"Very good, Chioma." Adedayo said after he looked into the classwork the child in front of him was working on. He moved onto the next child. Before he could look to do the same, his phone in the pocket of his trouser rang and he took out. It was an unknown number. For a moment, he contemplated answering it. In the end, he hurried to the outskirts of the class and picked up the call.

"Hello." He held the phone close to his ear.

"Hello, this is Kenny, Kennedy." The man on the other end introduced himself. It didn't take long for Dayo to recollect who it was.

"Who am I speaking with?"

Adedayo hung his head low and kept his hand on his neck. "Adedayo. Adedayo Michael."

"And you are the one who was with Adesuwa, right?"

Dayo nodded his head. He didn't have much idea on how difficult it would be for him to be with a man who called himself his wife's husband. The second he remembered Kenny couldn't see him, he replied, "yes."

"I'm about to visit Adesuwa but I can't quite track the address. Could you give me a better direction?"

Dayo went silent, and unconsciously tuned out the sounds around him, including the noise from the classrooms. His heart... his heartbeat went faster.

"Hello. Hello? Adedayo." Kenny called when he didn't get any reply from him.

Dayo pushed himself out of the state he was in. "Y-yes."

"I said..."

"Don't come by now. Joy won't be home till evening."

"Joy?"

"I mean... Adesuwa... I'll text you the directions."

Kenny on the other end paused. There was a nondisclosure understanding between the two men.

"Thank you." Kenny appreciated it before the call was disconnected.

Adedayo took a few minutes to himself while his chest drastically went up and down. It was hard to calm his fast-pacing heart. He shut his eyes for a few seconds and gulped down. Dayo reminded himself of Joy's words. They love each other and no amount of intervention was going to change that.

Dayo found himself in a struggle. He was caught between doing the right thing and doing the right thing for his benefit. He stared at his phone in his hands. He could easily not do anything and not let Kenny find his home. Dayo shook his head at vile thoughts. It would be irrational of him to stoop that low. The truth remained that Joy alone had the decision to make. He couldn't control who comes and disappears from her life.

Adedayo took a deep breath then he sent the message to Kenny. After he felt better, he returned to class.

Kenny drove into the street that should be the part of the address Dayo had written down for him. He steered more times than he would like, away from the potholes that seemed to be all there really was with the street. Mrs. Irabor looked around. Her expression wasn't joyful in the least bit.

"Kennedy, are you sure... are you sure we are in the right place?"

For a moment, he stopped and stared ahead. The gates were all alike. Black but rusty. The buildings were likely similar and even with Adedayo's written direction, he had a hard time locating the very venue.

Mrs. Irabor lowered the glass of her window. "Hello, excuse me young lady." She called out to the woman within the shop beside them and whose eyes were glued to the screen of her phone. Isoken lifted her eyes to her, then she stood on her feet and hurried to her. For a second, she observed the luxurious black Mercedes and wondered why such a car was in their neighbourhood.

"Good evening, ma'am. What would you like to buy?"

Mrs. Irabor's smile was brief. "We seem to be lost. Can you..." Kenny handed his phone to her with which the address was written. She showed it to Isoken. "Can you tell us where this is?"

Isoken read with full concentration and she smiled. "Oh, you're there already." She pointed to the next black gate they could see after they moved away from her shop. "Do you see that black gate? That's the address."

"You're sure? That's where Adedayo Michael lives?"

Isoken raised her brows at Kenny's words. "Dayo? You're looking for Dayo?"

Mrs. Irabor and Kenny exchanged glances.

"Yes." Kenny replied and the young woman's smile broadened.

"Ah, if that's the case, you're heading to the right place. That's Adedayo's residence."

Both Kenny and the older woman smiled as they exchanged another glance.

"Um..." Mrs. Irabor reached into her purse and then stretched her hand within which she held a thousand naira note to Isoken. "... thank you for the help."

The young woman received the money with both hands. One hand under the other. The moment she saw the amount, her eyes widened for a second. Isoken knelt down halfway through to show her respect. "Thank you, ma. Thank you very much."

"It's okay. It's fine." The older woman said before she pulled the glass back up. Isoken took another look at the one thousand naira note in her hands. She couldn't believe her luck. She watched them park by the side of the gate. After they stepped down from the car, their attires reeked of money. She felt even curiouser as to what such type of people wanted with nobody like Adedayo.

Kenny pushed the gate and when it opened, he was first to step in before helping his mother-in-law whose brocade attire was long and free. Both stopped and stared at the state of the compound. Uneven cemented ground, short unpainted walls with slight cracks on them and drying lines that lined on opposite sides of the compound. When Mrs. Irabor's eyes laid on the building ahead, she couldn't help but sigh. The thought that her daughter had been living in such a shabby place was unimaginable for her. She'd raised Adesuwa with nothing but the best of everything. Not once did she let her suffer.

"Which of the apartments is she staying in?" The older woman asked as they walked further. The only beings they saw were kids who had been too busy playing to notice their presence.

"I don't know."

She spared him a look because of his reply.

"Excuse me, hey." Kenny called the attention of the children as he drew closer to them. They stopped running around and stared at him.

"Do any of you know Adesuwa?"

Neither spoke a word. Their reaction was blank.

"Maybe she doesn't go by Adesuwa here. Ask about the young man instead." Mrs. Irabor pointed out.

"Does anyone know where Adedayo lives?"

They all raised their hands. "Me!" Their replies were unharmonious.

The smile on Kenny's face was a haze. "Where does he live?"

They all pointed to Dayo's apartment and Kenny and his mother-in-law's eyes followed the direction of their fingers.

The gate was pushed open and Bimbo stepped in first before Joy did. The period their eyes fell on the guests, both stood and stared. Bimbo didn't just see them as unfamiliar faces. She saw them as obvious evidence of wealth. From head to toe, nothing was ordinary about them. Even the car they had parked outside the gate.

"Um, excuse me. Are you lost?" Bimbo had to ask.

Mrs. Irabor whose eyes got teary at the sight of her daughter, rushed to Joy and threw her arms around her. She held her in an embrace. Bimbo stared at the scene in surprise. She would give anything to understand what was happening here. Joy knew this had to be the mother Kenny spoke about. It was hard for her to return her affection because she had no memories of their time spent together.

The older woman cupped her daughter's face in her hands after she released the hug.

"You've lost weight and your complexion is not the same anymore." She complained as the tears rolled down her cheeks. "I'm sorry. We should have found you earlier."

Joy felt a tug at her heart for the woman in front of her. She had always been worried about the fact that she might not have anyone waiting for her at home and maybe no one cared enough to notice she was missing. It was nice to know she was wrong about that part. Someone did care for her.

"Dayo, Dayo, Adedayo." Isoken called as she rushed to him, immediately she sighted him returning from work. He was forced to stop because she came in front of him. Her smile was crooker than usual. Her eyes held questions and suspicions.

"Did you win the lottery?"

"What?" Dayo was confused. Her question was random.

She eyed him from the side of her eyes. "Tell me the truth. You won something big, right?"

Dayo furrowed his brows at her. She wasn't making any sense. He tried to walk past her but she was yet to let him go.

"I asked you those questions because I don't understand why someone who was in such a big car asked after you."

His brows furrowed even deeper. "Who?"

She pointed at the car still parked by the side of his gate. Dayo's frown gradually disappeared. They were here already. He ran a hand over his face and felt like someone whose judgment day just came upon. Adedayo wondered if he should turn back and stay away till they were gone. At the same time, he thought about Joy and how he deeply didn't want to lose her. But he wondered what right he had to hold on to her. Her existence in his life might be coincidental. Perhaps, if she never had an accident or lost her memories, they could've never crossed paths and even if they did, Joy would have never paid him any attention.

"Dayo, is something wrong?" Isoken asked and not because she sniffed out his worried state but because she still wondered who the guests were.

Adedayo shook his head and walked past her. This time, she didn't go after him or anything. She simply watched and let her curiosity bite her further.

Dayo stopped and stared at the car whose glasses were tinted completely and his reflection stared back at him. He reasoned again if it was worth him walking in on them. It was yet to begin and his heart was already shredding away, bit by bit.