By Nightengale Ben-Onyeukwu
At night, at Galaxy Royal Bar, Nathan’s secondary school friend, Johnson Mark had invited his friends in Lagos to the bar when he heard Nathan was in Lagos. Though, he said that it was just to welcome Nathan, but his main reason was to see Sharon. He knew that Nathan would naturally come with Sharon. Initially, Sharon didn’t want to go, for she hated the noise that came from loudspeakers at the bars but Nathan had to convince her to go with him.
‘Nathan, can we just turn back home, please. Bars are so noisy.’
She had dressed up in an Armani bright blue caped gown. She accessorised with diamond drop earrings and a sleek blowout while Nathan was handsomely dressed in a navy tuxedo.
Nathan chuckled. ‘You have only seen bars portrayed in movies but have never been in one before. This time you will be disappointed with your imagination because Johnson made sure it wouldn’t be as noisy as you have imagined. You will like it, trust me.’ Sharon rolled her eyes at him. ‘I wish they do not play the usual deafening music that would turn my head to ache…’
‘Your wish is my command,’Nathan said, turning to look at Sharon with a sweet smile on his face. ‘Honestly, thank you for being my little sister. You brought me to Lagos so that I could get away from my pain…even though it’s not easy for me, I will admit that I am a bit happy here.’ He pinched her cheek lovingly and she blushed.
After the journey of ten to fifteen minutes drive, the car arrived the bar, stopping at a parking lot. The parking lots were filled with various world-class luxury cars. This was the best luxury bar in Lagos, which was one of the subsidiaries of Mark Corporation owned by Johnson Mark family. Being the heir to the Mark Corporation, Johnson naturally controlled this bar, and made sure his orders were followed.
Johnson had sincerely loved Sharon back then in their secondary school days at Diamond Snow Secondary School. However, Sharon had never shown any love for him.
Johnson was dressed in a black tuxedo, sitting on the sofa, eagerly waiting for Nathan and Sharon’s arrival. Sharon on the other hand didn’t want to enter inside; however, when they entered inside the bar, there was no ear-aching music but rather soft melodious blues playing.
‘Have we walked into the wrong bar?’Sharon murmured.
Nathan smiled. ‘It was all Johnson’s doing. He knew you wouldn’t like the ear-piercing heavy metal music, so he ordered for this melodious sentimental blues music…I guess he still like you a lot.’
Seeing them enter, Johnson smilingly approached them and hugged Nathan’s arm. ‘Nathan, you’re finally here.’
‘Yes, we’re here.’Nathan said with deeper meaning, making Johnson to smile awkwardly.
‘Sharon, I am glad to see you,’ after a light pause Johnson said to Sharon who was still looking at the sound system, confused as she wondered whether this was really a bar. Knowing what was going through her mind, Johnson said to her while smiling. ‘Stop wondering why the music has changed. I did it for you. For your sake, I had to turn this bar tonight into a graceful, sentimental pub…’
‘Actually people who frequent bars like the loud music, and not this kind of blues music. But Johnson had done it for you,’ Nathan said beside her ear while beaming. ‘Johnson likes you a lot. It seems he had organised this for him to see you and not even to meet me his best friend.’
Sharon looked at Johnson’s beaming face but didn’t say a word, then, she went to take a seat, leaving Nathan and Johnson to chat.
‘Bring her a glass of fruit juice,’ Johnson said to one of the servers, dressed in black dress trouser and white dress shirt, looking smart and elegant.
The server carried the juice to Sharon.’The boss ordered this for you,’the server said to Sharon.
Sharon took the fruit juice. ‘Tell him thank- you.’
The server nodded and went to Johnson. A sweet smile appeared on Johnson’s handsome face when he told him what she said. ‘She likes the juice,’ he excitedly said to Nathan.
Nathan nodded. ‘You served it with love, so she would drink it.’ Johnson smiled. Bringing such a woman to his bar would not only bring him pride, but challenge as well. Sharon had never accepted his love from the very beginning he had met her. She had always turned him down several times, but he persisted in pursuing her, hoping that someday she would love him back.
Johnson looked at Sharon for a while before asking Nathan, ‘Does she have anyone?’
‘No,’ replied Nathan. ‘You might win the sweep in the end.’
Johnson smiled happily and said, ‘Hope she likes me in the end.’
‘Hopefully,’ Nathan said and patted his shoulder.
‘I heard what happened to you and Jessica. Dude, do you still love her after she stepped on your heart?’
Nathan smiled bitterly as he said, ‘I’m not a child anymore…I will move on.’
‘I am shocked, definitely shocked. I didn’t expect Jessica to hurt you that much. We all know how much she loves Michael, but stepping on you like that was unfair. How could she play with your emotions like that? She allowed you to put an engagement ring on her finger, accepted the official engagement party that your father promised to organise…’
‘Which didn’t happen,’ Nathan interrupted, sadly. ‘I didn’t happen and might not happen…again.’
As they were talking, a few well dressed, highly educated and wealthy young men with great backgrounds approached Sharon together, each holding a glass of wine.
Johnson and Nathan noticed the men approach her. Johnson wanted to go and tell them to leave Sharon, for she was his alone to pursue, but Nathan stopped him.
Nathan took a glass of dark-red grape wine from the server and said to Johnson, ‘The men wouldn’t be able to gain anything. I know my sister very well. Besides, they are our classmates too…you organized this and they came. It’s normal to approach a girl who is as beautiful as my sister, but I know for sure that my sister wouldn’t open her heart to any of them.’
Sharon put down the fruit juice she was drinking and she smiled and said, ‘We might be school mates, but that doesn’t mean that I will love you,’ she looked at the tall man with navy dress and said.
‘I just wanted us to be friends,’ he said to Sharon.
Without expression, Sharon looked at him and asked, ‘What do you do?’
The man was happy when Sharon asked him that. The other two, who were good-looking as well, clenched their teeth in anger because they felt they had lost to William Abraham.
Pleased, William forced himself to remain calm. Feeling proud, he said, ‘You already know me as William Abraham. I am the boss of William and Associates law firm. The best law firm in the world, which of course would help your father should he rig himself into office.’
William’s words almost made Nathan spit out the champagne in his mouth. ‘How rude of him!’ he muttered.
Frowning, Sharon replied, ‘Sorry, I have never heard of your law firm before. I am sure my father will never be needing Under-the- table-lawyers. ‘As soon as she finished speaking, she stood up and headed to Nathan and Johnson’s direction without turning back, leaving William who paled as he stood shocked with his wine glass in hand.
Nathan couldn’t stop laughing. ‘I knew my sister will never give that guy any chance.’ He pinched Sharon’s cheek playfully and she rolled her eyes at him. ‘Johnson, did you see that? The word; never heard of it is more devastating than scolding someone directly.’
‘It means that the status and identity of the person weren’t seemed similarly as hers and so wasn’t qualified to talk to her,’ Johnson finished for Nathan, then looked at Sharon. ‘What about me?’Johnson was pleased with what Sharon did to William but was curious at the same time.
‘You are my brother’s best friend, so I think that I can tolerate you,’ Sharon replied.
‘Oh my… That’s a relief. At least I still stand a chance,’Johnson said with a smile.
Raising her eyebrows, Sharon turned to Nathan who was standing beside her. ‘Let’s go.’
Nathan smiled and gave Johnson the look that said, ‘You should have some chat with Sharon.’
Johnson nodded, understanding what Nathan meant. He turned to one of the server to pass a bottle of delicious red wine to him. It was delicious and had no alcohol in it. ‘Sharon, can we chat for a while?’ he asked Sharon calmly with a smile.
Sharon smiled innocently. She took the initiative to pour him a full glass, saying, ‘Since we don’t chat, I can listen to you today.’ Hearing this, Johnson was elated. Nathan turned away, giving them some time together.
Johnson picked up the drink and took a sip. To have Sharon pour him drink was like winning a lottery, Johnson thought as he almost finished a glass of the drink, but Sharon had not touched her own glass.
‘Why not drink yours? The wine isn’t alcoholic. It’s good for the body.’
Sharon lifted the glass and took a sip. Putting down the glass of wine, she said shamelessly, ‘I just had dinner not long ago plus the fruit juice you gave me, so I can’t drink anymore, you don’t mind, do you?’
‘I don’t mind, Johnson smiled, and he squinted at the server, saying, ‘keep the bottle for me. I will finish it later.’
Seeing the smile on Johnson, how could the server not know what was going on. His boss was simply in love with this girl, for he had never seen Johnson allow any woman pour him drink. However, Sharon had not noticed the sweet smile on Johnson’s face as she was looking around at the magnificent bar, filled with people. Most of them drank whiskey or vodka. But Johnson had chosen to give her a non-alcoholic drink instead of the high alcohol volume whiskey or any alcoholic drink. She knew that Johnson considered what she liked than anything else.
Johnson held the glass between his slender fingers as he swirled it about, smiling happily as he said, ‘You look very beautiful as always.’
Sharon usually had a light layer of make-up on when she went out. But for this bar, she chose to wear some lip gloss. She was looking extraordinarily elegant and graceful.
‘Thank you,’ Sharon said with her winning smile, causing her to look alluring and adorable.
After a moment of silence, Johnson said, ‘I have always loved you but you keep chasing me away.’
‘Maybe fate is the one chasing you away.’
Johnson wanted to laugh at what she said, but didn’t dare do it. He didn’t want her to feel embarrassed.
‘That same fate has brought you here.’
‘You invited us here, not fate.’
‘You agreed to come, isn’t that a good sign for us?’
Sharon didn’t say a way neither did she look at his face. Meanwhile, after Nathan left them, he walked towards the bar lobby. As he spotted a bench to sit on, his phone vibrated. He took it out to check the caller ID and saw it was Obinna calling.
He wondered why his father was calling as he took the call.
‘Hello, Dad, what’s up?’
‘Is that a polite way to talk to your president, ‘Obinna said jokingly.
Nathan smiled. ‘ Obinna, do you have a problem with that?’
Obinna laughed. ‘My son seems to have moved on.’ Obinna could probably hear the nose coming from people and also music playing in the background. Then he said seriously after the joke was over, ‘Son, I wanted to ask you if Jessica mentioned anything about Mpape to you?’
‘No. she doesn’t like me and would never mention anything that concerns her to me.’
‘Sorry for stepping in your wounds, ‘Obinna apologised.
‘Why did you ask that, dad? Did Sir Emmanuel mention anything about that to you?’
‘He wanted to buy the property that I have there but I told him that I sold them years ago…I have this hunch that something isn’t right.’
‘Sir Emmanuel is a business man. Maybe he wants to expand his business there…Don’t think too much about it.’
Obinna was currently sitting at the balcony of his mansion with his wife, dinking tea. He had been having a hunch about Emmanuel interested in Mpape.
‘Okay, I will leave you to enjoy yourself, ‘Obinna said and hung up.
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