10: Betrayal
1024 Words
Jide Lawson had fallen asleep angrily after his fall-out with his father.
He hated how his parents controlled his life.
He was an adult, but they kept treating him like a child.
And he was getting tired of it.
His phone buzzed aggressively on the bed stool, and it woke Jide up from his nap.
He looked at it and saw it was one of his friends calling.
"Hello..." he said with a groggy voice as soon as he picked up.
"Dude, you're sleeping while you've set the whole internet on fire," his friend said quickly.
Jide frowned.
"What are you talking about?"
"You never told us you went back for that waitress, now the whole world knows." his friend continued, "How are you going to handle this scandal?"
Jide looked confused, "What's on the internet?"
"Your affair with the waitress at Eko heights hotel," his friend answered, "I guess I owe you twenty thousand dollars."
"You can't be serious."
"Check for yourself," his friend said and hung up.
Jide hurriedly went online, and he is shocked to his bone marrow when he reads the caption.
“Oh no... Amara would never forgive me.”
He quickly got out of his bed and began to get dressed.
He needed to see Amara immediately and explain everything.
But at that moment, his mother burst into his room.
"Mother!" Jide shouted, angered by her intrusion.
But when he looked at her, he saw she was fuming.
"Olujide Adeyinka Lawson," she called out his full name, "What in the world am I seeing on the internet?"
"Mother, please," Jide begged, "I will explain, but I need to go somewhere right now."
"No!" His mother shouted, "You will answer me now!"
Jide palmed his face in frustration.
"What were you doing with a waitress? What kind of scandal is this?" she asked him angrily.
"She is not just any waitress..." Jide responded, exasperatedly.
"There is nothing special about a waitress."
"This one is special to me, mother... I care about her," He told her, holding her gaze to let her see he was serious.
"You dare not, Jide." His mother said with anger, evident in her voice.
"I'm sorry, but I have to go." He replied and walked past his mother.
Every second counted.
He needed to speak to Amara immediately.
---
Amara Okafor got to work late that evening.
After seeing the news on the internet. She had cried her eyes out and had to take time to get herself fit for work again.
When she arrived at the hotel, she noticed subtle stares from people around her.
She was sure they recognized her from the viral story online.
This was humiliating.
Was this how things were going to be for her?
She just prays that it doesn't affect her job.
As she walked into the staff room to get ready, her manager stopped her.
"Why are you late?"
Amara quickly apologized.
"Oh please save your apology." Her manager snapped at her.
"You feel because you're sleeping around with Chief Lawson's son you can now do whatever you like?"
Amara froze.
Everyone knew.
"If you don't want this job anymore, you better say so." Her manager continued.
"The scandal you've already brought is enough reason to fire you."
Amara quickly goes down on her knees; her palms clapped together as she pleads with her.
"Please ma, this job means everything to me."
"Then act like it." The manager hissed.
"At the end of the day, you were just a mere bet for those rich boys."
Amara stood shocked.
Did she say a bet?
The manager looked at her, seeing her confusion.
"Haven't you seen the new story online?"
Amara shook her head.
"Jide and his friends bet twenty thousand dollars to see if he could get you into his bed."
Amara didn't know when it happened, but tears began to flow freely from her eyes again.
Her chest tightened painfully as the tears uncontrollably spilled down her cheeks.
"Wipe those crocodile tears and get to work." Her manager snapped at her and then walked away.
Jide made a bet on her?
Was it all a plot from the beginning?
Was everything he told her a lie?
Amara wiped her face with her hands after a few minutes, then quickly adjusted her uniform.
She won't let any of this break her.
Yes, she made a mistake trusting someone like Jide Lawson.
But she was going to have to move on from it.
She needed this job.
She had a family to tend to.
But as Amara stepped into the lounge, she ran into the last person she wanted to see.
Jide Lawson stood right in front of her.
"Your manager just told me you were still in the staff room, I was coming in to see you."
"Non-staff aren't allowed in there," Amara said sternly.
Jide studied her face and could see she had been crying.
"It's all a lie, Amara," Jide whispered, "Please let me explain."
"I don't want to lose my job," Amara said instead, "so kindly stay away from me."
"Amara please, just listen to me..." he pleaded.
"You've got what you wanted," she snapped, "Including twenty thousand dollars..."
Jide's eyes popped wide open.
How did she know that?
In that moment, Jide hated the careless version of himself that had made that stupid bet.
"Amara, it's not what you think..."
"I think you should leave me alone and focus on your wedding plans to Lara Benson," she retorted.
Jide sighed.
"I'll be on the rooftop waiting..." he said gently, "All I ask is that you give me a chance to explain it all."
"I don't need any explanation."
"Amara, I won't be here begging you if everything you saw online was true."
She looked at him, "You had your chance to tell me everything."
"I was scared of losing you..." he said quietly.
His words sent a thrill through her, but she forced herself to keep calm.
"I need to work," she said bluntly.
“Will you meet me at the rooftop later?” he verified.
But she eyeballed him and then walked away.
- Writer
