It was Friday the 13th.

To most people, that would count as an unlucky day, but that energy was nowhere near anyone associated with Amfo Visions. The final day before the grand performance had seen three full rehearsals of the entire play, with each one running smoothly. To say that Leslie was excited at the end of the third run would be an understatement; he was bursting at the seams with joy.

After a pep talk in which he thanked everyone for their hard work and urged them to relax and gather themselves for the next day, rehearsals came to an end, with everyone dispersing to duly get some rest.

Now it was evening, and as Sakyi steered his car smoothly through the evening traffic, his sister, Sekyeraa, was on the other end of a call, her voice brimming with excitement.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow oo! Hwɛɛ! I’ve told all my coworkers that my younger brother is in this ‘Beyond The Rain’ play. They’re all looking forward to seeing you in action!”

Sakyi chuckled, shaking his head slightly. “Eish, so now you’re my PR, eh?”

“Nanka! You think I’ll let this moment pass without hyping you up? Never!” she responded playfully.

He laughed. “Well, I appreciate it. Just don’t overhype me ooo. I don’t want too much pressure. This is my first play, so chale, lemme kill it first.”

“See him! As if he doesn’t love the attention!” she teased. “Abeg, I’ll overhype you if need be.

Sakyi smirked and shook his head.

“Anyway, are you getting my skincare products from Naa?”

“Yes, yes, I am,” he assured her. “I’m on my way there right now. I know how much you love them.”

“Ah, of course! Na do you see how my skin glows? Naa’s products diɛɛ, pure magic ooo,” she declared smugly.

Sakyi grinned. “No lies detected. I mean, Naa’s work in maintaining beauty for Ghana ladies is legendary. That’s why God keeps making her more and more beautiful each passing year.”

They both burst into laughter at that.

“Exactly! Naa is truly blessed,” Sekyeraa agreed. “Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t forget my stuff!”

“No worries, I won’t. Bye, Sekyeraa.”

“Bye, star boy!”

Sakyi hung up, still smiling, then exhaled deeply. His thoughts immediately drifted to Dufie.

Naa Torshie was beautiful, yes. There was no doubt about that. But to him, Dufie was the ultimate definition of beauty. No one could compare.

He drummed his fingers lightly on the wheel as he whispered to himself, “I can’t wait to make her mine again.”

***

The evening air was cool, carrying a soft breeze through the open doors of Crown & Glow. The usual sweet scents of citrus and shea butter lingered in the air. While Farida was stationed at the counter as always, with George seated not too far, his eyes fixed on the television screen above, Dufie was seated at a corner table with Naa Torshie, her hands wrapped around a cup of ginger tea that had long gone cold.

George and Farida had been visibly stunned when she walked in earlier, particularly the latter, as George obviously knew she was supposed to come by. The young assistant’s facial expression had been a mix of shock and curiosity, but aside responding to Dufie’s greeting, she hadn’t asked any questions, maintaining her usual quiet disposition.

Now, after what felt like an entire evening of spilling her heart out to her dear friend, Dufie sat in silence, watching as Naa leaned back in her chair, taking everything in.

Naa folded her arms and shook her head. “I get it now,” she finally spoke up. “You were in a bad place. You needed time. And honestly, I’m glad you’re getting the healing you needed.” 

Dufie let out a breath of relief. “Thank you for understanding.”

“I’m surprised she was that hard to deal with, though,” Naa went on. “I mean, every time I saw her back in the days, she was so sweet and lovely to me. Even to this day, if I pass by the neighbourhood and I get to see her, she’s always acting so sweet. Never would I have guessed she had that in her.”

Dufie sighed. “Yeah. This isn’t to say that she’s a terrible person, not at all, sis. I know she was really kind to you, and she is to a lot of people. But… I never got that share of kindness. It was just… pressure upon pressure to be a certain type of woman. And it left me drowning in this suffocating cesspool.”

Naa exhaled. “Hmmm, well, at least you say she seems to have accepted that. So I just hope things get better and better between you two.”

Dufie nodded. “Yeah, me too.”

A moment of silence reigned, before Naa spoke up again.

“But, Dufie, as much as I understand now, that doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt like hell when you disappeared on us. On me. On Sakyi.”

Dufie flinched at the mention of his name. 

Naa shook her head, her expression softening. “Dufie, I might have been hurt by your disappearance, but… in a way, what really stung is seeing how destroyed Sakyi was left by your exit. Especially with the message. Babe, that guy loved you. Like, it’s serious. The number of times he came here after you left, coming to sit in this very spot, just staring at the door and hoping you’d walk in… hmm, countless times. You can ask George how many nights he came here and just broke down crying, asking what he did wrong. Baby girl, sometimes I shed tears myself. Seeing him a whole mess. I mean, I understand now, you did what had to be done, and you needed to do it to save yourself, but that text…” 

Dufie sucked in a shaky breath, her vision blurring as tears welled in her eyes.

Oh, how the memory of that text had overwhelmed her! For the past couple of hours, in the secrecy of her room, she had mentally beaten herself up for it, wishing she could turn back the clock. She had no idea why this feeling had gripped her so strongly, but it just wasn’t letting go. 

“I know,” she whispered, her voice barely audible. “I know, Naa, and I hate myself for it. God, I hate myself for it. I wish I never broke his heart so callously. He never deserved it, he didn’t deserve it. And I dunno why, but I can’t stop beating myself up about it. I broke a wonderful guy for nothing. Naa, I hurt him. That was so wicked of me, so wicked…” 

Naa reached across the table, placing a hand over hers. “Baby, take it easy. I know you regret it now. But Dufie… you can’t change the past. You just need to move on. I dunno if you’ll wanna get back with him or something, coz from my end, I think he still loves you.” 

Dufie lowered her head, biting her lip as she fought back the sob building in her throat. She whispered, “And I still love him.”

Naa squeezed her hand a little tighter. “Are you sure?” she asked gently.

Dufie nodded, a tear escaping down her cheek. “I want him back, Naa. I want my man back. I miss him so much.”

Naa smiled, a hopeful glint in her eyes. “Then you should let him know how you feel. It might quench the guilt you feel inside.”

Before Dufie could respond, the door to Crown & Glow opened. 

And Sakyi stepped inside.

The two ladies turned and saw him. “A person and his name,” Naa murmured in Ga.

As Sakyi greeted Farida and George, he walked over to the ladies, grinning widely. “My beautiful cuzzie!” he called out to Naa.

Naa looked up, a smile already forming. “My gorgeous cuzzie!” she responded in their usual playful exchange.

Sakyi chuckled as his eyes landed on Dufie. She looked up at him, fighting back the tears that burned at the edges of her vision. “Hey,” she managed, her voice barely above a whisper.

“Hey,” he returned, his tone gentle yet kind. “Catching up before our big day tomorrow?”

She nodded gently.

“Nice, nice. Very necessary.” He then shifted his focus back to Naa. “I’m here for the goodies for my sis. You got them ready?”

Naa nodded and gestured to Farida, who reached beneath the counter and handed him a neatly packed bag. “Everything’s in there,” she said with a smile.

Sakyi took the bag and slung it over his arm. “Great. Thanks a lot. Well, I’ll be heading off now. Wanna get as much rest as possible for tomorrow.” He turned slightly towards Dufie and gave her a wink. “See you tomorrow, Rose.”

As he took a step toward the door, Dufie suddenly rose to her feet, her heart pounding.

“Sakyi, wait!”

He stopped instantly, turning back to face her. His brows lifted slightly in curiosity, waiting for her to speak. But the words wouldn’t come.

Her throat tightened, her breath caught, and the words refusing to break out.

“Uh… I-I… I-uh…”

Concern flickered across Sakyi’s face as he took a hesitant step closer. Everyone in the shop now stilled, their eyes now on her.

Before she could hold them back, tears began spilling down her cheeks.

Dufie let out a shuddering sob. “I’m sorry, Sakyi! I’m sorry!” she cried. “I feel awful… I feel so awful for breaking up with you like that… I was so heartless, so cruel.” Her voice cracked as the emotions poured out of her. “You are such an incredible man, Sakyi. The best man a woman could ever have. You didn’t deserve that. You didn’t deserve to be cut so deep.”

Her shoulders trembled as everyone was frozen in place. “I still love you so much, Sakyi… I never stopped loving you. But I’m sorry… I broke you, did you wrong, so wrong…”

Sakyi’s chest rose with a deep inhale. He looked at her for a long moment, as if processing every word.

Then, without hesitation, he gently placed the bag by the entrance, strode over to her, cupped her face in his hands…

…and silenced her with a deep, passionate kiss.

Dufie gasped softly against his lips before melting into him, her hands gripping his shirt as she kissed him back. The weight of pain, regret, and longing dissolved into the moment. Their hearts pounded in unison, their connection rekindling as if no time had passed.

When they finally pulled apart, their breaths were heavy, their foreheads resting against each other’s. Sakyi gently wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs.

“Forget about the past, Dufie,” he murmured. “It’s dead and gone now. What matters now is the reality before us. And the reality is, I never stopped loving you either. Not for one moment. And now that you’re back, and I know what was going on, nothing else matters. I don’t want you to keep that to heart; I’ve laid all the hurt aside. All I want is you back. I want my beautiful, delicious, incredible baby girl back.”

“Yes,” she agreed quickly, her voice still quivering. “I don’t want anything else. I just want my man back. That’s all. Forget the fanfare, forget the long stuff, I just want you back, Sakyi. I need you back in my life.”

A wide grin broke across his face. “And you’ve got me back. I love you, Dufie.”

“I love you too, Sakyi.”

The shop was filled with joy at that moment. As George clapped loudly, Farida wiped an emotional tear from her eye, and Naa beamed with pride, all three of them were beyond delighted to see a love that started in the shop, rekindled in the shop.

Sakyi and Dufie kissed once more, sealing the restoration of their love.

“Farida, close your eyes!”

“Oh, madam!”

Sakyi and Dufie briefly stopped to giggle. “Naa, I’ve told you, you have to leave Farida alone ooo!” Dufie joked. “She’s a big girl. And she definitely sees hotter scenes than this on Netflix. I dey lie?”

Farida smirked, avoiding her madam’s gaze. “No comment, please.”

Everyone laughed.

In that moment, all was right with the world.

Sakyi and Dufie, after months of silence and heartbreak, were now back together.

Yaaaasss!! They’re back together now! Now we can end this story on a sweet note…