"Fade?

"Fade?"

He mumbled something back in his sleep, his hand feeling around for Sewa. When his search came up empty, his eyes flew open and he sat up, trying to decipher why his sister wasn't beside him.

He let out a yawn and stretched his arms, his eyes scanning the room for his sister when they landed on Ara who stood beside the door with her arms folded.

He frowned.

A door? A girl?

His eyes scanned the room again and drank it in, coming to rest on the bed he was occupying, the events of the day before seeping into his memory.

Ara. New home. Good food.

"Fade?"

He looked up at the sound of her voice and took note of how she was dressed. She had worn a top and jeans with a bracelet on her wrist.

"Yes?"

"I hope you slept well?"

"Yes, thank you."

It was way more than that, but he didn't have enough words to quantify how he felt. He'd slept on a soft, springy bed rather than the hard ground, and he was protected from the harsh elements and insects.

"What about you?" He asked.

"I slept well too. Are you free today?"

He nodded, not sure where this was going.

"Would you like to go to the movies with me?"

He stared at her.

She stared back.

For moments a staring contest ensued till he caved, a smile breaking out on her face at this.

"Alright. It's by four in the evening."

He kept staring, even after she had left, wondering why on earth she was acting so nice. Then with a shrug he put an end to those thoughts, freshened up and went downstairs.

Throughout the day, he hung around, trying to help with the chores as best as he could but Nifemi kept shooing him away. So instead he played with his sister, his eyes glistening with tears as she ate good food right in his presence.

When it was almost four pm, Ara came down the stairs, now wearing a dress that reached right above her knees. A bag was slung over her shoulder, and she completed her outfit with a pair of flats.

She motioned to Fade before reminding her Mum about the cinema she'd earlier told her she would be going to. Nifemi nodded in affirmation before instructing both of them to be back before 7pm. Thereafter she took Sewa from Fade's arms and shooed them out of the house.

While they walked,  people kept staring at Fade and at first he thought they remembered him as the beggar boy, so kept lowering his head. But later he realized that these people were just staring at him the way one would stare at a stranger you pass by while walking, so this time he held his head a little higher, although he didn't maintain eye contact with anyone lest they see the poverty in his eyes.

Meanwhile, Ara kept thinking about her friends. She didn't tell them she was bringing someone along, and she has no idea how they would react on seeing him. But she couldn't just leave him at home while she was out having fun.

"...your Dad?"

Huh?

She turned to face him. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

His hands were tucked into the pockets of the big trousers he wore, a belt holding it at the waist so that the weight of his hands couldn't drag it down.

He removed one hand and rubbed his neck, his hesitance to reiterate evident. "Um, please don't take this the wrong way..."

She nodded for him to continue.

"What about your Dad?" His speech was slow, as if he was scared that she would turn back into the nasty girl he'd met before.

"Oh, he's out on ministerial work. He's a pastor and he went to Bauchi for a ministerial conference."

"Bauchi? That's so far away from here."

"Yup."

An awkward silence filled the air as both of them struggled to keep the conversation going. After much contemplation, Ara decided to ask him about himself so that she could know him better.

"How old are you, Fade?"

"17."

"Really? I'm 16."

"I'm older than you." A smug smile settled on his lips.

"With just a year."

His smile broadened and Ara tried not to notice how his dimples came out, making him look attractive.

"Are you the only child?" He asked.

"No. I have an older brother, but he's in school at the moment. He's in the Joseph Ayo Babalola University in Ondo."

"Oh, what about you?"

"What?" She asked, a little confused.

"What school do you attend?"

"Oh. International School, Ibadan."

"Wow. That's cool." He said.

By now they could see the cinema up ahead. It wasn't so far from the house, just about fifteen minutes walking distance.

"Fade?"

"Do you know you call my name a lot?"

She tried to school her features so that her surprise wouldn't show, but ended up failing.

He chuckled.

"I'm just playing with you."

She gave him a mock glare, before shifting her attention to the two people who leaned against a car at the cinema's parking lot.

She increased her pace and was soon standing in front of them. Fade who moved at a slower pace soon came to stand behind her, his eyes shifting to and fro as he tried to hide his nervousness.

Ara moved back a little so that she was now standing by his side.

"These are my friends, Dipo and Damilola. But we all call her Dami."

She pointed to the boy and the girl in front of them.

Fade glanced at them, taking quick note of how much they looked alike. Considering how their names also rhymed, he guessed they were twins.

He turned out to be correct when Ara introduced him to them also, then went ahead to mention that they were twins and were her closest friends.

He nodded at the appropriate times while she talked, his gaze shifting from one twin to the other before coming to rest on the girl who stared back at him with curiosity shining in her eyes.

He drew in a sharp breath as recognition flashed through his mind, his mind going back to that day. His head began to spin, and he couldn't help but look at Ara.

Did she bring him so that she and her rich friends could poke fun at him? Or perhaps did she forget that Dami was also among her group of friends that were unkind to him that day?

He watched as Dipo grabbed Ara's hand and they all began to walk away, his voice not low enough when he asked, "Are those not your brother's clothes he's wearing? Where on earth did you meet someone like that?"

He didn't hear her reply as they had now gone far ahead, but he couldn't help the bitterness that festered in his heart when he noticed that she never even turned around to look at him.

He sighed.

All his life he always felt unworthy, unable to meet the required standards of people around him. He could never fit in.

He was not like them. While they had enough money to cater for their needs, sufficient food to fill their bellies, adequate clothes and shelter to keep them warm, and a complete family that makes them happy; he had none of those.

He continued to watch them go, sadness etched on his face. He was the outsider among them.

Fade turned around, trying his best to keep his sorrow buried as he walked back to the place he'd always called home – the building he left just yesterday.

He sniffled.

I'm not a baby. I won't cry.

Despite how his lips quivered and his eyes watered so much he could barely see, he sucked in a deep breath and puffed out his chest.

Anyway, this wasn't his first time facing rejection so he'd learnt how to live with the sting.

He would survive.

__________________

Ara folded her arms, her eyes blazing. Yet, she remained silent as Dipo ranted on about how it was not right for her to get too close to a stranger and blah blah blah.

She zoned him out till she noticed his mouth was no longer moving.

"Are you done?" She asked.

Annoyance flickered in his eyes.

"Were you even listening to me at all?"

"Dipo, I brought you here so you could meet my friend. I thought you would be glad to meet him since you were always complaining that you were the only boy among us, and it felt odd."

She shook her head, her voice rising with each word she uttered.

"But you humiliated him and made him leave. What kind of a person does that?!"

Dami stood beside her brother, not knowing what to do or whose side to be on.

The three of them had been best friends since they were four, and both of them were very dear to her heart.

Although they all had their shortcomings and fought from time to time, she knew that they loved one other. Even though Dipo was her brother, Ara was someone she considered as a sister, which made it difficult for her to choose a side.

Dipo opened his mouth to say something, but Ara raised her hand to silence him.

"You shouldn't treat people like that, Dipo. You don't know what he's going through, and the least we can do is show him love."

He scoffed.

"Stop being an hypocrite. You were also mean to him before."

"That was in the past when I didn't have Jesus. I'm a new person now."

"So you're trying to right your wrongs?"

"Never. If I could do it, then there's no need for Jesus. But I can't, for it's only Jesus that can right my wrongs. The only thing I'm doing now is what Jesus would have done, and that is helping others. Putting a smile on their faces, making them know that they aren't alone. That they don't have to face the world all by themselves."

He threw his head back and laughed, but it lacked mirth.

"Are you doing all these just so you could convert him?"

She wanted to scream out in frustration because he couldn't get the point she was trying to pass across. Or maybe he was getting it, but was just riling her up for the fun of it.

"If God uses me to achieve that, all glory be to His holy name. But as I said earlier, I'm just trying to put a smile on his face. Which you should have tried doing, since you're also a Christian."

She turned around and sighed. She never liked fighting with her friends. While Dami was gentle and rarely argued with anyone, Dipo on the other hand always seemed eager to quarrel with everyone.

Then she turned back to face them.

"Thanks for honouring my invitation, I hope you enjoy the movie. Oh, and no one should ever talk about Fade like that again. If you can't treat him right, then I'm sorry but we can't be friends."

Her words hung in the air, surprising them all, including her.

"Fine!" Dipo barked, before brushing past her with more force than necessary, causing her to stumble.

Dami lingered behind, tears in her eyes.

"I don't like it when you two fight. I'm sorry for his behaviour though. It's because of..."

She trailed off, but Ara understood what she was not saying.

"We're still friends, right?" Dami asked, uncertainty lacing her tone.

Ara clasped her hands with Dami's. "Forever. I'm sorry for my behaviour too. I shouldn't have erupted."

"You've always been the feisty one. At least, I know that you'll have my back no matter what, because you always stand up for your friends and family."

At this they hugged, but broke apart when Dipo started to honk.

Dami hugged Ara once more, before going to join her brother in the car. She had barely made it in when he zoomed away, the tires squealing and leaving behind marks on the pavement.

Ara sighed as she surveyed her surroundings. Where could Fade have walked off to? He didn't even have a phone. How would she find him? Even if she did, would he ever be willing to come back home?

______________

Ara wiped her face with an handkerchief, her breath coming out harsher than before. She had been walking for twenty minutes, yet there was no glimpse of Fade.

After a while, she reached a bus stop and sat down on the bench.

Lord, please help me find him.

But yet, there was still no sign of him. So after sitting for a few more minutes, she stood up, dusted the back of her jeans and started to make her journey back home.

She glanced around one more time, then sighed when she still didn't see him. She'd just begun to walk away, when her steps came to a halt.

Turning around, her eyes widened in shock when she saw him standing several feet away with his hands in his pockets. He hadn't seen her yet because he faced the road, staring at nothing in particular with a frown etched on his face.

"Fade?" She called out to be sure.

His head snapped in the direction of her voice, and her heart sank when she noticed the sadness on his face. Although he made no move towards her, but he didn't walk away either.

Ara didn't mind. She raced towards him and threw her arms around him, relief coursing through her.

"Thank God. Oh, thank you Jesus."

Fade tensed beneath her touch, his hands still in his pockets while hers remained around him.

She looked up at him, his gaze already on her.

"Fade, where did you go?"

Fade meant to answer her. Really, he did. But somehow as he opened his mouth to answer, her eyes captured his attention instead and he found out that he couldn't just look away.

How could a person's eyes look so...so alluring?

Get a grip, Fade. Get a grip.

With swift movements, he broke out of her embrace and decided to answer her in the vaguest way possible.

"Here and there."

She folded her arms and pouted.

"You don't wanna tell me?"

He shrugged, not knowing how to answer that kind of question.

"Fade?"

"Hmm?"

"You don't want to tell me where you've been?"

He sighed, realizing that he couldn't really escape from answering.

"I just walked about."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

She stepped closer and poked him right in the chest.

"You don't trust me, right?"

He rubbed his neck. Was this a trick question?

"Well, we kinda like just met yesterday."

"And?"

"And what?" He asked.

"I feel like your statement wasn't complete."

He got nervous. What if he tells her the truth and she gets angry?

"C'mon Fade. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Truthfully, we just met yesterday so I can't say I trust you."

A hint of a smile tugged at her lips.

"I understand. Okay, let's do this. Let's not try to force this." She pointed at both of them. "Instead, we'll let it flow naturally. Is that okay with you?"

He nodded.

She stretched forth her hand. "Friends?"

At first, he stared down at her hand in suspicion, wondering if this was part of a scheme she was cooking up. When she noticed his hesitation, she wiggled her fingers at him.

"Fade, don't worry. There's no ulterior motive behind this." She said, knowing that because of  his background  it might take quite some time for him to learn how to  trust people.

With this reassurance in mind, his eyes brightened for the tiniest moment as he grasped her hand.

"Friends."

************************