My Best Friend's Brother

Chapter 2-The Warning

Amara had managed to avoid Adeaze for exactly four hours.

It was a new record. Usually Adeaze found her before her suitcase even hit the floor.

"Amara Nwosu!"

The voice came from behind her at the hostel corridor, loud enough that two first-year girls jumped.

Amara closed her eyes. Too late.

Adeaze Okafor was running toward her in a silk bonnet, oversized T-shirt, and the most expensive sneakers Amara had ever seen. She looked like she had just rolled out of bed and still looked like a magazine cover.

"My best friend is back and she didn't even come to my room first? Are you okay?" Adeaze threw her arms around her, squeezing tight. She smelled like vanilla and expensive perfume.

"I just arrived," Amara laughed, hugging her back. "I was coming."

"Liar." Adeaze pulled back and scanned her from head to toe. Her eyes stopped on Amara's waist, her hips, her chest. "Wait... wait a minute. What happened to you?"

Amara felt heat crawl up her neck. "What do you mean?"

"Amara! You... you have shape now! Look at you!" Adeaze screamed, making everyone in the corridor turn. "When did you get this body? And this hair? And— is that lip gloss? Since when do you wear lip gloss?"

"I've always had a body," Amara mumbled, adjusting her top self-consciously.

"No, you were my small flat Amara before. Now you are..." Adeaze made a curvy gesture with her hands. "My God, the boys in this school will not let you rest. We need to go shopping immediately."

Amara laughed, but her eyes flickered past Adeaze's shoulder before she could stop herself. To the end of the corridor. To the boys' hostel staircase.

Where Jidenna might be.

Adeaze followed her gaze, then her whole face changed.

Her smile dropped.

"Oh no," she said quietly. "No, no, no."

"What?"

Adeaze grabbed her wrist and dragged her into her room, locking the door. The room was massive, air-conditioned, with two fridges — typical Adeaze, the Vice Chancellor's friend's daughter living like a queen even in school hostel.

"Amara," Adeaze said, suddenly very serious. "We need to talk."

"About what?"

"About my brother."

Amara's heart stopped.

"Jidenna is back on campus," Adeaze said, crossing her arms. "He came back yesterday. He's supposed to be doing his Masters, but really my dad just wants him to stay out of trouble in Lagos."

Amara tried to keep her face neutral. "Okay... and?"

"And I know you, Amara. I know that look you have been giving him since JSS2."

Amara choked. "I don't know what you are talking about!"

"Don't lie to me! You used to hide behind our sitting room curtains just to watch him play basketball. I saw you!"

"I was ten!"

"And you still do it! Don't think I didn't see how you were looking at him yesterday at the gate. And don't think I didn't see how he was looking at you."

Amara's breath caught. "He... he looked at me?"

"Yes! And that's exactly the problem!" Adeaze sat down hard on her bed. "Listen to me because I love you. Jidenna is... Jidenna is dangerous for you."

"Dangerous how?"

"He's my brother, so I can say this. He does not date. He uses girls and dumps them. He is arrogant, spoiled, rude, and he thinks every girl in this school should kneel for him because he is an Okafor heir and fine. And now he is a CEO at 26? God, his head is even bigger."

Amara stared at her slippers.

"Promise me," Adeaze said, grabbing both her hands. "Promise me you will stay away from him. You are my sister, Amara. My only real friend. I don't want my brother to break your heart. If he hurts you, I will have to kill him, and I don't want to go to jail for murder."

Amara wanted to laugh, but Adeaze's eyes were full of worry. Real worry.

"I promise," Amara whispered. "He is not my type anyway. I don't like arrogant boys."

It was the biggest lie she had told all year.

Adeaze hugged her again, relieved. "Good. Because there is a welcome party tonight at the faculty lounge. All the big boys will be there. Including him. And you are coming with me. But you will ignore him, okay?"

"Okay."

"Promise?"

"Promise!"

That night, Amara stood in front of Adeaze's full-length mirror wearing Adeaze's borrowed dress. A short, tight black dress that hugged every new curve she had spent two years growing.

She looked... different. Not the invisible best friend anymore. Confident. Beautiful.

Her phone buzzed.

A text from an unknown number: _You shouldn't wear black. It makes it too hard to ignore you._

Amara froze. Her heart was beating so fast she could hear it.

Only one person had gotten her new number from Adeaze's phone.

Jidenna.

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