I'm sorry for the long hiatus. I hope I can be forgiven. I promise to update the remaining chapters soon. A big thank you to AestheticTejiri for voting continuously on my book in less than 24 hours.

I haven't forgotten about Amanda yet, her case is settled.

"I love you Nnamdi and I'm sorry! Even though you aren't here, I'm sorry!"

"I'm sorry too."

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Shock ran through her veins upon hearing the voice of the person she thought she knew. Shame didn't allow her to look up to his eyes. She knew it was him, but she couldn't muster up the courage to see his face.

The tears rolled out as her head remained towards the floor. Her countenance showcased weakness and sorrow which would prick at any soul that way her.

Nnamdi stood like a statue, watching her every move. Did he expect her to just jump and hug him and then they both dance in front of the moon? No. He expected her to be mad, in fact, he was wondering why she hadn't slapped him in the face all this while.

"I'm sorry." They said at the same time. Efe mustered the courage to look up at him. Broken was an understatement of how she felt.

"Let me go first." She said. Using the back of her palm to clean her tears. She stood up and dusted her jeans, looking at him straight in the eye.

"Nnamdi, I haven't been the best person to you the past few days. I didn't appreciate your help towards me all this while. Especially when I'm a complete stranger. I'm sure you want to stop helping me and I understand, but what I need from you right now is your forgiveness. I'm so sorry." She released the breath that was held within her.

Nnamdi stared at her, not saying a word. Unknowingly, he was breaking Efe with his silence. Tears were flowing out of her eyes all over again. They were coming and flowing and filling her face and her sobs became louder and louder until it turned to a horrible sentient of misery.

She had thought that it was over, not only had she pushed him away, he wasn't going to talk to her or show that he was affected by her. Maybe he just apologized because it was the right thing to do? She didn't know anymore.

Finally feeling defeated, she made to walk away from the scene but a hand grabbed her forearm and she was pulled into his arms. Nnamdi was angry, yes. But he couldn't let this girl go. No matter what had happened between them.

"It's okay. Let it out." He said as he caressed he back as she cried into his shirt.

"Efe, I'm sorry. I took advantage of you and made you feel like a bag of dirt. I am the bag of dirt, not you. You are a very, very ,very beautiful girl, you are a brilliant and intelligent lady. You may be impulsive sometimes but it works out in the end. I told you that I would never leave you, and I broke that promise. Please, can you give me a chance to make it up to you?"

All while he spoke, her head was bent low as she listened. She looked up at him, not saying a word. Standing on her toes and gave him a peck on his cheek.

Nnamdi's heart was doing jumping jacks, long jump, relay race and tug of war at the same time. The red on his face was enough to prove that dark skinned people can blush silly too.

They both hugged each other. Relishing in the moment. No one said anything. Not that there wasn't anything to say, but the silence was beautiful and peaceful. And so they enjoyed it, together.

"Joshua came to me after I left you."
He pretended that he didn't here a word of what she said and Efe wasn't too glad that he did so.

"But he left me too, the same way I left you." A sob followed after those words.

The hug became tighter as muscular arms covered her slim ones. She breathed in and out until her tears balled like fists under her eyelids.

"So where do you think he is now?" They both left each others arms and Nnamdi wiped her eyes with the back of his hand.

"I don't know. We went to the park to meet Mapis. I wanted to have a private discussion with her and so I told Joshua to excuse us."

He nodded for her to continue.

"He didn't look too happy about it and went outside. Some time after I went out again, he was gone."

She scratched she back of her head as she thought of various possibilities of where he could be.

"I know he is your friend and we are going to find him. But what about your dad, we are basically at a dead end finding him." He said.

"Don't worry. We're going to find him. We just hope that God's grace will intervene." Efe spoke.

And the night sky became an audience to their silence as they now had two missing people on their hands and no way to find either one.

"Let us pray." Nnamdi said.

Efe was particularly shook by his statement. Nnamdi didn't particularly appeal as one who knew the four walls of a church. He looked like that kind of guy who didn't believe in such things. But who was she to judge?

"Are you sure?" She asked again. Just to clarify if he was joking or not.

"Yes. I'm sure."

They both knelt down by the side of the bench and held each others hands. It was a good thing that it was night time so people won't start to wonder on what was going on.

Nnamdi had nervous breath. He had not as much recited the Lord's prayer, not to talk of praying from the spirit. With fear of saying the wrong thing or maybe annoying God with his prayer, he did a silent sign of the cross and took back Efe's hand.

"Father, in the name of Jesus, thank you Lord for today. Thank you for reuniting Efe and I. Thank you Lord for the people we met and for the Love you showed us. Father, pleased help us to find Joshua and Efe's Father. For you know the beginning to the end. Thank you Lord for prayers answered for in Jesus name we have prayed."

"Amen!" They both chorused and Nnamdi released the breath he didn't know he was holding. Why his heart felt at peace after the prayer, he didn't know. But what he knew was his life was never going to be the same again.

They both stood up and dusted their knees.

"God is in control of everything."

With that, they both sat on the bench which now had light reflecting on it from a building which it's generator was just turned on.

"How did you spend your night?" Efe asked him.

Nnamdi took a deep breath and explained everything. From going to Elisa's house to meeting the Pastor at Church. Efe listened attentively to every single word. But there was something at the back of her mind.

"Wow! Your night was clearly more awesome than mine. And I could imagine your face when Elisa almost maimed you with a chair. But you said something when you were describing the lady who tried to pour acid on Elisa. That she was very fair?"

"Yes, like her skin was a very large contrast to the dark clothes she was wearing. Very very light skin, almost like she was white." Nnamdi explained further.

Efe scratched the back of her head. The description sounded very familiar to a woman she had seen. She had seen a lot of fair ladies in her life but this lady had made something in her go off.

Reaching into her bag, she brought out her almost dead phone and went to her Gallery, checking the screenshots, she remembered the picture of her dad and a lady on Facebook, a day after her mother died.

She brought it out and was amazed to see that the lady almost got the description that Nnamdi have her. She showed Nnamdi the picture. He scrunched his face as he looked on, proceeding to even take the phone from her hand and kept on looking. He then gave it back to her, with his eyes clothes and said a sentence that Efe would never believe she would hear that day.

"I think we've found your father."

Hello!
I am so sorry for the undue hiatus. School and everything has tightened me, but the holidays are close by so I will finish this book by then.

Thanks to all of you that gave me my 1k+ reads. You are all blessed.

God bless and keep you.

👋