Chapter 3 Where my Heart Belongs

I needed air.

The house felt like a cage filled with my father's silence and my mother's heavy sighs. Daniel wanted to sit with me, but I told him I'd be fine. I wasn't fine.

So I slipped out into the night.

The streets were dimly lit, the sound of crickets filling the silence. I walked without thinking, my mind replaying Andrea's cold words, my father's anger, and the threat of two weeks.

Then I saw him.

Ayo.

He was leaning against the old mango tree at the end of the street, hands tucked in his pockets, head tilted slightly as though he'd been waiting.

My heart skipped.

"Ayo," I whispered.

He smiled faintly, that familiar smile that made everything else fade. "I knew you'd come."

I frowned. "How did you know?"

"Because when the world is too heavy, you always run to the night." His eyes softened. "And to me."

I exhaled, stepping closer. "It's too much, Ayo. Everything. My father... Andrea..." My voice cracked. "They want me to marry him, just to save us."

His jaw tightened. "I heard."

"You did?"

"News travels fast when Andrea is involved." He looked at me deeply. "But you don't belong to him, Amara. You never did."

The words struck me, warm and sharp at once.

I shook my head. "What if I don't have a choice? What if-"

"You do." He stepped closer, his presence overwhelming me. "You always have a choice. And I'll stand with you, no matter what."

For a moment, the world fell quiet. The street, the debts, Andrea's threats none of it mattered. Only Ayo's eyes, steady and burning with something I'd always known but never dared name.

"You shouldn't," I whispered. "You know our families... they hate each other."

"Then let them hate," he said firmly. "I don't care about their wars, Amara. I care about you."

My chest tightened. "And what if Andrea finds out? He's not the kind of man who forgives."

"I'm not afraid of him," Ayo said, his voice steady. "The question is... are you?"

I couldn't answer.

His hand brushed mine, soft, almost trembling. "I don't want to force you. But I want you to know... I love you. I always have."

The confession hung between us like a secret only the night could hold.

My lips parted, but no words came. My heart was loud, too loud, drowning every thought.

"I-" My voice broke.

He leaned closer, his forehead almost touching mine. "You don't have to say it yet. Just... don't push me away."

Tears burned my eyes, not from sadness, but from the ache of wanting something I couldn't have. "Ayo..."

He wiped a tear that slipped down my cheek. "Shh. It's okay. We'll figure this out."

The world outside could crumble, but in that moment, with Ayo's hand warm against mine, I believed him.

For the first time that night, I wasn't afraid.