PLEASE DO NOT SKIP THE AUTHOR'S NOTE AT THE END

Thank dheenmah this update would have been coming on Thursday, if not for her😂❤️

~DABI~

Figures.

This. Is. Why. Dabeluchi. Orji. Will. Never. Have. A. Life.

Point, period.

"Lulu, do you feel better???"

Well, Soma...

I had just sufferred a horrific mental breakdown. Had to deal with Winnie's voice and 1000 words of ridicule, shame, and the humiliation that I was, replaying in my head, haunting me, torturing me, and making me lose my mind and grip the twists on my hair, pull it, drag it, in utter frustration at myself.

I don't know if I'm okay, Soma.

But thank God for you guys..

Thank God for the sisters...

Chika, Soma, and the twins had spent the next thirty minutes after my 'drama', surrounding me in one of the bathrooms of this humongous house, while my pathetic self was having the most shitty throw up session yet, breaking and destroying both my system and sanity in the four walls of this nauseatingly exotic bathroom.

"Dabs, you okay?"

I was still intent on taking in air, and every one of it I forced into my system smelt of my own vomit, triggering my gag reflex even more.

"Shit, should we take her home?"

I'm pathetic.

I couldn't even last a minute in the party, and I embarrassed myself and my friends by throwing up on the floor of the living room. And now, barely thirty minutes after, I'd even put further stress and dissappointment on my friends by having them drive me home, after all that they had planned for the night?

Ofcourse, I had to be the buzz kill.

I just wonder how long it would take for this girls to get tired and finally give up on me.

"Dabs, why didn't you tell us you weren't feeling too good?" Chika asked, face, laced with worry and concern.

I wasn't sick at all, Chika. I wasn't.

Gratefully, I didn't have a chance to reply and give a reasonable answer to her, when a soft knock was heard at the door of the bathroom.

Chika sighed. "I'll get it," she looked to the door and back to the sisters, "It's probably him."

She sounded like they all knew who she was talking about that was at the door.

"I'll go with you!" Ebere decided, all of a sudden.

"Me too!" Ebube followed up.

That was how Chika and the twins went for the door and stayed outside, leaving Soma with me in the bathroom.

I delivered avoided looking at Soma. No matter how nice the girls were being to me, I still felt as through I was slowly cutting thin lines with them, triggering their frustration slowly, and getting myself closer and closer and closer to the final straw.

What if I was...?

What if I was slowly stretching my limits with them..?

What if they were getting tired of me..?

What if...

What if ..

What if they were already tired of me..?

What if they'd soon leave my pathetic ass..?

You, pathetic, pathetic, girl, Dabeluchi!

Stupid, pathetic girl!

"Lulu.."

I froze at Soma's soft voice, calling me.

"Yeah..?" I answered quietly, hugged myself even more, still looking away from her, and further even turning away slowly, so my back could face her... But not too much. I was ashamed to look myself in the mirror in front of me.

I couldn't.

I gasped when soft hands wrapped around me from behind and Soma's head dropped down from her towering height to rest on my shoulder.

"It's okay," she whispered to me and I fought the urge to cry as my heart absolutely melted in such a kind, warming gesture that reminded me that I was loved unconditionally by the sisters.

I always forgot that fact.

"You know..?" Soma released the hug as a turned me around, hands holding my arms, and I blinked, looking back into eyes that were filled with love and hope.

"If I had a magic wand.." She laughed softly as she started, and I laughed too, softly, at her opening statement.

"... I'd make SpongeBob appear in front of us," She continued, blinked hopefully at me.

I laughed again, softly. "Why SpongeBob though?"

"Because SpongeBob is always happy, and happiness rubs off on people," Soma answered delightfully.

That actually made me smile and I didn't even know why.

"But since I ain't no Cosmo or Wanda to grant that wish..." She said, tilted her head softly and blushed at me, eyes full of happiness at it's peak, "Can I be your SpongeBob?"

I laughed now, like a full laughter and my heart was a mess of warm emotions as Soma laughed with me, pulled me into a warmer hug that took away all the trauma from tonight.

I actually felt better.

".. And how is she now?"

Soma heard it too - the voice of the guy who just spoke from outside. In that moment of silence between me and Soma, we heard the foreign voice outside.

It probably was the guy Chika and the twins went to talk to outside.. and had they been talking about me?

"Not sure.. but she'll be fine," That was Ebube's voice.

"And once again, we're so sorry for the mess in the living room." That was Chika's voice.

I heard the boy laugh softly, "Nah, it's cool."

Who were they talking to?

"As far as my parents never find out, I'm good to go. They'd never let me host a party in the house. I only did this 'cause they're away."

Yure.

They're talking to Yure Adediji.

And God, I nearly slapped my forehead!

As it had been shouted up and down, he was the one whose house we were having this party in.

How convenient. Yure had never spoken to me before in school EVER! And the first time he ever has a reason to be on my case, it's all because I threw up in his living room.

Just wonderful, Dabeluchi.

The doorknob shook to open, and I nearly scaled the fence.

Which fence? Exactly. There was none around. That was why when I jumped into mid air, Soma was quick to catch me in her arms immediately.

Yure didn't walk into the bathroom. It was just the twins.

"Yure says we shouldn't worry.." Ebere started by telling us.

"Yeah.. he says the cleaners would handle the mess in the living room." Ebube completed for her twin.

I felt a tad bit uncomfortable, hearing that.

Those poor workers would have to clean up my own mess?

"Chika is still talking with him. He wants to know if you would want them calling his personal doctors to prescribe -"

"I'm not sick, don't worry." I cut Ebere off.

"Are you sure? You've really been throwing up, won't it be safe to check if your health is stable?" Ebube asked in a time that made me know she was worried.

"There's nothing worse than playing with your health, Dabi. If you don't feel good, let us know." Ebere said, and I could tell that she, infact, both twins were indeed worried sick about my health.

The two always took everything related to one's physical and body health severely serious... I never really understood why.

"Maybe, we should just take her home, sisters?" Soma suggested.

Buzzkill, that's what I am.

"No," I shook my head. "We had so much planned for the night. Even all our pledges..?"

As much as I dreaded my dare task, it was almost a forbidden taboo to not fulfil our tasks.

And besides... These girls looked forward to having me here, and here I am, throwing up and embarrassing myself and them, then leaving shortly afterwards?

It didn't feel like the decent thing to do.

"But Lulu, the ultimate goal was to make you happy tonight, if you aren't comfortable, then we're failing." Soma said.

No, Sisters. You've never failed in making me happy. Never.

"I'll stay." I insisted, "Maybe I just need a little time away from everyone so I can sink in what happened back there..."

I'd stay. I had promised I'd stay, so I would. They were okay with me not sleeping over, the least I could do was to endure the next two to three hours of the night.

What crazy thing could possibly happen to me in that short span of two to three hours anyway?

I'd just get the night over with.

We heard the doorknob shake again and I guessed Chika was about to come into the bathroom when we suddenly heard-

"CHIKA CHIOMA! SEE DRIP, NAW!"

We nearly jumped at the sudden loud voice of a male, coming from outside. And it probably stopped Chika from further movement, because the shaking on the knob paused, and Chika wasn't coming inside the bathroom yet.

"Omo, she fire!"

"Burn us oo! We are your shedrach, Mishach, and Abadnego!!!"

Wait a second.

"Guy, I am burning! I'm reduced to ashes!!"

"Chika has rendered us as chaff. DUST!!"

"We are not worthy to be in her presence, BLOW US INTO THE AIR!"

Those voices.

Those boys.

I know those boys.

I know those boys.

I heard Chika laugh at their antics, and I imagined her holding her stomach for leverage.

Then she called both the names of the boys who I was certain were responsible for such noise. "Aaron. Casper."

Yes, them.

"I don't have your time, abeg." I heard her telling both boys, but I doubt they got the point. From the inside of the bathroom, I still could hear their witty chants and unnecessary noise even after Chika had clearly told them she 'wasn't in their mood'.

Figures. It was 'Aaron and Casper'. The names alone, were too revolving, too much in the lips of classmates and students of Castron High.

Infact, as a new student, you'd probably even hear the names, before you see the people it belonged to. You know those names you'd have heard a thousand times, constantly, every day and every second, to the extent that it sticks to your head and it feels like it should always belong together.

Yeah, that's 'Aaron and Casper'. And they so happen to be the two best friends in our set who everyone in the entire school had long concluded were missing a screw or two in the head.

So, I wasn't surprised at all when they didn't take a hint at all.

"Chika, come, come, lemme tell you something," one of them was jittering there outside, "After YOU na YOU!"

Oh, Lord, help her.

"I tell you, man!" The other one bellowed, "Any other Chika is a what???!"

She really needs help, Lord.

"A COUNTERFEIT!!!" Both voices screamed at the same time and I closed my eyes shut to absorb and endure the sharpness of their loud, piercing voices.

I was sure Chika got deaf.

And yes, those boys were absolutely crazy - possibly the craziest, noisiest humans I knew and somehow, their incredible social nature and loud, jovial persona easily made them both to become one of the most liked people in the entire set, and also, one of the most popular in the whole school.

And as an interesting matter of fact.. they didn't really know I existed.

And even more hilarious fact; So, yeah, I have been in the same classroom with them, two years in a row.

I know, you're shocked.

Well, I couldn't fault Aaron and Casper for not noticing me. Or if I'm being honest, I couldn't blame them for not noticing a lot of people.
You know? When people get so much love and attention from so many people, they can't possibly give all that back to every single individual - especially if it's an individual like Dabeluchi Orji.

"Look, guys. My friend is in the middle of a crisis and she needs my help," Chika was being straight with the boys.

"Dabi, you mean?" Either Aaron or Casper asked.

My eyes bulged out if it's sockets.

They know my name?!

"Yeah, we saw what happened," I heard the other say.

Shit.

Shit.

That's when Ebere spoke up amongst us;

"Sisters, let's get out of her, it's suffocating."

Clever way of telling me my vomit smells like shit, Eb.

I wanted to protest, I really did. I didn't want Aaron and Casper, or even any of my classmates to see me right now, so soon, just minutes after throwing up on the living room floor.

I wasn't ready to face anyone just yet. So soon.

I really wanted to protest, but while that debate concerning the matter, was going on in my head, I didn't even know when I saw myself, standing outside the bathroom with the sisters.

Worse,

There were the famous boys, Aaron and Casper, standing there, right infront of me.

I swallowed.

Swore to myself to refrain from any form of eye contact, be it accidentally or deliberately.

However, these boys had one heck of a solid presence. One that couldn't be overlooked. So believe me when I tell you that their towering presence and the natural, weighty, tremendous aura they exuded was extremely hard to ignore.

Aaron Godson, for one, was tall. Very tall. Freakishly tall. He was actually ranked the second tallest guy in the entire set, a runner up to Yure Adediji who was rumoredly around 6'7.

Ofcourse, his height wasn't the only thing that he was graced with. To me, Aaron was as handsome as a prince, or an actor, or a model? Brown skin, big dreamy eyes, and kissable lips. Although, his playfulness may not have made his good looks the first thing you'd notice about the guy, but one thing I strongly believed was that every girl in our set has or atleast has had a low-key crush on Aaron that they would never admit.

Yes, every girl in our set, including me.

Casper, his best friend, had the most contagious smile I had ever seen. He was a clear inch shorter than Aaron, but had way lighter skin and natural curly sandy blonde hair that was to die for. Like his pal, he had a face that was pleasing to look at and with that smile on his face, he was easy to like.

According to observation, Casper was a tad bit more liked than Aaron in our set.

Infact, I knew some people who downright hated Aaron and sometimes, spoke ill of him.

In their defence.... Aaron Godson did have a strange, almost rude attitude, all about him that even I didn't get sometimes...

But that's an explanation for later.

Right now, I only prayed that these two boys would just act like I was invisible... like the rest of my classmates were doing earlier.

Please, Aaron and Casper, do me a favor and act like you do not know I am existing right now.

"Good, y'all are here," Chika acknowledged on seeing us, and I knew this was the part where the boys turn to us?

Soma gave a toothy grin in reply and as expected, the boys'attentions turned to us, but I was quick to look away, silently praying within me that I'd go unnoticed - as usual.

Hopefully, they were only focused on the sisters.

Keep it that way, please.

"Aaron and Casper are willing to help us get a private room to stay for Dabi's sake." Chika told us.

Wait... Really?

For my sake?

With the way Aaron and Casper seemed a lot calmer and serious now, I figured they were actually putting off their gaga, to effectively help us.... Help me..?

On side note, I never knew these boys could be serious about anything - especially something that had to do with a person who they had never spoken to before.

"Do we go now?" Casper was the one who asked.

I wasn't sure who he was talking to specifically, it seemed like a general question.

However, that was when Aaron actually looked at me.

As in, his eyes landed directly on me, unwavering, straight, no compromise.

I nearly choked on my own nervousness, and Aaron wasn't saying a word.

I HAD to look away from him immediately!

Now, through the corner of my eyes, I could see both boys now - the tall, dark skinned pretty boy and the very slightly, shorter, lighter skinned adorable angel - Aaron and Casper, staring at me and I wished I could stick claws in their eyes.

Their gazes refused to leave and it felt too heavy, too much for me. I desperately, urgently avoided meeting their eyes with mine.

"Yes. Let's go." The twins agreed first, and all the sisters were quick on the move, walking with the two boys.

I didn't go with them.

I didn't want to. My feet stayed glued to the ground, transfixed in my spot as I watched behind them, face dead, yet, my head, a mess of jumbled up negative thoughts, all surrounding those boys.

I didn't feel comfortable being with anyone else from school who wasn't Chika, Soma, or the twins. It felt too strange. Too, too strange - And I didn't want to walk with Aaron and Casper for this reason.

They all stopped, barely three steps had been taken when they noticed I wasn't walking with them.

As they turned, I saw the outright confusion on Aaron and Casper's faces.

"Come with us," Casper extended a hand to me and I jumped away from it. Jumped away like it was a knife and not just an ordinary hand extended out to me.

My action downright confused him and I could see it on his face. He looked at his own hand for a second, wondering if something was wrong with it, before getting it down slowly, seeming unsure of what to do next.

Chika, without any explanation to Casper, was the one who tugged a hand under mine.

"I got you." Was all she said, and walked with me, behind the boys, and I was so grateful.

Well, as we didn't expect it, all the guest rooms were booked. Or at least, none of them were 'private' as we so hoped.

Our final decision was to just pick up a random room, especially since Soma kept crying that her arms were killing her. Unfortunately, she had to be the one holding the bag where all the general items, belonging to the sisters, for the sleepover part of the party, was contained in.

The girls had planned to sleep over tonight and then leave the night of the next day. At least, it sounded 'pardonable' to tell them I had to leave tonight and not stay for the sleepover. They were okay with that, and within me, I couldn't imagine having to leave my mum at home for an entire night.

Oh, Lord, Mum. I made up my mind to find time to reach out to her.

Guest room 41 at the top floor - that was a random pick by Aaron and Casper, and when we got to it, it was already locked from the inside.

Aaron knocked for us.

"Who's that, abeg!" A rude female's voice shouted from the inside and I instantly had a horrible feeling about staying in this room.

However, I didn't talk about it.

"It's us oo!" Casper shouted for them to hear.

Like they'd know who 'us' is.

I wanted to just 'fuck this' and tell them to just leave the room and focus on getting one that was going to let us in without stress. I didn't have the confidence to say it, however, and these boys weren't even thinking in the direction of getting another room.

"Yooooo, ladies! Your new roommates are here!" Aaron was yelling into the shut door, banging on it.

"C'mon, sweets, is that how to treat your new roomies??? We'll soon be living together for the next one day!" Casper followed up, banging too, and I felt that door