Friendzone HQ #7 By @Tomilola_coco

Kolapo knew he was getting Oyin to be in his corner by using the emotional weapon but he honestly did not know how else to make her Team Kolapo.

He knew it was somehow a low move – making her run to him because of his Grandma’s current state of health – but how else could he win against that perfectly created rich kid Segun?

He literally could not beat the guy at anything, except he took extra measures of course.

And this time, the extra measures included being overtly vulnerable around Oyin so she could have a soft spot for him at least.

However, his plans had only included him and Oyin on a long trip to see his sick Grandmother in Ile Ife. It had not included Segun, sitting in the Driver’s seat, chauffeuring them through the rough road that led to Ife.

He could sense the guy’s frustration in the front seat; he was clearly channeling it into driving them because somehow they ended up bumping into every bad patch and for some reason he never saw the bad road before ending up in it.

“Sorry o, I did not see it” He said after running into yet another ditch, a ditch Kolapo was almost certain he had seen.

Some minutes before, he had sped through a rough patch on the road and had suddenly slammed his feet on the brake, suddenly jarring them and causing them to grab the front seat for support.

And Kolapo could almost swear he had done it on purpose.

Kolapo liked Oyin, he was not in love with her or head over heels but he liked her a lot and he knew his feelings for her could potentially become something stronger.

And that was why he needed Segun to stay out of the picture.

He had briefly toyed with the idea of having a conversation with Segun, the guy was the best friend of the woman he wanted anyway and if situations were different, he would have had to be friendly.

But he just could not trust the guy where Oyin was concerned.

Segun slowed down as they approached bumps in the road. They were very close to Ife now; he could see that especially from the many hot akara sellers who rushed to their car.

Kolapo missed that part the most about coming home.

The aroma of the steamy akara wafted through the glass when Oyin rolled it down and beckoned to him.

He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead when she began to ask for some hot akara and soft bread. The woman was the woman after his heart.

He glanced at Segun in the mirror as Oyin paid for the akara and bread, there was no way he was leaving her for him or any other man at that.

***

Segun had spent his entire life being sheltered by his rich parents.

He had been aware that some people did not have it as good and easy as he did but he also had never had a firsthand experience what people who did not enjoy the luxury he enjoyed as a kid went through.

The unpainted building Kolapo and his grandmother lived in came as some sort of shock to him and the moment he pulled over in front of the house, he had to admit he’d been too shocked to step out of his car.

“I’m thinking we should have lunch before we go to the Hospital where she is” Kolapo began to say as he made out of the car. “We can go to Mr Biggs or Captain Cook or something.”

Segun did not respond to anything Kolapo was saying and that was because he did not see himself staying an extra second in the town.

“Segun, what would you like to eat?” Oyin asked

He shrugged in response, “Nothing. I would be going to Lagos anyway so I would stop in Ibadan and find something to eat”

“But you can’t drive on an empty stomach” Oyin replied, a look of concern in her eyes.

“But I have done a lot of things while driving today so what’s an empty stomach compared to all that?”

Oyin glanced at the entrance of the building Kolapo just disappeared into and then back at her best friend.

“Are you so worried about him you cannot even say anything until you’re sure he’s not within earshot?” Segun had a hint of irritation in his voice.

“What are you talking about?”

“You just looked to see if he was still around before you talk and you still haven’t said anything”

“Stop it Segun. It is not that serious”

Oh she thought this was not some big ploy to get her to like him? The Kolapo guy knew that the hell he was doing, he knew what Kolapo was doing, the only person who did not know what Kolapo was doing was Oyin and for Kolapo that was the idea.

“Do you even know this guy enough to be doing this?”

Oyin shrugged, “I know him enough to be there for him when he needs me.”

“And you’re sure he genuinely needs you right now”

“Of course. And stop sounding this way, you’re beginning to get annoying.”

He fought the urge to snap at her, “I am looking out for you and this is what I get?”

“You’re being annoying that’s what you’re doing. See, I understand how angry you are for driving all the way to this place but you can leave now if you want.”

He gaped at her in utmost shock, she had just told him to leave like that. Suddenly he became angry at her all over again.

He had done what most guys in the world would never do for a woman even if she was their sister; he had driven her and her God knows what to the middle of nowhere without asking too many questions.

Yet she spoke to him like he did not matter.

She spoke to him like what he had done was not appreciated.

“Alright. Please leave my car, I need to get back to Lagos”

It was her turn to be shocked, she could not even hide the surprise on her face when he uttered the words and he could also not hide the urge to laugh.

He was not anyone’s toy and Oyin had to remember who he was; Segun Bucknor, the guy who did not deserve to be treated the way she was trying to treat him.

Kolapo had returned, a white bag in his hands.

“I’m sorry we had to come here first but I am very sure she would need the things in this bag”

“Segun was just leaving” Oyin said, her cold gaze piercing through Segun’s eyes.

“Oh.” Was all Kolapo said in the first few seconds before adding, “I understand. You have helped us a lot already”

Segun wanted to slap sense into the guy’s head. There was no us, as far as he was concerned, Oyin was doing all she was just to spite him. Kolapo did not truly matter to her, Kolapo was just another guy she was using to prove a point. There was no “us” as the guy had put it, there was just Oyin being a goat and of course, there was him.

“I would drop you guys off at the Hospital and leave from there.” Segun said and Oyin began to object like he knew she would.

“No thanks, I am sure we would find a cab…”

“This is Ife, Oyin. I would drop you at the Hospital, you can figure it out from there.” Segun was not going to let her win this one. If she wanted to be stubborn, she could do that after he got rid of her and her clueless boyfriend.

“Segun is right, Oyin”

He could see the disappointment in her face as he drove them towards the Hospital and he could feel the hunger in his stomach.

He needed to find something to eat soon enough.

***

Oyin particularly found Segun annoying on days like this one. In the past, he had been annoying on purpose just to prove a point to her and most times, she just let him be.

But for some reason, she was not in the mood to let him be that day. She needed him to know how annoying he was sounding and how far away from her she wanted him to be.

And left to her, he would be on his way back to Lagos not driving them into the premises of the OAUTH.

“Thanks man” Kolapo said to Segun, the both shaking hands as Kolapo got out of the car.

Oyin was right on his heels, refusing to look back and to say anything to Segun. She was not going to give him the opportunity to say anything more. He could fly to Lagos if he wanted, she did not want to be bothered about that.

Kolapo was holding her hand as they made through the big hospital and found his grandmother.

Oyin was not a stranger to government hospitals but she still hated being inside of them. They were always overcrowded, the staff always acted like they were doing everyone a favor by being present and even the cleaners acted like they were part of the Avengers and so would be anywhere but where they were.

And she hated to get started on the strong smell of cheap disinfectant that was associated with some government hospitals, the smell itself was enough to induce nausea.

They were talking to a Doctor who also was a family friend when Oyin realized she had left her phone in Segun’s car.

“Oh snap” she muttered and made to leave, “KP, think I left my phone in Segun’s car.” She hurried out of the Hospital the moment she could.

Luckily for her, he was there, trying to talk to someone with the phone in his hand.

“Oh there she is” he said as he sighted her walking towards him. “Thank you” he said dismissing the Nurse who was grinning too widely as she walked away.

Oyin was used to women acting the fool around Segun, it was the undeniable effect he always had on them. The type he had when she first met him but that she had been sane enough not to act on.

“Thank you” she said as he made to take the phone from him but he dragged her close to him in one quick move.

“We’re going to stay mad at each other now?”

She rolled her eyes and tried to wriggle free, “Please don’t even try to be funny”

“You know I am only looking out for you”

“By being an asshole?”

“Oyin, I don’t understand how you cannot see this does not make sense”

“All I see is a man whining about everything every single second. Segun, it has happened, no need bitching about it every single second.”

He could see she was really mad at him but question was did she know how mad at her he was?

And did she also know that the anger coupled with some other strange emotion was making him want to kiss her?

He was holding her close to him now, his two hands tightly on her waist.

“Please let me go” she said, still trying to wriggle free. Could she not see there was no way she was winning this battle against him? He could feel her soft breasts against his chest, he could also feel the pace at which her heart was beating.

Was it anger that increased the tempo or was it the undeniable chemistry he knew she would still deny anyway?

Eager to find out, he took her mouth in his before another word came out. She was sweeter than her name, her warm lips providing him the calm he so desperately needed and her body igniting the fire he was not going to bother to quench.

As he had expected, she was not fighting him. She just stood there, in the safety of his arms, allowing him kiss her like he owned her.

Kolapo stood where he was, some spaces away from the woman he wanted and the man who wanted her.

He knew the scene in front of him should be the moment he threw two fingers in the air while shouting deuces but there was no way in hell he was letting go.

Not when the guy in question was doing all he was on purpose.

Plus he was certain he wanted Oyin’s heart and the ass wanted her body. So all he had to do was prove that.

And he was starting right away.

He marched towards them.

Friendzone HQ

Tomilola Coco Adeyemo