Yes, finally, I'm back as I promised☺️❤️

Okay, umm, before I start, I just wanted to say that the comments on the last chapter had me rolling on the floor with laughter! I'm talking basically about the comments on the whole Ivandor/Yure scene. You guys are so funny tbh!!

So, a lot of you guys kept saying Yure should have just ran away and all (which killed me btw😂) But on a serious note, y'all shouldn't be running away from your problems, thats what got Yure in the soup he's in rn lolll.

Soooooo, my question is;
What would you guys have done in Yure's shoes?? (Remember, you would still get punched anyways) But what would your initial reaction be if you were put in that position??)

Okay, let's dive into this chapter duly🎉
I have a huge surprise for y'all here☺️❤️
If you have read "When Golden Souls collide" by dheenmah, brace up for what you're going to see in this chapter. Prepare to be mind blown!!!❤️

                                         ~YURE~

It's been a couple of days since Ivandor broke my nose.

Funny enough, it seemed like the devil felt I hadn't had enough just yet.

I now had to go, with a visible plaster on my injured nose, for a pending Intra-school programme.

The Dynamis Tour.

Basically, it was just a National Intra-school programme, where different schools all across the country travel all around Nigeria, mingling with each other and engaging in all sorts of activities and seminars, as well as, academic competitions like Spelling bees, Essay contests, Quizzes and all of that kind of stuff.

Different schools usually got paired up to compete at the same time. While the losing school drops out and goes home, the winning school proceeds to the next level, and keeps getting paired to compete with other schools. That is, until they lose and drop out as well. The process goes on, until the finalists are settled to compete against each other.

The whole experience lasted for two whole weeks, and ALL prefects of Castron High were compulsorily  supposed to be a part of this 'trip'.
Well, along side, the students who were also representing the school in the competitions too, ofcourse.

And in all honesty, with everything going down right now, I wasn't ready for this trip. I just wanted to_

"What's up, bro!"

I literally jolted up, startled that moment, as a loud voice snapped into my thoughts. Quickly following it up was a playful, yet, fairly hard slap on my back that surely brought me back to reality.

The Lexus Car that brought me here was now parked infront of Ladea hotel, a five-star hotel that the school had already booked for everyone that was going to be a part of the Dynamis Tour that was starting tommorow.

I had drifted into my thoughts when my personal driver opened the the trunk of the car, to get out my luggage. That was before the sudden distraction came.

However, my body settled at the familiarity of the voice that alerted me. I turned around and my guess was right.

There was Nova, standing there, having on a grey hoodie and some joggers, and well, a wide, amused grin on his face as he looked at me.

"Dude, these days, you get scared so easily. You a criminal or something?" He joked, and I laughed under my breath, shaking my head at his comment. A bit relieved, I was, and for a reason I wasn't even sure of.

"No, no, seriously, bro. Tell me the truth. What are you hiding?" he urged on, folding his hands across his chest and feigning fake seriousness.

"Okay, let me guess, whatever it is got you a broken nose, right?" He added still, without giving me a chance to even answer. That grin suddenly returned back to his face almost immediately.

I would have been stunned, or compelled to think Nova was intentionally messing with me, but I remembered the plaster on my nose was a visible evidence of my broken nose.

"What happened, though?" Nova asked, tilting his head to the side a bit, and slightly squeezing a half of his face in a little wince, as he looked over the bandage on my nose.

Nova really was clueless about everything going on. So clueless.

It was best that way, I guess. At least, I still had one friend.

"How did you know I was here, you fucking stalker!" I bit back instead. I clearly just diverted the whole topic completely and hoped, within me, that it wasn't too obvious.

"Hey, hey, no cursing!" Nova exclaimed, laughing and raising his hands up in a fake gesture of surrender.

He didn't press on, fortunately. He diverted his attention to my driver and in minutes, the two were conversing like people who weren't just acquaintances.

We got into the hotel reception first, and the first thing I noticed was a group of my class boys all sitting together around the couches in the middle of the reception.

I'm guessing Nova was with them, and probably that why he was able to spot the car I came with easily. The doors of the reception were photochromic.

A lump formed in my throat as I spotted Ivandor there too, with the guys.

A part of me unsettled.

Only God knows whether he told Krisdana what happened that day. She had said absolutely nothing to me since then. However, one thing was certain for sure,and that was the fact Ivandor and I weren't friends anymore.

As I even walked past the group of guys on the sofa, heading upstairs with Nova, the guys all kept greeting us, and Ivandor remained ever so stoic and quiet.

Suddenly, a part of me felt a bit relieved Nova was going to be here at least.

Being here was totally his choice.

Anyone had the freedom to be a part of the Dynamis Tour, mainly for the other activities or the seminars. Or, their parent's forceful intervention, perhaps.

Or like Nova, some of them just simply want to support their friends, I guess. That, I was grateful for.

One akward week passed.

Castron High kept coming out successful, beating all the schools from Lagos to Asaba, and eventually made it to the final stage of Dynamis.

Our final competitor was Trinity Academy, and we were supposed to settle with them in Abuja.

And on the first day that Castron High and Trinity Academy came together to lodge in the University of Abuja, both schools were called to have a seminar in a big, grand hall.

I sat, without Nova or Ivandor, on one of the seats there, as we waited for the Seminar to commence properly.

Funny though, I actually had to share the same hostel with Ivandor, well, and the rest of the other male Prefects, and the dude was not even ready to lift a brow my direction the entire time.

Maybe, I like sitting without them anyways. Makes things less akward.

But Hell, the hall was noisy!

While Castron High students sat at the right wing of the Hall, all dressed cordially in our school uniforms, our rivals, to say, Trinity Academy, neigboured us closely by the left. All of them well dressed in their own school uniforms.

"Oh, boy!  Trinity babes make sense dieeeee!!!" JJ, who sat by my side, commented out loud.

The girls from Trinity Academy sure were pretty. At least, the ones I had seen so far. They portrayed elegance, and their boys portrayed confidence.

Funny enough, I was almost certain that they were  talking about us, just as we were talking about them.

Right after the long, almost never ending duo Seminar with Trinity Academy, I found a quiet empty table in one of the Cafe's around to just sit and think.

It was quite hard though, because 'Tesumole' by Naira Marley was playing through the speakers at a fairly distracting volume, and also, at another intervals, I got interrupted by hysteric laughs coming from one of the tables at one side of the cafe.

I smiled occasionally at the group of friends surrounding that particular table. All of them - mostly guys and about two or three girls, all dressed in their Trinity Academy Uniforms, talking and laughing as they had lunch together. They seemed very happy. Their smiles, their laughs. Golden.

Sort of reminded me how things used to be in the past, before I fell out so badly with Krisdana and Ivandor. It was our guy crew plus Krisdana. We used to be so happy.

All that was gone now, and probably never was going to be the same again.

Maybe, what I needed right now wasn't even to be surrounded by friends.

I needed my alone time.

I needed to think. Honestly, it felt like I was starting to lose my mind.

Krisdana.

Prissy.

Let's not still forget my broken nose..

I held my palm to my face, and when I brought them back down, my eyes set on the table and I let out a deep sigh.

Krisdana.

Prissy..

"What happened to Krisdana and Prissy!?"

I jumped slightly at the loud, high pitched voice that just spoke to me.

Looking up, I saw Hassana, craning to stare at me with shock and amusement in her light brown eyes.

Hassana? She's been here in this Dynamis Trip all along?

"That what happened to Krisdana and Prissy, naw?" She spoke again, right into my face.

I backed my face up a little away from hers.

"No, Hassana, I_,"

"Tell me what happened to them, naww!" She whined, as she scooted herself into the seat directly next to me, with so much enthusiasm and interest in her overactive bones.

And the hell? Did she actually read my thoughts? Or, have I started voicing out my thoughts now?

"I've been watching you ever since I got here," Hassana told me, snapping her fingers in exhageration to emphasize how long she had been watching me.

"Lemme show you what you were doing!" She said, as she just moved her shoulders a little, preparing to position herself to imitate me.

Next thing, she hunched her back, flaunting a horrible posture, elbows hooked on the table, and hands pressing onto her face so, so hard.

With a faked gruff, breathy, overly exhaggerated and rushed masculine voice, she repeated, "Krisdana. Prissy. Krisdana. Prissy," over and over again.

She didn't even stop. I had to hold her hand and pull it away from her face for her to.

"Yure, what are you thinking about? That even Prissy had to now enter, ejo?"  She asked me, clearly still alarmed.

"It's a long story, I_,"

"Infact, don't tell me." She waved off immediately. "And stop thinking about things too much!" her voice seemed to even going higher and squeakier.

"Do you know what over thinking does to your health?!" She went on still.

That was when she started spitting rapid fire and counting with her fingers;

"Anxiety disorders,"

"Depression and suicidial thoughts,"

"Possible Brain Damage,"

" Insomnia,"

"Mental instability,"

"Even heart disease and Cancer,"

I tried to stop her there, "Hassana, listen..,"

"And the worst of them all!" She rather continued, robbing me of that chance and hitting her hands on the table to illustrate the gravity of whatever she was about to say next.

Her face contorted to a horrified expression as she opened her mouth to say the gravest of them all. "Wrinkles!"

I blinked once. Twice.

I couldn't help it.

I actually laughed.

I really, really laughed.

Hassana just sat there and looked at me in confusion, until I was done laughing.

"Yure, I don't actually know why you're laughing oo, because nothing I said was funny. I'm talking serious shit over here!" She scolded me.

Wait, was she actually being serious, because it was honestly cracking me up.

How was this girl even Giwa's friend. I still did not understand that.

She was truly a phenomenal character.

"Wait oo, Yure!" Hassana suddenly started tapping me, as she turned her attention towards the table of friends I had noticed earlier that brought back memories. The one I had mentally named "The Golden Smiles Table."

"That girl standing up!" Hassana alerted me, and I narrowed my eyes at the girl she was talking out, who just stood up from that same table.

A little smile fixated on my face. The girl was pretty. Very pretty. Clear dark skin that complimented her really well, and these two gigantic curly puffs, parrading itself with its own form of independent pride on the sides of her head.

And just like Giwa Falade, she had this strong, confident, domineering aura around her.

"Don't you remember her?" Hassana asked, turning to me with wide eyes.

Well, having this was the first time of ever coming to a Dynamis Trip, that's a big NO.

"She left Castron High in Jss3! You know her!" Hassana said.

"What's that her name again?" She clicked her fingers as she desperately tried to remember.

"Haliya!" She exclaimed soon after. "Haliya Sanusi!"

That name rang a bell in my memory.

"Remember Junior school, naw? 'The Royals', Haliya and Kelechi?" Hassana hinted on.

It all came back to me suddenly.

Haliya Sanusi and Kelechi Uwa - the two princesses in our set that year. They were a bit too quiet, so I guess that was why it didn't click initially. All I do remember is that one was a Nothern princess, and the other was an Igbo princess.

What Hassana forgot to mention, however, was that she was a third wheel in their friendship.

After Haliya left the school to Trinity Academy as we can see, I can't recall ever seeing Hassana speaking to Kelechi again. Somehow, she managed to squeeze herself in with Giwa. Meanwhile, Kelechi is still here in Castron High with us, and well, she's..still..Kelechi.

But this Haliya ... seems quite different from what I remember.

I mean, that mind blowing confidence and domineering aura she walked with as she headed towards the counter. Nose high up in the air, like she stood on top of the world. And the way she chewed her gum with so much sass and class combined, like she didn't even give a single damn about the next person beside her.

Wow.

"Let's go and talk to Haliya!" Hassana urged me with so much excitement.

Just that moment Hassana gave her suggestion, another individual got up from that same 'Golden Smiles' table, as I call it.

A guy, this time. Very tall, and I was 100% certain that he was biracial. With that perfectly blended mixed skin and his dark, dark foreign hair that fell over his forehead, nearly even obstructing his eyes. He definitely was halfcaste.

He made his way towards towards Haliya, who was already by the counter now, looking over around her like she expected better, than to be standing there and waiting for somebody to attend to her.

Almost like Haliya, this guy had this confident aura around him, even as he walked - but in a more mellowed, co-ordinated, quiet, yet, cold way that screamed royalty and power, and well..a huge 'Fuck Off', as well.

"Fucking shoot me!! Who is that fine boy!!" Hassana screamed in a mellow whisper tone, gasping and holding her hand to her chest.

She took her time gushing about the guy, right until he got to Haliya on the counter.

I let go of my hand as Hassana started to squeeze it, as she watched the guy, lean lazily, with this effortless swag, by the wall next to Haliya, staring stoically into nothing in particular as it seemed he was waiting for her. Talk about resting bitch face!

Before I knew it, Hassana Alfa was pulling me by the arm, and leading me, against my will, towards Haliya and the other stranger she just drooled about.

As soon as we got there, an overly confident and excited Hassana was the first to speak.

"Haliya! Hey!" She squealed.

While the royal looking, mixed guy leaning by the wall beside her remained unmoved, Haliya turned very slowly to meet Hassana with an unimpressed and intimidating look.

And, wow!

She was even prettier up close. Her eyes, especially. Big cat eyes that pointed at the very ends and radiated an alluring, yet intimidating dark brown colour. Her eyes were both beautiful and scary as fuck. Sort of like a volcanic eruption.

And when that visibly unimpressed, and slightly peeved look of hers, dirverted from Hassana, and to me, I felt a bit uncomfortable. Like I needed to stand up straighter, or adjust my shirt or something.

Hassana, however, remained unshaken. Infact, it wasn't even her business. A smile was plastered on her face, as she continued speaking to Haliya.

"It's been sooooo long!" Hassana started.

"So, you've been in Trinity Academy all these while??! And dayuummm, girlll!! Lukatchiu! You look sooo good!!" Hassana's enthusiasm did not match this girls own at all. She clearly was not having it, and Hassana did not even seem bothered about that. Not in the slightest.

Haliya's gum chewing paused for a short amount of time, as she looked at Hassana with a slight arch in her brows. She legit looked like she was about to snub the shit out of her.

"Thankyou," surprisingly came out of Haliya's mouth, before she resumed her gum chewing. Still with that lack of interest evident in her prim and proper tone, she added,"Hassana."

If I say I wasn't shocked Haliya even remembered Hassana, call me a liar.

Haliya's eyes moved to me classically.

"And you are?" She asked like a queen interrogating a peasant. With so much authority. Like she had the absolute power to find out whatever she wanted.

"Yure," I found myself answering, and all I got in reply was an 'oh', before she just looked away like it didn't matter.

She didn't even remember me. Ouch.

"Kelechi is outside though. Incase, you want to see her too," Hassana informed Haliya, and for the first time ever, when Haliya turned to look back at her.... there was a softness in her eyes..

Seemed like she and this Kelechi had a bit of history.

However, she covered up that softness in seconds and responded, "Actually, I'm with people." She gestured thereon to the 'Golden Smiles' table promptly.

"Oh okay okay, and what's stopping you from introducing me to your good-looking friend???" Hassana even pressed on, diverting her attention to the boy who had been leaning by the wall and not saying a word, the  whole entire time.

He heard her.

His piercing silver eyes moved from whatever he was formerly staring at, to Hassana directly. His face remained stoic, however.

"You, what's your name?" Hassana asked him directly, like she was interrogating a little child.

"That's Amir." Haliya answered dismissively. "And we should be leaving s_,"

"Amirrrrrrrr!!!" Hassana literally sang the guy's name, cutting Haliya off in the process, as she swayed towards the seemingly uninterested guy.

Goodness, Hassana..

"Sounds like the name of the Prince," she coo'd at the poor stranger. "A foreign Prince," she added still, and my God! Did she just ruffle his front hair?

Hassana!

Amir looked a tad bit annoyed as he put his hair back in place, giving me a chance to notice the gold wristwatch around his wrists.

"Hey, can you not_," I heard his voice attempt speaking for the first time, but Hassana cut him short.

"Aww, you're shy, aren't you?" She said to him.

He clearly wasn't. He looked completely uninterested. Vaguely irritated, even. Hassana was not getting the hint. Like I said before, it wasn't even her business.

"Aww, I get that." She added immediately, and then without warning, she started to blow off words at rapid speed, giving exhagerated gestures, while at it.

"I used to be shy too in the past, honestly, like especially in huge crowded places, I'd just get so claustrophobic and it just gets so stuffy and then I lose my breath and almost die. But then I don't die, I just sort of pass out and struggle to get back air into my lungs and_,"

Me, Haliya, and Amir just stood there and watched speechlessly at Hassana who kept talking and talking and talking, without stopping to take a breath for a moment.

When she finished, there was silence for about three seconds and a slightly stunned look on both Haliya and Amir's faces.

Then, Amir did it first.

His shoulders quaked a little as he stiffled a small laughter. Haliya followed suite, and so did I.

Next thing, we all were laughing at the same time!

I couldn't believe it!

Hassana actually 'broke' these people! Hassana broke them!

"Yure," I said, extending my hands to meet Amirs' in a quick handshake. With an acquainted smile, he  shook my hand promptly and repeated his name to me. "Amir."

Hassana, as excited as she was, rather went on and on about hanging out with them on the 'Golden Smiles' table.

I rather passed on that offer politely, walking alone to the Boys' dorm from there.

Days passed quietly. Of course, it didn't take long for the other prefects that shared rooms with us to detect something was wrong with me and Ivandor. Somehow, Nova remained clueless.

And on that night before the Dynamis finals', Nova decided I needed to 'losen up', and after all said and done, I ended up chilling with him and a bunch of my other classmates. All of us, sitting by the pavement of the road side that led to our hostels and well..just..vibing.

And for the first time since forever, I felt at peace.

Love by Kendrick Lamar blasted from someone's speakers as everyone around here basically just talked and laughed, Aaron and Casper being the obvious leads at this. Some of the girls rather sang along to the song and laughed occasionally.

This didn't really seem so bad at all.

Well, that was until I heard one of the guys amongst us chant;

         FEJAUN!!

Well, you could say I spoke too soon.

Ivandor didn't look too interested in all the coos', even if he politely dismissed the guys one after the other as he walked down, holding something in his hands. To me, he seemed like he had something bothering and lingering on his mind.

Was it the competition tommorow?

I was aware that  he and Giwa was representing the School in the science quiz against Trinity Academy tommorow.

When Ivandor walked past the guys, probably heading towards the hostel, I looked away from him.

However, he stopped walking when he got to me and Nova, and immediately, I sensed trouble.

"Xup, bro!" Nova greeted with his usual grin, as all eyes started to divert our way.

Ivandor nodded back a greeting. Ofcourse, I wasn't looking at him, but I knew.

"Yure." His voice called audibly.

Finally, I slowly looked to meet Ivandor's impassive face and steady eyes staring at me.

"Sup," left my mouth involuntarily.

Immediately, without saying anything, he tossed an Ice pack at me and I caught it quickly.

"Get rid of that bandage on your nose and treat yourself properly." He said plainly.

I was so shocked. My eyes were wide open, stunned at his sudden kind, yet plain gesture.

"Thanks, man." I said.

He didn't even answer me.

He just turned his back and started walking back the direction he came from.

That made it clear that he wasn't even going to hostel. He only came here to give me an ice pack to treat my nose and leave.

Wow.

I held the icepack in my hand and guilt slashed through me.

It wasn't long since Ivandor turned to leave, that I heard someone else's voice amongst the gathering speak up at the new individual that just popped out from nowhere, and right to Ivandor's front.

      "Giwa?"

We're done hereee!!!❤️❤️

Sooooo, comment 'I'm current' if you recognized the characters that guess started here "Haliya and Amir" from When Golden Souls Collide by dheenmah😩🔥You guys dony know how fun it was to write about those characters!!!

I know they were hot asfffff!!! If you're on this app and you haven't read that book, I don't know what you're doing ooo.😩😩🔥 Seriously, check it out. It's too peng!!

Honestly, I think we should be doing this collab thing more often. Nigerian Writers, I mean. It's an amazing way to lift other people's stories too and give them more exposure.

Although, I suggest you may have to take permission from the writers before doing so. Especially if you're going to be doing something like what I did with Amir amd Haliya here. That would be necessary so you don't mix up timelines and complicate stories.

dheenmah has her own surprise in stock for you guys!! Read her book now of you haven't gotten on it yet ooo!! Now, I can proudly say that 'Those Little Things' and 'When Golden Souls collide' are in the same fictional world!!!!😭😭❤️

So sorry to end in such a devastating cliff hamger btw😪

I'm even more heartbroken to announce I won't be updating till 5th September😪💔 Sorry abeggg, but the whole of next week is sooooo busy for me and I don't want to rush anything and give you guys crappy chapters, and this next chapter is going to be mad intense!!

Sooo, from 5th September, I'll be updating back to back like a mad woman, I promise ❤️❤️