Alfred's picture in the media.

And I won't say that we're starting this chapter with a new POV per say because well 🚶‍♀️🚶‍♀️🚶‍♀️

NOUMAN HUSSAIN

"Yo man, I need you to help me taste this," Those were the words that welcomed me immediately I stepped into the fully conditioned and sugar-scented place that housed Cakes and Creams.

And I nearly ran back.

Like, I wanted to turn back and walk out of the shop but I couldn't. I just found myself walking towards the counter as if compelled by the huge grin that was sitting prettily on Alfred's face.

"Why did you come this late? I've been expecting you since morning," He attacked me verbally as soon as I took my seat on the high chair in front of the counter and before I could even say anything, he was shoving what he wanted me to taste in my front.

I looked down to see heart-shaped biscuits with toppings and frostings and designs and I looked up at him, more like frowned at him because he couldn't possibly expect me to consume that much sugar after all the sugary stuff he fed me last week.

"What's this?"

"My new recipe," He beamed at me, "I just came up with the recipe like a couple of minutes ago so I need you to help me check if it's okay or not,"

He was beaming, literally radiating energy and so much excitement as he gazed up at me whole waiting for me to eat the obviously diabetes-inducing biscuits or cookies or cakes or whatever because I wasn't sure what exactly it looked like but I was sure my sugar level could rise by just looking at it.

Too much sugar.

Initially, I thought it was cool that I get to eat and test all his new recipes because well, Alfred has to be the best cook I've ever seen. He just have this way of cooking that I couldn't understand. He was just effortless with cooking. He could just sit still for a couple of minutes and the next, he'll be standing up to try out a new recipe he just came up with.

And whatever that new recipe was? Don't even get me started on how divine and different and unique and heavenly it was going to taste.

Even if it was just an ordinary snack like puff puff or doughnut.

He always has a way of making them into something extremely extraordinary.

But now, I wasn't so sure anymore. I was just scared for my health.

"Why are you not eating it?" He asked me, eyes still intent on me and I knew he was still eagerly waiting for me to taste it and hype his expertise.

He knew he was good, too good but he still needed me to sing his praise to his ears now and then.

I eyed him warily before I picked the whatever up by its side while being careful not to allow the frostings to touch my hands before I took a small bit.

Or rather, I intended to take a small bite but before I knew it, I was dipping the entire heart-shaped whatever into my mouth.

I didn't even know what it tasted like, it tasted like chocolate, cake, biscuit, honey and as expected, it just tasted divine.

"How's it?"

"Good," I murmured distractedly because I was already picking another cookie or whatever it was and popping it into my mouth.

"Just good?"

"It's great, it's divine, it's everything, are you satisfied now?" He probably knows just how good it was but as usual, he just needed me to tell him.

"I know, I know. Anyway, I'm calling it Alfred's Charm and I'll start selling it on Monday,"

"Alfred's charm indeed," I murmured as I popped another Alfred's charm into my mouth.

"You can eat all of them, I made them all for you."

I stared at the cookies, stared at what was left of them and I knew that they shouldn't be less than 15 left.

I picked another one.

"You know I shouldn't be eating this much sugar, right?"

"Don't worry, I've got you; No matter how much sugar I make you eat, it won't affect your instrument down there," Alfred replied instantly, and he tilted his head towards my crotch.

I nearly choked on the cake I was eating.

What?

The thing this child says with a straight face.

"How're you by the way? How was your meeting with your group members?"

"I didn't," I popped another Alfred's Charm into my mouth, "I didn't go,"

"You didn't go?" His tone was incredulous, "Why?"

"Nothing," I told him casually as if it was nothing but well, the thought of that project has always filled me with dread.

I couldn't, for the life of me imagine how this project was going to turn out to be. I've always detested working with even just another student but now, seven different students?

The thought of it was enough to chill my blood to ice.

I just couldn't...

"Hey, with your expression, I'm pretty sure it's nothing. Why did you bail? Were you nervous?"

Nervousness doesn't even cut it. More like panic and anxiety attacks. I've never been good with working with people; And as weird as it might sound, I prefer working with nature, bushes, animals or any other thing as long as it wasn't humans.

But now, seven other people. The thought alone was enough to make me feel extremely anxious.

"I'm sure you don't have anything to worry about," He started, "I'm pretty sure the chics there..."

I shut him a deadly glare and he straightened up, "Sorry, girls, I'm sure the girls there are pretty."

I heaved a sigh. The thing with Alfred was that he was really senseless and if you try to understand him, you'd have to go down to his level.

"Is that all that matters? Pretty girls? Will pretty girls make the project more memorable?"

"Maybe not but they didn't won't make it less memorable."

Senselessness. That's what's doing Alfred. He most definitely has no iota of sense in his head.

"Anyway, if you're nervous or scared or skeptical about your team members, it's just better for you to know one or two things about them before you meet them. That way, you'll have an idea what you're getting yourself into-

-but it's probably unnecessarily," He answered himself while I just kept staring at him, "I'm sure they're a wonderful set of people."

It wasn't even about them, it's about me.

"So, who and who and who are they?" He cracked his knuckles, "Lemme run a quick check on them,"

"Don't you have work to do? Things to bake? Customers to attend to?" I whirled around when I made the statement and I discovered that the other part-timers were attending to the teeming customers that were majorly girls.

"Hey, I wouldn't work when you're here. So so, give me your phone, lemme see your new group members. Who knows if my potential sister-in-law will be there?"

Senselessness.

He picked my phone up from the counter and he unlocked it. It was my phone but three out of the five fingerprints were his and I couldn't even remember the number of times I had forgotten the cumbersome pattern he had set up on my phone.

"So, here we have them," He said and I knew he must have opened the Gmail on my phone. I've seen the mail. I got

"Wale Kukoyi" He basically screamed to my ears, deafening me and half of the customers' ears. "Don't you know who Wale Kukoyi is?"

I shook my head and he scoffed.

"How'd you know who he is when you live under a rock?"

I didn't take that as an insult because he didn't lie. I practically lived under a rock in CSA. I didn't even know who most of my course mates are and if not for my course, I wouldn't even have gone to places where students call happening places in CSA.

He pressed some things on his phone before turning the screen towards me.

"That's him, Wale Kukoyi, He's a law student, A straight-A student and he has always been at the top of his class since 100l..."

Wow. I stared at the picture on the screen. The Wale Kukoyi, a caramel-skinned boy was staring right back with a trophy in his hand and he was dressed in football gear.

"He's also a football prodigy. He's even the captain of CSA's football team. God!" He chuckled to himself, "If I was half the things he is ehn, My God!" He chuckled again and the smile of his face deepened, "None of the girls in CSA will be resting."

I tried not to get surprised by the ridiculousness of his statement at I kept staring at the picture of the Wale guy. He was really impressive but I could say that for almost all the students in CSA.

Everyone was trying so hard to be someone extraordinary.

The Wale-guy had a grin-like smile on his face. An almost proud grin, like I, deserved this trophy kind of smile.

"And the next person here in Nadia Sulaiman," Alfred continued his FBI duties while I just kept staring at him, 'I think we should just skip her since you already know who she is,"

"Who is she?" I asked him, my tone sounding confused because he had assumed I most definitely know who she is.

He just kept staring at me, dumbfounded.

"You don't know who Nadia Sulaiman is?"

I frowned, then subconsciously started massaging my neck, "Am I supposed to?"

Alfred did not say anything; he just kept staring at me as if I just dropped from the moon.

"You don't know her?"

I shook my head and his lips parted slightly.

"Wow, you honestly deserved to be expelled." He said it casually, as if he was stating a fact and I couldn't help the laughter that burst out of my lips.

"Of course, I know her. What do you even take me for?"

No matter how uninterested I was in things happening in CSA, there were people I couldn't help but know.

People like Nadia Sulaiman.

People like Jay.

"Ehn ehn, better, I was scared for a moment. How'd you not know your sister-in-law?"

The laugher died in my throat and I sat up because for one long agonizing moment, I concluded that Nadia Sulaiman was dating one of my brothers.

"My sister-in-law? Who is she..."

"Me of course," He was quick to interrupt my question, "Do you even have other brothers apart from me?"

I relaxed; I fully relaxed on my chair and I heaved a sigh of relief.

Alfred's senselessness was always on point.

"I'm serious though, you should be very nice to her when you guys officially start your project. She's your sister-in-law," He told me, more like he advised me and I just had to shake my head.

Conversations with Alfred always tire me.

"Just like all the other girls before her and the ones that'll come after her, right?"

"I'm serious this time around," He told me in all sincerity and if I didn't know better, I'd think he was being serious but that was one thing about Alfred.

He could crack the biggest joke of the century and he'd still maintain a straight face.

Just like he'd pick random girls, confess his undying love to them, tell them he has had a crush on them since eternity, tell them to call him endearment and all that bullshit.

Most of the girls liked the flattery and attention that came with him fawning over them while some of them, especially the older ones were amused by his audacity.

To me, he was just being plain senseless.

"Honestly, Hussain, I'm serious. All the other chics... Girls," He was quick to correct himself, "They were just cruise and flattery but Nadia? I'm in love with her. I've been in love with her ever since."

"You do know that in yoruba culture, you're supposed to add Sister or Aunty to her name, hmm?"

He muttered things that sounded like a child's winning before he went back to the list.

"David Doyle? Wow! I admire him. You won't believe he has an award set up for him at just 18! 18 years old! Guy! I'll be walking with my head if that should happen to me." He rapped out excitedly and all in one breath.

"Maybe you should calm down first," I told him as I stared at the picture he was now showing me, the picture of a guy holding yet another trophy with a huge and almost contagious smile on his face.

Just three of my group members were students that have done remarkably well for themselves. It wasn't easy to have two sports pros and the first female president of a magazine as remarkable as CovenView in the same group.

So I just concluded that the other group members would most definitely be average students.

Well, that was until he mentioned the next three names.

"Tamara Oceane Wright." He pronounced the words slowly as if he didn't want to make any mistake, "I'm pretty sure you don't know who she is because you've never seen any Nollywood films in your life-

-But well, she's one of the most popular faces in the entertainment industries but for reasons best known to Nollywood netizens, she's always been trolled for one thing or the other online and her comment sessions are always full of hate comments."

Wowww. That was all I could whisper to myself as I stared at the picture he was now showing me.

It was a picture from an advert that I assumed was for a perfume brand. She was all dressed and wrapped up in a pink fluffy dress and she was staring and smiling directly into the camera.

Everything stood out about but her eyes stood out the most because if eyes could tell tales, hers would be telling the saddest one.

I exhaled and automatically reached for my trousers' pocket but it was empty.

Of course, it'd be empty.

"What was the look?" Alfred asked suddenly, his voice sounding overly interested and he leaned over the counter as if he wanted to enter me.

"What look?" I asked and I had to move back because he was already leaning too close to me.

"That look now, I've never seen you look at someone with so much interest. Why? Do you think she has the potentials of becoming my sister-in-law?"

I pushed him back by his forehead, "Just shut up and continue with what you're doing."

He smiled and winked knowingly at me before he leaned back and he said the last name I expected him to say.

"Jay?" I asked dumbly because that was the last name I'd even expect to see on the list.

I didn't know that much about him because generally I wasn't a fan of knowing so much about people but I know so much about his music.

About his soul-feeding and life-changing music.

I was a big fan of his music.

At this point, I wasn't even sure if this group was what I'd been expecting at at. From the two sports pros to the president of CovenView to the popular actress to the music star and now to who?

"Sameera Aliu!" Alfred shouted from where he was and a few students even turned to look at us.

"Sameera Aliu?"

"Yes," He replied before a frown marred his face, "Don't tell me you don't know her."

"Of course, I know her." Courtesy of my sister, of course, Sameera was her idol and role model, just like she was a role model to most Muslim girls.

And my sister was always posting pictures of Sameera that I was sure Sameera didn't even know she has.

Now, I was pretty sure the last person on the group would be an international whatever.

Maybe an international dancer or something.

"Dunni Isoken Gentry."

And immediately he mentioned that name, my phone started ringing in his hands and he stared at the number with interest before handing it over to me.

It was an unsaved number.

And the only unsaved that could be calling me would be that girl from the group that had dropped numerous messages for me, demanding and attacking me for being so unresponsive.

I picked it up because I couldn't run away any more than I had already run away.

"Wow, he picks up," The girl on the line muttered more to herself and I could detect the hint of surprise in her voice.

"Hello, am I speaking to Naaooman Hussain?" She asked and I had to resist the urge to smile at the absolute murder she just did to my name.

I was used to it anyway; That's why I had most people call me Hussain.

Like Alfred for example.

"Yes, you're."

"Good! I'm Dunni Gentry, your group leader for your final year project."

She said the group leader part with so much pride that I had to wonder when and how being a group leader became that revered.

"And why have you been so unresponsive to all the messages on the group chat and both in your dm? Do you know how many of my calls you've ignored? Hope you're fine though? Should we be worried?"

She fired at me, all in one breath and I didn't know which one to answer and how to even start answering.

"I'm sorry about that, I've been in a sort of bind..."

She interrupted with a quiet wow. It was barely audible but I heard it anyways.

"Did you say anything?" I just had to ask but what answered me was a long stretch of silence.

I frowned, then exchanged a glance with Alfred who was looking at me skeptically.

"Hello oo, are you still there?"

Still, no answer, and I even had to remove the phone from my ear to confirm if the call was still on.

And yes, it was still on.

"You okay?"

"Are you from Ghana?" She finally replied-asked, her voice full of awe, adoration, and admiration.

Am I from Ghana?

I frowned at the absurdity of her question and I had to wonder where and how we even got to that question.

"No."

"Then you must be from Kenya or South Africa," She assumed for me, the awe and adoration not leaving her voice.

She sounded totally whipped.

What's all these?

"No, I'm Nigerian."

"Wow! You're from Nigeria and you have an accent that sounds like that?" Her tone was incredulous as if I just told her the most unbelievable lie in the history of man's existence.

"My accent sounds like what?"

"Like melted chocolate!" She deadpanned and my eyes widened just as Alfred leaned over as if he wanted to enter so he'd be able to hear whatever she was saying.

"Your accent is the best thing I've ever heard," She chirped without mincing or even trying to conceal her adoration.

What's this girl?

"Okayyy... Thank you."

"Ohhh, don't thank me. I love you... I mean I love your voice already..."

I removed the phone from my ears to confirm that I was still on the phone with a normal person.

"And," She suddenly screamed and I heard her clap her hands together thrice as if to anchor herself back to sanity, "Our next meeting is on Friday and you must be there if not, I'll deduct 10 marks from your marks." She warned me sternly as if she was capable of doing that.

This babe ehn...

"I'll be there."

"Good!" She chirped, "I'll see you tomorrow, Bye-bye."

And she was gone, leaving me to stare at my phone in open wonder and amazement.

"So Dunni Gentry is..." Alfred started to pick up right where he stopped in his FBI's duties but I put out a hand to stop him.

"Noo, don't bother, I already know her."

Alfred's reply to me was a deep chuckle as if he was amused by my reply. That was how it works with him. He was always amused by everything.

And I think that was a good thing, especially with everything going on with him.

"But why is your shirt half unbuttoned by the way?" I just noticed that the blue shirt he was putting on was half unbuttoned and his sleeves were even rolled up to show ample parts of his hands. All these when the AC was turned on to the highest? "Are you not feeling cold?"

"I am," He shrugged casually, "But I can't help it."

I looked at him as if he just uttered total rubbish, "Help what?

"This." He pointed to his bare chest, "It's called market strategy," He explained earnestly to me as if he was talking about something sensible.

"Turn around and look at what's going on,"

I turned around and yes, most of the customers sitting inside were girls and most of them were staring at him unabashedly and some even giggled and blushed shamelessly when he flashed them smiles.

"You see that? It's working like magic," I turned back to see him rubbing his hands together with a proud and self-accomplished smile on his face, "I'll probably go completely shirtless the next time."

Knowing Alfred, knowing how empty his brain could get, he could go shirtless.

"Button up and roll down your sleeves, please."

"But Hussain..."

"Button up and roll down your sleeves, Bamidele."

He muttered profanities in a language I couldn't understand but he started following my instructions anyway.

My relationship with Alfred was rather an unusual one and no matter how bizarre what brought us together was, knowing Alfred had been nothing short of amazing.

There was a day, almost two years ago that I urgently needed a designated driver and I booked one on this popular O'Drive app only for the driver to arrive and he turned out to be a boy that didn't look older than fourteen years old.

That boy was Alfred Bamidele.

I took one look at the small boy and I started to file a complaint on the O'Drive app but he managed to convince me that he could drive.

And when he showed me his driver's license, I assumed that he was older than his age and besides, O'Drive wouldn't employ an underaged or an inexperienced driver and besides, I was already running late that and I couldn't bear to waste another minute.

I allowed him to get into my car. I allowed him to sit behind the steering. I allowed him to drive me and that turned out to be a very big mistake.

But to cut the long story short, after a series of overspeeding and slow driving and pressing the brake when it was not needed and me gripping a handle to keep myself from jolting out of the seat, we ended up stranded on the third mainland bridge.

At 11 pm.

It took a miracle for us to get another driver to drive us off the bridge and because I couldn't leave him stranded on the bridge, we had to drive him too, and guess what Alfred did immediately the new driver started driving?

He slept off like a log of wood.

And in the long run, I had to allow him to sleep in my place because he was so sleepy that he couldn't even walk on his own.

One would think he was high on something but it was later, after a long conversation I had with him the next morning that I discovered that he had just been sleepy.

Because he had been shuttling one part-time job after the other for the past 72 hours without sleeping a wink.

All because his mother needed an urgent surgery that'd cost half a million naira.

He was her only child and she was the only family he knew and things have not been easy for them, especially after she got laid off from a housekeeping job that paid enough to make them survive.

She couldn't even look for other jobs because her health deteriorated and Alfred, as young as he was then, was left to fend for both of them and to raise her insane medical bills.

At a very very young age.

I had to pay the medical bills and because he didn't way to be indebted to me, he volunteered to come over every Sunday to clean my house and cook for me because apparently, he was a good cook since he grew up watching his mom cook.

That he did not lie about, because subsequently, I discovered that he was the closest thing to a god in the kitchen.

But Alfred Bamidele only took his job seriously for less than 2 months because, after the first two months, he only showed up on Sundays to spread himself over my sofa, Binge-watching Netflix shows on my television, and try out new recipes only to leave not only the kitchen but also the whole house is a total mess before leaving in the evening.

Needless to say, Alfred was a total pain in the ass but he has completely grown on me.

Completely.

"I'll be coming late to your place on Sunday, I have to stop by at the hospital."

"Okay. How's your mom?"

"Fine, a lot better I guess," He replied, his tone a little wistful. His mom had been in and out of the hospital for years but now, she had to stay there fully.

Her health had completely deteriorated.

"That reminds me, my sister is around."

His eyes lighted up as if they just turned up a million bulbs in the room and when he spoke, his voice couldn't sound more excited.

"You mean Zeera baby is already in Coven?"

I eyed him warily. He hasn't met my sister and to the best of my knowledge, he hasn't even seen her pictures and he was already calling her Zeera Baby, or what was that again?

"Her name is Nazeera, Alfred," I corrected him, "And don't let me see you do all these nonsense you do with other girls with her. She's a small child."

"Haba na, I'm not that irresponsible. She's your kid sister so she's most definitely my kid sister too."

"You guys are age-mate so she's most definitely not your kid sister."

He frowned, then looked at me as if I grew two heads, "Nazeera is my age-mate? How old is she?"

"I6,"

I shrugged, "Or 17,"

He didn't say anything, he just kept staring at me as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing and hearing.

"Wait, you think..." He sounded so incredulous and I popped another Alfred's Charm into my mouth. "You think I'm 16 or 17." He pointed to himself for emphasis as if he just couldn't believe the insult.

"Are you 14 then?"

"Guy, I was 17 when we first met and that was two good years ago. I'm 19 now. One and Nine, 19," He explained for emphasis and I could only shake my head at him.

"And besides, would a 16-year-old have this kind of abs and biceps and six-packs and..." He started to flex his muscles and I cut him short.

"Shut up and help me pack six glazed doughnuts."

"You're not even a fan of doughnuts."

"They're for Nazeera."

"Ohh, our kid sister," He beamed at me before he turned back and he walked off to pack the doughnuts.

Nah, he limped off to pack the doughnuts.

Alfred has a barely noticeable limp that I knew he got from an accident but I've never bothered to ask him what kind of accident it was.

Because most times, the past is better left buried.

And forgotten.

**********

A couple of minutes, I was pressing the passcode to my apartment and entered it to meet a very quiet house.

Just like I've always loved.

There was a regality about quietness and stillness that I've always loved. Quietness could mean tranquility.

That was one of the major reasons why I didn't stay in Zik Hall, as regulated and demanded by the school authorities. I couldn't, for the life of me, imagine sharing a room with someone.

But now, Nazeera is here and she had insisted on living with me

I loved my sister a lot.

But I definitely loved my privacy more.

I made my way to the second room. It was a two-bedroom flat and the second room had always doubled as my studio and workroom until Nazeera gained admission to CSA and she insisted on staying with me instead of staying in Moremi Hostel.

I thought 100l students were supposed to be gingered and excited to stay inside school.

I got to her door and I started to hear muffled music from her room. Muffled loud music that I was sure was the door that was keeping it from echoing through the entire apartment.

I knocked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

But there was no reply and I was sure she couldn't hear me because of the loud music.

"Nazeera, I'm coming in," I opened the door slowly and I peeked in and I was instantly welcomed by a very loud music.

The loudness of the music but the room was bare and devoid of any human being.

But that wasn't even the strange thing about the room. It was the transformation that had changed the room into something entirely different.

She had insisted that I repaint her room into a light shade of purple before her arrival and right now, that was the only thing that had remained unchanged in the room.

Every other thing had changed; from the position of her bed to that of her study desk to her vanity to her closet.

Every single thing.

And don't even get me started on the flowers and scented candles and floating shelves she had placed in strategic positions in the room.

It did not look anything like I left it this morning.

And it looked like something straight out of Pinterest, especially with the thousand led lights in the room.

How did she even manage to turn the room around like this in just a couple of hours?

I made a mental note to take a picture of the room when she wasn't there.

But what stood out in the room were the posters on the walls. The four walls were nearly full of posters of people that I concluded were celebrities.

I stepped fully into the room only to see another set of huge posters overlooking her bed directly.

I needed no soothsayer to tell me who those were.

They were the seven boys she was always posting on her status and always going on and on about.

The boys... She claimed they were seven but honestly, no matter how hard I looked, they all looked like one person.

I simply couldn't tell them apart.

"Oppa," The tiny voice that belonged to Nazeera suddenly whispered out of nowhere, and before knew it, she was standing from under her study desk.

She was probably fixing another led light under there too.

"Welcome," She beamed at me when she finally stood upright, "How was your day?" She wouldn't stop beaming and smiling at me and knowing Nazeera as I did, she has done something she was not supposed to and I watched as she as she turned the music off.

The music that she understands nothing of what they're saying.

"What did you do again?"

"Haba na, I did nothing, and well," She moved closer to me, that huge smile still on her face and she wrapped her hands around my elbow whole smiling at me innocently, "What did you think of my room? It's pretty, isn't it? Won't you tell me well done? I've been doing all these since morning." She asked me excitedly while batting her eye repeatedly as if trying to douse my suspicions.

I played along with her.

"Wel done and your room is fine, it'll be finer if you can rid of this..." I pointed to the huge posters of the boys, "Just get rid of these posters, how'll you be able to sleep at it with them?"

She looked at me as if I just uttered blasphemy, "They're the reason why I'm able to sleep at night," She informed me as if what she just said made logical sense.

As if her obsession with the boys made any logical sense.

"And besides, how can someone be alive and they won't like BTS? How?" She was looking at me as if she couldn't believe my existence.

As if she was feeling sorry for me.

"I don't understand how you even tell the boys apart, are you guys even sure they're not the same person?"

Her mouth dropped open and she just kept staring at me, utterly stupefied and surprised. And then, she did the last thing I expected her to, she moved closer to the posters.

"Look here, this is RM, he's our group leader,"

I kept staring at her.

"This is Jin, worldwide handsome,"

I couldn't see a difference between the first guy and this Jin or Vin or whatever she just called him.

"And this Suga, he's the sugar of my life."

I kept staring at her as she used all her vigor to introduce the boys to me.

"This is JungKook, our youngest member."

"This is V, my bias."

"This is Jimin, my bias wrecker and finally," She pointed to the last picture with utmost excitement and adoration.

"This is JHope, he's my hope."

"You're delusional," I told her before I made my way out of her with her hot on my trail of course.

I was okay with her obsession as long as she kept it limited to her room. I wouldn't want a situation where I'd start seeing pillows and cups with their...

My thoughts trailed off because that was exactly what I saw.

Cups on the kitchen island with their pictures.

I developed an instant headache.

"Nazeera..."

"I'm not delusional," She interrupted me, "Do you even know how many girls obsess over BTS, how many girls spend thousand of naira and dollars just to watch these boys?"

"All of you are delusional then."

She started to say something else but trailed off midsentence and when I turned to look at her, she was looking at the sealed doughnuts on the kitchen island as if she was looking at a pack of treasure.

"Are these snacks for me?" She asked and before I could say a thing, she was already sitting at the island and helping herself to the doughnuts.

"Ya Allah!" She moaned loudly after a bite, "This tastes like Jannah. I'm sure Jannah is not edible but well, if it was, it'd taste like this!"

I shook my head at her absurdity but then, that was one thing about Nazeera, give her good food and she'll start talking about ridiculous things.

After BTS and Sameera Aliu, food was her next favorite thing.

"But seriously," I blinked and she was already on her third doughnut, "If you bought this from inside the school, I'm sure that place will be my favorite place in CSA."

What did I say about her loving food again?

The doorbell rang all of a sudden and I looked at the door before looking back at Nazeera who was still happily eating the doughnuts.

"Are you expecting someone?"

"A'a, wa kake tsammani nake jira? ai jiya na shigo wannan garin," (No, who do you think I'm expecting? I just got to this city yesterday)

I frowned as the ringing persisted because I sure wasn't expecting anyone. Alfred was probably the only person that's visit me at home and he wouldn't even have to ring the bell.

When I finally opened the door, I saw three delivery men with huge packages and I immediately concluded they have the wrong address.

"Good evening, We have a delivery for Miss Nazeera Hussain,"

Hmmm?

Almost immediately, Nazeera was flying to the entrance and leading the delivery guys in while I just kept staring at all of them in total amazement.

Like I was a stranger in my apartment.

"Wow, Lagos is better than Kano. I ordered all these a few minutes and now, they're all here," She gushed as she sat down to examine whatever it was she ordered after the delivery people had left of course.

I kept observing the chubby girl that was my sister as she smiled and beamed while trying to unwrap the stuff and all of a student, an alarm bell went off in my head.

But she couldn't possibly have, could she?

I stood up straighter.

"Nazeera, you did not use my card, did you?"

"Of course, I did," Her reply was so nonchalant and unbothered and she did not even spare me a glance as she kept unboxing her orders.

Her orders turned out to be cooking wares.

Cooking wares.

The beam on her face deepened when she finally freed one of them from their packet and I watched as she brought out a frying pan.

A frying pan that I already have.

And she was looking at the frying pan as if she was looking at an angel

"Oppa, do you know that..."

"Do you know that there's already a frying pan in this house?"

"Yes," She retorted, "How can someone have just one frying pan in their house?" She attacked me and my mouth just dropped open.

What?

"How can you have just one frying pan when there are more than ten types of frying pans out there? Are you telling me that you use that one frying pan to fry an egg, fry chicken, fry plantain, make pancakes?" She looked horrified as she muttered the last parts and I just kept staring at her like she had grown two heads.

"And you have just five pots? God! I'm terrified."

I just kept staring at her as she kept unpacking all the kitchen utensils she has ordered. If it wasn't even for Alfred, my kitchen would have been bare.

"And this blender?" She brought out a huge blender from another carton, "Is the best thing that can ever happen in this history of mankind. I'm pretty sure it'll blend bones to the smoothest paste."

And with the way she was looking at the huge blender, one would think she was staring at a heavenly figure. I didn't understand how someone could be this obsessed with cooking.

Nazeera had always had an unhealthy obsession with cooking and buying kitchen stuff. That explained why she moved across the country to come and study Culinary Arts at CSA.

And thinking about it now, I wasn't even sure who was more obsessed with cooking between her and Alfred.

And even though, I left home when Nazeera was barely 11, I still remembered vividly, how obsessed she had been with helping out in the kitchen to fry Kosai and Samosa.

And chatting with her over the years, I knew her obsession had only worsened.

"Oppa, I don't have to go to school tomorrow, right? I mean, it's Friday already and from the timetable and all, I don't even have any class..."

I tuned her out.

It's Friday already.

Our next meeting is on Friday.

That Friday was tomorrow?

I felt instant anxiety take over my entire body.

So now, what do you guys think about Alfred Bamidele?

What do you think of his bromance with Nouman?

What do you think of Nazeera Hussain?

I'll ask you guys what you think of Nouman Hussain in the next chapter.

IfedayoOgunleye4, you've met your twin sister 😂😂😂💔💔💔 and Rokeebat_Eesuola, you've met your senior Army member 😂😂😂💔💔 I see you becoming worse than her in the next two months.

And eeyah, you guys thought Alfred was serious? 🤣🤣🤣🤣💔💔💔 You don't even know who we're dealing with here. He probably says all he said to Nadia to like 10 different girls in a day 🤣🤣🤣💔

See you when I see you and don't forget to vote please, it's important.