The following day after Wumi narrated the issue to Nancy, she left for her place because it was on a Monday. Even Nancy had to prepare for work as well. She got dressed for work and escorted Wumi to the park whereafter she'd take a cab to her office after taking Wumi to the park. They gisted on their way to the park; it was some minutes from Nancy's place to the park, but it's not advisable to trek. Due to their intense gisting, they had to trek so they won't end their discussion hastily. When they got to the park, Wumi located the vehicle going her way, paid the bus fare and settled inside the car, waiting for otber passengers to fill the bus as the conductor yelled the location at the top of his voice. Wumi bade her farewell with a long tight hug.
As they released the hug, Wumi caught Nancy's hand, squeezed it gentle and said, "Nancy, do what's best for you. No matter your decision, I'll always be your number one fan. You have my support as long as it'll make you happy." Nancy beamed, awwed, nodded and pulled her into another hug. "Thank you."
In the evening , when Nancy got back from work and she stepped into the compound, her heart leapt with joy. She hadn't been this overjoyed to hear the earthquaking sound of her neighbor's speakers. Her answers were getting closer. She gentle hopped to her verandah and peeped at her neighbor's entrance to confirm if the loud music was coming from her room. The atmosphere was filled with Burna Boy's Angelina. She was nodding her head absentmindedly to the gbedu beat as she was filled with hope and joy that Tina was finally back. She unlocked her door and danced in.
At night, the power company had just taken the light, quite a bad time for Nancy because she just finished cooking and was about to turn on the fan as she didn't eat hot food. Now that she was left with no choose than to carry her jollof spaghetti and beans outside for natural breeze. She nearly cursed the power company. They had such a bad timing. Outside, the moon was at her brightest; complete full moon. People were enjoying the company of the moon outside; children were playing moonlight games, men were arguing about football and politics, women were gisting and cautioning the kids to stop rough plays. That's the beauty of nature. Nancy enjoyed the sight more than watching movies. But she hated eating her homemade food outside; it made her nauseous. She had no other option than to sit outside. She reached for her broom and swept her verandah. She had a small soft mat which she hadn't used since her mother forced her to pack it when she was leaving home. Mothers and their intuition; they know their children would need something later in the future but still plan it for them in the present.
She spread the mat on the swept verandah and brought out her food. It took few minutes before the food reached the normal temperature suitable for her taste buds.
"Hi, Nancy"
She was on her third spoonful of her food when she heard her name. She looked up, with the spoon in her mouth and saw Tina. She hastily removed the spoon, leaving the content in her mouth, she chewed like she was being chased and swallowed quickly. She kept nodding her head all through.
"Hey..." She finally said after struggling to gulp the water down her throat. She cleared her throat a bit before she concluded her sentence, "...Tina."
Tina wanted to snicker but didn't want to seem offensive, so she gulped the snicker. "I'm so sorry to disrupt your dinner. Probably I'll come back later."
Later ke? What if I'm unable to see her again tomorrow? Not even with this my boss dishing out deadlines like his life hangs around the assignment.
"No, it's fine. I can finish the meal later. It's still hot also, I'll wait for it to get cold."
"I insist, eat first. I'll definitely come back. It's important I do; I'm going back home tomorrow and my brother also sent me to you."
It took Nancy a couple of minutes before her brain processed the last sentence. "Your brother?" Her eyes were wide open but she doubted if Tina would see it because the moon was right behind the whole building, hence the shadow of the building covering the front yard. So, it was possible Tina didn't see the twinkle in Nancy's face. Tina nodded and went back inside, waiting for her to finish her meal. Nancy rushed the dinner like a thief being pursued by an angry mob. She never liked suspense, keeping her in suspense literally turns her into a curious cat. She rested midway to catch her breath and continued eating again.
After her meal, which she finished under ten minutes, she packed her plates into her kitchen and sat outside for a while. Waiting for Tina and also enjoying the cool breeze. After ten minutes of waiting, she summoned the courage to go and meet Tina herself. She needed to satisfy her inquisitiveness, she had to summon or resurrect the courage, either way.
She knocked on Tina's door twice before she heard footsteps from within. As the footsteps got closer, the sound could be heard more. It wasn't a footstep with a flip-flop sound or with any shoes. It was a barefooted footstep sound. Her sense of hearing was a sharp as a needle. Tina opened the door and smiled at her while she was replying to someone on the phone. She beckoned on her to come in.
The first thing that caught Nancy's attention was the pinkish scenery. Everywhere was pink. Even if there was a sky in her room, it'd be pink. She placed her right foot on the footmat at the entrance and the fluffiness sent comfort to her under feet. Tina gestured at her to sit on the three-seater couch in the room which was pink as well. She then took a good look around the room: she wondered how Tina's room was quite spacious unlike hers which wasn't as spacious as this. Both were also a room self-contain, unlike other rooms which were two-bedroom flats. Probably the owner did a little adjustments which was uneven. Tina was lucky enough to get the spacious room. She sat on the succulent couch, her spine and buttocks almost prayed for her as they felt the comfort. Nancy wondered what her source of income could have been.
On the pink wall, there were wallpapers of different musicians: Ariana Grande, Fireboy, Burna boy, Shakira and others. She was clearly their fans. Her giant speakers were directly leaning against the wall that separated their room. That explained the earthquaking sound in her room. Then the thought came to her head. She could see everything in Tina's room without light from lamp or phone torch. Was there light? She stared at the bulb for few seconds before she deduced that it was a solar light. She knew she had never seen a solar panel anywhere near her room.
"Alright, I'll be home tomorrow, before lunch. Alright, Mom. Love you too. Bye."
Nancy remembered whey she came and snapped out of her admiration and bewilderment for Tina's room. All the view held her back from listening to the phone conversation. Even if she wanted to, she wouldn't have understood anything because it was none of her business. Her mother had trained her to always paddle her canoe.
"Oh, so sorry for the delay."
Nancy readjusted herself on the seat and smiled. She tried to view herself from Tina's perspective and felt stupid for coming to meet her. After all, it was Tina who said she'd see her. Her curiosity would drag her pride in the mud. However, Dave had sent her to her, whatever regret she might have felt had dissipated.
Tine sat beside her on the couch. "I thought I'd come meet you outside but I later got a call. I'm so sorry I delayed you."
"No, it's fine."
"Okay. So..." She paused a bit. "Honestly, I don't know how to start this." She bit her lower lip. Nancy watched and listened with keen interest, she kept expecting the discussion. "Okay, I'll start like this. I'm aware that my brother likes you..."
Bombshell.
"...and it's mutual."
Another bombshell.
Nancy felt naked a bit. She didn't like the fact that Tina knew about her feelings for her brother. She wanted to protest but paused.
"I know you might feel hurt or not comfortable with me saying this. I apologize in advance. I really wish the best for my brother. He has encountered and passed through a lot since I've known him as my brother. He deserves the best. From what I've viewed from you both, I realized my brother found comfort in being with you. So, please, Nancy, I'd like to know if you reciprocate this feeling for my brother or not. If you don't, I'd not bother you at all and leave you be. If you do, then we're gonna have a long talk about my brother so you don't quit the relationship midway or stick to my brother out of sympathy."
Nancy found herself in a hassle between her brain and her heart. One wanted her to be plain with Tina, the other wanted her to deny the feeling since she didn't know what laid ahead. In short, she chose her heart.