Chapter Six

It's been three weeks since Sufyan had seen Sabeerah and it's been almost impossible to not think about her. He'd had a huge fight with Hassan about his behavior and he was still apologising but Sufyan wasn't ready to rekindle their friendship.

Sufyan had found Sabeerah smart mouthed, intelligent and stunningly beautiful. He was trying his best to get her out of his mind, there was no way anything would happen between the both of them considering the way they'd met. It hadn't stopped him from stalking her on her social media pages though, she didn't have much pictures of herself but she posted everyday, about her job, motivations and advices.

"Dunce what are you thinking about?" Zubayr's voice snapped him out of his thoughts as he stalked into his office.

"You're here again?" Sufyan whined.

"It's not your fault." Zubayr replied as he settled himself on the couch and stretched his long legs on the center table. Sufyan stood up and went to join him on the couch.

Zubayr was one of his oldest friends, been friends since small and they grew up together as bullies. Sufyan liked to argue Zubayr was the natural bully and he was just one as a result of his bad influence.

"How's Hadassah and Firdaus?" Sufyan asked.

Six years ago, Zubayr had met Hadassah, a sharp mouthed, witty woman who always had a response for him, he'd fallen in love and somehow persuaded Hadassah to marry him and now they had a five years old daughter.

"Aah the loves of my life, they're both fine. Hadassah travelled to Ilorin to attend a wedding and me? I don't know how a rice cooker operates, I've been eating takeouts since."

Sufyan bursted into laughter. "What happened to the help?"

"She cooks trash and Hadassah has refused to have her replaced."

"You can hire me, everyone knows I'm a great chef." It was true, Sufyan had always had an interest in cooking and had attended a six months culinary school years ago.

"So you'd poison me? No thanks, dominos Pizza tastes great when you're eating it alone." Zubayr replied leaning on the couch with a yawn.

"Now what brings you here during working hours?"

"It's almost closing hour oh, I am here to discuss business though, is it not advertising you do? I want you to help me advertise something."

Sufyan looked at him amusingly, he knew his friend too well.

"Okay fine, it's Maryam." He blurted sitting up. "That sister of yours is a bully, that girl that I remember changing diapers for is now threatening me, what has this life turned to?"

"What about Maryam?"

"Dude you didn't tell me you met braces girl, she's changed so much, I didn't recognize her."

"So Maryam sent you here to discuss Halima?" Sufyan asked with a small chuckle. After the lunch with Halima and Maryam, Halima had been calling him unnecessarily and his sister had been pressuring him to date her and see how much of a great girl she was, he wished they knew he had his eyes on someone else and they'd be surprised at who because she was the total opposite of the girls he liked to call his spec.

Sabeerah was really tall, almost his height, and fair... Smallish, dark girls attracted him more but there was just...

"There goes dunce again doing what he knows how to do best which is being a dunce." Zubayr interrupted his thoughts yet again.

"You all should leave me alone aah, is it by force?"

"Don't you like her?" Zubayr asked.

"Nope." Sufyan said standing up, he was done for the day and ready to go home to his mom's meal, she'd promised to cook his favorite local dish; Amala and ewedu soup.

"You don't like anyone, if you're gay just come out now so... Do you like me?" Zubayr asked wiggling his brows.

"I won't give you the response you're seeking for but just know you need Allah." Sufyan replied picking up his laptop and phone as Zubayr bursted into uncontrollable laughter.

Sufyan honked his car in front of the gate and when it was opened, he drove in with Zubayr's car right behind, the idiot couldn't pass up the opportunity to finally eat homemade food in days.

"Assalamualaikum." Zubayr's loud voice rang out announcing his presence.

"Walaykumsalam before you break down my husband's house with your loud voice."

"Eku irole ma- good evening ma." Zubayr immediately prostrated as he greeted in Yoruba language, Sufyan did the same and she put her hand on their heads and prayed for their success and blessings in a typical Yoruba mother style before finally helping them up.

"Assalamualaikum." Sufyan heard a quiet voice greet, his head snapped towards it and the shock on his face was evident as his eyes met Halima's.

Zubayr gave him a sympathetic glance. "Braces girl, how're you doing?"

She blushed, "brother Zubayr I no longer wear braces so we should be over that nickname."

"You both disturbed the poor girl when you were young, especially you." Sufyan's mother said pulling Zubayr by the ear, he cried out.

Sufyan finally found his voice, "how're you Halima?"

"I'm fine, how was work?" She asked giving him a small, shy smile.

"Alhamdulilah."

"And all I wanted to do was eat homemade food." Zubayr whined massaging his ear.

"Mummy." Sufyan hugged his mother inhaling her scent as he found comfort in her arms, a lot of people might refer to him as a mummy's boy but he didn't mind, he loved her so much and she was inevitably her favorite child. His mother was a large and average height woman.

"Oko mi- my dear." She called fondly. "How was work?"

"I will soon quit, I'm too young for this stress." He said with a frown.

"You'll quit your own agency? I pray laziness doesn't kill you." Zubayr said with a sneer.

"As long as it hasn't killed you, I'm safe." Sufyan said.

"Go freshen up so you, your dad and Zubayr can pray Maghreb before we serve dinner, Halima came over and made me leave the cooking to her, you'll love it." His mother said turning to smile at Halima, Sufyan had momentarily forgotten about her presence.

"I hope so mummy." Halima said. Zubayr and Sufyan shared a look, since when did Halima start addressing Sufyan's mother as mummy? Things were getting heated and Sufyan was slowly beginning to feel trapped.

After Maghreb, they all sat on the table and enjoyed the delicious Amala and ewedu soup Halima had prepared, Sufyan had to admit to it's deliciousness.

"My wife will kill us both if she ever finds out how much I am enjoying your meal braces girl." Zubayr said licking his fingers.

"Killing you'd be a good riddance." Sufyan said taking a sip of water.

"When ever will your bickering stop boys?" Unlike his mother, Sufyan's father was tall and lean, they were both dark skinned and Sufyan couldn't remember a time they ever fought, they loved each other so much, Sufyan was awed such love existed.

"As soon as dunce grows up." Zubayr replied.

"As soon as he stops calling me dunce." Sufyan piped in immediately.

"Why'd I stop calling you what you are?" Zubayr asked with a genuinely confused expression.

"So Halima..." His mother interrupted their yet again bickering with a glare at the both of them before turning to Halima with a sweet smile.

"How're your parents? It's been so long since I saw them."

"They're fine, they sent their regards."

"And how about your sister? Teniola right?" His father asked.

"Teni the witch." Sufyan and Zubayr said simultaneously and they both laughed at the nickname they'd given Halima's elder sister who was a bigger bully to all the boys in the neighborhood.

"You boys were terrors." Sufyan's father said shaking his head.

"What did I not do to separate Sufyan from Zubayr, but they stuck to each other like glue." His mother said with a small smile, Halima chuckled softly.

"It's Sufyan, he refused to let me be."

"You wish." Sufyan said.

"Sufyan pass your egbon- elder brother the salt shaker." Zubayr said.

"Egbon with just a month." Sufyan reminded him.

"I'm still older."

"Where do you stay? I can drop you off on my way home." Zubayr offered Halima when they were done with dinner and she'd announced that she was leaving.

"Sufyan would drop her off, don't worry." Sufyan's mother said with a stiff smile.

"No it's fine, what's the need of..."

"I said Sufyan will drop her off." She interrupted in an authoritative voice, Zubayr knew to keep quiet.

"I'll get my keys." Sufyan said standing up.

He started the car and slowly drove out of the compound with Halima seated on the passenger side looking fidgety. Sufyan preferred the silence and would've probably played some John Legend's song to keep busy but he felt obligated to start a conversation with her, especially as she looked uncomfortable.

"So what do you do?"

"Huh?" She asked with a small flinch.

"Your job? Where do you work now?"

"Oh I'm an accountant, I work at Shar'ib construction company."

"What?" He turned sharply to look at her.

"Is anything wrong with that?" She asked concern displayed on her face.

Sufyan shook his head and focused back on the road. "No it's fine. You must know Sabeerah AbdulMalik."

"Not personally, I've seen her around but we've never spoken, she's a bit of a snob, her business is always with the head accountant."

"Snob? I thought you said you've never spoken, how'd you know she's a snob?" Sufyan asked turning briefly to look at her.

"Well that's what a lot of people say and I guess there's a truth to it."

Sufyan shook his head. "You disappoint me braces girl."

The rest of the ride was silent except for occasionally when she told him what turn to take until they finally arrived in front of her gate.

"You should come in, my parents would be glad to see you." She offered.

"No, maybe some other time, right now I just want to rest."

"Oh okay it's fine, when will we see again?"

Sufyan sighed, this was going to be hard. "Listen Halima, you're a great girl, very beautiful but I just don't like you that way and I'm sure there's someone out there who'll love you the way you deserve, it's just unfortunate that that person isn't me."

She was quiet for awhile before finally asking, "you like someone else?"

"What? Yeah, yeah I think I like someone else, I'm not really sure about the whole thing yet."

"I understand."

Sufyan nodded even though she couldn't see him as he waited for her to leave but after few seconds he heard her sniff and he almost banged his head on the steering wheel, he was awkward with tears.

"Halima? Are you... Are you crying?" He asked praying she wasn't but then he heard a whimper affirming she was indeed crying.

"Please don't cry." He pleaded hopelessly.

"I'm sorry." He awkwardly patted her back gently thinking of what to do as her tears became louder.

"Okay uhmm how about if we uhmm, let's just give it a try, I mean us, let's get to know each other better and see if we can work out." He offered.

"Really?" She asked excitedly.

"Yeah." He said in a strained voice.

"That's great."

Sufyan now felt truly trapped, he was indeed bad with tears.