Thirty - Chapter 24

Read Chapter 23 here

“Oh myyyyy, so much beauty,” Omolola said with a grin the minute I got into the car.

Omololu had informed me that she arrived yesterday evening and that they both will pick me up this morning so we can hang out.

“What did I miss?” I responded, turning to look at her in the backseat. “So much beauty where?”

“Right in front of me,” She winked. “But big brother, you never disappoint sha,” She turned to give Omololu a thumbs up.

“Of course not shortcake,” He winked, causing me to laugh.

“It’s great to meet you Omolola,” I said, genuinely.

“Same here sis. This should have happened months back, but no thanks to my brother over there,” She said, staring at Omololu as if waiting for a response.

“I can feel your eyes poking holes in my skull, Omolola,” He chuckled. “But since I’ll like to drive us safely to our destination, I won’t be responding,”

“Whatever,” She responded, sticking her tongue out at him. “Oh, by the way, sis, we are going to a game arcade o. That dinner idea you guys planned won’t work for me. I’m too pretty to be a third wheel,”

“Yes ma’am,” I nodded laughing.

Omolola is a breath of fresh air; young and petite, with a pretty face that immediately gets you thinking of angels, an upbeat temperament, and a very likable personality. I had expected an awkward introduction, and perhaps a quiet assessment of the woman her big brother had chosen, but not this immediate and full acceptance. Looks like her heart is as angelic as her pretty face, I thought.

I glanced from her to Omololu, smiling at their good-natured banter. Physically, they couldn’t be any different; while Omololu is dark-skinned, Omolola is as light-skinned as they come. But they are close, no doubt, and it was obvious how much she adores her big brother. That adoration is perhaps another thing to thank for her quick acceptance of me.

“Sis?” I heard Omolola call, breaking into my thought. “You are awfully quiet,” She noted, sounding concerned.

“We can't all be chatterboxes,” Omololu muttered.

“I heard that o,” She turned to shoot daggers at him. “Such a bully,” She scoffed, before turning to smile at me.

“I feel bad that we’ve left you out of the conversation, sis,” She said sounding genuinely sorry.

“No, I’m enjoying your banter,” I assured her. “But you can tell me about yourself though, I’ll like that,”

She grinned, rubbing her hands together in excitement, “Great. But on one condition,” She leaned in and whispered into my ear, “You have to promise to join me in pushing my brother’s button. Believe me, it’s fun, Deal?”

“Deal,” I laughed.

“This better not involve me,” Omololu said, shaking his head at the both of us.

“Our world doesn’t revolve around you bro,” Omolola responded before turning back to me.

Throughout the drive to the game arcade, Omolola talked, and I listened. She told me that she was a miracle baby, and their parents had been shocked when they found out her mum was pregnant after years of trying for another baby after Lolu. She said being so miraculous, she insisted, unbothered by her brother’s snort, that she is their parents’ undisputed favourite child. She also talked about school, her three roommates, and how much she was looking forward to her final semester, after the holidays.

“This gist can continue while we all walk into the arcade right?” Omololu interrupted.

Neither of us noticed when we arrived at the arcade or that he had parked the car. “Sorry babe,” I smiled at him, then turned to open my door.

“Enjoy school while it lasts though," I said, once Omolola was standing beside me. "Trust me, you are going to miss it when it’s over,”

“Oh, well, I know that, but I will be happy to miss Sade. That girl is exhausting,” she sighed.

“Ohoh, I sense a story there. What’s the deal?” I asked conspiratorily, both of us walking behind Lolu.

“Sade is one of my roommates; she’s a great girl but I swear sis, it's like she’s hormonal all the time. She’s in a funky mood every other day, and you won’t even know why. One minute, we are all happy, the next, she’s moping around the room, her face squeezed up like crumpled paper, snapping at everyone,”

“Oh, that can be a bummer but she may be going through something,” I shrugged. “Maybe ask her?”

“She always says she’s fine when we ask. I wonder if she knows her terrible mood swings dampen the room’s free spirit.” She shook her head and continued, “I try not to be insensitive, but it’s one thing to have bad days, it’s another to have yours every other day. You just don't know what to expect, and it exhausts me. My boyfriend even said I should be…”

“What boyfriend?” Omololu interrupted, his big brother mode activated. So, he was listening, I thought, chuckling.

“What boyfriend?” Omolola repeated, feigning ignorance. “Oh, the one from the story… erhm, boy that is a friend. Yeah, sorry, I meant friend that is a boy,”

“Hmmm,” Omololu nodded, staring at her for a few minutes. “What’s done in the dark will come to light,” he smirked at her and resumed walking.

“Annoyingly over-protective,” She whispered, winking at me. “Daddy is like that too, you know?”

“Oh really? I see,” I responded. “I guess I will find out when I meet him then,”

“Sure thing,” she said confidently. “Although I wonder why my brother hasn’t taken you to meet dad and mum yet. I know he went home a while back to tell them about you." She turned to me, scrunching up her face "You know why?”

“Erhmmm, you may want to ask your brother about that,” I said, causing her to raise her brows.

“Bros,” She called out to Omololu just before he opened the door to the game arcade.

“What’s going on?” She asked as she walked hurriedly to him. She looked straight at him, all signs of playfulness gone.

“Huh?” Omololu asked, confused. Looking from his sister to me.

“Why haven’t you taken her to meet dad and mum?” She clarified. “There’s something going on, and you should tell me,” she added, arms akimbo.

“They don’t want me to marry her,” He simply said. “Why? I will tell you about it when we get home. Is that okay?”

“I guess,” He shrugged. Turning to me, she continued, “Don’t worry sis, whatever it takes, you are marrying my brother,” She said with fierce determination.

"Fierce!" Omololu teased, drawing her cheek playfully.

“Thank you, Fierce angel,” I grinned, giving her a mock salute.

“Fierce angel huh?” She chuckled. “It’s an oxymoron but I like it,” She shrugged. “Definitely better than being called shortcake,” she added eyeing her brother.

“You know you love shortcake,” Omololu grinned. “Now let’s go play some games alright?” He said ushering us into the arcade.