Chapter 4

        A few days had passed since that memorable evening, and Fèmi and Shola had found the way to bump into each other on several occasions, as well as spending long hours chatting behind the screen of their telephones. Shola was an inexhaustible source of inspiration for Olufèmi. She had a passion for art and encouraged him to explore his own creativity, something he had never really done before. 

        Under her influence, Fèmi began sketching and painting small canvases, discovering a new world of expression. His life was no longer summed up in watching manga, films and series all day long. He now spent time researching and learning about art and creativity. At first, he did this more to please Shola, but as time went by, he became really interested and used every day to learn new things about art.

        Shola, for her part, had also begun to immerse herself in the imaginary world of reading, and she also took advantage of breaks at work to watch a few episodes of manga. Until a few weeks ago, she'd found this boring and childish, but since the two of them had been seeing each other, and each of them had shared their hobbies and interests, new habits had sprung up at home. Each of them was actually interested in what made the other happy, and they wanted to explore new horizons and get out of their usual comfort zones.

        One evening, while Fèmi was at home, his phone vibrated, indicating that a message had arrived. It was a message from Shola.

        "Hi Fèmi, how are you ? Would you like to have a chat tonight ?" Fèmi was in the kitchen, helping his mother cook tonight's dinner. He was cutting the tomatoes and preparing some vegetables when his phone screen lit up, revealing the notification and the contents of the message. 

        Delighted to receive the message, Fèmi quickly dumped the other products he had to wash into the water and took a cloth to clean his hands.

        He lifted his cell phone and quickly replied, "Hi Shola, I’m doing well and you ? Yeah, sure, I'd love to chat. Do you want to meet up somewhere, or can we chat over the phone ?"

        "It's a bit too late for us to meet up for a chat, I'd rather we write over here." Shola replied with amusing emojis. 

        "That's fine with me, even if you wanted us to meet at this hour, I could easily have escaped for you." Fèmi also responded with funny emojis.

        "Unfortunately, my prison here has a thousand exit doors. Of course, I should be happy to take advantage of them and escape, but I could quickly end up in solitary confinement if even the smallest percentage of my escape fails. So, thank you, I don't want to experience a traumatic escape movie." Shola sent, this time with teary-eyed emojis.

        She was in front of her computer preparing a file for the company she worked for. It was a bit stressful with all the paperwork, so she wanted to chat with her favorite painkiller, just to relax. "Tell you what, I finished the book you recommended last time. It was a bit sad at the end, but I loved the heroine's story. I think I'll put myself in her shoes for the next few days. From now on, call me Captain Black, the professional avenger."

        "Ha ha ha... I do have a better book for you that will fit your role as a witch."

        "Pass it to me quickly, please, Fèmi. I can't wait to start it."

        "Not so fast miss, will you offer me some new pencils in exchange ??! Ha ha ha ! Call me Captain F the bad guy from now on."

        "That's really mean of you, Fèmi. My poor precious pencils, owww... I'm not even going to give them back to you to do your beginner sketches with !" Shola sent with sick-looking emojis.

        "Ooh nooooo... Are you making fun of me !? But it makes sense little witch. When I'm able to make great drawings like you, I'll be able to boast of your pencils as my best teachers... I could put them up for auction if you like ! You naughty devil !" 

        "Oh, I was just teasing you Fèmi, don't take it the wrong way. Of course I'll gladly offer you new pencils if that's what you want. I too started with small beginnings and today I haven't evolved that much either." Shola sent with emojis all red.

        "Don't worry, I was joking too little witch. I don't need you to get me new pencils. I'll pass you the book as soon as we meet. I've got it in hard copy."

        "I'm delighted with it already. You can send me the name later, I'll look to read it on my own before I read the physical version at your place again." She sent with stickers sticking out their tongues.

        Fèmi had forgotten that he was supposed to watch what was on the fire and wash some vegetables too. Mrs. Jasmine, his mother, entered the kitchen discreetly after a few minutes absence when she'd gone to have a look at the sleeping baby.

        "You left the vegetables in the water, without washing them !??? Seriously ?!" Mrs. Jasmine patted her son on the back. "A few more minutes away and dinner would be burnt soup concentrate."

        "Sorry mummy, I had an urgent message to answer." Said Fèmi as he stepped away from his mother with a mischievous smile on his lips. He took a few steps back and stowed his phone in his pocket before scratching his back. The little pat had had its effect.

        "You've always had something urgent to do lately. The urgency in question, couldn't you tell her to hold on you're going to fall in love afterwards ?!"

        Fèmi laughed. "No, Mom ! What makes you think I'm chatting to a girl ?! Anyway, she's just a friend and I had a few things to settle with her. That's all there is... Look, it's done already." He lifted his empty hands to show his mother, then stepped forward to hug her.

        "Don't you dare touch me, you naughty boy !" Said his mother, gesturing as if she were trying to hit his hand with the large soup spoon. "You'd better take care of what I entrusted to you."

        "Right away, ma'am ! Aye, aye, my captain !" Fèmi made the soldierly gesture with a smile, then returned to the large bowl containing the vegetables to be washed. He cleaned them with the greatest possible delicacy, then set about washing the dirty dishes in the sink. Notification sounds echoed in his pocket. He'd rather be docile to his mother than offend her by always fiddling with his phone, despite the work he'd been assigned. His mother wasn't that harsh, but he loved his mother too much and showed her deep respect. Under no circumstances would he want to upset her.