Chapter Twenty-Seven

She was in a taxi, on her way to work the following day. Her hair wasn't packed as she was too tired and stressed out to pack it all up in a bun. It touched her back, and blew with the wind, since she was sitting close to the window. She wore a simple midi yellow dress, along with black flats and a black bag. All through yesterday up until that morning, she hadn't had anything to eat. It was too much on her; finding out that her dad had been involved in criminal activities, and that Tade had played a role in her father's death, and still seemed to be involved in activities like that. She heaved a deep sigh. She just couldn't get it. Why on earth was Tade and his father involved in such practices? The company made so much money, so, why did they have to partake in something so illegal and repulsive? Was it greed or what? She just couldn't wrap her fingers around it. Ever since she had found out the truth, all had not been well with her. She had thought that things would become better once she uncovered the truth that had been hidden for years, but now, she knew better. Some things are better left unknown, and if she had the chance to turn back the hands of time and change things, she'd just go back to the time when she didn't know a thing. If she had known, she wouldn't have pried. She'd have just told herself that it was all a misunderstanding because Tade was a good person, and that there was no way in the world that he could be involved in the murder of her father. After all, he had saved her life, and time and time again, proven to be reliable and caring. A call came in through her phone. She sighed in exasperation. Why couldn't Tade just leave her alone? Since the day of the anniversary, he had been calling and texting her, and she hadn't been responding to any of his messages, neither had she been picking up his calls. Couldn't he get it into his thick skull that she probably wasn't in the mood to speak to him? At least, he hadn't shown up at her house. That would have been worse. She was going to ignore the call, but then it rang again and was on its third ring, when she decided to just check the phone and see if it was really he who was calling her. To her surprise, the caller ID showed that it was Nneoma who was calling. Thankful that she had checked, she answered the call. 'Hey, babe," Nneoma said, as soon as she picked up the call. 'Hey, good morning," Bukunmi responded, her voice lower than she had wanted it to be. Thankfully, Nneoma had not detected her mood from her tone of voice. 'So, ever since I laid my eyes on your boss, I've been doing some thinking," She said. Bukunmi rolled her eyes. 'Thinking about what? If you're looking for ways to set me up with this guy, it won't work. I'm on my way to the office, and I sincerely don't have time for any of this," She said, refraining herself from hanging up on Nneoma there and then. 'Calm down, will you? When I saw him, he looked so familiar, so..." 'You probably saw him on the Internet news, concerning his escapades with women," Bukunmi said, cutting in. 'No, I didn't, but you mean that dude is a Casanova? Damn! He doesn't seem to be that kind of person," Nneoma said. Bukunmi scoffed. 'He's worse than that," She said. 'Oh, really? How?" Nneoma asked. 'Trust me, babe. You don't want to know," Bukunmi replied. Nneoma, not wanting to pry further, continued with what she was saying. 'Anyways, I finally remembered where I had seen him when a friend of mine invited me for a party at the club this night," She revealed. Confusion sank in. 'I don't get it. What is the link between Tade and your club party?" Bukunmi asked. 'I knew you would have forgotten, because you were really drunk that day, but do you remember the day your mum forced you to go to a club with me? That was barely two months ago, when you were still broke and jobless," Nneoma said. 'Yeah, I remember. What about that day?" She asked. 'Try to recall, Bukunmi. You had been drunk and you were dancing on a stripper's pole. I had gone to get another bottle of wine, and when I came back, you introduced me to this tall handsome guy..." 'He had said he's sure that I'd get a job which involves doing what I love the most with a brilliant salary, not so?" Bukunmi asked, her memory slowly coming back to her. 'Exactly, babe. Try to remember more," Nneoma said. Bukunmi rubbed her forehead gently. 'Um...I think he was surprised that Mami lets me go clubbing..." '...and you even told him that she had let you come because she wanted you to get a rich husband," Nneoma chipped in. Bukunmi laughed gently. 'True. Then, you asked why I didn't get his number when he was leaving, and I was like he should have asked since he's the guy," She said, tears forming in her eyes, as she blinked rapidly to stop them from falling; his face suddenly popping up in her mind's eye. How could she have forgotten? 'Do you remember now?" Nneoma asked, over the phone. 'I do," She said, nodding in the affirmative, even though Nneoma couldn't see her. The taxi pulled over at Welling Fam Heights headquarters, where she worked. She paid the driver his fare, and stepped out of the vehicle, standing in front of the company, not knowing how to comport herself when she entered. 'Do you remember something you had said that day?" Nneoma, who was still on the phone, asked. Bukunmi chuckled nervously. 'How am I to remember when I said a lot of things?" She asked. 'Well, there's a particular statement you made that day. When I was like you had lost a golden opportunity, you were like you had lost nothing..." '...and that, for him, if it's meant to be, it'll definitely be," She completed, as the tears she had been struggling to hold back fell. 'I think you both were really meant to be. After all, you needed a job, and you got one in his company. I just called to let you know that. I have to rush off to the office right now. Do have a nice day," Nneoma said, and without even bothering to get a reply from her, ended the call. Slowly, Bukunmi removed the phone from her ear, and everything suddenly started making sense. At the club, he had said that he didn't know her mother was that kind of person, when she had told him her mother let her go clubbing. Just recently, he had said he knew she worked as a waitress in an eatery when she was in the university, and when she asked Ben if it was he who told him, he had denied it. She had just brushed it off, without giving it much thought. However, it was getting clearer that Tade knew who she was more than she had thought, and these occurrences could be traceable to the guy who had been her number one fan, the guy whose username had a single letter, the guy who sent her presents on valentine's day and always cheered her up when she was feeling down, the guy who understood her better than anyone else, the guy who had told her there was an opening at Welling Fam Heights... Tade Wellington was 'T", who knew her better than anyone else. 'Hey," He called. She turned around, lips quivering, fingers shaking, and her whole body trembling, at the new secret that had just been revealed. 'You know, don't you?" He asked. She wanted to ask him what he was talking about, she wanted to deny knowing anything, she wanted to act like everything was still normal between them, but even as much as she wanted to pretend, her emotions betrayed her, and she fell to her knees, sobbing hard, her heart tearing into pieces, too weak to take any more drama. Tade wanted to hold her in his arms and bring her comfort, hoping it somehow soothed her nerves and took most of the pain away, but he already knew he lost the right to touch her the moment he watched the CCTV footage of the secret room, and saw her making away, with confidential documents and a flash drive he believed contained evidence as regards the murder of her father. Watching her cry her heart out broke his own heart. He didn't know when tears also began to ooze in torrents from his eyes as well. He had only wanted to make things better for her. He didn't mean for her to find out about the true nature of things, and break her heart. His heart bled as he saw the state she was in. He should have stopped himself from getting too attached with her. He had tried, but he should have tried harder, then he'd have been able to save himself from this hurt and endless pain he was feeling. For the first time since he became an adult, he was crying because another person was crying. She wasn't just another person though; she was someone who meant the world to him in just a matter of time. He spotted one of the security guards watching them. After shooting a glare at him, he wiped his tears, and extended a hand towards Bukunmi. 'Get up, please. Let's try to not create a scene," He said. He watched as she wiped her tears with the hem of her dress, and stood up, declining the offer of using his hand to help her get up. She started walking into the company, when he held her hand and stopped her from going any further. 'Leave me alone, Tade. I'm begging you," She said, in a hoarse voice. 'You can't go into the company looking like that. Everyone will know that something's up with you," He said. She scoffed, and gave a bitter laugh. 'Assuming people were to ask what's wrong with you, what would you say?" He asked. 'The truth," She retorted, loudly. 'The truth? What truth?" He fired back at her, loudly as well. 'The truth that there's more to Welling Fam Heights. I'd tell them that you all are a pathetic gang of criminals, who kill, kidnap and force people into giving away their kidneys. You are disgusting!" She yelled. 'Is that all? Isn't there more?" He asked, also in a yell. She nodded her head rapidly. 'There's more. You all..." 'Enough! Did you hear what I had to say?" He asked. 'No matter what you say, Tade, he still doesn't change the fact that you're a murderer," She said. 'I've never killed anyone. If killing birds and other animals makes me a murderer, then, so be it," He said. She was slightly taken aback, and asked in a milder tone, 'You've never killed anyone?" 'Not a single soul," He replied. 'But..." 'Come sit in my car. Let's talk, at least, before you make a decision," He said. 'What if your gang is waiting there to kill me just the same way they killed my father?" 'Bukunmi, don't you trust me?" He asked, a little bit offended. 'Oh, please. Weren't you the same person who gave information on my father's whereabouts?" She retorted. 'For crying out loud, that was eleven years ago," Tade thundered. She scoffed. 'You want to know one thing I've learnt so far?" 'What?" 'I've learnt that people don't change. What happened may have taken place eleven years ago, but it doesn't change the fact that it happened, and that you can do something of the sort again," She said. A tear slid down his face. 'Well, let's say I haven't changed. Eleven years ago, apart from disclosing your father's location, I also saved your life," He said. 'What are you trying to imply?" She asked, unperturbed. 'That you're alive today because I saved your life in the past. If I saved your life eleven years ago and I haven't changed, it means I'll protect you again," He said. She licked her lips, then stretched her hand, wiped his tears, and fell into his arms. His arms were wrapped around her waist, and he stroked her hair, his heart breaking with every tear that fell on his shirt. Awkward silence filled the air twenty minutes later, when they were seated in Tade's car, not saying anything, as Tade had revealed everything about his father's loan business, starting from the very beginning to this point. 'My ears have heard so much, that I may not be able to hear anything for the next one month," Bukunmi said, finally breaking the silence. He gave a dry laugh. 'You've heard everything. What are you going to do now?" He asked. She breathed out loud. 'I'm in a dilemma, and I'm still trying to process everything I've learnt of between yesterday and today," She replied, truthfully. 'It's funny how I thought all these would remain a secret forever. I was and I am still scared of losing you due to the mistakes I've made in the past, and the mistakes that I am still going to make," He said. She swallowed. 'You know, everything that has happened isn't exactly your fault. You were young, and like the Bible says, ‘Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.' You just acted in accordance with how you were trained from the beginning," She said. When he didn't say anything, she went on. 'You must have been lonely, helpless and afraid. When my dad came, you found solace in him, but when he joined the bad guys, you felt like you were alone, not so?" She asked. He nodded in the affirmative, trying his best to hold back his tears. She squeezed his palms. 'Then, you started feeling like the only person you had in life was your father, and that you didn't really have a choice," She continued. 'You're right. You know though, my dad let me live instead of my mother. He had known she was going to die once that transplant was made because he was warned, but he wanted to make sure I didn't die, and he chose me over the only lady he had ever loved. After your father died, I couldn't get it altogether. I stopped doing what my father wanted, but at a point, he got really sick and was bedridden. I thought he was going to die, and I started doing all he wanted. I had lost everyone that I held dear to my heart, and even though my father's a terrible person, I couldn't afford to lose him as well. Honestly, I still can't afford to lose him. That's why I always do all he asks, in order for him to be proud and happy, because I'm scared of losing him," He explained. 'I understand, but your mother...did she love your father as well?" She asked. 'Of course. That's why she didn't report him to the cops, even though he was responsible for her father's death, and she was aware of all the atrocities he had committed," He said. 'Sounds more like foolishness to me," Her subconscious said, and she agreed deep down. For all she knew, she had fallen deeply in love with Tade. He was a very good person, and in more than one way, he had shown it. He had, under the guise of 'T", always made sure she was all right, knowing fully well that she would never have accepted help from him. All this time, he had been looking out for her, and above all, he was the reason she was alive and breathing today. Still, she didn't want to let her father down. Just like Tade, her father might have been a bad person, but he had his good sides. However, what was bad was bad, and she had been wrong to think that someone's good sides could overshadow their bad sides. 'Bukunmi, what will you do now that I have told you everything you need to know?" He asked. 'What do you want me to do?" She asked. 'First of all, I think you should answer this question. How do you feel about me right now?" He asked. She heaved a sigh. 'I don't know, but one thing is sure: I do not hate you. In fact, I think I know. I should be mad or angry at you, or probably resent you now, but I still love you," She said. 'Wait. You love me?" He asked, surprised. 'Yes. I know I do, because irrespective of your shortcomings, I still care so much about you, and I don't want any harm to come to you," She said. He sighed as well. 'I love you too. I didn't want to catch feelings for you, because I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't help it. I wanted to stop myself, but I just couldn't. I'm head over heels for you, and I am glad you feel the same way about me," He said. She gave a sad smile. 'Does this mean you will let sleeping dogs lie?" He asked. 'What?" She asked, confused for a moment. 'You know, since you love me, you wouldn't bring the cops into this, right?" He asked. 'I would never do anything to hurt you, because I love you so much," She said, then stretched her hand towards his neck, drawing it close to her. On cue, their lips met, and he kissed her more passionately than he had done in the past. Her lips parted, and with her arms around his neck, she leaned closer to him, her body entwined in his. Thankfully, the glasses were tinted, and no one could see the moment of ecstasy that they shared. At that moment, all Bukunmi wanted to focus on was kissing Tade, and forget all the burdens that life had thrown in her way, and for Tade, he was grateful to have someone like Bukunmi, who loved him regardless of his flaws, and concentrated on thinking of how to make it up to her. She deserved better than him, and since he couldn't bear to see another guy with her, he was determined to become the man that she wanted him to be.