SHE TURNED on her flashlight and asked Tunde to follow her. Tunde got up and followed her upstairs.

The room upstairs felt darker than the one downstairs. Gold was a little scared to go inside, but with Tunde by her side, she felt less afraid.

She walked to the balcony and opened all the curtains and windows. The outside weather was quite cold, and as soon as the windows were opened, a cool breeze filled the room.

Gold: “See, the room will cool down in no time now.”

Tunde: “Wow… The weather outside is so chilly that we don’t even need the AC.”

Suddenly, lightning struck loudly and Gold got startled as she was standing near the balcony door.

She ran straight to Tunde, who had already started laughing.

Tunde: “And here you were saying you’re not scared of anything!”

Gold felt embarrassed seeing him laugh.

Gold: “You keep quiet! Such a Panla face!”

Tunde: “Liar!”

Gold: “I’m not a liar.”

Tunde: “And I’m not a Panla face!”

Gold: “Oh, but you are!”

Tunde: “Then you’re a liar too! Liar!”

Gold: “Ugh, go away! Stop annoying me!”

Tunde: “Fine, I’ll leave. Bye…”

Tunde knew Gold was afraid of the dark and couldn’t stay alone, so he pretended to leave the room.

Gold was already annoyed. She turned around, but seeing the darkness, she quickly ran back to Tunde and grabbed his hand.

Tunde stopped immediately and looked at her.

“Don’t go… Please…” Gold held his hand tighter.

She was terrified and Tunde could see the fear on her face. He gently held her hand back and reassured her,

“I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere. Don’t worry; just sleep peacefully.”

Tunde guided her to one side of the bed and sat on the

When Gold realized Tunde wasn’t leaving, she lay down and tried to sleep. Tunde also lay down, but he couldn’t sleep because he was used to sleeping with the AC.

After a while, he called out to Gold, but she was already fast asleep.

In her sleep, she turned towards Tunde but didn’t wake up.

Tunde kept watching her for a long time, thinking about the beautiful time they had spent together and how so many misunderstandings between them were resolved today.

He started feeling a sense of closeness with her.

“Man, I just can’t sleep and sitting here like this, ugh… I am bored… Looks like the rain has stopped too. Maybe I should go up to the terrace and take a quick walk; that might help me fall asleep.”

He was about to get up and leave when a thought about Gold crossed his mind.

“But if I go and she wakes up… No! The lights still haven’t come back. She’ll feel scared if she finds herself alone. I can’t leave her like this.”

Thinking about Gold, Tunde lay back down on the bed and tried to sleep again.

However, the inability to fall asleep was making him increasingly irritable.

Just as he was lost in his thoughts, Gold hugged him in her sleep, like he was a teddy bear.

Tunde was shocked—he had never been this close to anyone, not even Amara.

And here was Gold, hugging him as if they were inseparable.

Tunde tried to gently move her, but instead of moving, she hugged him tighter.

“Just look at her… she’s sleeping so peacefully and here I am wide awake… Man, this crazy girl… what do I do with her?”

After a while, Tunde gave up and lay there, letting her sleep like that.

“Man… this girl is stubborn even in her sleep, holding onto me as if I’m going to run away somewhere.”

Tunde thought with a smile.

After some time, feeling Gold’s warmth, Tunde also started to feel at ease and eventually, he too fell asleep.

But the next morning, when Gold woke up, they both…

To be continued in the next chapter!