**
Aria is a fine young lady. Smart and very innovative but an introvert to the butt._having being raised in a strict Christian home where the children are duly restricted from engaging in anything that would bring shame and disgrace to their family's name.
Aria grew up avoiding a lot of things especially the opposite sex as it was strictly forbidden. All these and many other rules to live by, left a lasting impact on her social life over time as she grew older.
At age thirty_Aria has zero to no social life experience as she gave little or no room for fun outside of her work at the Okoji's enterprise.
Not that she would have it any other way though!. Does she have female friends perhaps? One might ask.
Well the answer is yes! The closest thing to being called a friend in her life was her best friend Lizzy. They practically grew up together and went to the same university but are two polar bears.
Lizzy was fun and out going. Full of energy and ambitious to own one of the biggest fashion house in Lagos city even though she still far from achieving any of it. Even though they both live in the same city_They hardly ever find time to see each other and hang out.
For over six years, Aria had dedicated herself solely to her work. She had just two routines in her schedule. From work to home and home to work and back again._which kind of goes a long way to explain why she was still a virgin at thirty.
There was no room for anything else except family gatherings but definitely not fun. Fun was for Lazy and idle minded people and Aria was far too serious for such non profitable ventures.
Year after year, there was no significant changes in her life. No one to call her own and why would she? when all she does is hid her perfect figure in that horrible oversized piece of clothing she usually put on.
Her boss couldn't call her out on it so long she was doing her job diligently and staying invincible as well, then there was no need to stress himself over it.
Aria doesn't even have a boyfriend to bug her about her sense of fashion that were so ancient and ninety eighties. It was just she and her little apartment and working life.
A lot of male prospect saw her but never took notice of the beauty that lay within and it has always been that way.
A boy had once smiled at her in fourth grade but that was all there ever was because she replied with a frown and the poor kid never looked her way ever again._That was the closest interaction any male has ever had with her.
She wasnt exactly bothered about anything until something happened that struck a cord in her mind and changed everything.
It all started out with an invitation from her cousin who was finally tying the knots with her childhood sweetheart and since it was a family thing, everyone was required to be there.
She could still recall her aunt's words vividly like it was stuck on a replay in her head.
"Aaah ahn Aria, it's being so long I saw you_are you married now?" Her aunt Lucy had asked with an expectant look on her face while Aria fumble within herself for a reply.
"I'm not yet married aunt" she managed to answer with a forced smile.
"But you are engaged to be married soon right?" She pried further.
Aria half coughed and choked on nothing in particular as she looked to her cousin for help. Topics like this one are not her favorite and she knows exactly what her aunt could be driving at.
"Mom! Mom! Please,can you just stop already?Uncle John would have invited the whole family if she has don't you think? so quit asking her those questions" her cousin Zara_ the soon to be bride finally took the cue and stepped in to save her from her mom's unruly behavior.
But did that stop the old lady from pushing further? No!
"I'm sorry my dear but you should really give it a thought if you haven't done that already..." She leaned in closer to Aria and touched the nap of her chiffon blouse and adjusted it a bit before she continued with a smile.
"_when i was at your age, i already had my second child. To be honest?I really don't know what is keeping these generation from giving us grandchildren when time really wait for no one these days"
She ended with a dramatic huff and a gentle tap on her shoulder before moving over to adoring her daughter and ignoring Aria all together to mold over the words she had just said to her in silent.
Aria couldn't believe she made it through that very day with everyone preying at her private life. Why won't she be the topic of discussion when her socialite of a cousin has found herself a prince and was getting married already unlike her who was already above the marriage age.
Aria was six years older than Zara and she was getting married and it won't be long before she start having children while Aria on the other hand doesn't even have a boyfriend to call her very own_That fact alone was enough to get every eyes rolling at her direction.
After that day, she made a silent pledge to herself never to attend any family events again,at least not while she was still single.
Even though she had always lived by the rule; never looked at boys other than for the sake of it and never kept their companies either. She was still unmarried unlike what she was made to believe while growing up.
Their preacher wife at Sunday school always emphasize the need for one to keep herself for the right person and when at a marriageable age, the one meant for him/her would show up but none of that has happened in the last thirty years of her life.
What a dream!
She sighed and turned on her side with a deep scowl on her face as she lay on her bed that night_ feeling lonely and sad.
She has had a restless week, just thinking her life over, and after arriving at what seemed like the right thing to do. Aria finally decided it was time to go over the usual limit of being the perfect modern woman.
And having the courage to finally step out of her comfort Zone was the first step out of many as she had come up with a to-do list to guide her through while making sure she doesn't miss out on anything.
With all the things that needed to be done, turning in her resignation letter was topping the list of course and the sooner she gets it done, the better.
There was no going back!
Tomorrow will sure as hell be one to remember but whatever happens, she was willing and very determined to faced it come what may. She could already imagine her parent disappointment over the phone when they learn of her latest decision but her mind was already made up and there was no going back.
Aria read through her to-do list for what seemed like the hundredth time that night before a silly wide grin appeared on her face and she felt her tensed shoulder relax a bit.
Taking out a mask tape from her table drawer, she stuck the paper against her newly painted wall right where she would be seeing it as soon as she wakes up in the morning. Satisfied with her actions,She then proceeded to picking up her laptop and placed it on the bed in front of her before she began to type frantically at the keyboard.
Once she was done typing her resignation letter. She yawned and stretched before logging off from her laptop and placed it away at the night stand.She took off her lens and rubbed at her eyes a little before turning off her lamp stand. Stretching her full length on the bed, she sighed in exhaustion before drifting into a peaceful little snore.
Tomorrow is going to be a hectic day and she will be needing all her energy to keep up.
*Aria inhaled deeply through her nostrils and exhaled slowly as she stood contemplating her next move that morning.It was just 9am at the office and she was ready to go in and see her boss with her letter grasped firmly in one hand._only problem? She was starting to over think everything!Damn!Putting in the resignation letter turned out to be a lot more difficult than she had previously imagined it to be. She thought all she needed to do was go and slam it on his desk and walk out with her head held high but easily said than done right? So there she was pacing back and forth in total anxiety.Earlier at her house, she was confidently rehearsing the line she had come up with over and over again while looking at her expression in the mirror but now that the only thing standing between her and her boss was the glass door and her sudden development of cold feet.Huff!Another five more minutes and s
** Aria rushed out through the door before he would change his mind and try to stop her again and headed straight to her corner where her things were already arranged inside a small brown box to be carried away. She continued to pant nervously as she leaned against her desk, trying to steady her breath a bit. Straightening up to her full length with a new kind of fire burning in her chest. She picked up her box and turned to walk away and stopping only to say her final goodbye to her follow colleagues who were more than shock to hear about her decision before heading out. Once outside the building, Aria was beaming with happiness. She has never felt so free in her entire life as she continued to walk towards the direction of her car. Her feet was light on the ground as it hit each pavement outside in the garage. She was practically floating at that moment. Aria felt like a caged bird that has finally been set free to sore high
*This particular morning was just like any other in the Okoji's enterprise. The only difference was the overwhelming tension looming around in the air.There was no indication that something off the radar had happened in the company to put their boss in such a bad mood other than the departure of one of their favorite colleague Aria.Whispers and rumors seemed to be going from mouth to ears among the staffs, each wondering if the tension with their boss was because of Aria's departure from the company or something bad had happened and could make them loose their job as well.Some of them had rumored that she left because she was fired even though she has done nothing wrong while others were adamant on the fact that she left because she couldn't take his bossy attitude anymore.Some have always wondered how she was able to survive all those years working in such close proximity with someone as demanding as their
Aria's POV. ** *It took Aria exactly three days after the encounter with her mother before she finally summed up courage and spoke with her father over the phone again. Surprisingly enough, her father was rather understanding and patient while she tried to explained her reason for doing what she did without him feeling her reason are completely delusional. He only advised her against the consequence of her actions just in case she hasn't thought of it yet. He even asked that she travel home for a visit because it was obvious she was going through a rough patch in her life and needed her family to be there for her but Aria couldn't have it his way no matter how tempting that sounded like. She wanted to do things for herself this time without anyone advising or telling her what and what not to do. Going home to her family is totally out of the equation eve
** Aria drove all the way to the island where the bar is located. The bar happens to be a normal zone where people go out with friends to drink during the day but at night_it's a different ball game. Housing all the night crawler in Lagos who like to party from dusk till dawn. Aria had to park at the far end of the parking space due to how crazily parked the place was. She looked herself over in the rearview mirror, making sure her makeup was still in tact before she got down and adjusted her gown a bit before walking towards the entrance. Loud music was booming from inside as she proceeded further into the building. She retrieved her ID from her clutched purse and handed it to the bouncer at the door before she was allowed to walk inside. Aria took a deep breath to steady her mind the moment her eyes settled on the crowd of people scattered inside the slightly dim hall.
**"Miss Davis?" His voice resounded in her ears yet again and jolted her back to reality. Her eyes traveled from his face down to his fingers that were tightly wrapped around her wrist before settling back on his face again in disbelief. Aria was a nervous wreck at this point as they stood staring at each other. "How_how did you?" She began to stammer but he caught her off guard with a question of his own as he pulled her another step closer. "I should be asking you the same question Miss Davis but_" he paused and looked at her more intently and even sniffed the air around her. "Are you drunk?" He asked her with a frown before releasing his grip around her wrist. "Me drunk?" Aria had asked with a giggle and staggered backward, away from his intimidating presence but still close enough to smell his cologne.She could recognized it an
**Aria lay coiled up in this king size bed that was just so extra soft and comfortable, enveloping her in this warm bubble and luring her senses into a much deeper slumber. Speak of serenity. She snuggled closer into the warm duvet wrapped around her and signed in comfort before she quickly dozed off again. Fifteen minutes later, she was startled by a sudden movement beside her and was jolted a little but not enough to wake up as she only rolled over on her side and continued to sleep peacefully. Jezz... It wasn't long before she felt something poking her from behind and not withstanding, she scooted towards the edge and just kept sleeping_not willing herself to be bothered at all by whatever the heck that was. She was sure the world was still fast asleep for her to be awake. After all, she ha
** Not once did she look back or bother to listen to whatever he has to say next as she kept rushing out with quick steps. All she could think about was getting as far away from him as possible. Aria has been scarred for life!Fifteen minutes down the road and outside the building, she was seen waving down a taxi to get her home. It was already 7:30am and the sun was yet to crawl out of its hiding place giving her a chance to get home before her nosy neighbours does. Once she was seated at the back seat of the taxi, and even told the driver where she was going. She just leaned back against the side window not willing her mind to dwell on anything else. The last thing she remembered was Lizzy begging her to stay a little longer with her at the bar last night and nothing else. It was as if a thick dark fog was hovering around in her head and clouding her memory from peeping through.