LUCK.

A new number!


'Argh!" I growl.

Who the hell is calling this early this morning?

I snatch the phone annoyingly, and after swiping up the receive button, I place it in my ear.


I am busy advertising my car for sale on Jumuia, and I hope whoever is calling is not disturbing anything. It better be worth my time, or else I won't think twice about hanging up on them.

"Yes, hello! Who is it?" I ask, still burying my face in my laptop. Things are turning out to be worse than I anticipated. I thought selling my car would be easy. But naah!


"Hello! It is me, Daniel. I said I would call this morning about the car sale."

That got me to abandon my advertisement job for a moment, my heart skipping several beats and raising anger. Why is this dog disturbing right now, huh?

I meant to hang up, but my mouth chose to betray me. Perhaps my desperation pushed me to the point that I am willing to hope even where there is no hope. "Yes, Daniel. Sorry, I just didn't have your number," I explain calmly.

'No worries. It is alright, miss Ellie. Can I drop by your house to finalize the deal?"

That tickled my every sense of being. I abandon the laptop, A lot of things going through my mind as his words echo with rebounds in my head.

Finalize? Does that mean he is buying? Well, I thought...

‘Stop thinking before changing his mind, Ellie.' My inner voice howls and I waste no more time. "Sure, Daniel. What time?" I ask, my heart thumbing up in its rib cage.

"Just now, miss."

His voice is calm. He does not sound flirtatious like he did yesterday, or maybe because we are on the phone. He sounds like a serious businessman today. What is up with his calmness today? I mean, he was all jerk yesterday. Or maybe he is pretending on the phone.

"Sure," I mumble, hopefully, but still keeping my glee at bay. People like him can't be trusted easily. But all in all, I am desperate, and desperate situations call for desperate actions, which is why I have to deal with them.

"Okay. I will be at your door in three," he says, and he is even serious enough to hang up the call for me.

He hung up, and I am pleased he did before the euphoric sigh came out. It's like luck has finally decided to pop up in front of me after a long, long while. I hope it is what this feels like; otherwise, I don't want to imagine what I will be if that jerk happens of be after wasting my time again. This is what I don't have.

I wait patiently, and if nervousness and fidgeting are considered signs of composure, then I am also so damn composed. Yeah, hell! I'm fucking nervous! That dog is coming to my house. Wait, he did not ask for directions? Nothing like a door number or something? I didn't take him to my house that day. How does he know?

About five minutes later, a gentle knock on the door stops my fidgeting. I concoct myself and sigh out my fears, then leap from the couch and dash to the door. It is him, the gross Daniel, but he does not look gross today. He seems serious. He is so different from the flirt, Daniel, that I met the other day.

"Hi. Welcome," I murmur, my eyes catching a glimpse of the small satchel in his hands. I even toss the worry of how he found out where I stay. That is not important at this moment. As long as he is here for what he promised, I fight, even forgetting to ask him if he knows my house.

"Thank you," he responds, still too calm for the Daniel I met yesterday.

What changed overnight? I invite him to sit across me in my small dining area, and he follows silently. He is not even giving me those annoying quizzical looks he was giving yesterday, and I appreciate that more.

Well, I am in need, and I know better than to stir some unnecessary shit. I play like nothing happened. Like, I was not cursing him just yesterday. I act like we just met, or like we have been this civil since yesterday. "So you made up your mind, Mr. Daniel?" I ask after we settle down.

"Yes, I did. I am taking it." He says this and rests the small satchel on the table.

Still, nothing suspicious. Or at least, nothing that I can point out. "Okay. So, where do we begin?" I ask.

"Here!" He encodes the small satchel and pushes it across me, a small smile flickering on his face.

I am tense, but I grab the seat anyway. My hands are wiggling as I open it, but the shaking stops when my eyes land on the badges on the notes inside it. I blink a couple of times, new hope creeping into me. I should blow up a hysterical laughter, but I calm myself, locking my glee in a safe place for the meantime. I cannot afford to show him just how pressed I am.

I maintain a straight face. "Down payment?" I ask, tossing my excitement aside.

"Yes," he replies.

Glory! Oh, yes! The doom is over.

"How much is it?" I ask, crossing the satchel.

"One million. You can count it to confirm," he responds.

I look at it carefully, turning the badges of piled notes one after another. Not counting, but just making sure that they are all original notes. I look at him when I am satisfied. "It is alright." He cannot con me at this stage, right?

"I will issue a check for $2 million, and the remaining $2 million I will pay in full once you have made the log book transfer," he explains.

Great! Fantastic! 3 million is a considerable amount to hold on to. "Okay. We can start the process right away. Right now, if you want," I mumble.

"I would love to, but I have a meeting in an hour. How about tomorrow? Will you be free? or any time that you are free tomorrow, I will make time."

I said this guy was acting too nice today. It is me who is in need. We should work according to his schedule, not the other way around. And again, where did the lust that had covered his eyes last night go? The flirtations? Was he possessed last night? He is weirdly portraying a very different portrait of himself today. But I love it this way.

"Anytime you are free, just give me a call," I mutter.

"Alright," He stands up, suggesting the need to leave, and I stand up too. "I will see you tomorrow then. I gotta go," he says, bowing slightly in respect.

I trust whatever angel is guiding him today. "Okay. I will see you at the door," I say.

I escort him to the door and hold the door for him. He walks out.

"See you," he mumbles.

"See you."