right now, i've not bn able to continue my stories because I don't have access to many of their drafts now.
But I'm been compelled to repost this story because of the various mail i've gotten..
enjoy..

Dedication
To you Precious Adejumo the born editor.
To Adegboyega Micheal Owolabi and Oladipupo Titilola(Skoda)- Lovers like you are rare.

Prologue

The Surprise Proposal
Feb 14, 2012

Serenity. Cool music. He was right. There was no better place. John sat at the table and waited. He wanted it to be the best thing he would do. He had never being so agitated. He checked his wristwatch and shifted again. Cold
air blasted into his pores from the white rectangular Air conditioner at
his right. A waiter came to him and desired to know if he would like to buy anything.

‘Give me Malta Guinness’. He said. Normally, he wouldn’t take Malta
Guinness. But it was her favourite. He would do anything to see her happy. He would do anything to make her remain the love of his life.

After he and Biola became friends, he had been harbouring the thought of telling her how he felt about her. But, he decided to wait until the bond of their friendship was solid.

John hoped she would really be surprised, just as he had imagined all year. The plan had been simple and because of its simplicity, she fell for the first part.

He checked the time again. She was ten minutes late. He shifted. The music in the background, 'to be loved' by Jackie Wilson seemed to talk to him.
'Someone to care
Someone to share
Those lonely hours
And moments of despair
To be loved
To be loved
Oh
What a feeling
To be loved'.

She entered. His heart flipped. She wore a red flora gown. The edge of the cloth kissed her knee and the sight of this made his blood become warmer.

He had been seeing her as a friend for years. But today, he couldn’t wish for any other woman. Her long dark hair outlined her fair complexion. He swallowed. His heart pounded hard against his chest. Light glowed around her.

‘Am I late?’ Biola said as she sat opposite him. He smiled. The plan was working.

He shook his head, raised his eyebrow.’ Of course, you are ten
minutes late’.

‘I’m sorry joor… at least, I got here before her’, she said as she brought
out a small mirror from her bag and patted her hair into a shape she
desired, the way he loved it.
‘How do I look?’
‘Perfect. Just as I like it . Just as she would like it’.
She blushed.’ Leave me joor…’
He told her he wanted her to witness when he would be proposing to his
girlfriend since she was his best friend. Although, when he told her, he expected to see disappointment or jealousy in her eyes he saw none of such.

She was his best friend, and everyone knew that. In fact, they thought the two of them were dating. And when he told anybody that chose to ask he was not dating her, they thought he was pretending. The only person aside her who knew John wasn’t dating her was his friend, Richard.

‘I hope she’s beautiful. This one that you did not tell me, your best
friend, who you were dating until you wanted to propose marriage to her’.
She said and glared at him. ‘If she’s not beautiful, I’ll send her back’.
‘She would be here soon’, he said, smiling. He had planned it well. Her
seat was backing the door.
‘Oh! Here she comes’, he said and she turned. He hurriedly removed the case from his pocket, went on his knee, and opened the case. There was no need to waste time on dating. He had seen all he needed to see in her.

‘There is-‘, Biola said as she turned towards him. She stared at him. Her
eyes dashed from his face to the case and back to his face again.

‘Will you marry me, B? I don’t want us to live in the boyfriend-girlfriend
era at all'.
She stared at him. Her eyes became wider. She inhaled a long breath and whimpered. He smiled. She loved him and was happy.

‘You shouldn’t have deceived me’, she said and looked about.
He nodded. ‘Is that a yes?’

‘After….’ She said and hissed. She closed her eyes. Something was wrong. He watched her closely as she opened and closed her mouth several times.

‘Richard has proposed to me’.
‘Richard? Did he not know we were in a relationship? Why didn’t you tell
him?’
‘Why didn’t you tell him, at least, that you love me…?’
‘He knew…’
‘He didn’t-‘
‘Did you give him a reply’?

She stared at him and held his hand. His heart was burning. He swallowed hard as his body became numb and he wished the news would change.

‘When you told me you’ve found a lady and that you were going to propose to her today. I was so happy for you that you my friend would start dating the same time I will be dating.‘

Hot liquid substance flowed across his face but he wasn't concerned. He wanted to know what happened.

‘I told him, yes, yesterday. You should have told me plainly. I would have told you... You're more than a friend to me, you are a brother to me’, she said and shook her head.

She carried her bag and rushed out of the restaurant, leaving him on his knee. He stared into space as the words of the music in the background came vividly to his hearing. As if protesting on his behalf, Whitney Houston shouted from the speakers of the restaurant.
'And I …will always love you..'

Chapter 1
Flowers
February 14, 2015
Today in History: 2005 – YouTube is launched by a group of college
students, eventually becoming the largest video sharing website in the
world and a main source for viral videos.

She basked in the darkness of the garden and heard the old rusty gate creak. That was surprising. The garden had been forsaken for years and ever since she started coming there- a year ago- nobody had ever stepped on the place, even during the day.
She felt the place was been desecrated. It belonged to her and her alone.

It was her place of zen, rest, of putting things together, of making
herself sane.
The garden laid opposite her house, but it had been naturally covered with a lot of wild bushes. Since the owner died some years before, no one had ever stepped forward to claim it. She took it upon herself to make it cleaner and fit for thinking, for solving and reconstructing her knotted,
puzzled life. Did she need to shout the intruder out? The darkness made it impossible for her to see who had just come in but she, like a lioness, had to show her ownership of the territory.

' Who's that?'
The person turned, and scurried for the gate.
' It's okay', she shouted. ' I'm human'.

The person stopped at the gate. The dim light from the street reflected on the person. The person held on to the gate, a bag hanged from his or her side.
' Come. I'm human, a woman and I'm as real as air', she called again, not sure if the person would be compelled to stay.

Despite the trousers the person wore, she couldn't discern if the person was a man or a woman.
Dry leaves crumbled under heavy steps as the person trudged slowly towards her. She held her breathe as she watched this person find his or her way
towards her. From the way the person marched she knew he or she was being careful about not scratching his or her cloth with grasses. But luckily for this person she had cleared the place. The stone bench she sat on could seat five people at once. Not minding the darkness, she had an unusual assurance that this person also needed a place to pour our his or her heart into the night. A place lonely, peaceful, dark, sacred; a place the wiles of the world wouldn't gain access to.

' Good evening', a tiny male voice said. Biola knew he was speaking with the falsetto but she was less concerned.

' Good evening. Happy Val.' She tapped the stone bench loudly. ' This place can seat more than two people, and it's the only one here. So have your seat'.
He mumbled his appreciation and sat without talking. She kept wallowing in her pain, anger, and drifted to her desire to know who the intruder was.
Then, repeated the order.
At last, she succumbed to her curiosity of who he was.

' I'm hot',she said at last.
He roused. ' But it's cold out here'.
' No... That's my nickname... So, once again I'm hot'.
' Oh! That means you must be very beautiful '.
She laughed. It felt good. That was the first hearty laughter she had had since she travelled the previous day. ' So they say. So, my friends say. I
hope others, you included, would agree with this'.
' That's good'.
She frowned but was happy the place was dark. His reply was awkward.

Normally, a better guy, like John, would have pushed the conversation further and their conversation would have rolled on like sky- endless, changing at different points.

The gravy, heavy silence made her revert to her thought. Her life had
normally been devoid of comfortability. So, there was a pointer to the fact that her present trouble would also end for a bigger one. She pondered on
the lyrics of Sam Cooke's song
'It's been too hard living, but I'm afraid to die
'Cause I don't know what's up there, beyond the sky
It's been a long, a long time coming
But I know a change's gonna come, oh yes it wil'
l
She remembered when they first met and remembered especially the day he popped the great question that was a year ago.
It was February 14 too.

Insects chirped and cars occasionally hummed past. The breeze from all corners jostled to enter her pores and made her tighten her cloth.

Just as she felt it was time to leave, she still felt nudged to ask the intruder what he really wanted in that corner of the street. And she
succumbed to her urge.

' I'm a pastor', he replied as though his voice was an axe, and the cold
darkness an egg. As if talking loud would smash it.
' Good evening Pastor. Let's restart it. I'm Hot'.
' I'm.... Are you okay with my nickname too?'
' Yes. Okay... I'm Element. Do you come here often?'
' No. I come here everyday. This is the only solace in this warful world.
This is the only corner that can hide me from the windy turbulence that bestowed itself on us'.
' I understand you. Are you a Christian?'
She scoffed. She wanted to just give him a simple reply but she saw the need and opportunity to pour out her heart to God. Even if he wasn't present physically, a pastor, his representative was there and he would hear it.
' Yes. You know I've been wondering why God watches me in my sufferings and I see no soothing balm? Why did he even create me? What's the essence of
creating me into a life that wants me out of the way? Why didn't he allow the deserving and good things come to me on time? Why?'

' He has his...his purpose for all mankind, for allowing anything'.
' I used to believe that'.
' My belief about it has just been strengthened tonight. I can't really
explain what your being here means. I have been wondering why I met you here. I first discovered this place last week and decided to come here when the need arises '.

She swallowed and wiped the tears that was already trailing down her face.
' I'm sorry. I've said a lot. I ought not to have said such, especially to
a stranger. I have to go now. By the way, this place belongs to me, it's my shrine. I can allow you come to think here also.
'Thanks'.

' And I hope to meet you in the daylight'.
' No. Let's make it remain this way'.

The old gate screeched tiredly as she headed home. Things were
happening too fast. How come she opened her hidden wound to a total
stranger? She just couldn't understand that feeling. But she loved it and wanted to have more of it. Pastor or not, she loved his company, his voice,
his presence-it made her feel buoyant. The same type of feeling she had only when she was with John. And mischievously, she seemed to hear John
through this stranger, talking to her like the sage he was.
'Oh John!' She sighed and locked the door of her massive,
ominous-memory-filled house.