I drop my bag on my bed, and begin working the straps of my shoes, all too eager to dive in.

The flats fall, and the feeling of a feathery comforter is seconds away from me when my mother interrupts.

"Oluwalonimi!" she yells from downstairs, shaking the ceiling and my sanity.

I shove sad feet into shoes, as I paint a picture of a woman in desperate need.

The vice grip of a leather couch. While the Nollywood film holds her hostage and incapable of getting anything more than a centimeter away.

My mother-in-distress.

"Yes Ma I'm coming!" I yell, knowing her bat ear sensors only worked when snooping in my affairs.

I race down the stairs to see her squint through reading glasses, and slowly motion to the coffee table in the center of the room.

"Please help me get the remote, it was too far for me to reach." she says waiting for me to pass it to her.

Swallowing my sigh I hand it over and leave after she dismisses me.

Finally left to my devices, I strip to mismatched underwear, and plummet deep into my pillows.

..................

"Come on babe, aren't you going to kiss me?" he says bridging the little distance between us.

I watch as my fictional boyfriend acquires a bee's mouth and starts...buzzing?

Cornered against a locker, I bang my head so hard when I try to open my eyes everything is black.

The buzzing travels through the sheets and I roll over to realize I had a call, not a boyfriend.

Can't a girl get a break?

Upset I wouldn't see any cheeky, 6'4, brunette I pick 'Private Number's' call with low expectations.

"Hello who is it?"

"Take a guess." says a deep charismatic voice that I immediately recognize.

"Hmm I don't know...Jack?" I say, acting like any real guys were imploding my hotline.

He laughs on the other line and my tummy tickles.

"Is that really the best you could come up with?" the man says not buying my act.

"Good to hear from you too Issie." I say cooly.

"I see we're on nickname basis now." he answers sounding both pleased and surprised.

"Are we not friends?" I say waiting for him to counter me.

He sighs. "So I'm starting from the bro zone? Here I was thinking I would earn the strange coveted title of Daddy." Isren says, and it takes me a moment to understand he was poking fun at my generation's overtly sexual endearments.

"Now you're starting to sound a little too friendly." I say, silently fascinated by his satirical humor.

"Maybe I am, but I never agreed to being just friends."

To this my ear perks up and -against my will- my hopes.

"Who said I was interested ?"

"So you're telling me you're not interested in being my plus one to a fashion show?" he asks with faux dismay. "Not even for the sake of charity and a lovely evening?"

Pshhh me? I'm so different and- who am I kidding?

Sign me up please.

"I don't know, you're going to have to convince me."

"And how long will that take me?"

"Perhaps an extra hour on the line or so, will charm me enough to consider your cause." I say, drenched in the attitude of a pompous aristocratic matron.

"Well lucky for me I'm all yours tonight."

"Very well then, so what were we talking about again?" I say crossing my legs as I settle deeper into my pillow.

"Friendship, tell me more about yourself friend."

.........

He hangs up at last and I sigh in content.

Without him to distract me my hunger returns in full force and I creep down the stairs hoping Mum would have made dinner without me.

For the first time in my life I wasn't totally screwed and Mummy had indeed left a pot of jollof rice on the stove.

I lifted the lid of another pot and savored the sweet smell of chicken stew.

"Thank you God!" I say to the heavens, not wondering if there is an actual recipient of my gratitude.

I quietly serve myself and tiptoe to my room once again.

On my way up the stairs, I'm almost given away by a creaky floor board and I have to stall my movements -or suffer a lecture on why the only reason I should be up late is studying.

Soon enough the coast is clear, and I take a tentative step before dashing off to my midnight feast.

Hunger -0 : Nimi- 1

Booyah!

..........

I pull apart another piece of the juicy drumstick when a message comes in.

"Ooh who is that person that won't let me eat in peace?" I mutter trying to figure out how I would type a response with my oily fingers.

Demilade

I blink again.

"I must be famous now or something. Two guys in one night, okay na." I whisper to no one in particular, dropping my phone back on the bed.

The boy could wait but chicken could not.

After exiting the kitchen I had left in a sparkling state, I rub the excess water onto my pajama shorts, and grab my phone from the sheets.

Demilade: Hi Nimi this is Demilade from school. How are you? I messaged to ask you about the current plans for World Book day...

I quickly type an answer explaining our basic presentation schedule.

Hoping that he wouldn't see this till morning, I snuggle deeper under my covers and glance at my phone screen one last time.

At that moment it lights up and I groan.

So much for catching up on my sleep tonight.

The event is this Thursday, so I know I can't prolong the discussion -it's one of the few days a Library Prefect is needed.

Sleep - 1

Nimi - 0

Thanks a lot life, you couldn't let me have today could you?

Author's Note

If you've made it this far thank you for reading my book! I appreciate every single one of you so much❤️. Please remember to leave a vote if you enjoyed reading it as this really helps my books. Feel free to leave a comment to say hi! Or let me know your thoughts as you read. And share this book with a friend you think would like it.

Thank you and I hope you have a great rest of your day now.

Love y'a :)