On the day Amy met Paul, the sun was scorching, but at the same time, thunder roared, and it was as though rain was fighting to escape the cloud and pour through. Amy had been waiting to see the marathon of “For Love and Justice”, a Telemundo Telenovella which she anticipated so much. About thirty minutes to the show, Amy went into her kitchen to make a quick noodle; that was when she realized that her gas had finished. She looked at the stove underneath the table where she placed most of her foodstuff; that stove had been abandoned for as long as she had lived in that apartment, and if she was going to use it, it would not be that day. She thought of borrowing gas from any of her neighbors but sadly, she had poor relationship with her neighbors, and because she knew that being neighborly should not come into play only in time of need, she decided to order for a plate of noodles from Nourisha, the only fast food in town she ate from because she believed their meals were fantastic, they always had some wonderful flavors from well incorporated seasonings, and their noodles were made perfectly, never undone, and never overcooked. She picked up her phone from her living room where it was charging, logged into Nourisha app and ordered for a plate of noodle with fried egg.
The first episode of “For Love and Justice” started and Amy was engrossed when she heard a knock on her door. That must be the delivery guy, she thought. She opened the door and beheld a hugely tall, muscular, dark skinned guy, with well shaved beards.
“Hi, you ordered for a plate of noodles from Nourisha” the guy said.
Amy looked down and she saw the package in his hand.
“Yes” she said.
“Here you go” he said, handing the package over to Amy.
“Sign here” he said, giving Amy a receipt and a pen.
At that point, the weather began to change rapidly, no one needed to read a weather report to tell that a heavy rain was coming.
“I have to rush back before the rain starts.” He said knowing that only teleportation would get him back to his destination without getting either drenched by the rain or swept away by the wind.
“Yes, sure” Amy said.
The delivery guy barely took one step away from Amy’s door when the clouds opened up and water escaped from its reservoir. He stepped back and said, “Can I just wait here till the rain is over?”
“Of course, you are welcome to stay.” Amy said, giving him a welcoming smile.
Amy let him into her apartment; he took a seat on one couch while Amy sat on another. While she continued with seeing her movie, she brought out the noodles.
“Care to join?” She asked.
He chuckled. “What kind of a delivery guy will I be if I ate from your noodle?”
“The type that partakes in his delivery” she said.
They both laughed. He sat still on the couch looking into the screen and not enjoying the drama it displayed. He needed something to occupy him, but he had left his phone behind; he then got busy with observing Amy as she ate; he admired that she ate calmly. He took note of her lovable plump stature. He looked around her apartment and noticed how well arranged everything was, he wondered what kind of a person Amy was and thought she was an independent lady who was overly principled.
When they both thought the rain was stopping, it increased. The satellite connection was interrupted by the bad weather and Amy could not continue with watching the telenovella. She finally looked towards the guy in her apartment for company and entertainment.
“Hey! The weather is pretty cold. Do you care for something hot?” she asked.
“No, I’m fine.” He said.
Amy noticed more closely his muscular bicep, broad chest, well carved beards, well arranged white set of teeth, and many more qualities that attracted her physically. She caught herself dreaming of sharing a kiss with him.
“I love the way you eat though” he said.
“Oh my God, you did not watch me while I ate, did you?”
“I didn’t just watch you, I observed you. I also observed how coordinated you are. If I may ask, and I hope I won’t be prying; what do you do for a living?”
“I work for the Government in the education sector. I’m a level 10 administrative officer.”
“That is lovely to hear. I’m Paul by the way. I work with Nourisha, doubling as a delivery guy and as a pastry chef.”
“You must be great in the kitchen.”
“People say that a lot.”
“I’m Amy”
“Nice name you’ve got.” Amy smiled on hearing that. They paused to pay attention to the rain.
“The rain is stopping. I have to go now before it increases the more.” He said, standing up. Amy stood up with him.
“Thank you for delivering my food.” Amy said.
“You forgot to make a comment about the food” Paul said.
“Oh! Yeah! I’m sorry; actually, I’m not. You’ll hear my comment tomorrow because I’m ordering another one” Amy said. They both laughed.
“Trust me; I am happy to hear that. Have a nice afternoon Amy and enjoy your movie, the connection will be back soon.” Paul said.
Paul left. Amy slumped into her couch wondering what it would feel like being close to Paul, getting to know him, sharing life experiences with him, placing her head over his broad chest, kissing his lips, having his hand run through her hair and body, having him make assorted snacks for her, and the thought of it all felt absolutely good.
Everything she saw in her dream came to reality, and it happened sooner than she had expected. The following day, she ordered for noodles and Paul delivered. She starred at him with sensual obsession and wished Paul would read meaning out of her stare.
“It’s not raining today so, I can’t stay” Paul said after he delivered the package to her and she had signed it off.
Amy wouldn’t say anything. She wished Paul would get her signal and invite himself in, and luckily for her, he did.
Their relationship kicked off from that day. They spent times together, indoor and outdoor. They talked at length, exchanged love texts, exchanged gifts. Paul was everything loving to Amy; he sent her snacks at work, called her every day, he was very observant of the tiniest details about her, and he gave her maximum attention. Their make out session were heated with passion, they shared long passionate kisses that it took careful attention to not bite off each other’s lips, and their bodies rocked over each other in an inseparable manner. Amy was obsessively infatuated with him. She valued his presence over anything. Paul was her idol; she adored him and believed he did the same too. Their relationship was three months old but Amy could have sworn that they had been together for over two years. Whether what she felt for him was true love, or infatuation, she loved how consumed she felt in it.
On their fourth month anniversary, Paul wanted to do something special for Amy. He went to her apartment few hours to her close from work, he brought with him a bottle of champagne and a few baking ingredients and tools; he wanted to bake a few cup cakes.
Amy was not aware of the surprise Paul was planning. When she returned from work, she was accompanied by one of her male colleagues. They stood at the entrance to the house and he hugged her tight for what would seem like an eternity to a lover. He pecked her on the forehead before leaving and Amy entered her living room. She perceived baking flavor from her kitchen; she walked in and saw Paul right there, standing, with a stern face, as though he was waiting for the enemy to walk right to him.
“You’ve been cheating on me with him.” He shouted angrily.
“I don’t understand a thing.” Amy said.
“I saw him, the guy was hugging you and pecking your forehead, and you fell right into his arms with maximum comfort”
“Jimmy is a friend and co worker. Yes, he loves me, and he has loved me for some time, but I don’t feel with him what I feel with you.”
“But you both hugged forever and he pecked you on the forehead and you stood right there like he was me.” He said, raising his voice to the uttermost volume.
“What is wrong with you? I do not know this part of you. I can’t deal with this right now, I just got back from work and I need to rest.”
Amy turned to leave. Paul’s anger and jealousy overwhelmed him; he picked up the spatula he used in mixing the cake and hit it twice on Amy’s head. The pain slowly dragged Amy to the ground; she started to bleed from her skull, soon, she passed out. Paul suddenly realized what he had done; he rushed Amy to the hospital where he faked a story that let him off the hook. The doctors observed Amy and noted that there was no brain damage or internal bleeding. Paul was highly relieved; he stayed by Amy’s side till she woke up. He had a long apology to render, and it might take long days or weeks, or months, or even never, before it is accepted.
Amy loved Paul and she knew she was going to forgive him, but then she realized that she did not know Paul at all. As a matter of fact, she had only seen two bad parts of Paul, his jealous and angry parts, and she definitely did not like that. She was yet to see what Paul would become when he was drunk, or sad, or in pain, or in loss, or heartbroken, or broke, or even rich. She then understood that until she had seen him react to different situations at different times, she would be yet to conclude that she knows Paul well enough. After this incident, Amy learnt that being consumed in feelings for a person, or spending so much time with a person is not enough to get apt knowledge of the person’s personality; she would live to remember that.