WHEN FRIENDSHIP FAILS 7
744 Words
Chapter 7: Life After Us
Life didn’t end when they stopped being friends, It continued.
Quietly.
Separately.
As if everything they had been to each other…Could simply be replaced.
But nothing was replaced, It was just… left behind.
Marcos — Enugu
After university, Marcos didn’t go to Lagos immediately.
He stayed back in Enugu.
Life there was slower.
But not easier.
Days turned into weeks of trying, applying. Hustling.
Starting things that didn’t last.
“Guy, I just need something that will work,” he told a friend one evening, frustration clear in his voice.
Money was inconsistent, hope came in waves.
There were nights he sat alone, staring at his phone
Scrolling through old contacts.
Old memories.....
Eventually, something clicked.
He managed to get a small business.
Not too big, but stable enough to sustain him.
“make I dey manage this one for now,” he said, half-proud, half-relieved.
And slowly…
He found his footing.
Then came a new decision.
Lagos.
“More opportunities there,” he told himself.
So he moved.
Not chasing dreams anymore, Just trying to survive better.
Nadia — Between Survival and Validation
"I Don enter Lagos o how far" Marcos said on the phone
*Omg that's good news, I'm happy for you" Nadia replied with honest excitement, jumping up
They fixed a location and met up, both shared their struggles..
"Make I come stay with you for now na, abeg, amaya Don tire me" Nadia shruggedly begged
"ah ah that one no be problem na, I havw two rooms"
Marcos replied
Two days time Nadia was done packing and preparing to leave, she saw amaya at the door
"what's up where are you you taking your bags to?"
Amaya asked with a worried and anxious look
"I forgot to tell you Marcos is in Lagos now, so I want to move in with him, just for the main time"
"Ohh I didn't know" I'll call him later, please take care of yourself,
Amaya replied with a teary eyes, as she pulls her in for a goodbye hug...
"Bye" Nadia says as she rolls her bags away
Nadia didn’t land on her feet immediately ,after she moved in with him
At first, she stayed with Marcos.
“Just for a while,” she had said.
But “a while” stretched.
Living with Marcos was easier, less pressure,
Less expectation.
But also…
Less growth.
She tried different things.
Online businesses, selling products, posting content, watching trends.
“Social media is where everything is now,” she told herself.
She recorded videos, edited clips.
Posted consistently, Waiting for something to click.
A viral moment, a breakthrough.
A sign that she was finally seen.
Sometimes, her posts did well.
Most times…they didn’t.
And in quiet moments, when the likes didn’t come…
When the comments were few…she felt it
That same emptiness, that same comparison.
But this time
She didn’t say it out loud....
Amaya — Becoming Herself Again
In Lagos…Amaya built a life.
Not overnight, but steadily.
Her first job wasn’t perfect, long hours, Pressure.
Learning curves, but she stayed.
The same way she always did, and this time, It paid off.
Promotions came, opportunities opened.
Her name began to carry weight.
She wasn’t just doing well, she was becoming someone Respected, Independent, Stable.
And best part she didn't have to wait for anyone to catch up.
She was moving, forward, Distance Becomes Normal
At some point…
They all stopped checking.
No calls.
No accidental messages.
No “how far?”
The group chat, once full of life, Became buried, forgotten under new conversations, new people, new lives..
And slowly…
What used to be everything, became a memory, not painful anymore, just distant.
But Sometimes…life would pause, briefly for each of them.
Marcos would hear a joke, And remember how Nadia used to laugh..
Nadia would see a quiet, focused girl, And think of Amaya.
Amaya would pass by a tree, And remember everything.
But none of them reached out, because too much time had passed.
Too many things had been left unsaid.
And sometimes…slilence becomes easier than reopening something you don’t know how to fix.
The Truth They Never Said, none of them hated each other.
That was the strange part, there was no real enemy.
No real villain, just three people, who grew in different directions, and didn’t know how to grow together.
And so…Life moved on.
Without asking for permission without waiting for closure, without looking back.
- Writer
