Rugged To The Core

Chapter 57

What Best looks like in terms of physique.

Lucky

"Baby gon' love me now now now now, now now now, now or never..." Halsey's voice resonated across the room from the Beats Pill, causing me to sneer in annoyance, dumping my spoon back on the plate in a clatter.

"Change that song, abeg." I said to Naomi who sat by the study table with her legs over the arm of the chair, holding the plate she ate from in one hand. She picked up the phone, with one hand and obliged.

"Take a seat, right over. Sat on the stairs..." Zedd's The middle blasted away almost immediately.

"Abeg, change that one too." I said.

And then Kari Kimmel's Nothing left to lose came on. "If you could know what I was feeling, you'd know that I belong with you..."

What kind of song selections are these? Are they mocking me?

My irritation reached its peak and I hissed, riveting both Naomi and Linda to me. "What the hell, Naomi? Put better song na!"

"Ahan, what's doing this one?" Linda asked no one in particular.

"I don't know for her oh." Naomi answered her cousin before addressing me. "Oya, you come and put what you like." She got up with her plate, picking up her glass of water and walked over to sit on the bean chair next to the window.

After school, Naomi and I had gone to Linda's like we had planned. We were currently in her bedroom, eating steaming concoction rice as we listened to some music.

Every song that came on felt like I was being mocked. First it was Shawn Mendes's Treat you better, it had me thinking about a certain boy who'd gone home today with a red nose. Then came all these love songs about self-conflictions, denial and yearning that had me thinking of a certain Igbo boy whom I wanted far away from me yet couldn't help but think about.

Rising up from my position on the floor with my food and water in hand, I marched to take Naomi's former position by the study table. I settled on the chair, placing my food on the table, then proceeded to change the song to Ed Sheeran's What do I know.

"Are you PMS-ing or what?" Linda queried, placing her now empty plate on the bedside table. She then reached for her glass of water.

"No, I'm just angry..." I mumbled, then dropped my plate. "I'm sorry Linda, but I can't finish the food."

"Hey, gimme. Abeg!" Naomi spoke with her mouth full, grains of rice escaping through the sides of her mouth in the process. I rolled my eyes and she advanced to me to collect the food before returning to her position on the bean chair.

For the next minute, Linda busied herself with her phone and Naomi ate her food. Nobody spoke up, the only sound in the room was the music. They didn't even look at me and I frowned.

"Isn't this the part where you both hound me for information...?" I couldn't help but ask.

From her position on the bed, Linda suddenly burst into laughter, looking across the room to her cousin who looked like she was suppressing a laugh. "What did I tell you!? I told you! I told you if we stopped disturbing her, she'd want to tell us on her own!"

Naomi let out a throaty chuckle, placing her now empty plate atop mine. I rolled my eyes, then sprang up from my seat to climb the bed, joining Linda. I sat Indian style, grabbing a pillow to place atop my thighs.