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Donald 'Donny' Iliamson had always been self conscious. Since his childhood, he had never quite fit in with the crowd. While in elementary school, he had been one of the dullest students in class, and whatever he lacked in academics, he definitely didn't make up for in sports, he sucked at everything he tried his hands on so much so that he constantly felt the word 'SUCKER' was stamped on his forehead for all to see.
He had been taunted, bullied and damn near abused due to his then scrawny figure, somewhere between all of that psychological and emotional abuse, he had learned to shut everything out, he numbed himself to the taunts, thereby becoming an introvert. All through Junior high and High school he had barricaded himself from every form of socialization, despite the changes he went through during puberty from a scrawny little boy to a tall, broad-shouldered hunk of a man, he hadn't let it affect his attitude. He paid no mind to the many advances of horny teenage girls who viewed him as just another stud whose virility ought to go through rigorous testing and consequent approval or otherwise. It was quite amusing that the same girls who were drooling over him in High school had been part of the bane of his existence all through Elementary and Junior High, laughing at and mocking him at every chance they got. His being a defender in the school's soccer team- and an extremely reliable one at that, had made him more popular than he wished to be, and with steady grades, he had managed to extricate himself from the roll-call of the dumbest students in class.
He had graduated as the fifth best student of his class, a feat that not only excited, but shocked some of his many relatives who had always envisioned a miserable, wretched life for him, or at most, a life as a trader in the fish market.
A month after his graduation, his father came home with the news that the entire family would be immigrating to the U.S.A, after he won a visa lottery.
Suffice it to say, it was with a large grin and a glad heart that Donny waved goodbye to his homeland and the source of all his psychological torture for seventeen years of his life as he, his father, mother, and little sister boarded the plane to the land of the free.
When he had first set eyes on /Kachi at baggage claim in the airport, his breath had hitched in his throat, she was only fifteen at the time, but damn it if he didn't think her the most beautiful creature upon the earth. He had watched her intently, noting the fact that she was trudging behind a man he assumed to be her father, and two huge guys he later discovered were her brothers.
She had looked so cute with them, her small frame dwarfed by their much bigger ones. He had admired her nice ass which was accentuated in a pair of blue, form-fitting jeans, and had ogled at her perfect breasts, which as at then hadn't reached their present size, and he had gotten a 'stiff' reminder that he was a man.
He temporarily left his family and went to introduce himself, with every step he took toward her, he marveled at the confidence that seemed to pop out of nowhere, back in Monaco, he would never have even considered walking up to a girl, but here he was doing something he hadn't thought himself capable of. He had stopped in his tracks, a few feet away from where she was when she turned and her eyes fell on him, he had suddenly panicked, wondering if that dorky part of him that was a constant repellant as far as other humans were concerned had resurfaced, in a tumultuous fit, he had considered turning around and recoiling into his shell, his earlier confidence gone like smoke, but his doubts were cleared when she gave him one of her heart-warming smiles and looked away, her angelic face was a sight to behold, trumping all other females within a mile. From that moment on, it was a done deal- Donald Iliamson was head over heels in love with Karachi Iloh .
That night, for the first time ever, he had masturbated to thoughts of Kachi and promised himself that some day, she would bear his last name.
Fast forward nine years later and he was nowhere near fulfilling that promise, time and time again, he had considered asking her out on a formal date, but he had allowed fears and uncertainty deter him from doing so. All through college he had gone everywhere with her, he had dam near stalked her, making known to every potential suitor that she was taken in a non-verbal manner, only two guys had been able to infiltrate his fortress, and he hadn't had to bother himself concerning them, they were out the door once they realized that Kachi didn't plan on giving up the 'goods' anytime soon, and he was a phone call away from giving them the bruise if they dared to try anything funny with her.
He had been by her side those four years, protected her when she felt threatened, cared for her when she was ill, comforted her when she was sad, laughed with her when she was happy, sacrificed his time just to help her complete a report before the deadline for submission, but most importantly, he had loved her even when there were no assurances that she would reciprocate the feeling.
Even while he was dating Matilda, he had felt like he was cheating on Kachi, the fact that his best friend was happy he had found some girl to occupy his time with instead of hounding her every chance he got had annoyed him. He had expected a different reaction, he had WANTED her to be jealous, make several tantrums to carry that message, he had wanted her to fight for him...
But who was he to want such from her when he never made any attempts to fight for her? What other way was there to prove that one was a true man apart from fighting for what or who he loved?
For seventeen years of his life, he had been given the emotional beat down by others, but for the past nine years, he had been the reason for his heart-break, his inability to voice out his feelings to Kachi for fear of rejection had resulted in constant self-pity, and Phi's poking had done nothing to ease that feeling...despite being grown, he couldn't help but think that all the emotional abuse he had faced from his peers when he was younger had contributed to his lack of confidence and his fear of rejection. It didn't matter how much money he made, how buffed he was, how handsome he was, he just would never be able to take away that feeling of not being up to par.
He looked at his reflection from his side-view mirror once more, he knew he looked smashing, but for Kachi- smashing was never good enough. It was their usual Christmas day get-togther, and by get-together, he meant a time for just himself, Kachi and Phi to eat a nice meal, dance to good music, call loved ones, goof off, watch the funniest comedies they could lay their hands on, and bid each other goodbye- or stay over, depending on how intoxicated they were at the end of the day.
With the outfit of choice ranging from casual to formal, depending on the preference of the 'host' for that year, they made it seem like some high-end party of the year...with friends, even the smallest things were viewed in a larger perspective.
This year's gathering was at Kachi's place, and the agreed upon outfit was formal. Dressed up in a suit Kachi had gotten him for his birthday, a white shirt and a red, slim tie to celebrate the season.
Satisfied with his appearance and with a large bowl of Brandamincium, a traditional Monegasque dish, in hand, he walked up to Kachi's apartment and gave a slight knock. It was the highlight of their get-together that each person share a traditional dish with the others, not only did it help them reminisce about the good times of their home country, but it also educated them on the foods of their different nations, so far, Donny could mention at least five different Nigerian and South African dishes, and confidently cook two from each list, but he had promised himself he'd learn more of Nigerian dishes to surprise and please Kachi when they were married...oh, the many unfulfilled dreams of Donald Iliamson.
The door was opened by Phi who had on one of Kachi's shirts and a pair of shorts, there was an apron tied around her waist to signify that they were still preparing the meals for the day.
She looked him over, noting how nice he looked in his suit in contrast to her under-dressed self, "Na wa o, na you dress pass." she commented in Nigerian pidgin, hanging with Kachi had taught her more than a few things...Donny too.
"I thought the agreement was formal, it's already ten, you guys should be dressed by now"
"We're women, we have to cook and do a lot of things in the kitchen before getting dressed. My Valentino dress won't look good with tomato splashed all over it" she replied as she made her way to the kitchen, "Kachi he's here."
"Finally, give him an apron, we'll need an extra hand to get this finished in less than an hour." Kachi said from the kitchen.
"Apron? I don't think aprons and suits go together." Phi replied
"Suit? What su..." Kachi didn't finish her sentence as she came out to see Donny looking suave and every bit a heart-breaker in the suit she had bought him, but never thought he'd ever wear. Donny didn't exactly like suits- or ties, or anything that had to do with an office, but she had gotten him one for 'emergency' purposes, some day he was going to upgrade his father's business to a million dollar venture, and he needed to look the part on the way to the top.
