*EDITED*

"So when exactly should I come then?" Chioma asked Amanda over the phone.

"You can come right now, I'm having my lunch break so it'd be best if you come now" she replied and Chioma nodded, forgetting that Amanda couldn't see her do that.

"Sure, I'm on my way" she replied.

"Great. Please hurry up" Amanda said and finally hung up.

Chioma heaved a sigh, as she changed into a pair of black skinny jeans and a pink tank top. She hurriedly put on her pink flip-flops. Afterwards, she grabbed her shoulder bag and her phone - which she put into her shoulder bag. Once she was done doing that, she looked at herself in her full-length mirror and smiled as she did.

She finally went out of her room and headed to the kitchen to grab an apple.

"Mom, I'm going over to Amanda's work place for a bit. Be back soon" she hollered, as she grabbed an apple and rinsed it in the sink.

"Sure, dear," her mother replied with a small smile on her face. "But when you get back, just let me know, you hear?" And Chioma nodded and placed a peck on her cheek.

"Love you mom!" She chirped, biting into the apple.

"Love you, dear!" her mother hollered back, and she walked out of the kitchen to her car.

"Seb! Seb!!" She yelled the name of her designated driver.

"Yes, madam. I'm on my way" he yelled back as he ran over to meet her.

"I warned you, that I never want to hear you call me 'madam'. Do I look old to you? It's ma'am or Miss. Chioma to you. Am I clear?" Her voice was stern, and sharp. He dared not irritate her any further.

"Yes, ma'am" he replied, afraid fo making another mistake. Who knows? She might pick an offense in his style of breathing.

"I'm going to meet my friend at Ayoola Group of Companies, get into the car and let's go" she ordered and he complied and soon they were out of the house and on their way to Ayoola Group of Companies.

* * *

Chioma got down from the car and walked into the massive building before her. Amanda was a really lucky girl to secure a job at a big company such as this. Chioma was indeed proud of her and smiled unknowingly, as she got into the company.

She met with the receptionist and informed her that she was here to see her friend and then she was immediately allowed to go see her. She took the elevator, because she didn't want to walk all the way up to the first floor. And when she finally got there, she came out of the elevator and walked towards the secretary's office. Amanda was working as the secretary to the assistant manager of the company.

A knock on the door was heard, and she was instantly urged into the office.

"Come in" Amanda's voice came from inside.

"I'm here!" Chioma announced as she walked into the office, wearing a smile on her face.

"Chioms! Thank God you actually made it here. I was about grabbing lunch at the cafeteria. Let's go there" Amanda said as she pushed her seat away from the table to enable her get up, and then she took Chioma's hand and led her to the cafeteria which was located at the second floor.

"So, you're saying he's actually getting married to her?" Chioma asked Amanda as they sat down to eat.

This topic was one which Chioma found distasteful. Her meal instantly tasted bland at this, and she tried to keep her rising anger at bay. A cauldron of emotions steamed inside her, brewing an internal hatred towards Ebuka.

"Apparently, and from what I heard. The girl is actually pregnant for him" Amanda informed and Chioma's eyes involuntarily grew as big as saucers.

First offense: he was getting married without her consent. Now, second offense: the girl was already carrying his baby? Did he hate her this much? What exactly was his gain from hurting her like this?

Like the news tasted sour, so did the rest of the food on her plate. She instantly pushed her food aside, losing her appetite.

"You're kidding, right?" She asked, still stunned by what she had just heard.

"With something like this?" Amanda chose to answer her question with a question.

The bitterness she felt within her, was beyond her reasoning capacity. Why did it all hurt this much? Not only did he stab her in the back, he was equally twisting the knife to heighten her pain. Wasn't it enough that she cried over their ugly break up?

"That traitor! So that means he was actually cheating on me while we still dated. I can't believe this!" Chioma said, hurt evident in her eyes. Amanda noticed this and reached for her hand across the table and gave it a gentle squeeze to calm her down.

She knew Chioma was hurting but didn't want to show it. Who wouldn't hurt over something like this? Chioma actually expected him to propose to her but instead of doing that he chose to go ahead and have an affair with someone else. She tried to hold back the tears that were welling up in her eyes but then they still didn't go unnoticed by Amanda.

"Please let's forget about that foolish excuse of a human being. He's just a waste of saliva and also a waste of our precious time. He's not worth your tears and neither is he worth your sadness, okay?" Amanda said to her and Chioma managed a weak smile. She got a grip of herself and returned her attention back to her meat pie.

The once tasty snack, wasn't so tasty anymore. It rather seemed like chaff in her mouth.

"Speaking of which, how about Amara? I hope she's okay" Amanda said, trying to change the topic.

"Yeah, she is" was all Chioma said and then returned her attention back to her meat pie.

She was staring at it, like she was asking for permission to continue biting into it... Just like her pain kept bitting into her mind and heart.

"Good to know" Amanda replied, and continued eating her egg roll.

"And how about Ade? The guy you said you're dating" Chioma decided to ask.

"He's fine" Amanda simply said and Chioma nodded her head in understanding.

Amanda finished up with her egg roll and gulped down the remaining content of her Sprite. Then she checked the time on her wristwatch and groaned.

"I have to get back to work. My lunch break is already over" she said and Chioma also groaned.

"It has just been forty-five minutes since we got here. Don't tell me that's only what you get for your lunch breaks" Chioma said and Amanda chuckled with a nod.

"You better believe it" she said, getting up from her chair. Chioma also did the same and they both walked out of the cafeteria.

"I guess I have to go now" Chioma said, staring at her watch.

"Yeah, but I'm coming over immediately after this. I'm spending the night at your place" she informed and Chioma smiled at that.

"That's good. I can't wait" she said, her smile still very evident.

"Okay naw, later" Amanda said and Chioma waved at her and left.

"Bye" she said,

She walked towards the elevator and pressed the button to open the door to the elevator but then someone also tagged along and did the same thing, causing their fingers to meet. Chioma tore her eyes away from the elevator and then stared at the person who owned the finger, retrieving her finger from the person's immediately.

A frown marred her face as she gritted her teeth in annoyance. The fact that her mood was already sour was already more than enough, but did the universe have to bring him here?

"You" she said with a scoff and a scowl forming on her lip. In reply, he shrugged.

"Yes, me. Aren't you happy to see me?" He asked and she looked away and scoffed once more.

"What are you doing here?" She asked and he smiled, seeing how she was trying to avoid his gaze, keyword: trying. She looked cute with that look on her face.

"I work here" he said with a 'duh' tone. Soon the elevator made a ding sound and then it opened up. She ignored his looks and stepped into the elevator and he did same too.

The fact that he stepped into the elevator with her, made her even more irritated than she was before. She didn't want to breathe the same air as him, and neither did she want anything to with him.

She hated that she was in the same room with him, this made her shift as far away from him as possible. Why she was avoiding him was what she couldn't even comprehend. That singular act earned her a chuckle from him. And as much as she hated to admit it, it sounded really gorgeous.

She chose to ignore him all through but her plans came to a halt when the elevator lights went off and the elevator came to a stop mid way. The power had gone out. NEPA people had finally struck again.

A gasp escaped her lips, because she hated the dark and most especially, she hated tiny spaces. She was claustrophobic and didn't like to share this fact with anyone. Only the people close to her, like her family and Amanda, knew about this. And it made her really angry that this had to happen. And it had to happen here. And with him.

"No, no, no, no, no, no," she muttered as she paced around the elevator, her breathing ragged. "No! This can't be happening!" She yelled in frustration, slamming her hand on the elevator door.

"Come. On! This can't be happening!" she yelled again, through gritted teeth.

Femi looked at her with furrowed brows, and although he couldn't see her  too clearly, he knew she was panicking and scared.

"Chill, it will only take a minute or so and the lights will come on. I'm not a virus, you know? " he said, thinking she was acting that way all because she was stuck in here with him.

He was wrong. Not entirely wrong though, but a bit far off. If she stayed here any longer, she could pass out, or worse, she could have a panic attack. And she hadn't had those in years.

"Just shut up!" She yelled at him and kept slamming her hand on the thick, iron door. "Come on! Open up!" She yelled out in frustration. "I said, open up! I. Don't. Want. To. Be. In. Here!" she yelled again, her breath getting hitched in her throat. Her breathing became ragged and her voice: slightly hoarse.

Femi shuddered at her behavior. He'd never seen a girl this mad before. Was she mentally unstable? Perhaps she had a mental defect? He wasn't sure, but he was sure of one thing: her actions amused him.

"Will you just calm down? I'm not even close to you, so you can relax" he assured her but she decided to ignore him. Her breathing became even more ragged than before, and he could see that she was shivering.

"Not here. Not now... Please, God. Help me. Help me, God. Please" she sang to herself.

The minute he heard her say that, he almost exploded with laughter. She sounded scared, like a child who had been up all night, watching a prohibited horror movie. He just couldn't believe this was the exact same girl who'd been so rude to him and uptight. A little dark, and she was already mellowed down like honey.

What is wrong with her? I'm not even close to her so why is she acting up like this?

He asked himself as he watched her panic. She soon left the door and sat down on the floor, inhaling and exhaling loudly, as she slammed her head on the surface where she had lain her head. She kept doing this and Femi thought she was running mad.

"I don't want to be in here! The walls are closing in on me! I can't breathe! Argh! Help! Help! Help me!" she kept banging her head against the hard metal behind her head.

"It's choking me! I can't breathe! I... I can't... I can't breathe!" she gripped her hair, continuously banging her head against the surface behind her head.

"I. Can't. Breathe!" she struggled to pull out her words, increasing the force at which she banged her head against the surface. Her chest rose and fell at a tremendous speed and she gasped for air, repeatedly slamming her head against the surface. Hard and harder, she kept inflicting pain on herself. Still chanting: "I can't breathe!".

Femi gasped, the minute he saw her tears. He couldn't comprehend what was going on with her and he felt so irritated by this behavior of hers.

Does she really hate me that much? So much that she wants to kill herself?

He thought.

She didn't stop slamming her head on the surface either. He noticed that more tears were already gathering up in her eyes, and then he decided to find out what was really going on with her.

"Hey," he said as he squatted beside her and held her hand "what's wrong?" He asked in a calm and gentle manner, staring at her watery eyes.

The minute she looked at him, she yanked her hand away from his grip and got up. Backing away in fear, and slamming her hands and legs on the floor. She kept trying to push against the wall, her breathing faster than usual.

"Leave me alone! Just stay away from me! Don't come any closer!" She yelled and then she returned back to slamming her hand on the elevator door again. "Help! Help!! I'm stuck in the elevator!" She yelled again and this time Femi didn't care what her reaction would be, he grabbed her hand and searched her eyes for answers.

"What's wrong with you? What has gotten into you?" He asked, concern laced in his words.

She glared at him and tried yanking her hand away from his grip but he wouldn't let her. Her tears spilled freely and she yanked on her hair sobbing helplessly.

"Let me go!" She yelled and he still refused. He didn't know he was hurting her, and that only made her even more afraid of him, than she was before.

"Not until you tell me what your problem is" he said, meaning every word.

She struggled to pry his hands off her but he was clearly stronger than she was. She broke down again, yanking furiously on her hair and gasping for air.

"I said, let go of me!" she cried out, wincing in pain as she scarred her skin with her finger nails.

"No" his answer was firm, and she shuddered in fear.

"Help! Help!!" She yelled, struggling to pry his hands off her, then he placed his hands on her shoulder and looked her in the eye.

"What is wrong with you? Tell me" he said, searching her eyes.

"Let me go! Let me go right now!" She demanded, her breathing uneven and ragged and more tears spilled out of her eyes.

"Please. Just tell me wh—" he was cut off by the sound of her scream.

"You're hurting me. Leave me alone! Stop!" when he heard her say that, he let her go. He didn't mean to hurt her, and he mentally slapped himself for that.

"I'm sorry, I had no idea" he said and she backed away in fright.

"Get away from me. Just stay back!" she yelled, and he suddenly wondered what was taking so long to get the elevator working again.

"I don't understand you. What is with y—?"

"I'm claustrophobic, you dimwit! Don't you get it?!" She yelled out and he stared at her, surprised.

It all made perfect sense now. He should've guessed it right at the beginning.

No wonder she's behaving like this.

He thought.

He didn't know what came over him but he felt she needed a hug to calm her down. And that was what he did. He pulled her in for a hug and she tensed at his touch but then calmed down when he resulted to stroking her artificial braids.

"G- go away" she murmured, although it came out muffled as she snuggled into his chest.

"It's okay" he said as he stroked her hair.

Her breathing came back to normal after a while and she hated the fact that she was actually enjoying the hug. It made her feel safe and she really needed it. How did he know that she loved being held like this? It made her feel safe and yet calm.

Femi finally pulled away from the hug, and although she hated to say it, she wanted him to hug her again. He stared at her with a smile on his lips and for a moment there, she was lost in his eyes.

What is happening to me?!

She asked herself.

She couldn't look away and neither could he. Soon, he found himself staring at her lips and although he fought the urge to resist the actions in his head, he couldn't help it.

Femi, look away.

Yet he couldn't look away, and soon found himself inching closer. She didn't step back either and he didn't either. He tilted his head and was about placing his lips on hers when the elevator door finally came open.

That was enough to snap Chioma back to her senses. She pushed him aside with full force and glared at him.

"Don't you dare touch me ever again!" She warned before walking out on him.

He was stunned at her reaction. He just helped her and the least she could say was 'thank you' but instead, this was what she decided to pay him with, with such a rude comment. He shook his head and sighed as he also walked out of the elevator.

As he got out of the elevator, he felt embarrassed at the stares he got from the employees. Now realizing what they must've thought of the commotion that'd happened in there - and his supposed action before the elevator came open - he couldn't help but feel embarrassed.

"Get back to work!" He ordered the workers who had their eyes fixed on him. They had seen what was about to happen and that made him really ashamed but he decided to cover it up by yelling at them.

__________________________

Dramatic moment right there, huh? 😂
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