the freetown of love and peace

By 6am the following morning, i heard a gentle knock on my door and when i got to the door, there stood Benjamin, hands in his trouser pocket, smiling at me. “good morning” i greeted and yawned, “i’m so sorry for disturbing you this early, it’s just that i was unable to sleep last night” he explained nervously. I let him into my room, he settled on my chair and kept me company, while i brushed and freshened up… “seriously i still find it hard to chat with you” he confessed, making me laugh, “but i don’t think it is a good thing to be shy before a girl, moreover we do like guys who are manly” i advised jokingly. He smiled and stared at me. “hope i didn’t put you off with my behaviour yesterday??” he asked curiously, “i’m so sorry about it” he apologized with a drawn face. I breathed deeply, summoned courage, advanced towards him and sat on his laps, planting a kiss on his cheek which left him totally surprised, “let’s forget about last night” i murmured, got up from his body and returned to my bed. He stared at me with a coloured face filled up with surprise.. “if he is smart he will figure out that my kiss is an invitation” i reasoned as i waited for his reaction. I really forced myself to plant the kiss on his cheek in order for him to feel free with me. Seriously i have never met a complete introvert like Benjamin, “perhaps he might still be a virgin” i reasoned. I sat on my bed that beautiful morning with a calm smile, looking up at him our eyes met.. When a girl is attracted to a guy, anything could happen. I was watching the last movie when I noticed him sit beside me on the floor, with two bottles of coke and a packet of crackers biscuit, which made me smile to myself, as I focused all my attention on the movie which was showing on his television…… “Cyndii here is cola oo” he managed to joke while i smiled, and looked at him in appreciation. We ate the biscuit and drank the coke in silence, as i returned my focus back to the movie once again, even though i could feel his gaze on my body….. He later held my hand gently, which really made me look at him with surprise, and he appealed to me with his eyes. “Please accept me into your life, i’m not a bad person, i promise and swear to keep your dignity and respect intact, i truly love you” he begged. “Really?” i asked, while he held my hand strongly “I swear” he answered. I rolled my eyes and said nothing. “Please answer me” he pleaded desperately. Seriously seeing him beg me, really gladdened my heart, but i just pretended as if he was disturbing my peace. “What do you want me to say again nah?” i asked, while he drew his face closer to mine. “Please just say yes” he whispered. I looked into his eyes and saw love, desire and honesty in it, while his lips looked so fresh and soft that i felt like kissing him, but i controlled myself and looked away. “Just give me time, i will think about it”. I replied but surprisingly and out of nowhere, he drew my face to his, and kissed my lips tenderly, while i closed my eyes as i felt the warm taste of his lips…… But I soon got myself and gently pushed away his face, while he looked at me gratefully, and with shinning eyes. “I have never felt this way before thank you” he said, while i looked away and closed my eyes briefly, cos i equally felt something strong when we kissed, which i have never felt for any guy before, not even for my ex Lynda’s cry soon shook the whole lodge that fateful evening, making us freeze like statues as she recieved Dave’s blows all alone. I truly have never heard nor witnessed anyone cry with such pain and anguish before in my life, but instead of rendering any help, i just stood and watched as if i was watching a home video. Perhaps it was because my strength failed me that moment or because i was too scared to jump into the fight, but then whatever it was that prevented me from intervening that moment equally turned me into a very heartless girl who just stood and watched a fellow girl as she got beaten in a fight which truly started because i happened to be in that very room that moment. “Supposing Amara and i left things as they were, all these wouldn’t have happened but i guess it’s now too late to be regretting” i reasoned as i watched him beat up lynda. Amara was still too stunned to intervene, as she sat speechless on the bed with both hands on her head. After Dave’s revelation about her boyfriend that fateful evening, she just coloured up and kept to herself like an AIDS patient. Finally i heaved a sigh of relief with a deep breathe as Dave’s two friends rushed up and dragged him out from Lynda, who just laid motionless from the terrifying blows she got from him. The poor girl really had given up with her struggles when her strength failed her, yet Dave really was very furious to care or even notice. Supposing his two friends didn’t break him away from her that moment, i truly don’t know what could have happened, perhaps i might not even be writing this story by now because the memory would have killed me…. Dave and his friends finally left us alone in ‘pieces’ and i was then left with the huge task of reviving Lynda. Poor girl who was trampled upon, humilated and beaten all because of love. People don’t believe me when i do say that most things about life is either cruel, comes from cruelty or ends with cruelty, but here again Lynda’s case is just but one out of a million cases, and even though i blamed her, i still understood her plight, because not every girl has the strength nor courage of letting go a guy with whom she shared a unique portion of her heart and body with…. With shaking hands, i lifted up her head and tried to revive her Dave is a devil” Lynda cried as i helped her sit up, “i will report him to school security and the police” i assured her, “no don’t do that, it will only make matters worst, just let me handle it” she replied sadly, while i looked at her with pity before shaking my head sadly. “Don’t worry about me just go to your room i want to be left alone” she added sorrowfully, “why, you are yet to regain your strength, i’m not going anywhere” i replied with a heavy heart, but she calmly pushed me away from her side, “cyndii please just go with your friend, trust me i’m okay” she assured with red eyes. I shrugged with resignation, stood up and dragged Amara with me as i quietly left her room. My legs shook as i walked out from Lynda’s room that evening, while my heart wept as if i was the one who recieved the beating. Surely i was very downcast with a guilty feeling because i knew i caused the whole fight by being in her room that evening. “do you believe that Chuks is a cultist?” Amara suddenly asked as we climbed the stairs leading to our floor, instantly dragging me away from my thoughts, “i seriously don’t know dear, life itself is a mystery” i calmly replied. Even though i was shocked when i heard Dave’s revelation on Chuk’s involvement in cultism, i wasn’t entirely surprised because i really never liked him for once but just tolerated him because of my friend, perhaps that was why i easily believed Dave’s revelation even though i clearly hid my feelings from her, because i really didn’t have the strength to take on another scene… “i will confront him tonight” she muttered quietly, “good but be diplomatic when doing that” i advised. She said no other word and left for her room…. I barely had settled in my room, when Benjamin’s knock shook and woke me from my thoughts, “please dear i’ll like to be left alone” i pleaded when i opened my door. He stared at me with surprise but i looked away and avoided his gaze. “hope you are okay?” he asked, “yea but please let me be for now, i’ll come over to your room later” i pleaded. He stared at me for a while, shrugged and left without further questions, even though i knew his mind must be filled with questions that very moment. Sometimes guys always mis-interprete or don’t understand when we beg to be left alone, most of them however do oblige us with doubts and suspicion in their mind. Most times when we girls go through a painful experience which we prefer not to share with anyone, we do like keeping to ourselves and having a boyfriend around always spoils the whole thing because of their inquisitive nature. No matter how much we love a guy, there are still some secrets we do keep away from him… I really couldn’t help but wonder what was in Benjamin’s mind that fateful evening, but my heart soon leapt when i heard someone knock on my door with {Dave’s usual pattern} which left me stunned, speechless and indecisive as i contemplated whether to answer {open} my door or not what is it again?” i coldly asked Dave when i finally opened my door. I never really planned to answer his knock that fateful evening, but i was forced to do so when it became obvious he wasn’t ready to give up knocking on my door. Inorder to stop him from disturbing my neighbours whom i knew were already peeping from their respective door “keyholes” to ascertain where the persistent knock{ing} disturbing them was coming from, and Benjamin whom I also knew heard the noise, i really had no choice than to open my door and face the devil. “what took you so long?” he asked with a smile, expertly avoiding the question i asked him. “what is it that you want?” i coldly asked again, while my right hand strongly held my door knob, for easy closing of my door incase he tried anything si.ll.y. “c’mon baby why the angry look?” he asked with a composed smile. I boiled inside as i stared at him with hatred, “how can he appear, so calm, well composed and lively after all he just did?” i wondered angrily. “anyway since you don’t want to talk to me, let me go ahead and say what brought me to your room” he added calmly. “i came to apologize because of what happened this evening in Lynda’s room, and i truly did what i did just to prove to you that there is nothing going on between Lynda and i anymore even though i do regret hitting her so hard” he tried to explain, but his explanation and apology only got on my nerves and infuriated me more. “you didn’t just hit the poor girl hard, you also tried to kill her, and never you say that you did such a stupid thing to prove your nonsense love to me, i never sent you on such errand, so just leave me alone please” i bravely barked at him. His eyes instantly lit up in anger for a while before dying down again. “so i lost Lynda for nothing?” he asked, “if you know what’s good for you better go and apologize to her and pray she forgives you” i answered bitterly. “cyndii please don’t turn me into a wretch because you won’t like it” he muttered with a dirty smile, which really shook my poor legs and frightened me. “are you threatening me??” i asked nervously. He just smiled and walked away, leaving me in great fear, suspence and wonder. Truly Dave knows how to leave a lasting impression on anyone he targets and as he walked away that fateful evening i was left in deep thought as i tried to figure out what he meant by being left a wretch…. I locked my door showered and rushed into Benjamin’s room, deeply shaken and scared to my bones. All i needed that moment was his soothing words and caresses to calm my nerves, and a decent sex to bring my broken spirit back to life