to face him properly, but that only made things worse. We were almost chest to chest. For a second, neither of us moved. I became painfully aware of how tall he was. How I had to tilt my head slightly to look at him. How his eyes dropped, not to my chest, thankfully but to my lips, before lifting back up again like he'd caught himself. Something warm curled low in my stomach. Ridiculous. "Do you usually stand this close during orientations?" he asked, voice low, teasing. I scoffed, stepping sideways. "Only when the trainee refuses to respect personal space." "Duly noted." He smiled then. Just enough to show he was amused. Was he flirting with me?. We moved on to the printing section. The noise helped machines whirring, paper sliding out, staff moving around. Normalcy rushed back in, grounding me. "This area is always busy," I explained. "If you send a job late, it won't be ready until the next day. People get annoyed about that." "Nigerians are always angry, what's there to be happy about in this economy ," he said. I laughed before I could stop myself. He glanced at me. "There it is." "What?" "That laugh. It sounds like you don't do it often." I shrugged. "Work doesn't exactly inspire joy." "And yet," he said, looking around, "you run this place like it's your kingdom." I snorted. "Hardly." "But people listen to you," he continued. "That says something." "Mr Biodun runs this place" I didn't know why I said that, so I focused on showing him how to operate the printer. "Yesterday," he added, casually but not too casually. "At the restaurant." My heart skipped. Just once. "I wasn't sure if you noticed," he continued, eyes focused somewhere past me, "but... yeah. Small world." "I noticed," I said quickly. Too quickly. "Lagos is like that." He smiled. "True." He didn't mention the girl. We reached the IT support window last. I explained who to contact, what not to touch. "You're surprisingly patient," he said. "Don't let it fool you." "I won't." Silence stretched between us. . Then he spoke again. " I hope I didn't make things uncomfortable." I swallowed. "You didn't." "You left early." "I had to." He studied me, like he was piecing something together but choosing not to ask. "That guy," he said finally. "At your office." My heart sank. "Caleb." "Is he...?" "My boyfriend," I said, before I could think better of it. He nodded once. . "Lucky guy," he said. I laughed, sharp and humorless. "That's one way to put it." We headed back upstairs after I showed him other important rooms on our floor. As we passed the glass partition, I felt it. Caleb's eyes on my back. Burning. Watching.  As I sat down on my desk, my phone buzzed Caleb. A short  paragraph.  WE NEED TO TALK.