The brown skinned woman inhaled the sweetness of the air as she climbed out of the tricycle. Her nostrils flared as the scent of freshly fried popcorn seemed to dominate the atmosphere. It was a beautiful day. The sun wasn’t too angry or too sad, just a radiant yellow that was enough for the blues of the skies to pop out. Maybe this was a sign, maybe it was time to let go of Andre. She had loved him with all of her heart, and done things that were against her beliefs. But he was getting married to another woman, the woman that was in the same workplace as she was.
Gently, Edima marched towards the latest supermarket in the city of Uyo. So much had changed within three weeks! Yes, she had taken three weeks off from work, and everything else to clear her head.
“Welcome Madam,” a thickset security officer flashed his kola-nut stained teeth.

“Welcome to Mepples Supermarket!” He repeated, almost zealously. Edima scoffed, ignored his greeting and moved further into the orange and white building. Indeed Mepples was worth the hype. Her hands travelled deeper into the pocket of her jeans as the chilly wind from the AC swayed from side to side.
Absent mindedly, she moved towards the section nearest to her. But suddenly paused to take in the complexity of the ambience. Her eyes sparkled in wonder as she stared at the glistening silver bulbs that dangled from the roof. The floors sparkled and reflected the face of a sad woman. Eager to prove that she had gotten over him, she continued walking. Thankfully, she found a basket and randomly began to stack it with different items.
Satisfied, she marched towards the counter.
“20,000,” the salesgirl offered after taking stock of everything.
Edima quickly unzipped her clutch. She narrowed her eyes as she stared at the empty state of the purse.
“Ma, please you’re taking too much time!” The salesgirl was looking at fifteen other people that were directly behind this woman.
“Um…I…” Edima bit her lip. She was certain she came out with money. What had happened to her money? She was still cracking her brain when a rich aroma of tobacco and brandy danced into her nostrils. As a lover of perfumes, she had a good nose, and could tell the wearer had to be a middle aged millionaire. Because Dreams Haven was one of the most expensive perfumes in the world, and she had gotten the opportunity to inhale it from…the man who shattered her heart. Andre had pulled her into his world, and dumped her like she didn’t matter.
“The bill is on me.” The baritone rumbled in her ears.
When Edima tilted her head backwards, she held her breath.
“Andre?” Her heart jolted in excitement, but her joy faded as she realized he wasn’t talking to her, but to the charming woman that she had once called friend, Ella.
“I’ll pay for her,” another voice followed.
Tears stung her eyes as she stared at the handsome stranger. Why was he offering to help her? What did he want from her?
“I don’t need you to pay for me. I can handle this on my own.” She fired, trying to save what was left of her pride. Before he could say something else, Edima did the unthinkable.
“Hey! Wait! I’ve paid!” The dark stranger kept calling at the fleeing woman who had stirred something within him from the moment she had walked into Mepples. But it was too late. She was gone.

CHAPTER TWO
She heard his deep voice calling out to her, but it was too late. She could never walk back to that place where the wound that she was trying to mend had broken again. So Andre had come to Mepples too, and with the woman he had replaced her with? The thought of Andre running his hands lovingly, and planting seeds of delicate kisses on his wife’s to be forehead inspired a fresh blood rush. It was only when the cool of the AC had faded from her skin, and quickly replaced by an aggressive burning that she realized she was under the gaze of the scorching sun.
“Shit!” Her teeth clamped her lower lip as she recalled the embarrassment. Now she wasn’t even worried about the attractive guy that offered to pay for her, but more about Andre who must have seen her looking so desolate!
How could she ever forget him? How could she let go of all they had shared through the years? How could Andre move on just like that? They had been in a relationship right from their University days, and now he was walking away without looking back. A sharp pain cut through her chest as she remembered him visiting her home, a far cry from the high quality structure that was Umoh’s mansion.
“He is not yours Mma. Can’t you see that you’re from two different worlds? He is up there, dining with kings and…we are…” her younger sister had been the only pessimistic one about their relationship. A small laugh started at the corner of her lips as she thought of Mkpouto, the baby of the house yet she had so much wisdom.
Her sister was right after all. Andre had started by ignoring her calls, and taking forever to reply to her messages. If only she had read the handwriting on the wall, she would’ve been bold enough to scurry away with whatever was left of her fragile heart. But the more he ignored her, she chased after him. The more that he rejected her, she clung to the memories of love in the past.
Edima was still staring into the yellow distance when her left thigh vibrated sharply. She reached out to her left pocket and grabbed the phone. Kelly was calling. At first, she had wanted to ignore her best friend’s call, but Kelly would sense that something had gone wrong. Kelly had pressured her to step out of the house after learning that Andre was getting married in a few weeks to a co-worker as they all worked for the Umohs.
As Edima took the call, she decided that maybe it was also time to resign so she wouldn’t have to see his face, and his new darling.
“Hi babe, how did your outing go?” Kelly’s treble seemed like a bell chiming from a distance. She seemed happy. Fair enough, Kelly was known to be a cheerful sweetheart, but Edima was better at reading people.
“What’s making you bubbly?” Her left eyebrow tiptoed in wonder. Also, she wanted to shift the focus from her experience.
“I found us both a job.” Kelly blurted out.
“Liar!” Edima rolled her eyes. Before the whole problem with Andre, the girls had enjoyed working at Royal Coins, one of the branches of the microfinance bank owned by the Umohs. Through Andre’s help and recommendation, they had gotten slots, he was that generous!
“Edima…” Kelly inhaled deeply. She wasn’t a fool to recognize that they were no longer wanted at the bank. Certainly Andre would fire them sooner or later, it was better to walk away with one’s dignity intact.
“I get your point…so what’s this new job about?” Edima felt slightly lighter now that she realized that there was something else to keep her distracted from thoughts of Andre.
Kelly was about to say something when the connection suddenly broke. Edima’s firm gritting of her teeth in frustration could break nuts to pulp. She was still staring at the screen, angry that the device was drained of energy when a sudden force hit her from behind.
“Ouch…” Edima grumbled.
The gigantic figure that hit her walked past with two huge cartons without looking back, and acknowledging the pain that she had caused another.
“Gorilla!” Edima’s small nasal passages flared in indignation.
Sensing that the animalistic description was for her, the thick dark skinned woman paused, swirled around and stared at the mousy brown woman.
“I no blame you!” She sneered back. Before Edima could come up with another response, the thick madam had entered into a black car which moved swiftly away. Now she was alone now. The anger was gone, and a feeling of despair took over her mind. As she waved down an orange tricycle, Edima knew she wouldn’t survive the evening alone. She had to stop at Kelly’s place.

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