Kind was exited about his new relationship. Dating had been a bumpy ride for him but he was not willing to give up. He had decided to move on and give another person a chance but in retrospect, it had been extremely difficult over the years since Wale was always beside him. This new relationship might prove to be different since Swalha personally handpicked the guy.
He'd been sitting in an open area enjoying the afternoon heat outside Yummy Yum restaurant. Reaching for his phone, he decided to ring Swalha, wondering to himself why she was running late.
Scanning the area looking for a familiar face, he spotted her at the furthest end of the opposite block looking lost.
"I can see you your sorry self. Just cross the road as if you are coming to the former bar we used to come to whilst in collage."
Waving his hands to signal her, she noticed him immediately for Kind was the only guy sitting outside extravagantly mirroring a celebrity. She wondered if he was that oblivious of people looking at him.
"You've got to tell Wale to stop buying you expensive things when he himself doesn't even wear them." Swalha spoke whilst taking her seat. "Besides, it is going to make Todo feel jealous when he finds out you didn't buy them yourself."
"I'm the one making these clothes look good and not the other way round. Don't get confused."
Seeing that her remark was being ignored, she sighed aloud. "Why do I even bother?"
Placing her bag on the seat next to them, she turned her gaze towards the nearest waiter to which Kind informed her of preordering a beverage for them both.
"You'll love this place. We came over the weekend with Cherry and Wale. The catering here is to die for but that's for later though."
Swalha took the menu on the table and scanned what to order. "I hope you asked for Vanilla milkshake for this heat."
Within minutes, a waiter brought their drinks and jovially welcomed them. Kind observed Swalha falling for the genuine hospitality offered by the staff. Sipping her drink, she closed her eyes and let out an aah sound. "That hit the spot. You know me too well Kind."
Putting her elbows on the table and crossing her fingers, she looked at him squarely then smirked. "So, you actually slept butt naked with Wale on the same bed?"
"You just couldn't wait now could you?" Kind replied, almost chocking his drink down.
"I'm so proud of you! You're busy wrecking homes and here I am supporting you."
Kind shook his head in surrender, not surprised by Swalha's reply. He wished to feel the same way but the thought of Cherry finding out made him feel anxious for Kind believed her to be the victim to all this. "We didn't sleep together you pervert. We slept on the same bed and that's it. I was drunk I hardly remember anything of that night."
Sipping her drink one more time, Swalha wanted to probe for more. She thought to herself she should have been there to watch everything in the shadows but Wale would have probably kicked her out. "The juicy part is you were naked beside him."
"I was dumbfounded when he declared it casually I hardly moved. Wale may enjoy fooling around with me but he doesn't lie. Plus I know for a fact he puts his sleepwear on when going to bed. He actually had them on this morning."
Swalha sat up straight and placed her palms on the table. "Well, that's boring."
"You can't keep fostering such thoughts Swalha. Besides you got me Todo whom I'll be meeting after you. This is me not putting my life on hold for a straight guy." Standing up revealing his expensive suit, " Why do you think I wore this to work today."
"Todo likes you not your clothes, though I applaud you for your efforts for looking appetizing to him when you should be confessing to Wale instead. He said you kissed him and you just declared he never lies despite always teasing you. Maybe he is speaking the truth about the kiss as well."
Swalha face lit up as if an idea came to her mind. "What if there's more to what he is telling you that happened yesterday? You said on the phone the room was a mess so how messy was it?"
Kind suddenly went quiet and sat down. Nothing happened, he was convinced nothing did beyond the kiss Wale claimed that Swalha desperately wanted to be true. It won't matter either way since Wale was already in a committed relationship. Next week was his tenth anniversary and Wale had begged him to be there to congratulate them. Kind felt relieved to have finally kept his promise to Cherry.
"Swalha, I'm sorry to say that he will be proposing to Cherry this coming weekend but don't be sad for me. I know you believe that would have been the best time to make my confession public but I couldn't do that to Cherry. He is the one she loves so cheer up. Besides, I told him I'm already dating someone new. If the kiss had happened or more yesternight, he wouldn't have told me of his proposal plans, neither would he want to hear me talk about my new relationship."
"Todo is..." Before Swalha could finish her sentence, Kind interrupted.
"Todo is a girl. That's the new script."
Swalha stared at Kind in silence. She understood the pain of unrequited love more than anyone for she too had been in love with Kind while in collage. She forced herself to give up on him after he'd opened up about liking someone else.
She'd been quite surprised to find out Kind was gay for she presumed Wale the gay one of them two considering his clinginess towards Kind. Iff anything, he'd been the one chasing after Kind. Even to this day, Wale clung to his best friend to the point of finding the same job as Kind and working in the same company and similar department. Everyone could right through his neediness but boy were they mistaken.
Kind was buff so hardly anyone would believe it. Wale on the other hand was cunning and conniving, always scheming about so as to keep Kind close. To Swalha, the only good thing about Wale was Kind however, she had doubts of whether Wale was good enough for Kind.
Giving up, Swalha reached for Kind's hands holding them both and said, "I'll always support you. Wale might be your best male friend but I'm your best girl friend."
Looking up, she spotted Todo coming from behind where Kind sat. "Another guy who loves to dress well." She murmured, noticing the attention he dragged along with him.
Glancing back to a confused Kind who'd not realized yet, she added cheekily. "I'm going to stick around a little longer. Everyone in this block must know I'm always surrounded by handsome guys."