Lady In Red

The Lady In Red.

By @Peero007

Picture Courtesy: PocketsandBows

I was up already and getting ready to do my routine run around the estate. I had come to realize morning exercises were a good way to clear the mind and prepare one for the day ahead. Few months ago I didn't think I would be the one to take exercises seriously. Why? Because I was always busy- I would leave home at 5am, get to work at 7am, work like an ass till 8pm, face the stress of Lagos traffic and get home at 10pm then work late into the night before dozing off right where I was seated- all day everyday and weekends weren't left out. It was like that for years till the day I collapsed while doing a presentation; that marked a new beginning for me, I was away for a while to attend to my health and when I returned, it was with my letter of resignation. The company didn't want to let me go so they made a mouthwatering offer; they almost tripled my salary and I was to work only five days a week 7am to 4pm. I hesitated before taking the offer and when I finally did, I worked for only two months before finally quitting again and this time my decision was final. You're probably wondering why I quit- well I discovered I could work from home at my own pace and legitimately make almost ten times the income I was making before I quit my job. You know the good thing about being a work from home bachelor? It gives  you more "me" time than working at an organization that takes all your time and doesn't appreciate your efforts.

"Oga good morning Sir" my guard greeted as I stepped out to begin my run.

"Morning Obi, how you dey?" 

"Fine Sir"

"Abeg wash the car, I get wedding today, fuel still remain for the generator?"

"Na small remain Sir"

"Obi you dey sell my fuel or you dey give your girlfriends"

"No oo Oga"

"I go still catch you, no worry. No forget to wash the car, I dey come" I said as I adjusted my fitness tracker and earpiece.

I took in that soothing breathe of fresh air as I jogged, the breeze felt cool and refreshing against my skin. Apparently I wasn't the only one who wanted to stay fit as I was either waving or nodding at other members of the fit fam doing their thing, it was also a good time to see a lot of females with their makeup free faces and trust me I marveled at the fact that the estate had so many pretty ladies. Talking about pretty ladies, I remembered my ex and how the  relationship just ended , I wasn't sure I would ever understand how a relationship so good would just end without notice or warnings- I still remember that night, she took me out to dinner, I noticed she kept on switching between her usual funny self and someone drifting and whenI asked what was wrong, she would smile, pinch my cheek and say "baby, you worry about me too much" then at some point after dinner, she said she was stepping out 'cause she had a surprise for me and told me not to leave the seat till she called. For someone who was fond of surprising me all the time, I sat back and wondered what the surprise was this time; I also had the ultimate surprise for her and I smiled as I took out the tiny box that contained the ring- then my phone rang, it was her.

"My sugar" I said

"Baby I'm sorry"

"For keeping me waiting? Hahaha baby you know I can wait forever for you" I answered.

"You're the best I've ever had, the best a woman should have, I hope I meet you in my next life, I pray and hope you'll forgive & pick me in the next life" 

I was so carried away by the sweet talks that I didn't pay attention to the "forgive" part.

"Baby this is so hard for me, I'm terribly sorry it had to be this way" she said as she dropped the bomb amidst tears. She broke up with me and didn't tell me why. After the call, she just disappeared without a trace; all her social media accounts disappeared, she quit her job, her numbers were off, and all her parents ever told me was "Sorry dear, but it's all for your good". Everything wasn't making sense at all, the more I thought about it the more confused I got and the realization that my future would be without her left me depressed.

"hey...hey" someone tapped me.

"errr, yeah" I answered as I turned to find a lady

"are you okay?" she asked

"oh yeah... yeah" I said, sniffing.

"well you just stopped and suddenly started weeping, I've run past you twice at the same spot in 3 minutes" she said

"Particles got into my eyes, I'm fine, thanks" I said as I began jogging again. I was tempted to look back to get a glimpse of the lady, but the embarrassing situation she had caught me in didn't allow me look back. Well that was how broken the breakup had left me. 

It was my friends' wedding (yeah, the bride and groom were my close friends) and I had to be there with the others to support them and make it a joyously memorable one irrespective of my broken state of mind.

It was actually an interesting and colorful event; there was good music plus plenty to eat and drink. One highlight of the event was when the bride threw the bouquet of flowers, a very pretty lady caught the bouquet and shouted "yay! I'm so next" trust me, I caught the moments on my camera.

The wedding was a successful one and  as I drove home I wondered how my just wedded friends would feel, I imagined me on my wedding day and smiled at the thought. I suddenly felt the urge to settle down,  if my ex hadn't suddenly disappeared, perhaps we would have tied the knot, now I had to start the process of finding someone and bonding from scratch- hardwork if you ask me.

The following week, I was invited to an event- a dinner for stakeholders and I was to deliver the opening speech. I was doing a good job with the delivery till I looked up and saw the most enchanting sight ever- a pretty lady in red and the sight of her left me awestruck and speechless for seconds then she blew me a kiss and winked at me-there and then I lost control of the speech I was giving and in fact just ended the speech with "You know what, let's just forget this lengthy speech thing and have fun" 

As I took my seat, I felt a tap on my shoulder and a sweet feminine voice whisper "nice speech" I turned to find the pretty lady leaving, she turned back, smiled and winked at me, she had a familiar face and I tried hard to remember where I had seen her. I was tempted to go after her but felt I would see her after the event, so I sat back and prayed the event would end quickly. Well! My prayer was answered, but the lady was nowhere to be found. I left the event feeling dejected after looking around the venue of the event and not finding her.

I just couldn't get my mind off the lady in red, she was undoubtedly the most beautiful woman I had ever seen... Her hazel shaped large eyes whose gaze could calm a troubled mind, her warm smile, curvy body and thick in all the right places. 

Days later I was persuaded by friends to go clubbing, I had turned down their offers countless times, so this time I obliged and agreed to meet them at the club. I got there and barely an hour later I was tired of the place. I always wondered how people enjoyed clubbing 'cause it was never fun for me, with all the smoke and drunks. I stepped out for some fresh air, I just lay on my bonnet, staring at the night sky. I was torn between driving back home that moment or looking for a way to kill time, so I whipped my phone out- earpieces in, music on and got into Twitter. Soon I was oblivious to everything around me, just tweeting, singing along and laughing at funny tweets. A touch on my arm gave me a start and brought me back to earth. I sat up to get a good look at who had the audacity to interrupt my moment- and there she was, the lady in red!

"hi..." I said

"hi" she responded with a giggle that sent a thousand butterflies fluttering in my belly

"It's you, the lady in red at that stakeholders dinner" 

"yeah yeah, the way I've been seeing you everywhere, I think it's a sign" She answered

"A sign?" I asked

"Yeah, a sign that we should be together, you know" she said. I couldn't tell if she was kidding or not, so my cue was to play along

"I know right, we would make a beautiful couple with adorable children" I answered with a smirk

"hahaha! Oh my God, I seriously didn't see that coming- I'm Adaeze"

"I'm Peter and you have no idea how pleased I am to meet you" I said with the widest grin ever

"Well, my friends dragged me here... I wasn't comfortable inside, I thought I should come out and walk around a little, then I heard you sing lyrics to some of my favorite songs" She said

"Wow"

"Wow what?"

"I was dragged here too and felt uncomfortable inside"

"hmmm... not the club type, yeah?"

"Yeah, not really" I answered.

"Me too... I'm so joining you" she said as she lay with me on my car's bonnet- that was one of the best moments of my life.

And there we began the process of bonding which was even easier than I anticipated, and that was because we vibed together on so many levels. 

You remember the lady that saw me weeping at the estate? The lady that caught the bouquet at my friends' wedding? the lady in red? Well this was the same lady and in no time we became inseparable best friends.

I learned a big lesson, sometimes you have to let go the good thing to get the best thing life has for you. Now if you'll excuse me, in a few minutes I'll be getting married to Adaeze- my lady in red. Ciao!!!