CHAPTER FOURTEEN “CONVINCED”

©️ Opeyemi Akintunde
As inspired by the DEEP ONE

Imade’s POV

“So…” he said after a short pause, his lips curving into a gentle smile..

“I guess this is the part where we introduce ourselves like normal people.”

I laughed softly.

“Yes. That would help.” I replied

“I’m Daniel,” he said. “And you are…?”

“Imade.”

He repeated it slowly, like he was tasting the name.

“Beautiful name.”

“Thank you.”

“Imade,” he said again. “That’s not Yoruba, is it?”

“No,” I smiled. “It’s Edo.”

His eyes lit up with curiosity.

“What does it mean?” he asked.

I hesitated for half a second …then answered.

“It means I did not fall… or I did not fail.”

He leaned back slightly.
“That’s a strong name.”

“My maternal grandmother was Edo,” I explained.
“My Mom named me to honour her… and she chose Imade in particular because she believes names are prophecies.”

Daniel studied me quietly.
“So you were named to stand,” he said slowly,
“not stumble.”

I shrugged lightly.
“Something like that.”

He smiled … but this time, there was something thoughtful in it.
Like he had just found a detail he would remember… and revisit.

There was silence after that … not the awkward kind.
The kind that feels like two people sitting beside each other, both aware, both present, not rushing to fill space with noise.

“Is this a holiday trip?” he asked gently.

“Yes,” I replied too quickly… then slowed down.
“A honeymoon.”

The word settled between us.

“Oh,” he said calmly
“That explains the space I am filling.”

“He had something important to do,” I said. It wasn’t exactly a lie. It just wasn’t the truth either.
Daniel nodded, like someone who understood how people protect themselves with edited versions of reality.

“I’m travelling to clear my head,” he said.
“When life gets loud, distance helps you hear yourself better.”

That sentence landed deep.

“Yes,” I said quietly. “Exactly.”
He leaned back slightly.
“People talk a lot about doing the right thing,” he continued, “but nobody talks about how exhausting it is to live a life that isn’t yours.”

I felt my chest tighten.Why was he hitting the right notes.

“That exhaustion,” I said slowly, choosing my words,
“is what happens when expectations are placed on you before you even know who you are.”

He turned fully toward me now.

“Family expectations,” he said.
“Cultural expectations.
Religious expectations.
Even expectations disguised as love.”

I nodded.

“Especially that one,” I added.
“They tell you it’s love… but it feels like pressure.”

Daniel sighed.

“I’ve seen people obey themselves into bitterness,” he said. “They did everything ‘right’… and still woke up angry at their own lives.”

Something in me cracked open.

“People confuse obedience with happiness,” I said. “They think if you obey long enough, joy will eventually catch up.”

“But it doesn’t always,” he replied.

“Sometimes obedience only produces resentment… especially when choice was never involved.” he added

I swallowed…my heart racing like ” Who the heck was this guy?”

“That’s the worst part,” I finally replied.
“When you’re praised for being ‘good’ while you’re dying inside.” I added with tears almost escaping from my eyes.

He studied me carefully.

“You sound like someone who has been very good for a very long time.” He said

I smiled, but it didn’t reach my eyes.
“And you,” I said, turning the focus back to him,
“you don’t talk like someone who settles.”

He raised an eyebrow.
“What does that mean to you?”

I paused.

“A man who doesn’t settle,” I said slowly,
“doesn’t confuse patience with passivity…He doesn’t wait for life to happen to him.”

Daniel listened intently.

“He knows what he wants,” I continued,
“and even when he’s polite… even when he’s calm…
he still goes for it.”

I thought of the note…The seat change….The conversation he chose instead of regret later.

“Like You wanted to talk,” I said softly. “And you came for it.”

He smiled faintly like I just scored a perfect One hundred.

“That’s because settling is expensive,” he replied.
“You pay for it with years you can’t get back.”

That sentence stayed with me and the tears escaped but luckily he didn’t see it.

The cabin lights dimmed.
Clouds stretched endlessly outside the window. I quickly wiped it before he could notice.

We talked more.

About work.
About childhood dreams that quietly expired.
About how adulthood teaches people to survive instead of live.

What intrigued me was that he didn’t touch me.
Didn’t flirt recklessly.
Didn’t rush.
And somehow, that made everything more dangerous.
Because this wasn’t temptation of the body.
This was connection of the mind.

I leaned back, closing my eyes briefly.

For the first time since my wedding, I didn’t feel trapped.

I felt understood.
And a thought crept in … unwanted, undeniable:
What if this is the kind of man I was always meant to meet…just not at the right time?

I opened my eyes again.
Because some questions don’t need answers immediately.

They just need space to breathe.

And somewhere in my thoughts, the meaning of my name echoed again:

“Imade… I did not fall.”

I didn’t know then…
that one day, someone would smile at me and say,
“Imade… maybe your name needs a rewrite.”

Because some women are named not to fall …
until love comes asking them to.

To be continued…

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