MALE FACTOR [BxB]

Chapter 31

The mid-term break had come to an end. Timi's parents returned home earlier than expected, catching Timi by surprise. Though he had packed his belongings, he had to wait until after school to return home.

Jason and Timi found themselves at a crossroads in their relationship. Jason's feelings for Zino lingered, while Timi was still technically dating Moyo. The topic of Zino and Jason was never brought up by Timi, as he had no knowledge of their connection. Meanwhile, Jason wished for Timi to end things with Moyo, but Timi was hesitant to be the one to initiate the breakup. Consequently, he contemplated doing something that would lead Moyo to end things with him instead.

Jason was once again spiraling in his own thoughts, contemplating how everything could have been different if Timi hadn't ended their relationship. He believed that without their breakup, things would have remained normal for the most part.

In Jason's room, both Jason and Timi were dressed up, prepared to leave for school. Timi grabbed his bag and moved to exit the room, but Jason stopped him. Timi paused, wondering what Jason was going to say. Jason's expression was serious, and Timi was concerned.

"So what about Moyo?" Jason held Timi's hands

"Don't worry, I'd see what I can do." Timi said.

Jason then sarcastically remarked. "Why don't you just break up with her. It was easy for you the last time."

Timi took offense to Jason's statement, but he understood where it was coming from. "see I don't want to be the bad guy anymore, Moyo already hates me as it is, it's only a matter of time."

Jason had to trust Timi's words, so Timi stepped out of the room and stood in the hallway. But then, Jason called him back, locking the door behind them, and they shared a passionate kiss, before departing for school.

Before the break of dawn, Chika had been lying awake in bed, troubled by everything that had happened. He couldn't face Malik anymore, and the thought of Lateef finding out terrified him.

Tope hadn't responded to Chika's messages, and when he tried calling her, she was still unreachable. Chika knew he was in a difficult situation. He decided to skip school for a few days, hoping that everything would blow over and Malik would forget about it.

But his plan was interrupted when his mother entered his room unexpectedly. Chika had expected his parents to be out, but it turned out only his dad had left.

"Chika aren't you going to school?" Chika's mum asked.

"Mummy I'm not feeling too well" Chika faked a cough.

"Is this what you do when we're not around?"

"I'm serious mummy, My head is paining me" Chika gently rubbed his head.

"Go and drink paracetamol, and start getting ready for school please, we'd see the doctor after"

Chika had no choice but to comply with her because she wasn't convinced by anything he said. He felt so exhausted and stressed that when he got out of bed, he nearly collapsed to the floor. He thought that maybe if he had fainted, his mother might have taken him seriously.

At school, Jason and Timi decided to take a detour to the abandoned building before heading to their classes. They carefully climbed the unfinished and unpaved stairs, covered in dust and debris that made them a bit uneasy. Jason led the way to a secluded spot at the top of the building.

"Why did you bring me here?" Timi asked Jason.

"Stephanie told me about this place when I went to her house"

"What do you want to do?"

Jason pulled Timi along and was determined to continue what they had started before Timi decided to end things.

"Jason stop! what if someone comes and sees us" Timi expressed his concern.

"Relax no one knows about this place, except Stephanie and Beamer." Jason reassured as he started leaving hickeys on Timi's neck.

Jason's actions managed to make Timi forget about the potential consequences for the moment.

In the SSS3 block, Stephanie expressed her annoyance with a hiss as Lekan entered their class, but he paid no attention and proceeded to his seat. However, he noticed Malik sitting beside Lateef on his spot.

"What are you doing here?" Lekan asked Malik. 

"Abeg no vex, I wan ask am something" Lateef pleaded in vernacular.

Tope entered the class with her sister's bag, sensing something amiss when she noticed Malik's presence, but she couldn't pinpoint what was wrong. She attempted to make eye contact with Malik to seek answers, but he avoided looking her way.

"Did you collect the extra textbooks?" Moyo redirected Tope's focus as she settled into her seat in front.

"No, they asked me to come during break," Tope replied.

Moyo had something to share with Tope, but she couldn't recall it at the moment, leaving Tope waiting.

Olamide entered the classroom, where Lateef was waiting for him as he had called him earlier. Lateef knocked Olamide's head, scolding him not to keep him waiting again. He then asked if Olamide knew about his brother and Chika's situation.

"No!" Olamide responded defensively, feeling annoyed. Lateef managed to control his temper and asked Olamide to call Chika instead.

Tope skillfully tuned out her sister's chatter, allowing her to eavesdrop on Lateef's conversation with Olamide. Her heart sank when she overheard that Olamide was supposed to call Chika. She glanced at Malik, trying to decipher the emotions etched on his face. It was evident that guilt and sadness plagued his mind.

Moyo noticed Tope's absent-mindedness and turned back to see what was going on. But, like the few people in the class, she seemed confused by the situation and didn't seem bothered by it.

Meanwhile, Chika arrived at his class and noticed Malik was absent. This stirred mixed emotions within him. On one hand, he felt a sense of relief not having to face Malik, but on the other hand, he sensed that things were about to change drastically.

Shortly after, Olamide came into the class and informed Chika that Lateef was calling him. The weight of those words settled heavily on Chika, and he knew his world was about to come crashing down.