THINGS I'M NOT READY TO EXPLAIN
983 Words
She moved fast. Quick as thread through needle.
Put the cap on his head. Pulled it down just a little over his brow.
*Liana: There. Now you look like the CEO of Rain Management.*
*Liana: And if any girl asks who your stylist is… tell her “Liana Threads.”*
She stepped back, grinning.
Flirty. Playful.
Not serious.
Just spark to cover the ache.
Leo’s hands came up.
Not to kiss her.
To catch her wrist.
*Leo: Liana.*
*Leo: You’re cold.*
His thumb brushed her knuckles once. Warm. Dry.
Boundary intact.
*Leo: Are you cold?*
His eyes scanned her face like he was checking for damage.
*Liana: Yh… but I’m fine. I love the cold.*
She met his stare. Didn’t look away.
_This_ was the moment.
*Leo: Let’s get you somewhere warm. Inside.*
*Liana: No. I love it here. This sight is refreshing. I’ve been in the shop for 10 hours, 10 hours of thread, needle, and Ella singing off-key. If I go inside now, my brain will start calculating profit margin again. Out here, my brain is just… _cold and happy._*
She giggled.
*Liana: Plus, if I go inside, you’ll offer me tea. And if you offer me tea, I’ll ask for biscuits. And if you give me biscuits, I’ll ask for your WiFi password. And before you know it, I’ll be charging you rent for sitting on your veranda.*
Leo stared at her.
Cap low on his head. Rain behind him.
Her hand still in his, cold but not pulling away.
*Leo: You talk too much when you’re cold.*
*Liana: You stare too much when I’m cold. We’re even.*
He didn’t let go yet.
Used his other hand to pull his jacket off and draped it over her shoulders.
*Leo: You can love the cold. But you won’t catch cold on my veranda. That’s not how this works.*
Cap on his head.
Her hand in his.
Rain falling.
_But inside Liana’s chest: a small crack._
_“He sees me. Why does that hurt more than being unseen?”_
She smiled wider so the crack wouldn’t show.
Rain had reduced to a whisper.
Leo didn’t go inside immediately.
He walked her to the gate first.
Umbrella in one hand.
A keke already waiting outside. Yellow. Dripping.
Driver drumming fingers on the steering wheel, shivering.
Liana stood under his jacket, arms folded.
The cap was still on his head. Navy + gold.
But her eyes kept flicking to the veranda.
Like she was checking if he’d changed his mind.
Like she was checking if he’d ask her to stay.
*Leo: You’ll text me when you get home.*
*Liana: Bossy.*
*Leo: Responsible.*
*Liana: Same thing, with you.*
He opened the gate.
Didn’t touch her.
Didn’t need to.
The jacket on her shoulders said enough.
*Leo: Keke man, take her straight. No detours.*
*Keke driver: Oga, I hear.* The man shivered, pulling his own jacket tighter.
She climbed in.
Window down. Rain mist on her face.
Like the sky was crying with her.
*Liana: Thanks… for the shelter.*
*Leo: Thanks… for the stitches.*
That was all.
The gate closed.
The keke pulled away.
Red light bleeding into Benin night.
Leo watched until the light turned to a dot.
Then he turned back.
Inside, the house was quiet.
Too quiet after her voice and the rain.
Too quiet after “I love the cold” and “CEO of Rain Management.”
He went to his room.
He didn’t drop the cap in a drawer.
He placed it on the shelf.
Above his laptop.
Navy + gold facing the wall.
“L.E.O” hidden.
Like he was keeping it, but not showing it.
Like he was storing a question, not an answer.
Shelf.
High.
Out of reach.
Out of sight.
Not out of mind.
He sat on the edge of the bed.
Laptop on his lap.
Opened a spreadsheet.
Numbers. Orders. Payments.
Normal things.
Things that didn’t smile.
Things that didn’t shiver.
Things that didn’t say “Liana Threads” like it was a promise.
5 minutes.
Scroll.
Click.
Type.
Then his phone lit up on the mattress beside him.
*Alexia [10:03pm]: hi babe how are you? Abuja rain is rude.*
*Leo: I’m fine… how was your training? Benin rain has an agenda tonight.*
*Alexia: 😂 Same. Training was long. My brain is fried.*
*Leo: Eat something first. Then sleep. Don’t study on empty.*
*Alexia: Yes daddy 😘 You sound like my uncle.*
*Leo: _soft laugh_ Just looking out. Sleep well, Alex.*
He dropped the phone.
Screen down.
Silence again.
But this time, it was heavier.
He didn’t close the laptop.
But he wasn’t seeing numbers anymore.
He was seeing her fingers.
Icy from rain.
Thumb brushing his knuckles when he caught her wrist.
The way she said “I love the cold” but her teeth chattered.
The way she smiled wider when she was cracking inside.
_Leo’s thoughts, quiet:_
_She keeps standing when no one’s clapping._
_That’s rare._
_That’s dangerous._
_Dangerous for a man like me who notices details._
_Alexia is warmth. Home. Laughing emojis at 10pm. That’s my vow._
_Liana is… work. Fire. A girl trying to build herself with no blueprint. I’m not supposed to look. But my eyes keep landing on her hands._
He rubbed his jaw.
Stood up.
Walked to the shelf.
Stared at the cap.
Back still turned to him. Like it was shy.
He didn’t take it down.
He didn’t touch it.
Just looked.
3 seconds.
Then back to the laptop.
Numbers blurred.
He closed it.
The room was dark now.
Only the streetlight from outside cut across the floor.
The cap sat on the shelf.
Navy. Gold.
Not worn.
Not thrown away.
Just… kept.
_He put it on the shelf, not in a drawer._
_Because drawers are for things you want to forget._
_Shelves are for things you’re not ready to explain._
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- Writer
