Gift's POV

First time I saw him was at the toilet at daluwon assembly ground where we both signed up for volunteer work. I caught him staring a couple of times, before he eventually came over to say hello but that was all and I didn’t hear from him again until few months into the lockdown where he messaged me, introducing himself and we started conversing and planned to see when the lockdown restrictions were lifted which we did but that date didn’t exactly go well and things died off.

Fast forward to 2 years later when we ran into each other at a wedding,we spoke and it was great but then circumstances were not right. Bring it forward to a year later again (2023) when he randomly called me out of the blue requesting to see me at a time where I wanted nothing to do with Adam’s gender but he persevered and I decided to give it a shot after all it’s just one date right?

I was a bit reluctant to go on that date because of memories the past date but I promised myself I’d keep an open mind.I remember his opening line to me at the beginning of the date was “onyinye allow me love you properly” and that kind off made it easy for me to open up to him.

I didn’t plan on staying long for that date but somehow time flew and it was so late at night and we had to go home but I came back from that date feeling alive and I knew that there’d definitely be a second date this time around.It took a lot of persistence from him but I’m really glad he did because I can’t imagine not being with him anymore.

The night he asked me to be his girlfriend was the most romantic night of my life,under the moonlight on a beautiful swing with a pool view that had blue lights he nervously asked and it was the sweetest thing to ever happen so I agreed.

He promised to protect my heart and so far so good not once has he broken that promise.

Daniel's POV

I first saw Onyinye in 2019 at the UNILAG send forth. The moment I laid eyes on her, I thought, “What a beaut!”—and then immediately wondered who she was. But as one of the event organizers, I was too busy running around like a headless chicken, making sure everything went smoothly.

By the time I finally had a second to breathe and look around for her, she had vanished. The event had wrapped up, and I was left standing there, wondering how I missed my chance to talk to her. I wished I had at least asked for her name—classic case of "what could have been."

Fast forward a few months, and our paths crossed again at an assembly. Under some not-so-conducive circumstances sha. We were both working at the restrooms—me at the male, her at the female. Classy, I know. Still, I didn’t get the chance to talk to her until the end of the assembly. Here’s the kicker though: back then, I thought asking for a sister’s contact at the assembly was a sign of weakness.

So, instead of just being straightforward, I went full-on detective mode and asked a brother who knew her from school to get her number for me. I even tried showing up at her school a couple of times hoping to “accidentally” bump into her—each time with no luck. Who does that? Apparently, me. At the time, though, I felt it was the best guy man move I could have made.

Eventually, I got her contact, and after a few days of building up the nerve, I called her, introduced myself, and explained how I got her number. We started chatting, and I asked if we could hang out. She agreed, and we set a date. Saturday, 5 PM, it was on.

But of course, life had other plans. I got caught up with some work in the afternoon and lost track of time. When I finally realized what time it was, I was already late. I rushed out of the house, practically sprinting to meet her. Here’s where it gets a bit interesting. I planned to take her to a pepper soup joint inside Yabaleft—yeah, not exactly a five-star restaurant, but hey, it was my go-to spot.

I knew she wouldn’t know the place, so I asked her to wait for me in front of Coldstone on Herbert Macaulay Way. By the time I got there, she’d already spent a good amount of time waiting for me. I apologized for my lateness, and we headed to the pepper soup joint

We got there, ordered a few ‘chops’ and started conversing. Now, here’s the thing—I didn’t have much of a life outside of work, so naturally, all I talked about was... work. She didn’t say much, and I, in my infinite wisdom, thought the date went well. Spoiler: It didn’t. The next day, I called her, but she didn’t pick up. She didn’t call back either.

This went on for a few days. When she did finally answer, she sounded so disconnected, I could’ve sworn I was talking to a customer service bot. Eventually, I got the message—loud and clear—and decided to back off. But, being the overthinker that I am, I couldn’t help but wonder what went wrong. So, I gave her some space.

A year later, I thought, “Why not give it another shot?” So, I started trying to reconnect. I’d call, she wouldn’t pick up, and when she did, it was always, “I’m busy, can we talk later?” Later came and went, and still, nothing. Then one day, she sent me a text—an actual text! Here’s what it said:

Hi, Good evening. I missed your call a while back and didn't call back, sorry about that. But then I'm worried about starting something I won’t continue, and that’s what made it hard to return the call I appreciate your interest in me, but I’m in a relationship with someone, and I don’t feel it’s right to receive attention from you when I know I won’t give it back. I’d personally like us to be friends (you’re a good person), but it’s only fair that I let you know now that it won’t blossom into anything more than that. I’m sorry for anything I may have caused

Chai, e pain me sha. But I thanked her for letting me know

Later that year, I saw her again at my friend’s wedding. She was the event planner—because of course, she was. We greeted briefly, and that was that. A few days later, my friend, the one who got married, and I were in the car. He asked me about the woman in my life, and I said there was none.

He asked if I saw the sister that planned his wedding. “Yes oooo,” I said. “We get history sef. She no just gree for me.” My guy looked at me like I had just told him I didn’t know how to drive. “Wetin you mean?” he asked. “I say she no gree for me. She say she get person,” I replied.

He looked at me again and screamed, “And you leave am? Guy, no give up o! You know how many times my wife bounce me before she gree? Guy, no give up!”. I didn’t take him seriously. I mean, easy for him to give advice when he’s not the one wearing the shoes, right?

A year later, I posted something on my WhatsApp, and she commented on it. I responded, but didn’t think much of it. Then, a few weeks later, it hit me—wait a minute, this babe actually commented on my status. Something she’d never done before. It was on a Saturday too. Epiphanies usually come on Saturdays. 😅

So, I picked up my phone and called her. She picked up and responded nicely. I asked if she was around, and she said no, that she went to visit her parents. I asked when she’d be back, and she said Monday. I then asked if she wanted to hang out that weekend, and to my surprise, she said she’d love to.

This time, I made sure to take her somewhere nicer. Abi I never learn lessons ke 😅 She loved it, and we started talking again. A few weeks later, she agreed to date me. Nine months after that, she agreed to spend the rest of her life with me.

And that, ladies and ‘gentumen’, is how our journey to forever began.