There's nothing in this world
That can't be fixed.
But some things
When broken,
Stay broken forever.
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TJ was just done speaking to the police officer for the third time that day when he saw Abike rush into the emergency room. He'd never been so confused like he was at the moment.
Quickly, he excused himself as he tracked the very disoriented girl.
"Aby?" He called, getting her attention. And immediately she saw him, she visibly relaxed.
"Hey," TJ said warily. "I thought El said you went to your hometown?"
"How's he? Is Elo okay? I know Mum and Dad said he was okay but I couldn't help it. I just... Is he really okay?"
TJ could have laughed at the worried look on her face if only he could afford to. And there was the figure behind her making a crazy face.
He sighed. "If only you knew what he is doing this moment, you won't be stressing yourself out this much."
The twin stopped panting just as she felt movements behind her. When she turned, Elo was there, wearing an infuriatingly wide smile that earned him a beating.
"Awwn," the shorter boy cooed, dodging his twins assault. "Did you take the quickest flight to get to me?'
Shaking his head in disbelief, TJ let them be.
It was crazy how the two acted like they didn't care about each other, but could take the next available flight to the other in the face of danger, just as Abike had done.
It's been two days. Two days since the living nightmare he'd experienced and alot had happened.
First, he had his maternal grandfather, the same man he didn't want to ever meet again, coming to his aid. He didn't know what would have happened if his grandfather didn't show up, since the police never arrived. He didn't know what would have happened to Chimdi.
His heart broke at the mere thought of losing her. He didn't even want to get started on all that she had to endure. All that her Mother had said.
He tried to get rid of such thought, just as his cellphone rang. Looking at the ID, it revealed his father's number.
"Hey Dad." He answered expectantly. Since the incident, his father had been calling him at intervals, just to make up for not being around.
He heard shuffling in the background. "Hey bud, how are you holding up?"
He nodded, glad he got to talk to his father in times like this, even if he wasn't physically present.
"I'm good Dad," his eyes caught sight of the wall clock that hung at a part of the hospital's reception. His eyes widening at the realization. "Aren't you meant to be sleeping now?"
Tasie let out an easy sigh. "While my son is all awake on his own?"
"Dad," the boy stressed. "I'm okay. And besides, grandpa is here."
His father hummed. "Have you spoken to him yet."
TJ shook his head. "Not really. I'm just trying to solve one thing at a time."
"Chimdi still not awake?" Tasie inquired further and TJ felt that sinking feeling in his heart again.
"No. But the doctor said she will soon." He let out a shaky breath, trying to calm himself. "She's gone through a lot. I just wish..."
"TJ, Son she'll be okay alright?" Tasie assured. He'd heard his son's voice, heard the vulnerability in them and that broke his heart to bits. "She's mentally exerted and needs all the resting she can get. That's the body's way of healing without any interruption. So brighten up okay, everything is going to be okay."
TJ let out another shaky breath. This time, it bordered on relieved than restless. "Sure Dad."
He heard his father yawn. "Had a busy day. I'll call you later to get an update."
"Okay Dad. Take your time and get some sleep. You need it."
"And so do you." He paused for a minute. "Son, try giving your grandpa a chance okay. I know he's hurt us, but he's hurting as well. He lost an only child, don't let him lose you too."
TJ nodded, he'd already made up his mind. "Sure Dad."
"Okay. Thank him too. We don't know what would have happened if he didn't come to your rescue."
"Alright Dad. Now hang up, will you?"
Tasie's warm chuckle echoed through the tiny speakers of his cellphone. "Fine, I will. Tell Chimdi I said hi."
TJ's smile was shy. "Sure thing."
And with that, he cut the call.
"Your Father?"
It didn't take a soothsayer to let him know whose voice it was that addressed him. Just as he looked up to stare at his grandfather, whose face reminded him of everything about his mother and more.
Surprisedly, a scowl wasn't on his face.
__
Total calmness surrounded Chimdi when she woke up. And the first thing that she noticed was that, she wasn't alone wherever she was, if anything, she was with people.
Slowly, she let her eyes take in her surrounding and in no time, she was attacked by series of concerned voices that almost had her wincing in pain.
"Are you awake?" She heard Omoshola's voice.
"Is she awake? Oh my God, I'm so relieved!" Adaeze exclaimed.
"She's really awake!" That was definitely Elo's voice, she thought.
"Jesus!" She heard Lara cry. "Thank God she's awake!"
"You gave me a scare Dee!" That was Jiki's voice.
It felt like chaos in there.
"Alright kids," she recognized Antni's voice without looking at her. "A question at a time alright? She's not going anywhere."
She tried to seat up as Antni adjusted her hospital bed. She couldn't help but ask.
"How's Mum?" Even saying the word had her wincing.
Antni shook her head lightly, her warm hand resting on her cheeks. "She ran Dee. But let's not talk about her okay? We're happy that you're finally awake and that's top on our list of concerns."
And that was when she saw them all. Lara and Nene were by her side in an instant, a crying mess. Jiki and Elo smiling softly and happy that she was awake. She could see Adaeze and Omoshola too. The shocking part was seeing Abike by her bedside, wearing nothing but a warm look.
She couldn't believe it all. Being alive, waking up from that gruelling nightmare. The words she heard, the things that were revealed...
She never believed Ginika could be so extreme. She'd gone ahead and said the same things that hunted her. The same things that made her feel worthless.
She could still feel everything like it happened yesterday.
Ginika pimping her out like a little whore in exchange for daily bread. Being locked up and left at the messy of perverted men. She could still remember how loud she screamed, how bad she begged to be saved. But nothing, no one came to her rescue.
It was until Antni had found out about it all that the physical pain had seized. But the emotional pain it left behind was evergreen in her memory, etched on her soul.
And Ginika had wondered why she wasn't broken.
Didn't she see it. She'd been broken for a long time. She'd been lost. But then she met the beautiful souls before her and they'd treated her with nothing but kindness, care and love.
Jiki had changed her world when he had shown her that man could by as gentle as he is caring. Nene had stood by her and so has Lara. Elo was the brother she never had and Omoshola and Adaeze? She'd just met them but they were nothing but caring and loving towards her. And there was Antni, she'd stood by her and had tried to protect her as she could.
Each and every one of them has shown her that the world could still be a better place, irrespective of its dark side.
However, her eyes searched for the one person that she wanted to see so bad. How would he feel? What would be his reaction after all that he witnessed. She couldn't help but feel the staccato beats of her heart as she searched around with her eyes.
"Easy," Jiki teased from where he stood, a small cut was on his left cheek, which had Chimdi almost wincing. "Lover boy hasn't left you. He is still around."
She smiled shyly before trying to mask it with a scoff. "Are you okay?" She glanced at Omoshola who didn't really have a visible scar. "Hi."
Omoshola smiled, waving back. "Thought you were going to leave me all by myself partner."
Letting out a cough as she tried to laugh, Nene rushed by her side, offering her a glass of water.
After she'd had her fill, she returned the cup. That was when she noticed that Nene hadn't said a thing.
She stared at the darker girl. Her ever eloquent girlfriend who hasn't said a word.
Nene's eyes brewed with tears as she tried so hard to glare at the skinny girl, before hitting her.
"Seriously Nens, she just woke up!" Jiki said, laughing at the exchange.
"How dare you scare me like that? Why... Do you know how many years I've lost over the last two days?" She was full on crying, as she spoke, causing everyone around them to coo.
"I'm sorry." Chimdi croaked out, tears filling her own eyes too. "I'll never scare you like that again. Promise."
Nene brought her in for a fierce hug as she continued to cry, causing every other person to join in on a group hug, almost crushing her small frame. But she didn't mind, even as she felt Antni's warm hands squeeze her cold ones fondly, she knew everything was going to be okay.
__
"That was you?" TJ let out at the revelation. He couldn't believe his ears.
"It was you all along?"
His grandfather nodded. "Yes. It was me."
TJ was so shocked he had to laugh. "When did you start?"
The fit older man shrugged. His full skull of grey hairs still looked luxuriant and his tall figure had taken to bending just a slight bit. "Immediately you stepped into Nigeria."
"Wow!" TJ could still not believe it.
He could still remember when Chimdi had told him that her mother was trailing him and had taken several pictures of them. She couldn't move past it and it had bothered her so much even after they'd started dating, she still asked occasionally if he was uncomfortable or angry.
None of them knew that it had been his grandfather all along. Chimdi had been worried for nothing.
"Gramps, you know that's stalking right?" He teased, loving the way addressing him informally sounded.
He'd gotten past the memory he had of his Mother's funeral and had listened to the old man.
His grandfather had explained that he'd been hurt and angry. He lost his only child who had married his father, against his wish and had died suddenly. TJ had to understand that people handled grief separately.
And now it felt like they'd never missed a day off each other's life.
"In my opinion, it's called looking out for what's mine. And you see, that saved everyone."
TJ nodded, his mood souring when he realized that he'd heard no news about Chimdi. He just needed her to be awake and everything would be alright.
"Have they found Ginika?" Even as he said her name, fury rose like a mad storm inside him.
His grandfather shook his head. "Not yet. She went into hiding, that's our best guess. Since her men have refused to talk."
TJ's jaw locked in anger. "She has to be found Gramps." His voice held sheer desperation. "We can't have her roaming about freely," he inhaled shakily. "She's put everyone in danger. Dee is in danger because of her... No one knows what she's capable of doing."
"The police are still tracking her. Although, right now they are of no use. I've sent people after her." His hand rested on TJ's shoulder comfortingly. "Your little girlfriend, has still not woken up?" The old man asked, forehead drawn together, making his worry lines visible.
TJ exhaled and just as he was about to speak, his phone buzzed to a notification.
Jiki had sent a text.
Come over.
That had to mean something.
He sprang up from his seat immediately. "I've got to go Gramps. See you later?"
The older man smiled hopefully looking less intimidating, even as he was flanked by his scary looking guards. "Sure son. Take your time."
With that, TJ sped off.
__
TJ has never been a fan of hospitals.
Every unpleasant memory he had were all spurred by the damn place.
His mother's death, Milo's death... They were all linked to a hospital like tangled webs.
He hated the smell of death and uncertainty that permeated the air. It hung like a dark cloud in the air, waiting for who to fall on.
And then the people in it. A hospital never had a pleasant sight. There was always someone coughing, someone in pain, a person throwing up. Nothing good seemed to come out of that place. Everyone needed to be tended to.
But all that, none of that mattered to him as he basically ran to Chimdi's assigned room.
Immediately he landed in front of the VIP ward, he calmed himself down in all his frantic state. His heart was beating so loud that he could hear it and feel it in every part of his body.
God please. He prayed silently. I want good news.
Quickly, he pulled the sliding door open and behold, his heart almost made it to his stomach.
She was still laying down, just as he had seen before the police officer had called him for questioning, moments ago.
No one was in the room.
Even Antni, who has been by her side since she got admitted, was nowhere to be found.
He couldn't help it and neither could he stop it, his eyes was filled with unshed tears that he had to blink them away to be able to see properly.
He couldn't believe how much high hope he had. Couldn't believe he came racing desperately, hoping to see her look at him. Hoping to hear her voice.
Not able to hold it anymore, he went and sat beside her, right where Antni had been as he took her cold hands into his.
He sniffled as the tears began making another round when he felt how cold her hands felt.
"TJ?"
He froze, as he heard her voice. Was it possible that he heard imaginary voices whenever he missed her.
"Are you crying?" Her voice was groggy but also teasing.
It most definitely, was real.
That was when he realized that she was sitting up.
His heart leaped for joy at the sight. "You're awake?" He sniffed again, not knowing if he should hug her or call for the doctor.
He saw her grin. "Been awake for quite a while now."
He paused, before looking around them. The doctor had taken out some machines and the only things available was an air purifier and the IV drip connected to her wrist. He'd been fooled.
He narrowed his eyes as she laughed harder. "That's not funny."
"Sorry." She snorted from laughter. "You should have seen your face. Were you crying?"
He shook his head as he quickly wiped off the betraying tears. "No. I think I got something in my eyes."
Still, her smile was teasing and knowing. "Oh really?"
He didn't care about getting annoyed as he enveloped her in a relieved hug... Liking the feel of her being alive and awake.
"Thank God." He breathed out, still holding her close. "I thought I lost you."
She used a free hand to pat him lightly. "It will take more than this to get rid of me Kodiri."
He pulled back, grinning from ear to ear. "You bet. How do you feel? Are you okay, what did the doctor say?" He bombarded her with questions.
"Calm down TJ. A question at a time." She said with a smile.
He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry."
She couldn't believe he was here, after all he heard. After all she made him go through. It was still a miracle that she was going to live in, at least, till it lasted no more.
"I'm fine. The doctor said I could go home tomorrow if I promise to rest up." She answered, intertwining his fingers with hers. "And, I'm sorry TJ."
He frowned. "Why?"
"For everything. I could have put us in grave danger. When I didn't listen to you. It's still a wonder that you're still here after everything you heard and everything you went through."
"That's nonsense." He replied simply, staring into her eyes. "I'm most grateful that you're alive Dee, the past two days were hell for me. But I held unto the hope that you were going to be awake soon. And everything that I heard... Everything she said? It doesn't matter. She should be ashamed to do such a thing. You're strong, you're brave and you have to own every bit of that. Do not apologise for anything sunshine."
She felt her eyes well with tears.
How was it that she met someone like him. She must have done something great in her past life to be able to get someone like him.
Without any permission, tears began to have their free course down her eyes. She just couldn't believe it. She'd felt fear somewhere within her. Who would want to be with someone with so much baggage as her.
But she remembered his words.
I come with so much baggage, what happens when it out weighs us?
He'd replied. Then we drop a few and travel light.
He'd been so sure then, even as he is now.
"Hey, hey." He cooed, as his thumb wiped off the tears that ran down her cheeks. "Promise, no more tears okay?"
She nodded, even as she felt the urge to cry more.
"Thank you." She said honestly, feeling the word hold so much meaning from the depth of her heart
"No unnecessary thank yous either." He scolded playfully, causing a smile to break through her lips.
She had to laugh at that. "Okay."
He beamed. "Perfect. Now, that smile suits you."
He was still the same. After all that had happened, he didn't change. He still had his dry jokes and his abundant cheesiness. And that had her sighing out in relief.
It was time to drop all the baggages and start anew.
She saw him bring out out a small rectangular box from his pocket.
"What's that?" She asked curiously, as the grin on his face widened.
"This? I'd had it made back in school." He answered, looking at the box like he was examining it. "I'd wanted to give it to you that night at the Christmas party but you know, things sort of happened."
"I remember." She nodded, that seemed like ages ago. Who could imagine that it was just weeks ago.
He cleared his throat. "I was waiting for the right moment to give it to you. Without realizing that every moment with you has been right sunshine."
He flipped open the box and the afternoon sun caught a glimpse of it. The charms attached to it clanging together to create a symphonic sound. It's rosegold charms, leaving Chimdi breathless.
"Wow," she let out, fingers brushing against the smooth surface of the bracelet. "It's beautiful."
He grinned, satisfied by her reaction. "Here, try it on."
He unclasped the bracelet before tightening it around her wrist.
Watching how it looked so pretty on her, like it was solely made for her hand, which was true.
"Does all these have meanings?" She asked, pointing at the charms morphed into little suns as they dangled.
He nodded. "Yes. You remind me of the sun. So distant, yet touches everyone. So bright, so radiant... Even when it isn't in full effect."
Chimdi's smile could almost stretch her lips wide, as she listened to him.
He wiggled his brows. "It's cheesy right?"
She shook her head, but was still fighting the laughter that was about to take hold of her. "Not at all."
"Do you like it?" He asked, his grin still in place.
She stared straight into his eyes, loving how they were so bright and sure.
Even if he gifted her the least glamorous things or nothing at all. She still would have the same answer.
"Yes, I do."
Because all she saw and wanted was him.
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