CONFLICTED

Chapter 50| Third wheel

Chapter 50: Third wheel

Christopher

"What are you doing here?" I asked as she stood in the middle of the room, moon-eyed and mouth agape.

"What am I doing here?" she screeched, "What are you doing here? What happened to you? What is that around your waist? You scared the living daylights out of me. I had to rush down here after hearing you got... shot? Who did you get into a fight with? Who did this to you?"

Slowly, I stood up from the bed and winced at the sour ache in my abdomen before walking up to her in slight limps.

"Tracy," I placed a hand in her shoulder and clutched my wound with the other. "I'm fine. It's alright. Look at me, I'm fine. So calm down, okay?"

Tracy stepped away from me and yelled again in hysterics.

"What do you mean you're fine? Look at you, you can't even stand straight! What were you thinking trying to get yourself killed, huh?"

"Are you going to be mad at me now, tomboy?" I smirked as she heaved at intervals.

"You scared me." she confessed in a broken whisper and finally broke down in tears.

I pulled her to me and she wrapped her arms around my waist. I wanted us to remain that way and I wanted to back away too. Her locs brushed my cheek and I was just grateful to have someone who cared about my wellbeing right after I came close to dying.

Kelvin coughed behind us and we slowly disbanded. Tracy sniffed and wiped her face, looking embarrassed.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah." she replied and forced a smile. "I... I'm sorry for yelling at you. I have a bad history with emergency calls."

She must have been scared her to death. I combed through my messy hair with my fingers and figured she was talking about her dad.

"How do you know I got shot?" I inquired as she took a seat to calm herself down.

"Suzan told Chioma and Chioma told me and everyone else."

"My bad." Kelvin croaked behind us and I glared at him.

Going to pick up my tank top from the bed, I caught Tracy gawking at my abs as I put it on. It was the first time she was seeing me shirtless.

"Like what you see?" I smirked and she snapped out of it.

"Don't flatter yourself."

I smiled and pulled it all the way down, lowering myself to sit on the edge of the bed. It was a painful process but I managed.

"I still don't understand how this happened." she stated and I heaved and glanced at Kelvin.

"Go on, motherfucker. Tell her how you almost got me killed."

Kelvin looked away in guilt while Tracy looked between us, puzzled.

•Sunday evening•

Christopher

It's been quite a while since I was in Lagos so I readily accepted Kelvin's invite to a house party after everyone left the beach house. Granny and her daughter headed home and my dad and his wife went to our house in Lagos.

It was just like old times. Kelvin and I being neighbors and best buddies, fleeing from home just to party out. We left in my car and we got there at sundown. We were still finding our way around the crowd with drinks in hand when Kelvin called my attention to some guys coming our way.