The Ru Effect

Chapter twenty four

My phone buzzed, and I glanced at the screen to see Mary’s name flashing. With a sigh, I hit the video call button and waited for the familiar face of my Nigerian friend to fill the screen.

As the call connected, I saw her lounging on her bed, her thick braids piled high on her head in a messy bun, and a wide grin spread across her face.

"Ah, Kobiruo! How are you?" she greeted, her voice a mix of excitement and exhaustion. I couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her. No matter how far away she was, Mary always had a way of lifting my spirits.

"Hey, Mary," I said, settling into my bed. "Just trying to survive another day of uni. You?"

She let out a dramatic groan, rolling her eyes. "Don’t even get me started on school stress, biko. I have three essays due next week, and I swear my lecturers are trying to kill me."

I laughed softly. "I feel you. My workload’s just as bad, and I don’t even know where to start. Exams are even starting next week"

"Girl, we need a break, seriously. All this stress is aging me before my time," she complained, but then her face lit up suddenly.

"But forget school for a second! I met this guy—oh my God, Kobiruo—he is so fine."

I raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Oh? Do tell."

Mary sat up, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

"He’s tall, like, really tall, and his smile... you know those kinds of smiles that just make your heart skip? He has one of those. And the way he talks? Ah, I almost melted. I met him at the campus café yesterday, and we just clicked, you know?"

I couldn’t help but chuckle at her enthusiasm. "Sounds like someone’s crushing hard."

"Crushing?" Mary scoffed, though a playful smirk tugged at her lips. "More like I’m falling head over heels. But, we’ll see. I don’t even know his last name yet." She laughed, shaking her head. "What about you though? How are things with you and Ethan?"

I froze for a moment, not sure how to respond. I hadn’t really thought about Ethan much lately, not in the way he probably wanted me to.

He’d asked me out more than once, and I kept finding excuses, but it was getting harder to keep pushing him away without feeling guilty. Still, I wasn’t ready to dive into that mess with Mary.

I shrugged, trying to keep my tone casual. "Oh, you know... nothing much. It’s just... we’re not really serious or anything."

Mary’s eyebrows shot up, and she gave me a knowing look. "Uh-huh, and why’s that? The guy clearly likes you, Kobiruo."

"I just..." I trailed off, searching for the right words. "It’s complicated."

"Complicated? Hmm." Mary leaned closer to the camera, narrowing her eyes as if she could see right through me. "You’re not still stressing over River, are you?"

I looked away, the mention of his name stirring something deep inside me. "It’s not like that, Mary."

She let out a small huff, rolling her eyes. "Ah, I see. It’s exactly like that. I don’t know why you’re bothering with that guy. He’s too complicated, too much trouble."

I clenched my jaw, feeling the tension rise in my chest. "You don’t understand, Mary. It’s not just... it’s not just him being complicated. There’s more to it than that."

"Really?" She tilted her head, still skeptical. "What’s there to understand? You’ve been stressed out over him for months now. I just don’t want to see you get hurt."