Chapter 20 THE BEACH HOUSE

S E G U N

Shriek . . . shrieeeeeeeeeeeeek . . . shrieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeekkkkkkkk . . .

That's my mind, incase you're wondering what the shrieking is all about and where it's coming from. I'm mentally hyperventilating.

When I get to the front of the room, the closed door looks like it's an impregnable wall set up between Eve and I. Where before I'd have walked in without a care in the world, I now find myself tentatively lifting my hand up and rapping lightly on the door. Each knock sounds like a gunshot to my ears and I flinch in fear and trepidation.

"Come in! Eve sing songs from behind the door.

Hold up!

She doesn't sound angry.

On the contrary, she sounds . . . happy.

What I'm going to walk into now, I haven't the foggiest idea of,, but I'm gonna do it, anyway. I grab a hold of the handle and pull.

No creaking. Good sign. So I open it, all the while swinging my eyes around in search of her. The wardrobe is ajar, I sense movement from behind it.

Fuck! She's packing.

Guess it's all over now.

With slumped shoulders, I make my way towards her. When I'm close, I clear my throat ready to squeak out an apology, when her face pops out from behind the door. "Oh it's you. Come help me unpack this stuff."

Sorry, what?!

Unpack?

Her face pops out once more from behind the wardrobe, and an eyebrow is raised. "You don't want to help me unpack?"

The bands of shock that initially held me, loosen immediately. "No, ofcourse, I mean, y . . . yeah yeah, I'll help you unpack."

Great going, stutterer.

I join her at the wardrobe, my heart hammering against my rib cage. Once more I'm shocked into immobility as I stand and stare, watching as she brings out my clothes from my bag and begins folding them deftly, her fingers moving over them with a presision that is hypnotic as well as soothing.

Her own clothes are already neatly folded, taking me back to our stay in Abeokuta where she always picked up after me, making me feel special and a slob at the same time.

"Princess . . ." My voice cracks at the end as I watch her finish folding the last of my clothes and turn to face me. She knows I'm struggling, so she stays silent and waits for me to formulate words that are clearly not ready to come out. "I'm s ----"

"You're going to apologise to that girl out there for taking advantage of her the way you did." She stares at me, hard and unwavering. The change in her demeanour is so fast, it blindsides me, making me gape at her.

"Come again!" I intone. Maybe I've suddenly gone deaf, but did she just tell me to apologise to a washed-out Naomi Campbell not- look alike.

Yeah, no, that's clearly not going to happen.

She see's the frown on my face and shakes her head, about to say something I know won't make sense to me, but someone beats her to it, thankfully.

"EVE, BABE, CHANGE INTO YOUR SWIMWEAR, WE'RE GOING TO THE BEACH SIDE, DON'T MAKE ME WAIT!" Ebere shouts out loud from the other side of the door. She's obviously trying to avert a conflict between Eve and I, because she can't keep her nosy ears away from closed doors.

Eve gives me a look, shakes her head, grabs something from inside the wardrobe, turns to me and in an ominous tone, speaks out tersely. "This isn't over."

Mmmh! From where I'm standing, it definitely is.

I flop onto the bed intent on taking a snooze, but damn if I know why after ten minutes, I'm still wide awake. Oddly enough, the dizziness has all but siezed, leaving me with a giant-sized headache. So I get up and walk to the sitting room, intent on getting some pills to calm my head, but stop when I hear voices filtering in from the balcony.

" . . . so that's why I'm back in Lagos for the mean time. Appreciate you welcoming me into your home, bro."

"Well you're welcome to stay with us anytime, Nathan." Femi's voice sails out to me.

Who the heck is Nathan?

I inch closer to the door so as to hear properly. Suddenly, someone let's out a long whistle and begins to whisper, and I honestly can't believe I have to resort to Ebere's tactics by pressing my ears flat against the screen door to hear what he's saying.

"Who's that tall glass of water? Dammmmn! She's fine. Look at those hips and that a----."

"Dude, don't finish that sent ----" Femi interjects.

" ------ ass. Seriously, dude, who is that girl?"

"Sure you want to know who that girl is?" Femi asks, piquing my own interest.

"But ofcourse man, when I see a woman that looks this good, I'm definitely going to appreciate her." Some time ago, I'd have agreed with him, but all I do now is roll my eyes.

"That girl with the fine piece of ass and hips, is no other person but Segun's girlfriend, the dude who mistakenly kissed your sister."

On hearing this I literally see red and almost storm out to land a blow on his face, but stop myself just in time as another person speaks.

"Hey guys, Dipo's already having fun playing with the water, I suggest you join us too. I want to get some drinks from the fridge. Can you please get the chef to make some barbecue chicken? Fiku's voice filters over to where my ears are still pressed against the door, so I decide it's time to make my presence known.

I open the screen door, noisily jangling the hook and eye to intimate everyone that someone is coming out. All eyes turn to me, but I search for Nathan, ready to set the record straight, when Femi intercepts me by letting out a strange whistle. "Dude, you really need to see to that eye, it's grown bigger. You look like you were in a wrestling match and someone went TKO on you. Oh wait!" He puts a hand under his chin in meditative thought. "That's right --- Nathan here went TKO on you," and then he doubles up on the chair he's seating on and splutters out full blown laughter.

I igmore him and advance upon light skin guy, whose brow is raised haughtily at me. I know that look. I've worn it several times myself when I don't give a fuck about someone. Seeing it on this motherfucker now sets my blood on fire. "Where's your sister, I'd like to apologise to her." I stand in front of him, fists clenched at my side.

He raises a brow and looks away, shrugging as he replies. "Well, seeing as you assaulted her, she couldn't stand to be in the same house as you . . . so she bailed."

I know it's all lies, 'cause she looked like she was ready to consume me raw, but that's alright, I'll go along with whatever he says . . . for now. "Well I'm sorry for what happened earlier on. Truce?!" I bring out my hand, hoping he'll take it. He appraises my outstretched hand, and just when I'm about retracting it, he holds his out, and grips mine with a certain strength that almost rocks me off my feet.

I decide it's time to put my plan in motion. "Hold on bro, there's something on your cheek,"and before he can ask what's up, I suck him an uppercut, right below his eye.

I hear some gasps, but don't bother turning around. Instead, I lean close to him and whisper. "Now, we're even."

At first his face is stormy, but then he breaks out in a slow grin. "Yeah . . . guess so."

"Aurey!" I'll know that voice even in my dreams. I move back from Nathan and turn around, almost doing a double take when I see Eve.

She looks like she was poured into the swimsuit she's got on. Her curves are sinfully on display and the black swimsuit compliments her caramel skin beautifully. She tops up this look with a cute black fedora perched on top of her head.

Even though her curves have been laid bare to me quite a number of times, I'm still left speechless as I stare at her. I can now imagine Nathan's reaction on seeing her.

I release my still clenched fists, and spare her with a look. "Baby, we need to talk." Grasping a hold of her hand tightly, I begin dragging her away from the pervert still ogling her and into the sitting room. Funny enough, she doesn't put up any resistance, allowing me drag her forcefully all the way into the room, where I shut the door with a bang.

-@-

E V E

Silence reigns as I follow Ebere, Dipo and Fiku to the beach front. She knows I'm not in the mood to talk, so she doesn't try to initiate a conversation. When we get to the shore, I fling off the halter neck dress I'm wearing to reveal a black swimsuit beneath.

"Well, hot damn!" Ebere exclaims from behind me, breaking the silence that existed. "If Segun see's you in that, he's definitely going to regret sticking his tongue down that girl's throat."

My blood boils hot and cold on hearing this. I need to set the record straight. "He never stuck his tongue down her throat, so don't go around weaving stories you know are not true."

Silence reigns once more, but I don't wait to hear her reply, instead I stalk off to where Fiku is bending down picking up sea shells in the sand and join her, valiantly trying to keep my anger under control. Ebere leaves Dipo by himself, comes to us after a few minutes and strikes up an animated conversation about who wore it better at the Grammys award. I listen half heartedly, never joining in the conversation.

They only stop when Fiku excuses herself to inform the chef to make some grilled chicken for us. I decide to follow her to avoid talking with Ebere. I'm still annoyed with her assumptions about Aurey. I was there when he began fooling around with that girl and he definitely did not have his tongue down her throat. I know he was inebriated and didn't mean to do it, but . . .

. . . . he shouldn't have touched her in the first place.

That's probably what's got my knickers in a twist now.

I'm upset he touched her in the first place. Maybe it's time we had a talk. I've been pushing it off, ever since. With these thoughts weighing on my mind, I trudge in silence with Fiku at the lead, and thankfully I get to the house in time to see Aurey leaning into Nathan, no doubt trying to start a fight with him.

"Aurey!" He moves back from him and turns round to look at me, and his eyes go wide as he assesses me from top to bottom. I know what he's thinking. He tells me we need to talk and practically drags me away to the room, where instead of rounding up on me as I expected, he flops onto the bed and in a silent voice begins to confess his sins to me.

"Stacy is moving in with me when we get back." I stay silent, deciding to sit beside him on the bed. "I'm guessing you knew this already, that's why you've been upset with me." It comes out more as a question than a statement.

I feel his eyes on me, so I just nod and he carries on speaking, making me realise he didn't want to upset me further, that's why he kept it from me. "You know I'll never deliberately do anything to hurt you, right? This situation with that man that calls himself my father, and this other situation with Roxy has made everything awkward. I don't ever want you to think I'm trying to take advantage of you in anyway, and I swear, I didn't know that girl wasn't you. I mean I know she looks nothing like you, because let's face it, you're fully endowed, while she's . . . anyway, I need you to understand that I was shit-faced, and I know I shouldn't have drunk on an empty stomach, but what with all the pressures left right and centre, I just caved, you know." He's silent for a bit, before he continues speaking again. "I'll do anything to have you fully in my life once more.

Now I face him, understanding flooding me suddenly as well as relief. "I'm sorry." I say, hanging my head in shame. I never knew he was sparing me from further pain, I just felt he deliberately didn't want to tell me what was going on in his life.

"But princess, you've got absolutely nothing to be sorry for. I'm the one who's sorry. Will you ever forgive me for unknowingly shutting you out?"

His words soothe as well as tear me up inside, and I unknowingly begin crying. "Aww! Come here princess, I love you okay, please don't cry."

I laugh through the tears as he cleans my face with his fingers. "So. . . am I forgiven?"

I nod shyly and look down at our entwined fingers instead. He tilts my chin up to meet his gaze, and I watch as his face comes close to mine. His eyes are so smouldering and . . . "Babe, the bump near your eye is really huge, I need to clean it up so it doesn't get infected."

I make to get up, but he holds my hand and stares at me like he's just seen a ghost.

"What?" His stare is beginning to freak me out.

"You called me babe." He replies, in a hushed whisper.

"And that's the only thing you gathered from what I said?" I ask incredulously.

He doesn't say anything, still clearly in shock. I use that opportunity to release my hand from his loose grasp and walk away to look for a first aid kit. At the door, I stop and turn around. "I'll be right back . . . babe."

This time I walk off, a smile already forming on my lips.

*

Later that day, the chef Femi hired to cook for everyone falls ill with some bacterial infection that caused him to stool uncontrollably, so he's unable to cook for us.

Fiku, Ebere with her pregnant self and I, who doesn't know a lick about cooking, have to hold the forte in the kitchen.

Fiku is at the stove whipping up something delicious, while Ebere is helping, but she turns round and shoves some onions and tomatoes at me. "You can't mess these up, surely." She smirks and then moves away to continue working with Fiku.

Earlier on she'd knocked on the door when I didn't go back outside, and apologised to me, and we'd made up, even though her timing was off, because Aurey and I were snuggling the life out of each other.

I collect the tomatoes and onions from her now and busy myself chopping them up, intent on doing a good job, but failing miserably, as the onions sting my eyes making them water.

"Something smells amazing in here. I couldn't contain myself, I had to come see." All three of us turn around at the same time to see who came into the kitchen. At first I'm not able to see anything, because of my watery oninon-induced haze, but I blink furiously and finally my eyes clear enough to reveal newcomer walking into the kitchen wearing nothing but sweatpants that are riding low on his waist.

Everyone stares --- yes, even me.

How can we not. The man is simply a sight to behold. I think he deliberately came in shirtless.

His abs look like they're carved from rock. Sweat glistens on his chest, making it look like it was deliberately slathered on with oil, but I know it's just sweat. He probably just finished working out.

Ebere is almost turning into a statue as she stares fixated at him. The knife in her hand is gripped with a force so strong, I fear she might cut herself. Don't ask me how I'm able to tear my eyes away from him, but I already have one Adonis staying in the same room with me, not about to ogle another one.

He seems oblivious to the stares aimed at him, because he saunters into the kitchen with a devil-may-care attitude and comes to where I'm standing. He reaches across to the cupboard, almost stretching over me in the process, and his musky cologne wafts into my nostrils. "You're gorgeous!" He whispers into my ears. He pulls back and spears me with a look for what seems like a long time, but in reality only lasts a few seconds, and then saunters out of the kitchen, leaving me feeling breathless.

Did he just . . .

He couldn't have just  . . .

No, he did not just . . .

Wait! What just happened?

He did not just say that, did he?

I feel giddy all of a sudden, like my equilibrium has shifted. Ofcourse, Ebere notices. She's by my side in a jiffy. "Are you okay? Want to seat down?" And then she comes close to me, and whispers into my ear. "What did he tell you to make you get this way?"

At that moment, Aureliano walks in. "Princess, is the food . . . " he stops mid-sentennce, and stares, his eyes flicking from Fiku, who has her mouth still hanging open, to Ebere who still has the knife clutched tightly in her hand and is standing quite close to me. His eyes widen imperceptibly.

"Eb," he starts, resorting to the nickname he's given her. "Friends always have their differences all the time, so whatever issues you and Eve have, please don't take it too much to heart. Just move away from her slowly, and drop the knife."

Ebere looks confused at first. She looks at the knife in her hand and then lifts it up to my neck slowly. If it were possible for Aurey's eyes to get any bigger, they do so right about now. Fear flashes in them and I'm trying valiantly to hold back the laughter threatening to spill forth from my lips. Aureliano''s eyes flick to me, and the spark of laughter dies out faster than a wind-blown candle. His eyes bore into mine and I try hard to keep a straight face. After a few long tense seconds, he shakes his head and stalks off, and we all burst out into laughter.

After we come down from our laugh-induced high, I replay newcomer's words in my mind, and smile as I continue chopping up the rest of the veggies, 'cause even though I have a boyfriend, it feels good to be appreciated by another man that isn't him.