Ever since the day Obiageli met Jideze, she had never been herself. She was lost in thought almost every time; drifting off at any slightest chance she got. She kept convincing herself that she did the right thing by accepting Jideze.

Jideze was her boyfriend of so many years. She had known him for years and he had proven to be just the ideal man for her. He was like an iron that had passed through fire and brimstone yet came out strong and unmoved.

She knew he loved her just as he had loved her before. He was everything she was not. He was faithful and trustworthy; she was unfaithful and disgusting.

She was glad that he had finally achieved his dream. His boss had shown him kindness and had decided to settle him even before his years of service had been completed.

The deal was that he worked for five years but his boss had settled him after three years of service. According to Jideze, his boss had informed him that he was hardworking and honest hence his early dispersal.

Obiageli had gone with him to see the huge shop his boss had established for him. It was filled with assorted bottles of alcoholic and non alcoholic wine. Obiageli was amazed by how much the boss had spent in opening the shop. Jideze told her he sold wholesale prices only and never to retailers.

"Your boy is now a big boy. The rejected stone is now the cornerstone." He had said to her that day.

Obiageli believed she ought to be by his side now for she had been by his side even when he had nothing. Staying by his side was her rightful place. She had refused to think of Ifeanyi.

Though he had sent her two letters. She had read them all but had not replied, instead she had placed them into the pink box she had bought earlier. In the first letter, Ifeanyi had informed her of his mother's persistent plea for him to stay back with her for a month.

He wondered if she was doing this for the sake of restoring peace between him and his brother. To him, it was a lost case but he was scared to admit this to his mother for he worried about her health.

He sent a letter to the factory in Lagos and had pleaded for an extension in the date they had given him to return to work. He told her he missed her and hoped to hear from her soon.

In the second letter, he had wanted to know what was going on with her and why she hadn't replied his last message. He hoped she was fine and not missing him too much; he would come soon and they would be on their way to Lagos.

It was in tears, Obiageli had read those letters. She couldn't bring herself to reply. What would she say? She had found her old boyfriend and had started a relationship with him?

Ifeanyi had wanted to know about the factory workers and if they still ate at the canteen. He wanted to know how they were doing but how would she know when she didn't hang out with them anymore.

Even when they had asked her to, she had lied that she wasn't feeling too well and had gone to sit in the kitchen instead. She could tell from the look Pa Nonso gave her, that he didn't believe her a bit.

Monica had reported her to their boss that she wasn't doing her job as it ought to be done. Obiageli couldn't blame Monica for telling on her, not after what she had done some days before: She had served a customer beans when he requested rice. She had placed fish when meat was requested.

She had been making clumsy mistakes and had been stepping on customer's toes. The robust woman whose canteen was her source of income had no choice than to summon her.

After so long a sermon - spiel of how she loved her (one of the reasons she had been employed) -the robust woman had threatened to sack her should she continue such behaviour.

After that day, Obiageli came to a conclusion to resign from her job. She was already tired of it and everything seemed to disgust her. It had never been the same since Chinaza left and it became worst after Ifeanyi's leaving too.

Even the relationship she had always enjoyed with the factory workers had been broken. Of course she had broken it.

Everything annoyed her: from the stupid seductress whose gait was irritating and clumsy to Adaobi's ex boyfriend, whose stupid face held a disgusting lust each time he stared at Monica.

Obiageli didn't want to do it anymore. She didn't want to stay any more so she dropped her resignation letter with Monica and left even without waiting for her boss' reply; even without saying goodbye to her once funny friends: Pa Nonso and Oga Philip.

She had no reason to worry about food or other needs she may want. Jideze was more than capable and ever willing to provide all her needs according to his surplus in riches. He took her out on dates and showered her with so much care and love.

He came almost everyday even when he stayed far away from her apartment. He had two sales boy so he had no need to worry about his business.

Obiageli had not hesitated to write her mother a demeaning letter, pouring out all her heart content on the letter. She closed her eyes to the fact that it was her mother she was addressing. She had been too angry to care.

It was her mother's fault her life was like this: scattered. If she had simply handed over Jideze's letters to her, she would not had gone to Enugu and so would not have met with Ifeanyi. In a nutshell, she wouldn't have been in her current dilemma.

She loved Jideze but she loved Ifeanyi too. She didn't want to hurt either of them. However, it seemed the 'hurt' couldn't be averted. One must get hurt and that one was Ifeanyi.

Jideze had proven himself worthy and she was better off being with the one who had been with her through thick and thin than staying with the one who had only seen the sunshine but never felt the storm. How sure was she he wouldn't run when the storm came?

With this thought in mind, Obiageli packed her loads and left with Jideze to live with him since he had proposed it to her.