Star-crossed - Episode 1

 

 So I know I said I quit n all buh since I have nothing to do this unending holiday at home. Plus I can't stop thinking about writing. I figured I should just write till school resumes.
It's not like what I usually write so I'll need your takes on this guys.

Raymond:

"So what's the plan." I nudge Stanley's side softly as we walk down the rocky path into town. You see, I'm actually spending the holidays here, much to my chagrin. I would much rather be in Lagos partying into the new year but my parents had other ideas. They left on the first plane out of Nigeria the very first day I came back from school. I had expected something else seeing as I brought home my convocation certificate. I was finally done with studying civil engineering in the University of Ibadan but my parents were just excited to have me back to watch my two sisters while we spend the holiday at Mom's sister's house in the village.
 I shake my head of my thoughts as soon as I see what Stanley is waving in front of my face. 
"Woah!" My eyes  widen in excitement while he shushes me theatrically before pushing the foil packets back into his pocket.
"Guy! That's..." I let the words trail with my mouth hanging low but my cousin just pushes his wrap of weed between my lips. I cough out a little of the smoke before blowing out the little I can.
"You're a twenty four years old graduate, man. You're getting laid tonight." He tells me. I nod slowly as I take a drag of the weed.
"Can you actually get us girls in this dump of a town?" I ask him.
"Oh this town might be a dump but you should check out the girls here, man. They're hot and so much easier to deceive than all those girls in school.." He says boldly and like every twenty four years old guy, I can't say no to the offer. Plus I think the weed is hitting harder than it should. How long has it been since I smoked this s*it? Last year's Christmas party at the club? Oh that night was more than crazy. I had an hangover for days. I brush off my thoughts and take another drag. It goes down the wrong pipe and I start hacking sickly.
"Give me that." Stanley pulls it from my fingers as he pats my back roughly.
"I'm fine. I'm fine. So, the girls? Where do we meet them?"
"Of course. Leave it to me. It's new year's Eve. Girls would be flocking around town tonight. Some drunk. It'll be easy."
"Really?" I chew the corners of my mouth in consideration.
"Look, I already arranged with one of my girl! She's supposed to bring a hot friend with her. Told her I'll introduce you to her friend. We should see her before the next street." Stanley throws the burnt out weed to the grass and takes my arm.
"Let's go. She'll be waiting by now. Come. It's almost six." He lets me go as he walks faster. My long legs help me keep his pace. That's until I see the young women standing by the next intersection. Not actually standing. One is looking up the road like she's waiting for someone while the other one is bent over a scattering of bush flowers.
"Stan!" The one who has been looking around calls out when she sees us and that's when the other woman stands to her full height.
  F*ck! She's beautiful. I stop in my tracks like I've been knocked out with how carefree the smile on her stunning face is. Both our eyes clash and I feel my heartbeat accelerate. Wait, am I having an heart attack? My hand goes up to rub my chest absentmindedly but our eye contact does not break. Wait is she Stanley's woman? Or the woman Stanley wants to introduce me to tonight? I eye her down and she's the opposite of her friend both in looks and dressing. Her flowing long skirt does  nothing to hide the wide curve of her hips and while her friend is a bit light in complexion, this woman is dark perfection. Her face is dimpled with a lingering smile on her lips. I wonder how deep the dimples will become if she smiles broader again. I don't even realize that I've stopped walking until Stanley nudges my side.
"Huh?"  The woman looks away from me and I have to shake my head to come out of whatever spell she's put me under. I relunctantly pull my eyes off her to glare at my cousin who's still nudging me.
"What?" I snap.
"I was introducing you. To the love of my life." He points to the other woman and I quickly put my hand out for a handshake with a relieved smile on my face. I guess I'm getting introduced to the dark beauty.
"Wooops" I grunt as I'm pulled into Stanley's woman's tiny frame for a tight hug suddenly, I freeze before she lets me go.
"Stanley! You didn't tell me your cousin is gorgeous! I'm Joyce." Her voice is so cheery, I can't help but like her with the easy smile on her face.
"Raymond." I introduce myself with a small wave.
"He's good looking." I hear her whisper not so silently to Stanley and I wonder why she doesn't introduce her friend. She's the one I actually want to know. I look to Stanley who has his hands in his pocket and he's saying something to Joyce. I guess I'm not getting an introduction until I ask her myself.
 I take two steps to get me closer to her and frown when she backs up one step.
"Hi, I'm Raymond." I put my hand out with the smile that always gets the girls swooning but this girl just eyes my hanging hand and takes another step back. I look back to Stanley and his woman but they are not not even paying any attention to us.
"Hey, don't worry. I don't bite. Just a handshake." I look back to her.
 One long step of mine closes the space between us and our hands unexpectedly brush against each other's. She lets out a sharp gasp as she leaps back from me. Her shocked expression turns into fright as she slips on a rock behind her.
"Hey!" I catch her frame to steady her before she touches the ground. With my arm securely around her waist, I cup a feel of her alluring hips. Her eyes go wide as saucers. We're so close but I think she's frozen. Our middle is pretty much plastered together and I watch her chest rise and fall rapidly.
"Comfort?" Joyce's surprised voice seems to get to her though because she's thrashing in my arm to release herself.
"Hey. Calm down. I just didn't want you falling on your ass. Let me see your face." The last part comes out unexpectedly. Her hair is all over her face and I go to brush them off when she slaps my hand away.
"I was just..." I try to explain but she huffs and with great force, pushes off my body. I stagger back and before I right myself on my feet, she runs off without a word.
"Comfort wait!" Joyce yells after her before entangling herself from Stanley who's laughing.
"I'm so sorry. I'll meet you at the town's fiesta tonight okay? Got to run. Bye Raymond." Joyce belts out to him.
"What's funny?" I ask Stanley, confused as hell as Joyce runs after the running girl.
"Comfort. She always cracks me up. Did you see how she just ignored you like you have some contagious disease? She's crazy, I swear she's f*cking crazy." He doubles over in laughter while I continue to stare after both girls.
"Maybe she's having a bad day or something?"
"No. No. You don't get it." He manages to get out of his laughter.
"Get what?" I frown at him absently before turning towards the road the girls took. By now, both girls are out of sight.
"The whole town thinks she's actually crazy. According to rumors, her mother committed suicide almost a year ago from a mental illness of some kind and Comfort, she's just on her way there." He laughs out like it's actually funny.
."No, that's awful. She lost her mother."
"That girl is crazy, man. Take it from me. She hasn't spoken a word to anyone since she was brought here eight months ago. Rumors say her mother used to see things that weren't there sometimes! Both of them are delusional."
"What?!." My head whips back to him so fast, I think I actually get whiplash. I've seen crazy people on the street, the beautiful girl I just met looks nothing like them.
"Nope. She's crazy. Yo, I would definitely have banged that one over her loud cousin if she wasn't crazy."  The words he just keeps saying, leave nothing but a bad taste in my mouth.
"That's enough, man."
"Yeah whatever. Come, we still have to get to the bar. We'll need enough alcohol to get us ready for the party tonight. That's where Joyce will be bringing the hot friend." I nod quickly, glad for the change in subject but truthfully, I can't help thinking of the fact that even though Comfort had seemed a bit odd running away from me like that, she couldn't really be crazy. Right?

So guys, what do you think about this episode
PS you guys can't possibly imagine how much I missed you all. The writing. The comments. The interaction. Everything. Feels like a long time Sha.