Chapter 11 TRUTH HURTS

SEGUN

What the fuck happened just now?

She bowled out of here like a bat out of hell. What was so damn urgent that she couldn't even tell me? I'm so pissed right now, especially because I was having so much fun.

I was already imagining how I was going to work her body tonight. Damn! She's a tough cookie. Other girls would have been begging to go back home with me by now. Who the fuck does she think she is? I mean she's not that hot.

An image of her suddenly rears up in my head and I take back my foolish thought - she is hot, scratch that, she's fucking explosive!

I'm livid now!

Throwing some money on the table, I storm off not stopping when Tina begins shouting my name. Sorry Tina, I can't deal with any drama right now. I yank my car door open and start the car. Biggie smalls picks up from where he left, pumping imaginary bullets into his equally imaginary opponent.

Where before his words would have comforted me, they do the opposite. I'm fucking irritated right now and so I turn it off, yanking off the nub in the process.

Fuck, fuck, fuck!!!

I hit the steering wheel heatedly, loosing count of the number of times I do so. When I'm finally spent and the anger inside me is a dying ember, I whip out my phone and call Dipo. He picks up on the second ring.

"Where you dey?" (Where are you?) I ask curtly.

"The king." He hails me with the nickname I acquired years back when I first moved to Nigeria.

Unfortunately, I don't have time for this right now. "Cut the crap and tell me where you are," I snap. The dying embers are fast being rekindled. I feel like punching someone right now. He just might do if he keeps niggling me.

"Whoa! Calm the fuck down man! Who's got your knickers in a twist?"

I take some deep breaths and get myself into some semblance of normalcy. "Where you dey? (Where are you?) I ask, almost normally. Almost! Being the operative word.

"I dey house and bored as fuck," comes his typical reply. I shake my head. "Abeg, bring shack when you dey come." (Please bring some alcohol when you're coming).

I cut the call, not bothering to reply him. As I start the car and  drive off, road rage takes over instantly as the image of Eve running out of the cereal bar keeps getting replayed in my mind.

"Get the fuck of the road, slow poke." I yell at a driver that has the tag 'learner' on the boot of her car. As I zoom past, I give her the finger. Her mouth drops open in shock.

Time flies by as I move in and out of traffic, occasionally putting pressure on the horn.

Finally, I get to Dipo's place and I hunk for him to come out. I don't stop hunking till I see him coming out through the door.

"What the fuck man! You'll wake up my daughter. Keep it down!" He walks bare feet towards me. When he gets close, he pushes my head.

This triggers my simmering anger and I get out of the car, pushing him back with the door in the process. He lands on the floor and I don't wait for him to get up. I begin hitting him while he's on the ground. I don't stop until I see blood coming out from the side of his mouth.

I stand up and flex my muscles, my anger deflating like a busted balloon. Dipo looks at me from the ground with swollen eyes that are almost closed, due to my punches.

I extend a hand to him with the intention of hoisting him up, watching as he takes it. I don't see it coming until I'm on the ground beside him where I lay, spent. We stay this way for a minute, not saying anything, until he breaks the silence.

"So... You didn't get into her pants, I believe."

It's more of a statement than a question. I don't reply, instead I stretch out my hands under my head and cradle it on them. He's totally right. Nothing needs to be said. He knows it all.

He props himself on his hand and looks at me. "You know, not every girl is meant to be conquered."

What the heck is he yapping about now?

He continues flapping his mouth while I listen half - heartedly. I only peck up when I hear him mention the word 'relationship.'

".... relationship goals is what you should be focusing on."

"Relationship goals? Bro, you're tripping. I don't do relationships." I spring up from the ground so fast I almost loose my foot hold.

He struggles to get up from the ground and I extend a hand to him once again, but he swats it away and stands up with difficulty. He groans as he touches his rib cage, his face contorting in pain.

"I'm sorry, man!" I say, feeling bad. He doesn't reply, just walks to my car and sits in the passenger's side. I follow suit, seating down beside him in the driver's seat.

"So... Truth or dare." He starts, once I'm settled.

"Uh... dare!" I reply, off - handedly.

He grins smugly to himself and fear slices through my insides as I gaze at him. I just know I'm not going to like what he'll say next.

"I double dare you, triple dare you, quadruple dare you even, to sleep with Eve by the end of Friday next week."

I swallow a lump that's suddenly hinged in my throat. He didn't just say that. No, he didn't just say that. Why did he have to go there?

Give her a kiss man, she wants it. You know she wants it. I watch as he stands stock still, petrified out of his mind at the sight of the girl watching him, toying him with her coy smile.

"Come on lil' man, what are you waiting for?" I taunt. "I dare you man, no I double dare you. In fact I triple dare you, quadruple dare you, even." I'm laughing my eyes out at this point, uncaring about his feelings.

I snap back to the present to see Dipo's eyes on me. They seem to be taunting me.

"Seems you might be having a problem in that department." He jerks his head to the front of my jeans. "So I thought I might urge you on a bit. You know, help you get things moving." He finishes, inspecting his finger nails. "So I fucking dare you Segun, to fuck Eve, or else... "

I wait for it... I know it's going to be huge.

"I get your car as payment if you DARE fail."

I slump in the seat, weakness overtaking my limbs. With us, it's all or nothing. It's always been this way.

I nod my head weakly. "Deal!" I say quietly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that." He cocks his head to the side and puts his hand behind his ear.

I sigh and repeat louder. "It's a fucking deal, alright!"

He nods and reaches out to the back seat, bringing out a bottle of hennessy and a paper cup. He opens it and pours a cup for himself. Without further preamble, he throws it down his throat, pours another one and does the same thing without even wincing. Then he pours a third cup and cradles it in his hand. He stares glumly into it as if his future is splayed out there for him to see.

I collect the bottle from him and guzzle some down my throat. "Ahhhh!" I groan into the air.

"Femi and Fiku travelled to Dubai for their honeymoon today." He announces.

It's my turn to nod and stare glumly ahead. My thoughts are on something else, something that concerns us, from long ago.

"I'm so sorry, Dipo." I turn to him.

He knows exactly what I'm talking about, but he doesn't say anything, so I continue speaking, the words flowing out of me. Words I should have uttered years ago but didn't. But it has to be aired, even now after all these years, it still hurts deeply, just like a knife slicing bare skin.

I thought the years had lessened the pain. I was sadly wrong.

"She was your first... Your first love." And I say the next damning words that would most definitely drive a spear through his heart. "She was... mine, too." I catch him jerking back like he's been slapped. He shakes his head, trying to unhear what I just said. But it's too late now. I wasn't able stop the words that flowed from my mouth - words I'm sure he must have already guessed, but is now confirmed.

How do I tell him I slept with her that same night? She was easy, yes, but... She became it for me, later on. I just couldn't handle her, I couldn't handle how she made me feel, so much emotion. I was young, foolish and moved with the wrong crowd, so I panicked and pushed her away, especially with what I found out later on.

I turn to him now, emotions roiling in my heart, memories flashing before my eyes and raw pain skating through my entire being. "I... I .. was so in love with her that I could have killed for her, but she fooled us both Dipo. She fooled us both." My voice catches on the last word.

He looks at me, pain obvious in his eyes. Just before he swings them away, I see a sheen of tears. "One week, the King," he resorts to my nickname again. "You have just one week." He throws the third cup of hennessy down his throat, crumples it, tosses it out the window and walks out of the car.

EVE

"What!?" I scream, eliciting dirty looks yet again from the woman whose baby is now wide awake and wailing.

I struggle to swallow the ice cream currently making it's way down my throat, but it goes the wrong way and gets stuck, blocking my wind pipe. I'm suddenly not able to breath.

I end up coughing and spluttering, dislodging the wedge in my throat. Flecks of ice cream fly everywhere, some splattering on Ebere in the process.

Tears stream from my eyes. My chest is tight with pain and my throat burns from the bout of coughing, but... my heart is in a worse off pain.

Batman is sleeping with her? Could it be true? I stare off into space, lost in a different world.

Ebere looks at me pityingly. "You've really got it bad." She quips.

"No..." I instantly refuse, shaking my head in denial. "Your statement just took me by... surprise, that's all." I say weakly, holding my throat. It's painful to talk due to all the coughing.

"This is what I was afraid of." She continues, oblivious of the distress I'm passing through. "Now listen to me. I'm going to give you some few home truths about men and I want you to listen real good; A man fishes for two reasons - he's either sport fishing or fishing to eat, which means he's going to try to catch the biggest fish he can, take a picture of it, admire it with his buddies and toss it back to sea, or he's gonna take that fish on home, scale it, fillet it, toss it in some good meal, fry it up, and put it on his plate. In this respect, you are the fish here to Segun." She looks pointedly at me.

What on earth is she talking about? That's a very strange analogy on how men see women. I'm still very much confused.

She sees my confused look, sighs and clasps her two hands on the table and leans towards me.

"Let me break it down to you in more simpler terms. When a man steps to any woman, he always wants something. Always! Two things men want from a woman." She enunciates it by lifting her two fingers up. "First is, if you're willing to sleep with him and the second is to find out how much it will cost to get you to sleep with him. And by cost I don't necessarily mean money because in your case, Segun will try to woo you by taking you out on dates and stuff, making you feel loved and all the crap that men do to soften we women up."

I'm staring at her now with more understanding. So this is how men see we women? I'm silent, pondering on her words, but she is far from finished.

"And girl, you could be the most perfect woman on God's green earth - you're capable of interesting conversation, you cook different types of dishes, you hand out massages like sandwiches, you're independent, which means, to him, that you're not going to ask him for money. But bestie, if he's not ready for a serious relationship, he's going to treat you like a sports fish."

I sigh and sit up straighter in my chair. "And so... I'm Batman's sport fish?" I ask incredulously.

She nods slowly, reluctantly even. "But, there's a way we can turn his game on him, 'cos it's a game, girl."

It's my turn to lean expectantly towards her. Seeing this, she continues, knowing she's snagged my full attention.

"It's not the guy who determines you're a sport fish or a keeper - Babes, it's actually you." She pauses for emphasis. "When a man approaches you, you're the one with total control over the situation - whether he can talk to you, buy you a drink, dance with you, get your number, take you home and see you again. All of that! They definitely want all those things from you, that's why they talk to you in the first place. But it's you who decides if you're going to give them any of the things they want, and how exactly, they're going to get them. It's dictated by YOUR control over the situation. Every word you say, every move you make, every signal you give to a man, sends a chain of reaction towards him smashing you or not - Period!" She finishes with a flourish.

"Hmm!" I echo. "Very interesting." I pause. "What exactly did Dipo tell you?" I'm leaning so far unto the table now, that I'm practically almost off my chair. I can't wait to hear what he said about batman.

"It's what he didn't say, that I picked on. When you guys left, we were about going to see Dee, when Chioma waltzed in. Dipo's demeanor immediately changed. He became stiff as hell. We talked a bit and then she turned to Dipo and asked him where Segun was. You want to know what his reply was?" She looks at me knowing full well I want to know what he said. - "You're the one fucking him, why ask me?" "Those were his exact words."

My gasp is instantaneous. "He said that?" I echo.

"Yup!" he nods. "Want to know her reply?" She asks, yet again.

I nod, not trusting myself to speak. "Nothing! She just smiled triumphantly, like a bloody cat that had licked too much cream. And she gave me the most creepy smile, which I think was kind of a message for you." She finished, pointing at me.

"Me!" I gasp. "Why me?"

"Oh my goodness!" Ebere sighs dramatically. "You're such a simpleton. Use your brain please! She's sleeping with Segun, but she see's you as a threat, probably because she knows he likes you. How? You ask. Well, she must have seen you both at the wedding together. Matter of fact, I'm very sure she knew about you way before the wedding because of that episode at the boutique and the way she looked at you then."

"Yeah!" I say, quietly. "He likes me so much he wants to get into my pants." I sigh, leaning back in my chair, sadness written all over my face.

"Oh get over it girl! Every man wants that, but I'll show you how you can actually get his attention. Make him want to be in a serious relationship with you. Who knows, it could even lead to marriage. Do you like him enough?" Her voice is quiet, but insistent.

She's looking at me, waiting for an answer.

You know fully well you've had a thing with some of the female staff here. The words come to my mind suddenly, words Mr. Faseun said to Batman while I was eavesdropping.

I stand up then and stare off into space, unknowingly backing Ebere. Two girls pass close by, jostling me in the process and spilling ice cream on my tee - shirt, but I'm oblivious to it.

I recollect batman's face and the intensity with which he looks at me. I recall how it feels when he calls me princess, just like a caress on my skin and I shiver when I remember his kisses, how they make me feel - wild and untamed!

And oh lord! I do want to experience those kisses again and every other single thing couples do with each other. I want to be with him in ways that scare me. How can I feel so strongly for a perfect stranger in such a short time?

I turn round to face her. She's staring at me, anticipation in her eyes.

I hesitate... but only for a bit. "Yes!" I reply firmly.

Ebere smiles gleefully, rubbing her fingers together.

"Game on!" She breathes.

I smile along with her, victory dancing before my eyes.