Episode2 The First Time
1524 Words
Back to the present,
"The owner of that company..."
“…is your father.”
Johnson Froze.
Silence filled the room.
Even the rain seemed quieter for a moment.
Johnson stared at her.
Then shook his head once.
“No.”
"What! My Father?!"
She held his wrist tighter.
“Yes.”
“No.”
His voice became stronger now.
“That man? The company owner? Mama no. That is not possible.”
Her breathing became uneven again.
“It is true.”
Johnson stood halfway up, then knelt again immediately.
“No… does he know me?”
She didn’t answer.
His voice rose slightly.
“Mama does he know I exist?”
Her eyes moved away from his.
That answer was already enough.
His throat tightened.
“He rejected us.”
The words came slowly.
Painfully.
But clearly.
Johnson’s hands froze where they held her shoulders.
“What?”
“He rejected us.”
The rain struck the roof harder now.
Johnson shook his head again.
“No.”
Her breathing weakened further.
“I told him.”
“When?”
“When I knew… I was carrying you.”
Johnson’s voice dropped lower.
“And?”
“He said it was not his responsibility.”
The room became smaller.
Quieter.
He swallowed again.
“And after that?”
“They removed me from the company.”
His hands tightened slowly.
“And then?”
“I returned home.”
“To Nigeria?”
She nodded slightly.
“Yes.”
He looked away briefly.
Trying to understand something that suddenly felt too large.
Too fast.
Too impossible.
Then he looked back at her again.
“Why didn’t you tell me before?”
Her fingers moved weakly against his wrist again.
“Because I didn’t want you growing up… waiting for someone who didn’t choose you.”
His chest tightened again.
“I chose you.”
Her voice was barely a whisper now.
“Every day.”
Rain hit the zinc roof harder again.
Wind pushed softly against the wooden door.
Johnson leaned closer.
“Mama… we are still going to the hospital.”
She shook her head slowly.
“No.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
Her fingers moved again.
Slower this time.
“We don’t have time for that now.”
His voice broke slightly.
“Stop saying that.”
She looked directly into his eyes now.
“You must listen carefully.”
He swallowed again.
“I’m listening.”
“There is something else.”
Her breathing became weaker again.
“But first…”
She reached slowly toward the small cloth bag beside her mattress.
Her fingers searched inside it.
Struggled.
Then found something.
A small memory card.
She placed it in his palm.
Johnson stared at it.
“What is this?”
“Evidence.”
“Of what?”
“Of who you are.”
Rain struck the roof again.
Harder now.
Outside, the afternoon sky had already begun turning darker than it should have been.
Inside the room—
Helen Okafor gathered what strength remained in her chest.
Because there was still one truth left to tell.
And not enough time left to hide it anymore.
She whispered:
“Seventeen years ago…”
And the world shifted.
Seventeen years earlier...
In Miami, United States
Helen Okafor stood across the street from the building longer than she planned to.
Traffic moved behind her.
People walked past her.
No one stopped.
No one noticed her.
But she remained there.
Still holding the visitor identification card in both hands.
Reading it again.
And again.
Visitor Access
Hale Trans-Global Headquarters
She lifted her eyes slowly.
The building rose into the sky like something built for people who already belonged inside it.
Not people like her.
She adjusted her dress slightly.
Smoothed the edges with careful fingers.
Checked the address one more time.
Same building.
Same company.
Same floor number.
She took one breath.
Then crossed the street.
Inside the entrance lobby—
the air changed immediately.
Cooler.
Quieter.
Controlled.
The floor shone like water.
Glass walls reflected movement everywhere.
Men and women walked past carrying tablets, folders, phones—
moving fast.
Speaking confidently.
Low voices.
Phones ringing softly.
Elevator doors opening and closing again and again.
No one looked lost here.
Except her.
Helen slowed without meaning to.
Her shoes sounded louder here than outside.
She tightened her fingers around the envelope in her hand and walked toward the reception desk.
She reached the reception desk.
A woman in a navy jacket looked up immediately.
Professional smile.
“Yes, good afternoon. How may I help you?”
Helen cleared her throat slightly.
“I’m here to submit internship placement documents.”
“Name?”
“Helen Okafor.”
The receptionist typed quickly.
Paused.
Looked at the screen again.
Then looked back at Helen.
“Miss Okafor?”
“Yes.”
“One moment.”
She picked up the phone beside her keyboard.
“Thirty-second floor? Yes… she’s here.”
Helen blinked.
Thirty-second floor?
The receptionist hung up and smiled again.
“They’re expecting you.”
Helen hesitated.
“Expecting me?”
“Yes.”
The receptionist pointed toward the elevator corridor.
“Please take Elevator Three.”
Helen nodded slowly.
“Thank you.”
She turned.
Walked toward the elevators.
Her shoes sounded louder here than they should have.
Elevator Three opened almost immediately.
Inside—
mirrors.
Soft lighting.
Silver panels.
She stepped in alone.
Pressed 32.
The doors closed quietly.
For a moment she stared at her reflection.
Visitor badge.
Simple dress.
Travel envelope in her hand.
She whispered to herself:
“Just submit the documents and leave.”
The elevator stopped.
The doors opened.
Everything changed immediately.
The carpet here was thicker.
The hallway quieter.
Glass walls instead of concrete.
Artwork instead of notice boards.
She stepped out slowly.
A young assistant stood behind a curved desk ahead.
He smiled the moment he saw her.
“You must be Miss Okafor.”
Helen blinked again.
“Yes.”
“He’s expecting you.”
Her heartbeat changed slightly.
“He?”
The assistant stepped around the desk.
“Please come with me.”
She followed him down a long hallway lined with framed photographs.
Airports.
Cargo terminals.
Rail systems.
University campuses.
Engineering sites.
Every frame carried the same inscription:
Hale Group Development Division
Helen slowed slightly.
“This company builds all these?”
The assistant smiled.
“Yes.”
They stopped beside a tall wooden office door.
He knocked once.
Opened it.
“He’ll see you now.”
Helen stepped inside.
And stopped walking immediately.
Glass walls.
City skyline.
Ocean light stretching across the floor.
A large desk near the window.
And behind it—
a man looking down at a document already in his hand.
Her document.
He looked up.
Not surprised.
Not impatient.
Just calm.
“You’re Helen.”
She nodded carefully.
“Yes, sir.”
He stood.
Walked around the desk.
Extended his hand.
“I’m Hale.”
Not Mr. Hale.
Just:
Hale.
That surprised her.
She shook his hand carefully.
His voice was steady.
“You traveled a long way to bring these yourself.”
“Yes.”
“Most people would have mailed them.”
“I didn’t want them delayed.”
That answer made him pause slightly.
Then he smiled.
“You take your work seriously.”
Helen wasn’t sure how to respond.
So she answered honestly.
“I had to.”
Something about that answer changed the way he looked at her.
Less formal now.
More curious.
He gestured toward a chair.
“Sit.”
She sat carefully.
He opened the envelope again.
Reviewed the documents properly this time.
Mechanical systems support certification.
Logistics coordination training.
Field routing coursework.
He looked back up.
“You studied both mechanics and logistics?”
“Yes.”
“That combination is unusual.”
“No one else ever said that before.”
He leaned back slightly.
“It’s valuable.”
Helen blinked.
“I only studied what I could afford.”
He smiled again.
“That’s usually the best education.”
She looked at him properly for the first time now.
Not just as an executive.
As a person.
Then he asked something unexpected.
“How long are you staying in Miami?”
“Only until my placement confirmation is completed.”
“And after that?”
“I return home.”
“To Nigeria?”
“Yes. To my company in Nigeria."
He nodded slowly.
Then asked another question.
"Have you considered staying longer?”
Helen hesitated.
“I don’t think that decision belongs to me.”
He studied her expression carefully.
“Sometimes,” he said quietly,
“decisions belong to the people brave enough to take them.”
For the first time since entering the building—
Helen smiled.
And without realizing it—
so did he.
Outside the glass wall behind him—
the Miami skyline stretched endlessly toward the ocean.
Inside the office—
something far more dangerous had just begun quietly forming between them.
And neither of them knew yet—
that one decision would change three lives forever.
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