CHAPTER NINE “CONVINCED”

©️ Opeyemi Akintunde
As inspired by the DEEP ONE..

Teju’s POV

When I came out of the bathroom, I stopped short.

Imade was dressed for intimacy.

Not accidentally.
Not casually.

Intentionally.

The lights were dimmed.
Her hair was loosened.
Her clothes …carefully chosen.
The kind meant to invite, not just exist.

For a split second, my body reacted before my mind could catch up.
I am a man after all.

But my spirit was tired.
My emotions were worn thin.
And my heart?
My heart had been dragged through too many conversations in one night.

I was not some toy she could pull out when convenient…
push away when she was done…and summon again when it suited her mood.

I had been told no.
Firmly. With disgust.

Now suddenly it was yes …not because love had arrived, but because a conversation had planted a seed.

I looked at her once.
Just once.

Then I walked calmly to my side of the bed.

“I think we should both rest,” I said quietly, without anger, without drama.
“We’ll be travelling later today.”

That was all.

No accusation.
No lecture.
No explanation.

I lay down.

Sleep didn’t come…not immediately …but I closed my eyes anyway.

My mind was busy.

Beauty’s words echoed again and again.

She said she would make your life a living hell.
This is just the beginning.

Was this part of it?

Push me away one minute…
pull me close the next…
confuse me…
control the narrative…

I wasn’t going to play that game.

She needed to be decisive about what she wanted.
And until she was, I would not place my heart on the altar for emotional sacrifice.

If there was no intimacy yet, then at least my heart was still guarded.

And if guarding my heart made me look cold…
so be it.

I stayed still.
Quiet.
Awake.

*****
Imade’s POV

I felt it instantly.

Like a slap.
Like a heavy, unexpected slap.

Did he just… walk away?

Did he just look at me… and decline?

What kind of insult was that?

I stood there for a few seconds, unsure whether to move or scream.

Teju had just stepped on my face.

No shouting.
No argument.
No pleading.

Just calm rejection.

The worst kind.

I had prepared myself.
Mentally.
Physically.

I had made a decision and he didn’t jump at it.

How dare he?

I felt stupid.
Exposed.
Powerless.

So this is how it feels when someone doesn’t want you at your moment of readiness?

I turned away slowly, climbed into my side of the bed, and faced the wall.

My chest was tight.

This marriage…
This arrangement…
This thing I thought I could control…Was already slipping out of my hands.

And I didn’t like it.

Not one bit.

To be continued…

🌐 www.deepthoughtsintl.org
📘 Facebook: @Opeyemi Akintunde
📸 Instagram: @OpeyemiAkintunde
🎥 YouTube: @DeepThoughtsTV

✍️ DEEP THOUGHTS NOVELS
Inspired by the TRUTH REVEALER
Written by Opeyemi Akintunde
📞 +234-8151103646