Losing Everything to Gain You

  Losing Everything to Gain You

  A Lesbian Romance

  Vina Fenty

  Vina Fenty, 2020

  This Book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I owe a gratitude to my wife, whom I have not yet married at this point, but all fingers point to the fact that I will, very soon. Chioma, I love you so much and will never find the will to stop. You were my moral and financial support, and you also served as my editor and gave me beautiful ideas that I needed to make this story complete. Thank you.

  To Chinua, Chuba, and Chideziri, the thoughts of having you have kept me going and has pushed me to keep striving for the best.

  Also, a huge thank you to the women of Naijalez.com. To Hawken, Mena, Suavity, Chazbee, Dequeen. You guys were the first to read it, and the reception was crazy. Thank you for the award too.

  A big shout out to my Pepe, for moral support. To my family, thank you for having my back.

  Also, to Naya, for reading and encouraging me to publish this story. Remember, this is how we met.

  For Emem, and the girl she dared to love.

  TABLE OF CONTENT

  Acknowledgments

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  CHAPTER ONE

  It was a cold harmattan morning when I stepped out of my house. I ran my hands down my dress and tied the sash of my coat before I pressed the remote for my car. I got in and turned the ignition as I rested my head on the wheels while I waited for the usual time it took for my car to warm up for the ride.

  My life flashed before my eyes as I tried to remember who I was. I felt empty, lost, and the truth was, this wasn't me. I was just chaff, more like a walking dead, and everyone who knew me before could easily spot the difference. I had lost my essence a long time ago. Even though I had contemplated suicide many times, one thing always stopped me, still held me back, and I just ended up cutting myself in places I knew no one would see. The smell of my blood, the pain, the feel of the razor going into my skin meant that I wasn't dead, I was alive, and I would keep it that way for one reason, she had told me to wait for her and I would die waiting.

  I crossed the Lekki toll gate some few minutes later, and in another few minutes, I was at 'Destiny Tech' as we called it. The high rise building spotting the name 'Destiny Technologies' stretched into the sky proudly like an old oak tree. I parked my car at the lot and grabbed my handbag and laptop bag before finding my way inside the building.

  As I greeted the staff members that I knew on passing, I realized that something was off. There was a tension so thick in the air that I felt like I could cut through it. As I walked by the offices, I noticed that just like me, everybody was ready and packed. For many months now, the rumors had grown and spread like wildfire. Destiny Technologies was in financial crisis, on the verge of bankruptcy, and there were talks about shutting down. The rumors were validated when, for the first time since I had joined the company, our salaries were delayed for two weeks before payment. We all digested the news, and some of my colleagues had even started sending out their resumes. It would seem like the day was finally upon us.

  I walked briskly to my cubicle and, despite everything, buried my head in work. I still had a deadline to beat and an angry customer to satisfy.

  I quickly debugged the website, coding, and decoding. My fingers strummed on the keyboard of my computer like Mozart recording on his piano. I was so lost in what I was doing that I didn't notice Stacy standing beside me, staring into my computer screen.

  "You didn't win employee of the year for nothing, though," she said, smirking down at me. I was startled as I clutched my chest.

  "God! Stace, stop doing that."

  "Doing what?" she asked innocently.

  "Creeping up on me. What do you want? I have work to do," I replied, ignoring her antics as I found it exhausting.

  Stacy was a recently employed co- worker in the company and we were friends if you could call it that. She tried to annoy and infuriate me at any chance she got, but still, she was loyal to the letter T, and I sincerely cared about her.

  "So I guess you're ready to forge ahead. What would you do next?" she asked, leaning against the wall of my tiny space.

  I thought about her question and couldn't for the life of me figure out an answer. I was on autopilot, and I really didn't care what next happened to me, but at the same time, computers were the only thing that calmed me, I honestly loved my job.

  "Maybe look for another tech company and apply, I'm not good at anything else."

  "Why don't you stay at home and finally start a family with that handsome hunk of a man that is your husband. You have been married for two frigging years!"

  I was taken aback, stunned even, and I stopped typing and sat back to twirl my wedding band around my finger. I was married, but what about Tejiri?

  Everything turned and twirled before my eyes, and I started feeling faint and out of breath. I jumped up and shook the thoughts out of my head.

  "Excuse me," I said as I started to walk away from my cubicle.

  "Did I say something wrong? Well, just came by to tell you about the staff meeting at the hall in an hour, check your mail," she said to my back as I hurriedly walked into the bathroom.

  I stood at the washbasin and stared into the mirror. I wondered at the reflection staring back at me. Who was this person? On an impulse, I turned on the faucet to release a blast of cold water. I scooped it up with both hands and splashed it on my face. Water was magical, it was cleansing, and it brought clarity. Maybe it would give me some at this moment when I needed it. After the quick wash, I still could not recognize myself when I looked into the mirror again.

  Instinctively, my hands went up to my face, trying to measure the features, and a voice rang in my head, "you're beautiful, Amy."

  I remembered that voice, but I tried to shut out the body that went it. I did not want to remember, I did not want my mind filled with the familiar images. I couldn't help myself; I burst into tears because I could not shut her out and because I was angry that I couldn't shut her out. Again and again, I tried to wash the tears away, but the well wouldn't close. There were just too many of them.

  Fifteen minutes passed before I left the bathroom. Still red-eyed and sniffing, but I felt better. I knew I would be good as new in about an hour.

  I checked my email immediately and saw the message to be at the conference hall in an hour. I perused my cubicle once more for my personal effects, I didn't want to forget anything when I left finally by the end of the day. It was apparent by now that the meeting was a polite avenue for the Management to let us go.

  I would miss this place. It had been my first and only place of work since I left university. I had been green-eyed and hungry to work, clutching my first-class certificate from the University of Nigeria Nsukka in computer science. I could disseminate and assemble any computer in like twenty minutes. It was what I liked to do, and software applications, coding designing, and the likes were but a hobby for me. It was like drinking water, it was my language. Some people would refer to me as a nerd, but I wasn't, well, I wasn't until now. Now I was just a freak that Destiny Tech had accepted, trained, and built. I owed th
e company a lot, and in a way, I had worked very hard for the company, and my hard work had been rewarded accordingly.

  I shut down my company computer and arranged my bags neatly on my desk before I took off my coat and straightened my dress. I was always on time, and once I checked the time, I unplugged my mobile phone and quickly made my way to the conference hall.

  In the hall, I was one of the firsts. I take a seat at the front row to wait for the others. The room filled out one by one, and I saw Stacy walking towards me to take the empty chair next to mine. I cleared my throat and waited for her to sit.

  "I don't think this is going to play out the way we thought Amy," she whispered to me as I turned to look at her.

  What did she mean? I was going to ask her precisely that when the doors burst open, and the Management team walked in a file. Heads of department, Managers, bourgeois looking, suit-wearing professionals. They took their seats quietly, and soon the Human resource personnel was addressing us, "good day all. I want to thank the Management and everyone present here today. I am aware that you all have inkling as to what is going on. We didn't plan for this; neither did we wish for it to happen, but Destiny Tech is broke."

  A murmur erupted in the audience as our worst fears were confirmed. Even though we had guessed, a confirmation still sent chills down our spines. We were humans, and it was natural to hope for the best, now our hopes were dashed completely.

  "Calm down! She still has more to say," shouted our Manager, who tried to restore decorum. He passed the microphone back to the Human resource person once the crowd became quieter.

  "As I was saying, thank you, Mr. Jim, for that, Destiny Tech is on the verge of collapse after fifteen years of serving Nigeria. It isn't your fault, neither is it ours. Nevertheless, there is light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak," she said with a smile as she watched our reaction which, as expected, was tense and full of expectations. She continued," a giant tech company from California for no reason at all other than divine providence has decided to buy us out."

  Another round of murmurs and talk erupted as we all considered the implication of this. How could that be good for us? The first thing the new owners would do was to kick all of us out, they would want their people to work for them, only a few of us would get lucky if they were kind enough.

  "I understand your fears, but our new CEO should be here by now to address us. Trust me, she has good plans for us all," she said.

  We didn't want to believe her optimism at this point.

  “A woman? She would have us all out of here before the cock crows," Stacy scoffed.

  I, for one, didn't have any emotions to spare. I just sat there listening, assimilating, and waiting for the close of the meeting so I could know if to take on new clients or start submitting my resume again.

  The Management was still trying to calm us down when the doors burst open once more, and a group of well-dressed corporate sharks stormed into the hall in expensive suits and blazers. Everyone went silent as we took in the newcomers. If we thought our Management were bourgeois, then we were wrong.

  They came in with a presence, smell, and even a different atmosphere, and everything about the group screamed professionalism and class. I was one of the first people to scan them as a whole and take off my glance. I wasn't interested in the new owners or whatever.

  I yawned as I looked away. The Management of Destiny Tech was on their feet as the shuffling went on. Seats were assigned to the newcomers. I started to play with my nails as my mind wandered off to my happy place.

  "She is definitely the boss, see how she shines. My God! That hair, I already hate her, and I don't even have any reasons other than the fact that she is everything I want to be," Stacy said, bringing me back to earth.

  I whispered, "What?" as I tried to reel my mind back to the present. I was almost successful when I heard another voice on the microphone,

  "Good day, ladies and gentlemen of Destiny Tech, I stand in the shoes of my CEO as I address you all today. It is the dawning of a new day as these efficient and hard-working team hands over the affairs of this great company to our able care..."

  I did not pay attention to the rest of the speech, and I finally sat up after some good minutes had passed. I started to thoroughly assess the new owners, one after the other.

  Two Caucasian men sitting between two black men, a beautiful looking black American woman sitting next to...Tejiri!!!

  I sat straighter in my chair as I cleaned my eyes and shook my head as though that would help me see clearly. I was dreaming, I had finally gone mad. Tejiri? It couldn't be her. It wasn't the first time I had thought I had seen Tejiri. On the contrary, this happened at least twice every month.

  The last one had been at the supermarket last week, I had been shopping in the cosmetic aisle when I had seen a tall black girl with long hair and I had sworn it was her. She had been standing sideways to me, so I ran towards her screaming 'Tejiri.' The poor woman hadn't answered me at all. Only for me to get closer and realize yet again that it wasn't her, she was just a woman that had long hair, almost like Tejiri's.

  That encounter had set me back again, plunging me deeper into my black hole, and I hadn't even recovered. Yet, here I was, still conjuring up this image of Tejiri.

  I peeled my eyes off the well dressed, intimidating woman with long hair and turned back to the speaker, but that didn't last long. My eyes were back on her, and this time, I caught her eyes on me, sad big brown eyes, looking me over without cowering. She knew I had caught her in the act, but she didn't flinch. Our eyes met and locked as it dawned on me that it was her. It was Tejiri, the marks were still on her face. All the stories were in those brown eyes. I didn't have the physical marks to match hers as all of my scars were inside of me. Seeing her sad eyes took me to the past.

  **************************

  "You know what I like the most about you?'' Tejiri asked as she stroked my hair.

  It was on one of those school days when we lazy about in our beds. I thought of the question and then nodded in the negative. I really didn't have any idea what it could be.

  "There are so many things, but your eyes, they are like a window into your soul, and I can tell what you're thinking just by staring into them. You're beautiful, Amy."

  *******

  Tears filled my eyes as I sat there perplexed and stunned beyond belief that Tejiri was sitting right there, staring at me.

  The first tear dropped, and the second followed as I watched. Her eyes turned cold and stony, anger crept into the stares as she shot daggers at me. God! She hated me. She turned away from me finally, but I couldn't bring myself to stop looking at her.

  "Amy, you are crying, why is the boss bitch shooting daggers at you, you know her?" Stacy asked in concern.

  I never could bear anyone talking down on Tejiri. I replied fiercely in a voice I didn't even recognize as my own, "don't call her that ever again!"

  Stacy shrank back in surprise and looked me over.

  I cleaned my tears and finally tore my gaze away from the mirage I had conjured who felt real, my mind still not accepting that it could be real.

  "Wow! Easy tiger, I didn't realize you knew her," Stacy said as she turned to face the Management once more.

  I did not reply as I tuned in to the man still speaking.

  "...and I know you all are happy with everything I had said. Let me now give room to the CEO herself to say a few things," he said as he handed over the microphone to the black woman with the long hair.

  She held the microphone down for a few minutes, keeping everyone waiting and holding their breath. She was a vision of class and sophistication. Everyone in the hall was entranced and mesmerized by the halo of aura hanging just above her head. She cleared her throat and finally put the microphone to her mouth.

  "I am Oghenetejiri Akpore, and I am a black woman. This is not to speak of myself, but I started my first company from the ground in Texas USA some years ago. Today that single company is now a conglo
merate. The first thing I want to let you know is that you all are safe with me, no one who doesn't deserve it is leaving..."

  A roar erupted as everyone jumped up, clapping and catcalling. I just sat there processing the name. It was really Tejiri. I was sure that I was dreaming, Tejiri wouldn't appear in my life so easily.

  She continued once the applause died down, "the second thing I want you to know is that we are not changing the name Destiny Tech, and if for anything, I love the name Destiny. Destiny Tech will be a subsidiary of the mother company Teamy. You also need to know that I never break a promise."

  She said the last part with a hard tone, which I decided had been noticeable only to me as her eyes searched for mine and held it in a gaze full of the same anger as before. I shuddered as I implored her with my eyes, but she looked away immediately.

  "I had always wanted to do this growing up, own a technology hub because of a special person I once knew who loved computers like it was a living, breathing thing. Here I am today living my dream. I wouldn't be here for long as I have asked the former Management to stay on in the capacity they were all in before. Still, slight changes here and there, promotions, and all that will be made known to you as we move forward. This is what I do, buy, establish, stabilize, and move on to the next one. Hopefully, we would come to know each other better and form a lasting relationship. I would be having meetings with every department and depending on logistics, three months maximum, and I am out of here. There should be no panic. We are one, and Destiny Tech must thrive. Thank you."

  The audience gave a standing ovation and roar as they hailed the supposed Messiah. She leaned back in her chair with a smile plastered to that beautiful face. I was perhaps the only one sitting, and I managed to shuffle to my feet as the Management filed out once more. Once every one of them had left, the staff was left to their antics. There were tears, hugs, shakes, and lewd comments from the guys on how hot the new CEO was. I sat there thinking of everything that had just happened.