Love life

Chapter 2

Title: Love life

 Stella glanced at the wall clock placed firmly against the wall in her office, it ticked  4'o clock. She exhaled quietly; time to go home.

 

After placing the documents on her table in the right order, she picked up her bag and walked out of the office.

 "Shade, please don't forget to forward  Mrs. Johnson's number to me. I need to speak to her directly, I don't like the way she keeps postponing the delivery date. We're running out of stock."

 

  "Ok ma, I will do that right away. " Shade, her Assistant replied.

  

  "Yeah, see you tomorrow."

  

  "Ma'am, let me help you with your bag." One of her sales girls offered.

  

  She flashed her an endearing smile and replied. "No, there is no need for that. Thank you."

  

   "Okay ma, good night."

   

   "Yeah, take care," Stella responded as she walked out of the supermarket and head towards the parking lot where she parked her car.

   

   As she hopped inside the car and turned on the ignition, the car jerked back to life and she drove out of the compound.

  * * * *

   

   "Huh! Lagos and traffic are like 5&6," Stella muttered wearily as she placed her head on the steering wheel in frustration. Knowing fully well that if care is not taken, she might spend an hour in the traffic.

   

   She peeked through the rearview mirror to see what was causing the delay, at the pulse of the moment, a young lady stepped out of her exotic car, and walked up to the car that brushed against her car; coincidentally, the man has already got down from his car to check the damages he has caused. But before everybody could process what was happening, the young lady placed a hot, heavy slap across his cheeks which made everyone gasp in shock.

   

"My Goodness!" Stella exclaimed in surprise and utter disapproval.

"No, that's too harsh." She muttered to herself, waiting for the man's next action.

Stella was beyond shocked when the man just gave the lady an intent glare, then walked back to his car without uttering any statement.

 Some louts and passengers came down from their respective cars to express their total dissatisfaction with what just transpired between them.

"You're a spoilt brat that needs to be taught a lesson." One of them yelled as he walked up to her.

 She eyed him with disgust. "If you don't get out of my way, I'll lock you up in the prison." She warned.

"See who is talking about prison, if anyone needs to be in jail then it will be no other person but you. Just because you're a woman does not give you the authority to hit any man. Thank your stars that you did not try it with the wrong person, or else you would have been on your way to LUTH (Lagos state Teaching Hospital). Spoilt brat."

Before the man could utter another statement, the lady strike him across his face.

The man held his cheeks In shock, he didn't see that coming.

 "Huh! Stella gasped blinking her eyelashes rapidly.

 

 Immediately the man snapped out of his shocked state, he raised his manly hand and fabricated two heavy slaps on her cheeks.

 

  The slap must have caused a commotion in her head because, immediately after the slap traveled across her face, the lady slumped down.

  

  This made everyone rush down to see what was going on. 

  "Ha! That woman is dead, she's not breathing." One of the crowd shouted after checking her pulse.

  

  "What!"

  

This already causes a commotion among the crowd.

"Do not let him go, he has killed the young woman."  Everyone shouted, trying to hold a grip on the man before he runs away.

"What! The woman is dead, just like that?" Stella uttered in bewilderment.

"Ha! I did not kill her, I was just trying to make her understand that what she did was wrong then she slapped me too. She slapped me first oh." The man cried out, with fear written all over his face.

Without hesitation, the police arrived, Intervened in the matter, and asked a few questions from the crowd, after confirming that the lady was not breathing again truly, they carried her lifeless body. While the man was matched away with handcuffs intertwined in his hands.

Stella couldn't comprehend everything as she saw the lady's dead body; a moment ago the lady was alive slapping an elderly man for damaging her car then now she's dead when someone else hits her.

"One moment, this man was free, the next moment he's accused of murder and it's unlikely for him to get away with it.

Huh! What a narrow escape for that man that walked away silently without fighting back."

   The ringing of her phone disrupted her train of thought. "Heartbeat" displayed on the screen of her phone as she glanced through it.

   She was too perplexed to utter any statement.

   "Hey, babe." His voice came in immediately her trembling hand clicked on the answer button.

   

    "Hello." She uttered lowly, trying to find her voice.

    

    "Babe, are you okay?" He asked instantly he sensed something was off about her voice.

    

    "No, no, I'm not. Something happened just now and it made me chilled to my marrow."

    

    "My God, what's that? Hope you're safe?" He panicked.

    

    "Yes, I'm fine. We will discuss better once we get home."

    

"Are you sure? You did not sound as if you are fine, tell me what's happening I'm listening."

"No, I'm fine. You don't need to worry." She reassured.

"Okay, if you insist. I'll be home in a few minutes, take care."

"Yeah, I will, you do the same too."

"I love you."

"I love you too, darling." She replied.

She exhaled deeply immediately she dropped the call.

 * * * *

Richard's mind remained disturbed immediately after he dropped the call. Whatever happened that made Stella talk that way was not a pleasant one." He thought as

he hastily round up his work for the day and head home straight.

 

"Babe, what's up? Are you okay?" He asked immediately Stella opened the door.

"Huh!  Fine." She said with a cunning smile, as he stroked his hand across her face to check if she was alright.

 "I'm fine."

"But the way you sounded on the phone made me worried. What happened?"

"Let's skip that for now, I'm sure that you must be famished now. Freshen up first and let's make dinner, then I'll explain what happened afterward."

"No, I don't want that, food can wait. I can't contain this curiosity any longer."

"Okay, fine. It's nothing to be paranoid about. I witnessed a murder case when I was coming back from work and it made me shocked down to my marrow."

"A murderer case?" 

"Yes, it happened when this man brushed against..." She uttered, giving him the details.

"My God! That's pathetic."

"Honestly, I'm still shocked. Just a slap and it traversed her to another world."

"Yeah, most people you see walking on the streets are walking dead. One slight altercation or rift between them can lead us into trouble."

"Yeah, deciding to walk away between fights does not mean you're a fool or nincompoop."

"Exactly, it's better to walk away."

"Phew! This is complicated." Stella exhaled.

"Yeah, let me go freshen up. Where are the kids?"

"They're in their room, I'm sure they didn't hear the honking of your car else they would have sprung out of their room."

"Yes, let me go check on them," Richard said heading towards the staircase.

"Okay then, tell them to come down for dinner while I set the table," Stella yelled.

"Okay, dear."