That same day, Anita finally summoned up courage to call Tolu after so long.
It was Deji (her TDH) who had turned from a blind date to a confidante) who had insisted that she reach out to him. ‘Nita, you’re always thinking about him.‘ he said. ‘…even when you’re not and you can’t deny it.‘ As much as she had tried (and failed) to defend herself, she knew that he was right. All her dreams were colored with Tolu and her thoughts somehow found a way to him more often than not. Ni sighed and examined her work table… It was a struggle to focus at work when she was always thinking about him and oh, how she missed him so.
She missed everything about him… his sarcasm, his laughter and the way he could make her lose her mind in b3d. Deji said she had fallen so hard and it would take a long time. Apparently, he knew all about it because he had been there before. He had fallen for this girl and the feelings weren’t mutual but he didn’t find out until he was head over heels. ‘… one of the hardest things a man can go through, babe.‘
He had said a lot that day but it was the last thing that he said that stuck to Ni. ‘The way to get over him is not to distance yourself temporarily or else, when you go back to him it will feel the same all over again. Stay close to him or at least be friends with him while you strive to keep your heart in check. And if you can’t handle that then let him go for good.‘
Those words had stayed with her for the past two days. She didn’t want to let Tolu go. Somehow, she couldn’t imagine a life without her friend so she had decided to fight for their friendship. She would support him and support his new love and in turn, she would learn to get over her feelings. She nodded, picked up her phone and dialed the no before she would change her mind. He picked up on first ring. ‘Ni?‘ She placed a palm over her beating heart ‘Hi, Tolu’, she said as normally as she could.
‘Hi… Ni, how are you? I mean, how’ve you been?‘ ‘Been well. You?’ ‘I’m fine, Ni. Just fine.‘ She squeezed her eyes shut as she asked the next question ‘And Amaka? How is she?’ Did she imagine it or was there a slight pause before he answered ‘She’s good too.‘
Then the pause stretched out and both callers tried to think of what next to say. Knowing that she had to save a call that as clearly headed in a wrong direction, Ni said ‘Tolu, would you like to meet up? I mean… we have a lot to say and em, it would be better said in person. I know you’re busy during…’ ‘Yes‘ he said, cutting her off. ‘Hunh?’ ‘We could meet up at the Bar… if you want to.’ ‘Oh, Okay’ ‘9pm good for you, Ni?‘ ‘Yea’, she said. ‘Alright then, see you later‘ ‘Later’, she said just before he dropped the call.
Some minutes later, she still held the phone to her ear. She wasn’t sure whether to rejoice or cry so she just stared at nothing. As if on cue, her phone began to vibrate and Deji was written boldly. With gratitude in her heart, Ni picked up the phone and poured out her heart without restraint. All the while, thinking ‘Thank God for Deji.’
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