Never Far Away

He was working in the oil sector.
She was working in the entertainment 
sector. He was an engineer with
one of the oil companies.
She was a model, a rare beauty.
They met on Valentine's day.
She came to Nigeria from Canada
to heal from a heartbreak.
He took himself out to the club
for some fun.
 
He was not interested in anything
serious until he saw her. She was
seated at a table by herself,
doing nothing. He simply couldn't
take his eyes off her. Something
about her struck him like lightning.
It arrested his gaze and bedazzled his mind. 
He found himself gravitating
towards her subconsciously.
He checked himself when he was
a few feet away from her.
She looked like one of those girls
with "complicated" written all over them. 
He was not looking to get
into a relationship at that time.
He would love to meet a lady
to chat with and perhaps even
have sex with but he had kept
himself out of the love thing
for about three years and he
would rather do without the hangover
than drink from that cup again.
He turned himself around, willing 
himself to walk away. Then he felt a
tap on his shoulder, he turned
around to see who was calling
his attention.
 
It was her.
He froze.
She said, "Why did you turn around?"
He said "I felt you didn't want
to be disturbed."
She said, "So you chickened out."
He said "Not really, I just like
to let sleeping dogs lie"
She: "Wow, we just met and
you're already calling me a dog"
 
He: "Ha, not at all. It is
a British idiom. I meant no disrespect"
She: "I know. Don't be fooled
by the accent, I was born
and raised in Nigeria till I
was ten, although I have lived
in Canada for the last eighteen years!"
He: "Wow, so what are you doing here?"
She: I was drowning in "white space",
I came to Nigeria for some fresh air"
 
He understood.
The live band was singing and
the silence between them was meaningful. 
They talked all night.
She left in the morning and
so did he.
He didn't ask for her number
and he deliberately kept away from
that club.
 
What he felt for her was
a red flag.Not the bad red flag,
but the "Run or you'll be stuck
for the rest of your life" red flag.
He had nothing against love but
the permanence of marriage and
all its troubles unsettle him.
He would rather keep his space
and venture to have some fun
once in a while.
 
The following Sunday, he met her
at the local airport. He was waiting
to board a flight to Lagos from Abuja.
She was traveling to Lagos on
the same flight. He recognized her 
immediately. Again, he averted his 
gaze and pretended he didn't see her.
She walked straight to him.
She said "Really?"
He started laughing.
She said "I could have pretended
I didn't see you too but that
will make me feel like a hypocrite"
He said "Hi, I saw you but
I didn't feel like talking to anyone
at the moment"
She said okay and walked away.
 
He watched her graceful movement.
His heart was beating strangely.
He told himself it would be best
to run. He didn't have anything
serious to do in Lagos. A friend
was getting married and he had
been drafted in as one of
the groomsmen. 
The bachelor's party was going to 
hold the next Friday
and he felt he should spend
a few days with some relatives
before the party takes over his time
for the following weekend.
 
Her presence was distracting him in
a strange way. They called his flight, 
passengers went to the boarding gate.
He saw her stand and walk
briskly to the boarding gate.
They were on the same flight.
He decided he would buy another
ticket and fly down later.
It is best to let her be.
He returned to the counter and
bought another ticket.
 
Love is a tricky animal,
It is best left alone as
Solomon advised in the Bible.
His new ticket meant he arrived
in Lagos by 8 pm. He lodged
in a hotel close to the airport
for three days.
 
All he did was sleep and study.
He worked offshore and was still writing 
some professional courses to advance 
his career. 
Bachelor's party was Friday, he drove 
to the venue. 
It was a club.
The music was good and the
crowd was very decent.
 
His friend was one of those
born again Christians.When he heard
the event would hold in a club,
He was shocked and wondered what he would 
see on display. He knew
his friend was not the lapdance kind.
Apparently, his friend was using the 
bachelor's party as a cover for 
"Evangelism".
 
Everybody got free drinks and food.
They also listened to a sermon
by the Brother in Jeans and T-shirt
who made everybody laugh like crazy while 
teaching the gospel in a very relatable 
and experiential way.
The talk was for twenty minutes.
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt came down 
from the podium and walked
straight to him. The Brother In Jeans
and T-shirt said "I have been
waiting for you brother, where is
your wife?"(He looked around wondering
if the Brother was talking to someone else)
 
He: Good evening sir, I like your talk!
But I am not married.
Brother in Jeans and T-shirt: You have 
indeed been running from love, and
yes you are not married but you
have met your wife and you
know this to be the truth.
He: Hmmm
Brother In Jeans and T-shirt: Tomorrow, you 
will look deep into her eyes and propose 
to her
He: Hahahaha
The Brother In Jeans and T-shirt: 
You don't believe me...
He: Sir, a woman is the last thing on 
my mind now, and surely marriage is the 
last thing that will happen to me in 
the next four or five years. 
I am not your guy sir.
The Brother in Jeans and T-shirt: 
Your Daddy was a reverend, he died when 
you were 15. 
You got filled with the Holy Spirit while 
you were in secondary school and you 
walked in the exploits of the Holy Spirit
but when your dad died you
had to change your environment.
You went to live with your uncle
and you stopped praying in the spirit.
You gradually lost your faith or
should I say you drifted away from it
and now it feels like another life entirely.
Do you know I have never
been to a club before? I came
here tonight because of you.
I saw you while  I was praying
earlier this afternoon.
 
I was wondering who you were
when I received a call from
a friend inviting me to come
and give a talk here.
I knew I'd most likely meet you here,
so I accepted the invitation.
The lady is pivotal, strategically 
positioned to walk with you on the 
next phase of your journey.
 
You will see the opening.
If you take it, it is okay.
If you don't take it, it is fine
but you must be sensitive to the 
promptings of the Holy Spirit.
He: Sir.... (Tongues...silent at first
and then louder as he began to cry)
The Brother in Jeans a T-shirt hugged
him and said "It is my duty
to lead the children of the day
into their light."
This is your daytime, welcome back home.
An hour later, they parted ways.
He went back to the hotel
and could barely sleep all night.
It felt as if his past,
present and future were lumped up
like a jigsaw puzzle and given
to him to solve.
 
He dressed up for the wedding,
got to the venue and the first 
person he saw was her. 
She was the chief bridesmaid. 
It was too much of a coincidence 
but he was not surprised.
This time, he walked directly to her
and said "I will like to talk with you
after the wedding"
 
PS: They had the talk and
eight months later they got married.
He moved to Canada in 2019,
just before the pandemic.
He still works with the oil
sector and she still models,
although at the moment she
is almost due to deliver and
on bed rest.
 
Happy Valentine's day to Mr and Mrs "BLK"
If you're reading this, please note, you
are never far away from the presence
of God as long as you're full of the
Holy Spirit