ONE LAST DANCE

BLUE EYED STRANGER “ I did it , Mama I did it !” I yelled as I entered the living room “ Mama “ I called again “ I’ll be down in a sec “ I heard my mother say from upstairs “ Hurry , I can’t hold it in any longer “” I yelled again “ Fine fine I’m coming “ she said walking down the stairs “ Mama guess what ?” “ You know I’m very bad at guessing “ “ Just try “ I pushed “ You got the scholarship?” she asked “ Bingo “ “ Oh my God , you got in … oh my goodness this is crazy , bébé I’m so happy for you “ “ Mama I never thought I would get in ,I’m literally over the stars right now “ I said “ We should celebrate” “ Hell yeah we should “ I squealed excitedly “ call Carolina over , let’s have an indoor party tonight “ “ Oops “ “ what you already made plans ? Without me ?” she asked “ Mère there’s this party I have to attend , it is well known for hosting big fashion designers and artists, I don’t wanna miss my chance tonight “ I said “ Fine you can go but we are definitely celebrating tomorrow “ “ of course I’ll make it “ I said “ you better “ she said giving me a tight hug “ I’m proud of you bébé “ she said “ Thanks mom “ I replied Guess who just got into the biggest Art school in France ? Your girl just landed herself a scholarship in the School of her dreams . Oh my bad ! I’m Adele Kingston , half Nigerian, half French , I’m a nursing student but I’m on vacation now so I’m good . We moved to Nigeria when I was Five and surprisingly I blended in pretty fast , I’ve dreamed of going to my Dad’s alma mater since we lost him to cancer few years ago , I grew up among artistes so it’s no big deal that I’m drawn to arts and painting . “ Black gown or blue corsets ?” Carolina asked showing me her preference of clothing for the party tonight “ Gown ? Girl we are going to shut that party down and you’re wearing a gown ?” I asked “ Corset it is then “ she said “ you could wear those killer black boots you bought last year “ I added “ The Balenciaga?” she asked “ Yeah that one “ “ Thanks Del , you’re a live saver “ “ I know I am “ I said flipping my hair proudly “ I can’t believe my best friend is finally chasing her dreams , girl you’re going to freaking Paris “ she squealed “ I know I still can’t believe it myself , I can’t wait to meet those hot French guys “ I said “ Arrrgh I’m jealous, anyways speaking of guys you know you have a blind date with that Tinder guy today right ?” she said Shit ! “ Shoot ! That’s today ?” I asked “ You forgot?” she asked “ what do I do Caro ?” “ Dress up and go now “ she suggested “ or I could just tell him that I got hit by a bus on my way “ “ Bro no you can’t say that , besides you can’t keep poor guy waiting “ she said “ Fine I’ll go “ I said lazily It’s been thirty minutes and forty seconds and my Tinder date hasn’t shown up . I knew the whole blind date was a bad idea , my mom has been trying to set me up with different guys for the past few months so she opened a tinder account for me and sealed a date with a good looking and rich guy who hasn’t shown up for the so called date yet . I dialed Caro’s number “ Hey babe how’s your date going?” she asked “ lover boy hasn’t shown up “ I replied “ what ? You’re kidding right ?” “ unfortunately I’m not “ I replied “ Maybe you should leave “ she said “ There’s a bar here , imma just grab a drink before leaving “ I said “ oh ok take care then ,let me know if he shows up “ she said I picked my bag and moved to the bar “ can I get a tequila shot please ?” I asked the barman “ Sure “ he answered I sat on one of the chairs and ruminated over my life . I’m going to miss my mom and Carolina so much , they’re the only family I have and separating from them is a very hard pill to swallow . After taking couple of shots I couldn’t help the tears running down my face Why am I crying ? “ Why are you crying ?” I suddenly heard a deep accent laced baritone voice say “ orrr I –“ my words were cut short as I looked up and saw the deepest pair of blue eyes I had ever seen “ Ocean eyes “ I said unconsciously Shoot! I didn’t just say that “ What did you say?” he asked “ Nothing” I replied “ Why are you crying?” he asked again “ It’s – orrr – it’s nothing , actually it’s no big deal “ I said “ but you’re crying “ he said again “ It’s – you – can you just mind your business?” I asked Whoa ! That was harsh Why am I so nervous ? “ I’m sorry ,I didn’t mean to snap at you , I just have a lot going on you know “ I said “ I understand” he said giving me a megawatt smile which could make any woman drop dead . My breath hitched as I stared at his midnight black hair , his face literally screamed perfection, don’t even get me started on the well tailored suit he was putting on . “ so what’s your name ?” I asked “ what’s your name ?” he asked back “ Wow are we seriously playing this game? I’m Adele “ I said “ I’m Rodrigo “ he replied I guess that’s where the accent came from is he French? “ I’m from Italy “ he said like he read my mind “ Oh … “ I mumbled “ Bella “ he said “ oh my name is not Bella “ I replied which made him burst out laughing again Why is this man so fine ? And what’s funny ? “ Bella means beautiful “ he said “ oh sorry “ I said laughing I can’t believe I just made a fool out of my self I shouldn’t have slept off in those Spanish and Italian classes . But wait a minute , did this fine looking specimen just call me beautiful? “ beautiful girls shouldn’t drink so much “ he said collecting the shot from me and gulping it down “ And who are you to tell me that ?” I asked which made him smile No don’t smile at me you good looking man “ we’ll see “ he said simply What does that mean ? “ Amor you’re not safe here , go home “ he said more like commanded who does this man think he is ? “ And why should I do that ?” i asked “ I wasn’t asking , go home now “ he said with great intensity contrasting the cute smiles he gave me earlier . The air around us suddenly changed and for some weird reason I wanted to obey every single word of his . Without thinking I grabbed my bag and left angrily . Who does he think he is to tell me what to do ? I got home and texted Caro Sorry I can’t make it to the party , I’ll make it up to you tomorrow I changed into my nightwear and sat on my bed thinking about the blue eyed stranger I just met . I went downstairs to grab water in the fridge and saw my mom watching TV “ What are you watching ?” I asked “ You know that bar down the street ?” she said “ which one ?” “ The one close to our favorite restaurant “ she said “ Feliz bar ?” I asked “ Yeah , apparently there was an explosion there this evening” she said “ An explosion? that’s impossible, I was just there hours ago “ I said “ look it’s on the news “ she said I looked up and saw the bar that was buzzing with music and bright lights earlier in ruins. I couldn’t help but remember what Rodrigo had told me Amor you’re not safe here , go home now . Fuck !